NY Democrat's ties to Maduro may help Biden unlock stalemate
The relationship with Uribe โlionized by Venezuelaโs opposition and demonized by Latin Americaโs left โ may come in handy as he seeks to build momentum for politically fraught engagement with Maduro. But he said he is willing to speak to Maduroโs government if allies in Latin America, the European Union and the Biden administration see value in such an approach. Not for nothing, the Trump administration has said the only thing to negotiate with Maduro are the terms of his exit. โThe Trump policy was predicated on Florida politics โ not getting something done,โ Meeks said. In one of those trips, he urged Maduro to release opposition activist Leopoldo Lopez, then in jail for leading anti-government protests.
Joaquin Castro loses bid to lead U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee
U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro speaks at a press conference in Austin in 2019. Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas TribuneU.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro came up short Thursday in his bid to become chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. The most dominant determining factor in House Democratic chairmanship races is seniority, and Castro's bid would have meant he would leap frog over a number of colleagues on the committee. Initially, Castro was an afterthought in a race between Meeks and the most senior Democrat on the committee, U.S. Rep. Brad Sherman of California. Castro's bid called for generational change in the committee's approach to foreign affairs, and he pushed to incorporate issues like climate change and immigration into the country's foreign policy. On Tuesday, the contenders went before the influential House Democratic steering committee to make presentations for their vision of the committee.