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87–517PDF 2014

ADVANCING U.S. INTERESTS IN THE

WESTERN HEMISPHERE: THE FY 2015

FOREIGN AFFAIRS BUDGET

HEARING

BEFORE THE

SUBCOMMITTEE ON 

THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE

OF THE

COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

ONE HUNDRED THIRTEENTH CONGRESS

SECOND SESSION

APRIL 9, 2014

Serial No. 113–144

Printed for the use of the Committee on Foreign Affairs

(

Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.foreignaffairs.house.gov/ or

http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/

(II)

COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS 

EDWARD R. ROYCE, California, Chairman 

CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, New Jersey 

ILEANA ROS-LEHTINEN, Florida 

DANA ROHRABACHER, California 

STEVE CHABOT, Ohio 

JOE WILSON, South Carolina 

MICHAEL T. MCCAUL, Texas 

TED POE, Texas 

MATT SALMON, Arizona 

TOM MARINO, Pennsylvania 

JEFF DUNCAN, South Carolina 

ADAM KINZINGER, Illinois 

MO BROOKS, Alabama 

TOM COTTON, Arkansas 

PAUL COOK, California 

GEORGE HOLDING, North Carolina 

RANDY K. WEBER SR., Texas 

SCOTT PERRY, Pennsylvania 

STEVE STOCKMAN, Texas 

RON DESANTIS, Florida 

DOUG COLLINS, Georgia 

MARK MEADOWS, North Carolina 

TED S. YOHO, Florida 

LUKE MESSER, Indiana 

ELIOT L. ENGEL, New York 

ENI F.H. FALEOMAVAEGA, American 

Samoa 

BRAD SHERMAN, California 

GREGORY W. MEEKS, New York 

ALBIO SIRES, New Jersey 

GERALD E. CONNOLLY, Virginia 

THEODORE E. DEUTCH, Florida 

BRIAN HIGGINS, New York 

KAREN BASS, California 

WILLIAM KEATING, Massachusetts 

DAVID CICILLINE, Rhode Island 

ALAN GRAYSON, Florida 

JUAN VARGAS, California 

BRADLEY S. SCHNEIDER, Illinois 

JOSEPH P. KENNEDY III, Massachusetts 

AMI BERA, California 

ALAN S. LOWENTHAL, California 

GRACE MENG, New York 

LOIS FRANKEL, Florida 

TULSI GABBARD, Hawaii 

JOAQUIN CASTRO, Texas

AMY PORTER, Chief of Staff THOMAS SHEEHY, Staff Director

JASON STEINBAUM, Democratic Staff Director 

SUBCOMMITTEE ON THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE

MATT SALMON, Arizona, Chairman 

CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, New Jersey 

ILEANA ROS-LEHTINEN, Florida 

MICHAEL T. MCCAUL, Texas 

JEFF DUNCAN, South Carolina 

RON DESANTIS, Florida 

ALBIO SIRES, New Jersey 

GREGORY W. MEEKS, New York 

ENI F.H. FALEOMAVAEGA, American 

Samoa 

THEODORE E. DEUTCH, Florida 

ALAN GRAYSON, Florida 

(III)

C O N T E N T S 

Page

WITNESSES 

The Honorable Roberta S. Jacobson, Assistant Secretary, Bureau for Western 

Hemisphere Affairs, U.S. Department of State ................................................. 10

Ms. Elizabeth Hogan, Acting Assistant Administrator, Bureau for Latin 

America and the Caribbean, U.S. Agency for International Development ..... 17

LETTERS, STATEMENTS, ETC., SUBMITTED FOR THE HEARING 

The Honorable Roberta S. Jacobson: Prepared statement ................................... 13

Ms. Elizabeth Hogan: Prepared statement ............................................................ 19

APPENDIX 

Hearing notice .......................................................................................................... 42

Hearing minutes ...................................................................................................... 43

(1)

ADVANCING U.S. INTERESTS IN THE 

WESTERN HEMISPHERE: THE FY 2015

FOREIGN AFFAIRS BUDGET 

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 9, 2014

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,

SUBCOMMITTEE ON THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE,

COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS,

Washington, DC. 

The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 2 o’clock p.m., in 

room 2172 Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Matt Salmon 

(chairman of the subcommittee) presiding. 

Mr. SALMON. A quorum being present, the subcommittee will 

come to order. 

I will start by recognizing myself and the ranking member to 

present opening statements. Without objection, the members of the 

subcommittee can submit their opening remarks for the record. 

Now I yield myself as much time as I may consume to make my 

opening statement. 

Good afternoon, and welcome to the hearing on the FY2015 

budget and how the request advances U.S. interests in the Western 

Hemisphere. I am grateful to U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Roberta Jacobson and USAID Assistant Administrator Beth Hogan 

for coming here to testify before this subcommittee. 

As you both know, in these times of tight budgets, our strategy 

and policy in the Western Hemisphere has got to be focused on and 

reflect our vital national interests. By virtue of our proximity and 

cultural ties, our economic relationship with much of the Western 

Hemisphere is strong and increasingly integrated. Our free trade 

agenda over the years has been instrumental in building peace, 

prosperity, and the rule of law in our region. 

Since more than half of all of the free trade partners that we 

have are in Latin America, U.S. businesses and the American people stand to benefit from the strong trade and investment relationships that we enjoy with these wonderful neighbors. 

Assistant Secretary Jacobson, I commend your efforts to build on 

these relationships, including your important work on the Mexico 

High-Level Economic Dialogue and ongoing Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations. The work you and your colleagues do to support 

the Commerce Department’s ‘‘Look South Initiative’’ is instrumental in helping U.S. small businesses to learn more about growing export opportunities that exist right here with our 12 hemispheric free trade partners. It has been a priority of mine that this 

2

subcommittee be a loud voice in favor of exporting our values of 

free enterprise in open markets to promote economic growth and 

energy security in our region. And, I have long believed that we 

have a real opportunity to achieve energy independence right here 

in the Western Hemisphere, thanks to our own energy renaissance, 

Mexico’s historic energy reforms that promise to increase production, and Canada’s vast resources. 

While the administration continues its efforts to combat climate 

change and reduce emissions in the Americas, it inexplicably stonewalls approval of the Keystone XL Pipeline project. The Keystone 

XL project would produce U.S. jobs and increase energy security, 

and State Department’s own Environmental Impact Statement released in January concluded that it would not alter global greenhouse gas emissions. 

I believe that we must balance our environmental stewardship 

with economic growth and energy security. My concern is that the 

environmental agenda reflected in the administration’s budget for 

the region has not been balanced by a commitment to enhancing 

our energy security today. This is plainly seen in the administration’s hostile delay of the approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, 

damaging our U.S. energy security and diplomatic ties with Canada, without, in the administration’s own estimation, providing any 

commensurate benefits to climate or emissions reduction goals. 

Our strategy for the Western Hemisphere should be to continue 

to promote free trade, economic growth, and prosperity. To achieve 

this, we have got to insist that our regional partners uphold respect 

for democratic institutions, values, and the rule of law. Without 

this, peace and prosperity are in peril. 

Nowhere is this truth more evident than in Venezuela today, 

where opposition leaders and students are being imprisoned without charges, demonstrators beaten, and at least 39 people have 

been killed at the hands of Venezuelan police and paramilitary 

forces. 

The Organization of American States, 40 percent funded by the 

American taxpayer, has been co-opted by the populist anti-democratic left of Latin America, and has been shamefully silent in the 

face of violence of impending economic catastrophe brought on by 

President Maduro’s authoritarian policies. 

As I said to Secretary Kerry at a recent hearing, it is increasingly difficult to justify to the American people the continued funding of such a feckless organization that actually works against our 

interests and our values. The United States must stand with the 

people of Venezuela with more than words, and I will be interested 

in learning what specifically the administration plans to do to compel Maduro to cease these attacks against his own people. 

Meanwhile, a year after Cuba was caught red-handed violating 

U.N. sanctions and shipping weapons to North Korea through the 

Panama Canal, the U.N. has yet to take strong actions to punish 

Cuba for this egregious violation. And Cuba continues to repress its 

people, while exporting its repressive tactics around the region, 

fueling the anti-democratic policies of Maduro, Morales, and 

Correa. 

Also among the region’s authoritarian and anti-democratic bad 

actors we have Bolivia and Ecuador. In Bolivia, authoritarian popVerDate 0ct 09 2002 13:49 Jun 18, 2014 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 F:\WORK\_WH\040914\87517 SHIRL
3

ulist President Morales has made a political calculation to reject 

the United States, expelling our Ambassador, DEA, and USAID. 

While right sizing of that Embassy has reduced the number of 

U.S. officials and family members dramatically, in my estimation 

we remain too large a presence for what the relationship with Bolivia gives us. 

The Department maintains that it is important to keep a pilot 

light on in the eventuality of a new government. While it can be 

argued that the costs of moving officers and their families, paying 

for housing, utilities, and schools for their dependents is a drop in 

the bucket compared to the overall Western Hemisphere budget, 

our relationship with Bolivia does not, I don’t think, warrant the 

current presence. 

