Breaking: Venezuela attacked by U.S. Update: Maduro and wife captured.

[RocksInMyHead]

No, so we aren't at war with anyone. We haven't started any war either.

Did anyone claim otherwise?

 

[durangodawood]

No, so we aren't at war with anyone. We haven't started any war either.

Did anyone claim otherwise?

We initiated an act of war. Thats "war". Fortunately the enemy is incapable of striking back, and so hopefully violence ends there.

But using force to depose and kidnap a head of state is absolutely an act of war.

 

[RocksInMyHead]

We initiated an act of war. Thats "war". Fortunately the enemy is incapable of striking back, and so hopefully violence ends there.

But using force to depose and kidnap a head of state is absolutely an act of war.

I agree - I'm just addressing pedantry.

 

[durangodawood]

I guess the rest of the world knew it as well?

There was hardly any reporting on how Cheney was going to CIA all the time to in person ensure the (sketchy) WMD supporting intel was advanced while the considerable countervailing intel was squashed.

Did Bush really have a grasp of all that? Quite possibly not. He may have just been the dupe the neocons rode in on. Him and his voters too.

 

[wing2000]

No, so we aren't at war with anyone. We haven't started any war either.

Right, it's simply a law enforcement action.....that happened to use some 150 military aircraft to carry out.

Will a 2nd, larger strike occur later tonight? Or the night after?
Will more VE government officials be taken?
He claims he will "run the country" until a peaceful transition can occur.

But yea, we are not at war. So rest easy right?

 

[Aryeh Jay]

...wow, what drug did they administer to make him look so young?

I guess I posted the wrong picture, I've been up since 0520 Saturday and finally get to go to sleep. I bought some ships coins before they change the design. Here is my ships current challenge coin.

 

[loveofourlord]

Trump responds to concerns about long US stay, saying 'it won't cost us anything'​

Trump was asked about the possibility that the U.S. "ends up administering Venezuela for years."
"Well, you know, it won't cost us anything, because the money coming out of the ground is very substantial," the president said.

I love what he said, "it won't cost us anything, the companies will pay for it, and then we will reimburse them....

 

[Valletta]

Notification to certain committees or committee members in congress has occurred in similar situations without problem. It would be the normal thing to do.

The reason for a president to do it is to demonstrate that he has the slightest regard for the way the US constitution assigns and limits the powers of the various branches of govt.

As far as I know we don't have a list of who Trump kept in the loop.

 

[Larniavc]

And by the way, we aren't at war with Venezuela.

Special Military Action.

 

[Tuur]

The First Seminole War was most likely fought under the sole authorization of General Andrew Jackson. He claimed he had presidential approval for his actions, but I haven't been able to verify that he actually received it.

Based on a side event that happened in 1818, I think that he did. I don't think Gen. Jackson would have gotten "into it" as much as he did with Gov. Rabun (Georgia) over state authority to conduct actions when a Federal officer was in the field if he didn't have a legal leg to stand on.

 

[wing2000]

....about those oil fields.

“We’re going to have our very large United States oil companies, the biggest anywhere in the world, go and spend billions of dollars to fix the badly broken infrastructure, the oil infrastructure.”
-Donald Trump, January 3, 2026

“Every major oil company in the world and some of the smaller ones will look closely at this because there are very few places on Earth where you could increase production so much,” said Francisco Monaldi, director of the Latin American Energy Program at Rice University. “But first you need political stability and clarity.”

He said restoring peak oil production there would cost up to $100 billion and take about a decade. And that is assuming there is enough political stability for companies to operate unencumbered during that entire period.

There are other obstacles. The oil in Venezuela is a heavy form of crude that is more difficult to process and carries a heavier carbon footprint than oil pumped elsewhere. Venezuela’s power grid is on the brink, creating an uncertain outlook for oil production, which requires massive amounts of energy. Also, Russian and Chinese firms partnered with Venezuela after U.S. companies left the nation, complicating the reestablishment of U.S. firms.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2026/01/03/venezuela-oil-production-us-companies/

 

[Aryeh Jay]

....about those oil fields.

“We’re going to have our very large United States oil companies, the biggest anywhere in the world, go and spend billions of dollars to fix the badly broken infrastructure, the oil infrastructure.”
-Donald Trump, January 3, 2026

“Every major oil company in the world and some of the smaller ones will look closely at this because there are very few places on Earth where you could increase production so much,” said Francisco Monaldi, director of the Latin American Energy Program at Rice University. “But first you need political stability and clarity.”

He said restoring peak oil production there would cost up to $100 billion and take about a decade. And that is assuming there is enough political stability for companies to operate unencumbered during that entire period.

