Republican Florida Senator Rick Scott appeared on a 60 Minutes segment, discussing the pressure the U.S. has been placing on disputed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his refusal to step down from power.
“If I were Maduro, I'd head to Russia or China right now," Scott commented. "His days are numbered. Something's going to happen. Whether it's internal or external, I think something's going to happen.”
The Florida Senator shared his thoughts on a potential U.S. invasion of Venezuela, stating that it was unlikely and that he would be "surprised" if one were launched.
He asserted that the fall of Venezuela will also lead to the fall of dictatorships in places such as Cuba, which rely on Venezuela as a political and economic ally.
“It'll be the end of Cuba. Cuba relies on subsidized Venezuelan oil to prop up its economy. America is going to take care of the southern hemisphere. And we're going to make sure that there's freedom and democracy,” Scott concluded.
Despite Scott’s assessment, many analysts are citing recent U.S. aggression towards alleged Venezuelan drug trafficking boats as a sign that U.S. involvement in Venezuela is imminent.
According to a CBS News interview with James Story, the former Ambassador to Venezuela, the show of U.S. force in the region is likely intended to oust Maduro.
“This is a very bad actor sitting on top of the world's largest known reserves of oil, plus the critical minerals that will fuel the 21st-century economy,” Story detailed. "Let's be very clear, this is a criminal organization masquerading as a government. This is an individual who is under indictment for narcotics trafficking and commits human rights violations. Someone who has used the apparatus of the state to throw people in jail, to torture them, to kill them."
President Donald Trump recently announced he had approved covert CIA operations inside Venezuela, and his administration escalated its military campaign, sending 10,000 troops and more U.S. planes to Maduro’s doorstep.
