Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum is being forced to choose between protecting the cartel- connected political party that got her into power or actually fighting drug cartels, as the Trump administration has been pressuring her to do. For now, Sheinbaum appears to be moving to protect her party. It remains to be seen how the U.S. government will react.
The issue began this week, when the U.S. Department of Justice announced the unsealing of an indictment against the sitting governor of Sinaloa, Mexico. As Breitbart Texas reported, the indictment names Sinaloa’s Governor Ruben Rocha Moya, a sitting senator, a sitting governor. and several of his close associates in the state law enforcement apparatus on drug conspiracy charges. The charges allege that Rocha Moya and his associates sold out their state to the Sinaloa Cartel in exchange for hefty bribes.
The allegations seem to match a series of statements made by the White House in 2025 shortly after U.S. President Donald J. Trump took office that claimed that Mexico’s government had an intolerable relationship with drug cartels.
The revelations in the indictment point to Rocha Moya having protected the Sinaloa Cartel in exchange for political power, while his state officials used their badges and positions to also benefit the criminal organization. The Sinaloa Cartel is currently labeled as a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. government.
The case marks the first time that the U.S. Department of Justice has gone after a sitting Mexican governor for cartel-connected charges. However, the case points to a broader move by the U.S. DOJ to go after cartel-connected politicians, primarily those associated with the MORENA ruling party. Rocha Moya is a very close ally to former Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and his successor, current President Sheinbaum.
Political opponents to the MORENA regime have long claimed that the party was working hand in hand with drug cartels as a way to gain more power in a short amount of time.
Prior to the unsealing of the indictment, the U.S. DOJ contacted Mexico’s Foreign Relations Ministry and sent them the arrest warrants for Rocha Moya and his associates, requesting that they be arrested and extradited. Almost immediately after the indictment went public, Mexico’s ruling party MORENA issued a statement of support, claiming they were behind Rocha Moya.
The indictment comes at a time when the U.S. government claims that Mexico has not done enough to fight drug cartels. Sheinbaum claims that her government has worked hand in hand with the U.S., but she insists that she will not allow U.S. agents or troops to operate in Mexico. The new move will basically force Sheinbaum to choose between fighting cartels alongside the U.S. to avoid tariffs and sanctions or protecting her political party, which she appears to be doing at this time.
Just hours after the indictment went public, Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office (FGR) confirmed that they had received the case but hinted at their efforts to shut it down or file it away. In a short statement, the FGR claimed that the U.S. government had not provided them with “proof’ of wrongdoing by Rocha Moya or his associates. The FGR claimed that they needed proof to carry out the arrests and extradition processes.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart News Foundation. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at [email protected].
Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at [email protected].
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