Moving to get more overtly involved in the country where most of their efforts in recent years have been covert, the US today announced a new round of sanctions against Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro, which they say was meant to express disapproval over the weekend’s election.
In an attempt to consolidate full control over the government by the United Socialist Party, Maduro organized the election to establish a National Constituent Assembly, which would have the power to overrule the existing parliament, and which is being stacked with Maduro’s allies.
With public calls to boycott by materially all opposition groups, the vote is heavily contested, with official claims of around 8 million voters more than double the estimates of independent analysts. The high formal turnout and wide margins of victory are seen as the Maduro government trying to give the proceedings an air of legitimacy.
The US has been eager to insinuate itself into the affairs of Latin America for generations, and this looks no different, with the administration seemingly salivating at the prospect of declaring Venezuela an “illegal government” and a “dictatorship,” and vowing that democracy, by which they doubtless mean US interventionism, will prevail.
Yet the Venezuelan opposition isn’t eager to see the US throw itself into the middle of all of this, warning against US efforts to impose an oil embargo on the country, which is apparently the go-to suggestion of Sen. Marco Rubio (R – FL),
Indeed, many in the opposition believe that anything the US does will be bad news for them, as it will allow Maduro, with at least some credibility, to argue that he is a victim of “US imperialism,” and that suggestion will split the substantial bloc of Latin American countries who are critical of Maduro’s actions.
In making this somehow America’s problem, the Trump Administration sets itself up as a convenient scapegoat for Maduro, and harms the credibility of genuine Venezuelan opposition groups, by allowing the government to paint them as secretly in league with the US.
That’s right. Let U.S. sanctions cause more pain and suffering for the people of Venezuela. Leave it to the U.S. to make things worse by sticking its nose into other countries’ business. Some day the rest of the world may put sanctions on the U.S.
Just so long as they’re not sticking the Caribbean fleet in, for some humanitarian bombardment and a liberating invasion.
They **ARE*** in league with the US, and there’s nothing secret about it. Collusion by a foreign power seeking to overthrow a legitimately elected government.
(But our oil companies still want to buy their oil.)
If they sanction Venezuela’s oil, then the refineries in Texas will be missing a rather large chunk of the crude they process. It takes much longer to bring crude from the Middle East to them than it does South America. We might see the price of gas go up a cent or two…
I am not sure about “genuine” opposition. These are good only at Soros style circus, and organizing chaos — to undermine stability and tranquility in the country, sabotaging food supplies throughout the country to facilitate regime change. It is stunning that US, the country that defeated comminism today cheerfully advocates bolshevik style chaos promotion, undermines elections, delegitimizes other country’s democratic institutions, pays corrupt politicians, and advocates violence in toppling legitimate governments. And it is stunning how many people think nothing of it — just another day in the office.
The election was a stunning success for Maduro — and it would be hard to trivialize that. Not that our media has no expertise in such doubletalk. We unfortunatelly have all sorts of free lancers in Government — as we have officially become a one party state. Votes for sanctions bill are proof. Even in a one party system there are more dissenters.
Is there a cabinet Department of Sanctions? Cuz they sure are flying out the door these days.
Venezuelan misery is due to Saudis turning the pumps and flooding the market with cheap oil.
There are no genuine Venezuelan opposition groups, That’s the problem. They’re all loaded down with tons of Yankee dollars from the ironically named National Endowment for Democracy, those fine folks who brought Ukraine Banderastan. Maduro is an *sshole. He’s disgraced the good name of the Bolivarian Revolution with his reactionary statist bullsh*t. But the opposition are a glorified cartel of neo-fascist scum-bags who would like nothing better than to fill Caracas’ largest soccer stadiums with the sound of firing squads. Long story short, Maduro sucks but his enemies are worse.
Any mention of what ‘assets’ Maduro has in the USA to freeze? I’m inclined to think thy’ll be looking at embassy and legations or the property of Citgo -there lots of ‘Maduro’s’ gas stations and storage facilities to sequester.