00:00This is the hypocrisy that I see at the same time that you're issuing these
00:05human rights cautions about what's going on there for Americans.
00:08You have a president that's...
00:10It's lifting temporary protected status for Venezuelans.
00:13Many of them are...
00:15...individuals that have lived in our country for years, if not decades.
00:18The administration...
00:20...is putting people back on deportation flights and sending them into that madness.
00:25Does that make sense to you?
00:26Well, first of all, the travel advisories for American citizens traveling there on the...
00:30...threats posed to Americans.
00:31What you're describing...
00:32Why lift temporary protected status?
00:34Well, the problem with temporary...
00:35...was granted to so many people in such vast numbers so quickly...
00:40...without proper vetting by the previous administration.
00:43I just want to start...
00:45...by saying what's playing...
00:46...I'd frankly be playing to Senator Rubio and playing to members...
00:50...here...
00:51...is that it should not have taken this long to have this hearing.
00:54Fundamental...
00:55...we have a crisis, I believe, in our democracy right now...
00:58...which is the failure of Congress.
01:00...inthink that it should not have this...
01:01...by having fires, whether it's...
01:02...to do its job.
01:03...to provide checks and balances...
01:04...oversight.
01:05...to...
01:06...to provide...
01:09that we should be doing to keep a balanced government.
01:12We have operations right now.
01:14That are literally costing the American taxpayer tens of millions of dollars a day, the buildup
01:19in the Caribbean alone is hundreds of millions of dollars a month, but we're not providing
01:23that kind of...
01:24oversight that's necessary.
01:25So from our power to the purse, to our important work...
01:29of providing a check and balance to an administration, what we're seeing right now is unexplained
01:34acceptable and speaks to what I think is a growing constitutional crisis in our country,
01:37which is a Congress...
01:39that is just lying down for the administration to do whatever it wants, whenever it wants.
01:44I want to pick up on my colleagues questioning because I actually know from years...
01:49of conversations with you, your heart about human rights in countries like Venezuela, Mr.
01:53Secretary...
01:54Secretary...
01:55Secretary...
01:56Secretary...
01:57Secretary...
01:58Secretary...
01:59And you issued a travel warning...
01:59a level four travel advisory from your department's website that says, right now in Venezuela...
02:04there's a high risk of wrongful detention, torture, terrorism, kidnapping...
02:09arbitrary enforcement of laws, crime, and more...
02:14when we hear from the president that he is in charge, that you go all around...
02:19are running this government to that extent, I have a lot of concerns when it comes...
02:24to the rampant human rights violations that are persisting...
02:29But Pedro...
02:30Legayos...
02:31Maduro's key hardline enforcer, has continued to intimidate...
02:34and suppress Venezuelan voices.
02:36He remains in control of Venezuela's security force.
02:39Security services, the colectivos, we're seeing extraordinary
02:44examples that the constant oppression of the people.
02:49is continuing as these folks are remaining in control.
02:55So I just want to know what is the plan to address
02:58in a much more aggressive way.
02:59These severe human rights violations.
03:04And to try to stop these armed militias.
03:08Because if we are...
03:09If we are doing things to stabilize their government.
03:11If we are turning over resources and money to the...
03:14The very groups that are creating these horrors.
03:17That seems to me against America's...
03:19And it seems to me something that is...
03:23Should be unacceptable.
03:24to Congress on both sides.
03:25Yeah.
03:26Well, absolutely.
03:27The Venezuela I described that we...
03:29want to see emerge from this.
03:30This is one in which none of that is happening.
03:32If you think about travel advisories.
03:33Travel advisories...
03:34Are us imagining worst case scenarios.
03:36We have a duty to warn American citizens.
03:37When they travel to a place that does have...
03:39the history of Americans being arrested.
03:41Of Americans being taken.
03:42And they may be taken by a deliberate...
03:44action of a government or entity related to the regime.
03:47They may be taken by criminal gangs that...
03:49control parts of that society.
03:50For example.
03:51You know.
03:52They have these colectivos as they are called.
03:53Which basically are...
03:54these armed motorcycle gangs...
03:56that are allowed to act with impunity...
03:57in return for their support for the Maduro...
03:59regime in the past.
04:00You have the ELN and the FARC...
04:01and other drug trafficking organizations...
04:03including...
04:04in Daragua that are involved.
04:05Again.
04:06So these are real risks that we have a duty...
04:07to warn Americans.
04:08Because what...
04:09here's what we didn't want to see.
04:10And I mean...
04:11don't mean to interrupt you.
04:12We have this announcement that Maduro has been taken.
04:14all of a sudden people conclude...
04:15Oh!
04:16He's gone.
04:17Let's flood over there.
04:18Let's all go over there.
04:19And we could expose people...
04:19This is dangerous.
04:20But this is the hypocrisy that I see.
04:22At the same time that you're issuing...
