Free Republic

After four years of the Biden/Harris administration‘s feeble foreign policy, the redefining of the United States’ redlines should begin in our own backyard: Latin America and the Caribbean. After all, the value of renovating one's house is limited if the neighborhood is in shambles. To create a healthy neighborhood, it helps if neighbors share similar values, such as democracy, fair elections, and civil liberties. Fortunately, many of America's neighboring nations do. But there is one country whose owner is ruining the neighborhood, even though its people do value those ideals: Venezuela. Nicolas Maduro's stranglehold on his country has been a...

WASHINGTON — Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated 16 Maduro-aligned officials who obstructed a competitive and inclusive presidential election process in Venezuela and violated the civil and human rights of the people. The individuals sanctioned today pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13692, as amended, include leaders of the Maduro-aligned National Electoral Council (CNE) and the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ) who impeded a transparent electoral process and the release of accurate election results, as well as the military, intelligence, and government officials responsible for intensifying repression through intimidation, indiscriminate detentions, and censorship. The...

Opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia had no choice but to flee Venezuela for exile in Spain to save his own life amid a “brutal wave of repression” after disputed presidential elections, the leader of the opposition Maria Corina Machado said Sunday. Gonzalez Urrutia, who the opposition says it can prove won July 28 elections in which strongman Nicolas Maduro claimed a widely questioned victory, arrived in Spain Sunday after a month in hiding in the crisis-hit South American country. The choice for him to leave was made as “his life was in danger,” Machado said on X. Gonzalez Urrutia had...

This is a sad story which just keeps getting worse. Socialist dictators Nicolas Maduro stole the recent election and seems to be getting away with it despite clear evidence that his opposition opponent Edmundo Gonzalez won by a wide margin. To solidify his rule, Maduro has been cracking down on dissent, jailing hundreds of opposition figures and forcing others to flee the country for their own safety. Last week, his government issued an arrest warrant for Gonzalez himself. In a letter posted on X on Monday, the Prosecutor’s Office said Gonzalez is suspected of “crimes associated with terrorism” including “usurpation...

Venezuelan security forces surrounded the Argentine embassy in the capital Caracas on Friday after two opposition members took refuge inside, according to posts by the opposition duo on social media. The pair joined four other Venezuelan opposition figures who have taken refuge in the embassy this year. One of the men, Pedro Urruchurtu, the international coordinator for opposition leader María Corina Machado, wrote on X that there were patrols of hooded and armed officials surrounding the diplomatic building. The other, former deputy Omar González, also posted on X, writing: “They cut off the electricity service to the Argentine embassy in...

An American Navy sailor has been detained in Venezuela while visiting the country on personal travel, several U.S. officials confirmed to CBS News. It's not yet known why the sailor is being detained, but one of the officials told CBS News the sailor was not on approved leave by the U.S. military or on official travel to Venezuela at the time of the detention.

The country’s strongman president, Nicolás Maduro, made the curious announcement that this year’s festivities would begin in October on Monday, in the midst of a political bleak midwinter for his crisis-stricken land. “It’s September and it already feels like Christmas. So this year – as a way of paying tribute to you and thanking you – I’m going to decree that Christmas be brought forward to 1 October,” Maduro proclaimed during one of his frequent TV appearances. Venezuela’s authoritarian leader, who is facing what experts call the greatest political challenge of his turbulent 11-year rule, promised all Venezuelans a Christmas...

The “Bolivarian Revolution” of Venezuela is celebrating the 25th anniversary of its rise to power. On February 2, 1999 — 25 years ago — I was a naive 11-year-old, devoid of any political thought. Today, just as the socialists celebrate a quarter of a century in power, I am barely starting anew, having been finally able to flee from socialism with my brother, who is under my care due to his mental condition. As they celebrate, cheer, rejoice — I am here, having left everything behind: my home, remaining family, neighbors, and friends, carrying nothing but three pieces of luggage;...

The U.S. has confiscated Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro‘s $13 billion plane in the Dominican Republic due to violations of sanctions, as reported by CNN. Earlier this year, the United States reinstated sanctions on Venezuela’s oil and gas industry due to the Maduro administration’s refusal to facilitate “an inclusive and competitive election.” According to U.S. officials, the aircraft was flown to Florida on Monday, underscoring escalating tensions between the two nations.

Smartmatic runs Venezuela's elections. It's supposed to be fraud-proof. See https://venezuelanalysis.com/news/13801/ . The public is allowed to see the machine tabulations at each of the precincts and scannable QR codes give the results which are supposed to be transmitted to the CNE (the body which collects the tabulations and declares the winner) via secure means. But observers were kicked out of some places and results were delayed after an alleged cyber-attack (see https://www.jurist.org/news/2024/08/venezuela-top-elections-official-reveals-irregularities-and-lack-of-transparency-in-presidential-elections/ ). However, the opposition to Maduro secured (eventually) about 80% of the actas (tabulation receipts) at the precinct level, and those totals showed the opposition receiving "roughly...