There are other obstacles. The oil in Venezuela is a heavy form of crude that is more difficult to process and carries a heavier carbon footprint than oil pumped elsewhere. Venezuela’s power grid is on the brink, creating an uncertain outlook for oil production, which requires massive amounts of energy. Also, Russian and Chinese firms partnered with Venezuela after U.S. companies left the nation, complicating the reestablishment of U.S. firms.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2026/01/03/venezuela-oil-production-us-companies/

You can't even begin to make a dent in the production of fentanyl until you secure the oil fields.

 

[FAITH-IN-HIM]

Why in earth would they notify congress? One leak would destroy this operation. What a ridiculous idea that anyone would suggest it. I'm not saying you did by the way. I'm just noting there are prople who did and what a dumb idea that would be.

Democrats will likely take similar actions when they are in power again. If you believe that not notifying Congress is acceptable now, be prepared for future presidents to follow the same approach.

 

[FAITH-IN-HIM]

For decades, presidents have briefed the "group of eight" before carrying out military operations against other countries. And there were no leaks.

I watched Richard Haass's explanation on this topic. According to him, there is no legal obligation for the administration to notify Congress before carrying out any military operation. Even deploying troops on the ground does not require notifying Congress under current laws.

however, every president has notified the Gang of Eight before taking military action. Secretary Rubio, a member of Gang of Eight during the operation against Bin Laden, was informed in advance and is familiar with this process.

However, the Trump administration has chosen not to follow precedents established by previous presidents. Their supporters appear to accept this approach. What is surprising is that these supporters do not seem concerned about the precedent such unconventional behavior may set. It is possible that future presidents may adopt similar practices when they come into office.

 

[FAITH-IN-HIM]

“Control” is not a rhetorical concept; it is a logistical one. Special operations forces and advisers cannot operate for more than days without a continuous supply of fuel, ammunition, maintenance, medical evacuation, intelligence, and rotation. That logistical tail requires secure ports, airfields, ground lines of communication, perimeter defense, and quick-reaction forces. Once you are securing bases, routes, and supply nodes, you are no longer talking about a light footprint, you are talking about brigade-level conventional forces and de facto occupation, whether the term is admitted or not.

The same logic applies to oil. Restoring Venezuelan production requires physical control of oil fields, refineries, pipelines, export terminals, and power infrastructure--all soft targets for even rudimentary guerrilla forces. Engineers, contractors, and shipping insurers will not operate without sustained security. That security cannot be episodic or outsourced; it must be continuous and territorial. In practice, protecting oil rehabilitation means military control of key regions for years, not weeks. Iraq demonstrated the cost of pretending otherwise.

This information is helpful for someone like me—thank you. If I recall correctly from your previous posts, you were at the Pentagon during the W. Bush administration.

Was there any internal discussion within the Pentagon or the Bush administration at that time about regime change in Venezuela or other southern countries? If so, why were those ideas never carried out?

I ask because I’ve read that since Reagan, other presidents considered regime change in Latin America but hesitated, knowing it would require troops on the ground—and deploying them would risk a situation like Vietnam.

 

[durangodawood]

This information is helpful for someone like me—thank you. If I recall correctly from your previous posts, you were at the Pentagon during the W. Bush administration.....

I dont always agree with him, but I eagerly anticipate RDkirk's input on topics like this because he has real knowledge and experience. And hes also quite sensible and not here on one partisan mission or another.

 

[MarkSB]

Will Trump and company actually send troops into Venezuela? I'm not convinced. So much of what Trump says is idle threats and uniformed/misinformed babble.

If troops do get sent in, it will be interesting (for lack of a better word) to see how this plays out politically. Initial thoughts from many of the pundits are that it could fracture the MAGA base, since staying out of foreign affairs and "nation building" were claimed to be core to his political beliefs. I don't buy that. His base has shown time and time again that they will follow him regardless of what he does. (And yes, that sends shivers down my spine).

 

[FAITH-IN-HIM]

Times have changed. Too much leakage going on.

President Trump used similar reasoning, citing leaks from the Gang of Eight. Can you provide an example where the Trump administration notified the Gang of Eight about an imminent military operation, information was leaked, and the military operation was jeopardized?

 

[Aryeh Jay]

Will Trump and company actually send troops into Venezuela? I'm not convinced. So much of what Trump says is idle threats and uniformed/misinformed babble.

If troops do get sent in, it will be interesting (for lack of a better word) to see how this plays out politically. Initial thoughts from many of the pundits are that it could fracture the MAGA base, since staying out of foreign affairs and "nation building" were claimed to be core to his political beliefs. I don't buy that. His base has shown time and time again that they will follow him regardless of what he does. (And yes, that sends shivers down my spine).

My question is, if the mission was accomplished with the capture, why am I still here? Oh, and several thousand Marines.

I mean, I would like to spend some time with my family I haven't seen since May 2025 at my private golf course too.

 

[wing2000]

My question is, if the mission was accomplished with the capture, why am I still here? Oh, and several thousand Marines.

I hear private security firms (Constellis/Blackwater) pay better. Their services may soon be needed to protect Venezuelan....err American crude oil.