The U.S. government bombed Caracas, Venezuela, over the weekend, capturing its president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, Cilia Flores. This action was praised by many in South Carolina and the United States, as well as by many Venezuelans, both inside the country and around the world. But it was also strongly condemned by many global leaders who are worried about the broader implications.
Having worked with Venezuelan refugees at the U.S.-Mexican border – as well as in Colombia, Ecuador and here in the U.S. – I see why there is great joy in Maduro being removed. He was an illegitimate president and his government is accused of committing hundreds of thousands of human rights abuses against the country’s political opposition and her people.
It is important that we recognize the relief and joy that come with his removal from power – even though his political base still has significant power.
With that being said, the actions of the Trump administration are deeply problematic. First, the motivation clearly was not liberty, democracy or human rights. The Trump administration apparently has no problem supporting dictators around the world as long as they align with its agenda. Trump’s complete demolition of the U.S. Agency for International Development and refugee resettlement shows that human rights are not a driving factor.
Unlike what has been stated by the Trump administration, the conflict over Venezuela is also not about drugs. Only a small percentage of drugs in the United States come from Venezuela and almost no fentanyl. The true lack of concern about drugs can be seen in Trump recently pardoning the former president of Honduras, Juan Orlando Hernández, on substantial drug charges. The difference, of course, was that Hernández aligns with Trump politically.
Instead of being about democracy or national security, the incursion into Venezuela is largely about geopolitical dominance, oil – and perhaps a way to distract from the domestic woes, particularly the Epstein files. Though Venezuelans are right to be joyful in Maduro’s removal, the government that the Trump administration could put in place will also likely be deeply anti-democratic and oppressive.
This action in Venezuela also undermines our own republic and the balance of power. The U.S. Constitution says Congress must declare war. It is not the prerogative of a president to start capturing foreign leaders and implementing regime change. There is a deep irony in praising the removal of one dictator by methods that undermine our own democracy. This lawlessness is merely part of a larger pattern of the Trump administration ignoring Congress, established national law and the courts. In this invasion and bombing of Venezuela, our government is unfortunately mirroring the very same authoritarianism of the Maduro regime.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, this action deeply undermines international law and global stability. If we are allowed to unilaterally invade countries, what stops China, India, Russia or any other powerful nation from doing the same?
If there is no international law, all that is left is imperialism and the concept of “might makes right.” If we allow Trump to get away with these actions and even be praised for them, Venezuela will not be the last country invaded. It will undermine democracy throughout the world as nations will try to align themselves more with Trump’s far-right policies to not face U.S. aggression. In this way, we will become more like Russia and far less like a beacon of liberty and democracy championed by our founding fathers.
Maduro was a dictator, and no tears should be shed for him being removed from power, but if we are honest, Trump is the far greater danger to the world community. Before we worry about dictators in foreign lands, we should be concerned about our own strongman here in the United States.
Will McCorkle is a local college professor who lives in Summerville.
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