OBAMA WEATHERS THE STORM - AT 9:21 A.M. ET:

April 19 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama fended off calls for lifting the U.S. trade embargo with Cuba while pledging to cooperate with Latin American leaders to help the region’s poorest recover from the global economic recession.

Obama heads into the final day of the Summit of the Americas in Trinidad and Tobago with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Bolivian President Evo Morales saying they refuse to sign the summit’s final declaration because it excludes Cuba.

Obama responded throughout the meetings by saying the U.S. is on a path toward changing the nature of its relationship with Cuba, and actions toward the communist nation will be informed by a desire for democracy, administration officials said.

“Actions speak louder than words,” White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said. Administration officials say it’s up to Cuba to make the next move.

COMMENT:  President Obama's performance at the Latin American summit strikes us as much more skillful than his actions during his Great Groveling tour of Europe, recently concluded.  The Latin American leaders have given the U.S. quite a bashing, which is a hobby down there, but, with the exception of some initial crawling, Mr. Obama hasn't given in.  Maybe there's a lesson being learned - that weakness gets you nowhere.

On the other hand, it's important that the White House ponders why these Latin American leaders, some of them world-class thugs, feel they can be so openly anti-American in Mr. Obama's presence, something they couldn't be in the presence of previous presidents.  That's lesson two.

April 19, 2009