President Trump’s national security chief came to South Florida on Sunday to unveil a new Latin America initiative – one that's also got a lot to do with China.
White House National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien met with Colombian and Venezuelan community leaders at the Hilton Hotel in West Palm Beach. Many were conservative expats President Trump hopes will help him win Florida in November’s election – but whose support he also fears may be waning because his efforts to bring down authoritarian left-wing regimes in countries like Venezuela have stalled.
Partly to help galvanize expat support for Trump again, O’Brien laid out a new “Back to the Americas” initiative to promote democracy and economic growth in Latin America and the Caribbean. It includes ramped-up U.S. investment in places like Colombia and Panama, two countries O’Brien is scheduled to visit this week.
But the Latin America campaign is also a response to communist China’s aggressive investment in the region. The Trump Administration (as were previous administrations) has been criticized for complacency as Beijing pursues several major infrastructure projects – and increases its influence – in this hemisphere.
