American Grand Strategy For Latin America In The Age Of Resentment

President George W. Bush's trip to Brazil, Colombia, Guatemala, and Mexico in early 2007 underscored the critical value of a healthy Latin America to the United States as a global power. Latin America today is besieged by a powerful force of resentment engendered by a combination of weak states, social exclusion, criminal violence, and corruption. One consequence is the attack by radical populism against democratic values. In this context, the United States needs a new grand strategy that addresses the causes rather than the symptoms of the malaise. Dr. Gabriel Marcella argues that such a strategy must strengthen the effectiveness of the democratic state in providing security, justice, and governance, as well as effectively engender a linkage of the 40 percent of the population presently excluded from the social and economic benefit