Sen. Rand Paul Discusses Venezuelan Political Landscape
During an appearance on Newsmax TV’s “Rob Schmidt Tonight” on Wednesday, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) addressed the removal of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. He noted that perceptions of legitimacy vary widely, saying, “If you talk to Bolsonaro, he’ll probably claim da Silva is the illegitimate leader of Brazil. Similarly, Hillary Clinton has referred to Donald Trump’s 2016 election as illegitimate.” He added, “When we believe an election hasn’t favored us, we typically don’t resort to force to achieve our aims.”
Paul expressed that while he is glad Maduro is gone – being a long-time critic of both Chavez and Maduro and what he termed the socialism in Venezuela – his main concern revolves around who has the authority to declare wars. He pointed out that the Founding Fathers, from Hamilton to Jefferson, largely agreed that it should be Congress that decides on matters of war. He voiced that the current administration aligns with others in defending presidential powers, asserting that situations are classified differently than they are, saying, “If a foreign entity were to come to D.C., kidnap the president and block the East Coast, I would support declaring war at that point. This reasoning only holds if it applies to all situations. If it’s only valid based on U.S. claims, then it lacks true logic.”
His commentary continued, “The same logic applies to labeling someone as an illegitimate leader. Bolsonaro might call da Silva illegitimate, or Hillary Clinton might say Trump was illegitimate in 2016. Even Jimmy Carter weighed in on this kind of issue. When talking about Trump, he would likely argue Biden’s legitimacy in 2020 as well. It’s vital we discuss these issues; often when an election doesn’t land in our favor, we resist allowing our people and military to be evaluated by what some extreme leftist organization might think.”
