Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó took to the streets with a small contingent of heavily armed troops early Tuesday in a bold and risky attempt to lead a military uprising and oust socialist leader Nicolas Maduro.
The early-morning rebellion seems to have only limited military support. But it was by far the most-serious challenge yet to Maduro’s rule since Guaidó, with the backing of the U.S., declared himself the country’s interim president in January in rejection of a government he accused of “usurping” power.
The dramatic events began early Tuesday when Guaidó, flanked by a few dozen national guardsmen and some armored vehicles, released a three-minute video filmed near a Caracas air base in which he called on civilians and others in the armed forces to join a final push to topple Maduro.
We check in on the latest and zoom out on the political context that brought us here.
With files from the Associated Press
Guests:
Nick Casey, Andes Bureau Chief at The New York Times, where he covers most countries in South America including Venezuela; he tweets
Miguel Tinker Salas, professor of Latin American History and Chicano Latino studies at Pomona College; his expertise includes culture and politics in Venezuela; author of three books on Venezuela, including, “Venezuela: What Everyone Needs to Know” (Oxford University Press, 2015); he tweets