President-elect Bukele
Now that Nayib Bukele has been the president-elect of El Salvador for seventeen days, what has he been up to?
Engaging with the US
Shortly after Bukele was elected, he met with the US Ambassador to El Salvador, Jean Manes. Manes tweeted out:
Carper tweeted:
Challenging Salvadoran legislators
Although he will not be president until June 1, Bukele is already challenging the deputies in El Salvador's National Assembly. On social media he proposed that the Assembly should cut by half the funds it had designated to build an office building for the deputies and their staffs and instead should use the funds to build 50 schools and 14 libraries:
It is a smart political move. If the legislators fail to act on his proposal, they will fit right into his critique of the old party politicians caring only for themselves. If they go along with his proposal, he will manage to start fulfilling a campaign promise before he is even in office. Bukele already seems to have created some divisions within the ranks of ARENA deputies.
Avoiding the press
Bukele has not been giving interviews. He has not announced any members of his cabinet. He has not addressed the public since the night of his victory. He has tweeted and posted on Facebook. Most of the public statements for the incoming president have come from the secretary general of Nuevas Ideas, Federico Anliker. Anliker says Bukele's team is in the midst of reviewing profiles of potential cabinet picks and that Bukele is seeking to avoid recycling the same old faces.
Engaging with the US
Shortly after Bukele was elected, he met with the US Ambassador to El Salvador, Jean Manes. Manes tweeted out:
Una vez más felicito al presidente electo @nayibbukele. 🇺🇸 y 🇸🇻 tienen una historia de cooperación y fuertes lazos diplomáticos. EE.UU. continuará apoyando los esfuerzos de ESA para hacer crecer la economía, mejorar la seguridad y fortalecer sus instituciones. pic.twitter.com/tJ3pu2grrV— Jean Manes (@USAmbSV) February 8, 2019
Once more I congratulate president-elect Nayib Bukele. The US and El Salvador have a history of cooperation and strong diplomatic ties. The United States will continue supporting the efforts of El Salvador to make its economy grow, improve security, and strengthen its institutions.Bukele tweeted:
A very productive meeting of more than 3 hours. El Salvador will work to strengthen relations with our most important natural ally.On Tuesday of this week, Bukele met with a Congressional delegation headed by Senators Tom Carper and Jeff Merkley. According to a tweet from Bukele, their meeting discussed various themes including economic development, migration, generation of opportunities, increase of commercial exchanges and how to stimulate productivity and exports.
Carper tweeted:
Met with @nayibbukele, who left a favorable impression on me. He's inspired young Salvadorans who want the chance to lead prosperous lives in El Salvador. He seems to understand economic development and it's my hope that he can translate his dynamic campaign into concrete actions pic.twitter.com/IUlGeZZmU8— Senator Tom Carper (@SenatorCarper) February 19, 2019
Challenging Salvadoran legislators
Although he will not be president until June 1, Bukele is already challenging the deputies in El Salvador's National Assembly. On social media he proposed that the Assembly should cut by half the funds it had designated to build an office building for the deputies and their staffs and instead should use the funds to build 50 schools and 14 libraries:
It is a smart political move. If the legislators fail to act on his proposal, they will fit right into his critique of the old party politicians caring only for themselves. If they go along with his proposal, he will manage to start fulfilling a campaign promise before he is even in office. Bukele already seems to have created some divisions within the ranks of ARENA deputies.
Avoiding the press
Bukele has not been giving interviews. He has not announced any members of his cabinet. He has not addressed the public since the night of his victory. He has tweeted and posted on Facebook. Most of the public statements for the incoming president have come from the secretary general of Nuevas Ideas, Federico Anliker. Anliker says Bukele's team is in the midst of reviewing profiles of potential cabinet picks and that Bukele is seeking to avoid recycling the same old faces.
Comments