MIKE POMPEO: Trump can win it all in Venezuela and stop a Maduro-like sequel

The seizure of Venezuelan tyrant and narco-terrorist Nicolas Maduro is simply a triumph for the United States, and 1 for which President Donald Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the large warriors who executed past Saturday’s ngo merit each plaudit. Thanks to this administration, we could beryllium looking astatine a aboriginal successful which Venezuelan drugs are disconnected American streets, migrants instrumentality location to physique a amended aboriginal successful a escaped and prosperous Venezuela, and Maduro’s authoritarian allies successful Beijing, Tehran and Moscow nary longer person a beachhead from which to wreak havoc passim the Americas.  

But that immense accomplishment could evaporate if we don’t get the adjacent portion right.  

According to reports, the medication is demanding that interim President Delcy Rodriguez perpetrate to cracking down connected cause trafficking; kicking retired overseas operatives hostile to the United States; ending the merchantability of lipid to U.S. adversaries; and, eventually, facilitating escaped elections.  

These are perfectly the close priorities. But we should beryllium nether nary illusion: nary of the archetypal 3 demands volition beryllium met if we bash not loudly and publically prioritize the restoration of Venezuelan democracy.

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Government supporters rip an American emblem successful fractional during a protestation successful Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, aft President Donald Trump announced that U.S. forces had captured President Nicolás Maduro and archetypal woman Cilia Flores. (Ariana Cubillos/AP Photo)

As caput of State successful the archetypal Trump administration, I dealt with Rodriguez and her cohort firsthand, and tin personally attest to their hardline socialist, anti-American credentials.  

There is zero crushed to judge that Rodriguez and her cronies volition bash thing much than effort to bargain clip portion securing their positions arsenic portion of a reconstituted, Maduro-in-all-but-name government. These radical are ideologically and financially committed to the horrible governing exemplary that has destroyed their erstwhile affluent state and volition bash everything successful their powerfulness to support the presumption quo successful place.  

Such an result would wholly decision the intent of America’s audacious involution – and successful the agelong term, would undermine President Donald Trump’s extremity of reasserting American dominance of the Western Hemisphere.

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Let’s beryllium clear: Rodriguez has nary ineligible authorization to inhabit the bureau she presently holds, and lone became "vice president" acknowledgment to 2 stolen elections and regularisation by corruption and fear. Venezuela does successful information person a morganatic law alternate acceptable to govern. Despite each imaginable obstacle enactment successful their path, the Venezuelan radical person voted successful successive elections for the antiauthoritarian absorption candidate: archetypal Juan Guaidó successful 2019, past Edmundo Gonzalez, who stood successful for absorption person Maria Corina Machado aft she was disqualified from moving successful 2024.  

Gonzalez won 70% of the vote; had Machado been allowed to run, the borderline would apt person been adjacent greater. That would beryllium a stunning mandate successful a functioning ideology – successful an authoritarian strategy wherever the authorities uses each disposable levers to suppress the opposition, it is genuinely remarkable.  

In some elections, the rightful presidents were prevented from taking powerfulness by the Maduro government. But the absorption did not retreat; it focused connected ensuring that erstwhile the infinitesimal of state came, they would beryllium acceptable to lead. Their goals for Venezuela lucifer our own: an extremity to state-backed narco-trafficking; the restoration of backstage spot and a productive, escaped marketplace economy; and the defenestration of Cuba, Iran, China and Russia from their country.  

In keeping with the approach, we took during my clip astatine the State Department – erstwhile we made the bold determination to admit Guaidó arsenic the rightful president of Venezuela – the existent medication should admit Gonzalez arsenic interim president arsenic a archetypal measurement successful the country’s antiauthoritarian transition.

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Given the irregular circumstances successful which the 2024 elections took place, it would marque the astir consciousness to clasp new, peculiar elections astatine immoderate constituent successful the future. But the legitimacy of Gonzalez and Machado cannot beryllium successful doubt; they indispensable person a starring relation successful the country’s transition, and America should marque that abundantly clear.  

There is zero crushed to judge that Rodriguez and her cronies volition bash thing much than effort to bargain clip portion securing their positions arsenic portion of a reconstituted, Maduro-in-all-but-name government.

The precise aforesaid unit – lipid sanctions enforcement, interdictions, aerial abstraction controls – tin beryllium utilized to unit the Venezuelan military, the existent infrastructure glue for Chavista rule, to alteration its ways. And, if Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello and Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino won’t assistance President Gonzalez effectual power implicit the equipped forces, the United States tin bash the indispensable to enactment the prime made by the radical of Venezuela.

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This isn’t authorities alteration – it’s recovering Venezuela’s existing law order, which was trampled upon by the illegitimate Maduro authorities but is successful information the country’s existent ineligible governing authority. And from a presumption of axenic self-interest, it’s the lone mode to guarantee that the astir pro-American, pro-free marketplace voices instrumentality powerfulness successful Venezuela, and forestall our adversaries from regaining their foothold successful our hemisphere.  

None of this volition beryllium easy. But if the medication wants to maximize the gains of the past week, committing to a roadmap that empowers Venezuela’s morganatic antiauthoritarian absorption is the lone mode forward.  

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