<\/p>\n
After abducting Venezuela<\/span> President Nicol\u00e1s Maduro, U.S. President Donald Trump declared that America would \u201crun<\/a>\u201d Venezuela. When asked in January who was leading Venezuela, Trump said, \u201cWe\u2019re in charge<\/a>.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Yet after back-to-back earthquakes rocked multiple Venezuelan cities on Wednesday, toppling scores of buildings and killing at least 188 people and injuring at least 1,520, Trump merely offered assistance.<\/p>\n \u201cThe U.S.A. stands ready, willing, and able to help! I have instructed all agencies of our government to get ready to move quickly,\u201d he wrote in a Truth Social post<\/a>. \u201cWe will be there for our new and great friends.\u201d<\/p>\n One U.S. government official told The Intercept that Trump\u2019s offer doesn\u2019t go far enough since Venezuela is now a U.S. \u201cvassal state.\u201d\u00a0\u201cDon\u2019t we run that country?\u201d the official asked, speaking on background and referencing Trump\u2019s comments. \u201cThat\u2019s an obligation that exceeds friendship.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n At the same time, Venezuelan American organizations and progressive foreign policy groups are about to circulate a letter calling on the Trump administration to provide massive, unconditional humanitarian aid to Venezuela in the wake of the 7.2 foreshock and 7.5-magnitude quake, as well as long-term economic damage from U.S. sanctions, according to details of the letter shared exclusively with The Intercept by Just Foreign Policy, one of the groups that drafted the letter. The organizations argue that the United States bears a unique obligation to Venezuela and that U.S. aid \u201cmust match the scale of the harm the United States has played a role in creating.\u201d<\/p>\n This all comes after Trump seemed to suggest earlier this week that the U.S. has reaped billions of dollars of Venezuelan oil wealth in the last six months.<\/p>\n After ousting Maduro, Trump\u2019s installed a puppet government run by former Maduro ally Delcy Rodriguez. She has carried out day-to-day governance under the threat of a looming\u00a0U.S. criminal indictment<\/a> alleging corruption and money laundering charges. Trump\u00a0also warned<\/a>\u00a0that the U.S. might attack again if Rodriguez did not comply with his demands.<\/p>\n \u201cShould the U.S. be responsible for rebuilding? Any word from Trump on that?\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n The costs of\u00a0Absolute Resolve<\/a> \u2014 the military operation and abduction of Maduro \u2014 topped $206 million, according to an analysis<\/a> by Brown University\u2019s Costs of War Project. Since then, the Trump administration has seized control of Venezuela\u2019s oil industry and claims to be exploiting it for massive returns.\u00a0This week, Trump said that the U.S. has recovered its war costs 28 times over<\/a> through oil extraction; this equates to roughly $5.7 billion.<\/p>\n \u201cThe people are happy in the country. They have smiles,\u201d Trump said of Venezuelans on Tuesday, prior to the earthquakes. He claimed Venezuela has shared in the economic rewards.<\/p>\n But the letter being drafted by the Venezuelan American and progressive groups cites a recent economic analysis by Venezuelan economist Francisco Rodr\u00edguez<\/a> showing that U.S. policy has failed to produce the economic recovery Trump has claimed. The letter notes that sanctions have left Venezuela operating at a \u201cdiminished capacity,\u201d that \u201cthe buildings that collapsed were not maintained,\u201d and \u201cthe hospitals that must now treat nearly a thousand injured were not adequately supplied\u201d as a direct result.<\/p>\n In the port city of La Guaira, for example, more than 100 buildings were destroyed in the twin earthquakes. \u201cShould the U.S. be responsible for rebuilding?\u201d the U.S. government official mused. \u201cAny word from Trump on that?\u201d<\/p>\n\n