Politics
Colombia’s Socialist President Suffers Major Political Defeat After Spat With Trump
Gustavo Petro, the left-wing President of Colombia, suffered a major political defeat on Tuesday when his ruling government coalition fractured. The setback for Petro comes just days after his spat with President Donald Trump, who threatened to impose massive economic sanctions and tariffs on the South American nation if Petro refused to allow deportation flights to land.
The Liberal Party formally declared its independence from President Petro’s legislative coalition, citing a list of grievances that included “tensions in relations with the United States,” among other things.
On Sunday, Petro announced on social media that he would be refusing to allow deportation flights to land in Colombia. The socialist president took issue with the Trump Administration’s decision to use military aircraft to transport Colombian illegal aliens back to the nation’s territory, at which point President Trump threatened to impose 25 percent tariffs on Colombian goods entering the United States.
Trump added that the tariffs would be increased to 50 percent if the situation was not rectified within one week, while the U.S. would also be placing hefty financial sanctions on Colombian government officials and move to close the visa application counter at the U.S. embassy in Bogota. Within hours, Petro capitulated and even offered his presidential plane to assist with deportation flights, but not before a lengthy tirade in which he referred to President Trump as a “white slaver” and praised anarchist terrorism.
Petro has denied reports that he was drunk when delivering the lengthy social media tirade.
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Petro During his presidential inauguration in 2022
The incident sent shockwaves throughout Colombian society, as political leaders rushed to prevent a trade war with the United States, which would have devastated the nation’s economy and led to tens of thousands of job losses. The United States is Colombia’s largest trading partner by far, accounting for more than 29 percent of Colombian exports in 2024.
On Tuesday, the Liberal Party cited the incident as a major factor in withdrawing from the president’s legislative coalition. “The Liberal Party will not be complicit in decisions that violate the rights of citizens or policies that threaten the stability of the country,” party leader and ex-president César Gaviria Trujillo said in a statement.
The Liberal Party has long had a back-and-forth relationship with Petro, according to a report from the Buenos Aires Times, though the coalition has maintained a fragile relationship in recent years. The formal break will severely hinder Petro’s ability to pass legislation, however, as the Liberal Party currently accounts for 13 senators and 33 representatives in the nation’s lower chamber. It is currently the largest standalone party in the Colombian legislature.
The major setback marks yet another political defeat for Petro, a former member of the M-19 militant group, which participated in several high-profile terrorist attacks and kidnappings during the 1980’s. A recent poll conducted in late December found that just 26 percent of Colombians approve of the president’s job performance, while 66 percent expressed disapproval.
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