Central Louisiana News

U.S. Southern Command Commander General Laura Richardson endorsed the Americas Act during a fireside chat at the 2024 Aspen Security Forum. The legislation, introduced earlier this year by U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) and Michael Bennet (D-CO), along with U.S. Representatives Maria Salazar (R-FL-27) and Adriano Espaillat (D-NY-13), aims to strengthen economic and national security by establishing a permanent trade partnership across the Western Hemisphere while countering China's influence in the region.

"In our security strategy we talk about how [the Western] hemisphere is inextricably linked to the security of our homeland," said General Richardson. "I have met with at least two-thirds of the presidents of my region, but they don’t see what Team USA is bringing to the countries… all they see is the Chinese cranes…and the [Chinese] Belt and Road Initiative projects."

"How are we getting our U.S. quality investment and talking about our U.S. companies investing in the region?" asked General Richardson. "We got a lot of U.S. companies in the region. I don’t think we’re branding Team USA as we should. It’s got to be better. We got to be bragging about what U.S. quality investment does."

"There’s some legislation, bipartisan legislation called the Americas Act… very comprehensive legislation," continued General Richardson. "I see that very comprehensive and ways of attracting investment into the region. I really believe that economic security and national security are going hand in hand here in this hemisphere, and we have got to work both of them together very, very quickly."

Last week, former NSC senior director in the Trump administration Mauricio Claver-Carone also endorsed the Americas Act.

Cassidy and Bennet, along with Salazar, Espaillat, and former House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party Chairman Mike Gallagher (R-WI-08), introduced the Americas Act in March 2024. They penned an op-ed in Fox News Digital outlining its provisions.

More than 60 million Americans are of Hispanic descent, making the U.S. one of the largest Spanish-speaking countries globally. Together, nations within this hemisphere produce enough food and critical minerals to sustain every country within it.

Last year, Cassidy and Bennet addressed the Council of the Americas regarding their proposed legislation, emphasizing a need for a revamped Latin America policy from Washington D.C., advocating for an expansion of USMCA standards across more countries within this new trade agreement framework.

The draft released last year garnered support from various Latin American leaders and stakeholders who highlighted its potential transformational impact on regional development.