Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar on Sunday said Venezuela’s opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has “earned” enough to receive President Donald Trump’s backing as the South American country recovers from the capture of Nicolas Maduro.
“She proved to the international community that they, the opposition forces, had won the election,” the Florida Republican told CBS’ “Face the Nation.”
Salazar, who said she was in contact with Machado during the time she was in hiding during Maduro’s rule, added that Trump will be ”highly, highly pleased” with Machado when she visits Washington this week.
“I am sure that she will have a very good, long, solid conversation with the President,” Salazar said. “I think we are going to welcome her in Congress, and I’m sure that President Trump is going to be highly, highly pleased with that meeting.
Salazar’s optimism comes as the organization that oversees the Nobel Peace Prize announced Machado cannot give her recent award to Trump.
Machado won the prestigious prize in October, and quickly dedicated the award to the president. Trump had repeatedly expressed his desire to be awarded the prize, particularly in light of his work to end the Israel-Hamas war and other conflicts.
Trump declined to endorse Machado as the nation’s new leader in the wake of the raid that netted Maduro and left Venezuela at least temporarily leaderless. But Salazar on Sunday said Machado “is part of the transition” in Venezuela now that Maduro is no longer in power — a sharp difference from Trump’s previous statements that the U.S. will run Venezuela.
Salazar said there are things that the U.S. may not know about what is happening in Venezuela under Maduro’s allies, Delcy Rodríguez and Diosdado Cabello.
Still, her optimism continued as she said she is confident American prisoners will soon be released.
“We do not want to make any mistakes and I am sure that the political prisoners will be coming out and that we’re not giving them, meaning Diosdado and Delcy, any type of leeway for them to really run the country,” said Salazar. “We will see. I happened two, three weeks ago. Let’s give them a little bit more time before we see more results.”
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