(Even more here)

January 7, 2019

Western Hemisphere Regional

• Damian Paletta, Juliet Eilperin, Nick Miroff, Robert Costa, “As Shutdown Drags on, Trump Officials Make New Offer, Seek Novel Ways to Cope With Its Impacts” (The Washington Post, January 7, 2019).

It demanded $5.7 billion “for construction of a steel barrier for the Southwest border” but also proposed “an additional $800 million to address urgent humanitarian needs” and unaccompanied migrant children arriving at the border

• David Taylor, Martin Pengelly, “Trump Threatens National Emergency in ‘Next Few Days’ Over Wall and Shutdown” (The Guardian (Uk), January 7, 2019).

The 1976 National Emergencies Act grants a president powers to take unilateral acts in times of crisis. But it also outlines congressional checks and with Democrats controlling the House, an attempt to make such a move would be fiercely contested

• “President Trump Sends a Letter on Border Security to Congress” (The White House, January 7, 2019).

As the enclosed presentation makes clear, current funding levels, resources, and authorities are woefully inadequate to meet the scope of the problem

• Felicia Sonmez, Josh Dawsey, “Trump to Visit U.S.-Mexico Border Amid Shutdown Stalemate” (The Washington Post, January 7, 2019).

The Federal Aviation Administration issued a notice that airspace in the McAllen, Tex., vicinity would be restricted on Thursday due to a “VIP movement.”

• Jonathan Blitzer, “Donald Trump’s Failure to Address the Real Crisis at the Border” (The New Yorker, January 7, 2019).

In the last half decade, while immigration at the U.S. border has dropped significantly compared with earlier years, the profile of migrants has changed in ways that the U.S. immigration system has never been designed to address

• Julie Hirschfeld Davis, Peter Baker, “How the Border Wall Is Boxing Trump In” (The New York Times, January 7, 2019).

What started out as a memory trick for an undisciplined candidate has become the central priority of the Trump presidency, even as some immigration hard-liners do not view it as a top goal

• David Nakamura, Nick Miroff, “After Years of Trump’s Dire Warnings, a ‘Crisis’ Has Hit the Border but Generates Little Urgency” (The Washington Post, January 7, 2019).

This time, they face a bona fide emergency on the border, and they’re struggling to make the case there’s truly a problem

• Mattathias Schwartz, “Would Patrolling With the Border Patrol Change Your Mind About the Border?” (New York, January 7, 2019).

The orchestra joke hints at the precarious moral situation faced by the 19,000 agents of the Border Patrol, more than half of whom are Latino

• Sarah Kinosian, “‘The Us Can’t Dump People in Mexico’: Trump Asylum Policy in Doubt” (The Guardian (Uk), January 7, 2019).

“I had heard rumors, but I was not consulted,” said Tonatiuh Guillén, head of Mexico’s national immigration authority, told the Guardian

Brazil

• Estadao Conteudo, “Instalacao de Base Dos Eua No Brasil Gera Criticas Entre Militares” (Veja (Brazil), January 7, 2019).

Oficiais das Forças Armadas consultados reagiram com surpresa à declaração do presidente. Eles avaliam que Bolsonaro falou em tom de especulação

Chile

• “Bomb Blast in Downtown Santiago de Chile Injures Five People” (MercoPress, January 7, 2019).

A militant environmental group claimed the attack on its website. Two years ago the group — identifying themselves as “Individualists Tending to the Wild” — said they were behind a parcel bomb attack

Colombia

• Juan Camilo Pedraza, “Solo Faltan 3 de los 16 Planes para las Zonas Afectadas por la Guerra” (El Tiempo (Colombia), January 7, 2019).

El reto de la puesta en marcha de los PDET es muy grande porque ahora de lo que se trata es ver qué podemos hacer de eso que salió en el territorio y poder decir cómo se puede financiar

• Raul Rosende, “Balance de la Implementacion del Acuerdo de Paz” (Mision de Verificación de la ONU Colombia, Semana Rural (Colombia), January 7, 2019).

Los asesinatos se han concentrado en Antioquia, Cauca, Caquetá, Nariño y Norte de Santander. Se hace necesario el incremento de la presencia del Estado

• Meghann Myers, “Two Army Green Berets Plead Guilty in Plot to Smuggle 90 Pounds of Cocaine From Colombia” (Army Times, January 7, 2019).

“Suspicion was aroused at the United States Embassy when packages were x-rayed, revealing cocaine within gutted out punching bags”

Colombia, Venezuela

• Ricardo Monsalve Gaviria, “Ofensiva Diplomatica de Colombia para Buscar Elenos en Venezuela” (El Colombiano (Medellin Colombia), January 7, 2019).

La intención que tiene Colombia es que Venezuela responda, de manera oficial, si en su territorio están integrantes del Comando Central, Coce, del Eln y otros integrantes de la organización

Colombia

• “Con el Crimen de Maritza, el 2019 Inicia Con el Asesinato de un Lider Social por Dia” (Semana (Colombia), January 7, 2019).

