During her engagement with reporters, Sheinbaum was asked about the alleged political leanings of the Supreme Court, while Security Minister Omar García Harfuch fielded questions related to the training a group of Mexican security personnel is currently undertaking in the United States.

Here is a recap of the president’s Jan. 23 mañanera.

A biased Supreme Court? 

A reporter noted that the newspaper he works for, El Universal, reported this week that the “new” Supreme Court (SCJN) — whose bench is now made up of nine justices elected in Mexico’s first ever judicial elections last June — has handed down at least six rulings in favor of reforms and decrees promoted by former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

He also stated that in the almost five months since the new justices were sworn in, the SCJN has not handed down any ruling against reforms or decrees sponsored by López Obrador or Morena, the party AMLO founded.

The reporter subsequently asked Sheinbaum whether she saw “any bias” toward Morena in Mexico’s Supreme Court, whose nine justices are affiliated with, seen as sympathetic to, or were at least tacitly supported by the ruling party in last year’s judicial elections.

The president responded that the Supreme Court itself would have to answer “those questions.”

She subsequently highlighted that the SCJN now holds “public sessions,” allowing Mexicans to get to know justices’ arguments in support of their rulings.

In the past, Sheinbaum added, decisions were taken “in the dark.”

The president also highlighted that the “previous court” — i.e. the SCJN before the justices elected last year were sworn in — “voted against everything,” a reference to various rulings it handed down against government initiatives during López Obrador’s presidency.

Published on Thursday, El Universal’s report could be cited by government critics as proof that the election of Supreme Court justices in a vote promoted by Sheinbaum — and largely boycotted by the opposition — has led to the elimination of a vital check on executive and legislative power, as they warned would occur.

However, one person who posted the article to social media opined: “Does the Supreme Court have to rule against the government to create justice?”

García Harfuch: Mexican security personnel were invited to undergo training in US

Six days after Mexican security personnel boarded a U.S. military plane at Toluca Airport to fly to the United States to undergo training, a reporter asked García Harfuch to comment on the kind of drills in which they would be participating.

The security minister first stressed that Mexican security personnel’s participation in training in the United States is not a new phenomenon, but rather something that has occurred for “many years.”

He said that the training takes place either after an invitation from a U.S. authority or upon the request of the Mexican government.

“It’s always been like that,” García Harfuch said.

He said that “in this case,” the United States Northern Command extended an invitation to Mexican security personnel to participate in “courses” focusing on “tactical specializations,” including “shooting” and “investigation.”

García Harfuch said that the Security Ministry personnel would stay in the U.S. for around 40-45 days.

Asked whether they were at a military base in the U.S., he responded: “Yes, it’s a base in Mississippi, I think.”

The arrival of the U.S. Air Force plane at Toluca Airport last Saturday came at a particularly sensitive time in the Mexico-U.S. security relationship as U.S. President Donald Trump said earlier this month that the United States would begin targeting Mexican cartels on land. In addition, The New York Times reported on Jan. 15 that the United States was “intensifying pressure” on Mexico “to allow U.S. military forces to conduct joint operations to dismantle fentanyl labs inside the country.”

On Monday, Sheinbaum stressed that the U.S. Air Force plane wasn’t carrying U.S. troops or weapons. She assured reporters that the arrival of the plane in Toluca wasn’t in any way sinister, but rather a routine part of bilateral security cooperation.

However, the president did concede that it would have been better for the Mexican security personnel to have traveled to the United States on a Mexican Air Force plane rather than a U.S. one.

The post Is Mexico’s Supreme Court biased? Friday’s mañanera recapped appeared first on Mexico News Daily

She spoke about the future of the USMCA free trade pact amid increased tension between the United States and Canada (read MND’s story here), while Security Minister Omar García Harfuch announced the arrest of a man in connection with the murder of Bernardo Bravo, who led a lime growers’ association in Michoacán before his death in October. (Read MND’s story here.)

García Harfuch also spoke about the Mexican government’s transfer on Tuesday of 37 cartel figures to the United States, while Sheinbaum briefly commented on the deployment of Mexican firefighters to Chile.

Security minister: Transfer of prisoners to US benefits Mexico  

On Tuesday, García Harfuch announced that “37 operators of criminal organizations who represented a real threat to the security of the country” were flown to various cities in the United States on seven Mexican military planes.

On Thursday morning, he was asked to provide details on the threats the cartel figures posed.

García Harfuch told reporters that in “various” prisons in Mexico, inmates “have the opportunity to continue committing crimes.”

In November, he noted that extortion attempts over the telephone commonly originate in Mexican prisons.

On Thursday, García Harfuch stressed that the transfer of the prisoners to the United States is “for the benefit of our country.”

The handover of 37 people on Tuesday was the third large transfer of prisoners to the U.S. since Sheinbaum took office after transfers last February (29 people) and August (26 people).

With the removal of more than 90 criminals from the country, “what we’re avoiding,” García Harfuch said, “is extortion of Mexican citizens [and] homicides of Mexican citizens.”

He also said that authorities are working to strengthen security in prisons in order to stop crimes being committed from within them.

FGR report on Interoceanic Train accident to be ready next week

Sheinbaum told reporters that she spoke to Attorney General Ernestina Godoy on Wednesday and was informed that the report the Federal Attorney General’s Office is preparing about the cause (or causes) of the Dec. 28 accident involving the Interoceanic Train will be ready next week.

