Tag: donald trump

Tracking congressional criticism of Trump’s attack on Venezuela

On Saturday, the U.S. captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and carried out airstrikes across Venezuela. We are keeping track of notable criticism of this attack from members of Congress.

Republicans

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.)

“If this action were constitutionally sound, the Attorney General wouldn’t be tweeting that they’ve arrested the President of a sovereign country and his wife for possessing guns in violation of a 1934 U.S. firearm law.”

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.)

“Mexican cartels are primarily and overwhelmingly responsible for killing Americans with deadly drugs.

If U.S. military action and regime change in Venezuela was really about saving American lives from deadly drugs then why hasn’t the Trump admin taken action against Mexican cartels?

And if prosecuting narco terrorists is a high priority then why did President Trump pardon the former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez who was convicted and sentenced for 45 years for trafficking hundreds of tons of cocaine into America? Ironically cocaine is the same drug that Venezuela primarily traffics into the U.S. […]

Regime change, funding foreign wars, and American’s tax dollars being consistently funneled to foreign causes, foreigners both home and abroad, and foreign governments while Americans are consistently facing increasing cost of living, housing, healthcare, and learn about scams and fraud of their tax dollars is what has most Americans enraged. Especially the younger generations. Boomers and half of Gen X will cheer on neocon wars and talking points, but the other half of Gen X and majority on down see through it and hate it. […]

This is what many in MAGA thought they voted to end.

Boy were we wrong.”

Democrats

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.)

“The administration has assured me three separate times that it was not pursuing regime change or taking military action in Venezuela. Clearly, they are not being straight with Americans.

The idea that Trump plans to now run Venezuela should strike fear in the hearts of all Americans. The American people have seen this before and paid the devastating price.

The administration must brief Congress immediately on its objectives, and its plan to prevent a humanitarian and geopolitical disaster that plunges us into another endless war or one that trades one corrupt dictator for another.”

Sen. Andy Kim (D-N.J.)

“Secretaries Rubio and Hegseth looked every Senator in the eye a few weeks ago and said this wasn’t about regime change. I didn’t trust them then and we see now that they blatantly lied to Congress. Trump rejected our Constitutionally required approval process for armed conflict because the Administration knows the American people overwhelmingly reject risks pulling our nation into another war.

This strike doesn’t represent strength. It’s not sound foreign policy. It puts Americans at risk in Venezuela and the region, and it sends a horrible and disturbing signal to other powerful leaders across the globe that targeting a head of state is an acceptable policy for the U.S. government. This will further damage our reputation – already hurt by Trump’s policies around the world – and only isolate us in a time when we need our friends and allies more than ever.”

“Americans across the political spectrum must reject Trump’s plan for the U.S. to ‘run the country’ of Venezuela.

This is a disastrous plan. We have seen this show before and it did not end well.”

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.)

“Trump’s attack on Venezuela will make the United States and the world less safe. This brazen violation of international law gives a green light to any nation on earth that may wish to attack another country to seize their resources or change their governments. This is the horrific logic of force that Putin used to justify his brutal attack on Ukraine.

Trump and his administration have often said they want to revive the Monroe Doctrine, claiming the United States has the right to dominate the affairs of the hemisphere. They have spoken openly about controlling Venezuela’s oil reserves, the largest in the world. This is rank imperialism. It recalls the darkest chapters of U.S. interventions in Latin America, which have left a terrible legacy. It will and should be condemned by the democratic world.

Trump campaigned for president on an “America First” platform. He claimed to be the “peace candidate.” At a time when 60% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck, when our healthcare system is collapsing, when people cannot afford housing and when AI threatens millions of jobs, it is time for the president to focus on the crises facing this country and end this military adventurism abroad. Trump is failing in his job to “run” the United States. He should not be trying to “run” Venezuela.”

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Trump hints at his next target for a military operation after stunning capture of Maduro

Communist-run Cuba may be the next country to have an American-made regime change, President Donald Trump floated at a press conference addressing the capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro.

‘I think Cuba is going to be something we’ll end up talking about, because Cuba is a failing nation right now, very badly failing nation, and we want to help the people,’ Trump said when asked if the operation in Venezuela contained a message to the island nation. 

