Mexico Notes for 4th pd (intended for 4/20)

Sorry its really late!

Political Socialization: Supportive of political institutions since revolution and 1917 democratic constitution. This leaves it deemed legitimate.

• The society is, hoever, critical of government's performance of meeting goals
• Self serving elitists/Corrupt Bureaucrats
• Cynical Mexicans on the electoral process (PRI)
• The mexicans "just did it..." as a merely ritualistic system (only for the government benefits)
  
• Strong Patron-client relations (Camarilla)
• PRI dependent on these patron client systems to mobilize votes
• Media, schools, church, are all vital social agent

Political Participation: Voting, 18 years of age, rallys and government ceremonies brought small rewards (free meals, bus prizes, door prizes.

PRI Regime:

• Failure to participate held benefit loss.

Now, more recently, a multi party system:

• Harder to push non-voters since there were no prizes
• Middle class recruited for elites
• Revolution led for middle class, religious, educated,
• Technico's advanced in the system
• 1970-76, politicols losing to technicos College, advanced degrees, foreign universities, economic and public administrations
• Upper middle class spent entire career as civil servants (financial and planning particularly)
• Technicos did NOT run for officse
• Technicos rize to leadership positions faster AND in younger conditions.

Interest Groups:

• No party platform telling the president of PRI what to do
• PRI had 3 large National Organizations: (TM--Work, labor) (CNC--Rural Peasants) ("Popular Sector"--everyone else) Bureaucrats small business.

Corpratists System

• PRI lost power since 2000, other organized interest groups: Entrepeneurs, military, Catholic Church
• Business Community: Several private interest groups, pluralist
• Patron Clients as well! Had advantages (of TM or CMC had large demand of govermnent, they had to listen, but with small patron clients its easier to say no, which was common)

Myth of right Connection: If citizens appealed governmnet and got declined, they kept looking.

Growth of middle class, angry peasants, (mad at credit squeezes, and urbanization) and large growing low income urban population left to independent org's

Party system: up to 2000: PRI supported president pretty much

• Able to maintain power by being dominant over every system
• PRI limited citizen demands to depressureize president
• Co-opting (absorb into PRI all of the political interests possible, and give them their own "faction" of sorts
• Today PRI is inclusive.
• Before 2000, democratization of PRI was predominant, no independend policy influence
• Mexico all 2000, was dominated by PRI, guaranteed election untill 1988-89.
• They had access to mass media
• PRI controlled Federal Election Commission to manipulate results
• PRI vote declines due to population shifts (rural to urban)
• Cheap goods =Cheap labor

Opposition parties in the 70's were helpful

• Oppositions overtime became competititive
  
• PAN (2nd party) 1939, nationwide following.
• present in federal legislature; it controlled major cities but not Mexico city.
• Social, political right, opposed anti-church
• Opposed PRI monopoly on public education
• Supported urban middle class, conservative peasants, working middle class
• Forced PRI to move right on the political spectrum.
• PRI became supportive of free economic policies
• PRI signed nafta.
• 3rd party PRD democratic revolutionary party (political leftist) after 1988 presidential election.
• Tries to appeal to poor and workers unions.

--Darryl