A member of Venezuela's electoral council admitted in an interview published today that he has seen no evidence that Nicolas Maduro won the country's election as he claims. Since the July 28 vote, governments around the world have expressed skepticism, and even outright disbelief, over President Nicolás Maduro’s claim to victory. But the statement by Juan Carlos Delpino — an opposition-member of the government body that announced Mr. Maduro’s win — represents the first major criticism from inside the electoral system. Speaking on the record to a reporter for the first time since the vote, Mr. Delpino said he “had...

Socialist dictator of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro announced on Monday that his regime would host a world congress “against fascism, neo-fascism, and similar expressions.” Maduro said that the yet-to-be scheduled event will seek to “exchange strategies” to “fight fascism,” which he has often defined broadly to mean any opposition to hardline socialism. Maduro has for over a decade used “fascism” as a reason to violently repress political dissidents in the country. The dictator made the announcement during a Monday evening event with leaders of the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) and its allied parties.

The Maduro regime is broadcasting disturbing videos of its crackdown on dissent, featuring clips from Saw and music from A Nightmare on Elm Street.Nicolás Maduro claimed victory in the presidential race in Venezuela once again, but voting tally receipts collected and published online by his opposition reveal a very different outcome. In response, Maduro's regime has unleashed a brutal crackdown on dissent throughout the country. As part of "Operación Tun Tun" (Operation Knock Knock), the regime is showcasing its crusade against dissent on social media and national television. Videos typically begin with footage of a protester, followed by music from...

Remember when Trump said countries were emptying their prisons and sending them to us? Remember the reaction? Trump claimed that South American countries are emptying their prisons and “mental institutions” and sending those people to the U.S., but immigration experts tell us there is no evidence of that happening. Uh huh. The same people tell us the border is secure. Meet Tren de AraguaTren de Aragua, the Venezuelan criminal gang spreading terror from Chile to Colombia The organization, which is involved in crimes such as human trafficking, sexual exploitation and drug trafficking, is extending its tentacles in eight countries in...

A brutal Venezuelan gang that has used the border crisis to set up in New York could join forces with the feared MS-13, a senior FBI agent has told The Post. Tren de Aragua, which law enforcement is warning is rapidly expanding its criminal empire with a spate of brazen phone robberies in the five boroughs, is a priority for the FBI, agent John Morales said. Morales, the special agent in charge of the El Paso division in Texas, said the agency is closely monitoring Tren de Aragua’s growth and is concerned about it forming alliances with existing networks.

Jose Luis Sanchez Valera, a 43-year-old retired Venezuelan police officer, was lured to a hotel by two women, then robbed and murdered on November 28.. The killers tortured Sanchez to hand over his apartment keys, then raided the property: they told his niece, with whom he lived, they were Tren de Aragua.. Tren de Aragua is one of the most feared gangs in Latin America: it was born in Venezuela around 2012, and the Miami murder is the first by the gang in the US ... A former Venezuelan police officer lay dead in his silver Toyota 4Runner in a...

The Tren de Aragua rose to power in Nicolas Maduro’s anarchotyranny. Now they’re in Florida. Last week, El American broke the news that members of the Tren de Aragua, the largest criminal organization in Venezuela (after the government), had crossed the southern border and were living in Orlando, Florida. The news came a week after Breitbart had claimed that Venezuelan criminals were crossing the border to live in the U.S.—more than likely continuing their criminal enterprises. The source told El American that the criminals were living in Bogotá, Colombia, and were able to change their identity by bribing Venezuelan officials....

A screenshot taken from a television broadcast showed one Chavista operative sending all the latest news about Tren de Aragua's mayhem in the U.S. to Maduro himself. Venezuela's democratic forces are a pretty observant lot, having spotted evidence of fraud in some background pictures of the regime's vote-counting houses as employees took selfies. Now, one of them has spotted something interesting on dictator Nicolas Maduro's cell phone as he made a televised speech, in a whatsapp message from one of his closest lieutenants: 𝐄𝐫𝐢𝐤 𝐒𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐳 Φ @eriksuarezn Image taken during a Maduro speech on National TV (Venezuela 🇻🇪) The Whatsapp...

Venezuela’s opposition candidate trounced President Nicolás Maduro in last week’s election, according to election tallies that show the opposition’s Edmundo González received more than double the votes of Maduro. A Washington Post review, published Sunday, analyzed more than 23,000 precinct-level tally sheets collected by the opposition. It found Maduro received about 30 percent of the vote (3,131,103 votes) compared to 67 percent for González (6,901,845 votes), further fueling doubts over Maduro’s declared victory in the race. The tally sheets analyzed by the Post represented 79 percent of the voting tables from the July 28 election. The outlet noted that even...

By lifting sanctions without getting concessions, President Biden strengthened Nicolas Maduro’s regime and undermined the nation’s fight for freedom. On July 28, the Venezuelan socialist regime stole yet another election, declaring that dictator Nicolas Maduro had been reelected to another six-year term, despite losing the vote by 40 percentage points, according to election witnesses and opposition reports. This sham election should have drawn global condemnation, especially from the United States. Instead, the Biden administration failed to label the election as fraudulent until yesterday, even as one U.S. senator described the president’s Venezuela policy a success and gave it credit for...