Moreover, the constant threat of being declared persona non 

grata makes the everyday work of a Foreign Service Officer very 

difficult. And, cowering for fear of expulsion from Bolivia should be 

beneath the United States. 

In Ecuador, the administration has been looking for ways to engage President Correa. While I have yet to receive a good overview 

of Secretary Kerry’s telephone call with Ecuador’s Foreign Minister, I do know that the Government of Ecuador continues to systematically suppress freedom of expression, threaten opposition 

and crackdown on civil society groups. 

Meanwhile, Ecuador is on the blacklist for its permissive money 

laundering environment and has been arbitrarily changing trade 

and investment rules, creating an unpredictable environment for 

U.S. business interests. I will be interested in learning what the 

administration’s policy will be toward Ecuador going forward. 

Like Bolivia, the current posture of keeping our heads down for 

fear of expulsion should not be the chosen route for dealing with 

authoritarian governments that systematically attack democratic 

values and rule of law in our hemisphere. 

Recent subcommittee testimony revealed a growing Russian presence in the region, along with Iranian and Chinese influence. Just 

as Secretary Kerry declared an end to the Monroe Doctrine, Russia 

has announced their intention to set up strategic bases in Cuba, 

Nicaragua, and Venezuela. The American people want to know 

what the administration’s strategy is in dealing with this increased 

presence of our adversaries. 

Finally, I, personally, am concerned with parts of USAID’s family 

planning focus in the region. As a father of four children, I do not 

object to helping underserved indigenous women obtain prenatal 

care. But when I learn we are providing morning after pills and 

sterilization services, I can’t help but think this is merely pro-abortion and pro-sterilization activists using taxpayer money to spread 

their anti-life orthodoxy to the poorest region of the Americas. This, 

to me, is not only an affront to the taxpayer, but it is a sinister 

and shameless part of, I believe, this President’s anti-life agenda. 

We agree that the Western Hemisphere is vibrant and rich in resources, innovation, and human capital. With headlines mostly 

dominated by crises and challenges outside our hemisphere, it is 

imperative that we do not lose sight of the strategic importance of 

this region. 

4

I know you all agree with that. I look forward to hearing your 

testimony and working closely with you to better address our strategic interests right here in our neighborhood. 

And, with that, I would like to recognize our ranking member, 

and you may want to defer to our ranking member on the full committee. 

Mr. SIRES. I don’t think so. 

Mr. SALMON. You don’t think so? [Laughter.] 

If only he wasn’t such a great guy, we wouldn’t want to do that, 

would we? 

Mr. ENGEL. I thank the chairman, my friend from Arizona, and 

my buddy from New Jersey. As the ranking member of the Foreign 

Affairs Committee, I want to thank both Chairman Salmon and 

Ranking Member Sires for holding today’s hearing. Myself, as the 

former chairman of the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee, I feel 

very much at home coming back here. 

Let me first thank Secretary Jacobson for her continued excellent 

work in promoting an active U.S. policy in the Americas. We have 

worked closely together through the years, and I appreciate your 

hard work, your smarts, and your professionalism. So thank you 

very much. 

The Obama administration has set a new tone of partnership in 

the region. I am particularly appreciative of Vice President Biden’s 

important new role on Western Hemisphere issues. While U.S. attention has understandably been on Ukraine in recent weeks, we 

cannot ignore the brave student protesters in Venezuela who have 

been unjustly repressed by President Nicolas Maduro. 

I am grateful for President Obama and Secretary Kerry’s strong 

statements condemning the Maduro government’s actions. At the 

same time, I am disappointed by the silence of OAS member states, 

many of which suffered domestic repression in the recent past. 

As this subcommittee is well aware, our actions at home have a 

major impact on our neighbors in Latin America and the Caribbean. This is particularly true with regard to the massive U.S. demand for illegal drugs and the continued flow of firearms from the 

U.S. to Mexico. 

Today I sent a letter to President Obama signed by 81 of my colleagues asking him to stop the import of military-style firearms 

into the United States as provided under the Gun Control Act of 

1968. Enforcing this ban, as did Presidents George H.W. Bush and 

Clinton, would serve the dual purpose of improving public safety in 

the United States, and reducing drug-related violence in Mexico, 

where there have been approximately 70,000 organized crime-related deaths since December 2006, including the death of a young 

man in my district. 

In addition, it has been 43 years since President Nixon declared 

a war on drugs. Our programs have recorded a mixed record of success, and I think the time has come for an unbiased expert review 

of America’s counternarcotics policies in our hemisphere. 

I, therefore, plan to reintroduce legislation, which passed our 

committee and the full House in 2009, to create an independent 

commission to evaluate U.S. drug policy in the Americas. I believe 

this commission will help us to better understand which counterVerDate 0ct 09 2002 13:49 Jun 18, 2014 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 F:\WORK\_WH\040914\87517 SHIRL
5

narcotics policies work, which do not work, and how we can have 

a better counternarcotics policy moving forward. 

I want to mention just two other things before I close, and that 

is what has always struck me about Latin America and the Caribbean is how a little bit of money goes a long, long way. U.S. foreign 

aid is less than 1 percent of our budget. And I know we are always 

looking to save money, but the fact of the matter is it could really 

make the difference in many of these countries, not only the difference in improving the lives of people living in these countries, 

but the difference in terms of forging a permanent and close working relationship with the United States. That is why I feel we 

should be expanding our aid in the Western Hemisphere. It really, 

really goes a long way. 

And the last thing I want to raise is Cuba and Alan Gross, because he started his hunger strike, and I am totally in sympathy 

with him. We have got to find a way to bring him back. I think 

that there are many things which to me, through the years, have 

shown the brutality of the Castro regimes. I think the incarceration 

of Alan Gross is just par for the course, and we need to do everything we can to get this American citizen back home where he belongs, with his family. 

So thank you, again, to the witnesses for being here today, and 

for your continued commitment to these important issues. Assistant Secretary Jacobson, Ms. Hogan, thank you both. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Mr. SALMON. I thank the former chairman and ranking member. 

We are really thrilled to have you here today. 

Mr. ENGEL. A lot of titles. 

Mr. SALMON. Lots of titles. 

And I am going to go out of order, and recognize the gentlewoman. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Thank you so much, Mr. Chairman. Welcome 

to our witnesses. I remain increasingly concerned over the lack of 

action by the Obama administration against the human rights 

abusers in Venezuela. According to reports, there are 39 people 

killed, nearly 60 reported cases of torture, more than 2,000 people 

unjustly detained, hundreds injured, and what do we get from the 

administration? Almost absolute silence. 

Leopoldo Lopez, who has been unjustly detained in a military 

prison for almost 7 weeks, now faces a 14-year prison sentence just 

for protesting peacefully to promote democratic principles. And, 

again, from the administration, crickets. Has anyone from our Embassy even visited Leopoldo behind bars? Have we made that public? Will the U.S. accept the Venezuelan request to put an Ambassador in DC at the OAS? 

As you know, opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was prevented from speaking the truth about the crisis in Venezuela, was 

stripped of her position in the legislature, and what was the response from the administration? Nada. It is shameful that the 

Obama administration continues to neglect the suffering of the 

Venezuelan people. Maduro has accepted this proposal by 

UNASUR to broker a peace talk between the government and certain factions of the opposition. It is not supported by the opposition 

as a group. 

6

I remain very skeptical of this smoke and mirrors deal, because 

I don’t believe that UNASUR is an honest broker. The Venezuelan 

opposition cannot negotiate if they have a gun pointed at their 

head. Brazil has shown time and time again its unwillingness to 

support human rights. Colombia is at the mercy of Venezuela and 

the Castro regime, due to its misguided negotiations with the 

FARC. In Ecuador, Correa remains on the side of Maduro also as 

he tramples on democratic reforms. 

And yesterday Secretary Kerry testified in the Senate that the 

U.S. does not want to act in Venezuela because of these bogus negotiations. But these protests have been going on for 2 months. 

Now we are using this sham of negotiations as an excuse to not 

help the opposition, at least not take action to help them in any 

way. 

The President, as we know, issued Executive Orders to sanction 

Russian violators of human rights abuses, and even up to last 

week, Mr. Chairman, the President issued an Executive Order authorizing sanctions for South Sudan. So I ask, ‘‘Why can the administration not issue the same order today on Venezuela and hold 

human rights violators accountable?’’

And what kind of regime in Venezuela are we dealing with? As 

we know, it is a serial human rights abuser of a country. Our own 

GAO report states, ‘‘Venezuelan officials, including those in the National Guard, have been bribed to facilitate cocaine shipments 

across the border with Colombia.’’ The Venezuelan National Guard 

poses the most significant threat because the Guard reports directly to the President. 

This example illustrates the direct authority by the executive 

over the National Guard that is responsible for the killings in Venezuela with the help of the Castro regime and the involvement of 

narcotrafficking. 

