The Collapse of Venezuela: Scorched Earth Politics and Economic Decline, 2012-2020

The Collapse of Venezuela documents Venezuela’s economic implosion as politicians adopted strategies that severely harmed the economy in their struggle for power.

Between 2012 and 2020, Venezuela suffered the largest economic contraction ever documented outside of wartime. This collapse was caused not just by the failure of an economic model but also the deeper failure of its political system to manage the conflicts inherent to a polarized society. The Collapse of Venezuela argues that when the stakes of power are high, politicians have an incentive to adopt political strategies that directly harm the economy. Author Francisco Rodríguez describes these scorched earth strategies and shows how politicians used these methods to target the Venezuelan economy in their fight for power. Ultimately, the conflicting sides have trapped the economy in a catastrophic stalemate that has destroyed the country’s living standards and turned the economy into a political battlefield.

By charting Venezuela’s experience with scorched earth politics, Rodríguez reveals an essential cautionary tale for other democracies around the globe.

Francisco Rodríguez is the Rice Family Professor of the Practice of International and Public Affairs at the University of Denver’s Josef Korbel School of International Studies. He is the co-editor of Venezuela before Chávez: Anatomy of an Economic Collapse.