Constitutional Crisis and Power Struggle in Venezuela

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In recent weeks the administration of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has short circuited the drive for a recall election, and passed a budget without the participation of the Venezuelan Asamblea Nacional, or AN. The Maduro government did these things in ways that many observers both inside and outside the country say do not pass constitutional muster. Indeed, in an emergency session on October 23, 2016 the opposition-controlled AN claimed that Maduro has committed a coup d’état and now called for an active defense of the constitution. The session was disrupted by Maduro’s supporters. The struggle between the president and the legislature is being described as a complete institutional breakdown, while many leaders in the region are beginning to refer to the Maduro government as a “dictatorship.”

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