Felipe Calderón

This article is about the former President of Mexico. For the Filipino politician and historical figure, see Felipe Calderón (Filipino politician).
This name uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Calderón and the second or maternal family name is Hinojosa.
Felipe Calderon

President Calderón in 2007.
56th President of Mexico
In office
December 1, 2006 – November 30, 2012
Preceded by Vicente Fox
Succeeded by Enrique Peña Nieto
Secretary of Energy
In office
September 3, 2003 – June 1, 2004
President Vicente Fox
Preceded by Ernesto Martens
Succeeded by Fernando Elizondo Barragán
Leader of the National Action Party
In office
1996–1999
Preceded by Carlos Castillo Peraza
Succeeded by Luis Felipe Bravo Mena
Personal details
Born Felipe de Jesús Calderón Hinojosa
(1962-08-18) August 18, 1962
Morelia, Michoacán, Mexico
Political party National Action Party
Spouse(s) Margarita Zavala
Residence Cambridge, U.S. (as of December 2012)
Alma mater Free School of Law
Autonomous Technological Institute of Mexico
Harvard University
Religion Roman Catholicism
Signature

Felipe de Jesús Calderón Hinojosa GCB[1] (Spanish pronunciation: [feˈlipe kaldeˈɾon]; born August 18, 1962)[2] is a Mexican politician who served as President of Mexico from December 1, 2006, to November 30, 2012. He is a member of the Partido Acción Nacional (PAN), one of the three major Mexican political parties.

Prior to the presidency, Calderón received two master's degrees and went on to work within the PAN while it was still an important opposition party. Calderón served as National President of the party, Federal Deputy, and Secretary of Energy in Vicente Fox's cabinet. He served in the cabinet of the previous administration up until he resigned to run for the Presidency and secured his party's nomination.

The Federal Electoral Institute's official electoral results gave Calderón a tiny lead (less than 1% of advantage of the total votes)[3][4] above opposition leader Andrés Manuel López Obrador.[3][5] Calderón's victory was confirmed months later on September 5, 2006, by the Federal Electoral Tribunal.[3]

His presidency was marked by the ignition of the Mexican Drug War, which began almost immediately after he took office. He sanctioned Operation Michoacán, the first large scale armed exercise - 6,500 federal troops were deployed - directed against the drug cartels. By the end of his administration, the official death toll of the Mexican Drug War was at least 60,000. Estimates set the death toll above 120,000 killed by 2013, not including 27,000 missing. The murder rate skyrocketed during his presidency parallel to that of the ignition of the Drug War.

Personal background

United States President Barack Obama with the family of Mexican President Felipe Calderón in Mexico City on April 16, 2009.

Felipe Calderón was born in Morelia, Michoacán. He is the youngest of five brothers and son of Carmen Hinojosa Calderón and the late Luis Calderón Vega.

His father was a co-founder of the National Action Party and an important political figure. The elder Calderón occupied state posts and served a term as federal deputy. He spent most of his life working within the party and spent most of his free time promoting the PAN. The young Calderon was active in his father's campaigns. As a boy he distributed party pamphlets and flyers, rode PAN campaign vehicles and chanted slogans at rallies.[6]

After growing up in Morelia, Calderón moved to Mexico City, where he received a bachelor's degree in law from the Escuela Libre de Derecho. Later, he received a master's degree in economics from the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM) and a Master of Public Administration degree in 2000 from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.[7][8]

Following his father's example, he joined the PAN. It was in the National Action Party that Calderón met his wife, Margarita Zavala, who served in Congress as a federal deputy. They have three children, María, Luis Felipe and Juan Pablo. Calderón is Roman Catholic.[9]

Political and social views

To demands for detailed revelation of his personal positions on abortion, Calderón responded that he voted for life. Calderón's administration sought to maintain moderate positions on social policy and supported Mexican legislation guaranteeing abortion for rape victims, when pregnancy endangers a woman's life or in cases of severe fetal deformity;[10] has publicly advocated the legalization of small quantities of cocaine and other drugs for addicts who agree to undergo treatment;[11] and has approved a right-to-die initiative for ill patients to refuse invasive treatment or extraordinary efforts to prolong their lives.[12] As for his economic policies, he supports balanced fiscal policies, flat taxes, lower taxes,[13][14][15] and free trade.

Political career

President Barack Obama meets President Felipe Calderón

Calderón was president of the PAN's youth movement in his early twenties.

He was a local representative in the Legislative Assembly and, on two different occasions, in the federal Chamber of Deputies. He ran for the governorship of Michoacán in 1995 and served as national president of the PAN from 1996 to 1999. During his tenure, his party maintained control of 14 state capitals, but also faced a reduced presence in the federal Chamber of Deputies.

Soon after Vicente Fox took office as president, Calderón was appointed director of Banobras, a state-owned development bank. He was accused by political opponents of committing abuse, disputing use of certain legal procedures[16] to finance property valued between three and five million Mexican Pesos (between US$300,000 and $500,000),[17][18] however once political objections arose, he used other means to formalize his transaction.[17]

He joined the presidential cabinet as Secretary of Energy, replacing Ernesto Martens. He left the post in May 2004 in protest of Vicente Fox's criticism of his presidential ambitions while supporting those of Santiago Creel.

Members of his party chose him as the PAN presidential candidate. In a series of three primary elections, he defeated the favored former Secretary of the Interior under President Vicente Fox, and thus the election of Calderón as party candidate surprised many analysts. The PAN pointed to his competitive primary election as a sign of internal democracy. In other major parties, there was one candidate or all strong candidates but one were eliminated.

Calderón's campaign gained momentum after the first presidential debate. Subsequent poll numbers put him ahead of López Obrador from March to May; some polls favored him by as much as 9 percentage points. This trend in his favor was contained after the second presidential debate when López Obrador decided to start joining the debates. Final poll numbers days ahead of the results indicated that his opponent's prior lead had shrunk further; some polls gave López Obrador the lead, while others favored Calderón and still others indicated a technical tie.

