WASHINGTON, D.C. – This week, Western Hemisphere Subcommittee Chair María Elvira Salazar (R-FL) chaired a hearing examining the failed socialist presidency of Gustavo Petro in Colombia. “When looking at Colombia, a major course correction is needed,” declared Chairwoman Salazar. “Over the last 30 years, Colombia has made incredible progress. A new era of prosperity, democracy, and security swept over this critical country. Now, it looks like that will be all erased, and there is one man to blame: President Gustavo Francisco Petro Urrego.” Chairwoman Salazar is a leading voice on Colombian affairs in the city of Miami and Latin America, both as the city’s representative in the House of Representatives, and as a journalist who served the Colombian-American community dutifully for more than 35 years. Under her direction, the Subcommittee invited the following senior officials from the Biden administration to testify: - Mr. Mark Wells, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, U.S. Department of State; and
- Mr. Peter Natiello, Senior Deputy Assistant Administrator, Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean, U.S. Agency on International Development (USAID)
In the hearing, Salazar exposed the Biden Administration for ceasing to monitor coca production in Colombia, a standing bipartisan U.S. policy for decades (El Tiempo first reported on this). She also slammed the Petro Administration for adopting a new “laissez-faire” approach to drug production in Colombia, for propping up murderous dictator Nicolás Maduro, and for negotiating with el Clan del Golfo – the largest drug trafficking and human trafficking organization in Colombia and one of the largest in the world. BACKGROUND: In 2022, the Colombian people elected a former M-19 guerrilla terrorist, Gustavo Petro, as their president. Just over a year into his administration, Petro’s corrupt leftist policies have created a bleak future for Colombia. He has worked closely with the enemies of liberty in Latin America, such as Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro. All the while, he has pushed for radical reforms of key sectors such as health and energy that threaten the future prosperity of Colombia. President Petro’s radical economic proposals threaten U.S. interests in South America, and the Biden Administration continues to defend them, sometimes even encourage them. This newfound embrace of President Petro is part of a worrying trend of aiding socialist politicians while undercutting conservative administrations in the hemisphere. Watch Chairwoman Salazar’s full remarks here. There are over 1.4 million Colombian Americans living in the United States, and Congresswoman Salazar represents over 40,000 of them in Florida’s 27th congressional district. ### |
