Rubio digs in on cooperation with Venezuela’s Rodríguez, lack of immediate elections

Secretary of State Marco Rubio defended the Trump administration’s decision to work with the remnants of ousted Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro’s regime on Wednesday, as Democrats raise questions about the timeline for elections and a transition to democracy in the South American petrostate.

Testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Rubio reiterated previous statements that the ultimate goal in Venezuela is to restore democracy, but emphasized that the country needs to stabilize so that the opposition can actually participate in free and fair elections.

“You can have elections, you have elections all day, but if the opposition has no access to the media, if opposition candidates are routinely dismissed and unable to be on the ballot because of the government, those aren't free and fair elections,” Rubio said. “That's the end state that we want: a free, fair, prosperous and friendly Venezuela. We're not going to get there in three weeks. It's going to take some time.”

Rubio has consistently pushed the need for elections in Venezuela, though without giving a timeline. His comments suggest that a ballot could be well into the future. Some others inside the administration have argued that elections aren’t needed, as POLITICO has reported.

President Donald Trump’s comments around U.S. access to Venezuela’s vast oil reserves and his praise of acting Venezuelan leader Delcy Rodriguez have raised questions about how much democracy in Venezuela is a priority for the administration.

Meanwhile, Rodriguez, long an ally of Maduro who rose up the ranks in Caracas, has in recent days said her country will not take orders from Washington. Her comments have rankled the Venezuelan opposition and their friends in Washington, who already see the longtime regime official as an untrustworthy partner for the United States.

Rubio’s comments Wednesday make clear the administration’s view that a pragmatic course is necessary to restore democracy in Venezuela. Rubio, who noted he’s meeting later Wednesday with Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, said that the administration does want to see more progress towards stabilizing the country over the next few months.

But Rubio reiterated that more steps need to be taken, including reopening the U.S. embassy in Caracas.

“One thing is for me to pick up the phone and talk to Delcy Rodriguez three times a week,” Rubio said. “Another thing is to have someone on the ground on a daily basis that's following these events, is talking to civil society, but also engaging with interim authorities.”

In the face of sharp questions from Democrats — who’ve argued Rodriguez staying in power reflects an impediment to a transition to democracy — Rubio also insisted that working with Rodriguez is a necessary step.

“No one here is telling you this is what we want to see in the long term,” Rubio said. “Whether we like it or not, the elements of control in that country — the people with the guns, the people that control the guns and the institutions of government there — are in the hands of this regime.”

It was the first time the secretary of State and acting national security adviser had spoken to lawmakers in a public hearing since the campaign against Venezuela began months ago. Republicans largely praised the operation and focused questions on the structures to open up access to Venezuela’s oil reserves.

Meanwhile, Democrats used that setting to criticize the administration for a lack of transparency around the military operations in Venezuela. Democrats had protested that only Republicans were directly briefed by Rubio in the immediate aftermath of the Jan. 3 operation to capture Maduro — and that all briefings occurred after the operation had begun.

“Consulting with Congress is not just some high-minded principle, not some abstract thing, not a nice-to-have. It's a got-to have,” said Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.).

Democrats and Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) also raised questions about the timeline for future elections in Venezuela. The administration has not committed to a hard plan to see elections in the South American petrostate, but worries have mounted on both sides of the aisle that a long wait for elections may allow Rodriguez and the remnants of the Maduro regime to entrench their grip on power.

The secretary of State, who served in the Senate for over a decade before his appointment, received a friendly welcome from Republicans, many of whom took pains to praise the operation and Rubio’s contributions to the administration. Senate Foreign Relations Chair Jim Risch (R-Idaho) said Americans were “lucky” to have Rubio as secretary of State. Others, meanwhile, focused their questions on efforts to expand U.S. access to Venezuela’s vast oil reserves.

Still, Rubio faced some tough questioning from his former Republican colleagues. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.), critical of the campaign against Venezuela since the U.S. began striking alleged drug boats off Venezuelan waters, needled the secretary on the legal basis of the operation and whether Congress should have authorized it.

Rubio responded that the short duration of the actual capture of Maduro, coupled with the fact that Maduro faced federal indictment in U.S. courts and was seen as the illegitimate leader of Venezuela, meant the operation did not reflect an act of war such that it would require congressional authorization.

That answer did not satisfy Paul.

“We’re in violation of both the spirit and the law of the constitution by bombing a capital, blockading a country and removing elected officials. And we certainly wouldn’t tolerate it, not would I, if someone did it to us,” Paul said.