Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum stated on Thursday, March 26, that President Donald Trump is so respected and admired in Venezuela that they see him 'as Simón Bolívar' and he believes they will erect a statue to him in the Caribbean country. 'I literally believe they are going to erect a statue to President Trump,' Burgum said during a Cabinet meeting at the White House where he spoke about his visit to Venezuela at the beginning of the month and highlighted the enthusiasm the Republican and the United States generate in the country after the operation with which Washington captured and ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in January. 'They see President Trump as Simón Bolívar. And this is a country, as you know, that loves American baseball. He is the liberator of a country,' Burgum added about his trip, in which he met with the interim government of Delcy Rodríguez about reforms in the mining and oil sectors for the entry of American companies. 'When are they going to put up the statue?' Trump joked once the Secretary of Interior finished speaking. Shortly before, Trump had also said in a joking tone that he was considering running for president in Venezuela against the current interim president due to the popularity he believes he has in that country. 'After my term, maybe I'll go to Venezuela and run for president against Delcy,' the New York magnate said. During his visit to Venezuela, Burgum assured he spent more than 10 hours meeting with Rodríguez and also said he brought 100 million dollars in gold from the Caribbean country that will be destined for industrial investments. U.S. Judge does not consider Nicolás Maduro 'a threat to national security'. The federal judge in charge of the case of the ousting of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, affirmed this Thursday that he does not consider them 'a threat to national security' of the United States, since they are already detained in the country. The consideration of Judge Alvin Hellerstein directly affects the reason on which U.S. sanctions against Nicolás Maduro and Venezuelan funds are based, which, according to the accused, prevent them from affording their own defense. 'The accused is here. They no longer represent any threat to national security,' declared the 92-year-old Hellerstein with a shaky voice. Additionally, the judge stated that the reasons on which this U.S. blockade of the South American country was based are no longer in play and that the situation in Venezuela has changed.
