ye the bullshit

NOGALES, Sonora — The first-ever Sonora governor from Mexico's National Action Party is vowing a firm hand against drug cartels and justice for the families who lost children in a day care fire last month.

With his election victory on July 5, Guillermo Padrés Elías broke an 80-year hold on the office by Mexico's Institutional Revolutionary Party, known in Spanish as Partido Revolucionario Institucional, or PRI. Padrés' party is known in Spanish as Partido Acción Nacional, or PAN.

When Padrés — pronounced with the accent on the second syllable — takes office on Sept. 13, he'll be facing several major issues, including the investigation into the June 5 fire at the ABC day care in Hermosillo that killed 48 children; raging drug-related violence in Sonora, especially in Nogales; and a drop in tourism to Sonora.

He addressed these and other topics during an interview with the Arizona Daily Star on Tuesday in Nogales, Sonora:

Q. On his strategy to battle the drug-smuggling organizations and address increased violence:

A. Padrés said he backs Mexican President Felipe Calderón's campaign to weaken the cartels and snuff out corruption.

"We have to do it. We can't pretend they don't exist. We can't pretend they are not there.

"We are going to put more technology into our forces; we are going to train them better; we are going to pay them better ... And we are going to make sure the dark side of society is out of our police forces"

Q. On what steps he'll take to boost tourism in Sonora:

A. "We are going to put (on) a big campaign and make sure they feel safe and make sure they know they are going to be protected in any way and any sense here in Sonora. They are going to have the total backup of the state and federal government so they'll feel as safe as they feel in any neighborhood in Arizona, California or New York.

"It's a very local and very limited fight between the government and the people that are involved in organized crime, but there's no civilians being hurt and especially no tourist has been hurt."

Q. On becoming the first non-Institutional Revolutionary Party governor in 80 years in Sonora:

A. The party had been growing in power in recent years, as evidenced in the 2003 election when the PAN candidate for governor lost by only 7,000 votes, said Padrés, who was the campaign coordinator that year.

"I had a lot of experience, and I knew how to fight this battle. I knew what had to be done. The first thing we had to do was win the confidence of the people."

Q. On whether the ABC day care fire in Hermosillo influenced the July 5 election:

A. "There are no numbers, and there is no logic to that. In Hermosillo where that happened, the numbers were very inconsistent. The mayor, the one with a lot of votes, barely won in Hermosillo, and we lost all of our congressmen. So, there is no correlation with that, and there are no numbers or statistics that say that made a change . . . Maybe it had an impact on the opinion people had on the governor but not on the campaign.

"During the campaign, I made a commitment to the parents that I would never talk about that so it wouldn't become a political theme and I did that."

Q. On how he plans to bring the "justice" that parents of the children who died in the day care fire are demanding:

A . "It's an issue of will and doing it . . . The specifics of it will be known when I assume power. Right now, that responsibility is in Gov. (Eduardo) Bours' hands, and not mine. But, from the 13th of September they will see a more active government making justice."

Q. On plans to work on Arizona-Sonora relations in regards to trade and commerce:

A. Padrés said he'll build on work started by outgoing Gov. Bours, who emphasized binational relations during his six-year term.

"We are going to strengthen that. I am not going to change the things that are being done good," he said.