On January 3, 2026, President Trump announced a bold military operation that resulted in the capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro — a decisive action that many Americans have long wanted but politicians in Washington too often avoided. This was not a cautious press release but a real-world result: a dangerous thug is now out of power and the United States demonstrated it still has the will to act when tyranny crosses lines.
The president made clear that the operation was meant to produce real change, even bluntly saying the U.S. would oversee Venezuela until stability could be restored and its oil resources rebuilt by American companies. Critics howl about overreach, but conservatives understand that strength and accountability produce peace and protect American interests — something the timid foreign policy establishment has failed to deliver for decades.
Maduro and his wife were brought to the United States and are now facing criminal charges in New York, where they have appeared in federal court and pleaded not guilty, confronting accountability in a U.S. justice system they never respected. Let there be no mistaking it: this is a reckoning for corruption and narco-terrorism that inflicted misery on Venezuelans and threatened our hemisphere.
Unsurprisingly, much of the Democratic Party reacted with reflexive opposition, choosing partisan grandstanding over celebrating the removal of a brutal dictator — an instinct that reveals a deeper sickness in their political DNA. Insider reporting and caucus chatter show Democrats privately frustrated even as their leaders loudly denounce the mission, proving once again that opposition to Trump often trumps principle.
That reflexive opposition was on full display during a recent exchange when GOP commentator Scott Jennings bluntly told CNN’s Jake Tapper that many on the left will oppose any success by this president simply because he is Trump, leaving the host momentarily speechless. The clip is a reminder that much of the so-called media elite are less interested in facts or results than in preserving their own narrative and weaponizing outrage.
Patriots know the country needs leaders who will act, not leaders who wait for the next polling cycle to make moral choices. If removing Maduro brings relief to millions of suffering Venezuelans and curbs criminal networks, conservatives will cheer strength while demanding clarity of mission and a plan for a stable, democratic transition.
Washington’s professional skeptics should explain what they would have done instead while Maduro continued to brutalize his people and traffic in chaos. The time for reflexive anti-Trump posturing is over; Americans want results, accountability, and a foreign policy that defends freedom and advances our national interest.
