Let’s start off today with a rant… It pertains to the Biden administration’s latest sanctions-easing proposal for  Venezuela’s oil industry…What are they thinking? Why are we dealing with this guy (Nicolas Maduro) at all? Do they even pay attention to who this guy is and what he does?

 He supports Hamas, Iran, and Hezbollah (not to mention Russia).

 He is anti-Israel and accuses them of “Palestinian genocide”.

 There are Hezbollah training camps in Venezuela.

 His security forces commit, on average, 1,400 extrajudicial killing per year. (The widely reviled Pinochet regime in Chile committed about 3,000 in 17 years)

 He is a systematic Human Rights violator, under investigation by the ICC (International Criminal Court) for Human Rights violations and possible crimes against humanity and has a suit pending in Argentina, filed by the Clooney Foundation, for crimes against humanity.

 With his people starving and suffering from an 85% shortage of medicine (among other things), he blocked humanitarian aid from entering Venezuela. (He had been denying the humanitarian emergency)

 I could go on and on about his economic ineptness (8 consecutive years of recession, 4 years of hyperinflation, currency devaluations, etc…All completely avoidable and when he was presented with solutions he chose to let his people suffer and die) and his Marxist ideology but let’s stay on point, he’s a really bad guy.

 So, if we put moral and ethical questions aside (Which we shouldn’t), why deal with the guy?

 Is it consistent with Joe Biden’s (misguided) “Climate Change” agenda? If so, why discourage oil production in the US, who produces the lowest carbon footprint oil on the planet, and import oil from Venezuela, who produces the highest carbon footprint oil in the world? Nope..I guess not.

 Could it be a commitment to free and fair elections and the restoration of democracy in Venezuela? Well, let’s recap what we have told you before…

 The Biden administration eased sanctions to allow Chevron to import oil into the US. It’s six-month license was contingent on the Maduro regime demonstrating “concrete steps” toward free and fair elections (Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s own words) and the restoration of democracy in Venezuela and if Maduro didn’t comply the sanctions would “snap back”.

 Maduro didn’t comply and for months after the license was up for renewal nothing was said. Not only did Maduro not comply, he went the other way and the Maduro regime banned Maria Corina Machado, the opposition front runner in the upcoming primaries for the 2024 presidential election, from holding public office for 15 years.

 Now, to make matters worse, the Biden administration is offering to reward Maduro with further sanctions-easing if the Maduro regime demonstrates “concrete steps” toward free and fair elections and the restoration of democracy in Venezuela and assures that if Maduro doesn’t comply the sanctions will be reinstated. Sound familiar?

 And why would he comply? The last time he didn’t comply he was rewarded for it! What’s that old saying about the definition of insanity? Oh, right…”Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results”.

 OK, maybe Biden’s not insane (old, decrepit, confused etc. but not necessarily insane) but we certainly know he has no grasp of foreign policy. Former Defense Secretary, Robert Gates, who worked for Biden’s former boss, President Obama, said “Joe Biden has been on the wrong side of every foreign policy decision for the last forty years”.

 But really, former President Obama summed up Joe Biden perfectly when he said “Never underestimate Joe’s capacity to fuck things up”. His dealings with Nicolas Maduro prove that, at least in that respect, Obama was right…I’ll say it again…What are they thinking?

 That will do it for the week. We’ll be back Monday with another installment of Venezuela : Down The Rabbit Hole and more current news. Until then…Have a great weekend everybody!!!