Economic instability in Venezuela after the U.S. raid to capture its president is deepening inflation and rattling the currency, sending grocery bills soaring for millions of people.

The seizure comes as President Trump is set to meet​ with Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado Thursday at the White House.

Jan 17 (Reuters) - In the 12 days since the U.S. seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, interim President Delcy Rodriguez has been working to consolidate her own power, installing loyalists in key positions to protect herself from internal threats while meeting U.S. demands to boost oil production.

Venezuela sprawls over terrain twice the size of California, with vast tracts of treacherous jungles, steep mountains and cities filled with guns.

A day after she gave President Donald Trump her Nobel Peace Prize medal, Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado insisted that her country was on an irreversible path toward democracy, even as Trump has spoken far more frequently in recent days about securing Venezuelan oil than bringing about free elections.

The U.S. military seized a sixth Venezuelan oil tanker in a Caribbean operation Thursday amid the Trump administration's campaign against illicit oil trade.

"Saturday Night Live" is back, kicking things off with a rapid-fire cold open catching up on the biggest headlines since the show has been gone.

Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodríguez is set to deliver her first state of the union speech. She will address an anxious country Thursday as she navigates competing pressures from the United States and a government loyal to former President Nicolás Maduro.