V.P. Joe Biden will meet with Calderón, Mexican presidential candidates March 5

The Veep heads south for an early Spring Break

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden will meet with president Felipe Calderon, and with the three major candidates for the country's presidency, on Monday, March 5. A Mexican new source reports that Biden will hold separate private conferences with PRI nominee Enrique Peña Nieto, PAN nominee Josefina Vázquez Mota and PRD nominee Andrés Manuel López Obrador, in strict "alphabetical order," to avoid any suggestion of candidate or party preference.

Now let's see, when we're alphabetizing those dual Mexican surnames do we sort by the first one or the second one . . .

Official statements in both countries said that the purpose of the meetings is to confirm that the United States vigorously supports a fair, democratic and transparent electoral process in Mexico in 2012. Biden also wants to familiarize himself with the key plans and proposals of each candidate, especially those relating to U.S.-Mexico relations.

Translation: Are each of you guys going to hang in there and keep fighting this drug war? Not thinking of quitting now, are you, just when we've got her almost whipped? America's counting on ya, you know . . . especially the Man in the Big House.

I hope Joe brings an interpreter. I've heard his Spanish a time or two, and he doesn't at all sound like the guy on the Berlitz tape. And López Obrador tells everybody, "I don't speak English, and I don't pretend to": http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.com/2012/02/lopez-obrador-i-dont-speak-english-nor.html.

"We're staying out of it," says U.S. of Mexico's presidential election: http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.com/2012/02/us-says-were-staying-out-calderon-says.html.
Now just which candidate was Sen. John McCain referring to?: http://mexicogulfreporter.blogspot.com/2012/02/sen-john-mccain-expresses-doubt-about.html.

Feb. 29 poll results