Khanna, Ocasio-Cortez Among Progressive Democrats to Condemn US-Backed Regime Change in Venezuela

Over a dozen progressive House Democrats on Thursday condemned the Trump administration’s “unacceptable” push for regime change in Venezuela.

The comments came in a letter addressed to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and signed by Reps. Ro Khanna (Calif.), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.), Ilhan Omar (Minn.), and 13 other House Democrats.

“President Donald Trump and other senior United States (U.S.) officials have generated alarm in Venezuela and throughout the region with actions and statements—such as the recent threat that ‘all options are on the table’—which indicate a pursuit of American military-led regime change,” reads the letter.

“Here’s the mistake we make: We’re quiet when these interventions are happening. Instead, we need to speak up right in the beginning when we see signs of interventionism that are going to make situations worse.”
—Rep. Ro KhannaThe progressives also slammed the Trump White House for “crippling” millions of ordinary Venezuelans with unilateral sanctions.

“[T]he president’s recent economic sanctions threaten to exacerbate the country’s grave economic crisis, causing immense suffering for the most vulnerable in society who bear no responsibility for the situation in the country,” the letter states.

Khanna, who spearheaded the letter, urged his Democratic colleagues to unite against U.S.-backed regime change and sanctions in an interview with HuffPost on Thursday.

“Here’s the mistake we make: We’re quiet when these interventions are happening,” said Khanna, who has been an outspoken opponent of U.S. interference in Venezuela. “That was a mistake in Iraq, that was a mistake in Libya. Then afterwards we say, ‘These interventions were a mistake and how do we rectify it?’ Instead, we need to speak up right in the beginning when we see signs of interventionism that are going to make situations worse.”