The Maduro Interruption

Donald Trump’s assault on Venezuela and the seizure of its leader, Nicholas Maduro, interrupted the final preparation of an article that describes Trump’s assault on American democracy and his seizure of institutions in the governing apparatus. The assaults are related. Here is another article before presenting the previously prepared article.

Unaware that the world is composed of sovereign nations, not all to the liking of one another, that they cooperate for benefit, and limit interferences according to international law, Trump has disregarded diplomatic norms, and imposed himself as the world leader, shaping nations, including his own, in his image. Argentina receives a $20 billion bribe to elect his favored despot; Iran, already battered by the Trump war machine, receives a threat to not harm a population that has been severely harmed by his sanctions, which amounts to a dictate for regime change; Gaza, destroyed by U.S. military assistance to Israel, will be resurrected in Trump style. South Africa, Somalia. Nigeria, and Honduras, among others, have also received the Trump touch of aiding look-alikes and scolding detractors.

Uncertainty of the accuracy of press coverage of Maduro, leads to uncertainty of who is Maduro. Is he a corrupt despot, an enlightened despot, or a democratically elected leader with a mandate? Compared to Trump, he leans to the middle description.

• Maduro has subdued his adversaries; Trump daily demolishes them ─ Joe Biden has suffered a thousand wounds.

• Maduro may have his inner circle of family and friends; Trump has a magnitude wider inner circle of only family, friends, and sycophants.

• Maduro may have formed support from the Venezuela armed forces; Trump, before the Quantico meeting, told the press, “I’m going to be meeting with generals and with admirals and with leaders, and if I don’t like somebody, I’m gonna fire them right on the spot.”

• Maduro may have violated the Venezuela constitution; Trump has shredded the U.S. constitution.

• Maduro may be guilty of corruption but his life style does not indicate it could be much. According to the New York Times, “Since his return to office, President Trump and his family have engaged in a moneymaking campaign like none in modern American history.”

• Maduro impresses his image on the Venezuelan people; Trump is engraving his persona as “dear leader” on America’s soul.

• Maduro may, at times, have violated “rule of law.” By sending national guard troops into U.S. cities, murdering people at sea, pardoning convicted criminals, and threatening states to obey his command or lose benefits, Trump has replaced “rule of law’ with “Trump only laws.”

Clean seizure of Maduro corpus delecti, victim of the unproven crime of “leader of a narco-terrorist organization,” has an antecedent ─ George H.W. Bush’s reckless and dirty interment of Manuel Antonio Noriega for similar reasons. In both cases, relation of the principles to drug offense is sketchy, the value of the drugs, if they existed, would be small, and in the Noriega case, had no effect on drug usage in the United States. An unanswered question ─ why give attention to persons residing hundreds of miles from America’s shores while insufficient attention is given to the drug dealers who walk the urban streets?

Trump said that watching Maduro’s seizure was watching a movie; a movie in which Maduro is the villain, and therefore Trump is the hero; a movie produced, directed and written by Trump Enterprises. This is not an adventure movie; it is a mystery that still needs an ending. The mystery is the sinking of the alleged drug boats. Why were they sunk with all occupants killed and not detained so occupants could supply information on the “drug cartel” and its operations and testify as witnesses for the prosecution in Maduro’s trial? Why weren’t the boats allowed to proceed and tracked to their destination, where the U.S. infrastructure could be recognized and the dealers incarcerated? Seems that Trump destroyed vital evidence. Something wrong somewhere and why aren’t the CIA, FBI, and all local police agencies concerned? With tongue in cheek, the mystery becomes a Keystone cop comedy. These activities don’t behave as drug busts. they have the appearance of removing competitors from the business and decreasing the supply so the prices can be raised.

A cloudy today and even cloudier tomorrow. Autocrat Maduro and his wife (why his wife?) and his dictates have been transferred from Caracas to New York. The Maduro government or regime remains in place. Will Trump send Yankee officials to oversee the government and troops to enforce the dictates emanating from autocrat Trump in Washington, D.C.? What will change and how will the changes occur? Would expect new elections, although that has not been mentioned. After that, removal of the sanctions, which could be done immediately, will bring prosperity to a nation devastated by the U.S. imposed sanctions. What sanctions?

In August 2017, Trump administration sanctions prohibited Venezuela’s access to U.S. financial markets, and in May 2018, expanded them to block purchase of Venezuelan debt.

In January 2019, economic sanctions targeted companies in the petroleum, gold, mining, and banking industries.

In 2021, the US Government Accountability Office concluded that sanctions “likely contributed to Venezuela’s economic decline.” The report noted that sanctions resulted in Venezuela selling less oil, at higher costs and lower prices.

What about the oil of which Trump knows little, except that he imagines prosperous U.S. can be a relatively few dollars more prosperous by gaining some oil and impoverished Venezuelans won’t mind being more impoverished by making a few Americans richer.

Similar to Iran (1951), Iraq (1972), Saudi Arabia (1970s–1980), Kuwait (1975), Libya (1970–1973), Algeria (1971), United Arab Emirates (1970s), Qatar (1970s), Mexico (1938), Bolivia (1937, 1969, 2006), Ecuador (1972), Argentina (2012), Brazil (1953), Nigeria (1970s), Angola (1976), Gabon (1970s), Republic of the Congo (1970s), Kazakhstan (1990s–2000s), Indonesia (1960s), and Malaysia (1974), Venezuela, way back in 1976, nationalized its oil industry. President Carlos Andres Perez, created the state-owned company Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) and Hugo Chavez (remember him) required PDVSA to maintain majority ownership in all projects. PDVSA has partnered with international firms including Chevron, China National Petroleum Corporation, ENI, Total, and Russia’s Rosneft to unearth and distribute the oil.

Besides singling out Venezuela for nationalizing the oil resources that tens of countries have done, and all sovereign nations own, Trump intends to interfere with companies that have successfully operated with PDVSA, including Chevron. What does he expect to happen? How will a Trump inspired initiative engage with the present arrangement? Nonsense.

My opinion: Stop the sanctions, hold new elections, a Maduro lookalike will gain power, and Venezuela will be a prosperous nation.