The New York Times reports:

After intense pressure from the United States, President Vicente Fox has asked Congress to reconsider a law it passed last week that would decriminalize the possession of small amounts of drugs as part of a larger effort to crack down on street-level dealing.

In a statement issued late Wednesday, Mr.  Fox said the law should be changed "to make it absolutely clear that in our country the possession of drugs and their consumption are and continue to be crimes."

Officials from the State Department and the White House's drug control office met with the Mexican ambassador in Washington Monday and expressed grave reservations about the law, saying it would draw tourists to Mexico who want to take drugs and would lead to more consumption, said Tom Riley, a spokesman for the Office of National Drug Control Policy.

Fox is denying that Washington had anything to do with his decision, but few believe this. Congress can send Fox back the bill if it removes all the decriminalization clauses — only the aspects that toughen the so-called “war on drugs” would remain. What seemed just yesterday like a baby step toward a sovereign drug policy for Mexico free from the impositions of Washington drug warriors became today simply another example of Fox’s failure as any kind of credible leader.