The United States dropped a high-profile drug trafficking and money laundering case against a former Mexican defense secretary, retired Gen. Salvador Cienfuegos, an extraordinary reversal that followed an intense pressure campaign from Mexico. Gladys McCormick, Jay and Debe Moskowitz Endowed Chair in Mexico-U.S. Relations, tells the Associated Press that prosecuting Cienfuegos would have been enormously fraught for the United States. "Following through on prosecuting Cienfuegos would have compromised intelligence gathering and joint military operations for years to come, which is part of the reason why the original arrest was so scandalous," McCormick says. "He truly is untouchable and sacrosanct because of both what he represents and the secrets he carries with him." McCormick was also quoted in the Reuters article, "Mexico's president: we didn't threaten to expel U.S. drug agents over General Cienfuegos arrest." 11/19/20