Senate Republicans Slam Biden’s Use of Latin America Sanctions
The Biden administration is misusing its Latin America sanctions authorities by targeting U.S. partners and ignoring misbehavior by less friendly countries, eight Republican senators told President Joe Biden.
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In a letter that Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., publicly released on Feb. 26, the lawmakers said the administration designated former Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei for corruption under Section 7031(c) of the Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act of 2023 even though his country worked with the U.S. on several security matters during his tenure, such as by countering human smuggling and illicit synthetic opioids and supporting Israel and Taiwan.
"This case follows a concerning pattern," the senators wrote. "Since January 2021, the overwhelming majority of public designations made under Section 7031(c) have targeted officials in Latin American and Caribbean governments that have cooperated with the United States on strategic diplomatic and national security interests."
In contrast, the administration has failed to sanction "egregious actions" by other countries in the region, the senators wrote. The administration hasn't used Section 7031(c) designations against individuals or entities of Venezuela’s corruption-plagued government; hasn't designated former Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa, who was convicted for bribery and corruption and was indicted for ordering the kidnapping of an opposition leader; hasn't designated former Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner and her family members following their convictions for fraudulent government contracts for public infrastructure; and hasn't enforced nonproliferation sanctions against Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who allowed two U.S.-sanctioned Iranian warships to dock in the Port of Rio de Janeiro.
The "administration has ignored well-documented cases of significant corruption by foreign government officials actively undermining U.S. national security interests and supporting U.S. adversaries in Latin America and the Caribbean," the letter says. "The administration must immediately explain the process and criteria that it has used” to make these decisions.
Besides Scott, the letter was signed by Republican Sens. John Cornyn of Texas, Bill Hagerty of Tennessee, James Lankford of Oklahoma, Mike Lee of Utah, Jim Risch of Idaho, Marco Rubio of Florida and Tim Scott of South Carolina.
The White House didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.