The Competition for Political Legitimacy in Venezuela - December 2019

If Venezuela's situation is about repression, the loyalty of security forces, and power politics, why do Maduro and Guaido keep fighting over the details of the constitution and institutions?

Yesterday, I wrote about things that keep Maduro in power and ended up summarizing that his stability is dependent on three factors: cash flow, international alliances and the loyalty of those around him. 

The technical and legal merits of legislative immunity and long-distance legislative voting didn’t make my list of things that matter to Maduro’s stab…