The administration could do so much, Mr. Chairman, as you 

know. It is shameful to have this silence, because Maduro hears 

this silence. Now we are going to use the excuse of this new negotiations period, but this negotiations ruse is a new trick. The protests have been going on for weeks, and we have not done anything. 

And, lastly, Mr. Chairman, thank you for the time on Haiti. I 

was glad to lead a bi-partisan small delegation to Haiti, and we 

were very happy to see improvements in our program, but of course 

there is still so much work left to be done. 

And I wanted to ask about two specific items that we saw in our 

trip. We visited the SONAPI Industrial Park. We met a factory 

owner named Stephan Coles, and his company is interested in expanding the operations to the north at our Caracol Industrial Park, 

and it provides good, quality jobs, but he believes that USAID has 

not cooperated fully in this matter. 

And, secondly, we visited Project Medishare, which is Haiti’s only 

critical care and trauma hospital, and is run by a constituent of 

mine, Dr. Barth Green, at the University of Miami. So the hospital 

is having electrical troubles, et cetera, wants to expand its operations, and I hope that your office is able to help both of these programs in Haiti. 

Thank you very much for the time, Mr. Chairman. Thank you. 

7

Mr. SALMON. I recognize the ranking member. 

Mr. SIRES. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Good afternoon, and thank 

you to our witnesses for being here today. 

Today’s hearing on the Western Hemisphere’s Fiscal Year 2015 

budget appropriately follows the subcommittee’s previous discussion on U.S. engagement in the hemisphere. That debate, and today’s discussion, occur in the context of exceedingly greater and 

complex foreign policy challenges in a region that has evolved to 

become increasingly less reliant on the United States. 

While I do not believe the U.S. is implicitly attempting to disengage from the Western Hemisphere, years of focus elsewhere 

have come at the expense of a policy toward the Americas. Hence, 

otherwise laudable achievements have been overshadowed by the 

combination of an increasingly independent, ideologically diverse 

region, and new and lingering challenges, challenges to democracy 

and citizen security, and decreasing U.S. foreign aid. 

The administration’s Fiscal Year 2015 request of $1.3 billion is 

10 percent below the 2014 estimate, and 27 percent lower than Fiscal Year 2012, all of which has given way to the perception that 

the United States is not paying appropriate attention to our hemisphere. 

As the foreign landscape evolved, so, too, has our respective diplomatic, economic, and security policies. The U.S. may have been 

preliminary in the direct foreign aid business, but as countries 

have demonstrated the economic and institutional maturity to 

carry out activities on their own, the U.S. has appropriately adopted its programs to support these countries’ capacities to address 

their challenges independently. 

This is particularly true in countries like Mexico and Colombia, 

which together with Haiti, remain the three largest recipients of 

Fiscal Year 2015 requests, receiving more than 52 percent of the 

region’s funding. They also comprise the largest cuts to the budget. 

Compared to Fiscal Year 2014 estimate, Mexico’s Merida Initiative 

is being cut by $70 million, as focus is shifting to lower cost ruleof-law programs and as Colombia has taken ownership of the security programs, U.S. assistance is decreasing by $44 million. 

We must try to strike a balance between citizen security initiatives and traditional development programs that can ensure peace 

and economic prosperity. Drug trafficking and organized crime that 

plague the northern triangle of Central America have spilled over 

into the Caribbean. Yet, compared to Fiscal Year 2014, funding for 

CARSI will be cut by 20 percent to $130 million, and the Caribbean 

Basin Secure Initiative will be cut by 11 percent to $57 million. 

There are, however, slightly reassuring aid increases at the individual country level. Peru will see a 25-percent increase of $94 million to support counternarcotics and alternative development. El 

Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras will also see increases for traditional development programs to reinforce security objectives. On 

the whole, the region is a mixed bag of hope, opportunity, disparity, 

and insecurity. 

There are new regional associations, such as ALBA and CELAC, 

that exclude the United States but have mostly been utilized as a 

medium to espouse anti-Americanism. 

8

China’s economic expansion and Russia’s dubious meddling is 

concerning. However, the U.S. is Latin America’s largest trading 

partner and source of foreign investment. In fact, the U.S. sells 

more goods to Latin America than China. Total U.S. trade with the region rose from $663 billion in 2010 to $846 billion in 2013, a 27-percent increase. Additionally, cultural 

norms are being reinforced by trade, travel, and immigration. And 

U.S. energy cooperation with the region has expanded, but not 

enough to counteract Venezuela’s destabilizing Federal dollars and 

diplomacy. 

Without a doubt, significant challenges remain. Alan Gross remains in jail while Joanne Chesimard roams freely in Cuba. Disparity is abundant, with nearly 30 percent of the region’s population living in poverty. Each year hundreds die along our southern 

border in their aspiration to a better life through crossing into the 

United States, while others remain threatened by cartel violence. 

With the exception of Cuba, democracy in the region has progressed, but is still threatened by organized crime and leaders that 

have abused executive power. The OAS is divided and has been coopted by factious or member states that have either abandoned 

their democratic principle or have all but forgotten their own history with military dictatorships. And every day in Venezuela antigovernment demonstrators continue to express their frustration 

with the deteriorating economic, political, and security conditions 

in the country. 

Finally, in regards to the story regarding U.S. and Cuba’s Twitter program, what we have is an attempt toward mystery and intrigue to USAID’s human rights and democracy-promoting initiatives, grossly exaggerating the facts. It would be a shame if the intent of this story was rooted in an effort to air grievances with the 

current U.S. policy or to discredit the hardworking men and women 

of our foreign, diplomatic, and aid agencies for non-related matters. 

It is also unfortunate that some of the media are far more worried about the program that dares to provide the means for the 

Cuban people to freely communicate instead of highlighting the 

poor economic human rights condition the Cuban Government imposes on its people. 

I commend and wholeheartedly support USAID’s democracy promotion efforts in Cuba and wish we could do more to support the 

desire for freedom of Cubans and the countless others around the 

world that yearn for democracy in the future. 

Thank you. 

Mr. SALMON. Thank you. 

Mr. Duncan? 

Mr. DUNCAN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I don’t have an opening 

statement. I will just wait for the questions. I yield back. 

Mr. SALMON. Thank you. Mr. Meeks? 

Mr. MEEKS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and I will be brief. First, 

I want to thank both Ms. Hogan and Assistant Secretary Jacobson 

for the fine work that you do, and all of the men and women at 

the State Department. I think oftentimes the work that you do is 

unheralded, and you really represent our nation well, as our State 

Department does as a whole. I think it makes all of the difference 

in the world. 

9

Earlier today, the full committee had a hearing, Administrator 

Shah was here, and I think that there was a good feeling, I received anyways, from the work that USAID has been doing around 

the world in trying to make sure that we are curing diseases and 

stopping young people from dying. We found out we are getting the 

best bang for our buck when we work in countries, and especially 

undeveloped countries, in that way as opposed to circumstances 

where we have to go to war or anything of that nature. 

So I just, first, want to thank both of you for the work that you 

do here in your capacity, with reference to others like you who are 

similarly situated in the State Department. 

Now, as to the Western Hemisphere, we need to make sure that 

we focus, and I think that we are starting to do that, on building 

strong relationships. It is our hemisphere; we share it with the 

countries in Central and South America and Canada. 

And sometimes I think it seems like we spend a lot of time worrying about what other countries are doing in Latin America. The 

number one factor, I believe, affecting U.S. relations with Latin 

America is how the United States conducts itself in the region. 

So we have to spend, I believe, less time worrying about other 

countries and more time getting our own policies right in a postCold War period. Given what is taking place there now, I might not 

be able to say ‘‘post-Cold War’’ again, but I just think that how we 

deal with our neighbors, especially to our south, that it should not 

be in the same manner that we dealt with them when there was 

a Soviet Union. I can say that. 

You know, during my time in Congress, the world has changed. 

Latin America, indeed, has changed, and I think that the region is 

now more capable, more economically secure, and more open to the 

world. It is not just us, and I think that is good for us in the 

United States, and we should see the fact that Latin America has 

a broader set of international relations as an overall positive and 

not a negative. 

Now, not every country in the region is going to agree with us 

on every issue. I understand that, and I think that is okay. But 

part of building a partnership means listening to what our other 

partners want, and trying to understand their point of view. That 

is what has to happen. So I commend the administration on building strong relationships with some of the more like-minded countries. That is tremendously important. We have got to build upon 

that. 

But I also hope that you keep trying to establish common ground 

with countries where the relationship is not so easy. Our growing 

focus should be on issues like education and entrepreneurship and 

making sure we are also focused on capacity-building. That is another good way to do it. 

I think that we are doing it in a good way with a number of our 

countries who are part of TPP, as we do those negotiations. That 

is going to help the whole region. 

So I will yield back the rest of my time here, but I just want to 

stop by saying I think that the glass is not half empty; I think it 

is half full, and I just want to keep filling it up. And I think that 

we would be better and safer in this hemisphere by working collectively together on that manner. 

10

Thank you, and I yield back the balance of my time. 

