Trump and Venezuela’s Elusive Elections

Trump has called it the “biggest oil deal in world history,” one that would give the U.S. control over an additional 65 billion barrels of crude, more than doubling U.S. reserves. He claimed the additional supply would “substantially lower gas prices for all Americans” and deprive China and Russia of their most important ally in the Western Hemisphere. Rodríguez, Venezuela’s interim president, has called the deal a huge win for the Venezuelan people, promising hundreds of billions of dollars in investment and revenue for a country battered by years of economic stagnation. By reviving oil production and improving the country’s economic prospects, the agreement could also help the Venezuelan government restructure its crippling debt.

But there was little talk about elections and democracy. Two weeks before her return, Machado offered the strongest signal that she was running out of patience. The Rodriguez government is negotiating with representatives of the 2015 National Assembly, Venezuela’s last internationally recognized, democratically elected body, but Machado has said she has been marginalized in those talks. On Oct. 15, The New York Times published an interview with Machado in which she accused Betancourt, the oil deal’s Venezuelan investment partner, of “obscene corruption” and blamed him for the country’s persistent electricity shortages. She did not criticize Trump or suggest that, if elected president, she would repudiate the oil deal. She made clear, however, that Betancourt would have no part in it.