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The Republican congressman Mario Díaz-Balart stated that the Venezuelan opposition figure María Corina Machado has substantial support and respect within Venezuela, thereby contradicting recent statements made by the American president Donald Trump, who had downplayed the internal backing for the liberal leader.
In a press conference broadcasted by FOX News and in an interview with journalist Gloria Ordaz, Díaz-Balart claimed that Machado will be the next president of Venezuela.
The legislator from Florida emphasized that the support for María Corina Machado "is real and sustained," and is not limited solely to the Venezuelan diaspora or international sectors.
The congressman also expressed his support for the U.S. military operation in which elite forces captured the dictator Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, to be prosecuted in the United States on narcoterrorism charges. He deemed the action as “necessary” within a strategy to accelerate political change in Venezuela.
He also harshly criticized the reaction of some Democratic congress members, who accused the Trump administration of "interventionism" and warned that the decision for Washington to oversee the Venezuelan transition could be interpreted as a return to colonialism.
Díaz-Balart rejected that idea and defended the decision to carry out the operation without prior notification to Congress, citing national security reasons. He revealed that he was personally informed "by high-ranking officials" about the capture of Maduro, although he avoided providing further details about that communication.
Finally, the legislator reaffirmed his support for the military presence of the United States in the region until Venezuela achieves a democratic transition.
However, he opened the door to a possible dialogue with Delcy Rodríguez, who self-proclaimed herself as president after Maduro's detention, clarifying that any negotiation must focus solely on facilitating a democratic exit, “never to legitimize” the Chavista regime.
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