Mr. SALMON. I thank the gentleman. 

Pursuant to committee rule 7, the members of the subcommittee 

will be permitted to submit written statements to be included in 

the official hearing record. And, without objection, the hearing 

record will remain open for 7 days to allow for statements, questions, and extraneous materials for the record, subject to the length 

limitation of the rules. 

I would like to now introduce the panel. First of all, The Honorable Roberta Jacobson is Assistant Secretary for the Western 

Hemisphere Affairs at the Department of State. She also served as 

a Senior Coordinator for Citizen Security Initiatives in the Western 

Hemisphere and as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy 

in Lima, Peru. 

Ms. Jacobson holds an M.A. in law and diplomacy from the 

Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy and a B.A. from Brown University. 

Ms. Hogan is the Acting Assistant Administrator for U.S. Agency 

for International Development, Bureau for Latin America and the 

Caribbean. Previously, she served as the Director of the agency’s 

Haiti Task Team, overseeing reconstruction efforts after the 2010 

earthquake. 

Ms. Hogan holds an M.A. in international public policy from 

Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies and an M.A. in national security policy from National War College. 

You have all worked with the lighting system many, many times, 

and understand that when you come to the last minute the light 

will go amber, and when it turns red we are out of time. If you go 

a little bit over, I am not going to really call you on it. So say what 

you need to say. This is too important to not hear everything that 

has to be said. 

So, with that, I would like to recognize Undersecretary—or Assistant Secretary Jacobson. 

STATEMENT OF THE HONORABLE ROBERTA S. JACOBSON, ASSISTANT SECRETARY, BUREAU FOR WESTERN HEMISPHERE 

AFFAIRS, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE 

Ms. JACOBSON. Thank you for the promotion, but I am fine where 

I am. 

Chairman Salmon, Chair Ros-Lehtinen, and Ranking Member 

Sires, Mr. Engel has left, but I was happy to see him again. I am 

really happy to be back in front of you. It has been a little while 

since we have talked, but I want to start out by saying how much 

we appreciate the interest of everybody on this subcommittee. 

We have continued to talk in between hearings, and I am so 

pleased to be here today and speak with you about the priorities 

for the Western Hemisphere. This subcommittee’s support for U.S. 

assistance, our policies and our engagement in the region have 

been crucial. 

The Western hemisphere, as I think we have all noted, is a vitally important region for the United States. It is home to robust 

democracies, and our closest trading partners. But the converse is 

11

also true. The United States remains the most influential and essential partner for nearly every country in the hemisphere. 

I am well aware of the critique that the United States is not paying enough attention to the Western Hemisphere. And, honestly, I 

can’t recall a time when an administration that I served, either Republican or Democratic, was not accused of paying Latin America 

less attention than it deserves. 

This administration has maintained a remarkable level of engagement on hemispheric issues by the President, the Vice President, Secretary Kerry, and other members of the cabinet. The 

President returned recently from his fifth trip to Mexico and met 

last year with the leaders of Central America, Haiti, Colombia, 

Peru, and Chile. 

The Vice President has made seven trips to the region, four in 

the last year, and the Secretary three, including an OAS General 

Assembly. This high-level attention has allowed us to advance a 

pragmatic, well-integrated, results-oriented agenda. 

Every available metric—public opinion polls, levels of trade and 

investment, culture and family ties, security cooperation, and the 

lively democratic debate in many countries—supports the view that 

the United States’ engagement and influence in the hemisphere is 

not waning, but actually on the rise. 

There are places like Cuba, Venezuela, and Ecuador where we 

have less than the full and productive relationship we would like, 

but the people in those countries admire and respect the United 

States for who we are, for our values, for our social mobility, and 

for our diversity. 

We are particularly concerned with the deteriorating situation in 

Venezuela where the United States has forthrightly called on the 

Venezuelan Government to respect human rights and the rule of 

law and begin a peaceful, inclusive dialogue that will reduce the 

current tension. 

President Obama, Vice President Biden, and Secretary Kerry 

have each made clear our view that political prisoners must be released and steps taken to halt the violence, including by government-backed groups. I know the committee shares our concern, and 

we welcome the strong support for democracy in Venezuela. 

Our commitment to democracy and human rights is unwavering 

and remains the center of gravity of our strategy in the region. 

Even as we work for a peaceful end to the crisis in Venezuela, we 

are actively promoting our core priorities throughout the hemisphere, creating jobs and prosperity, expanding education and innovation, promoting energy cooperation, and defending democratic 

values. 

We have placed our economic engagement at the center of this 

strategy. Our current efforts, as noted, include focusing on the 

Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations that include Chile, Peru, 

and our NAFTA partners. 

At the North American Leaders Summit in Mexico in March, 

President Obama and his counterparts highlighted a shared continental vision, providing new opportunities for job creation and investment and deepened global cooperation. While millions of people 

have benefitted from Latin America’s economic progress, millions 

12

also have been left behind, and we must ensure they, too, can benefit from the tide of economic prosperity. 

Youth involvement is vital to our entrepreneurship initiatives, 

including the Small Business Network of the Americas, the Women’s Entrepreneurship in the Americas Initiative, and 100,000 

Strong in the Americas Education Initiative. 

But prosperity cannot exist without security, and that is why we 

will continue to invest in security cooperation with Mexico, Central 

America, the Caribbean, and Colombia, with a focus on strengthening democratic institutions and the rule of law to capitalize on 

earlier investments in equipment. 

A more vigorous and focused energy diplomacy is another core 

priority. The shift in the world’s energy map to the Americas has 

created huge openings for greater cooperation on energy matters, 

including collaborating regionally to promote energy security with 

responsible environmental stewardship. 

Mr. Chairman, let me close by saying, again, that I am very 

grateful for the support that this committee has provided in the 

hemisphere and its leadership. I believe that we are united in our 

vision of seeking to advance democracy, human rights, social development, security, and economic prosperity in the region, and that 

we have established a basis for strong bipartisan cooperation to the 

great benefit of our nation. 

Thank you very much, and I look forward to answering your 

questions. 

[The prepared statement of Ms. Jacobson follows:]

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Mr. SALMON. Thank you. 

Ms. Hogan, you are recognized. 

STATEMENT OF MS. ELIZABETH HOGAN, ACTING ASSISTANT 

ADMINISTRATOR, BUREAU FOR LATIN AMERICA AND THE 

CARIBBEAN, U.S. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT 

Ms. HOGAN. Thank you very much. Mr. Chairman, Ranking 

Member Sires, and distinguished members of the subcommittee, it 

is an honor for me to testify before you today on behalf of USAID. 

I am grateful for the committee’s support of our programs in Latin 

America and the Caribbean, and I welcome your interest in reviewing our progress and our challenges that we continue to face. 

As Administrator Shah, who testified before you earlier today 

had stated, our mission across the globe is to partner to end extreme poverty and promote resilient, democratic societies. Our best 

partners in this effort are democratic states, because their commitment to growing their economies and investing in their people 

makes our investments go further. 

Increasingly, we have such partners in Latin America and the 

Caribbean region where open societies, sensible policies, and smart 

donor investments have helped fuel impressive social, political, and 

economic progress. However, the continued progress in the region 

is threatened by a persistent wave of crime and violence that, if not 

addressed, will impede efforts to promote inclusive growth, reduce 

poverty, bolster resilience, and strengthen democracy. Central to 

USAID’s strategy in the region is crime and violence prevention. 

Our at-risk youth programs, community policing, and justice reform efforts complement the traditional law enforcement and interdiction activities of our interagency partners. 

Our prevention programs are also reinforced by education interventions, which prioritize early grade literacy and youth-focused 

workforce development for at-risk youth. There are signs that our 

programs are making a critical difference. Preliminary findings 

from the impact evaluation of our crime prevention programs provide statistically significant evidence that crime rates are lower 

and public perception of security higher in the communities where 

we work. 

As you well know, crime and violence does more than threaten 

public safety and constrain growth. Equally as dangerous is its corrosive effect on democracy. Despite the region’s impressive 

progress, we are witnessing democratic backsliding in some countries. This includes constraints on civil society, limits on press freedoms, and increasing executive overreach. USAID remains steadfast in its support for those who strive to build more open, responsive democracies in this region. 

To empower citizens to voice their opinions and hold governments accountable, we continue to support civil society groups and 

human rights organizations, while training journalists to protect 

themselves and their sources. 

The region is dealing with yet another threat to its economic environmental resilience—the negative impact of global climate 

change. Under the President’s Global Climate Change Initiative, 

we work on two fronts to help countries manage this challenge. 

18

First, we help reduce emissions by promoting investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency. Second, we help countries 

adapt to changes in climate by upgrading critical infrastructure, 

protecting potable water supplies, and developing risk mitigation 

measures. 

Our efforts to end extreme poverty and promote resilient democratic societies converge in Haiti where 65 percent of the population is considered extremely poor. Today, the Government of 

Haiti is leading a successful multi-national effort to attract investment and strengthen its economy. 

