Obama, Upset by Latin America Criticism, Replaces an Advisor

[flamingdem]

*** Note: The replacement of Restrepo by career diplomat Ricardo Zuniga, a Honduran long involved in US Cuban affairs, does not mean any change in policy. With the House under Republican control, Latin American issues are under the purview of Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a Miami Cuban extremist who has called for killing Fidel Castro and given support to the most extreme elements in her community.

http://www.cipamericas.org/archives/7717

President Obama has replaced his senior Latin American advisor, Dan Restrepo, because of embarrassing heat the president took over his drug war and Cuba policies at the mid-April Summit of the Americas in Cartagena, Colombia.

“He was upset by the trip,” according to a Democratic insider who follows Latin American affairs, “and so they got rid of Restepo.” Central and Latin American leaders openly challenged Obama at the Summit, including his Colombian host, president Juan Manuel Santos. Led by Brazil and Ecuador, the summit leaders also indicated that they would not attend future meetings unless Cuba is seated.

More than ever, Latin American governments appear to be showing muscle as they realize that returns on dialogue with the US are scant. By contrast, when Obama became president, Latin America – including the Cubans and Venezuelans – was between hopeful and exuberant about prospects for a new Good Neighbor policy.

Those days are over for now. Challenges from democratically elected regimes in the region are posing significant obstacles to traditional US hegemony. Ten years ago, Latin America rejected the US plan for a continental free-trade zone with proposed headquarters in Miami. Since then, several Latin American governments have developed autonomous regional institutions such as Mercosur, led by Brazil and including Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay. This week Mercosur admitted Venezuela, the target of a virtual US Cold War. Paraguay’s conservative Senate had blocked Venezuela’s admission until the recent coup in Paraguay, which led to its suspension of Mercosur.

Latin America’s people and governments have rejected US policies of blockade and de facto regime change in Cuba. They additionally oppose the 2009 coup in Hondurans, widely seen as US-supported. MORE AT LINK

[Peace Patriot]

1. Ha! It's written by Tom Hayden--one of the clearest thinkers the Left has ever had in the U.S.

I read the OP selection and was thinking, 'Gee, it's a joy to read a Latin American analyst who knows something about Latin America.'

I had just read a piece of Dan Kozloff crapola (at Common Dreams, of all places)--a hit piece on Rafael Correa over the Assange asylum, in which Kozloff either deliberately, or out of stupidity and ignorance, portrays Correa as a sort of lone cowboy and Latin America's wannabe latest "bad boy" shooting it out with "Washington." Kozloff misses EVERYTHING about the leftist democracy revolution in Latin America, including its most obvious characteristics of unity, common purpose and having each other's backs. We've seen this new cooperative mode in LatAm time and again over the last decade. It is the main thing that needs noticing in order to understand LatAm politics, particularly South American politics.

Correa does not stand alone. He is speaking for most of the continent on the Assange asylum, as Chavez has led on some issues, Lula da Silva on others, Evo Morales on others and so on, each in turn taking the leadership role on the world stage, to articulate goals and policies that these leaders share and have worked out in many meetings. Of course, "Washington" wants to see "bad boys" and "dictators" that they can pick off. But they've found that that is nearly impossible these days. Time and again, these new leaders have treated an attack on one as an attack on all. Correa knew this very well before and during his Assange decision and, of course, events have borne that out.

Kozloff is somewhat useful in giving us a notion of just how "Alice in Wonderlandish" "Washington" is on Latin America--if you have the patience to read him as a sort of gossip conduit from the Beltway's Wonderland--but unfortunately he is a smooth enough writer to fool a lot of readers about what they are reading.

Then I read this:

"More than ever, Latin American governments appear to be showing muscle as they realize that returns on dialogue with the US are scant." --from this OP

This writer knows what's going down in Latin America, I thought to myself! And this--the best description I've seen of Washington's behavior toward the Chavez government and Venezuela:

"...several Latin American governments have developed autonomous regional institutions such as Mercosur, led by Brazil and including Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay. This week Mercosur admitted Venezuela, the target of a virtual US Cold War."

The "target of a virtual US Cold War." That says it perfectly.

So I turned to the original of this OP to read the rest of it and saw that it was written by Tom Hayden, that most eloquent, intelligent and knowledgeable advocate of peace and social justice during the Vietnam era. Daniel Ellsberg is another--simply fabulous speakers and writers, and thinkers.

Hayden holds out hope, at the end of his article, that Obama will "get the message" that his original, stated policy of "peace, respect and cooperation" in LatAm was the right one. I don't have much hope of that because I don't think Obama has the power to enact his own policy. Hayden does mention the extremist anti-Castro Pukes in the House of Reps, with the Pukes in charge of the House. But he doesn't go into what gives him hope that Obama can overcome them--or that he wants or intends to--and the parameters of the article don't include why and how such assholes are running U.S. foreign policy in LatAm, nor any general ideas about how to reform our political system to restore democracy here, as the Latin Americans have been doing in their countries.

Anyway, a refreshing read! Thanks for posting it!

[flamingdem]

2. Great point about Hayden, I should have bolded that!

Last edited Tue Aug 21, 2012, 01:01 AM - Edit history (1)

I met him in Havana by the way, a really nice moment. People are more accessible on tiny islands!

Just wondering why do you think Obama can't do anything to change our course in Latin America?

I really don't know. I've blamed Hillary and I've blamed his lack of concern or knowledge on the subject -- mostly because it just doesn't add up, he's too smart to get it wrong. At least this change of personnel might indicate he is tired of it... and looking past November.

Well it must be players beyond Ileana, those in the cia/Pentagon/etc? Who is calling the shots and going after Chavez really?

This caught my eye as well because I hadn't read it elsewhere:

"...several Latin American governments have developed autonomous regional institutions such as Mercosur, led by Brazil and including Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay. This week Mercosur admitted Venezuela, the target of a virtual US Cold War."

I wonder if the answer is related to the Venezuelan situation, that I don't follow closely enough.

What do you think? Perhaps elsewhere Hayden lets on a bit more.. I will read the Kozloff article. Really, when will they ever learn about LatAm

[limpyhobbler]

3. good read

Not sure why we can't change policy in Latin America. When Obama first came into office it seemed like he was open to making serious changes in this area. But quickly we found out that we are just pretty much continuing the same policies of the last 60 years. There must be a lot of power behind those policies to keep them so frozen in time even when they are clearly making us look like assholes.

[ocpagu]

4. Nice article.

One of the best I've seen on Obama's policy for Latin America so far.

Thank you.