Pirate's Cove

It makes a lot of sense, and I bet Marco Rubio is behind this

Trump backs Maduro loyalist over Venezuela opposition leader in post-capture transition

When Nicolás Maduro was removed from power by the United States, many in Washington expected the U.S. to rally behind Venezuela’s most prominent opposition leader.

Instead, the Trump administration moved to engage a longtime Maduro loyalist, signaling a transition strategy driven less by democratic symbolism than by concerns over stability on the ground.

The approach sidelined María Corina Machado, the opposition leader who claims the strongest popular mandate and international profile, while elevating Delcy Rodríguez, Maduro’s vice president and a central figure in the outgoing regime.

Administration officials and outside analysts say the shift reflects a calculated effort to avoid a power vacuum and maintain control during a fragile transition, even as it complicates Washington’s longstanding support for Venezuela’s democratic opposition.

And President Donald Trump is betting Rodríguez now lives in fear of what might happen to her if she defies the U.S.

Trump, describing his phone call with Rodríguez, said she offered: “We’ll do whatever you need.”

“I think she was quite gracious,” he said.

But in a separate interview with The Atlantic he warned: “If she doesn’t do what’s right, she is going to pay a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro.”

Now, let’s consider: she stays in power during the transition. Trump doesn’t want to run Venezuela. He doesn’t want nation building. He wants a stable Venezuela, and, at that point, elections. Sidelining Machado and the guy everyone says won the 2024 election, Edmundo González, means they won’t be accused of being Trump’s people, or America’s people. If Biden or Harris were president right now it would be best to sideline Machado and Gonzalez, do not want them to appear to be in Los Yankees pockets.

A classified CIA intelligence assessment examined who would be best positioned to lead a temporary government in Caracas, Venezuela, and maintain short-term stability, a source familiar with the intelligence told Fox News Digital. The report, requested by senior policymakers and presented to Trump, aimed to offer the president “comprehensive and objective analysis” on possible scenarios after Maduro’s capture. (snip)

“There was sentiment among senior officials that Machado lacked the necessary support in Venezuela if Maduro was to be removed,” the source familiar told Fox News Digital.

Neither she nor Gonzalez would, at least on paper, be able to get the support of the military or security services, at least not in a time that matters, and right now it is time to stablize Venezuela, get the oil flowing, get goods coming in and out, and shut off the flow of drugs (as much as possible, of course).