The United States Government is starting to deliver concrete development dividends. Thousands of farmers are earning higher incomes and increasing crop yields. New businesses are creating jobs 

for the poor. Perhaps most importantly, Haitian institutions are 

playing a more prominent role in their own development. 

While we are encouraged by this progress, the United States and 

other donors can only do so much. Ultimately, the job of creating 

the conditions under which businesses can thrive, create jobs that 

eliminate poverty, depends on Haiti’s leaders. Only they can pass 

and implement legislation to fight corruption, attract investment, 

modernize the justice sector, and hold long-delayed municipal and 

parliamentary elections. 

To strengthen the ability of countries to manage their own development, we are increasingly using local entities to implement programs and provide assistance. Perhaps nowhere else in the world 

does USAID have as dynamic a set of private sector partners as in 

this region. Increasingly, we are joining forces with the likes of 

Cisco, Hanes, Intel, Microsoft, and Starbucks, just to name a few, 

that will spur growth, create jobs, open opportunities for youth, 

and alleviate poverty. Over the last 2 years alone, we have leveraged $150 million through public-private partnerships. 

In sum, our development approaches include strengthening local 

capacity, facilitating south-south cooperation, investing in innovation, leveraging the private sector, and prioritizing science and 

technology. We believe that these approaches will help enable countries to leapfrog their biggest security, environmental, and governance challenges, and join us as partners around areas of mutual interest. 

Again, thank you for your leadership and for your support of the 

work that we do in this region. I have submitted a statement for 

the record, and I look forward to your questions. 

[The prepared statement of Ms. Hogan follows:]

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Mr. SALMON. Thank you very much. 

Before we begin with questions, I would like to ask for your help. 

I know that subcommittee staff has asked for information in the 

past, and I have been disappointed with how long it has taken to 

provide them with a response. And I know you both understand 

how important it is to have a strong collaborative relationship, so 

we can work on responses and maybe improve those times going 

forward. I would really appreciate it. 

Assistant Secretary Jacobson, several of us up here have spoken 

about concerns with Maduro’s Venezuela and people that have been 

massacred in the streets, as well as human rights violations galore. 

The gentlewoman from Florida has talked about how testimony before the OAS was rebuffed and not allowed. 

I am asking, what can we do? What is the administration planning to do concretely beyond just announcing Maduro’s violent tactics? What is our game plan? 

Ms. JACOBSON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate the question, and I think it is important. Obviously, part of the strategy 

moving forward to get Venezuela—really, to get Venezuelans talking to each other, which is what is necessary, is rhetorical, is to respond to each repressive tactic by the government and to support 

the notion that Venezuelans have decreasing amounts of space in 

which to act, and, therefore, they need an opening, an area where 

they can pursue their goals and their dreams. The opposition needs 

much greater space, whether it is in the National Assembly or the 

media, et cetera. 

But a great deal of what we are trying to do is working with 

other countries in the hemisphere, some of which are in agreement 

with us in support of a more open system in Venezuela, and some 

of which are clearly not. We have seen that. But there are quite 

a few countries who are extremely concerned about what is going 

on in Venezuela, and coordinating with those countries is important. 

We have said from the beginning that what we think is most important is having an external presence for a real dialogue, so that 

Venezuelans can talk to each other with some sense of confidence, 

because the situation is so polarized. 

Right now, you have the UNASUR countries, many of the foreign 

ministers, in Venezuela. We have been encouraging that process, 

but we also believe that it is very important that the opposition 

feels confidence in the process moving forward, and that whatever 

third party mediator or mediators, if there are multiple—and there 

has been some obvious discussion in the press about the Vatican—

that those people create a space in which everyone can have confidence to pursue their agenda. 

This seems to be getting underway. We have worked closely with 

a number of countries around the hemisphere and outside on this 

possibility, and we hope that that will begin to make a difference. 

Mr. SALMON. I know the ranking member and I have both expressed our frustration with the goings-on with OAS, and you and 

I spoke privately about it as well. I think we have to send a very 

clear message to them, at least from this body, that not only are 

we watching but we are growing tired of their shenanigans and 

their lack of response to important issues. 

27

And there may be a time—I hope we don’t have to do this, but 

there may be a time when this Congress is going to have to vote 

with its pocketbook. And I think they have to understand that—

we understand that dialogue and a free flow of ideas is important, 

but this body is there to protect freedom and democratic views and 

opportunities for the protection of human rights. 

And while I understand that there are a lot of the subgroups 

within that body that do some good things, the leadership at the 

top is impotent and ineffective. And, I—rather than just wait them 

out, I think that they have to know that our patience is wearing 

very, very thin, and I hope that you all will share that message 

back with them, that it becomes increasingly more difficult for us 

to justify to our taxpayers that we are funding 40 percent of that 

organization when the returns aren’t very great. 

I have another question real quick. It is regarding President 

Obama’s visit to Mexico for the North American Leaders Summit. 

Ranking Member Sires and I sent him a letter expressing some of 

our hopes for the summit. One of them was establishing a HighLevel Security Dialogue, much like the High-Level Economic Dialogue that we have with Mexico. 

And I understand that some progress has been made. You have 

denoted some of that in your comments. I hope you will provide the 

committee with some details of how the dialogue on the security cooperation with Mexico is going, and what progress you see happening, and what more needs to be done. 

Ms. JACOBSON. Absolutely. And I appreciate the question. As you 

know, I have been involved in the Merida Initiative since its inception, and I continue to believe that this is an incredibly important 

part of our bilateral relationship. 

I think you have seen, Mr. Chairman, that in recent weeks there 

have been some significant strides in cooperation that have resulted in the arrest of Chapo Guzman of the Sinaloa Cartel, and 

I think that in the past year the cooperation with Mexico has become ever-more fluid and more routine, and that is a very good 

thing. 

We had a mechanism under the previous Mexican Government 

called the high-level group, which met on security. It included 

about five different cabinet members. We needed to wait until this 

new government felt comfortable that all of the procedures were in 

the right place. 

But I think led by Rand Beers at the NSC, and others, from the 

Homeland Security perspective, as well as the NSC, the State Department is beginning to talk with our Mexican counterparts about 

how we can restart the highest level security dialogue, because, 

frankly, the other members of the team at the undersecretary and 

other levels have really been working pretty productively over the 

last year, and I think you are beginning to see the fruits of that, 

but it is definitely not forgotten in the emphasis on the economic. 

Mr. SALMON. My time has expired. 

I recognize the gentleman from New Jersey. 

Mr. SIRES. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Assistant Secretary, I have had a few Members that have come 

to me, because they are not on the Foreign Affairs Committee, and 

they are very concerned about the violence in Mexico. And I know 

28

the State Department travel warnings for Tamaulipas, Mexico, and 

the southern border reflect the dire security situation. Just last 

week, eight people were killed in Matamoros, and the decapitated 

body of a former mayor of Nuevo Laredo was found. 

When can we expect the Mexican Government to respond in a 

fashion similar to its previous actions in Juarez and Tijuana, Mexico? 

Ms. JACOBSON. Mr. Sires, I certainly appreciate the question, and 

this is obviously of great concern, and our travel warning does outline for American citizens what we think is critical that they know 

before they go to Mexico. Levels of violence in Mexico are still far 

higher than we would like to see them, far higher than the Mexican Government would like to see certainly. 

And what you see—and I think you implied as much in your 

question—there was a time when Juarez was the place you could 

not walk alone. You couldn’t walk outside; it was terribly violent. 

It is considerably better now. The question is: How do you keep responding to transnational criminal organizations which move and 

shift and don’t have to respect the law? And I think some of the 

models that the Mexican Government and we are working on, especially with AID in strengthening communities, is one of the most 

important things we can do. 

We also have begun to work at the state level with Mexico, in 

areas of Mexico, on the police. We have done very good work at the 

Federal level, but the vast majority of policy in Mexico are at the 

state and local level. So I think that this government really does 

embrace a lot of the work that is critical to making places safer, 

working with communities, accelerating the judicial reform to make 

sure that cases are dealt with and people convicted for crimes, and 

making the police more effective and more respectful of those communities. 

But I think it is a continuing sort of hard slog. We have been 

encouraged, certainly, by our partnership with the Mexicans in 

areas that have developed into very high crime, such as Nuevo Laredo, as well as Michoacan and other areas, and are beginning to 

work with them on the southern border. 

Mr. SIRES. Well, I would suggest many members are concerned 

about the violence, and I think we have to relay that to the government, that somehow this is impacting not just life in Mexico but 

life in America also. 

Ms. Hogan, do you think the USAID program is a proper venue 

to set up Twitter programs in some of these countries? I am not 

going to ask if you have a replacement for the Twitter program in 

Cuba. I am not asking you that. I am just want to know if it is 

the proper venue. 

Ms. HOGAN. I believe that anything that helps Cubans have an 

increase in their ability to share information amongst themselves 

is a good thing. I think what we have done in Cuba over the past 

many years to promote information exchange, both within the island and to get unfettered information from outside the island, has 

helped to support activists in Cuba who are pressing for broader 

democratic space. 

