Trump Pivots to "Machado" for Transition, Bypassing Venezuelan Succession Line

WEST PALM BEACH — President Donald Trump has explicitly named Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado as the primary candidate to head a new transitional government, signaling a major policy pivot just hours after announcing the U.S. military capture of Nicolás Maduro.

Speaking on the power vacuum in Caracas, Trump stated he is "going to look at whether Machado to lead." The specific invocation of "Machado"—rather than a general reference to the opposition—marks a critical deviation from the existing diplomatic framework.

The President acknowledged the current constitutional reality, noting that "right now they have a Vice President," a reference to Maduro loyalist Delcy Rodríguez, who would technically assume power under Article 233. However, Trump’s immediate pivot suggests the White House intends to bypass the chavista line of succession entirely.

Crucially, the statement also casts doubt on the status of Edmundo González Urrutia, whom the U.S. has recognized as "President-Elect" since early 2025. By focusing directly on the Nobel Peace Prize-winning Machado, Trump appears to be aligning U.S. support with the opposition's de facto leader on the ground rather than its exiled institutional figurehead.

This rhetorical shift significantly increases the probability of direct engagement. With the political architecture of post-Maduro Venezuela now being drafted at Mar-a-Lago, a formal face-to-face meeting between Trump and Machado in 2026 has likely moved from a possibility to a diplomatic necessity.