Venezuela goes full dictatorship thanks to their Supreme Court...this will be our next military intervention!

via Slate.

Venezuela’s already beleaguered democracy was dealt a near-fatal blow Wednesday, when the country’s Supreme Court usurped what power remained in the democratically elected National Assembly, leaving President Nicolás Maduro with virtually unchecked authority. The country’s top court also overturned most of the decisions made by the legislature since the opposition party to Maduro’s government took control of the chamber in late 2015. "As long as the situation of contempt in the National Assembly continues, this constitutional chamber guarantees congressional functions will be exercised by this chamber or another chosen organ," the court said in its ruling.

The move comes after Maduro—the handpicked successor to President Hugo Chavez, who died in March 2013—and his party have slowly chipped away at the legitimacy and capacity of the legislature. In 2015, when the opposition democratically won control of the National Assembly, the Supreme Court, packed with Maduro loyalists, denied four representatives from taking office due to voting irregularities, keeping the opposition from a supermajority in the body. Over the legislature’s opposition, Maduro, backed by the Supreme Court, then declared emergency powers. As the bottom fell out of the country's economy and protests flared across the country, the court went on to strip the assembly of its budgeting power. More recently, Maduro and his allies have consolidated power, detained political prisoners without trial, suppressed protesters’ dissent, stifled the media, and postponed local elections.

Wow.

I hope SouthCom is paying attention.

This will be our next military intervention.  State Dept is occupied, the Pentagon is focused on Russia and the Middle East.  Intel agencies are looking inward.

Meanwhile Venezuela is teetering on the brink.

My guess is that this will go violent, the UN will go "we must save the children" and we'll end up leading several S. American countries to restore order to prevent a FLOOD of refugees heading North.