Posted originally on CTH on January 9, 2026 | Sundance

She really doesn’t have much choice.  President Trump has shown the Venezuelan government how the U.S. can put a complete stranglehold on the South American country if they do not adhere to the transition plans of Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the enforcer.

Following the U.S. capture of Nicolás Maduro, Venezuela’s new government under Delcy Rodríguez has begun releasing political prisoners in a bid to foster unity and peace. The change in Venezuelan politics comes directly as the result of President Trump using the military to block oil shipments, the major source of revenue for the nation.

The move seems to indicate a potential shift in Venezuela’s political landscape, though compliance with the Trump administration is likely happening through gritted teeth.

[SOURCE]

MIAMI – The interim government of Venezuela is releasing of “an important group” of Venezuelan and foreign political prisoners to guarantee unity and peace, according to Jorge Rodríguez, the president of the parliament and brother of the new president in charge of the South American country.

Rodríguez, who also represented now-deposed Venezuelan ruler Nicolás Maduro for years in political negotiations with the opposition and the United States, indicated Thursday that the government of his sister, Delcy Rodríguez, was working together with the rest of the state institutions to carry out what he defined as “a unilateral gesture” of the executive branch.

The measure comes three days after the swearing-in of Delcy Rodríguez, former vice president of Maduro’s government, following the armed, Saturday morning incursion of U.S. military forces in Caracas that culminated in the arrest of the socialist ruler and his wife Cilia Flores, and some 100 deaths.

Jorge Rodríguez, recently ratified as leader of the national parliament, avoided referring to those released as prisoners for political reasons and said that these releases were taking place simultaneous to his announcement, made at noon on Thursday.

[…] Rodríguez thanked, at times with a broken voice, the mediation of Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula Da Silva, the government of Qatar, the former president of Spain José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero and the institutions of the Venezuelan state that responded “in a prompt manner” to the order of his sister and interim president.

[…] Regarding the economic agreements between the United States and Venezuela, including the sale of crude oil from the South American country, Rodríguez insisted that it is only a “commercial transaction” between two countries with these ties for “many years. (more)

Meanwhile, back in Washington DC, the established UniParty is working earnestly on a public relations campaign to install their selected candidate, María Corina Machado.

Apparently, the Jeb Bush aligned Republican supporters of Maria Machado will be using the roadmap previously deployed by Volodymyr Zelenskyy to visit Congress, create a narrative and then work to influence the White House to support Mrs. Machado. The professionally Republican want Venezuela to be the next Ukraine.

[SOURCE]

Thankfully, President Trump and Secretary Rubio appear immune to the congressional pressure campaign.  While they have spoken in nice diplomatic terms about the WEF-aligned Maria Machado – there is no indication the Trump administration is going to change current approaches.

As of right now, the Trump/Rubio approach is to leverage the U.S. control over the wealth and income of Venezuela (oil production and exports), while retaining stability in the structures of government and pressuring the Delcy Rodriquez administration toward strong institutional reform and eventually a new election.

If Mrs. Maria Machado wins the election, then she will carry the support of the Venezuelan people into office.  Winning a legitimate election is a better outcome than being installed and domestically/geopolitically being viewed as a puppet of the U.S. government.

♦ Stabilize the government. ♦ Push strong democratic reform. ♦ Keep Cuba, Iran, China and Russia out of the influence equation. ♦ Control oil sales to ensure financial returns and benefits to the Venezuelan people, while ♦ planning and organizing free and fair elections.