Mauricio Claver-Carone. Photo: Resumen Latinoamericano/File photo.
By RaĂşl Antonio Capote – Feb 8, 2025
Another of US President Donald Trump’s “chosen ones” has just appeared on the scene: Mauricio Claver-Carone, the third member of the anti-Cuban quartet also made up of Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, and Bob Menéndez. The latter of these four will not be able to “sing” for a long time, as he is on “vacation” in a penitentiary for corruption.
Now, Claver-Carone is accompanying US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on an official tour of Latin America that began in Panama.
A veteran civil servant, known above all for his tough stance against Cuba, the 49-year-old Miami-born lawyer was appointed by Trump as the US State Department’s special envoy for Latin America, with the mission of “restoring order” in the region.
“Over the last four years, chaos and anarchy have invaded our borders,” Trump wrote on his social network, Truth Social. “It is time to restore order in our own hemisphere.”
The guidelines for Claver-Carone established by the president can be summarized as follows: carry out the mass deportation promised by Trump, confront Venezuela, and try to curb China’s influence in the region.
“There is no region in the world, whether due to migration, security, or trade, that affects the individual lives of Americans more than Latin America,” Claver-Carone said at a press conference days before the start of the tour of the region.
“This is a visit to send an unequivocal message on two points,” he added. “The Venezuelan criminals, including the members of the Aragua Train, will be returned, and it is Venezuela’s responsibility to receive them; and the American hostages must be freed and returned to the USA.”
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“There will be no quid pro quo,” Claver-Carone threatened. “I have some advice for Maduro: he should meet the demands, because if he doesn’t, there will be consequences.”
A staunch defender of the US blockade and, together with Rubio, the architect of most of the tough economic policies aimed at cutting off funding to the Cuban government, he is now coming for more.
Claver-Carone time as US director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is worth noting. In this capacity, he helped former Argentinean President Mauricio Macri secure a US $57 billion loan, the largest in the organization’s history.
In 2018, Claver-Carone was appointed head of Western Hemisphere affairs on the National Security Council and special advisor to Trump. At that time he was one of the main people responsible for designing US policy against Venezuela, which, among many other infamies, supported the self-proclaimed Juan GuaidĂł.
In 2020, Claver-Carone was appointed president of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), which is supposed to provide long-term financing for economic, social, and institutional development in Latin America and the Caribbean.
However, his career came to an abrupt and dishonorable end two years later for violating the institution’s code of ethics (remember that this foursome of US overseers, Marco, Mauricio, Ted, and Bob, are up to no good). These violations were for favoring his chief of staff, with whom he had previously worked with on the White House Security Council, with promotions and salaries.
Marco and Mauricio will undoubtedly contribute to the failure of the current administration in Latin America. One cannot expect anything other than a repetition of the same old mistakes. Beyond the cowardice of some and the betrayal of others, it is good to see the true face of our northern neighbor so clearly.
(Resumen Latinoamericano – English)
Raul Antonio Capote
Cuban writer, essayist, researcher and editor. Havana, 1961. Former State Security agent. For several years he was infiltrated in the CIA. Master in Contemporary History and International Relations. He has published, among other books, The Knight Illustrated, Editorial Letras Cubanas, 1998; The adversary, Editorial Plaza Mayor, Puerto Rico, 2005, and Enemy, Editorial JosĂ© MartĂ, 2011.
