Following the arrest of dictator Nicolás Maduro, Venezuela stands at a critical crossroads. As international attention turns to what comes next, HRF CEO Thor Halvorssen cautions against efforts to legitimize figures deeply embedded in the dictatorship’s machinery of repression in a new op-ed published in The Wall Street Journal.
In this piece, he explains why Delcy Rodríguez, Maduro’s unelected vice president and longtime enforcer, does not represent a credible or legitimate path toward democratic transition.
This op-ed appeared in the latest Wall Street Journal Opinion section on Jan. 6, 2026.
Tell Delcy Rodríguez: You’re Fired
By Thor Halvorssen
For my fellow Venezuelans across the political spectrum, Jan. 3, 2026, was a day of stunned disbelief and cautious hope. The arrest of Nicolás Maduro by U.S. forces shattered the illusion of the regime’s invincibility. What’s likely to follow is the implosion of a criminal government enterprise.
Reports indicate the Trump administration has struck a deal with Delcy Rodríguez, Mr. Maduro’s iron-fisted vice president, positioning her as a transitional leader. She has, it seems, convinced U.S. officials that she can dismantle the Maduro dictatorship, which would have to include demobilizing the armed militias, disbanding the dreaded secret police and ending the regime’s drug empire. But this is a fantasy. Ms. Rodríguez will fail spectacularly, leading to the final unraveling.
Venezuela isn’t like Mexico, where a state coexists uneasily with cartels. Here, the cartel is the state. Factions — enriched generals, intelligence chiefs and narco-traffickers — won’t surrender power in a Washington-brokered deal. Ms. Rodríguez herself faces insurmountable obstacles, beginning with her utter lack of legitimacy. Never elected vice president, she has less authority than Mr. Maduro, the usurper who appointed her.
The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) is a nonpartisan nonprofit organization that promotes and protects human rights globally, with a focus on closed societies. For interview requests or media inquiries, please email [email protected].
