Sec. 2. Sense of Congress
168 words·~1 min read·
/bill/115/hr/7245/ih/section-2·A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
It is the sense of Congress that— Venezuela’s electoral event on May 20, 2018— was not legitimate; and did not comply with international standards for a free, fair, and transparent democratic process; and senior officials in the de facto government of Nicolás Maduro— have taken continuous steps— to consolidate an authoritarian government; and to direct political control over Venezuela’s Supreme Tribunal of Justice, National Electoral Council, and armed forces; have implemented policies that are directly responsible for— Venezuela’s economic and humanitarian crises; and the massive outflow of Venezuelan migrants leaving the country; have used access to food as a tool of political coercion and a source of corruption and have directly profited from corruption in food procurement contracts; have utilized repressive tactics to violate and curtail human rights, political rights, freedom of expression, and freedom of the press, including the arbitrary detention of political prisoners; and have engaged in acts of gross corruption and criminality that have contributed to the absence of the rule of law in Venezuela.