After Cuba Victory Lap, Obama Cozies Up to Venezuela

Reuters cites a “senior U.S. administration official” as confirming that American diplomats have been working to establish a line of communication between Maduro and President Obama, particularly following the expansion of relations with Cuba, which Venezuela appears to have taken as a sign that they, too, can benefit from overtures to El Imperio. “He realized that if we can talk to the Cubans, we can talk to him. … We approached it very carefully because we had seen this before, but there was also U.S. concern that the relationship was reaching such a dangerous point that it risked breaking completely,” the source told Reuters. More…