The derailment of the train in the state of Oaxaca claimed 14 lives, and around 100 other people were injured.

The accident occurred nearly 90 minutes after the six-car Z-line train departed from Salina Cruz, Oaxaca, en route to Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz.

Mexican firefighters battle blazes in Chile 

A reporter noted that a lot of Chileans have been thanking Mexico for sending firefighters to Chile to help battle wildfires that have claimed more than 20 lives.

On Thursday morning, the government of Chile posted a video to social media showing a brigade of 145 Mexican firefighters arriving on an Air Force plane in the southern city of Concepción.

¡Gracias, México! 🇨🇱 🇲🇽

Ya aterrizaron en Concepción 145 brigadistas y más de 360 kilos de carga para el combate de incendios en la zona centro-sur del país. El contingente se desplegará en los múltiples focos de incendio activos desarrollando diversas tareas. pic.twitter.com/TPNl3dDRZp

— Gobierno de Chile (@GobiernodeChile) January 22, 2026

“Thank you, Mexico,” the Chilean government wrote above the video.

Sheinbaum said that Mexico’s National Forestry Commission is coordinating the deployment of Mexican firefighters in Chile.

“Mexico will always show solidarity, always. It is in our essence. Those values come from México profundo [deep Mexico], from the Indigenous peoples,” she said.

“Mexicans have great values that come from those civilizations, values that have to do with brotherhood, solidarity, family support, and love for one’s neighbor,” Sheinbaum said.

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

The post Why Mexico transferred dozens of ‘criminal operators’ to the U.S.: Thursday’s mañanera recapped appeared first on Mexico News Daily

She also offered some advice to cell phone users to help them avoid becoming victims of crime, and took a moment to endorse the speech Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney made on Tuesday at the World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

Here is a recap of the president’s Jan. 21 mañanera.

Sheinbaum: Don’t answer telephone calls from unknown numbers 

Late in her press conference, Sheinbaum told reporters that Mexico was one of a small number of countries where mobile telephone SIM cards could be purchased without the need to show identification.

However, as of Jan. 9, that is no longer the case.

Sheinbaum said that the previous situation made it easy for people to commit crimes over the telephone, including extortion and fraud.

The government’s objective now, she said, is for every SIM card — or chip as a SIM is commonly known in Mexico — to be “linked to a person.”

“As that happens, it will be much more difficult to use a phone … [to commit a crime], Sheinbaum said.

That said, the president acknowledged that many calls with a criminal intent are now being made with “numbers that come from outside Mexico.”

Sheinbaum subsequently advised Mexicans not to answer calls from numbers they don’t recognize.

“It is important that we do not answer calls from numbers that are not identified in our contacts,” she said.

Responding to privacy concerns related to the need to register and link a cell phone number to one’s personal identity, Sheinbaum stressed that telephone companies rather than the government stores people’s personal information.

She indicated that authorities, when investigating a crime facilitated by the use of a telephone, can ask for information from telecommunications companies as they seek to establish the identity of the perpetrator.

Sheinbaum praises Carney’s WEF address

Early in her Q&A session with reporters, Sheinbaum praised Prime Minister Carney for his speech in Davos.

“[It was a] very good speech by Carney, by Prime Minister Carney, I don’t know if you heard it,” she said.

“[It was] very much in tune with the current times,” Sheinbaum said.

During his address, Carney asserted that the rules-based international order is undergoing a “rupture, not a transition.”

The Canadian prime minister “never mentioned President Trump by name, but his reference was clear,” wrote The New York Times, noting that “the speech came as President Trump doubled down on his threats to take Greenland away from Denmark.”

Mexico’s ‘advantages’ as an investment destination, according to Sheinbaum

A reporter asked the president what message her government was seeking to send to international investors at the WEF meeting in Davos, where Environment Minister Alicia Bárcena and Altagracia Gómez, head of the government’s Advisory Council for Regional Development and Relocation, are representing Mexico.

“That Mexico is open to private investment from different countries, to foreign direct investment,” Sheinbaum responded.

She also said that Mexico’s representatives would promote the Economic Development Hubs for Well-being, new industrial corridors that will be located in various states across the country.

Asked what “advantages” Mexico offers to investors, Sheinbaum first cited the “hardworking” and “responsible” people of Mexico and the presence of “a government recognized by its people.”

Mexico falls from PwC’s list of top 10 countries to invest in

She also mentioned “certainty” and her government’s vision of investment “not just as a means of growth” but also as “a means of creating employment with wellbeing.”

Citing additional advantages, Sheinbaum spoke about Mexico’s “proximity to the United States,” the “trade openness” it has “with various countries around the world” and “the scheme we are implementing to integrate production chains” in North America.

Although she mentioned certainty as an “advantage” offered by Mexico, the Trump administration’s undermining of the USMCA free trade pact via the implementation of various tariffs on Mexican goods has decreased certainty for investors in Mexico. Some Mexican government initiatives, such as the controversial judicial reform and the disbandment of various autonomous agencies, have had the same effect, according to critics of Sheinbaum and her predecessor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

Foreign investment in Mexico increased last year, but the government is eager to attract even more international capital as it seeks to make its Plan México economic initiative a success.

