Machado Presents Trump With Nobel Peace Prize Medal

María Corina Machado, the winner of the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize, presented her medal to US President Donald Trump yesterday in another effort to gain support from the United States– but she was left without clarity on the issue.

Machado, a major opposition leader against now-former dictator Nicolás Maduro of Venezuela, won the Nobel Peace Prize in October for her heroic efforts against his regime, taking numerous risks and rallying the people for her cause.

After she was awarded the Peace Prize in October, both the White House and Donald Trump expressed their disappointment at the decision, with the former criticizing the Nobel Committee and accusing them of putting "politics over peace."

Then, last week, Maduro was abducted from Venezuela by American forces, leaving a void of power at the head of the country's government. However, instead of endorsing Machado, who has won support from over 50% of the Venezuelan population, the Trump administration backed Delcy Rodríguez, Maduro's vice president– a woman with just 14% of the population behind her.

Due to their interest in Venezuela's oil reserves, many experts believe that Trump continues to back Rodríguez because they view her as a candidate who requires less support from the US and will implement less change. Rodríguez is viewed as someone who would easily serve the Trump administration and adhere to their wishes, building up the oil sector without angering other powers in Venezuela.

Meanwhile, Machado has numerous enemies within the government and lacks military support despite gaining support from the majority of the population. This means that the US would need to support her efforts militarily, which would be more work for the Trump administration and limit their abilities to export oil.

Yesterday, Machado arrived at the White House carrying her Nobel Peace Prize medal, despite insistence from the Nobel Committee that the prize cannot be shared. Nevertheless, Machado left the medal in the White House, hoping that it could gain support for her campaign from Trump and possibly carry her to the leadership position that Rodríguez now holds.

However, Machado was left without an answer– but she did not leave empty-handed. Instead, the White House awarded her with a red swag bag carrying Trump's signature– a gesture many found as funny, even mocking.

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Image credit to AP