Politics, Business & Culture in the Americas
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The Economic Reality Facing Nicolás Maduro

Hugo Chávez engineered an electoral budget boom on steroids to win the 2012 presidential election. His economic strategy resulted in a significant appreciation of the real exchange rate, an increase in imports to a historical peak, and a considerable increase in public wages. Facing a strong contender in Henrique Capriles—and the limits to his campaign … Read more

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Venezuela’s Regional Elections and the Implications for the Opposition

While President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela remains in Cuba recovering from his fourth cancer surgery on the island, millions of his supporters delivered a solid political victory for his party in the country’s regional elections on December 16. Of the 23 governorships that exist in Venezuela, the Partido Socialista Unido de Venezuela (United Socialist Party—PSUV) … Read more

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Maduro is No Chávez, For Now

After much speculation President Hugo Chávez announced on December 8 that his cancer was back (for the second time in a year), and that he now had a person in mind to succeed him—Nicolás Maduro, the minister of foreign affairs who was elevated to vice president in October 2012.   Designating Maduro as the official successor … Read more

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The Challenges Ahead for Hugo Chávez

After Hugo Chávez convincingly won re-election on Sunday, the margin of victory—over 1.5 million votes, totaling over 10 percentage points—has stunned members of Venezuela’s opposition, leaving them searching for answers. Some pointed to the Consejo Nacional Electoral (National Electoral Council—CNE), which is controlled by chavistas and turned a blind eye to government abuses. Others pointed … Read more

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Electoral Legitimacy and Security Ahead of Venezuela’s Presidential Election

Late last week, Venezuelan presidential candidate Henrique Capriles Radonski released a video with his final appeal to voters. Looking straight at the camera, the former governor of Miranda state addressed the fears that prevent some Venezuelans from supporting him fully: being fired from government jobs; being passed over for a social program; or being banned … Read more

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State-Owned Media and the Public Interest

Regimes that seek to limit civilian and political opposition have found a new tool in controlling their messaging: state-owned media. This comes despite the fact that state media—like many means of communication—should serve the interests of all citizens and provide information free of commercial, state or political influence. According to a 2009 report by the … Read more

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Capriles Radonski and His Vision for Venezuela

After years of being rudderless, Venezuela’s opposition to Hugo Chávez finally has a leader. Miranda Governor Henrique Capriles Radonski soundly defeated four other candidates on February 12 to become the opposition’s sole presidential candidate for October’s presidential election. That he did so without providing details on his vision makes his victory all the more remarkable. … Read more

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Venezuela’s Military: A Factor in the Upcoming Election?

Election year in Venezuela kicks off on February 12 with the governor of the state of Miranda, Henrique Capriles Radonski, comfortably leading in the polls and projected to win the opposition primary. He will face the campaign machine of President Hugo Chávez or “El Comandante,” which is marching ahead with the well-oiled efficiency of a … Read more

 

Sur Solidarity: Bolivarian Dreams of Integration Confront Economic Reality

Sudden and sharp shifts in commodities and financial markets in the last few months are realigning geopolitics worldwide. Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, whose ambitions are greased by oil wealth, is taking an especially hard hit. An early casualty of the global economic slide could be the regional alliances promoted by Chávez to challenge what he … Read more

 

Citizens Strengthening Democracy

Weak democratic institutions and a failure to improve the quality of life for millions have ushered in a new era of authoritarianism with a populist tinge in Latin America. The result: a step back for the rule of law and for democracy. Human rights and democracy organizations have tried to confront this challenge. But without … Read more

 

Create a Hemisphere-Wide Security Alliance

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My proposal to the next U.S. president is heartfelt—and simple: start regarding Latin America as a neighbor. This may sound obvious, but the truth is that although we live in the same neighborhood, the relationship is by no means that of close and important neighbors. It is in everyone’s best interest to put Latin America back on the map, and the way to do this, I believe, is by constructing a cooperative framework that will give a comparative advantage to our hemisphere.

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Deal with the Left’s Resurgence

Reading Time: 2 minutes

The landscape of Latin America has shifted in both political and economic terms in the last ten years. The Left, with its “one thousand faces,” has reappeared in a distorted and pernicious manner, without providing any solutions to the biggest problems in the region such as poverty, drug trafficking, contraband, and corruption, among others. In many of our countries, we have to start over again. The challenge awaiting the new president of the United States in developing new policies for the region will not be easy.

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