Biden administration denies report that it offered Maduro amnesty in exchange for his resignation
The Biden administration denies offering amnesty to Nicolás Maduro in exchange for his resignation as president of Venezuela.
Straight Arrow News
The claim: Image shows a protester in Venezuela on the cover of Time Magazine
(In Spanish: No, Venezuela is not in the revision period (as of August 5)
A Facebook post from July 30 (direct link, archive link) shows a Time magazine cover with the image of a man in a black hoodie swinging a hammer at a statue.
“The whole world is watching Venezuela,” the article says in Spanish. “Dictator Nicolás Maduro and Diosdado Cabello are cornered. Strengthen Venezuela!”
The same image was shared on Instagram and X, formerly Twitter.
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The cover with the date in question, August 5, referred to the US presidential election and not to Venezuela.
The cover of Time Magazine shows Kamala Harris, not a statue
The Time magazine cover is dated August 5, but that was not the cover from that day. The real cover, which had a similar all-red background, showed Vice President Kamala Harris campaigning and President Joe Biden campaigning, reflecting the 2024 presidential campaign.
There has not been a single reference to Venezuela on the cover of Time this year, and there has not been a single reference to international issues on any cover since March.
The image in the article shows a sculpture of the late former President of Venezuela, Hugo Chávez. The statue was toppled by protesters in the Venezuelan city of Coro on July 29, one day after the election, reported the Chilean newspaper La Tercera.
Similar protests with statues took place across the country.
Chavez initiated the “Bolivarian Revolution” in Venezuela and dismantled the country’s democratic political system. He remained in power for 14 years until he died of cancer in 2013. He was succeeded by Nícolas Maduro.
Fact check: The video showing tortured men is from a film and not from the elections in Venezuela
According to the Associated Press, Venezuelan authorities declared Maduro the winner of the July presidential election, but have not yet provided vote tallies to prove his victory, raising doubts about the legitimacy of the election.
The claim also mentions Diosdado Cabello, a staunch Maduro supporter and vice president of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela.
Meanwhile, opposition protests continue in the country. They argue that their candidate, Edmundo Gonzalez, is the real winner and have called for a worldwide rally on August 17, the BBC reported.
The US government claims there is “overwhelming evidence” that Gonzalez received the most votes.
USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
AFP and Newtral have also refuted the claim.
Our fact-checking sources:
- Time Magazine, August 5, Why Joe Biden dropped out
- TIME 12 August X-Post
- Time Magazine, accessed August 12, YEAR:2024
- La Tercera (YouTube), July 29, July 29, 2019, Protest against the statue of Hugo Chávez because of the results he suffered as a traitor to Maduro.
- AP, August 7, Venezuelan opposition candidate González fails to appear in court and questions election audit
- El País, June 10, Diosdado Cabello follows the opposition’s election campaign in Venezuela
- BBC, August 11, Venezuela’s opposition calls for worldwide protests against election results
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs, August 1, Assessment of the results of the presidential elections in Venezuela
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