Trump Threatens Venezuela, Revives Red Scare

FEATURING LUCAS KOERNER – President Donald Trump traveled to Miami, Florida and gave a major speech on Venezuela on Monday. During his speech he addressed Venezuelan immigrants living in the US, and exhorted the Venezuelan military to switch its support from the current President Nicolás Maduro, to opposition leader Juan Guido. He also gave an ominous sounding ultimatum saying, “We seek a peaceful transition of power, but all options are open.”

Trump cast his speech more broadly as an attack on socialism. In fact he used the words socialism, socialist, communism, and communist a total of 36 times in 30 minutes.

Meanwhile Republican Senator Marco Rubio of Florida announced that US aid would get through into Venezuela one way or another. Rubio told CNN, “I think ultimately the question is whether it gets through in a way that he’s cooperative with or in a way that he’s not,” referring to Maduro.

Lucas Koerner, Political analyst and editor at Venezuelanalysis.com.