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The Rick's avatar

I know we're all IR experts now, after spending the last two years becoming epidemiologists. In that spirit, I'm offering a very specific policy suggestion here that I am stealing from Gregg Palast: LIFT TRUMP'S EMBARGO ON VENEZUELA. As I am sure many commenters here know, Venezuela has the largest oil reserves in the world -- by far -- and the capacity to pump 2 million barrels a day for export. In addition to easing fuel prices and global inflation more generally, it will choke off Putin's windfall which makes many of the sanctions being levied against Russia ineffective. (Not to mention, it will stop choking Venezuela’s economy and starving the Venezuelan people -- though sadly that's probably not the chief selling point to the US Congress.) As Palast writes, "So let’s make a deal: We recognize the elected government in Venezuela and Putin recognizes the elected government of Ukraine. And if Putin doesn’t like that deal, we still recognize Venezuela, and unleash their oil, without doubt the greatest weapon on this battlefield."

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JAY WOLK's avatar

Well said Michael!

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