Trump Is Righting Latin America

www.americanthinker.com

I am proud to be an American, not just because our nation has lasted 250 years with great success under the same charter, but because of our positive influence around the world.

In World War I, we turned the tide in favor of the Allied forces.

In World War II, Nazi totalitarianism would have won, but the United States bolstered Allied forces overseas and in the European theater. Japanese aggression throughout Southeast Asia, from 1931 to 1945, ended because of America. We dropped two atomic bombs on their homeland, and we forced their surrender.

The Cold War was the longest conflict. Yes, there were fewer battles, but many sanctions, lots of threats, and too many incursions and expansions of communist influence around the world. The United States stood firm against the Soviet Union and its satellites. President Nixon’s rapprochement with China and Reagan’s tough diplomacy hastened the Soviet Union’s decline.

The world received an unexpected Christmas gift on December 25, 1991, when Mikhail Gorbachev declared the official dissolution of the Soviet Union.

North Korea still embraces its Stalinist cause, but faces increasing isolation, forcing them to allow increased economic liberalism. China incorporated market reforms while retaining its authoritarian regime, but a population implosion, weakening trade, and increased indebtedness are dooming the country.

President Trump has increased the pressure on these rogue regimes, demanding economic freedom and political reforms. He has unchained American dependence on China, networked rapprochement between North Korea and South Korea, and resisted Putin’s designs on Eastern Europe and the Caucasus Mountains. Indonesia and Vietnam have also become more friendly towards the United States. Freedom has a chance when nations begin to comply and cooperate with our country.

While communism collapsed in Russia, it sadly relocated and re-emerged in Latin America. The cancer captured Cuba in 1958, then spread through Central and South America. Cartels and gangs filled the power vacuum, and Bush 41’s arrest of Manuel Noriega barely stemmed the tide. Further south, Peronist socialism ruined Argentina for decades, and juntas furthered the political disorder and collapse of freedom on the continent.

Latin America drowned in a red tsunami of communism during the early 2000s, as well. Bolivia floundered under the collectivist tyranny of the Evo Morales, and other Latin American states struggled to stay afloat in the midst of socialist machinations.

Latin America looked done for. America could finish off the Soviet Union, but what could the United States do about our neighbors to the South? If Stalinist Cuba could withstand embargoes, and hostile states like Iran, Russia, and China could form working relationships to undermine the law of nations and public order across the globe, what hope was there that we could turn things around?

President Trump has made all the difference through a savvy foreign policy regime while putting America First. Unlike previous presidents, Republican and Democrat, President Trump made immigration enforcement a cornerstone of his domestic and foreign policy. The free ride of cheap labor was over. He halted the teeming masses of upset refugees throughout the Americas from invading our country.

The message became clear to southern partners, neighbors, and adversaries: “The answer to your problems in your country will not be solved by running to our country.” Without the safe haven of the United States, the citizens of Central and South America had to look inward and turn their own countries around. They had to make do with their situation and find a way to restore order in their countries.

Thus arose Nayib Bukele in 2019. The mayor of San Salvador, he campaigned for president with a new party with a bold, basic platform of restoring civility, shutting down the terrorist gangs and cartels. He defeated the establishment of both major parties and became a human savior for the nation of El Salvador, locking up the prisoners, restoring law and order, then inviting economic investment. Murder rates in the former crime capital of the world have declined immensely—and he just won re-election by massive margins.

Then Argentina voted for freedom in 2023. Having labored under unrelenting government intervention, Argentina’s crippling inflation and moral collapse drove voters to take a chance on wily libertarian economics professor, Javier Milei. Adopting Trump’s mission and messaging, Milei took a chainsaw to the state and “the caste” of political insiders. Today, inflation is crashing, jobs are growing, and law and order is being restored. The new rallying cry across the Land of Silver: Viva La Libertad, Carajo!

Milei credits Trump for his inspiration, and Trump 2.0 assisted Milei’s congressional elections in 2025 with a credit swap, which netted the United States massive gains and helped Milei gain power in Argentina’s Congress. He has passed effective economic reforms while cracking down on crime, stumping for life, family, and secured sovereignty.

Amazing!

And the MAGA-oriented right-wing shift has continued:

In Ecuador, Daniel Noboa, a center-right businessman with a pro-security platform, took office, winning in late 2023 against leftist Luisa González. His successes netted him a re-election victory in 2025.

In Panama, right-wing candidate José Raúl Mulino won in May 2024, focusing on security and the economy.

In 2025, President Trump arrested Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in a swift, early-morning operation, accomplishing what previous administrations had promised. Maduro was arrested for rampant drug trafficking and terrorism. His successor has acquiesced to American diplomatic and business overtures while releasing political prisoners.

In Bolivia, Christian right-wing contender Rodrigo Paz Pereira ended twenty years of communist rule under Evo “Evil” Morales. Whoever said that you cannot vote your way out of communism?

In Chile, conservative Catholic José Antonio Kast won in late 2025 following a run-off, defeating a long-standing activist left-wing government which had sought to scrap Chile’s previous conservative reforms, including free market policies and school choice.

Honduras: Nasry Asfura (right-wing National Party) won in late 2025, defeating a leftist incumbent's ally.

Costa Rica: Laura Fernández Delgado (conservative/right-wing populist) won in February 2026. She campaigned aggressively on a pro-family platform, as well, denouncing the evils of abortion (just as Milei had done!)

Peru: Keiko Fujimori, daughter of populist former President Alberto, just won in June 2026.

In Colombia, another conservative Catholic, Abelardo de la Espriella, has replaced another left-wing narco-state-allied regime.

Look across Latin America today. The right is on the march, cleaning out the wreckage of socialism and communism. Free market reforms are ascending. Rejection of authoritarian regimes, recognition of the state of Israel, friendly concourse with the West, and en masse crackdowns on crime and corruption are redefining the region.

U.S. Senator Ted Cruz offered a profound vision regarding the incredible political rightward shift washing across Latin America:

[I]f that happens, this would be the most consequential geopolitical shift since the fall of the Berlin Wall, since America won the Cold War without firing a shot.

Indeed, and Trump deserves credit for this transformation. He provided a successful campaign template focused on illegal immigration, national pride and sovereignty, focusing on economic growth and freedom while promoting traditional values. Trump endorsed many of the candidates listed above, as well, and has offered his support since their election victories.

Trump started the trend, set the standard, and Latin America is going right along with him.

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