‘That system has not been a very good one for Cuba,’ the president continued. ‘The people there have suffered for many, many years.’

After Joe Biden removed Cuba from the list of state sponsors of terrorism last year, Trump quickly reinstated the designation within his first days in office and reapplied economic sanctions. 

The U.S.-Cuba relationship remains strained as the island nation is under a strict embargo, preventing goods from reaching the socialist state.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is the son of Cuban refugees who fled during the nation’s communist revolution, doubled down, warning that the nation’s leadership should be worried. 

‘Suffice it to say, you know, Cuba is a disaster,’ Rubio said at the press conference. ‘It’s run by incompetent, senile men.’ 

‘If I lived in Havana and I was in the government, I’d be concerned, at least a little bit,’ the secretary of state added. 

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The $60 Billion Question: Is Venezuela Secretly A Bitcoin Superpower?

Alex Saab may control $60 billion in Bitcoin for the Maduro regime. As Trump’s naval blockade tightens, the real battle is being fought on the blockchain.

Nicolás Maduro is in U.S. custody. In the early hours of Saturday morning, Delta Force operators dragged the Venezuelan president and his wife from their bedroom in Caracas and flew them to the USS Iwo Jima, now steaming toward New York where Maduro will face drug trafficking and weapons charges in federal court.

But as Washington celebrates the most dramatic U.S. military operation in Latin America since the 1989 Panama invasion, a more urgent question is emerging in intelligence circles: Where is the money?

For years, Maduro and his inner circle systematically looted Venezuela—billions in oil revenue, gold reserves, and state assets—and, according to sources with direct knowledge of the operation, converted much of it into cryptocurrency.

The man who allegedly orchestrated that conversion, who built the shadow financial architecture that kept the regime alive under crushing sanctions, is not on that ship.

His name is Alex Saab.

And he may be the only person on Earth who knows how to access what sources estimate could be as much as $60 billion in Bitcoin—a figure that, if verified, would make the Maduro regime’s hidden fortune one of the largest cryptocurrency holdings on the planet, rivaling MicroStrategy and potentially exceeding El Salvador’s entire national reserve.

The claim comes from HUMINT sources and has not been confirmed through blockchain analysis, but the underlying math is provocative.

Venezuela exported 73.2 tons of gold in 2018 alone — roughly $2.7 billion at the time. If even a fraction of that was converted to Bitcoin when prices hovered between $3,000 and $10,000, and held through the 2021 peak of $69,000, the returns would be staggering.

Sources familiar with the operation describe a systematic effort to convert gold proceeds into cryptocurrency through Turkish and Emirati intermediaries, then move the assets through mixers and cold wallets beyond the reach of Western enforcement.

The keys to those wallets, sources say, are held by a small circle of trusted operatives—with Saab at the center.

What Washington didn’t know—and what court documents would later reveal—was that Saab had been a DEA informant since 2016, even as he built Maduro’s shadow financial empire.

Now, with Maduro captured, the question becomes: Will Saab cooperate again? Or will he disappear with the keys to Venezuela’s stolen fortune?

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Trump: We Are in Venezuela Now, and We Are Going to Stay

Following a military operation that captured President Nicolas Maduro, President Donald Trump said the US would run Venezuela until an acceptable government is set up. 

“We are going to run [Venezuela] until such time as we can do a safe, proper, and judicious transition. We don’t want to be involved with having somebody else get in and we have the same situation that we had,” the President said on Saturday. “We are there now, and we are going to stay until the proper transition takes place.”

Trump went on to say that the US is prepared to attack Venezuela again. “We are ready to stage a second, much larger attack if we need to do so.” He continued, “All political and military figures in Venezuela should understand what happened to Maduro can happen to them, and it will happen to them if they aren’t fair.”

The President did not name a new leader of Venezuela. However, María Corina Machado said, “Today we are prepared to enforce our mandate and take power.” Machado is a Venezuelan opposition figure who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2025. She has endorsed US sanctions and military action against Venezuela. 

Trump did say he had not spoken with Machado, adding that she doesn’t have the respect needed to lead the country. 

