On January 3, 2026, the United States forces under the leadership of Donald Trump conducted an operation in Venezuela and abducted its president, Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. Trump’s reasoning for the act was that Maduro was a narco terrorist who was poisoning the lives of Americans by supplying drugs, and that he was a “dictator” who was operating an authoritarian regime in Venezuela and oppressing its people.
In the early days since capturing Nicolás Maduro, Donald Trump had mostly maintained a Venezuela-first stance, emphasising during various press conferences that his focus would be on ensuring the safety and well-being of the Venezuelan people. However, Trump, who is often unable to hide his true self in front of people, let it slip a few times, giving people an idea about exactly what he is thinking and feeling. For instance, in one of his press conferences held just after Maduro’s capture, Trump expressed his wish to “run” Venezuela until there could be a proper transition of power. During the same conference, while trying to make it look like he was concerned about the betterment of Venezuelans, Trump also expressed his wish to explore the country’s oil reserves. If these hints weren’t enough for people to understand what Trump was really thinking, his Truth Social post from 2 days ago does.
