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ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 131320Z NOV 06 ZDK
FM AMCONSUL SAO PAULO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 6046
INFO RHEHNSC/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHDC IMMEDIATE
RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA PRIORITY 7113
RUEHRI/AMCONSUL RIO DE JANEIRO PRIORITY 7578
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UNCLAS SAO PAULO 001190 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE INR/R/MR; IIP/R/MR; WHA/PD 
 
DEPT PASS USTR 
 
USDOC 4322/MAC/OLAC/JAFEE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KMDR OPRC OIIP ETRD BR
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: U.S. MIDTERM ELECTIONS; SAO PAULO 
 
 
¶1. "Elections Force Bush To Migrate To The Center" 
 
Business-oriented Valor Economico editorialized (11/13): "U.S. 
voters changed the axis of President George W. Bush's policy by 
withdrawing support for his continuing to lean to increasingly 
towards the right and forcing him to the center.... The reasons for 
Bush's defeat are clear. His most evident mistake is the Iraqi 
war... but corruption scandals in Bush's party were almost as 
important for the election returns.... The Democrats have sufficient 
power to paralyze the rest of Bush's term, but they do not have a 
clear vision of what they want. There is no easy way out for Iraq, 
and the Democrats have not presented any new strategy on the 
subject, except for the flirtation of some of their factions with 
the possibility of a disastrous unilateral withdrawal.... The new 
Congress tends to be more protectionist than the current one. The 
possibility of renewing the fast track has become remote. Trade 
agreements already signed with Colombia and Peru - and the one being 
considered with South Korea - will run the risk of being vetoed if 
they are not approved by the current Congress.... With the Doha 
Round's failure it is very unlikely that initiatives favoring the 
FTAA will prosper.... Foreign policy is expected to be less 
unilateral and, in regards to the environment, the U.S. will 
probably adopt a more moderate position, following the Democrats' 
inclination.... The immigration question may also escape from the 
radicalism shown by the wall on the Mexican border.... To obtain 
some efficiency in the two final years of his mandate, Bush will 
have to become a moderate, almost the opposite of what he has been 
in the past six years. What remains to be seen is whether he wants 
or has talent to do so." 
 
¶2. "The World And The Democrats' Victory" 
 
University Professor Gesner Oliveira wrote in liberal, largest 
national circulation daily Folha de S. Paulo (11/11): "What remains 
to be seen is whether the overwhelming Democratic victory in the 
U.S. Congressional elections will represent a relevant change in the 
policy of the world's main economy.... The Bush era has not ended 
yet.  But Bush has become an even weaker president than a White 
House tenant normally is during the two final years of his second 
term.... The decision to invade Iraq was hasty and disastrous, [but] 
the Democratic majority does not seem to have a concrete proposal to 
face the problem. Like Vietnam, Iraq will be a trauma for several 
administrations, Democrat and Republican. But there is a positive 
aspect. The inclination for unilateral decisions, a George W. Bush 
trademark, is diminishing.... The fall of radical foreign policy 
represented by Rumsfeld suggests more wisdom and pragmatism in other 
areas. Therefore, a less simplistic geopolitical view of Latin 
America will perhaps gain space. That would involve a reevaluation 
of Hugh Chvez's real importance." 
 
¶3. "Winds Of America" 
 
The lead editorial in center-right O Estado de S. Paulo (11/10) 
remarked: "We have never doubted that the American democracy would 
get out unharmed from the Bush era. The trial of those who took 
advantage of September 11 to try to disfigure it began last Tuesday. 
The ballots not only reinvigorated democratic institutions, but 
confirmed the incomparable authenticity of the American democracy. 
For the first time the House will be led by a woman, Nancy Pelosi. 
For the first time the House's Budget Committee will be chaired by 
an African-American, Charles Rangel. For the first time a WASP state 
like Massachusetts will be governed by an African-American, Deval 
Patrick.  And for the first time the major Democratic candidates to 
president are a woman, Senator Hillary Clinton, and an 
African-American, Senator Barack Obama.... The winds of America are 
blowing." 
McMullen