«The previous administration (Juan Manuel Santos's) surrendered to the narco-terrorists of Colombia. Is anyone from Colombia here? You know what's going on there, right? Biden has even received the endorsement of socialist Gustavo Petro. Not good, right? Not a good endorsement at all. A former member of the M-19 guerrilla. It's not a good endorsement, and he knows it. But under my administration, we launched a historic naval effort that has seized tons and tons of drugs,» were the decisive statements that once again placed Colombia at the forefront of US President Donald Trump's attacks, in the midst of the presidential race for the upcoming elections in which he seeks re-election.
Trump said in the same speech that the administration of former Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos also negotiated “the terrible Obama-Biden-Santos agreement,» which surrendered to the drug traffickers and allowed illicit drugs to skyrocket. “That's why my administration partnered with our allies to achieve a new effort to combat drugs, and since April, we have seen more than 270 metric tons of drugs seized.». These statements, made during their intervention at the UN General Assembly, aim to elevate their country's interests and urge others to address their problems, which can be summarized by the motto America First and accounts for an isolationist tone.
This shows that Trump “can handle contradictions” and is willing to do whatever it takes to win over, on the one hand, the Latino vote—which, according to polls, supports Biden by an average of 60%—and, on the other hand, the Colombian nationals who, in their eagerness to find freedom (the kind they've found in the United States), reject all forms of leftist intention and association with Colombian subversive forces. It's known that the peace treaty had a contradictory reality, marked by the Colombians' desire for peace and their distrust of the leaders carrying it out. Even at such a sensitive moment in Colombian politics, where socialism woos power very closely, any attempt to discredit Gustavo Petro is supported by those who know no truces and give no quarter to the possibility of his arrival at the Casa de Nariño. Donald Trump knew exactly which audience to captivate with his remarks.
Gustavo Petro immediately stated on his Facebook account that he felt “very proud of the attack Trump made on me. It means we have fought for what is just. Trump's victory would represent humanity entering its terminal phase. He is a climate change denier who could lead humanity to extinction. It is precisely in the state of Florida, where Trump launched his attack against me, that hundreds of thousands of people will lose their homes, including thousands of Colombians, due to the climate crisis that Trump refuses to recognize and overcome.».
An electoral contest degraded to the most popular Latin American pre-election acts, particularly from countries like Venezuela, where for at least 20 years, ridicule, discrediting, appeals to vox populi, and vulgar discourse have graced the contest in the face of a populist event. On this occasion, the speeches steer clear of state policies, proposals, and solutions. The first electoral debate, held yesterday in Ohio, offered spectators a political show in the best populist style, without informative content but with plenty of sensationalism.
Among the many accusations Donald Trump has made against his opponent in this fight to stay in the White House, he said that in 2015 Joe Biden “praised the “brutal Venezuelan dictator,” Nicolás Maduro, whom he met that year as vice president and that “his ties with Castro-Chavista legislators” like Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Karen Bass are “an insult to millions of Hispanics,” which is why, according to him, he should be disqualified as a candidate for President of the United States. “The thing is, I beat Bernie Sanders,» Biden retorted in the debate, “now the Democratic Party is me,” he reminded Trump.
Meanwhile, Biden’s Democratic campaign responded to the remarks, pointing out that the U.S. president has been cutting the budget for aid to Colombia, proposing reductions to Congress since 2017. The truth is that Trump’s stance toward the country has been ambivalent. Although President Duque has visited Washington on more than one occasion, advocating for causes such as the “diplomatic siege” against Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela, Trump has said that the Colombian leader “is a good guy (…) but he hasn’t done anything,” referring to the handling of illicit crops and, in general, drug trafficking to the United States.
But the stances and accusations made in the North American country light the fuse, within the borders, on Colombian territory, as if only a reason were needed for national leaders to unleash all their feelings towards each other. Also last week, former president Juan Manuel Santos accused his successor Iván Duque of there being Spokespeople for the Colombian government calling to offer aid to Donald Trump's presidential campaign. According to Santos, the first sign of Iván Duque distancing himself from the more liberal-leaning party was his visit to the United States shortly after taking office, where he only met with Donald Trump and some Republican congressmen, not Democratic leaders. Duque denies any attempt to influence the U.S. elections in November.