Fullerton Observer won’t print this even though they say the are non-partisan.

President Nicolás Maduro was indicted in 2020 in New York on charges of narco-terrorism, conspiracy to import cocaine, corruption and drug trafficking, and related weapons charges. His controversial arrest foretells the potential rebuilding of Venezuela to be vibrant, democratic and prosperous.

Once the wealthiest country in South America due to booming oil production, Venezuela began a steady decline during four decades of mismanagement and corruption. Culminating in the Chavez/Maduro dictatorships, the country was reduced to an oppressed society. This crisis triggered a refugee exodus, straining neighboring countries’ resources. Drug trafficking and organized crime heightened security risks. Elitism and incorrigible incompetence created hyperinflation and economic collapse. Foreign influence by China, Russia, Iran and even Hamas undermined democratic norms within Venezuela and across Latin America.

The people, pawns in this corrupted environment, were reduced to poverty and subjected to human rights abuses and violence. Heads down for fear of reprisal, they forage “trash heaps” for sustenance.

Responding to this malaise, President Obama issued Executive Order 13692 in 2015, declared a national emergency, stating, “The situation in Venezuela, including the Government of Venezuela’s erosion of human rights guarantees, persecution of political opponents, curtailment of press freedoms, use of violence and human rights violations and abuses in response to antigovernment protests, and arbitrary arrest and detention of antigovernment protestors, as well as the exacerbating presence of significant public corruption, constitutes an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States.” Thus, implementing the “Venezuelan Defense of Human Rights and Civil Society Act” passed by a bi-partisan Congress the year before.

Fast forward to today. This bold action isn’t mere interventionism; it’s a strategic necessity to restore sovereignty to the Venezuelan people and safeguard hemispheric stability from foreign meddling and illicit finance.

As stated in the National Security Strategy of the United States, published in November 2025:

“…ensure that the Western Hemisphere remains reasonably stable and well-governed enough to prevent and discourage mass migration to the United States; …a Hemisphere whose governments cooperate with us against narco-terrorists, cartels, and other transnational criminal organizations; …a Hemisphere that remains free of hostile foreign incursion or ownership of key assets, and that supports critical supply chains; and… ensure our continued access to key strategic locations.”

Action replaces sanction. Maduro is out. Interim president Delcy Rodríquez is charged with a perilous balancing act: creating a stable and well-managed government to restore Venezuela to its glory days versus a return to the ‘Chavista’ leadership of the previous administration. A long-time Maduro ally, Rodriquez has signaled openness to US dialogue on “shared development.”  

2025 Nobel Peace Prize winner, Maria Corina Machado, is calling for 2024 election winner, Edmund González, to assume power.

The outcome remains to be seen in this very fluid state of affairs. Venezuela’s future now shines brighter. Leadership can emerge to hold fair elections and attract investment in its vast oil reserves. Lifting sanctions will revive the economy, while international aid addresses humanitarian needs.

Challenges persist—factionalism and loyalist remnants—but past precedents demonstrate that by confronting external meddlers and illicit finance, this action empowers the Americas, promoting a hemisphere of free, prosperous nations. For Venezuelans and for the region, it is renewal.