Vice President Delcy Rodriguez said following the attack that she had activated Maduro’s military plans. “The first thing President Maduro told the people of Venezuela was ‘people to the streets,’ activated as militia, activating all the Nation’s comprehensive defense plans,” the vice president said. “No one will undermine the historic legacy of our Liberator father, Simon Bolivar. The people of Venezuela, in perfect national unity, must mobilize to defend their natural resources and what is most sacred: their right to independence and to the future.”

Trump claimed his administration spoke with Rodriguez, who agreed to work with the US. 

When asked by the press, Trump refused to give a timeline on how long American control over Venezuela would last. The President said Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth would act as the viceroys of Venezuela.

Trump added that he was willing to deploy American troops to occupy the South American nation. “We’re not afraid of boots on the ground,” the President explained. He claimed Washington would pay for the occupation of Venezuela with profits from the country’s oil. 

Trump said no Americans were killed and no military equipment was lost in the operation that captured Maduro early Saturday. Caracas has not reported on the Venezuelan casualties from the American raid and strikes. 

Trump said he ordered the attack on Venezuela because Maduro was trafficking narcotics to the US, hosting Washington’s adversaries, and stealing American oil. Venezuela is not a major drug trafficking hub and is not listed by the Drug Enforcement Agency as responsible for fentanyl entering the US. 

The President and Rubio suggested a similar operation could take place in Cuba. 

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Let’s talk about…US invasion of Venezuela and “capture” of Maduro

The story is that a meticulously planned special forces raid resulted in Nicolas Maduro and his wife being dragged from their bedroom and whisked out of the country. They are reportedly en route to New York on a US naval ship.

This was foreshadowed late last year, when laughable stories about the US Special Forces “rescuing” Venezuelan “opposition leader” María Corina Machado. The Nobel Peace laureate (ha!) was said to be “in hiding” before that, in fear of the Maduro regime.

It’s a ridiculous story, but we live in the age of ridiculous stories.

In terms of reaction, the predictable people from each side are having their pre-programmed reactions. There’s going to be a lot of talk about sovereignty and the greater good in the next few weeks.

…but I can’t help but feel this is just another story designed to set a meta-narrative.

The US is going to heel turn and take down the notion of national interests and “old-fashioned individualism” in the process. Since it’s about oil, we’ll be told this is one more reason to focus on renewable energy, and that climate change is making warfare more likely and is thus an international security emergency.

People who die in “climate or energy conflicts” will be added to the “climate-related deaths” statistics.

And you know what would stop things like this from happening?

Global government.

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Trump SBA SUSPENDS Nearly 7,000 Minnesota Borrowers Amid Suspected PPP and EIDL Fraud

The Trump administration’s Small Business Administration announced Thursday that it has suspended 6,900 Minnesota borrowers after uncovering a widespread suspected fraud tied to COVID-19 relief programs.

According to the agency, an internal review of Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) approvals in Minnesota revealed nearly $400 million in potentially fraudulent loans—money that was supposed to keep small businesses afloat and American workers employed during the pandemic.

SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler said the agency reviewed thousands of pandemic-era loans approved in Minnesota and identified 7,900 PPP and EIDL loans connected to the suspended borrowers.

In a blunt statement posted to X, Loeffler laid out the scope of the action:

“Over the last week, SBA has reviewed thousands of potentially fraudulent pandemic-era PPP and EIDL loans approved in Minnesota.

Today, our agency took action to suspend 6,900 Minnesota borrowers amid suspected fraudulent activity. In total, these borrowers were approved for 7,900 PPP and EIDL loans worth approximately $400M.

These individuals will be banned from all SBA loan programs, including disaster loans, going forward. We will also refer every case, where appropriate, to federal law enforcement for prosecution and repayment.

After years, the American people will finally begin to see the criminals who stole from law-abiding taxpayers held accountable – and this is just the first state.”

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Nicolas Maduro and Wife Indicted in Southern District of New York After Being Captured, Flown Out of Country During Venezuela Attack

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife have been indicted in the Southern District of New York following his capture during a US military operation in the middle of the night. 