The post Sheinbaum endorses Carney’s WEF speech lamenting ‘rupture’ of world order: Wednesday’s mañanera recapped appeared first on Mexico News Daily

Mexico’s role in this system is often framed through an outdated oil lens.

Forty years ago, that framing made sense. In 1982, Mexico exported roughly $24 billion, and almost 65% of that was crude oil. Today, Mexico exports more than $620 billion, with oil representing just 3.5% of the total, while manufacturing accounts for nearly 90%. In other words, Mexico’s economy has transformed from being oil-dependent to manufacturing-driven — and manufacturing is, above all, energy-intensive.

This transformation has tied Mexico and the United States together through energy flows that are structural, not optional.

Natural gas: The backbone of integration

Looking only at imports, the integration is even clearer: virtually all of the natural gas Mexico imports — over 99% — arrives via pipeline from the United States, reflecting a high degree of physical and commercial interdependence between the two energy systems, particularly U.S. producers in Texas, for whom Mexico has become a critical and stable export outlet.

Natural gas now anchors Mexico’s electricity generation, industrial production, and export manufacturing — much of which directly supports U.S. supply chains.

Refined products & crude: A circulatory system

The result is clear: under many trade measures, the United States now runs an energy surplus with Mexico, meaning the value of U.S. energy exports to Mexico exceeds the value of Mexican energy exports to the U.S. This surplus supports U.S. GDP, sustains jobs in energy production and refining, and strengthens America’s position in global energy markets.

Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, U.S. Imports by Country of Origin, Exports by Destination, U.S. Natural Gas Imports by Country and U.S. Natural Gas Exports and Re-Exports by Country.

Mutual benefits embedded in infrastructure

As documented by the U.S. Energy Information Administration, this integration is neither temporary nor marginal. Pipeline shipments of U.S. natural gas to Mexico have increased by an order of magnitude since the early 2000s, and today the majority of U.S. pipeline exports flow south of the border rather than overseas.

U.S.-Mexico Border Crossing Natural Gas Pipelines and Expansions of Mexico’s Domestic Pipelines

Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration and Comisión Nacional de Hidrocarburos, Mexico. “U.S. natural gas pipeline exports to Mexico have grown in recent years as the domestic pipeline network within Mexico continues to expand.”

Why policy certainty matters

This is why energy policy cannot be an afterthought in debates about economic strategy or geopolitical competition. Mexico is not peripheral to U.S. energy security — it is central to it. American energy production, refining, and export capacity are increasingly linked to Mexican demand, infrastructure, and industrial growth. Likewise, Mexico’s ability to sustain its manufacturing base and capture nearshoring opportunities depends on continued access to U.S. energy and predictable investment conditions.

If the United States wants to remain an energy powerhouse, it cannot do so alone. It’s not just about drilling in Texas or New Mexico — it’s about smart partnerships, strong trade frameworks and working closely with reliable neighbors.

Seen this way, energy fits naturally with the other themes in this series. If AI is the brain of the future economy, energy is the bloodstream. And today, that bloodstream flows across North America.

Catch up on parts 1-5 of Could Mexico make America great again? here:

• Part 1: An introduction
• Part 2: A primer on China
• Part 3: Zeroing in on the demographics
• Part 4: About that trade deficit
• Part 5: How the AI race changes the game 

Pedro Casas Alatriste is the Executive Vice President and CEO of the American Chamber of Commerce of Mexico (AmCham). Previously, he has been the Director of Research and Public Policy at the US-Mexico Foundation in Washington, D.C. and the Coordinator of International Affairs at the Business Coordinating Council (CCE). He has also served as a consultant to the Inter-American Development Bank.

The post Opinion: Could Mexico make America great again? The energy equation appeared first on Mexico News Daily

Here is a recap of her Jan. 20 mañanera.

Mexico to issue public health care cards 

“This is the new identification card for the universal health care service,” said Deputy Health Minister Eduardo Clark as an example of the credencial was displayed on a screen behind him.

The card, he said, is “the guarantee of the right to health care” for Mexican citizens and eligible foreign residents of Mexico.

People will use their ID card when accessing the services of the public health care providers to which they belong. Those providers include the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS), the State Workers’ Social Security Institute (ISSSTE), IMSS Bienestar and state governments in the eight states that haven’t signed on to the federal government’s universal IMSS Bienestar scheme.

Clark said that the new ID card will come in physical and digital versions. The latter will become available in April.

“What does the card have? First, your full name, your CURP [national ID code], your sex, your place of birth and date of birth, and your nationality,” Clark said.

“And on the back there are two QR codes that allow us to validate the health care provider to which you belong and allow you to check which is your closest [health care] unit,” he said.

“In addition, it also has information about organ donation, which we’re going to request during the registration [process], as well as your blood type,” Clark said.

The Health Ministry official also said that people’s health care cards will be linked to an “electronic medical record” — i.e., their medical history.

“The credencial is a way of linking all this information,” he said.

Clark highlighted that Mexicans have a constitutional right to free health care.

“This is a way of putting a face to that right,” he said.

Clark also said that the card will allow people to know which health care provider they are affiliated with.

“We often don’t know which entitlement we have. … For example, there are students who perhaps don’t know they have IMSS. There are, perhaps, pensioners who, having been married to a person who was a beneficiary of a [health care] institution, have the right [to health care at the same institution],” he said.