Felipe Calderón with Vicente Fox Quesada

Presidency

Presidential styles of
Felipe Calderón
Reference style Presidente de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos[19]
"President of the United Mexican States"
Spoken style Presidente de Mexico
"President of Mexico"
Alternative style Señor Presidente
"Mr. President"

The Mexican Constitution states that the President must be inaugurated by taking the oath of office before Congress in the lower house, the Chamber of Deputies. The PRD opposition had threatened to not allow Calderón to take the oath of office and be inaugurated as president. Ahead of claims that the PRD would disrupt the precedings, the PAN took control of Congress's main floor three days before the inauguration was scheduled.

On November 30, 2006,[20] outgoing President Vicente Fox Quesada and still President-Elect Felipe Calderón Hinojosa stood side-by-side on national television as Fox turned over the presidential band to a cadet, who handed it to Calderón. Afterwards, Fox read a short speech indicating that he had concluded his mandate by receiving the flag "that had accompanied him during the last six years which he had devoted himself completely to the service of Mexico and had the utmost honor of being the president of the republic".[21] Calderón then made a speech to the Mexican public indicating that he would still attend the inauguration ceremony at the Chamber of Deputies. He made a call to unity.

Calderón was the nation's second democratically elected president since the PRI's uninterrupted 70-year rule ended in 2000. Calderón technically served as the nation's 36th head of state after the last Mexican emperor, but his moderate reforms, deal-making, and coalitions were a break from a line of widely varying leadership that avoided elections against their opposition and which included an extreme range of military dictators, reformers, populists, cronies placed by prior presidents, and technocrats.

Calderón's cabinet

Calderón Cabinet
Portfolio Minister Took
office 		Left
office
PresidentFelipe Calderón20062012
Secretary of InteriorFrancisco Ramírez Acuña20062008
Juan Camilo Mouriño*20082008
Fernando Gómez-Mont20082010
Francisco Blake Mora*20102011
ChancellorPatricia Espinosa20062012
Secretary of FinanceAgustín Carstens20062009
Ernesto Cordero20092011
José Antonio Meade20112012
Secretary of DefenseGuillermo Galván Galván20062012
Secretary of the NavyMariano Saynez20062012
Secretary of EconomyEduardo Sojo20062008
Gerardo Ruiz Mateos20082010
Bruno Ferrari20102012
Secretary
of Social Development		Beatriz Zavala20062008
Ernesto Cordero20082009
Heriberto Félix Guerra20092012
Attorney GeneralEduardo Medina-Mora20062009
Arturo Chávez20092011
Marisela Morales20112012
Secretary of Public SecurityGenaro García Luna20062012
Secretary
of Communications
and Transportation		Luis Téllez20072009
Juan Molinar Horcasitas20092011
Dionisio Pérez-Jácome20112012
Secretary of LaborJavier Lozano20062011
Rosalinda Vélez Juárez20112012
Secretary of EnvironmentRafael Elvira Quesada20062012
Secretary of EnergyGeorgina Kessel20062011
José Antonio Meade20112011
Jordy Herrera Flores20112012
Secretary of AgricultureAlberto Cárdenas20062009
Francisco Mayorga20092012
Secretary of EducationJosefina Vázquez Mota20062009
Alonso Lujambio20092012
José Ángel Córdova20122012
Secretary of HealthJosé Ángel Córdova20062011
Salomón Chertorivski20112012
Secretary of TourismRodolfo Elizondo20062010
Gloria Guevara20102012
Secretary of Agrarian ReformAbelardo Escobar Prieto**20062012
Legal CounsellorDaniel Cabeza de Vaca20062008
Miguel Alessio20082012
*Died in office
**Retained from previous administration

Foreign policy

A meeting of leaders of emerging economies in Berlin, coordinated by Felipe Calderón (center). From left to right: Manmohan Singh of India, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil, Calderón, Hu Jintao of the People's Republic of China and Thabo Mbeki of South Africa.

It was expected that Calderón would continue with the foreign policy started during Fox's term,[22] known as the Castañeda Doctrine, abandoning of the Estrada Doctrine. He was expected to mediate with 'free market' Latin American countries.[23]

Calderón had been a proponent of the Mesoamerican Integration and Development Project which was now merged with a similar funding and infrastructure project, the Puebla-Panama Plan (PPP),[24] started during the Fox administration. Calderón expanded the MesoAmerican Integration and Development Project / PPP, now including Colombia,[25] and an agreement of cooperation against organized crime.[26] Jorge G. Castañeda, Secretary of Foreign Affairs during the first half of Fox's administration and proponent of the "Castañeda Doctrine", suggested that Calderón's leadership and the Mesoamerican Integration and Development Project / PPP should be used as a counterpart to Hugo Chávez's leadership of left-wing policies in Latin America.[27] Calderón has stated that "the challenge (of the PPP) is to foster democratic practices with solid foundation in the region".[28]

Another landmark was the proposed Mérida Initiative, a security cooperation initiative between the United States, the government of Mexico and the countries of Central America, with the aim of combating the threats of drug trafficking and transnational crime.

International environmental policy

The Cancun Accord was a widely praised triumph credited to the deft handling by the Calderón and his team. [29] and received a standing ovation.[30] Along with hosting and chairing the Cancun climate accord that reached agreements on targets and reaffirmed the agreement on compensating developing nations for damage from climate change, Mexico earned the G-20's trust and confidence to preside over the group during 2012, including a summit in Los Cabos.[31]

Immigration reform

Felipe Calderón made immigration reform one of his main priorities, and in 2008 he and the Mexican Congress passed a bill decriminalizing undocumented immigration into Mexico.[32] He expressed his hopes that something be done to clear up the status of undocumented Mexican immigrants in the US.