29

I think this was a successful test, that there really is interest 

there within Cuban society to have these kinds of new technologies 

available to them, and I hope that they will going forward. 

Mr. SIRES. I am starting to see in my district a great deal of people from Venezuela. Obviously they are looking for security, but the 

stories that I am hearing in terms of the groups of people that 

come down on the demonstrators, and beating them and, I mean, 

they actually have left because some of the members of their families have been trampled by these groups. 

So I hope that this dialogue works, but I am not so hopeful. I 

understand Cuba has 30,000 troops or 30,000 members in Venezuela. Obviously, they also have—one of the elitist brigades that 

they have, they call it Avispas Negas, which is called the Black 

WASP group, which is in charge of maintaining order in Cuba. 

So I would urge you, and I would hope that the OAS would say 

something about this—they are talking about us interfering in 

other countries. Here you have a country with 30,000 members, 

and another one within our hemisphere, and I am concerned about 

the Russians, the excursions in the region, the Iranians in the region. I hope we are tracking all of this. 

I think it was a bad mistake to say that the Monroe Doctrine is 

not in effect anymore. I think we needed that ace in the hole. 

Thank you. 

Mr. SALMON. I thank the gentleman. 

Recognize the gentlewoman from Florida. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Thank you so much, Mr. Chairman. 

Madam Secretary, to continue on the issue of Venezuela, has 

anyone from our office even visited Leopoldo Lopez who is behind 

bars in a military prison? Will the U.S. accept the Venezuelan request to put an Ambassador in DC? And, if so, why? 

Secretary Kerry is now hiding behind the proposed UNASUR 

talks to keep from acting. So, Madam Secretary, what has been 

your excuse for the past 2 months for not acting before this false 

negotiation sham? Why can the administration not issue an Executive Order today on Venezuela to hold human rights violators accountable? 

And I wanted to bring to your attention—I am sure that you 

have already seen it—the statements made by Nicolas Maduro, the 

supposed President of Venezuela, who won by fraud, he says that 

he does not need to negotiate, and these are his quotes: ‘‘There is 

no negotiations in Venezuela. I will not participate in one.’’ He 

says, ‘‘I don’t have anything to negotiate with anyone about, and 

I will not negotiate the Socialist Revolution.’’

And the countries that are pushing this sham of negotiations are 

countries that have remained totally silent or else complicit in the 

murderous rage of Nicolas Maduro. Brazil has not supported any 

of the student-led protests siding with Maduro. Colombia, silence; 

Ecuador, silence or siding with Maduro. 

So these are the countries that are leading the negotiations, and 

they have already taken their position in favor of Maduro and have 

voted that way with him in the OAS. And these are the leaders of 

the negotiations, and these are his quotes from today—Nicolas 

Maduro. So now we are saying we can’t push because we have got 

these negotiations. They are false. Only one group of the opposition 

30

is for these negotiations. The vast majority are not for it because 

they know Maduro says, ‘‘I don’t need to negotiate with anyone.’’

And yet, so I ask you, have we visited Leopoldo Lopez? If not, 

why not? Are we going to accept a Venezuelan Ambassador in DC? 

Why would we? And why don’t we put in the Executive Order, as 

we have done in Russia, who have violated the human rights of 

folks in Ukraine. We have barred them from entry into the United 

States. We have frozen their accounts. We have blocked their properties. The President has done so. He has taken action in South 

Sudan as recently as just a few days ago. 

Why are the Venezuelan people not deserving of this help from 

the United States? 

Ms. JACOBSON. Thank you, Madam Chair. Let me start out and 

take these sort of in order. We have made very clear that we do 

not believe Leopoldo Lopez should be in prison. We believe he 

should be released. We will continue to make that assertion. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Have we visited him? 

Ms. JACOBSON. No, we have not. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Have we made any attempt to visit him? 

Ms. JACOBSON. We have not visited him. I don’t——

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Do you consider him a political prisoner or 

a common criminal? 

Ms. JACOBSON. Well, we certainly don’t believe that he should be 

in prison. I do think that he is being penalized for peaceful protest. 

And if they have charges against him, which they have now finally 

brought at the end of the 45-day period, I don’t see any reason why 

he should not be allowed out of prison, frankly, to continue peaceful 

work. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Have you put out a statement of support for 

Leopoldo Lopez or calling for—are we going to send anyone from 

our Embassy to visit him? What a strong statement that would 

make because, as you know, he is not going to be the only one who 

is going to be held in jail. If Maduro sees that the U.S. does nothing when somebody is brought up on trumped-up charges, Maria 

Corina Machado is next, and so will other leaders. 

Ms. JACOBSON. And two mayors have already been relieved of 

their position and charged with crimes. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. And we did what? 

Ms. JACOBSON. And we will continue to speak out in opposition 

to those kinds of actions. I think it unlikely we would be allowed 

to visit Leopoldo Lopez. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. We don’t know if we don’t try. 

Ms. JACOBSON. I understand that. But we have been very clear 

about our opposition to the repressive tactics that this government 

has used against people trying to conduct their job as mayor or 

peacefully protest. And we will continue to be strongly on the side 

of——

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. We have visited Alan Gross. We regularly 

visit Alan Gross in prison, and those trumped-up charges. Leopoldo 

Lopez, as you stated, are trumped-up charges. He is a political prisoner. We should send a message by visiting him. 

Ms. JACOBSON. I appreciate that perspective. We are able to see 

Alan Gross because he is an American citizen, and we have that 

right under the Vienna Convention. 

31

But let me just go through some of the other items. You talked 

about the proposal to put a Venezuelan Ambassador in the United 

States. We feel very, very strongly that this is not about the bilateral relationship between the United States and Venezuela, and, 

therefore, we are not taking action to allow a Venezuelan Ambassador in the United States yet because we think the action needs 

to be in Venezuela, with Venezuelans talking to each other and our 

doing everything we can to facilitate that, not to allow the distraction of charges against us or making this about the United States 

and our bilateral relationship. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. I only have 30 seconds left. 

Ms. JACOBSON. I am sorry. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. What about the Executive Order? We have 

acted in other countries. Are the Venezuelan people not deserving 

of having their violators held accountable? 

Ms. JACOBSON. They surely are, ma’am, and that is one of the 

reasons why, as the Secretary and I have both said, we are holding 

in abeyance implementation of any restrictions, be they visa sanctions or revocations or further sanctions, which we believe we have 

the authority to take, while we see, in support of the opposition, 

whether these conversations are going to go anywhere. 

Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. But these conversations, you will agree, are 

just brand new. That is the new excuse. So that is why Secretary 

Kerry—I know my time is up, so I won’t belabor the point. But that 

is the new excuse. The protests have been going on for 2 months 

while the administration remains silent. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Mr. SALMON. Thank you. 

The chair recognizes Mr. Meeks. 

Mr. MEEKS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Let me turn the area of focus for a second. I have been concerned 

about African-Colombians and those that are indigenous to Central 

and South America. These groups have been substantially 

marginalized in the hemisphere. 

And I will ask Ms. Hogan, and then also if you want to answer, 

Assistant Secretary Jacobson—but my question is, what programs 

have you provided to promote greater social inclusion for those traditionally marginalized groups in the hemisphere? 

Ms. HOGAN. Thank you very much for that question. In fact, just 

Friday of last week, we signed a new memorandum of understanding with a very popular Latin rock star named Carlos Vives, 

who is going to be the first Ambassador for inclusion, focusing specifically on Afro-Colombians. He is from Colombia. He is not AfroColombian, but he is very dedicated to showcasing the rich cultural 

heritage and music heritage that Afro-Colombians are contributing 

to Colombia and to the world. 

And so he wants to use his celebrity to shine a light on that. And 

working directly with him, we are going to help organize conferences and events whereby we can actually help raise resources 

to invest in Afro-Colombian communities. 

I know this morning Dr. Shah talked to you about the work that 

we are doing with Afro-Colombians in the private sector in terms 

of training them for modern economy jobs. We thus far have seen 

32

1,000 Afro-Colombians move into jobs in 100 companies. And by 

the end of 2016, we hope that number will grow to 10,000. 

But in other parts of the region, we are also very much focused 

on the indigenous populations. In fact, in Guatemala, almost our 

entire program is focused on the western highlands, which is predominantly indigenous. And we have focused our health resources, 

education resources, food security sources, to help them reach parity with other Guatemalans who share middle income status. And 

so we are doing it there, we are doing it in Peru, and we are doing 

it in Honduras as well. 

So it is a very important part of our program, because as we see 

development gains in the region, we also see certain vulnerable 

populations falling behind. And so we are all about promoting inclusive growth. And if we want to do that, we need to reach out 

to these indigenous communities, and we are doing so. 

Mr. MEEKS. Thank you for that, and that is tremendously important, and throughout the region, because I did say African-Colombians, which I have been focused on, but those of African descent 

throughout, and those who are indigenous, because they all have 

been marginalized. And, as a result, one of the things that I see, 

and I can equate because we still have educational problems here 

in the United States, and trying to make sure people are educated, 

I know how we pushed ourselves up. 

