Press Releases

Washington, DC – U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-25) released the following statement on President Trump’s reversal of his previous stance to allow oil companies to profit alongside Maduro’s brutal regime, while renewing her calls for Trump to restore TPS for Venezuelans and protect them from being subjected to this ruthless dictatorship:

"For months, I have demanded the termination of oil sanctions loopholes that allowed Big Oil billionaires to bankroll the Maduro regime's brutal repression of the Venezuelan people. That’s why I sponsored the REVOCAR Act to cut off the flow of cash to Maduro following his stolen election and warned Trump and Republicans against seeking a corrupt bargain with the dictatorship. 

"In his first one hundred days, President Trump renewed Chevron's license before he revoked it. He did so quietly earlier this month in exchange for Maduro's cooperation in the mass expulsion of law-abiding Venezuelans from the U.S., while revoking Temporary Protected Status and parole. 

"My support for defunding the Maduro regime's crimes against humanity and promoting democracy in Venezuela has been clear, regardless of who is in the White House. And while I welcome President Trump's change of heart, his decision to revoke this license was his anger that Maduro wasn't taking deported Venezuelans fast enough, rather than how fast we can restore Venezuela's freedom. 

"Trump does not care how many Venezuelans have been tortured, killed, or jailed by Maduro. He is solely focused on how many he can deport. And he is clearly willing to dispense with democracy, human rights, and our international interests to achieve that goal."

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