Before meeting with President Bush in March 2007, Calderón openly expressed his disapproval of building a wall between the two nations.[33] After the U.S. Senate rejected the Comprehensive Immigration bill, President Calderón called the decision a "grave error."

Domestic policy

During his first months of governing, President Calderón took several actions, such as introducing the Tortilla Price Stabilization Pact and a cap on the salaries of public servants, described politically as "seeking to fulfill a campaign promise to incorporate the agenda of election rival Andrés Manuel López Obrador into his government."[34]

Calderón created the largest number of universities (96) in the history of Mexico.[35][36] He was also the only president who granted full coverage and a secure spot in elementary schools to children from 6 to 11 years old.[37] The Office of Social Aid for Victims of Violence, (in Spanish: Procuraduría Social para Víctimas de la Violencia) was created by him in 2011.[38] During Calderón's administration, more than 1,000 hospitals were created, and more than 2,000 were reconstructed and amplified.[39] During Vicente Fox's administration, only 40 million people had access to a public health care system.[40] Currently, more than 100 million Mexicans have access to their country's health care system due to Calderón's effort to implement a universal health care system.[41] Moreover, Calderón created more than 16,500 kilometers of interstate highways.[42] Calderón also dispatched military forces all over Mexico since the beginning of his presidency to put down the drug cartels and the increasing violence generated by the criminal organizations that fight with rival groups for territory.[43]

Health policy

President of Argentina Cristina Fernández de Kirchner (left) and Felipe Calderon

The administration's move towards universal healthcare coverage remains one of the most popular policies of the administration. He launched Seguro Popular to make this policy a reality. Through his policies, significant health infrastructure has been built and access expanded in many areas of the country, while the costs have been lowered significantly for many people to the point that many medicines have already been distributed free of charge.[44]

The 2009 Swine Flu epidemic struck Mexico and was labeled a pandemic by the World Health Organization. The administration declared a state of emergency and acted firmly in giving open information to the world about the swine flu epidemic, and it acted with tough measures to contain its spread by shutting down many public services including schools. President Calderón appeared on television explaining the situation and demonstrating basic precautionary measures to take during the epidemic such as coughing into one's elbow rather than into the air. Tamiflu and vaccines were used in 2009 and in 2010 during flu season, and some deaths were undoubtedly prevented by the strong measures that were taken as well as due to a reduction in the spread and severity of the disease. Policies keeping people home and awareness of effective strategies may have helped prevent virulent forms of the virus from spreading as easily as minor forms that were harder to detect and identify. Criticism of Calderón's handling varied from early claims that his administration was not doing enough to later claims that the administration had exaggerated the measures that it had taken.[45]

The Mexican Genome Project was initiated by Calderón's administration in part as a response to the swine flu outbreak and to safeguard the discovering of genetic markers that will better target and assist Mexico's 100+ million people in regards to prevention and treatment of diseases and other health concerns such as diabetes. A study on the efficacy of the project confirmed, according to Dr. Jiménez-Sánchez, that "It is not possible today to say genetic variation is responsible for the unique H1N1 Influenza A mortality rate in Mexico. However, knowledge of genomic variability in the Mexican population can allow the identification of genetic variations that confer susceptibility to common diseases, including infections such as the flu." "It will also help develop pharmacogenomics to help produce medicines tailored to people of a specific genetic group, to the creation of drugs that are both safer and more effective." Calderón commended the achievement: "The genomic map of the Mexican population is an essential contribution of Mexico to science and public health. This study represents an important landmark to develop genomic medicine in Mexico to improve healthcare of its population. I commend our National Institute of Genomic Medicine, INMEGEN, for such a significant milestone."[46]

Domestic environmental policy

Felipe Calderón's administration raised awareness of environment issues including deforestation and climate change through various policy measures such as planting over 8 million trees and attracting green-technology companies to Mexico. Mexico also achieved a significant reduction in deforestation.[47] This includes $2.5 billion investment in wind farms.[48]

Economic policy

The country's total GDP on a purchasing-power-parity basis is the 11th largest in the world as of 2011 and public policy now seeks to create quality jobs, reduce poverty and protect the standard of living of all classes. The administration has worked to attract investment, diversify the economy away from over-reliance on oil and the US market, upgrade infrastructure that has not kept up with the demands of the large economy, add jobs, reduce poverty, provide for a large middle class and reduce inequality. In keeping with its protection of the purchasing power of those least able to shield themselves through the use of financial instruments, the administration has succeeded in keeping prices and interest rates relatively low and stable even during the Great Recession and European debt crisis, while also avoiding the currency crashes of the 1980s and 1990s.[49] The Mexican economy has been growing more quickly than the US economy during all but one year of the administration, even as US growth has been sluggish.[50][51]

Infrastructure

The administration has accelerated the building of public works projects and allocated federal funds towards infrastructure such as roads and bridges as an investment in the country's future growth.

In 2012 the massive Baluarte Bridge was inaugurated, which speeds travel between Mazatlán and Coahuila and allows for faster access between Mexico's coasts. The Baluarte Bridge is so high that the Eiffel Tower could fit under its central span.[52]

Investment

Through investments in infrastructure and free trade agreements, the administration won investments from many auto companies that decided to build factories in Mexico and expand existing facilities and models produced in Mexico. Mexico has become one of the top auto manufacturers in the world and for two years in a row far exceeded the previous records of auto production and export.[53]

Mexico also has a nascent aeronautics and aviation industry and large electronics and consumer goods industries, all of which have been attracting significant investment capital and higher-value manufacturing for a skilled workforce. Heineken made significant investments in Mexico's beverage industry during this administration.[54]

Trade

Former Presidents Felipe Calderón and Lee Myung-bak in Mexico City; 2010.

