Uncertainty mounted over who was in charge of Venezuela following Nicolás Maduro’s removal from power.
Top US leaders have differed over the extent of Washington’s future involvement, and elections do not appear to be in the immediate offing. Venezuela’s interim leader, Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, has alternated between taking a conciliatory approach towards Washington and striking a defiant tone.
And María Corina Machado, the Nobel prize-winning opposition leader, has been cast aside by the White House, which has downplayed the extent of her domestic political support. James Fallows, who penned an iconic 2002 piece outlining poor US planning for the aftermath of the Iraq invasion, wrote: “Apparently no one in the US government has asked, What happens the next day?”