[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 33 (Tuesday, March 9, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E336]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          THANKING PETER HAKIM

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. ELIOT L. ENGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, March 9, 2010

  Mr. ENGEL. Madam Speaker, I rise today to thank Peter Hakim for his 
16 years of outstanding service as President of the Inter-American 
Dialogue. Under Peter's leadership, the Inter-American Dialogue has 
become a top center for policy analysis on U.S.-Latin American 
relations.
  As Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Western 
Hemisphere, I have benefited enormously from the first-rate work of the 
Inter-American Dialogue. My colleagues and I--and our staffs--
consistently count on the Inter-American Dialogue's superb analysis of 
U.S.-Latin American relations.
  Peter Hakim testified at my first hearing as Subcommittee Chairman in 
2007, and I am pleased that he is closing out his tenure as Dialogue 
President as a witness at my hearing on U.S. Policy toward the Americas 
in 2010 and Beyond. His insights are extremely useful to me as I carry 
out oversight of our policies toward Latin America and the Caribbean. 
My colleagues and I have also greatly benefited from the dinner 
discussions organized by Peter and the Inter-American Dialogue where we 
debate key hemispheric issues. I am pleased that Peter will continue to 
serve the Inter-American Dialogue as President Emeritus, and I look 
forward to working with him in the coming years.
  I also would like to commend Michael Shifter on his selection as the 
next president of the Inter-American Dialogue. Michael, who has served 
as the Dialogue's Vice President for Policy for several years, is 
clearly the best person for the job. Michael is no stranger to the 
Western Hemisphere Subcommittee himself. He has testified before my 
Subcommittee at hearings on the Colombia-Ecuador border crisis and 
Honduras. His essays and opinion pieces are published in a wide array 
of top U.S. and Latin American publications, and are a great resource 
for all of us in Congress.
  I congratulate Peter Hakim and Michael Shifter and wish both of them 
and the Inter-American Dialogue many more years of success.

                          ____________________