A Pragmatic Obama Policy Toward Latin America

The highly respected former Republican Secretary of State James Baker and former Democratic Congressman Lee Hamilton, co-chairs of the 2006 Iraq Study Group, recently praised President Barack Obama's realistic and pragmatic approach to international relations. In an interview with Jim Lehrer on public television, they said Obama listens, understands what you say and then asks: "How do I get it done?"

As you might suspect, Baker and Hamilton were not speaking in the context of U.S. relations with Latin America, but rather of Iran, Syria and the Middle East peace process. Still, with Obama slated to meet with all but one of his counterparts in the Americas during the next five weeks, starting with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, there is hope that Obama will bring such a pragmatic attitude to improving relations with his southern neighbors.

How might he get that done? We don't know what the individual presidents will suggest, but Obama would do well by taking steps to improve the image of the United States and diminish the anti-American sentiment that became particularly acute during the Bush years.

Obama's election alone was a first positive step. Today he is more popular than some regional leaders in their own countries and his political views are more in line with Latin America's left-of-center bent than those of his predecessor.

In terms of policy, Obama could make a big initial impact with a relatively easy and symbolic gesture by beginning to lift the complex set of restrictions on Cuba. According to a new report on U.S. policy in the Americas released this week by the Washington based think tank Inter-American Dialogue, "nothing would better demonstrate the new administration's intention to pursue a fresh approach to Latin America."

This is politically feasible now, a fact demonstrated by recent developments in Congress. Passions over this issue remain strong, but minor concessions on family travel and agricultural trade approved by Congress this week have paved the way for Obama to lift travel and remittance restrictions for Cuban-Americans, which could come later this month.

After Cuba, improving U.S. standing gets more complicated. For at least a dozen countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, "U.S. immigration policy is the single most pressing issue in their bilateral relations with Washington," according to the Inter-American Dialogue. But its current, narrow focus on enforcement and walls, rather than on fixing a system that encourages illegal immigration, strikes these nations as inhumane and offensive.

Attempts in recent years to pass a comprehensive immigration reform failed in Congress and the current economic recession is only likely to compound future efforts. Still, last month, on Spanish language radio, Obama renewed his commitment to reform pledging to begin drawing up legislation "over the next several months."

He did so not for foreign policy reasons, of course, but because it is an urgent issue domestically. Local government representatives say, for instance, that the lack of national immigration reform undermines their ability to ensure public health and safety, economic development and community cohesion.

U.S. drug policy, a centerpiece in relations with the region in the last two decades, is another blight on the U.S. image. Progress here would require that Washington do more to reduce U.S. drug consumption but also increase efforts to control the rampant flow south of dollars and weapons which fuel the growing crime and violence affecting virtually every country south of the Rio Grande.

Such a massive problem would require coordinated, commensurate efforts that we haven't seen beyond Colombia. So far, Obama's pick for drug czar has been hailed as a harbinger of change. In accepting his nomination, Gil Kerlikowske said that "the success of our efforts to reduce the flow of drugs is largely dependent on our ability to reduce demand for them."

Image isn't everything of course, and being popular doesn't guarantee good policy. But a good image of the United States in South America could result from good practical policies. Such policies could make sense for Obama domestically too, considering that today a strong U.S. image abroad also seems a priority for many Americans.

In a new survey released by the liberal Center for American Progress this week, more than two-thirds of Americans said that a positive image of the United States around the world is necessary to achieve U.S. national security goals. Just as popular was the belief that the United States has taken too large a role in solving the world's problems and should focus more at home.

Changes needed to improve U.S. standing in Latin America won't come easily. But it may be easier than it looks considering that behind every change there are strong internal motivations to get it done.