What Now

Last week the news and social media discourse surrounding the Nobel Peace Prize centered on Trump’s weird fixation with winning it. When the inevitable arrived, someone else more worthy (a broad category, for sure) took the prize, prompting a round of mocking the president and expressions of relief.

However, as soon as I saw the winner was a Venezuelan dissident, in this case Maria Machado, I felt an itch in my brain. The neoliberal classes have had a rage boner against Venezuela since Hugo Chavez, who nationalized oil production and used the profits for social programs that benefited poor people. He also successfully thwarted a coup attempt in 2002 by the Bush administration.

Since then the Maduro government, his successor, has mismanaged the economy and responded to dissent with repressive and authoritarian tactics. The recent reelection of Maduro looked pretty rigged, especially since the government disqualified Machado herself from running.

So it’s quite possible that Machado is a democratic voice for change in that context. But when Marco Rubio has her back and she is quick to praise Trump’s efforts for peace, dedicates the Peace Prize to Trump, and approves of his program to kill Venezuelans in boats with military strikes because Pete Hegseth had a gut feeling, I have my doubts. And I start to think she might be a pawn and potential candidate for the next puppet regime the US installs in South America.