Giddyup...

When Maduro first took office in 2013, the country was troubled by weak growth, debt and falling oil prices. During that time, the country’s economy was growing at a rate of 1.3 percent. That same year, the country’s oil revenues totaled more than $85 billion – about 98 percent of the country’s annual export earnings. But the prices of oil is dwindling.

 The European Union must recognize Venezuelan congress leader Juan Guaido as the president of the South American country, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said, pressing not just individual European governments but the bloc as a whole.

The United States Treasury Department announced they would be imposing sanctions on figures close to President Maduro, Reuters reports.