U.S. president-elect Donald Trump is expected to name Senator Marco Rubio as his secretary of state. If the nomination is confirmed, it would mean a sea-change in current U.S. policy towards Latin America. Rubio, who represents Florida, is known for his hawkish positions towards Iran, China, Venezuela and Cuba. (Foreign Policy)
His interventionist stance clashes with Trump’s America First approach, though Rubio’s approach has moderated over the past decade. (Washington Post)
The choice has alarmed isolationists within the Trump fold, but “may help consolidate electoral gains among Latinos and underscore that they have a place at the highest levels of his administration,” reports Reuters.
Rubio has personal interest in the region. He is the son of Cuban immigrants and a fluent Spanish speaker. He has been an advocate of maximum sanctions policies towards Cuba and Venezuela. He is also an outspoken opponent of normalizing relations with the Cuban government. (El País, New York Times)
Rubio has been particularly scathing about the Biden administration’s support for elections in Venezuela, which took place in July. If he is confirmed, he will likely pivot U.S. policy immediately, according to the Miami Herald, which said Caracas fears the country will soon be slapped with even tougher sanctions than the ones implemented during the first Trump administration.
Rubio recently said: "Any negotiations are a continued lifeline to the narco-regime. The Venezuelan people have shown their desire for freedom, and our message must be clear: We stand for freedom, we recognize Edmundo González as the President-elect and Maduro's reign must come to an end." (CBS)
More U.S. Transition
But migration concerns — particularly plans to carry out mass deportations — could push the incoming Trump administration to a deal with Maduro, Ryan Berg told Axios, a view shared by other Latin Americanists (see last Friday’s post). Venezuela does not currently accept deportees from the U.S.
Thomas Homan, the so-called “father” of the first Trump administration’s family separation policy, has been tapped to be the incoming govermnet’s “border czar,” reports the Guardian.
“Trump comes back in January, I’ll be on his heels coming back, and I will run the biggest deportation force this country has ever seen,” he promised at a national conservative meeting earlier this year. “They ain’t seen shit yet. Wait until 2025.” (Semafor)
Regional Relations
Argentine President Javier Milei finally got his much-coveted phone call with Trump — after a weeklong wait. According to Argentina’s presidential spokesman, Trump said Milei is his favorite president. (El País)
Milei will travel to Florida tomorrow, where Conservative Political Action Conference will take place, and will meet with Elon Musk, and possibly Trump. (La Nación)
Milei is hoping warmth with Trump and Musk “will help secure much-needed investment in his crisis-stricken country, including a new loan from the IMF,” reports the Financial Times.
“Argentinian negotiators representing the government of the climate science denier Javier Milei have been ordered to withdraw from the Cop29 summit after only three days, adding to concerns about the stability of the Paris agreement,” reports the Guardian.
French farmers protested yesterday against a potential European Union-Mercosur trade deal that would increase agricultural imports from South America, fueled by concern that the agreement could be finalized at the upcoming G20 in Brazil, reports the Associated Press.
Haiti
“The French medical charity Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières said Wednesday that at least two patients at its Haiti hospital were executed and its staff violently attacked after one of its ambulances in Port-au-Prince was stopped on Monday by Haitian police officers and members of a vigilante group,” reports the Miami Herald.
The U.S. aviation authority prohibited flights from the United States to Haiti after a Spirit Airlines flight was damaged by gunfire while trying to land in Port-au-Prince on Monday. (Washington Post)
It remains unclear how soon operations for any airline can resume at Port-au-Prince’s Toussaint Louverture International Airport due to security concerns, further isolating Haiti, reports Al Jazeera.
The incidents are part of a broader increase in violence: The UN documented 20 armed clashes and more roadblocks affecting humanitarian operation on Monday. (Associated Press)
Venezuela
Venezuela's Attorney General Tarek William Saab defended the state's crackdown on opposition supporters after disputed July elections, telling AFP the authorities' actions helped avert a "civil war."
Mexico
A former Mexican prosecutor and local police official was arrested in connection with the October decapitation of a Guerrero state mayor. (Associated Press)
Regional
Experts blame illegal firearms smuggled from the U.S. for an increase or a record number of killings in a growing number of Caribbean islands this year, including Trinidad and Tobago and the Bahamas, reports the Associated Press.
Record numbers of business representatives and lobbyists had access to the UN’s latest biodiversity talks, according to the analysis by DeSmog — Guardian
Brazil
Brazilian investigators believe that that police officers may have been involved in the brazen killing of a former First Capital Command member in the São Paulo airport. (Guardian)