White House grows annoyed with Venezuela’s Machado’s attempts to move the country towards fair elections

The White House is getting seriously annoyed with Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, viewing her recent remarks about the timeline for future elections as potentially undermining the administration’s careful work in the country. Advisers close to President Trump believe that her push for quick action might be counterproductive to the larger U.S. strategy for stability.

Politico reported that some people inside the administration are viewing her actions as actively working against U.S. national security goals. One White House adviser, who spoke anonymously to discuss the sensitive matter, pointed specifically to Machado’s recent comments suggesting that elections could realistically happen in under a year.

The adviser was blunt in their assessment, even while admitting that Machado is still personally liked by many. “All María Corina Machado does is try to negate all of this … she’s selfish,” the adviser said. This source stressed that the overall U.S. effort isn’t about promoting one individual or one political faction, nor is it a tool for her ambitions. They confirmed that the President’s priority is stability. To bring the country “back from the dead and rebuild the country.”

They claim she is trying to set herself up as the ‘sole star’ for Venezuela

Elections, according to the official, “cannot happen overnight.” They emphasized that when the country has recovered enough to hold clean, transparent elections, the Venezuelan people will be the ones to choose their leader. Another person close to the White House agreed that Machado shouldn’t be predicting timelines at all. A two-year time frame is realistic, unlike Machado’s suggestion of nine to ten months.

Initially, the adviser noted that the administration was trying to be “respectful” of Machado and hoping she would be patient as the U.S. pursued necessary changes in Venezuela. However, her actions, like releasing political prisoners and her comments on elections, are now being seen as efforts to stay relevant as the political transition unfolds. The person close to the White House even accused Machado of “undermining the president’s policy success.” 

Machado’s team quickly dismissed the entire issue as “media noise” and rumors.. The office stated that “the interests of the United States administration and those of the Venezuelan people are the same: a Venezuela that is prosperous, secure, free, and democratic,” the office stated. It’s worth noting that Machado didn’t actually demand immediate elections, stressing that the timeline depends on when the technical process actually starts.

There has been growing pressure for quicker action from a lot of political corners, especially GOP members who represent the large Cuban and Venezuelan diaspora communities in South Florida. They worry that delaying the process could allow allies of the former regime to entrench their grip on power. However, I posit that based on Trump’s comments about elections in the past, as well as the title he gave himself, there might be other concerns for this democratic process.