Registration process to start in March 

Welfare Minister Ariadna Montiel Reyes told reporters that the government will issue the health care cards to “the entire population of Mexico,” including children.

She said that 14,000 Welfare Ministry workers will work to register Mexicans so that they can receive their cards. Citizens will complete the registration process at 2,365 “modules” to be set up by the Welfare Ministry in an initial stage, Montiel said.

She said that adults will need to provide an official form of identification with a photo, such as a passport or voter ID card, and a document that includes their address in order to register to receive a health care card. Montiel said that people who register will have their photo and fingerprints taken for their new card.

At a later date, people who have registered will receive a telephone call or a text message advising where and when they can collect their physical card, she said.

La #MañaneraEnBreve de la presidenta @Claudiashein:

🪪 Credencial del Servicio Universal de Salud.

🥼 Salud Casa por Casa: más de 10 millones de consultas.

💉 Vacunas suficientes contra sarampión. pic.twitter.com/5XB5jzEDtC

— Gobierno de México (@GobiernoMX) January 21, 2026

Montiel said that the registration process will commence on Mar. 2 in 14 states that have signed onto the federal government’s IMSS Bienestar scheme. The process will begin in other “federalized” states on Mar. 23, and will subsequently take place in the states where IMSS Bienestar doesn’t operate.

How much will the issuance of the health care cards cost?

Sheinbaum said that the government will spend around 3.5 billion pesos (US $198.8 million) on the registration process and the issuance of the new health care cards.

She said that the government’s goal is for “all Mexicans” to get a card.

It remains to be seen how close the Sheinbaum administration will get to achieving that goal.

Many Mexicans who have private health insurance or can afford to pay for private treatment out of their own pocket prefer to seek medical treatment in the private system. Convincing such people to register for a universal health care card could prove to be a challenge.

Toward a more integrated public health care system

Sheinbaum said that the government needs to issue the cards in order to make progress toward a more integrated public health care system.

This year, Sheinbaum said, people will continue to access health care services at the facilities of the health care provider to which they belong. However, she indicated that the public health care system will become more unified at some point in the future, allowing people to access treatment at any public health care facility.

“Let’s suppose that I belong to ISSSTE and I go for treatment at IMSS. Where does IMSS get its money from? From the workers who are affiliated with IMSS, from employers and from the federal government. If an ISSSTE beneficiary [receives treatment from IMSS], … ISSSTE will have to pay IMSS for the treatment of that patient so that [public] health services don’t become unbalanced. For that to occur we have to make what we call a clearing house so that … [payments] are automatic,” Sheinbaum said.

“… When I was mayor [of Mexico City] we did that for the public transport systems,” she said, noting that her administration in the capital created an “integrated mobility” card that people can use on the Metro, in the Metrobús and on various other forms of public transport.

“And then every month we say, ‘Metro, you get this much; Metrobús, you get this much; Trolebús, you get this much,'” Sheinbaum said.

“So the process of digitalization is necessary to enter into a system of this type [for health care], [a system] that ensures that no entity is disadvantaged, but rather that resources are allocated appropriately to each of them,” she said.

“By law, IMSS can only treat its beneficiaries. It could treat others if you pay for the service. Of course, all this has to be developed gradually,” Sheinbaum said, adding that the “first step” is to issue the public health care cards.

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The arrival of the U.S. Air Force plane came at a particularly sensitive time in the Mexico-U.S. security relationship as U.S. President Donald Trump said earlier this month that the United States would begin targeting Mexican cartels on land, while on Friday the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued advisories urging U.S. airline pilots to “exercise caution” when flying above the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Mexico, and above the Gulf of California, due to military activities and global navigation satellite system interference.

Speculation that the U.S. could take military action against Mexican cartels in Mexico is growing, even though Sheinbaum spoke to Trump last Monday and subsequently asserted that such an intervention could be ruled out.

On Monday morning, she assured reporters that the arrival of the U.S. plane in Toluca wasn’t in any way sinister, but rather a routine part of bilateral security cooperation.

Sheinbaum is a staunch defender of Mexican sovereignty, and frequently stresses that her government would never authorize or tolerate any kind of U.S. intervention in Mexico against Mexican cartels, six of which were designated as foreign terrorist organizations by the U.S. government last year.

Why did a US military plane touch down in Toluca?

A reporter noted that a U.S. Air Force Lockheed C-130 Hercules aircraft touched down at  Toluca Airport on Saturday, and highlighted that opposition lawmakers have pointed out that the Senate wasn’t consulted about the entry to Mexico of the plane.

Sheinbaum asserted that there was no need for the Senate to be consulted given that no U.S. troops had come into the country.

She said that authorization for the flight was granted by the Ministry of Defense in October, and told reporters that “it had to do with a training issue.”

“… It’s not something, let’s say, exceptional. … They’re logistical tasks that they carry out,” Sheinbaum said.

Later in the press conference, the president said that a group of people from the federal Security Ministry boarded the U.S. plane to travel to the United States to undergo training.

“Who authorizes this? The Ministry of National Defense, mainly,” Sheinbaum said.

