Americas Decoded

As in Jamaica, elites in Haiti must break ties with gangs

Opinion: To observe this month’s Haitian Flag Day, the members of Haiti's political and business elite who've sponsored violent gangs should reflect on the damage they've done - and hope it’s not irreparable.The fallout from a deadly spasm of armed violence in Jamaica in 2010 began a process of severing ties between that country’s gangs and its political and business elites. WLRN’s Americas Editor Tim Padgett says it’s a break that Haiti in 2026 desperately needs to emulate.You can watch the video for this and other Americas Decoded commentaries on WLRN’s YouTube channel on WLRN.org/Decoded.Subscribe to Tim’s Substack to receive his weekly digital commentaries and new episodes of Americas Decoded, at WLRN.org/AD.Sign up for his Americas Report newsletter on WLRN.org/newsletters.WLRN is South Florida’s NPR member station.

Hormuz Redux? In Venezuela and Cuba, Trump risks another debacle

Opinion: In Venezuela and Cuba, President Trump risks repeating the miscalculation he's made in Iran and the Strait of Hormuz: thinking bold strikes automatically yield regime change.Iran’s response to the U.S. military strikes – the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, shutting down much of the world’s oil shipping with alarming ease – suggests Trump made a grand miscalculation. And, on the latest episode of Americas Decoded, WLRN’s Americas editor Tim Padgett says it’s something that could define his legacy. That’s because he’s got two other potential Hormuz-shaped debacles developing in his own hemisphere: in Venezuela and Cuba.You can watch the video for this and other Americas Decoded commentaries on WLRN’s YouTube channel on WLRN.org/Decoded.Subscribe to Tim’s Substack to receive his weekly digital commentaries and new episodes of Americas Decoded, at WLRN.org/AD.Sign up for his Americas Report newsletter on WLRN.org/newsletters.WLRN is South Florida’s NPR member station.

Biden of Brazil? Lula's geriatric re-election bid risks return of Bolsonarism

Opinion: Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is 80 and running for re-election, an egotistical move that may open the door to another reactionary Bolsonaro presidency — this time the son's. The main candidate Lula will face in Brazil’s presidential elections in October is right-wing Senator Flávio Bolsonaro — the 44-year-old son of former President Jair Bolsonaro. Lula and his party should not wait for a late meltdown, like Biden’s cognitive catastrophe in the presidential debate of June 2024, to listen to the concerns about his age. You can watch the video for this and other Americas Decoded commentaries on WLRN’s YouTube channel on WLRN.org/Decoded. Subscribe to Tim’s Substack to receive his weekly digital commentaries and new episodes of Americas Decoded, at WLRN.org/AD. Sign up for his Americas Report newsletter on WLRN.org/newsletters. WLRN is South Florida’s NPR member station.

Trump's war on birthright citizenship evokes the Dominican Republic's cruelty

Opinion: President Trump's bid to intimidate the Supreme Court on birthright citizenship risks reminding the justices — and the world — of the Dominican Republic's own thuggish repeal 13 years ago. Trump became the first sitting president to attend a Supreme Court hearing. But WLRN’s Americas editor Tim Padgett says his crusade to end birthright citizenship has echoes of the DR, which not only cancelled birthright citizenship but made it retroactive in 2013 - a cruel and chaotic move seen as driven by racism, since it affected mostly Black Dominicans of Haitian descent. You can watch the video for this and other Americas Decoded commentaries on WLRN’s YouTube channel on WLRN.org/Decoded. Subscribe to Tim’s Substack to receive his weekly digital commentaries and new episodes of Americas Decoded, at WLRN.org/AD. Sign up for his Americas Report newsletter on WLRN.org/newsletters. WLRN is South Florida’s NPR member station.

Beyond politics, Venezuela's World Baseball Classic triumph brings patriotic joy

Opinion: Venezuela's first World Baseball Classic title win, against the U.S. in Miami, packed political symbolism — but, more importantly, also a joyful reminder of the country's character. Venezuela’s historic win in Miami, as the U.S. follows its removal of Nicolás Maduro with an unashamed focus on the country’s oil reserves rather than its democracy, could be read as a ‘screw you’ to the Trump administration. But for WLRN’s Americas editor Tim Padgett, baseball reveals the best of Venezuela, so the victory was an uplifting reminder of the country’s character. You can watch the video for this and other Americas Decoded commentaries on WLRN’s YouTube channel on WLRN.org/Decoded. Subscribe to Tim’s Substack to receive his weekly digital commentaries and new episodes of Americas Decoded, at WLRN.org/AD. Sign up for his Americas Report newsletter on WLRN.org/newsletters. WLRN is South Florida’s NPR member station.