The U.S. government has warned that it would take “swift economic actions” if the Venezuelan government proceeds with a July 30 move to rewrite the constitution to consolidate power in the hands of President Nicolas Maduro. With the country in shambles, the move is clearly intended to shore up the President’s power in the face of fierce and growing opposition. The statement from the U.S government is widely interpreted as a threat to sanction state-owned oil company PDVSA, the government’s main source of revenue. “My sense is there’s an intensive review on a variety of options,” Michael Shifter, president of the Inter-American Dialogue, told the WSJ last week. “I wouldn’t be surprised about discussions on very severe measures against the Venezuelan government. If so, I hope they do more good than harm. The precise details of what the sanctions might look like are not known yet, with a spectrum […]