📽️ VIDEO | Sheinbaum aclara aterrizaje de avión militar de Estados Unidos en Toluca: ¿Qué dijo? 🛩️ pic.twitter.com/MyEjStYM6r

— El Economista (@eleconomista) January 19, 2026

She said that the Security Ministry officials would undertake training with the United States Northern Command for around one month and subsequently return to Mexico on a Mexican Air Force plane.

Asked whether Mexico requested the training or the United States offered it, Sheinbaum responded:

“It’s part of the [bilateral] agreements. [Personnel] from the United States also come here to train, it’s very important that this is known.”

Sheinbaum conceded that it would have been better for the Mexican officials to have traveled to the United States on a Mexican Air Force plane.

“But … [their travel on the U.S. plane] was authorized and it was authorized some time ago,” she said.

Sheinbaum stresses that US plane was not armed 

Asked whether the U.S. plane was carrying weapons, Sheinbaum responded that “of course” it was not.

Asked about the number of U.S. personnel on the aircraft, the president said her government would provide that information as well as details on how many Mexican officials boarded the plane to travel to the United States.

She highlighted that U.S. military planes have come into Mexico “on other occasions,” but noted that “the difference” now is that the aircraft landed at Toluca Airport, located about 60 kilometers west of central Mexico City.

Asked why the U.S. plane didn’t land on Saturday at the military base at the Felipe Ángeles International Airport, also located in México state, Sheinbaum responded:

“It was a condition that was established. Indeed, [U.S. military planes] should land at military air bases, but in this case they landed in Toluca and it was authorized by the Ministry of Defense.”

Sheinbaum responds to FAA warnings 

Sheinbaum told reporters that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of National Defense were “immediately” alerted to the advisories to U.S. airline pilots issued by the FAA “due to military activities and global navigation satellite system interference” above the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Mexico, Central America and South America, as well as above the Gulf of California.

Those two ministries are responsible for authorizing “the entry of any aircraft into Mexican territory,” she said.

Sheinbaum said that her government contacted the U.S. Embassy in Mexico to find out “exactly” what the FAA was referring to.

She said that the Ministry of Infrastructure, Communications and Transport (SICT) issued a statement in response to the FAA’s warnings when the government obtained “certainty,” in writing, that there was no U.S. military flight taking place “over Mexico.”

The SICT statement said that a NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) pertaining to Mexican airspace was of a “preventive nature” and asserted that there were “no operational implications or restrictions for Mexico, or Mexican airlines or operators.”

Sheinbaum said that her government was given “the locations” of U.S. military flights in the region “and they were in international waters.”

“… It had nothing to do with national territory,” she said.

Sheinbaum said that she didn’t receive any information about the FAA advisories during her call with Trump last Monday.

“There was no communication, apart from the communication issued [by the FAA] at that time, which is natural,” she said.

The FAA issued a total of seven NOTAMs last Friday urging U.S. pilots to “exercise caution” when flying in overwater areas off the coasts of Mexico, Central America, Colombia and Ecuador due to military activities and global navigation satellite system interference

The validity of each of the NOTAMs is from Jan. 16 to Mar. 17. The two-month validity of the NOTAMs suggests “a prolonged period of possible military planning in the region,” The New York Times reported.

Sheinbaum assesses the impact of the first year of Trump’s second term 

A day before Trump reaches the first anniversary of his second term, Sheinbaum was asked to assess the past year in light of the “pressures” Mexico has faced from the U.S. president.

She responded that the return of Trump to the White House has created “a change for the entire world in many senses.”

In support of her statement, Sheinbaum cited the U.S. government’s implementation of protectionist policies over the past year — including tariffs on a range of Mexican goods — as well as Trump’s “vision” of “greater [U.S.] participation in international affairs.”

“What do we think? … We always seek a relationship of respect for Mexico — that our sovereignty, our territorial integrity, our decisions, are respected; that there is no interference in what we decide,” she said.

🇲🇽🇺🇸 “Ha sido un cambio para todo el mundo”: Sheinbaum evalúa el primer año de Gobierno de Trump

La presidenta mexicana confió en consolidar una relación de respeto a pesar de las constantes tensiones bilaterales.https://t.co/lPygBvNNU7 pic.twitter.com/LvUXCEjSxt

— RT en Español (@ActualidadRT) January 19, 2026

“[With] ‘we’ I’m referring to the people of Mexico or the whole country. Decisions in Mexico are made by the people. And we’re elected by the people, I’m elected by the people,” Sheinbaum said.

She also noted that “the economic integration” between Mexico and the United States is “very important,” and highlighted that “there are 40 million Mexicans in the United States” (including people with Mexican ancestry) and “more than a million estadounidenses” (U.S. Americans) in Mexico.

“So, we seek a good relationship. In addition, we’re neighbors, we’re trade partners. We seek, with the defense of Mexico’s principles, a relationship of respect. And so far, in the context of all the international circumstances, we’ve achieved that, and that’s what we want going forward,” Sheinbaum said.

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

The post Why did a US military plane touch down near Mexico City? Monday’s mañanera recapped appeared first on Mexico News Daily

Governor Delfina Gómez and other officials from México state, where Ecatepec is located, joined various federal functionaries at the mañanera.

“Presidenta, your presence [here] strengthens us,” Gómez said in an introductory address.

Later in the press conference, Sheinbaum responded to questions on a range of topics including the electoral reform proposal she is expected to soon present to Congress, and the earthquake that activated the Seismic Alert System in Mexico City at around 12:40 a.m. Friday.

