The morning of January 3rd, 2026, the United States bombed Caracas, the capital city of Venezuela, and then an airport in Higuerote, bringing the total death toll to over 80 people.
While the Venezuelan government and army were focused on the attack, the United States special forces broke into Fuerte Tiuna — the strongest military complex in Venezuela — and captured President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
The political climate of Venezuela
Venezuela had been under the rule of Maduro since 2013. Maduro’s rule has been considered a dictatorship for many years — more than 20 nations considered Maduro’s election fraudulent.
The Venezuelan opposition claims that Maduro stole the presidential election from opposing candidate Edmundo González when he refused to step down following his loss of the 2024 election.
What does this have to do with America?
According to the United States New York Federal Court’s indictment, Maduro has been running a drug-trafficking ring since 1999 to ship illegal drugs into the United States. The goal was to crack down on narcotics trafficking. The indictment claims that the corrupt Venezuelan government has been pocketing money by trafficking cocaine into the United States.
The Venezuelan government claims that the Trump administration’s actual goal is to seize control over Venezuela’s natural resources.
Just days after capturing Maduro, President Trump said he would rule Venezuela and take over its oil reserves. He said that Venezuela would be providing the U.S. with 30-50 million barrels of oil.
President Trump reportedly did not alert Congress about the attack, which violated the 1973 War Powers Resolution — an act that requires the president to tell Congress about the deployment of troops 48 hours before an attack.
President Trump claimed that the War Powers Resolution is “unconstitutional, totally violating Article II of the Constitution.” Article II of the Constitution protects the right of the President to make executive decisions; However, it also explicitly states that the president cannot make decisions without the checks and balances of the Senate.
Additionally, Trump posted a fake Wikipedia image titling himself as “acting president of Venezuela” on Truth Social.
What comes next?
Vice President Delcy Rodriguez was sworn in as president of Venezuela on January 5th, 2026, two days after Maduro’s capture. She had been vice president since 2018, and since becoming president, has criticized the U.S military for being aggressive during the capture and called for Maduro’s release.
While there have been demands for a special election from U.S. GOP members, President Trump has made it clear he believes Venezuela is in no state to run elections as of right now.
“They wouldn’t even know how to have an election right now. The country’s become Third World, and they wouldn’t know how to have an election right now,” said President Trump.
Rodriguez will remain the acting president until Maduro’s trial is over. Maduro’s next court appearance is set for March 17th.
The scope of U.S. involvement remains unresolved as the situation in Venezuela continues to unfold.
