“The approval of this bill will go down as one of the darkest chapters of American history. The suffering of the people in my homeland and the shutting down of hundreds of schools for our children there should not be celebrated as a ‘political or economical strategy.’”

“Maduro and his supporters argue that such international pressure infringes on Venezuela’s sovereignty. But that argument does not stand up to contemporary concepts of human rights, including civil and political rights.”

“Maduro y sus partidarios sostienen que tal presión internacional transgrede la soberanía de Venezuela. Pero ese argumento no podrá prevalecer ante los conceptos contemporáneos de derechos humanos, incluyendo los derechos civiles y políticos”.