Mallen Baker: Faultlines

← Mallen Baker: Faultlines1 sep · 17 min

Why Trump's Venezuelan Oil Grab Is Doomed To Fail

Why Trump's Venezuelan Oil Grab Is Doomed To Fail1 sep17 min

President Donald Trump shamelessly declared almost immediately that he aimed to get a big slice of Venezuela's oil for the United States once it had removed former dictator Nicolas Maduro. But not only is he finding the practical reality of that oil grab more difficult than he had anticipated, his administration is having to try to manipulate the creation of some semblance of democracy in the country in such a way that doesn't immediately reverse the plunder. And it raises questions about what level of democracy the US will seek to allow, and how it will stop leaders it finds 'unhelpful', such as Maria Corina Machado, from leading it - and just how badly it might all go wrong. Let's discuss.