Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum fired back at U.S. President Donald J. Trump over his cartel-related statements at the G7 Summit. Trump claimed that Mexico was under the control of drug cartels. In her retort to Trump, Sheinbaum claimed he was misinformed and tried to defuse the situation, saying she did not have to enter into a controversy each time he made a comment.
Sheinbaum’s comments came during one of her morning news conferences, when journalists from Mexico asked her for a response to Trump’s comments that she had lost control of her country and cartels ruled the land.
“He has said it before,” Sheinbaum said, trying to downplay the severity of the comments. “President Trump has his way of communicating … We don’t have to get hooked into every statement.”
She said her main concern was ensuring that the people of Mexico knew she and her government were working for them. “That’s what I care about,” she said.
When asked directly about the comment that Mexico’s government had lost control, Sheinbaum replied that it was not correct.
“He is not well informed, him,” Sheinbaum said. “I have told him personally; it’s not something I’m saying for the first time. The Mexican state exists, I told him the other day.”
Sheinbaum claimed that she has also spoken with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, who visited Mexico and spoke about cartels. Sheinbaum also praised her public security secretary, Omar Garcia Harfuch, who was the target of a cartel assassination attempt in June 2020 when Sheinbaum was the governor of Mexico City.
While various U.S. officials have praised Harfuch, Breitbart Texas has reported extensively on his dark past and alleged acts of corruption, including bribes and having favored one cartel over another for profit. Since taking control of Mexico’s security forces, Harfuch has largely focused on running a propaganda campaign based on hyping seizures and a few arrests to claim to be acting against cartels; however, criminal organizations continue to operate throughout Mexico with almost complete impunity.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart News Foundation. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com.
Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.