Ecuador’s president refused a U.S. base lease unless given one in Miami

Evidence

Rafael Correa, the president of Ecuador, highlighted this rarely considered truth in 2009 when he refused to renew the lease for a U.S. base in his country. Correa told reporters that he would approve the lease renewal on one condition: “They let us put a base in Miami—an Ecuadorian base.” — David Vine, Base Nation_ How U.S. Military Bases…, 14

Categorization

• CANDY: A punchy, quotable anecdote — perfect elevator-conversation material for the base debate.