Trump’s comments a challenge for Pence
‘Military’ rhetoric doesn’t dovetail with U.S. policy
WASHINGTON — It’s a role Mike Pence has come to know well.
The vice president departs Sunday for Latin America on the heels of yet another provocative statement from President Donald Trump that he is sure to have to answer for. This time it’s Trump’s sudden declaration that he would not rule out a “military option” in Venezuela, where President Nicolas Maduro has been consolidating power, plunging the country into chaos.
The dramatic escalation in rhetoric seemed to upend carefully crafted U.S. policy that has stressed working with regional partners to increase pressure on Maduro. It also contradicted high-level administration officials, including Trump’s own national security adviser, who had warned that any perception of U.S. intervention would stir decades’ old resentments and play into Maduro’s hands.
Experts on the region said the president’s comments Friday would undoubtedly make Pence’s task more difficult when he arrives Sunday in Cartagena, Colombia, on Venezuela’s doorstep.
“Once again, Latin Americans will be looking for Pence to reassure them, to put a lot of daylight between his more traditional, moderate Republican views and those of his meandering president,” said Richard Feinberg, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution who has extensive experience in the region.
But a spokesman for Pence insisted there was no daylight between him and the president.
“The president is sending the vice president to South and Central America to deliver a very clear message both to our partners in the region and to the Maduro regime. The president and the vice president have discussed the trip in depth and are totally aligned on the president’s message to Venezuela and Latin America overall,” said the spokesman, Jarrod Agen.
Pence’s trip had been aimed both at rallying opposition to Maduro in his own backyard, as well as bolstering trade and economic and security cooperation with four key U.S. allies in the region. His schedule includes stops in Buenos Aires, Argentina; Santiago, Chile; and Panama City. The vice president is expected to meet with each of the country’s leaders, deliver a major speech on U.S.-Latin American relations and tour the Panama Canal.