Sen. Rick Scott on Venezuela: 'This is genocide and Maduro's doing it'

Jake Tapper and Rick Scott.
(Image credit: Screenshot/CNN)

Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) did not mince words when CNN's Jake Tapper asked him about embattled Venezuelan Preisident Nicolás Maduro and the ongoing crisis in his country during an appearance on Sunday's edition of State of the Union.

Scott accused Maduro of intentionally starving his people, who are indeed facing food and medicine shortages and have experienced frequent power outages throughout the country.

"This is genocide, and Maduro's doing it," Scott said.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

For his part, Maduro blames the crisis on a covert scheme operated by the United States.

Many people in Venezuela have blamed Maduro for Venezuela's crisis and have subsequently joined up with opposition leader and internationally recognized interim president Juan Guaidó to protest the rule of Maduro and his United Socialist Party. Scott praised the Trump administration for leading the way in that regard. Watch Scott discuss the situation in Venezuela with Tapper below. Tim O'Donnell

See more
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Tim O'Donnell

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.