U.S. Latin Policy: Big Gestures and Little Substance
Andres Oppenheimer
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President
Granted, President Obama has bigger fish to fry. The U.S. economy is still hurting, al Qaeda terrorists may strike at any time and America is waging two costly wars abroad.
But Obama would do himself and
ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT
It has already been a year since Obama promised a "new chapter of engagement" with
-- Push immigration reform: Despite his campaign vow to pass a new immigration law "in my first year as president," Obama has failed to spend much political capital on this front. He probably felt that he had to put all his energies into passing healthcare reform.
But now, he has no excuse. Senate Majority Leader
Sen.
-- Push for passage of free-trade agreements with
-- Reduce U.S. farm subsidies, and especially cut the
-- Renew the deal allowing Mexican truckers to enter U.S. territory, as called for by the North American Free Trade Agreement.
U.S. Secretary of Transportation
-- Launch new hemispheric education and health agreements. That would help increase the number of Latin American students in U.S. colleges, which is lagging increasingly behind Asians, and encourage U.S. insurance companies to pay for American patients' care in U.S.-certified hospitals in
A medical tourism and retirement deal with countries in the region would help reduce U.S. medical costs, which are up to 70 percent lower in
-- Appoint a special envoy to the Americas, as Obama vowed during the campaign. Since there are no members of Obama's cabinet with a history of interest in the region, a high-level Obama envoy would help keep the region within the
THE TIME IS NOW
My opinion:
Obama deserves credit for a greater openness to dialogue and promising "equal partnership" with
And Obama has made some important gestures, including reversing travel and remittance sanctions on
But there should be a one-year expiration date for Obama's "I'm-not-George-W.-Bush" stand on
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