Very good points.

I don’t have any evidence that he paid these actors to work for him. It’s quite possible that they volunteered or worked for free simply because they really do support Ibarra. It’s also true that Ibarra does have real fans, and there were some of them in the video. And it is at least a logical possibility that these people did this without Ibarra’s knowledge (though this option seems unlikely). I’ve edited the text to reflect your point, which is well taken and much appreciated. I should have noticed that previously myself. Thank you.

I think it’s unlikely that “clueless fans” organized this without Ibarra knowing about it. Like I said, this is a pretty minor offense in my book, though it clearly shows him to be inauthentic in a way that is cynical and depressing, in my view. It’s just one more reason why so many people don’t respect politicians.

It could be true that he began to feel uncomfortable about the incident because he wanted to be real and authentic and while in the middle of the act he realized how lame all of this was. I’m skeptical about this option, but it is a possibility.

In any case, if this is Ibarra’s worst offense, he’d be pretty clean compared with other politicians who have done a whole lot worse.

Cheers,
Taos