MEDIA REACTION - KIRK'S VISIT; RACISM AGAINST OBAMA;

UNCLAS SAO PAULO 000556 SIPDIS STATE INR/R/MR; IIP/R/MR; WHA/PD DEPT PASS USTR USDOC 4322/MAC/OLAC/JAFEE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KMDR OPRC OIIP XM XR XF BR SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION - KIRK'S VISIT; RACISM AGAINST OBAMA; MISSILE SHIELD; FX-2 BID; SAO PAULO "Obama's empty message" Editorial in center-right O Estado de S. Paulo (9-21) states: "U.S. Trade Representative Ronald Kirk's first visit to Brazil was a notable diplomatic failure. He was only able to reinforce Barack Obama's image as a protectionist president, willing to use the weight of his country to twist international rules and with no interest in discussing the balanced conclusion of the Doha Round...He tried, in his trip to Brasilia, to convince the GOB not to use its right to retaliate in order to compensate for the damages caused by subsidies given to U.S. cotton producers. But his actions were limited to presenting a vague and uninteresting proposal of a deal on trade and investment [Trade and Investment Framework Agreement or TIFA] and he avoided talking about any longer term trade issues...Ron Kirk's trip did not produce any relevant outcome..." "Racism against Obama" Editorial in center-right O Estado de S. Paulo (9-19) states: "....In the attacks against President Obama, it is undeniable that racial prejudice adds to the ideological opposition of many Americans to what they believe is a 'socialist project' to expand the State's power in the area of private decisions regarding what is literally a matter of life or death. Obama's election did not transform the U.S. into a homogenous country. The economic crisis.....prevailed over racism, but did not suppress it from American life...." "The end of a provocation" Editorial in center-right O Estado de S. Paulo (9-20) notes: "....President Barack Obama presented on Thursday his first concrete initiative with global repercussions in U.S. foreign relations....This time, facts spoke for themselves, launching a new era for U.S. relations with Russia and Eastern Europe. Obama removed......the plan to install a long range anti-missile shield in Poland and Czech Republic....From the beginning, Moscow had reacted to the project, launched in January 2007, as a threat and a provocation...As one could foresee, Moscow's first answer [to Obama's announcement] was a complete nyet....It may be a small step for Eastern Europeans to believe that they will not have to pay for the price of this American-Russian revival." "Canned Mushroom" Op-ed in liberal Folha de S. Paulo (9-20) by columnist Janio de Freitas says: "....Lula's government and he himself do not explain their insistence in buying a dozen billion reais worth of French armaments and consultations.....[Brazil's Defense Minister] Nelson Jobim's embarrassment was evidenced by the crudeness of his comment about the Swedish proposal: "It is like buying a beer and getting four guaranas [a common Brazilian soft drink].....Nonetheless, the embarrassment isn't only on the Brazilian side. It has been widely reported that the French government needs to sell the Rafale planes due to the failures of the plane in international competitions and the high cost of its development, which has left Dassault with financial difficulties..." WHITE