Tag: venezuela

Fetterman: If We Didn’t Want Maduro Removed, Why Did Biden Have a Bounty on Him?

On Monday’s broadcast of the Fox News Channel’s “Fox & Friends,” Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) pointed to President Joe Biden raising the bounty on Nicolas Maduro to $25 million in January of 2025 and said, “Democrats, years ago, wanted to eliminate him, and why have a bounty of $25 million if we didn’t want him gone? Why would you do these things if you weren’t willing to actually do something other than harsh language?”

Fetterman said, “I’ve seen the speeches from — whether it’s Leader Schumer or…past tweets from President Biden, we all wanted this man gone, and now he is gone.”

He added, “Democrats, we all used to describe him as a dictator or a tyrant or a terrible person, and it wasn’t less than a year ago, President Biden raised the bounty [to] $25 million, less than a year ago.”

Fetterman further said, “Now, remember, we all — Democrats, years ago, wanted to eliminate him, and why have a bounty of $25 million if we didn’t want him gone? Why would you do these things if you weren’t willing to actually do something other than harsh language?” And “if you are putting in these $25 million [bounties] and calling that he has to go…are you willing to do more than just harsh language on social media?”

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Trump DOJ Admits Venezuela’s ‘Cartel De Los Soles’ Isn’t An Actual Organization

A major plank in the Trump administration’s case for military intervention in Venezuela is looking thinner today, as the Department of Justice has retreated from the notion that captured President Nicolas Maduro was the head of an organized drug cartel called Cartel de los Soles. The DOJ now says the term “Cartel de los Soles” is merely descriptive of a “culture of corruption” fueled by the illegal drug trade.

This isn’t semantics: Both the Treasury and State Departments had officially designated the non-existent group as a terrorist organization. The latest development seems to at least partially confirm doubts raised by outside observers and lend credence to denials by the Venezuelan government. In November, the country’s foreign minister said he “absolutely rejects the new and ridiculous fabrication” by which Secretary of State Marco Rubio had “designated the non-existent Cartel de los Soles as a terrorist organization.”

The retreat from the idea that Cartel de los Soles is an actual organization was apparent in the DOJ’s filing of a superseding (updated) indictment. The previous indictment referred to the supposed cartel 32 times, naming Maduro as its chief. The new one only mentions the term twice, and says it’s only descriptive of a “patronage system” and a “culture of corruption” propelled by drug money. That’s consistent with the fact that the DEA’s annual National Drug Threat Assessment has never mentioned any “Cartel de los Soles” in its cataloguing of major traffickers.  

In July, the Treasury sanctioned Cartel de los Soles as a “Specially Designated Global Terrorist,” claiming it was a “criminal group headed by…Maduro.” The “cartel” was accused of providing material support to two groups already on U.S. terrorist lists: Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel and Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua. Of course, those terrorist designations are themselves controversial, with critics saying the government is purposefully conflating criminality and terrorism. The latter term has long been understood to describe violence directed at civilians with the goal of achieving a political or ideological goal. Historically, exaggerated use of the term has largely been confined to the left. 

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Switzerland freezes assets of Venezuela’s Maduro and his inner circle

Switzerland has frozen all assets belonging to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and individuals from his close circle, the Swiss government said.

“The Federal Council decided to freeze any assets held in Switzerland by Nicolas Maduro and other persons associated with him with immediate effect,” the statement reads.

The measure is said to ensure that “any illicitly acquired assets cannot be transferred out of Switzerland in the current situation.” The Federal Council added that the asset freeze targets individuals who have not previously been sanctioned in Switzerland and will not affect members of the current Venezuelan government. “The asset freeze is in addition to the sanctions against Venezuela that have been in place since 2018 under the Embargo Act,” the statement says.

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Revealed: Deep State Saboteurs TRAITOROUSLY LEAKED Trump’s Venezuela Plans BEFORE The Raid

In a brazen act of betrayal, holdovers from the Biden era leaked classified details of President Trump’s high-stakes military operation against Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro to legacy media giants, aiming to torpedo the mission and potentially cost American lives.

