US Is Reportedly Offering Venezuela's Maduro a Deal

The US wants Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro out of power so much that it's offering him amnesty on narco-terrorism charges, reports the Wall Street Journal. The deal would involve pardons from Justice Department charges for strongman Maduro and top allies, according to the newspaper. The offer comes in the wake of the nation's presidential election last month in which both Maduro and opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez have claimed victory. It remains unclear whether Maduro is open to such an offer, especially after he told the US at a news conference on Friday not to "mess with Venezuela's internal affairs," per Semafor.

The Journal notes that international pressure might be the only factor to get Maduro to change his mind. The UN has offered to mediate if Maduro allows third-party observers to assess the vote count, but Maduro has so far refused. Meanwhile, opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has called for Venezuelans to take to the streets on Saturday in a day of protest, per the BBC. "Let's shout together for the world to support our victory and recognize truth and popular sovereignty," she said. (Since the election, many who publicly opposed Maduro's reelection have been rounded up in arrests.)