Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to testify Tuesday in the federal criminal trial of David Rivera, a former Republican congressman from Miami who is accused of secretly lobbying for Venezuela's socialist government and receiving approximately million from Venezuelan officials without registering as a foreign agent under the Foreign Agents Registration Act. The case would make Rubio the first sitting Cabinet member to testify at a criminal trial since former Labor Secretary Raymond Donovan did so in 1983. NBC News confirmed Rubio's expected appearance and context of the case. The Daily Wire also reported the testimony, noting it involves Rubio's former roommate and co-owner of a home in the Florida legislature days.
Prosecutors allege Rivera and co-defendant Esther Nuhfer leveraged Republican political connections to lobby the White House to soften its stance on Venezuela's then-Maduro government during Trump's first term. Encrypted communications in the record include code words allegedly used by Rivera — "bus driver" for Maduro and "melons" for millions of dollars. At the center of the case is a July 9, 2017, meeting at Rubio's Washington home at which Rivera allegedly told the senator he had secured Maduro's agreement to hold free elections. Rivera then texted a contact that without Rubio's support, there would be "no turkey." Prosecutors contend the meeting shows Rivera was using his access to Rubio as a key selling point in his lobbying contract with Venezuelan officials.
Rubio's role is as a witness, not as a defendant. He is testifying about his recollection of the 2017 meeting and communications with Rivera during his Senate tenure — not about anything he is accused of doing wrongdoing. Rivera's defense team argues his consulting firm was hired by a Venezuelan oil subsidiary rather than the state itself, and that commercial consulting for a foreign subsidiary does not require FARA registration. They also contend the work focused on convincing Exxon Mobil to return to Venezuela — a commercial matter — rather than lobbying U.S. government officials on behalf of a foreign power.
The trial occurs in the geopolitically significant context of the current Trump administration's relationship with Venezuela. Following U.S. military strikes in Venezuela and the capture of Nicolás Maduro, President Trump shared a social media post identifying himself as Venezuela's "acting president" since January 2026 and told the New York Times that American administration of Venezuela could extend "much longer" than six months. In that context, Rivera's alleged 2017 lobbying for Maduro's government — on behalf of the same country the U.S. now effectively governs in a post-Maduro transition — adds historical irony to the prosecution's narrative.
Left-Leaning Emphasis
- NBC News framed the trial in the broader context of Trump-era Venezuela policy and the administration's current effective governance of the country post-Maduro, emphasizing the irony that the Secretary of State may testify about lobbying for a government the U.S. has now militarily overthrown.
- Left-leaning coverage noted the encrypted communications and code words — "bus driver" for Maduro, "melons" for millions — as evidence of deliberate concealment that prosecutors argue demonstrates consciousness of the need to hide the lobbying arrangement's true nature.
Right-Leaning Emphasis
- The Daily Wire framed the case as a straightforward FARA prosecution of a former congressman — distinct from Rubio's role, which is as a witness about a specific 2017 meeting — and emphasized that Rubio is not accused of any wrongdoing.
- Right-leaning coverage noted Rivera's defense argument that the work was focused on commercial matters like Exxon's return to Venezuela rather than political lobbying, implying the prosecution may be stretching FARA's scope beyond its intended application.
Sources
- NBC News Mar 23
- The Daily Wire Mar 23
- Fox News Mar 23