Brazilian economist and diplomat Roberto de Oliveira Campos (born 1917) struggled for most of the latter half of the twentieth century to promote what he called pragmatic, democratic nationalism in his socialist homeland that, during the early 1960s, had been flirting with Communism.

Campos was born in Cuiabá, in the rural state of Mato Grosso, Brazil, on April 17, 1917. In reference to his humble background, Campos often referred to himself as "a Brazilian hillbilly." He initially planned to enter the priesthood, and received degrees in Philosophy and Theology from the Catholic Seminary of Guaxup‚. For his graduate work, however, he turned to economics, and studied at George Washington University, Columbia University, and New York University, all in the United States. In 1939, at the age of 22, Campos entered the Brazilian foreign service.

Frustrations with Foreign Service

From the foreign service, Campos moved to a number of important national and...