Almost Jeffersonian: U.S. Recognition Policy toward Latin America

Abstract

Since Latin American independence, U.S. presidents have consistently faced the issue of how to respond to domestic political conflict in the region. The purpose of this article is to examine U.S. recognition policy toward Latin American governments, to identify patterns in that policy, and to explain its decline. It might appear that the United States has come full circle and that we are currently seeing a return to Thomas Jefferson's de facto principle of recognition, wherein governments are recognized automatically regardless of their nature. Jefferson's policy was to avoid making political judgment on foreign governments. The current evolution (or devolution) of recognition policy, however, does not follow the tenet of nonjudgment.