President Donald Trump officially recognized opposition leader Juan Guaido as the interim President of Venezuela Wednesday; raising the stakes in the United States fierce opposition to socialist President Nicolas Maduro.
“In its role as the only legitimate branch of government duly elected by the Venezuelan people, the National Assembly invoked the country’s constitution to declare Nicolas Maduro illegitimate, and the office of the presidency therefore vacant,” Trump said in a statement. “The people of Venezuela have courageously spoken out against Maduro and his regime and demanded freedom and the rule of law.”
“Shortly before Trump’s statement, Guaido said in a webcast from a protest in Caracas that he would assume the powers of the Venezuela presidency. He invoked a constitutional amendment that allows for the head of the legislature to lead a caretaker government until new elections can be held,” writes Bloomberg
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ON THE BRINK: Venezuela’s Maduro Says President Trump is ‘OUT TO KILL’ Him
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro escalated his war-of-words with the Trump administration Friday; directly accusing the White House of organizing multiple assassination attempts against the socialist leader.
Maduro was speaking during a televised broadcast when he claimed multiple “hit jobs” had originated from inside Washington; saying assassins have been “given the order from the White House.”
Nicolas Maduro announces Trump administration is trying to kill him https://t.co/tX8Ij03vFD
— MailOnline Video (@MailOnlineVideo) October 12, 2018
“From the United States, they have decided to kill me,” said Maduro.
“They have given the order from the White House that Maduro is to be killed […] They will not even touch a single hair of mine, because God and the people of Venezuela protect me.”
RAGE: Venezuela on the Brink after Video of Maduro’s ‘Lavish Dinner Party’ Goes Viral
Poverty-stricken Venezuelans exploded on social media Tuesday after video of socialist President Nicolas Maduro’s lavish dinner party hit the internet, with local politicians and organizations demanding the leader’s removal from office.
The footage shows Maduro dining alongside his wife and celebrity chef Nusret Gökçe at a restaurant in Turkey; eating lamb, drinking, and smoking expensive cigars as his residents struggle to find daily food.
¡VENEZUELA SE MUERE DE HAMBRE y el dictador asesino de Maduro dándose un banquete de más de $1.500 con TU DINERO! Ellos comen y los venezolanos nos morimos por la escasez de alimentos y medicinas #MaduroSeJartaConTUDinero pic.twitter.com/rUUhNRbPRv
— Voluntad Popular (@VoluntadPopular) September 17, 2018
“VENEZUELA DIES OF HUNGER and the murderous dictator of Maduro giving himself a banquet of more than $ 1,500 with YOUR MONEY! They eat and we Venezuelans die because of the lack of food and medicines,” posted one political organization.