The United States has crossed a political threshold with respect to Venezuela that it no longer has much to hide. In Washington, senior members of Congress and the Trump administration are openly talking about an outcome for President Nicolas Maduro inspired by the precedent of Manuel Antonio Noriega. … The Panamanian leader was captured by the US military in 1989 and later transferred to a US prison.
Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of Donald Trump’s most influential foreign policy allies, bluntly stated on the X Network, “Bush Sr. removed Noriega in similar circumstances. We have drug caliphates in our neighborhood, including Venezuela, Colombia, and Cuba. The sooner Maduro leaves, the better for Venezuela and the United States.”
Graham’s words are not isolated gestures. These reflect the climate that is brewing as President Trump considers plans for selective attacks on Venezuelan territory and consolidates a large-scale military operation in the Caribbean under the name “Operation Southern Spear.”
Since September, the White House has maintained and constantly reviewed maps that include the Caribbean nation’s secret airstrips, fuel depots, Aragua train logistics hub and Sands cartel structures. The stated objective is the war on drugs. Undeclaration is to strip Chavismo of its financial and operational capacity until it forces an implosion. The White House envisions cocaine trafficking as the last source of income for dictators and their henchmen.
In this regard, Mr. Graham wanted to make clear that, in the president’s words, he is “fully committed” to stopping “the Venezuelan narcostate from continuing to poison Americans.” «Maduro is a drug trafficker, not a legitimate leader He will be indicted in a U.S. court and will not have much time left to live,” the senator added.
His message is consistent with the steps taken by the administration. Mr. Maduro’s compensation has doubled to $50 million, and Congress is considering increasing it further.
Ready for action
Military pressure intensifies. The aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford is already operating in the Caribbean carrying about 60 aircraft, supported by more than a dozen ships and thousands of additional troops. Marines were conducting amphibious landing training in Puerto Rico, and Navy forces destroyed more than 20 suspicious vessels without first attempting to board them. Even if they are not preparations for greater action, they are a huge deterrent.
At the White House, advisers are presenting Trump with options for attack, ranging from surgical strikes on critical infrastructure to riskier operations aimed at decapitating the Chavista leadership. There is no final decision, but it is clear that we are ready. One plan includes an operation to capture the dictator, but here in Washington, from the beginning, that was not seen as President Trump’s preferred option.
At the same time, legal concerns are growing. Senators who participated in the secret hearing explained that the government’s legal justification only covers attacks at sea, not bombing within Venezuelan territory. If President Trump orders a coup based on solid grounds, a debate over the War Powers Act will be inevitable. Iran’s precedent-setting June attack on the country’s nuclear program is weighing heavily on Congress, which has already experienced the White House acting first and being notified later.
Venezuela, crime capital
Caracas will respond to any invasion with the threat of “armed struggle.” But the prevailing view in Washington is that the window of opportunity is narrowing. “We have been describing Venezuela as a narco-state for years,” the national security official summed up. “We are now coordinating our military, legal and financial capabilities to ensure that this has real consequences.” The framework articulated to senators the idea of a “Noriega-style solution” in which leaders would be captured by the U.S. military and sent to prison.
The United States has argued for months that Venezuela is the epicenter of a regionally active criminal structure, with the Sands Cartel and Aragua Train protected by Chavista leadership. The Trump administration has already used the war on drugs as a legal and political tool to justify military operations in the Caribbean, including lethal operations against aircraft carriers, submarines, and suspicious vessels. On Capitol Hill, both Democrats and Republicans recognize that the country is heading toward a scenario unprecedented since Panama.
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