She also defended her government’s record on security, after the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs said in a social media post that the United States has “made clear” to Mexico that “incremental progress in facing border security challenges is unacceptable.” (Read Mexico News Daily’s story on Sheinbaum’s remarks here.)

Sheinbaum discusses electoral reform proposal 

During her Q&A session with reporters, Sheinbaum outlined the “central elements” that “the people” are asking for with respect to electoral reform in Mexico.

The president — who in the coming weeks is expected to present a wide-ranging electoral reform proposal to Congress — said that the Mexican people (and her government) are seeking a reduction in costs related to holding elections, and an electoral system in which proportional representation (plurinominal) candidates are not selected by party chiefs.

“There are deputies who have been plurinominal deputies their whole lives, senators [as well]. The objective of the reform is that the people also decide about proportional representation,” Sheinbaum said.

She also said that the reform proposal she will submit to Congress will aim to increase “citizen participation” in various facets of Mexico’s democracy.

“People should express their opinions and participate, that’s democracy,” said Sheinbaum, who also said that her reform proposal would aim to make it easier for Mexicans abroad, especially those in the United States, to “exercise their right to vote.”

On Thursday, she asserted that the National Electoral Institute — the authority responsible for organizing elections in Mexico and the nation’s electoral umpire — will not lose its autonomy as a result of the reform, as opposition politicians have claimed.

Indeed, opposition lawmakers have dubbed Sheinbaum’s proposed reform — which has not yet been drawn up — the “Ley Maduro,” or “Maduro Law,” after ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, to whom the National Electoral Council of Venezuela awarded the 2024 presidential election even though he is widely believed to have lost.

On Thursday, Sheinbaum said: “We don’t have the proposal yet [but] they’re already calling it Ley Maduro.”

She subsequently asserted that the aim of the reform is “the strengthening of democracy.”

“We’ve always fought for democracy,” Sheinbaum said Friday, referring to herself and her colleagues in the “fourth transformation” (4T) political movement she leads.

‘The transformation isn’t a political party, … it’s a decision of the people of Mexico’ 

Later in her press conference, Sheinbaum was asked to respond to claims that the 4T now control’s Mexico’s judiciary in light of the election at last year’s first ever judicial elections of many judges, magistrates and Supreme Court justices seen as supporters of, or at least sympathetic to, the Morena party.

Referring to the 4T, she responded that “the transformation is not a political party,” but rather “a decision of the people of Mexico in 2018 to change the regime of corruption and privileges.”

In 2018, Andrés Manuel López Obrador was elected president and the party he created, Morena, took office at the federal level for the first time.

Mexico’s new Supreme Court takes the bench

Sheinbaum asserted that the “fourth transformation” is not represented by “la presidenta,” or a political party or groups of deputies or senators, although she acknowledged that “we are part” of the movement.

Rather, the 4T is “a collective desire to build a new country free of corruption and privileges, for the well-being of the people, with security and justice,” she said.

[It’s about] advancing toward what has always been the hope of the people: a better, more democratic, fairer, freer, sovereign country,” Sheinbaum said.

She added that the 4T is also about “the recovery or the rescue of our values” and acknowledgement of the people and “great civilizations” of the past, “the history of Mexico, our great heroes and heroines” and “the dignity of the people.”

“That’s the fourth transformation — a new model of development for the country. The transformation of the Supreme Court has to do with this new model, with this new vision of more justice for Mexico, of a true rule of law,” Sheinbaum said.

‘Fortunately, nothing happened,’ Sheinbaum says after 5.0 magnitude earthquake

Asked about the earthquake that occurred just after 12:40 a.m. Friday, Sheinbaum responded that “fortunately, nothing happened.”

“… There was no major damage,” she said.

The National Seismological Service said that the earthquake, whose epicenter was near San Marcos, Guerrero, was an aftershock of the 6.5 magnitude earthquake on Jan. 2. The epicenter of that temblor was also near San Marcos, located in the Costa Chica region of Guerrero.

Sheinbaum acknowledged that some homes were damaged in the Jan. 2 quake, and said that the federal government is working with authorities in Guerrero to support the affected homeowners.

The post How Sheinbaum plans to reshape Mexico’s elections: Friday’s mañanera recapped appeared first on Mexico News Daily

The U.S. government had issued a terse statement on Thursday after Mexican Foreign Minister Juan Ramón de la Fuente and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed strategies to confront shared security threats this week.

🇺🇸#Sheinbaum defiende #estrategia de seguridad tras dichos del #Departamento de #Estado🇺🇸
Nota: https://t.co/et43OlvyCz pic.twitter.com/UgVJ723zVm

— Ventanavermx (@Ventanavermx) January 16, 2026

Acknowledging that progress on bilateral security matters is being made, De la Fuente and Rubio — who also spoke on Sunday — agreed that significant challenges remain.

In a joint statement on security cooperation released on Thursday, the State Department said that the two diplomats “reaffirmed the importance of the U.S.-Mexico partnership, grounded in mutual respect for sovereignty, while acknowledging that more must be done to confront shared threats.”

But the State Department’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs took a harder line in a social media post issued later Thursday:

“The United States made clear that incremental progress in facing border security challenges is unacceptable.” 