04:24these human rights cautions...
04:26about what's going on there for Americans.
04:28You have a president...
04:29that's lifting temporary protected status...
04:32for Venezuelans.
04:33Many of them...
04:34are individuals...
04:35that have lived in our country for years...
04:37if not decades.
04:39When I hear from the Venezuelan community...
04:41I hear an outrage...
04:42that at the very same time that...
04:44you are affirming here...
04:45that these armed militias...
04:47are running around suppressing voices...
04:49we have an administration...
04:51that has said very clearly...
04:52that they're not only going to be lifted...
04:54protecting temporary protective status...
04:55for Venezuelans living in the U.S.
04:57but instead of protecting...
04:59long-time American residents...
05:01their quote...
05:02excuse me...
05:03the administration...
05:04is putting people back...
05:06on deportation flights...
05:07and sending them into that...
05:09into that madness...
05:10does that make sense to you?
05:11Well...
05:12first of all...
05:13the travel advisories...
05:14for American citizens...
05:14traveling there...
05:15and the threats posed to Americans...
05:16what you're describing...
05:17Why lift...
05:18why lift temporary protected status?
05:19Well...
05:19the problem with temporary...
05:20protective status was...
05:21it was granted to so many people...
05:22in such a vast number...
05:24numbers...
05:25so quickly...
05:26without proper vetting...
05:27by the previous administration...
05:28that there's a real concern...
05:29that there were...
05:30there were gang members...
05:31that had received TPS...
05:32simply because of the nation...
05:33they came from...
05:34and the time...
05:34in which they came...
05:35it became so big...
05:36and so massive...
05:37the overwhelming majority...
05:38of Venezuelans...
05:39are not members of...
05:39trained at Agua...
05:40but there were...
05:41trained at Agua...
05:42and other criminal elements...
05:43embedded in the TPS system...
05:44Well...
05:44the numbers are so large...
05:45that the administration...
05:46felt it had to cancel...
05:47the program...
05:48in order to appropriately...
05:49vet it through...
05:49on the individual cases...
05:50Excuse me...
05:51Mr. Secretary...
05:52this might not surprise you...
05:53I don't trust...
05:54this administration...
05:54and the way they use...
05:55terms like terrorists...
05:56I've seen them calling...
05:57American citizens...
05:58domestic terrorists...
05:59who are people...
06:00trying to peacefully...
06:01protest...
06:02the problem we have...
06:03right now...
06:04is the administration...
06:05continues to make...
06:06policies...
06:07that seem to contradict...
06:08their words...
06:09and yet...
06:10we don't have a process...
06:11in place...
06:12for Congress...
06:13to do its job...
06:14because...
06:14people...
06:15are not calling in...
06:16calling folks in...
06:17for these hearings...
06:18and not providing...
06:19the kind of oversight...
06:20that...
06:19that we need...
06:20it is very frustrating...
06:21to me...
06:22that we still have...
06:23a repressive regime...
06:24in...
06:24power in Venezuela...
06:25suppressing...
06:26human rights...
06:27yet...
06:27we are cooperating...
06:28with them...
06:29we are funding them...
06:31and we're not calling out...
06:32the ridiculousness...
06:34of the violence...
06:35that's going on there...
06:36at the same time...
06:37we're taking people...
06:38who have lived...
06:39in our country...
06:39for years...
06:40and years...
06:41and years...
06:42and sending them...
06:43back into that hell...
06:44where they can be...
06:44targeted...
06:45where they can be...
06:46abducted...
06:47where they can be...
06:48held for hostage...
06:49because they know...
06:50they have...
06:51Americans...
06:52the situation...
06:53ripe...
06:54for where we are...
06:55being complicit...
06:56in continuing...
06:57human rights violations...
06:57and that needs to stop...
06:58and I think...
06:59just on two points...
07:00we're not cooperating...
07:01with them...
07:02to continue doing...
07:03what they're doing now...
07:04we're cooperating...
07:05with them...
07:06to transition away...
07:07from what's happening now...
07:07and as I said...
07:08we're not even...
07:09four weeks into this thing...
07:10and if it continues...
07:11to look like this...
07:12six months...
07:13nine months...
07:14a year from now...
07:15if progress isn't being made...
07:16we'll have very different...
07:17feelings about it...
07:17what we're cooperating on...
07:18is not the continuation...
07:19of what's happening...
07:20it's a...
07:21it's a movement...
07:22away from all...
07:22and transitioning...
07:23ultimately...
07:24to something...
07:25that looks nothing like this...
07:26that's the goal...
07:27but it's been less than four...
07:27weeks...
07:28I mean...
07:29we think we've made...
07:30substantial progress...
07:31in a very short period of time...
07:32but I acknowledge...
07:33we want to make a lot...
07:32more progress...
07:33this is not the end state...
07:34that we want...
07:37subscribe to One India...
07:38and never miss an update...
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