In a move to expand new export opportunities that attract employment and diversify Mexico's crucial export sector away from excessive dependence on the US market, Mexico also expanded its trade accords beyond the US borders and sought to increase trade with the European Union, East Asia and Latin America. It was hoped that new infrastructure would help diversify Mexico's economy and improve stability in years to come. One new cooperative accord between major Latin American nations on the Pacific coast, called PaCiFiCa by the Economist, has helped to isolate the participating nations from some of the fluctuations stemming from the European debt crisis as it looks towards greater trade with Asian nations.[55] Mexico maintains positive trading relationships and trade discussions throughout the world so as to make Mexico an open economy with a growing number of trade opportunities for all regions of Mexico and aided by new infrastructure.[56]

Tortilla Price Stabilization Pact

The international price of corn rose dramatically throughout 2006, leading to the inflation of tortilla prices in the first month of Calderón's term. Because tortillas are the main food product consumed by the country's poorest,[57] national concerns over the rising prices immediately generated political pressure on Calderón's administration.

The president opted to use price ceilings on tortillas that protected local consumers of corn.[58] This price control came in the form of the Tortilla Price Stabilization Pact between the government and many of the main tortilla producing companies, including Grupo Maseca and Bimbo, to put a price ceiling at 8.50 pesos per kilogram of tortilla. The hope was that a ceiling on corn prices would provide incentive for the market to lower all prices nationally.

Critics argue that the pact was both nonbinding and a de facto acceptance of a maximum 30% increase in the price of that product (from 5.95 pesos per kilogram to 8.50 pesos per kilogram).[59][60][61] Some tortillerias ignored the agreement, leading to price increases well in excess of the 8.50 pesos.[62] Government opposition argued that this was an indication of the failure to protect the interests of its poor citizens. However, several major supermarkets, such as Soriana and Comercial Mexicana, sell the tortillas at a lower price than the one in the agreement – as low as 5.10 pesos per kilogram[63] – which is interpreted opponents to price controls as clear evidence that price controls and the Tortilla Price Stabilization Pact were unnecessary. Additionally, PROFECO, a consumer protection government organization, has also threatened with jail those tortilla producers who charge "excessive" prices.

Guillermo Ortiz, governor of the Bank of Mexico, labeled the agreement "a success" for consumers and urged for it to continue as means to combat rising inflation.[64]

First Employment Program

Fulfilling an electoral promise, President Calderón launched the First Employment Program, which aims to create new opportunities for people entering the job market. The program will give cash incentives to companies for hiring first-time job holders, including young people graduating from higher education and millions of women who have never worked.[65]

The program has been interpreted as an effort to stop immigration into the United States.[66] Immigration to the United States has been reduced, but many complex factors are involved including the US slowdown since 2008.

Reactions to this program have been mixed. The president of the Mexican Association of Directors in Human Relations, Luis García, has anticipated a positive effect and even showed Nextel's subsidiary in Mexico as an example for hiring 14% of its new workforce in 2006 as people in their "first employment".[67] Secretary of Labor Javier Lozano Alarcón has admitted that the program by itself will be insufficient to create as many new jobs as needed and has called for deeper reforms to allow for further investment.[68]

Public servants salary cap

President Calderón announced, on his first day as president, a presidential decree limiting the president's salary and that of cabinet ministers. The measure excludes much of the bureaucracy and public servants in the legislative or judicial branches. According to a Freedom of Information Act request filed by Reforma, the decree will affect 546 high-level government officials and save the government about US$13 million.[69] The opposition has stated that the 10% reduction in salary as not being comprehensive enough.[70][71]

Like his opponent in the 2006 election, Calderón also proposed laws that, if passed, would lower salaries for public servants in all three branches of government and impose a cap on compensation.[72] The proposal also includes measures to make the remuneration of public servants more transparent and subject to fiscalization.[73]

Security policy

President Calderón and President of Brazil Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva with members of the Mexican Army in the background.

Despite imposing a cap on salaries of high-ranking public servants, Calderón ordered a raise on the salaries of the Federal Police and the Mexican armed forces on his first day as president.

Calderón's government also ordered massive raids on drug cartels upon assuming office in December 2006 in response to an increasingly deadly spate of violence in his home state of Michoacán. The decision to intensify drug enforcement operations has led to an ongoing conflict between the federal government and the Mexican drug cartels.

On January 19, 2007, Mexico captured the leader of one of its seven major drug cartels, the Diaz Parada gang, five weeks into an army crackdown on narco gangs. Mexican soldiers and federal police jointly arrested Pedro Diaz Parada, whose cartel has operated across southern Mexico, on Tuesday in the southern city of Oaxaca, a spokeswoman for the attorney general's office said.[74]

The next day, in a controversial move, the government announced the extradition to the United States of several drug gang leaders.[75]

The Mexican government has also ordered Mexican soldiers and Federal Police into several cities, most notably, Tijuana and Ciudad Juárez. In Tijuana and also Ciudad Juárez, the army ordered that all local police officers surrender their weapons, as it is suspected that many officers have ties with drug cartels. Other states where actions have been taken include Michoacán, Tamaulipas, Tabasco, and Guerrero.

In a January 2007 interview with the Financial Times, Calderón said, "We have received very encouraging results. In the state of Michoacán, for example, the murder rate has fallen almost 40 percent compared with the average over the last six months. People's support in the regions where we are operating has grown, and that has been very important. Opinion polls have confirmed that, and I think we have made it clear to everyone that this issue is a priority for us".[76]

On April 9, 2007, the Secretariat of Defense announced in a report the results of the first four months of Calderón's presidency: the capture of 1,102 drug dealers, the seizure of about $500 million pesos, 556 kilograms of marijuana, 1,419 military grade weapons, two airplanes, 630 automobiles, and 15 sea ships that transported drugs, and the destruction of 285 clandestine runways, 777 drug camps, 52,842 marijuana farms and 33,019 opium poppy farms.[77]

On December 16, 2009, the Mexican Navy killed Arturo Beltran-Leyva, a once important drug trafficker.[78]

