Professional foreign affairs understanders are a bit baffled at some decisions announced over the weekend...
Instead, the White House has selected Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, a hardline exponent of the chavismo ideology which has ruled Venezuela for a quarter century, as Maduro’s temporary successor. Machiavellian and ruthless, but with a reputation for technocratic management, Rodríguez is the daughter of Jorge Antonio Rodríguez, a Marxist guerrilla who was tortured and died in prison in 1976 following his orchestration of the kidnapping of William F. Niehous, an American business executive. Her revolutionary zealotry is said to have been a byproduct of her father’s martyrdom and the lifelong asthma she developed after being tear gassed by the Venezuelan secret police while visiting him in his cell. Rodríguez was even rumored to have been in Moscow during Maduro’s exfiltration.
Nevertheless, Trump explained at his press conference that she had already been sworn in as president and spoke to Rubio at length. Anti-American firebrand though she may be, Rodríguez is now meant to be a pliant tool of the imperialist aggressor she detests. “She, I think, was quite gracious, but she really doesn’t have a choice,” Trump said. “She is essentially willing to do what we think is necessary to make Venezuela great again. Very simple.”
I'm sure hoping someone's got a plan here, but I'm not getting that kind of vibe, man.
