During a January 28, 2026, Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing, Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) attacked Secretary of State Marco Rubio on President Trump’s comments dismissing Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado as lacking domestic support and respect to lead. Kaine noted Machado’s disappointment and that of Venezuelan-Americans in Virginia.
Rubio, who has known Machado for over a decade and met her recently, responded that Trump highlighted the regime’s current control over institutions, emphasizing a U.S. push for stabilization, recovery, and transition. Additionally, Rubio fired back with a hilarious joke, which went viral on social media.
In any case, Kaine began, ” I can get back to pay well, you know, well, and you respect Well, Maria Karina Machado. Here’s what President Trump said about her. ‘Won the Nobel Prize in the aftermath of the attack on Venezuela.
I think it would be very tough for her to be the leader. She doesn’t have the support within or the respect within the country. She’s a very nice woman, but she doesn’t have the respect.” Finally, he asked, “What did President Trump mean by that?”
Rubio answered, “Yeah. First of all, I’ve known Maria Karina for probably 12 years. 13 years. Have dealt with her probably more than anybody as much as anybody on this committee has, for certain, and I’ll be meeting with her today, in fact, and we met with her a couple of weeks ago.”
“So here’s the reality, though, and I think what the President was pointing to, and I think Maria Carina would acknowledge this, she only waited for October last week,” Rubio continued before Kaine interupted, “Well, [she’s] just very disappointed in those comments, and so were Venezuelans in my state.”
“Okay, she didn’t share that with me or with us, but I would sell to this to you, for the president is acknowledging is that today, as it stands, whether we like it or not, the elements of control in that country, the people with the guns, the people that control the guns and the institutions of government there are in the hands of this regime,” the Secretary of State pointed out.
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“On the one hand, we’re getting criticized. Some people are saying we don’t want regime change,” the reasonable official stated, ” On the other hand, we’re being criticized for not undertaking what we’re trying to trigger here is a process of stabilization, recovery and transition, something where Maria Karina and others can be a part of [the process].”
Watch the dramatic footage here:
After another flurry of questions, the Virginia Democrat alleged, “The president repeatedly mistook Iceland for Greenland, right? We’re not mad at Iceland. They haven’t cost us any money. The President just mistook the two countries for each other, correct?” Rubio retorted, “Yeah, he meant to say Greenland. But I think we’re all familiar with presidents who have verbal stumbles. We’ve had presidents like that before. Some made a lot more than this one nice try.”
Featured image from embedded video