The government is relatively successful in detaining drug lords; however, drug-related violence remains high in contested area along the US border such as Ciudad Juárez, Tijuana, and Matamoros. Some analysts, like US Ambassador in Mexico Carlos Pascual argue that this rise in violence may be a direct result of Felipe Calderón's military measures.[79] Although homicide rates in Mexico from 2000–2007 showed a general decline,[80] now Mexico is considered to be among the top ten countries with the highest homicide rates.[81] Since Calderón launched his military strategy against organized crime in 2006, there has been an alarming increase in violent deaths related to organized crime, "more than 15,000 people have died in suspected drug attacks since it was launched at the end of 2006."[79] More than 5,000 people were murdered in Mexico in 2008,[82] followed by 9600 murders in 2009, 2010 was violent, with over 15,000 homicides across the country.[83]

2011 showed higher homicides and 2012 shows a similar rate as 2011, with 2012 also being a Presidential transition year and a year with high security spending nationwide it could indicate a temporary pause or a plateau in violence. Each of the last two years homicides were in the 20,000 to 27,000 range.[84]

Approval ratings

Speaking during Latin America Broadens Its Horizons, a session at the 2007 Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum.

According to a poll by Grupo Reforma taken from February 16 to February 18, 2007, Calderón's approval rating was 58%. In this poll, Mexicans interviewed give President Calderón and his actions a score of 6.6 out of 10. He is best rated in his actions on issues related to health and reducing drug trafficking (60% and 59% approval respectively), and worst rated on domestic and foreign policy (33% approval each).[85]

A poll by Ipsos-Bimsa shows a change in Calderon's approval rating at 57% in November 2007.[86]

In June 2008, Calderon's approval rating jumped to 64% before slipping to 62% in September.[87]

According to a March 2010 poll by GEA-ISA. 45% of respondents approved of their president's performance, down seven points since November 2009 polling at 52%.

Polling firm Buendia & Laredo released a survey showing President Calderón's approval rating at 54% on May 9, 2011.[88]

On February 27, 2012 a poll by El Universal showed a 58% approval rating with only 11% disapproval, a decrease in concern for security from 48% to 33% polled listing security as the top concern facing the government, 42% say things have improved in Mexico since Felipe Calderon's administration, 21% said things have stayed the same, while 34% said things have gotten worse.[89][90]

Grupo Reforma's poll published between 22 March and 26 March 2012 noted that Calderón had an approval rate of 66% among 1,515 people.[91]

Consulta Mitofsky published a study on 23 August 2012 which concluded that after 22 trimesters the approval of Felipe Calderón fell to 46%.[92]

Controversies

Post-election controversy

On July 2, 2006, the day of the election, the Federal Electoral Institute (IFE) announced that the race was too close to call and chose not to make public a large and well-designed exit poll. However, as the preliminary results of the unofficial PREP database made clear the next morning, Felipe Calderón had a small lead of 1.04%.[93]

The IFE called on the candidates to abstain from pronouncing themselves as winner, president-elect, or president. Both candidates disobeyed this call. First López Obrador declared that he had won the election, and soon thereafter Calderón proclaimed victory as well, pointing to the initial figures released by the IFE.[94]

On July 6, 2006, the Federal Electoral Institute announced the official vote count in the 2006 presidential election, resulting in a narrow margin of 0.58% for Calderón over his closest contender, PRD candidate Andrés Manuel López Obrador. However, López Obrador and his coalition alleged irregularities in a number of polling stations and demanded a national recount. Ultimately, the Federal Electoral Tribunal, in a unanimous vote, declared such a recount to be groundless and unfeasible and ordered a recount of those with supportable allegations, or about 9.07% of the 130,477 polling stations.[95]

On September 5, 2006, even when the Federal Electoral Tribunal acknowledged the existence of irregularities in the election, Calderón was, after the change of the votes of two of the magistrates,[96] unanimously declared president-elect by the tribunal with a lead of 233,831 votes, or 0.56%, over López Obrador. The electoral court concluded that minor irregularities without proof were insufficient to invalidate the election. The ruling was mandatory, final and could not be appealed.[97]

On December 1, 2006 despite the PRD's plans to prevent Calderón from taking office, the inauguration in front of Congress was able to proceed. Hours before Calderón's arrival, lawmakers from the PRD and PAN parties began a brawl,[98] in which several representatives threw punches and pushed, while others shouted at each other. PRD representatives shouted "Fuera Fox" ("Out with President Fox") and blew whistles, while PAN representatives responded back with "Mexico, Mexico." Minutes before Calderón and Fox walked into Congress, the president of the Chamber of Deputies announced a legal quorum, thus enabling Calderón to legally take the oath of office. At 9:45 am CST, all Mexican media cut to the official national broadcast, where commentators discussed the situation and showed scenes inside the Palace of the Chamber of Deputies, Palacio de San Lázaro. At 9:50 am CST, Calderón entered the chamber through the back door of the palace and approached the podium, where he took the oath as required by the Constitution.[99] After the anthem, opposition continued to yell in Spanish "Felipe will fall." PAN representatives shouted back, "Sí se pudo" (Yes, We did it!).[100][101] At 10:00 am CST, the official broadcast ended, and most stations resumed their programming.

