The U.S. Should Support Populist Governments

Dear Nica Times:

Regarding Michael Katz’s great letter about the ex- U.S. Ambassador Paul Trivelli’s statements against “populism” and President Daniel Ortega (NT, Aug. 15), I’d like to add the following:

If Trivelli were truly a believer in “American values,” he would be praising Ortega or any populist government.

The Wikipedia Internet Encyclopedia defines populist or populism as a “philosophy urging social and political system change that favors the common people over the elites”

Dictionary.com on populism: “Any person, especially a political leader, who represents the interests of the ‘common people’ as distinct from those of the rich or powerful.”

That makes Ortega closer to U.S. values than the administration of U.S. President George W. Bush, which includes Trivelli.

They have forgotten that the U.S. government is supposed to be a government of, by and for the people.

Gene McDonald

Escazú, Costa Rica