April 10, 2025 Professor Francisco Rodriguez, The Collapse of Venezuela: Scorched Earth Politics and Economic Decline, 2012-2020

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 results from the deeper failure of its political system to manage the conflicts inherent to a polarized society. In his new book, DU Professor Francisco Rodríguez argues that when the stakes of power are high, politicians have an incentive to adopt political strategies that directly harm the economy. He describes how politicians used these strategies to target the Venezuelan economy in their fight for power. Ultimately, he argues, the sides to the country’s political conflict 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.

This lecture will be held in person in the Anderson Academic Commons room 290 at 1:30 pm