Mexican President Under Fire For Letting Mascot Fly In Military Helicopter

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has been facing criticism after a baseball team's mascot was permitted to ride to a game in one of the Mexican Navy's helicopters.

The mascot for the Olmecas de Tabasco—a turtle named Pochi—made a surprise appearance at a Mexican Baseball League game. Pochi stepped out of an Airbus Panther helicopter sitting in centerfield flanked by military personnel.

This was slammed as a flagrant misuse of government money, however, no one is quite sure who signed off on the idea of spending taxpayer pesos to fly a giant turtle to a baseball game. Especially as violence has ramped up around the country.

Pochi. (@OlmecasTabasco Twitter)

When pressed on the issue Lopez Obrador said he didn't agree with it. That would be in step with some of his other policies. According to the New York Post, the Mexican President has been working to cut back on spending, even going so far as to try to sell the presidential jet.

Lopez Obrador Takes Shot At MLB All-Star Flyovers

Lopez Obrador did however say he liked the passion for baseball that he was seeing. He also told a quick story about the time he attended the MLB All-Star Game in San Diego.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. (Getty Images)

However, he threw a shot at one of America's favorite pre-game customs.

“You shouldn’t use U.S. planes during All-Star Games either,” he said.

Whoa. Hold up. Let's not go nuts here.

It's easy to see what he's getting at here. But we're comparing apples and oranges here, or perhaps more accurately, airplanes and helicopters.

There's not a person alive who doesn't love a good fly-over before a game. Nothing gets you going like having a couple of jets rumble bleachers to the point that it spills your $12 beer.

Sure, jet fuel isn't cheap, but a little demo to get the crowd excited and double as a quick commercial for the Air Force is completely different than if our military shuttled the Phillie Phanatic to a game in an Apache helicopter.

Follow on Twitter: @Matt_Reigle