As the inaugural ceremony was transpiring in Congress, López Obrador led a rally of supporters in the Zócalo. Many supporters marched down Reforma Avenue toward the Auditorio Nacional, where Calderón would address an audience of supporters after his inauguration. The rally was stopped by a wall erected by the Federal Police.[102][103]

U.S. espionage scandal

On July 10, 2013, Mexican newspaper Excelsior ran an article on its website revealing that the Calderón Administration, authorized on February 2007 the installation of an interception system by the United States Department of State to analyse, process and store phone calls, e-mails and other internet services with the purpose of helping Calderon administration to fight the organized crime and narcotraffic, in the context of the Mérida Initiative.[104] The scandal remained largely ignored by the Peña Administration even though several newspapers and news websites revealed in September 2013, that the president itself, Enrique Peña Nieto, was spied by the National Security Agency while he was presidential candidate.[105] On 21 October 2013, it was revealed[106][107][108] by Der Spiegel, that the NSA had spied Calderón and other cabinet member e-mails. That same day Mr. Calderón tweeted that he had personally spoken with the actual Secretary of Foreign Affairs, José Antonio Meade Kuribeña, to "help him" transmit his most energic protest to the espionage he was subject, and later that day, Calderon tweeted that far more of a personal damage, it was a grievance to the Mexican institutions and that he would not make further statements on the theme.[109]

Mexican journalist, Raymundo Riva-Palacio criticized, (On his columns of October 21 and October 23), the privileges given by the Calderon administration to American intelligences agencies and billateral cooperation in general, and wrote: "...It can be argued that Washington mocked him and betrayed him...".. Mr. Riva-Palacio wrote that American intelligence agencies coordinated field operations and even interrogated the detainees before Mexican authorities could do their own. According to Mr. Riva, this privileges led to the illegal spying which enabled American intelligence agencies make a map of the Mexican political world, which, (according to him), is demonstrated in many documents where the main concern is the political stability and future of Mexico, and the subsequent spying carried on Mr. Peña while he was running for office. He then criticized Mr. Calderon request to Mr. Peña to investigate the spying carried on his e-mail and his cabinet members e-mails and declared that Calderon should have done that when the first allegations of illegal spying came out in 2009-2010.[110][111] On October 22, 2013, CNNMéxico published on its website that Calderón avoided sending sensitive information through his e-mail, to outsmart spies, and when realized phone calls with other cabinet members, spoke in code.[112] On October 23, 2013, the Secretary of the Interior, Miguel Ángel Osorio Chong, announced that by presidential mandate, a profund investigation would be carried on the illegal spying done towards Calderon.[113]

Orders, awards and recognition

By Mexican Law, any title of nobility in Mexico is legally banned. However, Calderón has accepted them as a courtesy to the foreign governments.