I think that there is a critical need to develop education in some 

of these communities also throughout that has been marginalized, 

and this is something that I think that, as I have traveled throughout the region, many of these countries are struggling with. 

So my question is, what can we in the United States do better 

to address the education and the skills gaps in all of the Americas? 

Ms. JACOBSON. If I could start. This is incredibly important, and 

I think it is one of the things that really is central to all of the 

other issues, because unless we address the education gap you can’t 

provide real economic opportunity, and that obviously has led to 

some of the security problems. 

One of the things that I think is working particularly well is, as 

part of 100,000 Strong for the Americas, the Educational Exchange 

Initiative, but also as part of our dialogues in both Brazil and Colombia on the elimination of discrimination and racism, we have 

been able to promote exchanges and interactions between educational institutions with historically black colleges and universities in the United States, with the Indian Tribal Colleges, as well 

as with Hispanic institutions in the U.S. 

All of those give a perspective on the United States that isn’t always widely known in the hemisphere, and offer opportunities for 

those communities to access education in the United States. 

The other thing that we really need to do is focus on community 

colleges, which we know in the United States provide an invaluable 

opportunity for those who may not go to a 4-year university. This 

is a concept which is not well-known or understood in Latin America, and we are providing opportunity for kids who would never 

have had the option of coming to a school in the United States to 

learn a trade or a vocation before. 

Mr. MEEKS. Let me try to sneak in one last question, if the 

chair—I beg his indulgence. Just the thought of this—we had conVerDate 0ct 09 2002 13:49 Jun 18, 2014 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00036 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 F:\WORK\_WH\040914\87517 SHIRL
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versations about the problematic governments that we have, et 

cetera. I was wondering whether or not there has been any areas 

of success in our engagements with problematic governments, because we are having this conversation and whether there is anything. 

Ms. JACOBSON. I guess what I would say real quickly is just 

there are always areas that I think we can cooperate in. With Ecuador, most recently, they are very interested in doing more on 

education. So we have been able to continue programs on indigenous languages in Bolivia that AID and others work on. 

So my own view is places like Nicaragua where we work with the 

police in counternarcotics quite effectively, there are bright spots 

even in some of the toughest places, and we have to try and continue to hold to our principles in those countries and speak loudly 

about them, but look for areas where our interests do overlap. 

Mr. SALMON. Thank you. 

The chair recognizes Mr. Duncan. 

Mr. DUNCAN. Thank you. 

Thank you for being here. The administration requested $1.3 billion for Latin American and Caribbean region. This is about 10 

percent below the FY14 estimate, and about 27 percent lower than 

the amount provided in 2012. This budget also reflects cuts to the 

three largest U.S. security programs in the region—the Colombia 

Strategic Development Initiative, the Merida Initiative in Mexico, 

and the Central American Regional Security Initiative. 

But it increases things like development assistance and clean energy initiatives and family planning programs. So as chairman of 

the Oversight Subcommittee on the House Homeland Security 

Committee, I have heard of the importance of the security programs in the Western Hemisphere and their impact on U.S. border 

security efforts, et cetera. 

Further, when we consider the documented efforts of Russia, 

China, North Korea, and Iran to establish footholds and increase 

their influence in this region of the world, and then we hear from 

Commander of US SOUTHCOM in his testimony back in February, 

he admitted to U.S. intelligence gaps and truly knowing the full 

awareness of Iranian and terrorist support networks in the region, 

so I am baffled, really, at the priorities that are reflected in this 

budget. 

So how does cutting worthwhile security programs, while beefing 

up development, citizen security, clean energy initiatives, family 

planning programs, how does that secure—serve U.S. security and 

our foreign policy interests? 

Ms. JACOBSON. Thank you, Congressman Duncan. I think one of 

the things that I want to be clear on is, while there have been reductions in the Merida Initiative with Mexico and the Colombia security programs, in both of those cases those were anticipated reductions as partners became better able to take over their own security. 

With the Colombians now, it is critically important that we not 

reduce our programs too abruptly, but they are increasingly able to 

do things after a number of years of working with them. In fact, 

they are able to deliver security, training, and experience in capacVerDate 0ct 09 2002 13:49 Jun 18, 2014 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00037 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 F:\WORK\_WH\040914\87517 SHIRL
34

ity-building even in places like Central America, which has made 

them an invaluable partner. 

So I think that we are going to continue to see just as much engagement and just as much progress in those places even with 

lower investments in a tough budgetary environment. 

On Central America, the only thing that I would say is I know 

it has been reduced somewhat, but it is still a very high level in 

Central America because there the challenges have been resistant 

in some respects to change. So we did not take that down any 

lower than a level that we felt would continue to provide engagement with each of the individual countries which are still confronting terrible problems. I will let my colleague deal with some 

of the other development content. 

Ms. HOGAN. Thank you very much. I would just like to underscore what Roberta said about government stepping up and investing more in their own development. In Mexico, as an example, the 

Mexican Government puts in $10 for every $1 that we invest there 

under the Merida Initiative. And in Colombia, for the government 

institutional programs that we support, like the Victims Assistance 

Unit, like the Reparations Unit, et cetera, et cetera, we are putting 

in only 1 percent of what the Colombian Government is putting in 

itself. 

As I mentioned in my opening statement, we also see the rise of 

private sector actors engaging in this region and investing more 

heavily in not just corporate responsibility but also, as I mentioned, 

workforce development, because they see it in their interest to 

train youth who don’t have the skills they need to come in to work 

for them. And so increasingly we are seeing that as our investment 

glides downward, it is being picked up by both governments and 

the private sector. 

I wanted to talk about family planning for a moment to simply 

say that it has been a success story in our region in that back in 

the ’70s when statistics were first collected only 1 in 10 women had 

access to voluntary, safe, affordable, high quality family planning 

assistance. Today it is over 67 percent, which is why we phased out 

of family planning in most of the countries in the region. We are 

only doing it in three countries—Guatemala, Honduras, and Haiti. 

And we are also going to be phasing out of Honduras very soon. 

And then, finally, on global climate change, the reason we are investing heavily in global climate change is because it is not only 

affecting people’s lives but their livelihoods. In Haiti, as an example, we saw 1 year where after having significant gains in agricultural yields through our Feed the Future Program, our Food Security Program, they had two droughts and a hurricane, and it completely wiped out all of those gains that were made. 

And so adapting to climate change through the use of new seed 

varieties, for example, and energy efficiency and alternative energy 

is a way in which they can reduce their economic loss as well as 

the loss of life which exists in Haiti after these kinds of violent 

weather events. 

Mr. DUNCAN. Speaking of energy, we can have a whole hearing 

on whether climate change is manmade and whether we can have 

any impact on that or not and what the policy of the administration is doing to further an agenda. 

35

But I would like to hear how you are proposing to work with 

Latin American region countries on energy. And, look, I understand 

the solar panels that you have put up in areas that don’t have electricity, and how you can improve the quality of life, and all of that. 

You don’t need me to go there; I am with you on that. Okay? I understand a lot of that. 

But I would like to know, how are we working with Mexico? How 

are we working with some of these other countries on energy security? And let us focus south because Keystone Pipeline, the chairman has already mentioned I believe. So I would love to hear what 

some of the priorities are there. 

Ms. JACOBSON. Thank you. I really appreciate that question. I 

think actually the future, in terms of energy and energy self-sufficiency, in this hemisphere is one of the most exciting areas we are 

looking at. But there is no doubt that when you talk about energy 

security and energy improvements, right, whether it is in North 

America where all of the countries are producing more energy, or 

in Brazil where you are looking at presalt deposits, or Argentina 

which has both oil and shale gas, you have big sections of this 

hemisphere which do not have energy resources, and which need 

support to make sure that they can try and access sustainable economic growth with energy that is not always going to be imported 

oil. 

In particular, in Central America and the Caribbean, we are 

looking—the North American countries need to look very carefully 

at how we can help those countries. Central American countries, 

some of it is connectivity. We have this Connecting the Americas 

2022 Program, which is designed to connect the grids and make 

sure that electricity gets further out in these countries. 

In some places, that runs up against tough government resistance because of entrenched interests, but there is energy throughout the hemisphere that we can help bring—depending on the regulatory environment and bringing investors to countries, so that 

they are not as dependent on a single source of energy such as 

many in the Caribbean are on Petrocaribe. 

Mr. DUNCAN. So just finishing up here, how about export of LNG 

to the Caribbean countries? 

Ms. JACOBSON. This was a subject that was of great interest to 

all of the Caribbean countries when they have met with both the 

President and the Vice President. And both have told the Caribbean countries and the Central American countries that they have 

heard that request, and they are definitely going to take it into 

consideration as we make determinations on export of LNG. 

Mr. DUNCAN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I went over time, and 

I appreciate your lenience. 

Mr. SALMON. Thank you. 

Mr. DeSantis, you are recognized. 

