20 United States The EconomistAugust 3rd 2019
2T
eófilo torressits on a coffin, leaning
against a Puerto Rican flag. He is
dressed as Pateco, the gravedigger. Accord-
ing to folk history, Pateco buried the dead
from Hurricane San Ciriaco, which ravaged
the island in 1899. “I already buried Ricky
Rosselló,” he says. “This is the coffin for
Wanda.”
“Ricky”, or Ricardo Rosselló, the island’s
governor, announced his resignation on
July 24th. Wanda Vázquez, the justice sec-
retary, was theoretically next in line,
though she says she does not want the job.
Then on July 31st Mr Rosselló nominated
Pedro Pierluisi, who lost to him in the 2016
primaries, to replace him. AsThe Economist
went to press on August 1st, Mr Pierluisi
nomination process was just starting and
seemed sure to be contested in the legisla-
ture. It was unclear who will actually sit in
the governor’s mansion next. Mr Rosselló’s
resignation, which came after weeks of
protests sparked by the leaking of text mes-sages in which he mocked his constitu-
ents, has pushed America’s biggest territo-
ry into a succession crisis.
Removing Mr Rosselló was cathartic,
but Puerto Rico has deeper problems. It has
suffered from years of economic misman-
agement, a bloated public sector and high
levels of poverty. The island has long failed
to capitalise on its many assets, from its
natural beauty to the artistic creativity of
its people, which was on display in the
placards, costumes and music of the prot-
ests. Hurricane Maria, which hit in 2017,
made things worse, sparking mass emigra-
tion to the United States mainland. The
government debt, whichexceeds$120bn,
including pension liabilities, is suffocat-
ing. The Washington-appointed Oversight
Board has completed two deals to restruc-
ture some of the debt this year.
Mr Rosselló’s departure has focused at-
tention on one of Puerto Rico’s most signif-
icant problems. Fuelled by two-partymachine politics, corruption has been en-
demic for generations. Politicians on both
sides offer sweetheart deals to their friends
in business, which in turn generates the
money needed to get elected. “The political
system basically created an institutional
infrastructure that promotes behaviour
which will lead to corruption sooner or lat-
er,” explains José Villamil, an economist.
On July 10th the fbiarrested six individ-
uals, including two members of the admin-
istration, for directing $15.5m to favoured
businessmen. Douglas Leff, head of the San
Juan division of the fbi, told Radio Isla:
“It’s going to be a very busy summer for us.”
A week later the Centre of Investigative
Journalism (cpi, from its Spanish initials),
which originally published the leaked
messages that led to the governor’s down-
fall, reported that three of his associates,
Elías Sánchez, Carlos Bermúdez and Edwin
Miranda, had benefited in various ways
from their friendship with Mr Rosselló. All
three deny wrongdoing.
If Mr Pierluisi’s appointment is
blocked, finding a better replacement for
Mr Rosselló could be hard. Few prominent
politicians are free from accusations of
corruption. It is not just Ms Vázquez who
does not want the job of being governor.
Several others have ruled themselves out
until Puerto Rico holds elections in 2020.
Taking the job is “political suicide”, says
Carla Minet, the chief editor of the cpi.
Whoever becomes governor, they will
need to work to dismantle the system of pa-
tronage that has built up over years. Apart
from the practice of favouring allies with
government contracts, politicians have a
habit of replacing officials across the gov-
ernment machinery with their own cro-
nies every time there is a transfer of power.
That means a loss of expertise each time.
The new governor will not find things
easy. Reform is not always popular, espe-
cially in the public sector, which is a sore
point for many Puerto Ricans. The protests
that helped pushed out Mr Rosselló could
easily restart. Traditionally Puerto Rico’s
people have split between those who sup-
port statehood and those who are happy to
see it remain a commonwealth, under
American jurisdiction but with no vote in
Congress. But anger with the government
has unified both sides.
For now, the mood on the island is ela-
tion. “People are not sleeping any more”,
says Gerardo Alvarado León, a reporter for
El Nuevo Día, a newspaper, fresh from his
first solid night’s sleep in weeks. But when
the buzz fades, Puerto Ricans will need to
find other ways to keep up the pressure.
Ending graft will require deep civic engage-
ment. The creativity shown in the protests
will go far. After years of tolerating corrup-
tion, Puerto Ricans have decided they will
no longer put up with it. They need a lead-
ership which agrees. 7SAN JUAN
The political crisis continues in America’s biggest territoryPuerto RicoWhat now?
A new sort of politicsing in the wind by Lincoln’s beard or Teddy
Roosevelt’s chin? (No, but he was young
and less thoughtful.) Did it get unbearably
cold? (Never enough to need long under-
wear.) To those curious about his place in
history, he says little. Would he liken him-
self to those who laboured at Stonehenge,
the pyramids or China’s Great Wall? He
hasn’t considered it.
A ranger addresses one topic he ne-
glects. Mount Rushmore arguably pro-duces the greatest returns of any public
project, he tells a small crowd. The grand
scheme finished under-budget and earlier
than many expected. It cost less than $1m
(in 1940s money) and even posted back a
$388 surplus to the federal government.
The site now draws 2.3m tourists yearly,
quite a boon in a rural spot. Visitors may
come for centuries yet. After the dust set-
tled, Mr Clifford and his fellow workers left
a towering legacy. 7