Ancestry

References

  1. ↑ Avala Pleno permiso al Presidente Calderón usar y aceptar condecoración del “Caballero de la Gran Cruz en Grado Honorario de la Honorable Order of the Bath"
  2. ↑ "Felipe Calderón". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 2008-06-09.
  3. 1 2 3 http://www.te.gob.mx/documentacion/publicaciones/informes/dictamen.pdf
  4. ↑ es:Elecciones federales en México de 2006
  5. ↑ http://www.theguardian.com/world/2006/jul/04/mexico
  6. ↑ "Emerging Leaders: Felipe Calderón Hinojosa | Thomas White International". Thomaswhite.com. 2011-09-27.
  7. ↑ Doug Gavel (July 7, 2006). "Alum is Apparent Winner of Presidential Election in Mexico". Harvard KSG. Retrieved 2008-06-09.
  8. ↑ "Felipe Calderón" (in Spanish). Biografías y Vidas. 2012.
  9. ↑ "Catholic family meeting circles wagons around traditional family". AFP. January 14, 2009. Retrieved 2009-06-23. Mexican President Felipe Calderón, a self-described devout Catholic conscious of the fact that five million women head single-parent households in Mexico, said a compromise was needed.
  10. ↑ Castillo, Eduardo (May 22, 2007). "Clerics Unite Against Abortion Bill". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2009-07-07. "Current Mexican law permits abortions only if the pregnancy endangers a woman's life or if the woman has been raped [...] 'I have a plain respect for dignity and human life and, within this, I believe the existing legislation is adequate'.
  11. ↑ "Mexican senate passes right-to-die bill". AP/Sydney Morning Herald. November 26, 2008. Retrieved 2009-07-07.
  12. ↑ Roberto Garduño (October 1, 2006). ""Regresiva e ilegal", propuesta fiscal de Calderón". La Jornada (in Spanish). Archived from the original on June 9, 2008. Retrieved 2008-09-06.
  13. ↑ Archived September 27, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
  14. ↑ Jorge Octavio Ochoa (February 9, 2006). "Centran candidatos ofertas en educación y empleo". El Universal (in Spanish). Retrieved 2008-09-06.
  15. ↑ Katia D'Artigues (July 25, 2003). "Dice Felipe que siempre no". El Universal (in Spanish). Retrieved 2009-05-28.
  16. 1 2 Erasmo Fernández de Mendoza (2007). Conjuras sexenales (in Spanish). Ediciones B – México. ISBN 9789707103047. OCLC 191761164. Retrieved 2009-05-28.
  17. ↑ Reyes, Mariusa (July 2, 2006). "La jornada del "candidato anticipado"" (in Spanish). BBC Mundo. Retrieved 2009-06-23.
  18. ↑ Constitución Política de los Estados Unidos Mexicanos, Art. 80. http://www.diputados.gob.mx/LeyesBiblio/pdf/1.pdf
  19. ↑ James Hider (December 1, 2006). "Mexican Inauguration Erupts into Fistfight". The Times (London). Retrieved 2008-06-09.
  20. ↑ Rosa Elvira Vargas (December 1, 2006). "En Acto Castrense, Calderón asume el Poder Ejecutivo". La Jornada (in Spanish). Retrieved 2008-06-09.
  21. ↑ "Mexican Rivals Have Different World Views". Fox News. June 26, 2006. Retrieved 2008-06-09.
  22. ↑ Archived September 8, 2015, at the Wayback Machine.
  23. ↑ Mexican summit set to relaunch Puebla-Panama Plan
  24. ↑ Mexico’s Calderon gives life to Puebla-Panama Plan
  25. ↑ Se comprometen países del PPP a enfrentar juntos el crimen organizado by Milenio Diario
  26. ↑ Plan Puebla-Panama by Jorge G. Castañeda as published in El Norte.
  27. ↑ El gran reto para la región es cimentar las prácticas democráticas, dice Calderón by Milenio Diario
  28. ↑ Climate Accord | Brookings | December 14, 2010
  29. ↑ Climate change treaty | ABC | December 15, 2010
  30. ↑ What to Watch in 2012 A Leading Multilateral Role | LatIntelligence
  31. ↑ http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/mexico704/history/timeline.html
  32. ↑ http://cbs2chicago.com/national/topstories_story_072061210.html
  33. ↑ Patrick Harrington (January 23, 2007). "Calderon Proposes Cap on Mexican Government Salaries". Bloomberg. Retrieved 2008-06-09.
  34. ↑ "LA INAUGURACIÓN DEL EDIFICIO DE LA UNIDAD DE DOCENCIA 2 DE LA UNIVERSIDAD POLITÉCNICA DEL ESTADO DE MORELOS". Presidencia de la Republica. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
  35. ↑ "Mensaje con motivo del Quinto Informe de Gobierno". Gobierno Federal. Retrieved September 4, 2011.
  36. ↑ "Hay cobertura universal en educación primaria: FCH". La Silla Rota. Retrieved September 4, 2011.
  37. ↑ "Calderón anuncia una "procuraduría social" para víctimas de violencia". La Prensa. Retrieved September 4, 2011.
  38. ↑ "Mas de mil hospitales nuevos en el pais: Calderon". Argonmexico.com. 29 June 2011.
  39. ↑ "Destaca Calderón logros en materia de salud". Novedades Acapulco. 28 June 2011.
  40. ↑ "La salud no sólo es para ricos: Calderón". Milenio Noticias.
  41. ↑ "Afirma Calderón que construyó más carreteras que Salinas y Zedillo". Excelsior. August 5, 2011. |first1= missing |last1= in Authors list (help)
  42. ↑ "President to send more troops to northeastern Mexico". CNN. February 19, 2011.
  43. ↑ Mexico to have universal healthcare | Lexis-Nexis Global Insight | November 8, 2011
  44. ↑ Swine flu outbreak declared public health emergency | Los Angeles Times | April 26, 2009
  45. ↑ Landmark Study Reveals | Science Daily | May 12, 2009
  46. ↑ Mexico Reduces Annual Deforestation 34% | Yahoo News AP | Sep 7, 2011
  47. ↑ Mexico wins $2.5 billion investment in new wind farms | Reuters | Jul, 2011
  48. ↑ | Presidencia.gob.mx | October 13, 2011
  49. ↑ GDP Growth | World Bank
  50. ↑ Mexico's Economy | About.com
  51. ↑ Baluarte Bridge in Mexico is world's highest cable-stayed bridge
  52. ↑ Mexico Sets Auto Production Record in 2011 | Latin American Herald Tribune
  53. ↑ Heineken in Deal to Buy a Big Mexican Brewer | New York Times | January 11, 2010
  54. ↑ The Pacific Players Go To Market | Economist | April 7, 2011
  55. ↑ Chile, Peru, Colombia, and Mexico confirm economic alliance | LDFN | December 6, 2011
  56. ↑ La tortilla: golpe a los pobres en México
  57. ↑ Calderon signs accord to contain tortilla prices "The accord limits tortilla prices to 8.50 pesos ($0.78) per kilogram and threatens prison sentences of up to 10 years for companies found hoarding corn."
  58. ↑ Impugnan diputados política económica y social de Calderón
  59. ↑ El Porvenir | Local | Protesta ONG por alzas
  60. ↑ Reprueba Martí Batres ''incremento disfrazado'' al precio de la tortilla – La Jornada
  61. ↑ mercados,finanzas,economia,fondos y cotizaciones – Invertia
  62. ↑ PROFECO, "Quien es quien en los precios / Tortilla" Soriana 5.10 (pesos per kilogram of Tortilla), Comercial Mexicana 5.80 (pesos per kilogram of tortilla), Chedraui 5.90 (pesos per kilogram of tortilla).
  63. ↑ Mexico central bank urges renewal of tortilla pact, on Yahoo! News
  64. ↑ President kicks off job initiative "The National First Job Program will give cash incentives to companies for hiring first-time job holders" ... "Calderón said that in addition to young people, the program is aimed at helping millions of women who have never worked."
  65. ↑ Mexico starts effort to slow immigration
