Mexico’s Failure to Protect Local Leaders Exposes Dangerous Security Gaps

In Mexico, the brutal killings of local mayors have escalated into a national crisis, exposing a glaring weakness in the country’s security framework that should serve as a cautionary tale for American policymakers. The recent murder of Carlos Manzo Rodríguez, mayor of Uruapan, Michoacán—a city plagued by multiple violent cartels—signals not only a failure of Mexican governance but also highlights how transnational criminal networks exploit weak local institutions to expand their reach. Why Are Local Governments the Soft Underbelly? Despite federal and state structures, it is at the municipal level where law enforcement capabilities are most fragile. Mexico’s decentralized system...