Marco Rubio Vows to Shrink the State Department—Slams 'Woke' Offices

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Venezuelan regime will submit monthly budget requests to unlock funds as the Trump administration continues to oversee its oil industry following the capture of authoritarian President Nicolas Maduro.

Speaking during a hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Rubio said the funds will come from oil sales and initially managed by Qatar before being transferred to a U.S. Treasury account.

The New York Times detailed that the funds come from U.S. sales of Venezuelan oil subject to U.S. sanctions. They will help fund basic public services in the South American country, wihch is facing a "fiscal crunch," according to Rubio.

He went on to clarify that the mechanism is not meant to be permanent. "They needed money in the immediacy to fund the police officers, the sanitation workers, the daily operations of government," Rubio said during a passage of the hearing.

"They have pledged to use a substantial amount of those funds to purchase medicine and equipment directly from the United States," he added.

Democrats, in turn, have questioned the plan, particularly its legality and transparency. Rubio conceded it was "novel" but said it was "the best we could come up with in the short term" because of U.S. sanctions on Venezuela. Moreover, U.S. creditors Venezuela owes money to, largely from the seizure of assets belonging to American energy companies, could make legal claims on the funds.

Hawaii Senator Brian Schatz said the agreement "may not even be permissible." Moreover, Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Texas demanded to know why the U.S. chose Qatar and not "country with much stronger banking laws and a history of robust management of oil revenues."

"There are currently no safeguards to ensure the Rodríguez family does not use the revenue to pay off Maduro's allies, including paramilitary groups and drug cartels, to maintain control of the country," Doggett added, in reference to interim President Delcy Rodriguez and her brother Jorge, who presides over the National Assembly.

Originally published on Latin Times