Lowbrow Landau: Deputy Secretary of State's Embarrassing Rage Tweet
Take that man's phone away! In the latest episode of Soberanía, a triggered Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau goes full rage-doxx against a MORENA party official, President Sheinbaum attends the G7 in Calgary, Kurt and José Luis reflect on the Iran-Israel conflict, and an update on opposition to the ICE raids in the context of the "No Kings" protests . The show concludes with a reflection on the need for Mexico to view its migrant communities in their own situation and context, avoiding two-dimensional stereotypes, and in a new segment, the "People's Mailbag," illustrate this with two precise reflections on the migrant issue.
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57:31
The Border Crossed Us: LA Rises Up Against ICE
As the Tigres del Norte song goes, “I didn’t cross the border; the border crossed me.” In today’s episode, Kurt and José Luis analyze the latest developments in Los Angeles, as Mexican communities resist the abuses and kidnappings of ICE, Mexican flags are waved throughout the conflict area, and Trump seeks to turn the screws ever further. The provocations spill over into the diplomatic front, as DHS Secretary Kristi Noem accuses President Sheinbaum of promoting violent protests in the city based on a far-right Youtuber and an out-of-context quote. We also cover the drop in remittances from the US to Mexico, the Supreme Court’s rejection of Mexico’s lawsuit against gun manufacturers, and, in Losers and Haters, bad-faith tweets by the new ambassador and those who would echo him in the Mexican media.
¡Tómala! On Sunday, June 1st, Mexico went to the polls to elect the entire Supreme Court and half of the federal judiciary (the other half will be elected in 2027). Kurt and José Luis will have the full rundown of this historic step forward in bringing democracy to a branch riddled with corruption, nepotism, obscene privileges, and collusion with oligarchies domestic and international. Sunday also saw local elections in the states of Durango and Veracruz: our hosts will parse through those results and discuss what implications, if any, they have at the national level. And in Losers and Haters, our own cull of the worse takes on the judicial elections - not very hard to find, it must be said.
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57:54
Calderón's Former ‘Top Cop’ on the Hook for Billions
Brother, can you spare $2.4 billion? In a coup for Mexico's Financial Investigation's Unit, a Florida court has found Felipe Calderon's former Security Minister and his wife guilty of embezzling funds from the state. Kurt and José Luis have the full rundown of what it means and the precedent it sets. Also, the dissident sections of the federal teachers' union, known as the CNTE, are out on strike: how to handle labor actions under a progressive government? We'll have the nuanced, contextualized discussion you won't find anywhere else in English. And this coming Sunday, June 1st, Mexico will make history by holding its first-ever judicial elections. In two waves, Mexican voters will be electing not only the Supreme Court but the entire federal judiciary, and conservative voices in and out of the country are up in arms. Finally, in a collective "losers and haters," a compilation of voices calling to boycott these very elections, continuing an anti-electoral streak for the Mexican right which also includes the nation's first referendum in 2021 and the recall election called by AMLO in 2022 in fulfillment of a key campaign promise.
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54:53
The CIA’s Man in Mexico: Ron Johnson Arrives as Ambassador
Sounds like a Graham Greene novel, but it’s real: Trump’s Green Beret/CIA ambassador has arrived to take up his post as US ambassador to Mexico. And his first day in the country was…interesting. Kurt and José Luis analyze the implications of such a dark figure pulling the levers in the new embassy building. And on the very day the ambassador arrived, Propublica reporter (and DEA frontman) Tim Golden was back with another piece of conveniently timed mercenary journalism. Our hosts also discuss the mysterious crash of the Mexican armada’s tall ship against the Brooklyn Bridge, which killed two cadets, and conclude with an extended losers and haters in which Simón Levy tries to piggyback on Golden’s tired game of innuendo with wild accusations of López Obrador being sued in US courts.
Soberanía: The Mexican Politics Podcast brings you news and analysis about Mexico from a grassroots and leftist perspective, helping English-language audiences better understand the country, its politics and players.
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