  66. ↑ Prevén impacto positivo con Programa del Primer Empleo, El Universal, "El Programa del Primer Empleo tendrá un impacto positivo en la generación de nuevas plazas laborales porque es un incentivo para las empresas, aseguró el presidente de la Asociación Mexicana de Dirección de Recursos Humanos (Amedirh), Luis García.", and, "Ejemplificó que Nextel contrató casi mil 300 personas durante 2006, de las cuales alrededor de 14 por ciento fue de nuevo ingreso y "tenemos pensado un crecimiento similar para este año pero con este beneficio", se podría incluso duplicar el número de personas en su primer empleo."
  67. ↑ Insuficiente, el programa del primer empleo, reconoce titular del Trabajo La Jornada, "El titular de la Secretaría del Trabajo y Previsión Social (STPS), Javier Lozano, admitió que el programa del primer empleo es insuficiente para satisfacer la demanda laboral del país", and "el funcionario agregó que lo que se requiere es elevar los niveles de competitividad del país y atraer más inversiones..., por lo que hizo un llamado a todos los actores para ir a favor de las modificaciones a la ley laboral vigente que no sufre cambios desde 1980."
  68. ↑ mercados,finanzas,economia,fondos y cotizaciones – Invertia
  69. ↑ El proyecto, copia descafeinada de las propuestas de AMLO: priístas – La Jornada
  70. ↑ Tendencioso Decreto de Calderón para reducir salarios | REVISTA FORTUNA Negocios y Finanzas | Diciembre | 2006 |
  71. ↑ Calderon Proposes Cap on Mexican Government Salaries "Mexican President Felipe Calderon asked Congress to cap salaries for government officials after issuing an executive order cutting his own pay."
  72. ↑ Initiative to Reform Articles 73 and 127 of the Constitution of Mexico (In Spanish)
  73. ↑ "Mexico captures Diaz Parada drug cartel leader". Reuters. January 18, 2007.
  74. ↑ Mexico vows to keep fighting drug trade "A day after Mexico extradited four top drug kingpins to the U.S., Mexico's top security officials denied that the extraditions were a result of U.S. pressure"
  75. ↑ Financial Times Interview transcript: Felipe Calderón
  76. ↑ Sedena: cayeron mil 102 narcos en cuatro meses Milenio Diario, April 9, 2007.
  77. ↑ Christian Science Monitor
  78. 1 2 AFP: US ambassador warns of more Mexico violence: reports
  79. ↑ List of countries by intentional homicide rate Wikipedia
  80. ↑ "MĂŠxico, entre paĂses con mĂĄs homicidios" – El Universal – MĂŠxico
  81. ↑ Más de 5.000 asesinatos en México en lo que va de año
  82. ↑ Charles Bowden on "Murder City: Ciudad Juárez and the Global Economy’s New Killing Fields"
  83. ↑ KPBS article of Mexican drug violence
  84. ↑ (Spanish) Primera Evaluación al Presidente Felipe Calderón (requires subscription), by Grupo Reforma
  85. ↑ , Apoyo a Calderón.
  86. ↑ "Calderon's approval rating". Reuters. September 1, 2008.
  87. ↑
  88. ↑ Mantiene el presidente aceptacion | El Universal Red Politica | February 27, 2012
  89. ↑ Felipe Calderon retains his popularity | McClatchyDC Mexico Unmasked | February 27, 2012
  90. ↑ "Encuesta de Reforma revela aumento en aprobación de Calderón". ADN Politico (in Spanish). 2 April 2012. Retrieved 3 April 2012.
  91. ↑ "FELIPE CALDERÓN: TRIMESTRE 23 (Ago/12)" (in Spanish). Consulta Mitofsky. 23 August 2012. Retrieved 25 September 2012.
  92. ↑ "Preliminary Results". IFE. July 3, 2006. Retrieved 2008-06-09.
  93. ↑ Archived July 26, 2011, at the Wayback Machine.
  94. ↑ Jorge Herrera, Arturo Zárate (August 5, 2006). "Precisan recuento: 9.07% de las casillas en 149 distritos". El Universal (in Spanish). Retrieved 2008-06-09.
  95. ↑ Fernando Ortega Pizarro (October 18, 2006). "Dos árbitros electorales cambiaron su voto". El Universal (in Spanish). Retrieved 2008-06-09.
  96. ↑ "Felipe Calderon Declared President-Elect of Mexico". Fox News. September 5, 2006. Retrieved 2008-06-09.
  97. ↑ Archived June 8, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
  98. ↑ "Schwarzenegger In Mexico For Chaotic Calderon Inauguration". KCRA.com. December 1, 2006. Retrieved 2008-06-09.
  99. ↑ "Calderon becomes president amid heckling from opposition". Monsters and Critics. December 1, 2006. Retrieved 2008-06-09.
  100. ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20090108101158/http://www.latimes.com:80/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-mexico2dec02,1,2007839.story?page=1&cset=true&ctrack=1&track=crosspromo&coll=la-headlines-world. Archived from the original on January 8, 2009. Retrieved February 26, 2007. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  101. ↑ James C. McKinley Jr. (December 1, 2006). "Calderón takes oath as Mexico's president". International Herald Tribune. Retrieved 2008-06-09.
  102. ↑ http://web.archive.org/web/20080608183645/http://www.latimes.com:80/news/opinion/la-ed-televisa16dec16,0,4158778.story?coll=la-opinion-leftrail. Archived from the original on June 8, 2008. Retrieved February 26, 2007. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  103. ↑ Lara, Paul (9 July 2013). "Mexico reached deal to allow U.S. espionage in 2007". Excelsior. Retrieved 28 October 2013.
  104. ↑ "U.S. spied Peña Nieto while candidate, (In Spanish)". Brailia (AFP). CNNMéxico. Retrieved 28 October 2013.
  105. ↑ "U.S. spied Calderon's e-mail: Der Spiegel, (in Spanish)". El Universal. 20 October 2013. Retrieved 28 October 2013.
  106. ↑ Lara, Paul (21 October 2013). "Calderón allowed espionage and was spied, (in Spanish).". Excelsior. Retrieved 28 October 2013.
  107. ↑ "Der Spiegel reveals that NSA spied Calderon e-mail, (In Spanish).". CNNMéxico. Retrieved 28 October 2013.
  108. ↑ Calderón, Felipe. "Felipe Calderón Twitter". Retrieved 28 October 2013.
  109. ↑ Riva-Palacio, Raymundo. "The betrayal of Calderón, (In Spanish)". Zocalo Saltillo. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
  110. ↑ Riva-Palacio, Raymundo. "Looking for the "Etat", (In Spanish).". Zocalo Saltillo. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
  111. ↑ "Peña on espionage: What I have to said I alredy said, (In Spanish).". CNNMéxico. CNNMéxico. Retrieved 28 October 2013.
  112. ↑ Quiroz, Carlos. "Peña-Nieto ordains an investigation on the spying done by the U.S., (In Spanish)". Excelsior. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
  113. ↑ Boletín Oficial del Estado
  114. ↑ Boletín Oficial del Estado
  115. ↑ Manila (12 March 2016). "Felipe Calderón (Mexican)". Ethnicelebs. Retrieved April 6, 2016.

External links

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Party political offices
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Carlos Castillo Peraza		 Leader of the National Action Party
1996–1999 		Succeeded by
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Political offices
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Vicente Fox		 President of Mexico
2006–2012 		Succeeded by
Enrique Peña Nieto
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