Ex-president Fox shakes up Mexico, again

Fox, a former Coca-Cola executive, dismissed the accusations. "Ethics, transparency, and full accounting have been permanent standards throughout my life," he wrote in a statement posted on the webpage of his new foundation, the Fox Center. As president, he earned a reported $245,000 and now receives a pension reported to be nearly $270,000 a year.

Supporters: Old guard is resisting change

His supporters say that Fox is a target because the old political guard does not like the changes taking place today. "Just as he introduced a new style of honest, democratic leadership as president, his post-presidential life will be new for Mexico, too," wrote Rob Allyn, who co-wrote Fox's English-language memoirs, in an e-mail message.

"Revolution of Hope: The Life, Faith, and Dreams of a Mexican President," to be published by Viking Oct. 4, is sure to make a splash, as it contains several references to President Bush.

According to the publishers, one passage reads: "Bush evokes the go-getter qualities I've always admired in Americans," Fox writes. "He is, quite simply, the cockiest guy I have ever met in my life." He also writes about Bush's attempt to speak Spanish. While calling it "grade-school level," Fox also admires the effort as a sign of "cultural sensitivity."

While the book's contents may get more attention in the US, the very fact that it is being published at all is what irks so many Mexicans. They are more accustomed to presidents like Fox's predecessor, Ernesto Zedillo, who headed to Yale University in New Haven, Conn.,; or Carlos Salinas de Gortari, who went to Ireland, allegedly to avoid a corruption scandal.

"This new role may ruffle some feathers ... but by showing the world that Mexico now has an ex-president who speaks out freely, devotes himself to good causes, and takes leadership on the world stage, Vicente Fox proves that Mexico is ready to take its place among the great democratic nations of the world," wrote Mr. Allyn in his e-mail.

Some say that Fox's quest for the spotlight is an attempt to rewrite history. While he was immensely popular as a "first" for Mexican democracy, critics say he did little to push through real reform. That might ultimately backfire, too, though.

"He came into power on a wave of hope and left many with a very bitter aftertaste," says Cesar Hernandez, a political analyst at the Center of Research for Development in Mexico City. "That has increased in the last month, as he has not gone out of the public debate, but has used every chance to take a public stance."

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