The country can live without athletes hobnobbing in the Rose Garden. What will be harder, though, is repairing the damage that Trump’s toxic racism unleashed on the nation.

Far from it being a matter for the “Venezuelan citizens and political officials” to decide, much of the wrangling has focused on cinching the noose around the Venezuelan people first and the assets of the Venezuelan state second.

Intrinsically valuable in and of themselves, a reentry council, an office of returning citizens, and community-based halfway houses can also open up a pathway for changing a system that is too willing to throw away the lives of too many.