El asesinato de la líder de las mujeres afrodescendientes víctimas de desplazamiento en la zona rural de Santa Marta y suplente de la Mesa de Víctimas de Santa Marta, se suma a los crímenes de otros cinco líderes sociales en los primeros seis días del 2019

• “¿Que Hay Detras del Escandalo de los Aviones Rusos?” (Semana (Colombia), January 7, 2019).

A finales de año se armó una discusión por cuenta de la llegada de dos bombarderos de Moscú a Venezuela. Pero esa jugada militar nada tuvo que ver con la tensión entre Colombia y su vecino, sino entre Rusia y Estados Unidos

Cuba

• Carl Zimmer, “The Sounds That Haunted U.S. Diplomats in Cuba? Lovelorn Crickets, Scientists Say” (The New York Times, January 7, 2019).

Dr. Smith wouldn’t rule out the possibility that some diplomats might have heard crickets, but said that had no bearing on the real damage they’ve suffered

Guatemala

• Sonia Perez D., Sonny Figueroa, “Guatemala Bars Entry to un-Sponsored Corruption Investigator” (Associated Press, Associated Press, January 7, 2019).

Colombian national Yilen Osorio was detained by Guatemalan immigration officials upon arrival at the airport Saturday afternoon. The move comes despite a court ruling that Guatemala must grant visas and entry

• Jody Garcia, MartÍn RodrÍguez Pellecer, “En Vivo, Que Esta Pasando en el Aeropuerto y por Que Puede Culminar en un Golpe de Estado” (Nomada (Guatemala), January 7, 2019).

El gobierno de Jimmy Morales y sus aliados continúan con el golpe de Estado en cámara lenta que puede hacer que todo explote, pronto

Mexico

• Arturo Angel, “Las 3 Leyes Que Lopez Obrador Necesita para Que Opere la Guardia Nacional” (Animal Politico (Mexico), January 7, 2019).

Se trata de la Ley Orgánica de la Guardia Nacional, de la Ley de Uso Legítimo de la Fuerza, y la Ley General de Registro de Detenciones

• Lizbeth Diaz, “Central American Migrants Protest Closure of Tijuana Shelter” (Reuters, Reuters, January 7, 2019).

Tijuana officials cited sanitary reasons for closing the shelter, a two-story warehouse in a zone known for crime and prostitution near the border

• Paulina Villegas, “Migrants in Tijuana Know Trump Doesn’t Want Them. They Aren’t Giving Up.” (The New York Times, January 7, 2019).

After traveling for weeks, often on foot, Central Americans are settling in and waiting for the right moment to reach their ultimate goal: the United States

• Azam Ahmed, “Migrants’ Despair Is Growing at U.S. Border. So Are Smugglers’ Profits.” (The New York Times, January 7, 2019).

In Reynosa and elsewhere, the delays caused by the policy are prompting many migrants to weigh the costs and dangers of a faster option: hiring a smuggler, at an increasingly costly rate

• Noah Lanard, “As Trump Fights for His Wall, Here’s the Actual Humanitarian Crisis Unfolding at the Border” (Mother Jones, January 7, 2019).

Asylum-seekers used to be able to simply walk across the border and make their claim for protection—a right enshrined in US and international law. That is no longer the case

Nicaragua

• Leonor Álvarez, “Policia Orteguista Entrena para una Guerra” (La Prensa (Nicaragua), January 7, 2019).

El sitio web de la Policía Orteguista (PO) informó que el 30 de diciembre finalizó la graduación de 45 oficiales en tácticas militares. Las imágenes oficiales muestran a los policías sosteniendo lanzacohetes antitanques RPG-7 y fusiles Dragunov

Venezuela

• “Declaracion del Grupo de Lima” (Ministry of Foreign Relations of Peru, January 7, 2019).

No reconocen la legitimidad del nuevo periodo presidencial del régimen de Nicolás Maduro, que se iniciará el 10 de enero de 2019

• Benjamin N. Gedan, Fernando Cutz, “Maduro’s Inauguration Sets the Stage to Further Isolate Venezuela’s Regime” (The Washington Post, January 7, 2019).

Latin American governments should adopt unilateral sanctions to punish the kleptocrats whose thievery, incompetence and brutality have impoverished an oil-rich country

• “Top Venezuela Judge Defects to Us” (BBC (UK), January 7, 2019).

Mr Zerpa called the Supreme Court “an appendage of the executive branch”, saying the president would tell justices how to rule on certain cases

• Abraham Lowenthal, David Smilde, “Venezuela Needs Politics and Diplomacy, Not Military Intervention” (The Hill, January 7, 2019).

A space for fruitful negotiation must be opened by the internal mobilization of a unified opposition, in tandem with international pressure

• “Hallan Supuesto Explosivo en Parlamento Venezolano” (EFE, El Colombiano (Medellin Colombia), January 7, 2019).

Varios diputados opositores denunciaron hoy que dentro de la sede del Parlamento venezolano fue hallado un supuesto artefacto explosivo que ya fue retirado sin ocasionar daños