Reforma, Mexico City, December 14, 2022
By Mayolo López
Senator Ricardo Monreal, head of the Morena caucus, in casting his vote against the "Plan B" of the electoral reform, as promoted by President López Obrador, defended it as due to the legislation's unconstitutional character.
MV Note: Morena is the Movement for National Regeneration, founded by current President López Obrador, aka AMLO, in 2014. With its overwhelming victories in the presidential and congressional elections of 2018, it is now the predominate political force in Mexico. AMLO dominates the party and virtually no one disagrees with him, let alone over his major legislative assault on the National Electoral Institute.
He said,
"I want to clarify that (this vote) is a strictly a personal matter. It does not involve the congressional caucus in which I participate. It is a matter that leads me to assume full responsibility for it, including the outcomes, the consequences of whatever this results in. This is how my life has been, both publically and politically. It has never been easy for me to make decisions."
In the opinion of the senator, who gave his vote from the podium, the package of six laws
"seriously violates the Constitution, taking into account established doctrine, the jurisprudence, the general principles of law. I affirm and maintain that some of the laws that may be approved tonight can distance themselves from constitutional principles."
Monreal evoked the figure of [President Benito] Juárez [president during "The Reform Period" of the 1860s and 70s] in expressing his attachment to the Constitution.
He said,
"This is not a rhetorical, false or demagogic exercise. It is an exercise of genuine concern for our democracy. It is a matter of a personal nature and it should not offend anyone. No one should be surprised that we carry out our actions with integrity."