A Whole LOT of pieces flying around…..
Maduro and his wife are now in a Brooklyn , N.Y. Federal jail, having been flown out of his country….
They go before a Federal judge sometime Monday…
There have be protests outside the Brooklyn Jail….
Trump & Co. Thought the Venezula’s newly appointed Leader , VP Delcy Rodríguez, would be cooperative , in public, for the American President’s ‘Show’….
She and the countries Defense Minister have stated they ARE ‘Still in Charge’ of their country against Trump’s empty boast that ‘We will run it’….
Of course the United States is NOT gonna assume operational control over a country of 30 Million + people...
There are no American combat troops on the ground there…..
He’s having issues running just one….
Actually?
Trump just wants control, or a cut of the countries Vast oil reserves…..
(The American oil Compony Cheveron operates in country Already )
Venezuela also has contacts with Cuba and Russia….
Those countries aren’t gonna just stand by with their hands in their pockets…..
Other countries in South America have strong economic ties with America but could be worried about a American President that might want to get more from their countries natural resources…
Trump has also threatened Cuba, Columbia and Mexico in throw away remarks….
There Isn’t enough US Troop’s or political will for anything like THAT…
But I’m sure US Defense Sec Hegseth would give a go at ….
Oh?
A New York Times reporter actually called and spoke to Donald Trump on his cell phone minutes after the 4:30 AM Venezuela Op was announced….
(Who else was listening?….The NSA, Russians, Chinese, Israeli’s?….Donald don’t care probably)
Venezuela’s defense minister on Sunday rejected any notion that the United States would “run” his country, projecting an official line of defiance as the Trump administration said it would seek to exert “leverage” over the country’s leadership.
The White House has said it believes that Venezuela’s government, under the interim leader Delcy Rodríguez, will fall in line and largely comply with its demands after the capture of President Nicolás Maduro. The nature of the private conversations between Venezuela’s government and U.S. officials is unclear.
Publicly, Ms. Rodríguez and the defense minister, Vladimir Padrino López, have said the government that was in place under Mr. Maduro is still in charge. In a fiery speech broadcast Sunday on state television, Mr. Padrino López channeled decades of Venezuelan nationalism and said that the country’s armed forces would “continue to employ all its available capabilities for military defense, the maintenance of internal order and the preservation of peace.”
“Our sovereignty has been violated and breached,” he said, backed by uniformed soldiers. Mr. Padrino López said that U.S. forces had killed a “large part” of Mr. Maduro’s security detail in the raid that apprehended him, part of a death toll of soldiers and civilians that rose to 80 on Sunday.
Mr. Maduro is in a Brooklyn jail with his wife, who were both indicted on federal drug trafficking and weapons charges. They are expected to make their initial appearances in federal court on Monday.
In a series of television appearances on Sunday, the U.S. secretary of state, Marco Rubio, said that the U.S. military would maintain a “quarantine” around Venezuela to prevent the entry and exit of oil tankers under American sanctions.
But though President Trump has said the United States intends to “run” Venezuela and reclaim American oil interests after ousting Mr. Maduro, Pentagon officials said that there were currently no U.S. military personnel in the country.
In an interview with CBS News’ “Face the Nation,” Mr. Rubio said that the large U.S. naval force amassed in the Caribbean Sea off Venezuela will remain “until we see changes, not just to further the national interest of the United States, which is No. 1, but also that lead to a better future for the people of Venezuela.”
Trump administration officials indicated that the large U.S. military force, which includes 15,000 troops as well as aircraft and warships, was a signal to the Venezuelan authorities that they must act more favorably toward the United States or risk what Mr. Trump called a “second wave” of attacks.
Here’s what else to know:
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Oil reserves: Mr. Rubio focused on Sunday, as Mr. Trump did a day earlier, on the opportunities for American companies in Venezuela’s oil sector, and on the need for Venezuelan officials to clamp down on drug trafficking. Mr. Trump made clear his desire to open up Venezuela’s vast state-controlled oil reserves to American oil companies, saying, “We are going to run the country right.” But U.S. intervention could prove complicated and expensive. Read more ›
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U.S. strike: At least 80 Venezuelans, including civilians and soldiers, were killed in the Caracas raid early Saturday, according to a senior Venezuelan official. No American service members were killed. Read more ›
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Drug charges: An indictment unsealed by a federal judge in New York City charged Mr. Maduro, his wife, Cilia Flores, and four others with four counts, including narco-terrorism, conspiracy to import cocaine and possession of machine guns. Despite the U.S. focus on cocaine trafficking, experts say Venezuela’s role in that trade is modest. Mr. Maduro was being held at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center, and he and Ms. Flores were expected to make their first appearance in Manhattan federal court soon. Read more ›
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Protests and celebrations: Some people took to the streets of Chicago and Washington on Saturday to protest the U.S. military intervention. Venezuelan migrants in New York cheered Mr. Maduro’s removal from power. Read more ›
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Nobel winner: Venezuela’s main opposition leader, María Corina Machado, who recently won the Nobel Peace Prize, posted a statement asking that her political ally, Edmundo González, be recognized as Venezuela’s president immediately. Ms. Machado had sought in recent months to curry favor with Mr. Trump, but on Saturday he said she lacked the “respect” needed to govern Venezuela.
Note…
The planning group for Operation Absolute Resolve
Included White House staff Sec of State Rubio, Stephen Miller, Defense Sec Hegseth, VP Vance and others….
The capture was done US Army Delta, CIA and FBI Special Operators …
The whole op included drones, Air Force Fighter Jet and US Arms Spec Ops Helo’s (I60 SOAR?)…..
We ARE gonna keep guessing what coming FROM Trump and Hegseth ……
Hegseth maybe flexing around south of the border, but the after effects will land in Trump and Republicans in general as the dust settles …..
As has been pointed out?
In modern times stuff like Trump’s pulling does NOT work out …..
Stepping on countries toes IS gonna get Trump shit he’s gonna have problems with
Donald Trump WAS the President that started the running out of Afghanistan
The same Trump that keeps boasting of ‘running’ Venezuela?
I could be very wrong, but I don’t think so
Trump and Co ARE complying a deepening MESS that is gonna cost America…..
Snap poll has only 33% of Americans approving Trump/Hegseth latest ‘campaign’
Someone earlier mentioned that Trump probably doesn’t know what McKinley did.
Rich Lowry at National Review compares D.J.T. to T.R., Taft and Wilson:
https://www.nationalreview.com/2026/01/teddy-roosevelt-would-be-proud/
Trump HAS a McKinley picture up in the Oval Office I believe….
Hawaii, the Philippines (against their people’s will), Cuba and Puerto Rico all became U.S. dependencies under Wm McKinley (while T.R. was Assistant Secretary of the Navy).