Hill aims criticism at Venezuela leader

U.S. Rep. French Hill denounced Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Tuesday, blaming the socialist leader for the country’s ongoing humanitarian crisis.

Maduro’s “ineffective, inhumane and irresponsible actions” have “pushed a once-prosperous nation towards desperate poverty and open tyranny,” Hill said during a speech on the House floor.

The Republican from Little Rock also voiced support for Juan Guaido, leader of Venezuela’s opposition-dominated National Assembly. The United States and many other nations have recognized Guaido as interim president.

Since the rise of the socialist regime in Caracas, more than 3 million Venezuelans have left their country. Despite widespread shortages, Maduro has rejected foreign aid. Two hundred tons of U.S. food and medicine are available across the border in Colombia, but Maduro won’t allow it in.

Hill is a longtime critic of the Maduro regime. In August 2017, he wrote to President Donald Trump, urging the administration to address “the crisis in Venezuela.”

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