It added that Mexico is being asked to provide “concrete, verifiable outcomes to dismantle narcoterrorist networks and deliver a real reduction in fentanyl trafficking.”

Thursday’s diplomatic exchange came three days after Sheinbaum personally told U.S. President Donald Trump that U.S. intervention against Mexican cartels is unnecessary. Sheinbaum had requested the dialogue after Trump said he was prepared to confront drug cartels on the ground while again claiming that cartels run Mexico.

In her Friday morning response to the U.S. demand for increasingly stringent security measures and greater results, Sheinbaum asserted that Mexico has achieved significant progress.

“Fentanyl seizures at the U.S.-Mexico border have declined by 50 percent, according to official U.S. data,” she said, adding that the reduction means larger shipments are being seized on the Mexican side of the border.

The United States made clear that incremental progress in facing border security challenges is unacceptable. Upcoming bilateral engagements with Mexico will require concrete, verifiable outcomes to dismantle narcoterrorist networks and deliver a real reduction in fentanyl…

— Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs (@WHAAsstSecty) January 16, 2026

What Sheinbaum thinks the US should do 

While insisting that bilateral cooperation is based on mutual respect and shared responsibility, Sheinbaum told reporters at her Friday morning press conference that it is incumbent upon the U.S. to more aggressively address the illicit flow of weapons into Mexico and to conduct an intensive campaign among young people to prevent drug addiction.

“It ought not be assumed that the issue of drug trafficking can be solved on this side of the border,” she said. “The consumption crisis they have there must be addressed from a public health perspective, with prevention campaigns and education. Because the consumption is there.” 

With regards to arms trafficking, Sheinbaum noted that according to data from the U.S. Department of Justice, 75% of the weapons entering Mexico originate in the United States.

She added that just this week Mexico’s Defense Ministry seized a shipment of 21 rifles and 30 handguns being smuggled across the border into Tijuana. 

Sheinbaum also said that Mexico has requested the support of technological surveillance equipment to reinforce operations carried out exclusively by Mexican agencies.

Thursday’s joint statement revealed that the bilateral Security Implementation Group — established last year to coordinate actions against drug/arms trafficking, financial crimes and fuel theft, and first convened in September 2025 — will meet next on Jan. 23. It has been tasked with “delivering tangible actions to strengthen security cooperation and meaningful outcomes to counter cartels.” 

At next week’s meeting, the Group will “follow up on bilateral initiatives to promote information-sharing” and will reassess already established cross-border security initiatives.

The North American neighbors will also hold a Security Ministerial in Washington, D.C., in February, which “will provide an opportunity to assess progress, identify gaps and set clear expectations for further collaboration.”

With reports from El Financiero, La Jornada and CNN

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Sheinbaum also spoke about public and private investment in Mexico within the context of Plan México, the government’s ambitious economic initiative that was launched a year ago this week.

Ebrard: US $293 billion in Mexico’s investment ‘portfolio’

After executives from chicken producer Pilgrim’s Pride announced an investment of US $1.3 billion in Mexico over the next five years, Ebrard said that the nation now has an “investment portfolio” of $293 billion.

“This $1.3 billion [from Pilgrim’s Pride] is in that portfolio, along with the $1 billion investment that General Motors announced yesterday,” he said.

“So this week we only have $2.3 billion [in investment announcements],” Ebrard said, apparently speaking tongue in cheek.

“At the national level, in the portfolio we have $293 billion,” he reiterated.

The economy minister was presumably referring to investment commitments from both Mexican and foreign companies as well as projects that are currently in progress. There is no guarantee that all of the announced investments will come to fruition.

Automakers Tesla and BYD are among the companies that haven’t followed through on investment plans they announced.

Ebrard: USMCA negotiations are going well  

Asked about negotiations related to the review of the USMCA free trade pact, Ebrard said he believed that good progress has been made “on all the points that concern each of the parties,” namely Mexico, the United States and Canada.

“And we also have a clear idea already of the points that will have, let’s say, the greatest focus for each country, the greatest importance, the highest priority [in the formal review]” he said.

Ebrard said that Mexico’s “first strategic objective” is to maintain the USMCA, which wouldn’t expire until 2036 even if the three parties failed to reach an agreement to renew it.

In late September, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer accused Mexico of failing to comply with the USMCA, and declared that it didn’t “make a lot of sense to talk about extending” the agreement as things stood.

NEW: Trump’s point man on trade floats separate deals with Canada and Mexico.

Jamieson Greer laid out the case for bilateral agreements, a move that would end more than 30 years of a unified free-trade deal in North America. #CUSMA #USMCA https://t.co/XNjUJCMxGe

— Mike Crawley (@MikeCrawleyCBC) December 10, 2025

“There are areas where they’re supposed to be complying with the USMCA, where they’re not. This could be energy, telecommunications services, agricultural, all kinds of things,” Greer said without going into specifics.

On Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump asserted that the USMCA provides “no real advantage” to the United States and is “irrelevant” to him, but Sheinbaum remains confident that the trade pact will endure.

Government to present 1-year review of Plan México soon 

Sheinbaum told reporters that her government will present an evaluation of Plan México in 2025 in around two weeks. She said that officials will also speak about the execution of the plan in 2026.

