Blood, Oil, Bombs and Kidnapping

Happy New Year, I suppose. This email was originally going to be a review of the awful, some might say catastrophic (and potentially terminal for our democracy) first year of Trump’s second term. We would start the year by cataloging and contextualizing at least a small snippet of the myriad ways in which Trump and his cronies have dismantled and destroyed the apparatus of government built on behalf of the people keeping only the parts which can be used to enrich themselves.

However, we have to delay the accounting, because in true Trumpian fashion the regime has already kicked off the new year by illegally bombing Venezuela and abducting its President, Nicholas Maduro, along with his wife, and bringing them back to the United States in violation of both United States and International Law. A move we have to notice comes right on the heels of some very damaging Epstein files released over the holidays, including Jack Smith's video testimony under oath. Another story that will have to wait. Congress, who has the sole legal authority to declare war against another nation, was not even notified until after the “strategic” invasion took place. In the immediate aftermath it appears that Maduro’s vice president has assumed control (so was this even regime change?), and despite Trump claiming “mission accomplished,” the future remains highly uncertain.

No matter one’s feelings on Maduro himself, this attack was a profoundly reckless, dangerous, and immoral action, creating horrible precedent and further degrading an already fractured World Order. The attack, and its rationale (or lack thereof) tried to make it clear that “might makes right” in this new world order. A justification which to many “news” outlets seem all too happy to carry water for. One doesn’t have to like or approve of Maduro or his government to be against what Trump et. al. have done. In fact, Maduro’s successes and failures as a leader are besides the point. The United States should not unilaterally invade a country and kidnap its President simply because our leaders dislike each other.

There was no imminent threat to Americans here. This was a brutish exercise of naked power, done to show weaker nations the United States can, and will, remove a country’s leadership if they do not do exactly what they are told. It especially makes clear that international law and sovereignty mean nothing to these people. This is an insane precedent, which makes Taiwan more likely to be taken by China, Ukraine perhaps more likely to be taken by Russia, and creates more incentives for nuclear proliferation as it seems that only nuclear weaponry can act as a deterrent against great state power. Kim Jong Un of North Korea sadly seems more prescient everyday.

Comparisons will rightly be drawn between last week’s military strikes, and the illegal invasion of Panama in 1990, which removed Noriaga, almost 35 years ago to the day, as well as the “shock and awe” invasion of Iraq in 2003 and what these previous unwise actions portend for the future. In so many ways the Trump administration is simply walking in the footsteps of George Bush and Dick Cheney. But where 20 years ago these two war criminals needed to create a years-long propaganda campaign and to couch their war-mongering in national security language before invading Iraq, the Trump Administration has done no such thing. They have been absolutely naked in their interests, with Trump explicitly naming Venezuela’s oil wealth as a prime driver for launching the attack, and in the aftermath reiterating that US companies are going to take the Venezuelan oil and profit from it. A suggestion that not even the US oil companies seem excited about.

What's next could go in a number of ways: anything from momentary peace and stability as the new interim leaders manage to successfully walk the tightrope of competing interests, to civil war and mass migrations, to a tragic military quagmire with American boots on the ground as we attempt to “administer the country” according to Trump. In the long run nothing good will come for either the American nor the Venezuelan people from the sort of capricious and violent and thuggish behavior on display by the Trump regime. America has proven time and again that removing leaders from power is the easy part, what comes afterwards, rebuilding and making things better, that’s hard, And there's no indication that this Administration, which can't even be bothered to care for Americans at home has any inclination let alone ability to do so.

2025 was already a year of transformation, and 2026 has already seen a further degradation of international law. But this chaos and discontent also means 2026 is a time to grow movements and fight back. Now is the time to galvanize the growing resistance to the deep unpopularity of the Republican party agenda and Trump in particular. Americans didn't want this last year, and they don't want war in Venezuela. There will be an avalanche of money to try to distract and stop the resistance, but we need to organize and stand together. These elections, not just the ones in November, but the primaries this Spring, are an opportunity to demand action. We need to advocate for strong Progressive Politicians who are ready and willing to go to the mat fighting for accountability, and the rule of law. Leaders who won’t allow a President to unconstitutionally invade another sovereign nation for natural resources. If we don’t resist now who’s next? Greenland? Cuba? Mexico?

Trump’s goons have made it clear the type of world they want to create, the type of world we are barreling towards, often at the barrel of a gun. But if we join together in political and economic solidarity we can build a movement strong enough to take on the war machine the corruption and take back our country from these criminals. So join us each Tuesday in growing solidarity as we build the economic cudgel to beat back the gangsters running our government. Don't shop on Tuesday!

#DSOT #UPM