SAO PAULO—President Bush and his left-wing nemesis Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez squared off on dueling tours of Latin America on Friday as they vied for the region's hearts and minds.
The ideological rivalry between the Bush and Chavez heated up as the U.S. president opened his regional tour in Brazil aimed at reaching out to Latin America's moderate left. Chavez responded with a trip to Argentina where he said the U.S. leader deserved the "gold medal for hypocrisy."
Bush flew late on Friday to Uruguay, where thousands took to the streets even before he arrived, some shouting "Get out, Bush!" Dozens of masked protesters, many wielding sticks and hurling rocks, shattered the windows of two McDonald's stores.
Bush is trying to overcome a sense of U.S. neglect in Latin America where opposition to the Iraq war has also damaged his standing and given Chavez, an ally of communist Cuban leader Fidel Castro, a chance to rail against American "imperialism".
Chavez was to lead tens of thousands of supporters in a soccer stadium rally in Argentina on Friday night, coinciding with Bush's arrival in neighboring Uruguay.
"He's a symbol of domination and we are a cry of rebellion against the domination ... he's trying to trick our people to divide us," Chavez told reporters in Argentina.
The fiery leftist has often launched verbal attacks against Bush, calling him the devil in a U.N. speech last year.
Opening his five-nation tour, Bush met Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, a leftist ally Washington sees as a potential counterweight to Chavez, and the two announced an ethanol fuel development plan for the Americas.
Bush's "ethanol diplomacy" plus new aid pledges are seen as an attempt to offset Chavez's use of Venezuela's oil wealth to court a new generation of Latin American leftist leaders in his quest for a regionwide socialist revolution.
Veiled Swipe
Asked whether his tour would help limit Chavez's influence, Bush sidestepped the question but his message was clear.
"My trip down here is to remind our country that South America, Latin America are good places to invest, particularly in countries that adhere to rule of law and are transparent and believe in the fundamentals of freedom," he said in veiled swipe at Chavez's anti-capitalist policies.
The Bush administration has questioned Chavez's commitment to democracy and criticized his nationalization policies.
Bush vowed to make Latin America a priority when he took office in 2001, but he has been distracted by Iraq, a conflict that made him even more unpopular among Washington's southern neighbors than he is at home.
Trying to turn back Chavez's challenge, Bush seems to have taken a page from his fiery regional nemesis, seeking to remake himself as a social reformer committed to alleviating poverty.
He said he doubled U.S. aid to the region to $1.6 billion last year from the start of his administration.
Amid increasingly entrenched anti-U.S. sentiment, few Latin Americans are likely to buy it. Bush, who last made such an extensive tour of the region in 2005, has until now mostly stressed trade, drug enforcement and immigration controls.
Though much of Latin America has embraced a U.S. model of free-market democracy, grievances linger against Washington for backing military dictatorships that once held repressive sway.
Violence erupted at demonstrations against Bush in Sao Paulo and the Colombian capital of Bogota on Thursday. Colombia's police chief said leftist guerrillas planned attacks and sabotage during Bush's visit there on Sunday.
Bush's six-day trip will end with conservative allies in Guatemala and Mexico. Continuing his counter-tour, Chavez was to fly to Bolivia to visit flood-ravaged areas on Saturday.
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