Acting Venezuela President Delcy Rodriguez is not the country’s legitimate leader, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Sunday.
Rubio spoke with Rodriguez — Venezuela’s reportedly ruthlessly ambitious vice president who was sworn in to the top office Saturday — after the US conducted a daring military operation to capture dictator President Nicolas Maduro.
The secretary of state said the US will not outright support the Maduro crony staying in power, calling for elections to determine the next leader of the beleaguered South American country.
“This is not about the legitimate president. We don’t believe that this regime in place is legitimate via an election,” Rubio told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday. “And that’s not just us. It’s 60-something countries around the world that have taken that view as well.
“Ultimately, legitimacy for their system of government will come about through a period of transition and real elections,” Rubio said. “It’s the reason why Maduro is not just an indicted drug trafficker. He [was an] illegitimate president. He was not the head of state.”
Hellbound and Down 