Mexican president blames state, local police for crime surge

In his final state of the union address Monday, outgoing President Enrique Pena Nieto blamed surging violent crime in Mexico on the inability of state and local police to handle the smaller gangs that emerged following the capture of cartel leaders.

Pena Nieto, who leaves office with historically low approval ratings, sidestepped blame for poor economic growth and rising debt during his six-year term, and he warned Mexicans not to turn to a foreign policy of "indifference."
Government debt, meanwhile, rose from about 33.8 of GDP in 2012 to an estimate of 45.4 percent of GDP by mid-2018. Pena Nieto claimed he was leaving "a manageable and declining level of debt."