As the Crisis in Venezuela Grows, the Options Narrow

In effect, what was intended as a swift operation to pry out a nasty despot has turned into a stalemate while Venezuela further disintegrates, lately with long, debilitating blackouts. That is not to argue that Mr. Trump should become more aggressive. Mr. Maduro and his patron in the Kremlin may have called Washington’s bluff for now, leaving the American president with his own “red-line moment,” as David E. Sanger wrote in The Times, reminiscent of President Barack Obama’s failure to follow up on his threats against President Bashar al-Assad in Syria. But a military intervention in a country bigger than Texas would be ugly, even if Russia did not get further involved, and nearly all the other nations backing Mr. Guaidó firmly opposed one. The reality is that Mr. Trump has no real option but to wait. It is hard to conceive that Mr. Maduro will hang on indefinitely, or that his generals will not see the writing on the wall as the situation becomes ever more dire. More…