[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 150 (Wednesday, September 25, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6422-S6423]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                               VENEZUELA

  Mr. CARDIN. Madam President, I come to the floor today first and 
foremost to acknowledge the incredible bravery of the Venezuelan 
people.
  On July 28, despite the Maduro regime controlling Venezuela's entire 
election apparatus, despite the issuing of arrest warrants against 
opposition campaign aides and disqualifying opponents, despite blocking 
nearly all independent international observers, despite the threat of 
violence from men on motorbikes who attacked people at opposition 
rallies, Venezuelans from all walks of life went to the polls to vote.
  That took courage. And it took a leap of faith that they could take 
back their country. And had they been given the opportunity, I think it 
is safe to assume the nearly 8 million Venezuelans who have left the 
country to escape the chaos and repression in recent years, would also 
have voted against Maduro.
  Venezuelans are tired of living under this regime. They have endured 
a horrific economic and humanitarian crisis. They suffer through 
electricity blackouts. Many in Venezuela don't have access to clean 
water and are instead forced to use open water in the street for 
bathing, cooking, and drinking.
  One UN report found 96 percent of Venezuelans living in poverty. 
Government corruption is rampant, the regime has carved up the energy 
sector and given it to loyalists, and parts of the security forces 
actively participate in drug trafficking.
  In the face of all this, Venezuelans took a chance and went to the 
polls. Predictably, Maduro claimed victory within hours. But thanks to 
the receipts from the voting machines, academics and news outlets 
ranging from AP to the Washington Post to the Guardian were able to 
analyze the results and have all concluded that the opposition won in a 
landslide. One election forensics professor at the University of 
Michigan found the opposition beat Maduro 66 percent to 31 percent.
  Despite this, Maduro, without irony, declared victory, saying that 
the ``popular will'' had to be respected. More than a month later, he 
still hasn't released the official precinct-level results. And in 
attempt to distract from what he has done, he has picked fights with 
social media companies and has

[[Page S6423]]

moved the Christmas holiday to October. That is just crazy, and it 
reeks of desperation.
  No one thinks he won--not the President of Chile who wrote that the 
results were ``difficult to believe''; not the Costa Rican Government 
who called the results ``fraudulent''; not the President of Colombia, 
who said Maduro should ``accept the transparent results, whatever they 
may be''--and indeed, Mexico, Brazil, and Colombia released a very 
important joint statement calling for ``impartial verification of the 
results.''
  Of course, there are those who still support Maduro. Vladimir Putin 
congratulated him. And the Cuban President said Maduro ``cleanly and 
unequivocally defeated'' the opposition.
  But Venezuelans know the truth; Maduro lost. That is why, despite the 
clear threat of violence, they poured into the streets in protest.
  Before the election, Maduro warned of ``a bloodbath,'' and indeed, 
his crackdown has been swift and deadly. At least 24 people have been 
killed and about 2,400 people arrested in relation to the protests, 
according to Human Rights Watch.
  Just days ago, Mr. Gonzalez, the winner of the July 28 Presidential 
election, was forced to flee to Spain after Maduro issued a warrant for 
his arrest. Earlier this week, I spoke with Ms. Machado, the opposition 
leader who bravely traveled across Venezuela and mobilized a peaceful, 
democratic movement to change the country at the ballot box. Now, she 
has been forced into hiding by Maduro's campaign of repression and 
intimidation.
  As the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, I condemn the 
actions of the Maduro regime, and I believe we must do what we can to 
support the Venezuelan people. That is why I fully support the leveling 
of targeted Magnitsky sanctions against those in the Maduro regime 
engaged in serious human rights abuses as part of this violent 
crackdown. That is why I am here on the floor today, to lift up the 
voices of the Venezuelan opposition, so their struggle for democracy is 
not lost to the next news cycle. And it is why I am working on 
legislation that I will introduce in the coming days--legislation that 
will add support for Venezuela's democratic institutions; provide 
humanitarian relief for Venezuelans; support a peaceful democratic, 
transition of power; support the restoration of the rule of law in the 
country; and contribute to the reconstruction of Venezuela.
  Now, I know that reconstruction might seem like an impossible dream. 
It might seem like Maduro will never leave power.
  I am here to underline a critically important point: Nothing is 
impossible, so do not give up hope.
  I am not naive; I realize Maduro is desperate to hold onto power. I 
know that, after years of failed maximum pressure campaigns by previous 
administrations, Maduro is still there.
  But that does not mean we should give up hope. Simon Bolivar once 
said: ``A people that loves freedom will in the end be free.''
  For so many decades in my life, the Soviet Union seemed 
indestructible. Then almost overnight, it collapsed. I remember being 
in Berlin with my wife Myrna. My wife and I hammered at the concrete of 
the Berlin Wall that was covered in graffiti showing a crossed-out 
hammer and sickle. The collapse of the Soviet Union is an important 
example for those of us who are fighting for a better Venezuela today. 
It is an example of the good we can achieve, if only we have faith.
  But if Maduro agrees to respect the election results, there is much 
work to be done. We here in Washington recognize that it will be the 
Venezuelan people who are at the forefront of change in their country. 
But we in Congress and in the international community generally, we 
have tremendous power to support the people of Venezuela and their 
aspirations for a brighter, democratic future.
  So to my colleagues here in Congress: Be ready--ready to support, to 
engage, and to play a productive role in ending this longstanding 
conflict.
  To those in the Venezuelan military and security forces who are ready 
for a new direction for your country, away from violence and 
repression: Lay down your arms and be part of the solution.
  And to the brave Venezuelan people, do not lose hope that you can 
change things for the better. Do not give up hope that in the end your 
country will be free.

                          ____________________