Down Mexico Way - Part Deux

The Mexican national government has appealed to officials in Mexico City to disband the street protests that have crippled the capitol city and are causing economic damage to the country.

MEXICO CITY - The national government urged Mexico City officials Wednesday to clear the streets of protest camps supporting leftist Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's battle to be declared winner of last month's disputed presidential election.

The camps put up Sunday have blocked the main avenues in the capital's financial and cultural heart, snarling traffic, hurting business and causing Mexico's stock market and currency to falter.

President Vicente Fox's administration has said it will not intervene with federal forces unless the city government requests help. That is unlikely since the local government is controlled by Lopez Obrador's Democratic Revolution Party.

At a morning news conference, Fox spokesman Ruben Aguilar called on city officials to find a legal and peaceful way to end the street protests. He said the demonstrations were costing the capital commerce and keeping people from their jobs.

"The city of Mexico is for everyone," Aguilar said, reading a statement from Fox's office. "Democracy should be defended by respecting it."

Mexican stocks and the peso recovered slightly Wednesday after two days of declines that analysts blamed in part on the street blockades.

Fox has taken a hands-off approach to the election dispute to avoid inflaming tensions over the tight July 2 election. The candidate of Fox's conservative party, Felipe Calderon, ended up with a 240,000-vote lead, or less than 0.6 percent of an official count.

Lopez Obrador argues the election was marred by fraud and has asked the country's top electoral court to order a recount that he says will prove he was the race's true winner.

Well, there's no doubt. AMLO doesn't care if he crashes the economy of Mexico in his blind ambition to be president. I would be a good idea to get started on that fence along the Mexican border. Because if the economy collapses, the flood of illegals we have experienced up until now will look like a trickle.