On Wednesday, The Wall Street Journal reported that Mexican Finance Minister Luis Videgaray, the man who personally orchestrated Donald Trump’s impromptu meeting with President Enrique Peña Nieto, in Mexico City has resigned. This comes just one week after the high-profile trip.
Videgaray didn’t provide a clear reason for his departure, although the chorus of condemnation by the Mexican media following Trump’s visit may have something to do with it.
Domestic politics may have been at play as well. “The resignation also came before Videgaray was set to present Mexico’s 2017 budget, after pledging to send the country to a surplus for the first time since 2008,” reports Politico.
Replete with corruption and mismanagement, the incredibly unpopular Nieto government has failed to deliver on one promise after another, especially with regard to economic recovery.
In June, the Mexico experienced its first contraction in GDP in nearly three years. The second quarter report detailed a sharp decline in domestic production, especially in the oil sector, as well as unimpressive foreign investment numbers.
According to Politico, Videgaray was Nieto’s right-hand man, a reliable ally in government.
The finance minister will be replaced by Jose Antonio Meade, Mexico’s Social Development Minister.