Bullish on Brazil’s Lula

Because President Bush knows so well that nothing succeeds at home like success in the world, he should happily share a hemispheric spotlight Friday with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Lula’s gotten on a roll in his adventures on the road, and this can only boost domestic prospects for the new leader of a South American giant with big problems and possibilities.

Since taking office six months ago, the energetic Brazilian has pressed to the fore on international issues. The onetime factory worker served as proponent for the poor with leaders of the wealthiest nations meeting recently at Evian, France. He’s shown a knack for working -- in ways the United States can’t -- with the region’s thorniest leaders, like Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez and Cuba’s Fidel Castro.

Lula formed the Friends of Venezuela to resolve the crisis in Caracas, which has included an attempted coup and a plunging economy. Now he should press Chavez to keep to a plan brokered by Cesar Gaviria, secretary general of the Organization of American States, to find a constitutional solution. When Lula meets Bush in Washington, they will take up a matter of hemispheric import: The U.S. and Brazil co-chair the group setting up talks on a free-trade agreement for the Americas. Such an accord could extend benefits of similar economic pacts among the U.S., Canada, Mexico and Chile to the rest of Latin America. Bush and Lula should continue talks on this and other topics as part of an amiable relationship.

A warm greeting in Washington will be key for Lula because his reception will affect how Wall Street, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank receive his overtures for assistance.

At home, the outspoken socialist already has defied expectations, boosting investor confidence in his management of Brazil’s troubled economy. He retains the fiscal discipline and tight monetary policies of his predecessor, which keeps inflation under control. Several credit-rating agencies have upgraded Brazil’s paper, and the IMF has approved a $30-billion credit line. Though he shows the world how stern he can be with national finances, he also insists to all that Brazil must show “patience and perseverance” so it aids the poor who make up most of its huge population.

Although Brazil historically has not fulfilled expectations for a nation of its vast size and resources, Lula is boosting its significance. Washington should embrace its southern friend and its quest for stability, prosperity and beneficial influence.