The Fallout That Hasn't Fallen

Despite the ongoing embarrassment generated by Operation Clean-up, the Secretary of Public Security, Genaro García Luna, has remained untouched. Yesterday, Felipe Calderón offered his embattled subordinate a hearty endorsement:

[I]f there were any doubt about his probity or beyond that, any evidence that logically called into doubt that probity, surely he wouldn't be the Secretary of Public Security.

I'm of two minds about this. If it were any other developed country, García Luna's personal honesty wouldn't even factor in (unless of course he was part of George W. Bush's cabinet); the mere fact that he was heading a bureaucracy so plagued by corruption would warrant his swift dismissal. There's a pretty good case for Calderón removing him on that basis. At the same time, honesty is by far the scarcest virtue in the Mexican government. If Calderón trusts García Luna, and if he can't be sure of replacing him with someone equally trustworthy, you could just as easily argue that he should stay put.