VZCZCXRO9182
RR RUEHRG
DE RUEHBR #0312/01 0721825
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 131825Z MAR 09
FM AMEMBASSY BRASILIA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 3792
INFO RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUEHRG/AMCONSUL RECIFE 9240
RUEHSO/AMCONSUL SAO PAULO 3721
RUEHRI/AMCONSUL RIO DE JANEIRO 7432

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BRASILIA 000312 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL KPAO BR
 
SUBJECT: Perceptions of President Obama, as Reflected in the 
Brazilian Press 
 
REF: 08 Brasilia 1479 
 
¶1. (U) SUMMARY: In Brazil, there is a great deal of public and media 
interest in President Barack Obama, going back to his emergence as 
the Democratic frontrunner in the middle stages of the 2008 U.S. 
presidential campaign.  Obama's electoral victory and inauguration 
were covered very positively by the Brazilian media, which welcomed 
the prospect of "change" from the perceived unilateralist and 
excessively militaristic policies of the previous administration. 
The election of the first African-American U.S. president also 
captured the imagination of the Brazilian public. Despite concerns 
about protectionist measures  in the recently passed U.S. economic 
stimulus bill and the possibility that Brazil might be sidelined as 
a U.S. priority by Iraq, Afghanistan and the Middle East, press 
coverage and public opinion of President Obama remain highly 
favorable.  END SUMMARY 
 
¶2. (U) Brazil's considerable interest in President Barack Obama, as 
reflected in media coverage, dates back to the middle stages of the 
2008 presidential campaign when then-Senator Obama emerged as the 
frontrunner for the nomination of the Democratic Party. During the 
general election campaign, statements by Obama and his Republican 
opponent, John McCain, made constant headlines in the Brazilian 
press, which devoted a great deal of attention to the U.S. 
elections. 
 
¶3. (U) Obama's assertions during the campaign that he would 
re-examine trade agreements signed by the United States and McCain's 
claims in favor of Brazilian ethanol immediately reinforced the 
general Brazilian perception that Democrats have a tendency to be 
more protectionist than Republicans. However, the overall rejection 
of the Bush administration by the Brazilian elites and Obama's early 
identification in the campaign as a candidate who would bring 
"change" on issues like perceived U.S. unilateralism soon resulted 
in very positive coverage for the Democratic candidate. 
 
¶4. (U) Brazilian press references to Obama's victory in the election 
were very positive and celebratory opinion pieces were quite common. 
("Obama will bring to the American presidency a new multilateral 
vision of the world," wrote prominent columnist Merval Pereira in a 
not-atypical piece).  Brazilian opinion makers celebrated what they 
saw as the U.S. rejection of Bush administration policies and 
rejoiced over the election of the first African-American president. 
Media highlighted President Lula's comparisons of his own background 
and rise through politics to those of President Obama, suggesting 
that this shared experience should provide an important basis for a 
strong relationship. 
 
¶5. (U) Initial expectations for the new U.S. president were high 
throughout Brazil, including at the highest levels of the Brazilian 
government.  Shortly after Obama's inauguration, President Lula said 
during one of his weekly radio addresses that he believed that 
President Obama would change the "mistaken [U.S.]  policy for Latin 
America."  According to the national daily O Globo, Lula noted that 
the United States had participated in military coups in the region 
during the 1960s and '70s, adding, "I think that now Obama can look 
at Latin America with a democratic eye."  There was also much 
speculation and hope that Obama would make a gesture of some sort 
towards Cuba. 
 
¶6. (U) Beyond the celebration, many Brazilian press analyses 
expressed concern that a severe economic downturn, the U.S. military 
commitments in Iraq and Afghanistan and the overall security 
concerns in the Middle East would consume all of the new 
administration's attention, leaving little for Latin America and 
Brazil. 
 
¶7. (U) President Obama's January 26, 2009, telephone call to 
President Lula generated significant national press coverage, as did 
subsequent speculation about when the two men would meet for the 
first time.  Energy and trade were widely cited in the Brazilian 
media as areas of cooperation in this new period of bilateral 
relations. 
 
¶8. (U) Coverage of the first weeks of the Obama presidency was a 
little more subdued, if just as extensive, with many reports noting 
protectionist elements contained in the "Buy American" provision of 
the President's economic stimulus plan, as well as Obama's 
difficulties in securing bipartisan support for this legislation. 
More recently, press reports and commentary have begun to express 
frustration at the nature and extent of the measures proposed by the 
White House: a March 4 editorial in the influential national daily O 
Estado de Sao Paulo criticized early signs of the Obama 
administration's trade policy as justifying "fears regarding a more 
protectionist American policy that is more sensitive to lobbies that 
support subsidies and barriers."  President Obama's call last week 
to reduce agricultural subsidies gained a more positive reception, 
however. 
 
BRASILIA 00000312  002 OF 002 
 
 
 
¶9. (U) In recent days, the Brazilian media have speculated about a 
possible role for Brazil as a "mediator" between the U.S. and Cuba 
or Venezuela and the major press has reported that President Lula 
intends to raise issues involving those two countries and Bolivia 
when he meets with President Obama on March 14. 
 
¶10. (U) In all, Brazilian press coverage of President Obama remains 
very positive, with perceived protectionism and the possibility that 
Brazil will be ignored in favor of other, more pressing issues being 
the main areas of criticism or concern expressed to date. 
 
¶11. (U) In terms of overall public opinion, a CNT/Sensus poll whose 
results were published in early February showed that 72.8 per cent 
of the Brazilian population believed that that the election of 
Barack Obama would be positive for Brazil in the coming years.  Only 
4.1 per cent considered Obama's election negative for Brazil. 
 
¶12. (U) When asked whether the election of Obama would be positive 
for the world, 76.6 per cent responded yes, with only 4.5 per cent 
responding no. 
 
¶13. (U) Anecdotally, another reflection of Obama's popularity in 
Brazil was the fact that a number of local political candidates 
sought to capitalize on the buzz surrounding the 44th U.S. president 
by being listed on the ballot last October as "Barack Obama." 
 
KUBISKE