On Sunday, Donald Trump announced that he had won a foreign policy battle by using tariffs and strong measures, after Colombia agreed to change its position regarding planes for returning migrants.
The president had previously announced strong and severe punishments, including heavy tariffs, against a US partner. This was his most obvious effort to teach a lesson to a nation that went against him and to show his power in the Western Hemisphere.
The situation began when Colombian President Gustavo Petro stopped US military flights that were bringing undocumented migrants from landing. This created a problem for a large deportation effort that was part of one of Trump’s prominent campaign promises.
The US president quickly took the opportunity to show his fans that he is strong and to let other countries in Latin America know the consequences of refusing to send migrants back.
After hours of talks with Bogota, the White House announced that Colombia has decided to accept flights carrying migrants, including military planes. They also said that tariffs will be delayed while the deal is being put into action.
“Today’s events make clear to the world that America is respected again,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement late Sunday. “President Trump will strongly defend our country’s independence and expects other countries to help by taking back their citizens who are in the United States illegally.”
Colombia’s foreign minister quickly revealed that deportation flights from the US had started again. Petro’s change shows that he is giving in to US influence and Trump’s strong approach. This may encourage government officials who view tariff threats not just as a usual way to handle trade problems, but as a way to bully other countries, including trusted US allies, on various matters.
Still, the spat with Colombia was also a reminder of how Trump’s hardline approach will cause massive global chaos. The US president has pressured Canada and Mexico about border problems, tried to get Denmark to sell Greenland, and has threatened to reclaim the Panama Canal.
Using these tactics for four years could damage the US’s ties with other countries and make people in those countries feel more negative toward Americans. The Colombia conflict quickly caught China’s attention as it aims to expand its power near the United States. This highlights the possible problems for the U.S. if Trump continues to confront and push away important countries in the region.
Trump Is Exercising His Influence In Many Places
Trump’s win over Colombia marked the end of his first week as president. During this time, he used fear to establish his authority in the U.S. and to significantly alter the country’s direction internationally.
On Sunday, Trump’s new government started a major deportation effort in Chicago that will expand across the country. This shows his strong desire to see quick results.
Tom Homan, the White House border chief, told CNN’s Priscilla Alvarez on Sunday that the new way of handling immigration enforcement with multiple agencies involved is a big deal.
“Today’s operation involved the entire government.” President Trump has made this problem a priority for the entire government, he said. Almost 1,000 people were arrested in a raid on Sunday, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
This followed another stunning example of the new president wielding aggressive executive power after he fired more than a dozen watchdog officials in key government agencies Friday night.
The purge is part of Trump’s efforts to change the federal government to match a conservative view that the federal bureaucracy often hinders Republican presidents from carrying out what they promised during elections.
Since agency inspectors general report waste, fraud, and abuse to Congress, Democrats are criticizing this move as an abuse of power and a sign that Trump doesn’t take government ethics seriously. Some leading Republicans also said the president should have followed the rules by notifying Congress 30 days in advance about the dismissals.
“I believe he should have done that,” Sen. Lindsey Graham said on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday.
The South Carolina Republican questioned, “Is it acceptable for him to appoint people he believes can help implement his plans?” Yes. He won the vote. What do you expect him to do, just leave everybody in place in Washington before he got elected?” Graham said, “He thinks the government hasn’t done a good job for the American people.”
Trump Faces Another Challenging Week Ahead
Trump has suggested that he could be a strong leader who acts quickly and with determination to fulfill his campaign promises, particularly regarding immigrants. His agent of disruption in the Pentagon, Pete Hegseth, was sworn in as defense secretary Saturday after Vice President JD Vance cast the deciding Senate vote on his controversial confirmation.
But Trump has also made choices that might turn away some of the swing voters who helped him get elected again.
Many Republicans were shocked by his blanket pardons for the January 6, 2021, rioters, including those who were guilty of violent crimes. His choice to take away protection from former aides who spoke out against him, including some who have been threatened by Iran, showed that he is focused on old issues, which can sometimes get in the way of his political objectives.
Last week, Trump said that voters care more about immigrants than about high grocery prices. Republicans are hoping to keep their small majority in the House during next year’s midterm elections, but this depends on him achieving real economic progress.
This makes the president’s meeting with Republican lawmakers on Monday at his Doral golf resort in South Florida especially important, as the meeting will focus on how to navigate his agenda, including tax cuts and funds for his mass deportation program, through Congress.
