Democratic lawmakers are hammering President Donald Trump's regime-change operation in Venezuela, which he seems to have done to enrich the wealthy oil and gas tycoons who supported his candidacy.
Multiple Democratic lawmakers pointed to Trump's admission aboard Air Force One that he had briefed oil companies ahead of the U.S.’s capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro—and before he notified members of Congress. Clearly, this has nothing to do with illicit drugs and everything to do with Trump wanting to line the pockets of his oil and gas donors. Venezuela has some of the largest oil reserves in the world.
Most concerning of all, Trump and his administration appear to have no plan for what comes after Maduro’s capture. That risks further destabilizing the country, echoing the United State’s boondoggle in Iraq, where the U.S.’s regime-change operation lasted nearly two decades, led thousands of American troops to die, and cost hundreds of billions of dollars.
"Trump risked American lives to kidnap Maduro just to have him replaced by one of Maduro's authoritarian cronies. This has nothing to do with drugs or ousting an authoritarian leader. It's a clown car of incompetence in an effort to enrich oil companies," Sen. Ron Wyden, Democrat of Oregon, wrote in a post on X.
Other Democratic lawmakers echoed those sentiments.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, second from right, gets off a helicopter on his way to Manhattan Federal Court on Jan. 5.
"History shows that America's post-WW2 regime change enthusiasts are almost always wrong. And in Venezuela, it appears Trump has spent billions on a mission that has left the same people in charge. Just maybe with more favorable deals for Trump's oil buddies," Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut wrote in a post on X.
Democratic Sen. Patty Murray of Washington tied Trump’s Venezuela attacks to the chaos and cruelty Trump has inflicted at home.
"While millions of Americans lose health care and prices are surging here at home, Trump doesn't care and has no solutions. Instead, he is threatening to bomb half the Western Hemisphere, occupy Venezuela, and annex Greenland," she wrote in a post on X. "Is this America First?"
Others have pointed out that Trump’s argument that Maduro had to be arrested for drug trafficking makes little sense given that Trump recently pardoned former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández, who was convicted and sentenced to 45 years in prison for drug trafficking.
“I have not seen a single Republican official or MAGA influencer offer a credible explanation of Trump's decision to pardon the drug trafficking ex-president of Honduras,” Democratic Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts wrote in a post on X. “You cannot credibly argue that trafficking sometimes gets a pardon and sometimes requires a war.”
Of course, there's one Democratic lawmaker who is marching to the beat of his very wrong drum: Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman.
“Why, as a Democrat, can’t we just acknowledge it was successful?” Fetterman said.
However, Fetterman is missing the point of Democrats' criticism. It’s not that Democrats think Maduro should be in power. On the contrary, they think he is indeed corrupt and evil.
Rather, Democrats have correctly said Congress should have been involved in authorizing this operation, and that the Trump administration needed to disclose its plans after Maduro's ouster to ensure this situation doesn't go south in the way that past regime-change operations have.
So far, it looks like Trump and his crew have no plan for what comes next, and that Americans will once again be left holding the bag.
"This is a moment for careful coordination with our allies and partners, and work with the opposition in Venezuela—not glib assertions about running the country and using oil revenues to pay for it. This is a moment for the focus to be on American families, not American oil executives who donated to Trump’s campaign," Sen. Andy Kim, Democrat of New Jersey, wrote in a post on X.
"We’ve got millions of American families wondering why their dollars are going to attacks in Venezuela instead of healthcare at home. You deserve answers, not premature victory celebrations,” he added.