“Nicolas Maduro has been charged with Narco-Terrorism Conspiracy, Cocaine Importation Conspiracy, Possession of Machineguns and Destructive Devices, and Conspiracy to Possess Machineguns and Destructive Devices against the United States,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said. 

Explosions were reported across Venezuela’s capital, Caracas, early this morning.

This comes after Trump confirmed that US forces conducted the first land strike against a drug trafficking facility in Venezuela earlier this week. “There was a major explosion in the dock area where they load the boats up with drugs,” Trump told reporters at Mar-a-Lago.

President Trump announced the successful “large scale strike against Venezuela and its leader,” adding that Maduro and his wife were captured and flown out of the country.

The President further announced that a news conference will be held at his Mar-a-Lago home this morning at 11 am ET.

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President Trump Issues the First Vetoes of His Second Term

It took about 11 months, but President Donald Trump has finally issued the first vetoes of his second term.

And like most things involving the president, the moves aren’t without their critics — including some you might not normally expect pushback from.

The “Miccosukee Reserved Area Amendments Act” is a bill aimed at expanding the land set aside for the Miccosukee Tribe inside Everglades National Park by officially including a section known as Osceola Camp.

Trump had a couple of issues with this.

The residential community in that area “was constructed in 1935, without authorization, in a low area that was raised with fill material,” Trump’s explanation read.

“None of the current structures in the Osceola Camp are over 50 years old, nor do they meet the other criteria to be considered for listing in the National Register of Historic Places,” Trump wrote to the House.

He added that, “the Miccosukee Tribe has actively sought to obstruct reasonable immigration policies that the American people decisively voted for when I was elected.” That appears to be a direct reference to the tribe’s publicized opposition — including a lawsuit against the Trump administration — to the “Alligator Alcatraz” detention center in Florida, as noted by The Associated Press.

The “Finish the Arkansas Valley Conduit Act,” meanwhile, is a bill designed to make it easier for rural Colorado communities to complete a long‑planned water pipeline project that will facilitate drinking water to people in the Arkansas River Valley.

Trump appeared to take specific issue with the price tag and repayment plans for this project.

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Medvedev’s forecast that Trump is an ‘establishment insider’ proved accurate

At the height of the 2024 U.S. presidential campaign, when then-candidate Donald Trump was running around telling anyone who would listen that he would end the Ukraine War within 24 hours of taking office, Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chairman of Russia’s national security council, raised doubts and called Trump an “establishment insider.”

“For all his apparent bravado as an ‘outsider,’ Trump is ultimately an establishment insider,” Medvedev said in September. He said the former president “would ultimately be unable to go against the anti-Russian line of the notorious Deep State, which is much stronger than any Trump.”

Once elected, Trump excited some of his base when he announced on social media that he would not be offering Cabinet positions to neocon warmongers like Mike Pompeo and Nikki Haley.

Before long, Trump proved that his new administration would be staffed with a new generation of Israel-first neocon warmongers.

Rachel Belvins, the podcaster, posted, “Trump really said ‘don’t worry, I’m not including ‘Pompeo and Haley’ only to turn around and choose people who would make us wish he brought them back. This is Trump’s Sec. of Defense, Pete Hegseth, who believes there’s no such thing as “dual loyalty” between the U.S. and Israel.”

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4 ways Team Trump reminded us of Bush-Cheney in 2025

Earlier this month, Republican Congressman Thomas Massie mocked the idea of a potential U.S. regime change war with Venezuela, ostensibly over drug trafficking.

“Do we truly believe that Nicholas Maduro will be replaced by a modern-day George Washington? How did that work out? In Cuba, Libya, Iraq, or Syria?”

“Previous presidents told us to go to war over WMDs, weapons of mass destruction, that did not exist,” he added, taking a direct dig at President George W. Bush. Now it’s the same playbook, except we’re told that drugs are the WMDs.”

In 2016 Trump ran for president as the anti-Bush, slamming the Iraq War justifications on the Republican primary debate stage. “Obviously, the war in Iraq was a big, fat mistake, all right? They lied. They said there were weapons of mass destruction. There were none, and they knew there were none,” Trump said then.

Now Team Trump talks about fentanyl being a WMD and teases war. Massie had a point in comparing Trump to Bush and Dick Cheney in more ways than one.

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