Venezuelan Dictator Nicolas Maduro was declared the "winner" of the presidential election by the nation's election council on Monday morning. That came after exit polls showed him losing by as much as 30 points. Reports of Maduro's armed thugs closing down polling sites and stealing ballot boxes were prevalent throughout the process, all but confirming that the election was indeed stolen.
What happens next is clear. Maduro will strengthen his grip on power instead of stepping down peacefully. As the saying goes, you can vote your way into socialism, but you have to shoot your way out.
While this outcome was apparent to anyone with any common sense, Kamala Harris and Joe Biden had different ideas. While the press will no doubt bury the story, the current administration was at the center of this fraudulent election, having handed Maduro sanctions relief in exchange for "free and fair elections."
For President Biden, it was a gamble: ease crippling sanctions on the government of Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro in exchange for Maduro’s promise to hold a free and fair election for president this year.
With that election now less than two weeks away, Venezuelans — and U.S. officials — are watching to see if the outreach has helped yield a democratic vote.
It belabors belief that anyone could believe that giving Maduro millions of dollars worth of sanctions relief would lead to him stepping down voluntarily. It's the kind of moronic foreign policy we've seen over and over during the Obama-Biden-Harris years. Obama and Biden did it with Iran while Biden and Harris did it with Venezuela, Russia, and Iran. No lessons are ever learned because these aren't simple mistakes. They are purposeful maneuvers by people with crippling hubris, truly thinking they are smarter than everyone else.
What's the response? Tough talk backed by nothing.
Or what? What will Harris do if Maduro doesn't respect the will of the Venezuelan people? The answer is absolutely nothing. Welcome to the return of "just words, just speeches." Harris wants to present as a leader while running for president, but she is currently the vice president of the administration responsible for this disaster. Maduro was never going to hold "free and fair elections," and to get suckered in by him, infusing his regime with desperately needed cash, was inexcusable.
Chalk this up as another failure of Harris' tenure, and one that should be highlighted as she continues to try to erase history regarding her record. She is a failed vice president. She would quickly become a failed president if she attained the position.