Yet, in a rare show of restraint born from fear, The New York Times and Washington Post sat on the story, citing concerns for troop safety – a decision likely influenced by Trump’s relentless legal assaults on defamatory reporting that have left the media reeling.

The operation, greenlit by Trump on Friday night, culminated in Maduro’s swift capture early Saturday, marking a decisive blow against the socialist regime that has flooded America’s borders with chaos and drugs. However, it could have all gone disastrously, given that details of the top-secret incursion were leaked to both The New York Times and The Washington Post by an unidentified party, according to sources familiar with the communications.

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COUP D’ÉTAT IN VENEZUELA? Heavy Gunfire in Caracas, Anti-Aircraft Artillery Firing Non-Stop – Armed Groups Moving Through the City, Clashing With Government Troops 

The Bolivarian regime seems to be eating itself, now.

Monday night erupted in heavy firefights in Caracas, more specifically in areas of Miraflores, where the presidential palace is located.

This comes a mere hours after the interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, was formally sworn in.

Rumors have been circulating that Maduro’s right-hand man, Diosdado Cabello, was planning a coup d’état against Rodríguez.

Apparently, her first decisions were not to the liking of the generals of the highly ideological Bolivarian Armed Forces of Venezuela.

Diosdado controls many of the ‘colectivos of Venezuela’, far-left, heavily armed paramilitary groups operating independently of the Government.

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There’s Compelling Evidence That Someone Connected to the Trump Administration Profited Off the Invasion of Venezuela by Placing Large Bets on Polymarket

Prediction markets like Polymarket and Kalshi have long garnered a reputation for facilitating cheating and insider trading — allowing an athlete, for instance, to place a bet on a game they could then lose on purpose.

Now there’s compelling evidence that someone with inside information about the Trump administration’s regime change plans in Venezuela used that foreknowledge to profit massively from the conflict.

As spotted by researcher Tyson Brody, an unidentified user bet tens of thousands of dollars on various predictions that Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro would be imminently “out” or that the US forces would show up “in Venezuela by” a specified date during the runup to the incursion.

The account “existed for only one week and quickly became the biggest ‘yes’ holder in the Maduro out market,” Brody tweeted.

The evidence of insider trading is compelling, to say the least, given the highly suspicious timing. The account invested over $30,000 less than two days before the United States launched its invasion to kidnap Maduro and his wife and “profited $400,000 in less than 24 hours,” as sports entrepreneur Joe Pompliano calculated in a post on Bluesky.

“Seems pretty suspicious!” he added. “[Secretary of defense] Pete Hegseth making some beer money on the side?” Brody joked.

“Insider trading is not only allowed on prediction markets; it’s encouraged,” Pompliano argued.

Who was behind the Polymarket account remains a mystery. Accounts on markets like Polymarket are anonymous, and payouts are in cryptocurrency, making them hard to track.

As Semafor reported over the weekend, news organizations also had early intel of the US raid on Venezuela, but held off publishing the information so as not to put US troops in danger.

In other words, could it have been an insider at a New York or Washington newsroom who was trying to make a buck — or was it an operative inside the Trump administration?

Prediction markets have long raised concerns over exactly these types of situations. Case in point, one Polymarket user made $1 million in 24 hours in early December after betting on Google’s 2025 Year in Search rankings. Per Forbes, the account had a “near-perfect record of 22 correct predictions out of 23 attempts.”

As The American Prospect points out, critics of the Trump administration have long accused officials of dabbling in similar behavior. The administration has also allowed the prediction market to flourish by dropping enforcement cases in the crypto world and failing to introduce meaningful regulations.

Even Trump Media and Technology Group (TMTG), which owns the president’s social network, Truth Social, entered the prediction markets business last year, showing a pointed appetite for the space.

“Of course insiders shouldn’t be able to get rich off of policy decisions — but even more concerning is the possibility that people are skewing policy outcomes in order to make their bets pay off,” Demand Progress executive director Sean Vitka told The American Prospect.

One thing’s for sure: while insiders profit, those without that privileged information lose out — and when the bets are on a deadly conflict, innocent people stand to suffer as well.