“We’ll probably do an event, either at the Museum of Anthropology or some other space, to which we’ll invite the business sector, workers and various [other] sectors of Mexican society,” Sheinbaum said.

“… The Mexican economy is doing well,” she added, even though economic growth significantly slowed last year.

An analysis by the think tank México ¿cómo vamos? of the progress made toward achieving six of the 13 Plan México goals over the past year indicated that the execution of the plan is not going as well as might have been hoped.

Sheinbaum: ‘I’m very excited because there will be more investment in infrastructure’

Later in her mañanera, Sheinbaum spoke in broad terms about new infrastructure projects that will be carried out in Mexico.

“I’m very excited because there will be more investment in infrastructure, in energy, in oil, in natural gas, in electricity,” she said.

“There will be more investment in renewable sources of energy, in highways, … in water,” said Sheinbaum, who also provided a guarantee that her government will complete all the rail projects it is currently building.

She said that the new infrastructure projects will be undertaken with public investment, with private investment and in public-private partnerships in some cases.

“There are a lot of investments that we are certain are coming to Mexico starting this year. That is the case with Pilgrim’s and other investments in the portfolio held by the Economy Ministry,” Sheinbaum said.

“… So, it’s a good year for Mexico. And Plan Mexico will continue to strengthen,” she said.

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

The post Econ Minister reports progress in USCMA negotiations: Thursday’s mañanera recapped appeared first on Mexico News Daily

She also responded to U.S. President Donald Trump’s assertion that the USMCA free trade pact provides “no real advantage” to the United States. (Read Mexico News Daily’s report on Trump’s remarks and Sheinbaum’s response here.)

Here is a recap of Sheinbaum’s Jan. 14 mañanera.

Sheinbaum praises Bank of Mexico governor, as Moody’s asserts that Mexico’s monetary policy has ‘lost credibility’

Asked about the importance of maintaining a “healthy distance” between the federal government and the Bank of Mexico (Banxico) and its formulation of monetary policy, Sheinbaum said that the autonomy of the central bank is “very important.”

She went on to praise Banxico governor Victoria Rodríguez, saying that she has done a “very good” job as governor of the central bank.

“She’s a very professional woman, very studious,” Sheinbaum said.

The president subsequently noted that Rodríguez, “with the support” of Banxico’s deputy governors, has been lowering the central bank’s benchmark interest rate.

Indeed, the bank’s board cut the key rate by 300 basis points in 2025, even though inflation remained well above Banxico’s 3% target throughout the year. The bank’s interest rate is currently set at 7%.

Sheinbaum’s remarks about Rodríguez and Banxico came two days after the economic research subsidiary of credit rating agency Moody’s released a paper asserting that “a premature easing” of interest rates in Mexico “has eroded the central bank’s credibility.”

“Building credibility requires a significant amount of time and effort, but losing it is relatively easy,” states the Moody’s Analytics document, authored by the company’s director for Latin America, Alfredo Coutiño.

“Unfortunately, Mexico’s monetary policy has lost credibility in recent years. Neither the market nor analysts believe that the current policy is effective in achieving the inflation target,” Coutiño wrote.

“… To achieve inflation convergence and, consequently, restore credibility, the central bank needs to manage monetary policy with a strong commitment to price stability. This means making a decisive shift: reversing monetary easing,” he wrote.

Sheinbaum: US has never pressured Mexico to arrest Morena politicians with suspected cartel ties 

A reporter asked the president about a Wall Street Journal report that, citing unnamed sources, said that high-level Mexican security officials “have held a series of private meetings since [Venezuelan President Nicolás] Maduro was deposed where they discussed the possibility of untenable demands from Trump beyond U.S. military action, including the potential arrests of politicians from Sheinbaum’s party the U.S. believes have cartel ties.”

Sheinbaum said that the idea of arresting Morena party politicians has “never” been raised by the U.S. government, not in security meetings between Mexican and U.S. officials nor in her numerous telephone conversations with Trump.

Last year, the president described reporting from Reuters that the Trump administration is pressuring Mexico to go after politicians with suspected narco ties as “completely false.”

On Wednesday morning, a reporter noted that it has been said that the U.S. government is pressuring Mexican authorities to investigate people such as Sinaloa Governor Rubén Rocha Moya and former Tabasco governor Adán Augusto López Hernández, currently Morena’s leader in the Senate.

Sheinbaum said that only “some media outlets, and not the media” in general, “say that.”

“… The Wall Street Journal report, [although] I don’t know exactly what it said,  … has nothing to do with what was spoken about in [Monday’s] call [with Trump],” she said before reiterating that the detention of Morena party politicians has “never” been raised in talks with the U.S. government.

Environment minister to represent Mexico at WEF meeting 

Sheinbaum told reporters that Environment Minister Alicia Bárcena will represent the Mexican government at the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, later this month.

She said that Bárcena will speak about “development with justice” as well as the “Mexican model” and environmental issues at the meeting.

The environment minister has plenty of experience on the world stage, having served as foreign affairs minister between 2023 and 2024 and Mexico’s ambassador to Chile before that.

Bárcena also served as executive secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean between 2008 and 2022.

Sheinbaum said that Altagracia Gómez, head of the government’s Advisory Council for Regional Development and Relocation, will also attend the Jan. 19-23 WEF meeting in Davos, which will bring together political, business and civil society leaders from around the world.

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

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