When I saw the wife of Mexican drug lord Joaqu铆n 鈥淓l Chapo鈥� Guzm谩n was arrested in Washington this week, I thought: these must be financially frustrating times for Honduran President Juan Orlando Hern谩ndez.
After all, according to U.S. federal prosecutors, Chapo鈥檚 powerful Sinaloa Cartel has been a reliable source of million-dollar bribes for the Honduran leader for years. But since 2019 Chapo鈥檚 been serving a life sentence in a U.S. federal prison. Hern谩ndez鈥檚 brother and former Honduran congressman Tony Hern谩ndez 鈥� convicted in 2019 in a U.S. federal court for, among other crimes, ferrying Chapo鈥檚 millions to President Hern谩ndez 鈥� is himself facing up to life behind bars.
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Now Chapo鈥檚 mujer, former Mexican beauty queen Emma Coronel Aispuro 鈥� who U.S. officials allege has helped run his bloody, multi-billion-dollar narco-corporation in his absence 鈥� has been collared. That kind of organization-chart disruption can mess up the flow of payoffs to a head of state like Hern谩ndez. He鈥檚 allegedly allowed his violent and impoverished Central American country to become a drug-trafficking depot for syndicates like Chapo鈥檚. So with the Sinaloa gang in this sort of disarray, there must be quite a backlog of presidential palm-greasing invoices.
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Hern谩ndez of course denies residing in pockets like Chapo鈥檚. But in recent weeks U.S. prosecutors in New York have only pointed more fingers at him. Last month they filed motions describing Hern谩ndez鈥檚 alleged deployment of the Honduran military to protect cocaine laboratories 鈥� and quoted Hern谩ndez as saying he wanted to 鈥渟hove the drugs right up the noses of the gringos.鈥� Two weeks ago, they finally acknowledged he is under U.S. investigation.
But given all these courthouse declarations, why isn鈥檛 Hern谩ndez already under U.S. indictment? Or rather: why hasn鈥檛 Hern谩ndez, even if he is still a sitting head of state, been slapped with the same drug conspiracy charges the U.S. leveled last year against his equally narco-crooked counterpart in Caracas, Venezuelan President Nicol谩s Maduro?
Granted, the U.S. no longer recognizes Maduro as Venezuela's legitimate head of state. But if the Trump Administration believed that sort of jab can help save Venezuela, the Biden Administration likewise should view it as one way to rescue Honduras 鈥� if not the rest of the Central American dystopia so many undocumented migrants keep fleeing for the U.S.
If the Trump Administration believed indicting Maduro could help save Venezuela, the Biden Administration should view prosecuting Hern谩ndez one way to rescue Honduras 鈥� if not the rest of the Central American dystopia so many migrants flee for the U.S.
Hern谩ndez was never a Trump White House target because going after a right-wing dictatorial leader in Latin America didn鈥檛 harmonize with Trump鈥檚 feverish anti-socialista election strategy with Florida Latinos. Going after a left-wing dictatorial leader like Maduro did. Trump was also shielding Hern谩ndez in exchange for letting Honduras be used as a MAGA holding pen for all those asylum-seeking migrants trekking through in hopes of reaching America.
Now Hern谩ndez is looking up the noses of different gringos. In the new, Democrat-controlled Senate, Jeff Merkley of Oregon this week presented a bill 鈥� the Honduras Human Rights and Anti-Corruption Act 鈥� that urges President Biden to sanction Hern谩ndez and move toward designating him, like Maduro, as head of a narco-state. It would also cut off loans and certain materials to Hern谩ndez鈥檚 thuggish security forces 鈥� and, perhaps most important, lean on Honduras to establish a U.N. anti-corruption mission there.
BENIGHTED ASHES
Since Hern谩ndez, like Maduro, was re-elected under brazenly fraudulent circumstances; has trashed human rights in Honduras; is accused in corruption scandals that include the $350 million looting of the country鈥檚 healthcare system; has let streets gangs like the vicious MS-13 morph into de facto rulers of large swaths of territory 鈥� and is now part of an official U.S. drug-trafficking probe 鈥� it would seem Merkley鈥檚 legislation is a reasonable step.
Even so, there鈥檚 a lot of hand-wringing in the Biden Administration over whether to confront Hern谩ndez 脿 la Maduro, because it might complicate Biden鈥檚 $4 billion development-cum-security plan for Central America鈥檚 hellish Northern Triangle 鈥� El Salvador, Guatemala and especially Honduras.
I don鈥檛 think so. If anything, it would make Biden鈥檚 campaign to lift the Northern Triangle from its benighted ashes look and sound all the more serious. Hern谩ndez, like Maduro, is an irredeemable figure 鈥� so I鈥檇 argue that working with him could complicate Biden鈥檚 Mesoamerican Marshall Plan more than prosecuting him would.
This is Hern谩ndez鈥檚 last year in office, anyway. Better to spend the next 10 months working around him and his rotted government as much as possible, then pick up directly again next January with his successor.
In the meantime, give Hern谩ndez what he deserves. Right up the nose.
