Trump Pressed on Venezuelan Property Rights Abuses

Amidst the growing COVID-19 Pandemic, President Trump (R) and former Vice President Joe Biden (D) have engaged in a back and forth when it comes to the rise of communist sympathy in the United States along with the human rights abuses in countries with communist governments like Venezuela.

It was this week that a dozen conservative free market groups directed a letter to the Trump administration, asking that it hold the Venezuelan government accountable for its seizure of private property that belongs to private companies.

Specifically, the letter references a gold mine seized by the Chavez regime that belonged to Crystallex, a private company. It was seized in 2011.

In the letter, the companies argue that “the principles at stake in this situation are much larger than a gold mine in Venezuela.” They expressed that “the course charted by the Trump administration in the coming months will send a clear signal to property rights owners around the world.”

The companies asserted that “if the U.S. government plays an active role in blocking the ability of private companies to be compensated for theft of their property from socialist dictators, it will contradict President Trump’s strong record of opposing socialism at home and abroad.” In contrast, “if the U.S. government provides a reasonable path forward to property owners, it will offer a strong rebuke of Hugo Chavez’s and Nicolas Maduro’s blatant disregard for free enterprise.”

The letter concludes by reaffirming that the companies “share the Trump administration’s desire for freedom and democracy in Venezuela.” And, they urged “the Treasury Department to allow for the restoration of private property rights without undue interference from the federal government.”