Peace and prosperity in North America is best served not by giving Mexico’s new president, Enrique Peña Nieto, the benefit of the doubt, but by ramping up independent oversight of his actions and proposals. Otherwise, Mexico could follow the path of Egypt, where formally democratic elections have already given way to authoritarian politics under the leadership of Mohamed Morsi. In order to avoid such a scenario, U.S. civil society and the media need to resist the hype driven by Peña Nieto, who was inaugurated on December 1, and his allies in the Washington policy community and pay attention to what is really happening south of the Rio Grande. The hope for Mexico’s future does not lie in Peña Nieto, but in the increasingly self-confident and non-violent social movements that will be challenging him at every step.

via Mexico’s New President Is Off to a Troubling Start – John Mill Ackerman – The Atlantic.