The Sudden Conflict With Colombia Highlights The Dangers Of A Strict Immigration Crackdown
Colombia’s resistance posed an immediate challenge for the new US president, and people across the area were sure to pay attention.
Trump’s first reaction was very harsh. He put a 25% emergency tax on Colombian products right away, saying it would go up to 50% in a week. The US has banned travel for Colombian people and taken away visas for Colombian officials, along with other actions.
Trump cautioned on Truth Social that “these actions are only the start.” We will not let the Colombian Government ignore its legal responsibilities to accept and return the criminals they sent to the United States!
Petro replied on X, saying, “Trump, I don’t really enjoy traveling to the US; it’s kind of boring.” The radical president even said that Trump thinks of him as belonging to an inferior race, which he argues is not true for him or for any Colombian.
Ryan Berg, who leads the Americas Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said that Petro might have had his reasons for starting a conflict with Trump. This is partly because there is unhappiness with the current trade relationship with the US, which has been a military partner for a long time. Berg said that Petro might believe he can gain support by comparing himself to the United States and showing that he is working for Latin America’s dignity.
Long-term 50% tariffs from the US, Colombia’s biggest trade partner, could have very damaging effects. A few hours before the White House said that Colombia had changed its stance, Berg predicted that Colombia would need to secretly agree with Trump. “They will be in for a big surprise if they believe they can handle 50% tariffs and all the other actions Trump promised, like sanctions on banks and investments,” he said.
Maria Claudia Lacouture, the head of the Colombo American Chamber of Commerce, said on X that a 25% tax from the US would have quick and severe effects. “We urge everyone to stay calm, talk to each other, and use common sense. We should focus on diplomacy to resolve this serious crisis quickly.” Calm is important for all the players involved,” she wrote.
In 2022, the US traded $53.5 billion in goods and services with Colombia, according to the US Trade Representative. This amount is much smaller compared to the US’s trade with its main partners like Canada and China. A long trade war with Colombia could lead to higher breakfast costs in America. If egg prices keep rising and coffee prices also increase due to the trade issues, it would make breakfast more expensive.
Trump’s criticism of Petro is the biggest action his government has taken regarding Latin America so far.
Later this week, new Secretary State Marco Rubio will visit Panama, Guatemala, El Salvador, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic with US demands to halt migrant flows and increase deportations from US land at the top his agenda.
In the next four years, the competition between the United States and China for power in Latin America is expected to grow stronger. Trump has upset Panama by wrongly saying that Beijing runs the Panama Canal, and he has threatened to reclaim control of this important waterway between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
It wasn’t surprising that China’s ambassador to Colombia highlighted an interview on Sunday afternoon while Trump and Petro were exchanging insults. In that interview, he reminded everyone that Colombia’s foreign minister said last year that the relationship between Bogotá and Beijing was at its best in 45 years.
The fact that other countries have a voice, no matter how strongly Trump uses his power, might make it harder for him to carry out his ambitious plans for the Middle East. This follows his recent idea that he could remove people from Gaza, which has been affected by war, and send them to Jordan and Egypt. This plan is supported by the Israeli far-right, but it is not acceptable to important US allies. This could ruin his main goal of getting Arab countries to join Israel against Iran.
Trump’sTeam Is Starting A New Focused Effort On Immigration
The new government program for immigration enforcement in Chicago began because the new administration wants ICE offices to make 75 arrests each day, as reported by two sources.
Last week, the Trump team asked federal lawyers to look into officials in Democratic-led cities and states, such as Chicago and Illinois, if they oppose the new immigration enforcement measures. This raised the chance that the mass deportations could trigger the most serious clash between federal and state and local power in years.
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, a Democrat, said on “State of the Union” that he agrees with the goal of deporting violent criminals, but he has concerns about how the government is going about it.
Pritzker said, “We’re all in favor if that’s who they’re choosing.” He said, “They are targeting people who follow the law, work, have families here, and might have lived here for ten or twenty years.”
We will have to wait and see if that causes any problems politically.
Also Read: Trump’s Release of Assassination Documents Sheds Light on Some of the Country’s Biggest Secrets
After speaking with House Republicans on Monday, who have a small majority that greatly affects Trump’s plans, the president is back in Washington. He wants to quickly strengthen his power, so the second week of his second term will likely be just as busy and intense as the first week.
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