Former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador made a return to the public stage this Wednesday with a letter delivering a scathing critique of the pressure exerted on Mexico by U.S. President Donald Trump, specifically regarding his rhetoric on combating “narco-terrorism” and illegal migration. López Obrador—who retired from politics after stepping down from the presidency in 2024—has pledged his full support to the current head of state, Claudia Sheinbaum, in the face of Washington’s interference and its alleged attempt—as he described it—to undermine Morena, the political party and movement he founded and which is now led by the President.
López Obrador’s gesture comes just days after Sheinbaum herself issued her strongest rebuke yet against Trump’s pressure tactics and the perceived threats to national sovereignty. The former president expressed bewilderment regarding the Republican’s current attitude—which, he noted, stands in stark contrast to the stance he adopted during his first term (2016–2020), a period when both politicians served simultaneously as the chief executives of their respective nations.
“Why has President Trump changed so much?” the former leader asks in the statement he posted on his X profile, which had remained largely dormant for some time.
Late last year, López Obrador declared that he would emerge from his self-imposed retirement only if certain contingencies arose—one of which was any threat to Mexico’s national sovereignty. The former leader has chosen to make his return at a moment of immense bilateral tension surrounding issues of national security and the ongoing battle against drug cartels. The Trump administration has leveled grave accusations—alleging ties to organized crime—against several Morena governors who rose to power with López Obrador’s backing, as well as against some of his most trusted former aides.
The most explosive case involves the Governor of Sinaloa, Rubén Rocha, and several members of his cabinet, who are accused of collaborating with the cartel once led by Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán. This Wednesday, the *Los Angeles Times* reported that the United States had revoked the visas of the governors of Tamaulipas, Américo Villarreal, and Sonora, Alfonso Durazo, following the same pattern as in the Rocha case: first the visa was withdrawn, followed by an indictment from the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Durazo’s case is even more serious, as he served as López Obrador’s Secretary of Public Security during the first years of his six-year term. Both Durazo and Villarreal have denied the allegations.
