The former national security advisor blames the spectacular failure of the April 30, 2019 coup attempt against strongman Nicolás Maduro, the heir to Hugo Chávez, on just about everyone — President Donald Trump, other senior administration officials, the Venezuelan opposition, the Cubans, and Russians — except himself. By Richard E. Feinber. Full Text-> Brookings

Mr. Bolton’s tactical maneuvers failed, however in all probability not for the explanations he offers. The U.S. is in a proxy conflict with Russia, Iran, China and Cuba in Venezuela, and Washington fails to evaluate adequately its enemies’ effectiveness within the areas of intelligence, propaganda and technique. Mr. Bolton’s narrative takes revenge however does nothing to advance U.S. pursuits. By Mary Anastasia O’Grady. Full Text -> APKMetroplitnaNews

President Trump often talks tough in public about Venezuela’s dictatorship, but in his tell-all book, John Bolton, the president’s former national security adviser, suggests it’s just to win votes in Florida. The contention raises serious questions on whether Trump would maintain a hard line on Venezuela if re-elected. | By Andres Oppenheimer. Full Text -> Miami Herald

In his own version of how it happened, Bolton never stopped to assess the very complex target — a hardened criminal regime, not just another tropical dictator. If he ever asked the intelligence community to do its job, he might have realized that the strategy was a ruse served up by Maduro’s Cuban handlers. (Or he might have discovered an intelligence community utterly doubled-up by Cuban intelligence.) Instead, Bolton and senior advisers ruled out the use of force without weighing options for posing a credible threat and without informing the commander-in-chief who had sought such options expressly and repeatedly. By Roger F. Noriega. Full Text -> Washington Examiner

President Trump said it would be “cool” to invade Venezuela and that the South American country was “really part of the United States,” according to a forthcoming book authored by former White House national security adviser John Bolton. By Olivia Beavers. Full Text -> TheHill.com