Venezuela’s Chance at Freedom Is Real but Fragile

Nearly six months ago, President Donald Trump led a bold operation to remove Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro, giving the South American nation of roughly 30 million people its first real chance at democracy in a generation. But while the opening created by Maduro’s ouster is real, Venezuela remains precariously perched between a democratic revival and an airbrushed version of the old regime. Critics of the Trump administration have argued that the operation to remove Maduro was haphazard, risky, or half-baked. But that criticism misses the most important point. Before January 3, Venezuela had no real path forward. Maduro remained in...