Mr. DESANTIS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

How would you characterize Russia’s influence in the region and 

given what we are seeing with Putin, his impulses vis-a`-vis Eastern Europe? Do we foresee him continuing to try to increase his 

presence and his ability to project power in the Western Hemisphere? 

36

Ms. JACOBSON. Thank you for the question, Congressman. I 

think that what we have seen over the recent past is the Russian 

relationship with the hemisphere has been both economic, commercial, and, to some extent, military—that is, weapons and other 

equipment sales. And some of those have increased, although I 

would emphasize that the balance in the hemisphere has not 

changed. It is still very low in terms of Russian equipment or military sales. 

We have also seen the Russian comments recently, or others in 

the hemisphere, talking about renewed Russian presence. As you 

probably know, Russia closed its last base in the hemisphere in 

Cuba in 2002. In many countries in the hemisphere, it is constitutionally prohibited to have foreign bases. 

And our information thus far is that no country we have spoken 

to is in the process of opening any Russian bases in the hemisphere, but you can be certain that it is something we are continuing to watch very closely. 

Mr. DESANTIS. And so what would the administration’s policy be 

if, for example, Russia wanted to reestablish a base in Cuba and 

Cuba was supportive of that? 

Ms. JACOBSON. I am always wary of hypotheticals. But it is 

something that we have made clear we would have difficulty with, 

and we certainly hope the countries in the hemisphere are not looking at that possibility. But right now we don’t see that happening. 

Mr. DESANTIS. With respect to Venezuela—and I join some of my 

colleagues who would like to see some more movement there—I 

think that those folks are really fighting against a corrupt regime. 

Can you give us a sense as to the extent to which, as it stands now, 

that regime is being propped up by Castro’s regime in Cuba? 

I mean, I know I have read that there are tens of thousands of 

Cuban troops that are in Venezuela. So what is the administration’s position on the extent of Cuban influence in this Venezuelan 

situation? 

Ms. JACOBSON. Well, certainly we have seen the same information that I think all of you have in terms of the numbers of Cubans 

in Venezuela. They are high. There are a lot of Cubans there. 

Whether that has had a determinative effect on how Venezuelan 

decisions have been made is not entirely clear, quite honestly, but 

obviously it is something that concerns us. 

Similarly, though, it is very clear that Cuba is highly dependent 

on Venezuela’s oil, and so that is a relationship in which each of 

them obviously has a great deal at stake. At this point, that is one 

of the reasons we think it is so important for all Venezuelans to 

have a voice, because it is important that the decisions ultimately 

be made by Venezuelans, not by any outside country. 

Mr. DESANTIS. Absolutely. I look at a place like Bolivia, and it 

just seems like there is a lot of bad actors that have really a leftist 

government. I know there is Cuban influence, Venezuela influence. 

I have read, and I wanted to get your thoughts on the extent to 

which the Iranians are trying to exert influence in the region generally, but I specifically have heard reports with respect to Bolivia. 

Ms. JACOBSON. We watch the Iranian presence very carefully, because as has been said before by my bosses, we do not consider it 

37

benign in the hemisphere. It is something we do watch and worry 

about and monitor. 

At this point, we don’t see an enormous amount of Iranian influence in countries like Bolivia or Venezuela, not necessarily for lack 

of trying. There are lots of agreements signed and there are visits. 

What we don’t necessarily see is implementation or completion of 

those agreements. They tend to be more rhetorical, designed to convey a sense of influence that we don’t necessarily see taking place 

on the ground. 

But that does not mean that we are not going to be watching it 

very closely. And as we have done in the past, when there have 

been entities in the hemisphere that have engaged with Iranian 

ways that either violate U.S. sanctions or U.N. sanctions we will 

take action to sanction those organizations as we have done with 

a number of organizations in Venezuela over the years. 

Mr. DESANTIS. Great. Well, thank you for that. 

And I am about out of time, so I will yield back the balance to 

the chairman. 

Mr. SALMON. I thank the gentleman. 

If you have time, I know the ranking member and I each have 

another question. And if you have another one also, Mr. DeSantis, 

that would be great. 

Just a comment on Mr. Duncan’s concerns about LNG and the 

Caribbean. I don’t think the issue is the State Department. The 

State Department I think is very, very helpful where we have been 

considering that. Every time I have talked to your folks, they have 

been very, very supportive. The problem is the Department of Energy and getting the permits going. 

And I have also had numerous meetings with folks from our energy industry, oil and gas industry, and they are capping the gas 

off. And they are burning off excess gas because we have so much 

surplus right now. 

And it seems like it would be an incredible opportunity for us not 

just to be able to create jobs from the sale of that gas, but also from 

a geopolitical perspective, it would be so great. We would able to 

further enhance our trade relationship with those countries in the 

Caribbean. So any chance you get to talk with your counterparts 

in DOE, we would really appreciate your thoughtful suggestions to 

them to maybe get off the dime a little bit. 

Assistant Secretary, you mentioned the 100,000 Strong Program, 

and I noted that included in the list of countries eligible to participate is Ecuador. And we have discussed they are not necessarily 

a real good partner as of late, and not really heading in the right 

direction. 

Yet Paraguay is not included among the eligible countries, and 

they have been making a lot of reforms, trying to be a good partner 

in the region. And I am concerned about the message that sends 

to the people of Paraguay. Is there something we can do about 

that. 

Ms. JACOBSON. No. Let me clarify. Everyone is eligible to participate, and certainly Paraguay is. I was actually just in Paraguay 

about 10 days ago—a great relationship, a lot going on, and definitely a place where we want to increase the educational exchanges, among other things. 

38

Mr. SALMON. Okay. Well, that is good, because I have had folks 

from Paraguay expressing some concern. And so if that is the case, 

then maybe it is just a lack of understanding. 

Ms. JACOBSON. We had a conversation about it when I was there, 

and I think there was a bit of a miscommunication, and we are 

now working to move ahead on increased partnerships. Thank you 

for that. 

Mr. SALMON. Okay. That is great. 

Mr. Sires. 

Mr. SIRES. I just have one question. I was wondering why, as I 

look through my notes, we are increasing funding to El Salvador, 

where they also may receive a second Millennium Challenge Corporation Compact worth $277 million. Why hasn’t the administration decided to prioritize aid to El Salvador as compared to other 

countries in Central America? 

Ms. JACOBSON. Let me just start that off, and Beth may have 

some additional comments. First of all, the approval of a second 

compact for MCC—and I don’t like to speak for them—but it is my 

understanding that the approval of the second compact for MCC 

was quite a few months ago. And because elections were coming up 

in El Salvador, it was important to hold off on moving ahead because there was going to be a new government. 

So that has been held, and we now do have a government that 

will be taking office in June, I think, is the inauguration, and then 

we will see about moving forward on that. But El Salvador had met 

all of the criteria for a second compact. El Salvador is also a partnership for growth country, and, obviously, that is something that 

is more Beth’s lane than mine. 

Obviously, we are hopeful that we are going to be able to work 

with this new government, and there are some signs that some of 

the people being appointed to positions such as from the private 

sector into the economic team, that there is a real understanding 

of the importance of working with the private sector. 

El Salvador still faces huge challenges. Its murder rate has gone 

back up. And so there is a real desire I think to work with El Salvador and on the issues that they face. But, obviously, with the 

new government coming in, we will have to see how that relationship plays out. 

Mr. SIRES. They still have a big gang issue. 

Ms. JACOBSON. Yes. No. I mean, that is a huge issue and one 

that is important to us, because we see the connections to it here 

in the United States. As Beth noted, the communities where we 

have worked have seen reductions in crime, and our hope is that 

the new Salvadoran Government can try and replicate those models to reduce some of the gang violence and some of the prevention 

for young people going into gangs in the first place. 

But let me assure you, frankly, that Honduras and Guatemala 

remain extremely high priorities for us. It is not really a question 

of one or the other. All of them confront huge challenges. 

Mr. SIRES. Ms. Hogan? 

Ms. HOGAN. Well, I would just like to add a point to elaborate 

a little bit on the decrease that we are seeing in crime and violence 

in the communities in which we are working. We are going through 

39

a comprehensive evaluation of our citizen security programs, particularly our violence reduction programs. 

And what we—we have finished the Guatemala—excuse me, the 

El Salvador chapter of this study, and what we have seen is that 

in the communities where USAID has invested in crime and violence reduction strategies, there has been a 33-percent drop in robberies, a 67-percent decrease in homicides, and a 110-percent decrease in extortions and bribery. 

So we have got a model that is working. We are also doing these 

evaluations in other countries, and we look forward to bringing you 

that evaluation when it is available and briefing you on it, because 

I think, we have found a model that works. 

Mr. SIRES. Thank you very much. 

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. 

Mr. SALMON. Thank you. 

Mr. DeSantis, did you have an additional question? 

Well, I think we have asked the questions that have been on our 

minds, and we really appreciate all of your thoughtful responses. 

There is no further business, so this subcommittee is adjourned. 

Thank you. 

[Whereupon, at 3:28 p.m., the subcommittee was adjourned.] 

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