Adam Ratzlaff
Staff Writer
Adam is a staff writer at Charged Affairsis and a PhD student in International Relations at Florida International University. He holds an MA from the Josef Korbel School of International Studies and a BA from Tulane University. Ratzlaff predominantly writes about inter-American politics, development, and democratization. Follow Adam on Twitter @adam_ratzlaff.
Choosing a Captain in the Storm
By Adam Ratzlaff |
As Organization of American States members prepare to select the institution’s general secretary, they need to consider the role that the leader will play in protecting democracy in the Americas.
Monitoring the U.S. Election for Democracy in the Americas
By Adam Ratzlaff |
As the United States enters the 2020 election season, politicians on both sides of the aisle should consider inviting election monitors to observe the election. Doing so would allow the United States to more effectively achieve its objectives in the Americas.
The Precedent of Inaction
By Adam Ratzlaff |
Reporting of Bolivian Election results stopped suddenly sparking protests that eventually led to the ouster of President Evo Morales. However, this crisis may have been averted had the Organization of American States set the precedent of preventing the erosion of democracy.
Extending the Fig Branch
By Adam Ratzlaff |
If the next U.S, president is going to successfully repair relations with Latin America, they are going to need to look for innovative approaches to doing so. This will require an all of government approach and inspiration may come from unlikely sources.
Tariffs Won’t Stop Chinese Influence in Latin America
By Adam Ratzlaff |
Sen. Rick Scott claims that tariffs on China can combat rising Chinese influence in Latin America but this would only serve to increase Chinese influence in the Americas.
El Mercado Institucional: Multilateral Forum Shopping in Latin America
By Adam Ratzlaff |
In the Americas, the multitude of regional organizations allow states to bypass the limitations of each organization and weakens the effectiveness of regional institutions. Rather than creating new organizations, the region should fix existing institutions.
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El Mercado Institucional: Multilateral Forum Shopping in Latin America
By Adam Ratzlaff |
In the Americas, the multitude of regional organizations allow states to bypass the limitations of each organization and weakens the effectiveness of regional institutions. Rather than creating new organizations, the region should fix existing institutions.
The Hemispheric Community and Slow-Motion Coups
By Adam Ratzlaff |
Bolivian President Evo Morales has steadily undermined his nation’s democratic institutions, leading Andres Oppenheimer and others to claim that a “slow motion coup” is occurring in the country. The Andean nation has seen a number of challenges to liberal democratic practice since Morales first came to power in 2006. Perhaps the most pervasive challenge has…
A Step in the Right Direction? Trump’s “Aid” to Central America
By Adam Ratzlaff |
Although the Trump administration pays little attention to the Americas outside of U.S. concerns with the “Troika of Tyranny,” the administration is taking a stance against immigration from the region into the United States and at combatting Chinese influence in the region. On December 18, 2018, President Trump announced a $5.8 billion aid package to…
Taiwan’s Bad News from the Western Hemisphere
By Adam Ratzlaff |
Since the end of the Chinese Civil War, the official “state” of China has been in flux as a result of the One China policy. While Mao Zedong won the Chinese Revolution in 1950, the Chiang Kai-shek’s Nationalists fled to the island of Formosa. Since this time, the country has lived under the One China…
Venezuela and the Risk of “Democratic” Coup D’états
By Adam Ratzlaff |
Venezuela continues to face political and economic turmoil. The Chavista regimes of Venezuelan Presidents Hugo Chavez and Nicolas Maduro cracked down on the media and political opposition. The economic situation in the country is, if possible, even more dire, with the International Monetary Fund recently suggesting that inflation rates could reach one million percent this…