The Situation
On January 3, 2026, the United States of America invaded Venezuela, bombing around the capital and other areas, killing an unspecified number of Venezuelans, and capturing the Venezuelan president, Nicolás Maduro, flying him out of Venezuela to New York (Treisman, 2026).
Later that day, President Trump held a press conference explaining that the United States will run Venezuela and manage its oil reserves (NPR, 2026).
President Trump also gave an interview aboard Air Force One, citing other countries that may need United States intervention (Reese, 2026).
Talking to Fox & Friends about the operation, President Trump said, “You know what, we did a great job with stopping drugs from coming into this country, and nobody’s been able to do it until we came along” (NPR, 2026).
The Disagreement
I disagree with President Trump and his decision to invade Venezuela. In my opinion, our country does not need to be in another war. I disagree with killing Venezuelans to carry out the operation; human life is and should be sacred.
I disagree with President Trump and his decision to invade Venezuela and kidnap its president without first consulting the United States Congress. Article 2 (4) of the United Nations Charter forbids force against the territorial integrity or political independence of another country except in cases of self-defense or a Security Council mandate (Romero, 2026). This makes the invasion illegal internationally—a situation in which it’s even more crucial to consult first with the Congress before proceeding.
I disagree with President Trump about Venezuela being a significant source of illegal drugs, and that the operation stops any significant amount of drugs into the United States. I believe that Venezuela is not a significant source of illegal drugs (Meyer, 2025).
I disagree with President Trump’s stated goals in Venezuela. In his press conference he mentioned oil repeatedly—but not democracy or free elections (NPR, 2026). I believe that democracy and free elections should be paramount.
I disagree with President Trump that any other country should be invaded or have its sovereignty interfered with. I believe that we should stay out of wars and international conflicts as much as possible, and should definitely not be starting new ones.
Desired Resolution
If only the clock could be turned back, but alas, it cannot be. Given the current situation in Venezuela, I would encourage President Trump to use the power and authority of his office to promote free, fair, democratic elections in Venezuela—let the people choose their leaders. And to release all political prisoners.
If President Trump’s management of Venezuela’s oil reserves is as good a deal for the Venezuelan people as he says that it is, then a free Venezuela will certainly accept a deal to make it so.
President Maduro is not a nice person, in my opinion, and the biggest problem that President Maduro presented was that of not being a legitimate leader according to the will of the people. Now that Maduro is gone, in my opinion, only free, fair, and democratic elections would solve this problem.
By promoting democracy abroad, even in Venezuela, I encourage President Trump to work to make the United States of America a beacon of freedom for the world, to teach the nations through strong, compassionate leadership how freedom should look.
May God bless President Trump and the United States of America.
References
NPR. “Trump says U.S. will ‘run’ Venezuela and sell seized oil in remarks on the strikes.” 1/3/2026. https://www.npr.org/2026/01/03/g-s1-104346/trump-venezuela-maduro-press-conference – Accessed 1/5/2026.
Treisman, Rachel and Chandelis Duster. “Maduro arrives in New York. What to know about the U.S. operation in Venezuela.” 1/4/2026. https://www.npr.org/2026/01/03/nx-s1-5665670/venezuela-strikes-us-maduro – Accessed 1/5/2026.
Romero, Maurucio. “Maduro Fall: How Trump Broke World Protocols with Venezuela Attack.” 1/3/2026. https://colombiaone.com/2026/01/03/trump-broke-world-protocols-venezuela-attack/ – Accessed 1/4/2026.
Reese, Heather Delaney. “This Evening, While…” 1/5/2026. https://www.facebook.com/itsalovelylife/posts/this-evening-while-standing-in-the-press-cabin-aboard-air-force-one-the-presiden/1430988118385774/ – Accessed 1/5/2026.
Meyer, Josh. “Trump says Venezuela sends US lethal drugs, but data tells different story.” 12/10/2025. https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/12/09/trump-venezuela-drug-trafficking/87573189007/ – Accessed 1/5/2026.
Other Selected Reading
KGTV. “Local San Diego leaders react to Venezuelan president captured overnight.” 1/3/2026. https://www.newsbreak.com/abc-10-news-kgtv-563645/4424230400282-local-san-diego-leaders-react-to-venezuelan-president-captured-overnight – Accessed 1/4/2026.
Brennan, Anne. “Mass. Republicans praise Trump’s Venezuela attack while Democrats warn of a constitutional crisis.” 1/3/2026. https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/mass-republicans-praise-trump-venezuela-010016807.html – Accessed 1/4/2026.
Geddry, Mary. “No War, No Plan, No Democracy.” 1/4/2026. https://marygeddry.com/p/no-war-no-plan-no-democracy – Accessed 1/5/2026.