Albio Sires: “I thank my colleague from Florida. I want to commend her for her passion and her commitment to helping the people of…”

“I thank my colleague from Florida. I want to commend her for her passion and her commitment to helping the people of Venezuela. I thank her for making me part of this Special Order. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to address the ongoing crisis in Venezuela. With every week that passes, we see the situation in Venezuela becoming more critical. {time} 1930 A country with the world's largest known oil reserves is spiraling into a collapsed state where people are struggling just to survive. Journalists and citizens risk their lives every day to report what is happening inside Caracas and around the country. We see that tensions are growing, and government security forces shoot first and don't even bother to ask questions later. Maduro continues to keep political prisoners like Leopoldo Lopez under lock and key to send a strong message to those trying to question his actions. Just yesterday, we saw reports that government buildings in western Venezuela are being set ablaze. Make no mistake: It is the failed Chavismo policies and the authoritarian actions of Nicolas Maduro that have brought all of this pain and suffering upon the Venezuelan people. Press reports show that of 800,000 businesses that opened during the Chavez regime, nearly 600,000 have shut down. Both the Obama and Trump administrations have sanctioned senior officials in the Venezuelan Government for their associations with narcotrafficking, money laundering, and other illicit activities.…”