Summary: Nicolas Maduro, president—really dictator—of Venezuela recently held a sham election to rewrite the country’s constitution. The pretext for the vote was to create a new National Constituent Assembly to draft a new Venezuelan constitution. Speaking in the White House briefing room, General H.R. McMaster said, “The sham election of the National Constituent Assembly [in Venezuela] represents a very serious blow to democracy in our hemisphere. Maduro is not just a bad leader. He is now a dictator.” Shortly after the so-called election, opposition leaders were seized from their homes by Venezuela’s secret police. It is a humanitarian crisis in addition to a political one. The United States has responded by imposing strict sanctions. No one in the U.S. can do business with Venezuela. Mr. Maduro also joins a very short list of heads of state who are personally sanctioned by our government. Nonetheless, the question remains: Can the United States allow a dictator with ties to Iran to set up in Venezuela? No. The U.S. must act.
