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Brawl, Standoff in Mexican Congress
"Our colleagues are going to stay there on the podium for the next 72 hours," vowed PRD national leader Leonel Cota.
Disputes over the July 2 elections are unlikely to go away. Lopez Obrador says he was cheated of the presidency by vote fraud, has declared himself the "legitimate president of Mexico," endorsed and led street protests and has refused to recognize or accept Calderon, whom he calls "the lackey" and "the spurious president."
  Mexican legislators fight near the podium of the Congress hall, interrupting a session in Mexico City, Mexico, Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2006, just days before President-elect Felipe Calderon is to be named president. Leftist lawmakers supporting his chief rival, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, took over the podium to protest Friday's inauguration of the business-friendly president-elect. (AP Photo) (Str - AP) PHOTOS |
On Tuesday, Calderon named Francisco Ramirez Acuna as his interior secretary, the government's No. 2 post in charge of domestic security and political affairs. The former Jalisco governor has been criticized for turning a blind eye as police detained dozens of protesters during an international summit in his state in 2004. In a report last week, the U.N. Committee Against Torture expressed concern about the arrests.
The U.S. Embassy said Tuesday that former President Bush will attend the inauguration of Calderon, who has promised to crackdown on drug trafficking and maintain close ties with the U.S.
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Associated Press Writer Kathleen Miller contributed to this report.
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On the Net:
President-elect Felipe Calderon's English-language Web site:
