WASHINGTON — A seemingly belligerent tweet from Secretary of State Mike Pompeo about pulling American diplomats out of Venezuela has prompted further criticism Tuesday of an administration that has sent mixed messages about what it might do as it seeks to oust the leader of the South American nation.
Pompeo’s late night message, which vaguely said the presence of American diplomats had become a “constraint” on U.S. policy in Venezuela, was widely interpreted as suggesting that the administration might use military force to oust President Nicolas Maduro.
But that’s counter to a message that administration officials have been making publicly and privately for weeks, insisting the U.S. is using diplomatic and economic measures to convince Maduro to hand over power to Juan Guaido (gwy-DOH’), the opposition leader of the National Assembly.
Matthew Lee, The Associated Press