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Dems Screeched for Maduro’s Ouster—Until Trump Delivered It

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is rushing to block President Trump’s successful operation to arrest Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro, labeling it “lawlessness” and a violation of congressional authority—despite Schumer himself and a string of Democrats and their media mouthpieces previously blasting Trump for failing to end the Maduro regime.

With Maduro now in custody and the U.S. overseeing a transition in Venezuela, Democrats have immediately cried foul, with Schumer appearing on ABC’s “This Week” to decry the move as unauthorized nation-building that will cost American lives and dollars.

Schumer declared, “The American people this morning are scratching their heads in wonderment and in fear of what the president has proposed,” adding, “We have learned through years when America tries to do regime change and nation building in this way, the American people pay the price in both blood and in dollars.”

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Moaist Propaganda Shill and Tech Millionaire Neville Roy Singham Reportedly Funded Marxist Group that Organized Anti-US Protests After Tyrant Maduro Was Arrested on Saturday

In August 2023, The New York Times published a rare informative and honest piece of journalism. The New York Times exposed the so-called anti-war group Code Pink as a Communist China shill or front group.

Kristinn Taylor reported at the time.

Code Pink co-founder Jodie Evans, 68, has deep roots in the Democratic Party, having served as the campaign manager for the 1992 presidential campaign of former California Governor Jerry Brown. In the 2008 presidential campaign, Evans served as a host for Obama fundraisers in Hollywood with her then husband Max Palevsky (who passed away in 2010 at age 85) and as a campaign bundler.

Evans married Singham, 69, in 2017.

Trump was the only U.S. president to not start any new wars in his first term, yet the so-called antiwar group Code Pink stood against him in his first term – and now in his second term.

It is clear Code Pink is not an “anti-war” group. Instead, Code Pink is a shill for the communists.

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Kamala Harris Humiliates Herself Condemning Capture of Maduro

It’s been over a year now since her humiliating loss to President Donald Trump, yet for some reason, Kamala Harris still hasn’t figured out that she’s a joke and should fade away into the sunset rather than subject herself to future embarrassment for opening her mouth.

Like many other Democrats who have decided that opposing the capture of a dictator is the hill they want to die on, Kamala took to X on Saturday to condemn Donald Trump’s successful military operation that captured Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.

I guess she’s still on the DNC email list for the latest talking points.

“Donald Trump’s actions in Venezuela do not make America safer, stronger, or more affordable,” she claimed. “That Maduro is a brutal, illegitimate dictator does not change the fact that this action was both unlawful and unwise. We’ve seen this movie before. Wars for regime change or oil that are sold as strength but turn into chaos, and American families pay the price.”

Her post continued:

The American people do not want this, and they are tired of being lied to.

This is not about drugs or democracy. It is about oil and Donald Trump’s desire to play the regional strongman. If he cared about either, he wouldn’t pardon a convicted drug trafficker or sideline Venezuela’s legitimate opposition while pursuing deals with Maduro’s cronies.

The President is putting troops at risk, spending billions, destabilizing a region, and offering no legal authority, no exit plan, and no benefit at home.

America needs leadership whose priorities are lowering costs for working families, enforcing the rule of law, strengthening alliances, and — most importantly — putting the American people first.

As I pointed out yesterday, Trump has not gotten us into another war. This was a surgical strike that accomplished its objective without a hitch. The statement is curiously similar to pretty much every other Democrats’ statement on the successful mission.

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Democrats Fundraise in Protest of Trump Admin’s Capture of Venezuelan Socialist Dictator Nicolás Maduro

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is fundraising in protest of the Trump administration’s capture of Venezuela’s illegitimate socialist dictator, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, Cilia Flores. 

“Another day, another unconstitutional war from Trump, who thinks the Constitution is a suggestion,” an email from the DNC reads, per Town Hall. “Congress has war powers — but Republican cowards are hiding under their desks while Trump orders an unauthorized attack against Venezuela. Trump promised peace, but has delivered chaos.”

“The most important thing we can do is elect more Democrats who will check this administration’s power,” the email continues. 

The email was reportedly sent the same morning President Trump ordered the arrest of Maduro for a long list of crimes, including narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy, possession of machine guns and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices against the United States.
DNC Chairman Ken Martin also released a statement condemning the arrest and claiming the Trump administration acted illegally. 

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