By THE PULSE NEWS MEXICO STAFF

After the government of Panama formally rejected Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s (AMLO) appointment of disgraced historian Pedro Salmerón as ambassador to that country, AMLO announced Tuesday, Feb. 2, that he will instead propose Alternate Senator Jesusa Rodríguez for the post.

“It turns out that I proposed Salmerón for ambassador in Panama and, as if it were the Holy Inquisition, the foreign minister of Panama was dissatisfied because his appointment was disagreeable at the Autonomous Technological Institute of Mexico (ITAM),” the president said derogatively during his morning press conference at the National Palace.

At the same time, AMLO read aloud a letter written to him by Salmerón — who has been accused by numerous women of sexual assault both at the ITAM and the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), as well as by women within the president’s leftist National Regeneration Movement (Morena) party — declining the invitation to serve as ambassador.

“Pedro sent me a letter because a scandal was made,” AMLO said.

“Just imagine and there are no formal complaints against him.” (There were, but Salmerón resigned his post at the ITAM before they could be prosecuted.)

AMLO then proceeded to blame internationally acclaimed journalist Denise Dresser for launching a “lynching campaign” against Salmerón, because she reported on the long list of complaints against him.

“Without a doubt, there is a conservative component in all this, without doubt,” AMLO said.

In his letter, Salmerón lamented that the political “lynching” against him had crossed borders to such an extent that the Panamanian Foreign Ministry had ruled against him on the matter.

López Obrador then said that he will offer Salmerón a position as a personal adviser in order to take advantage of “his historical knowledge.”

“I’m going to find a way to use Pedro’s knowledge in another field. I would like him to help me a lot in everything that involves archives,” he said.

“I would like him to be my adviser and to make a history for young people about presidential electoral fraud in Mexico. That would be great, all the frauds over the last century, starting with the fraud against (Francisco I.) Madero 112 years ago.”

López Obrador announced his alternative proposal of Rodríguez as ambassador to Panama, implying that should Panamanian Foreign Minister Erika Mouynes reject Rodríguez, he would go over her head and appeal directly to Panamanian President Laurentino Cortizo, who came to office in 2019 on a center-left platform.

“I am going to present a proposal, to see if the government of Panama accepts it,” AMLO said.

“I don’t think the president of Panama is aware of (the rejection of Salmerón). I think that has more to do with the foreign minister.”