A fistfight broke out on the floor of Mexico’s Congress on Thursday as senators clashed over whether U.S. forces should play a role in combating drug cartels.
The incident began when Alejandro “Alito” Moreno, head of the opposition Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), grabbed the jacket of Senate President Gerardo Fernández Noroña from the ruling Morena party after lawmakers closed the session by singing the national anthem.
NEW: Senators in Mexico engage in fistfight after heated debate over U.S. military intervention against drug cartels – CBS pic.twitter.com/0pcYlN5etb
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Heated Exchange Turns Violent
In a viral video, Moreno can be heard demanding to speak while Noroña repeatedly told him, “Don’t touch me.” The two men shoved each other as tempers flared, and Moreno allegedly pushed an aide to the floor while another senator swung at Noroña.
Noroña later told reporters that Moreno threatened him directly. “He hit me on the arms and said: ‘I’m going to beat the s**t out of you, I’m going to kill you,’” he said.
Moreno defended his actions on social media, writing: “When Noroña crossed the line, he knew exactly what he was doing. I will always respond head-on, with character and without fear, to defend Mexico and give it the direction it deserves.”
Dispute Over U.S. Involvement
The brawl came after an intense debate in which ruling party members accused opposition lawmakers of supporting a U.S. “takeover” of Mexico’s security operations against cartels. Critics from the PRI and PAN rejected the charge, though earlier this week a PAN senator told Fox News that U.S. help to fight cartels “is absolutely welcome.”
President Claudia Sheinbaum has consistently rejected President Trump’s calls to allow U.S. troops into Mexico, insisting her government is capable of handling cartel violence on its own.
Fallout From the Clash
Noroña called an emergency session Friday and proposed that lawmakers vote to expel Moreno and three other senators involved in the scuffle 【El País†source】.
The Guardian reported that the fight underscored the mounting pressure on Sheinbaum’s government. In recent days she agreed to transfer 26 cartel leaders to the United States to serve their prison sentences, with the condition that they would not face the death penalty. Among them is a suspect accused of helping execute a Los Angeles County deputy sheriff in 2008.
This marks the second such transfer since Trump entered office.
