It seems as though old-style United States is back in Latin America. We’ve removed a leader we don’t like and will install a U.S.-friendly replacement. We aren’t going in like the Romans, though, and expecting to make a profit by taking the new colony’s resources (oil). So how much will we spend on Venezuela over the next ten years? Or can we argue that we can’t resist taking in Venezuelan asylum-seekers, each household of which costs $100,000 per year in welfare, and therefore we will actually save money via intervening, even if we do also give Venezuela $100 billion (enough to fund at least 6 Somali day cares?)?
The new U.S.-picked leader of Venezuela identifies as a woman (Delcy Rodriguez) and we have two additional Venezuelan migrants living in the U.S. One might expect American progressives to be delighted, yet apparently they are not.
What makes you think we’re not taking the oil?
Trump has never shown a desire to run other countries.
However, he has always talked about taking oil from other countries: https://share.google/aimode/OBoV1WOTgbe49fdUb
And this came in in the last hour:
“Speaking to CBS News, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Americans will benefit from the capture of Nicolás Maduro. “We can ensure that we have access to additional wealth and resources, enabling a country to unleash that, without having to spend American blood,” he said.
Knowing what we know about Trump, how does this make sense if you don’t plan to take the oil?
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2026/01/03/world/trump-united-states-strikes-venezuela/642f67e7-0fac-5bc6-b9e6-b33e34c41c10
This is another step in Trump turning into Putin, and trying to build a great legacy by stealing land and resources by force. At his rate of aging, he doesn’t have much time left.
David: I think we can summarize your comment as a prediction that we will make money on this Venezuelan adventure. Let’s check back in one year to see if you’re right!
The media said US was confiscating their oil reserves, as one does after any regime change. Good idea: waiting until after the markets close before calling in a regime change. Bad idea: selling stonk on a Monday after a regime change. Well, inflation fears will scare off the non hackers, with falling wages coming through to offset all price increases as they always do.
Yes the $1T spent on Iraq war and reconstruction was only eclipsed by the massive success of the $2T Afghan war which didn’t quite get to the reconstruction stage after 20 years. So $3T spent on destroying and/or “reconstructing” Venezuela?
No one seems to remember the Russians planning to site ballistic and cruise missiles with enough range to hit America’s Eastern cities in Venezuela. There were stories about it 3 months ago. Coincidentally the planning for the military action is supposed to have begun about 3 months ago.
That’s it, because Poseidon, submarines and hypersonics haven’t been invented yet and nobody has any use for crude oil that DJT keeps talking about.
“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses of Venezuelan asylum- seekers”
Pres. Trump is seeking his next foreign-born wife.
May be Trump is going to send 10 gal of free gas for each US household, his new year’s gift
Naturally, the liberal media is covering this nonstop, interviewing political figures who are eager to condemn Trump’s actions. They are also warning, that this somehow sets a dangerous precedent for authoritarian regimes around the world. What they are not doing is engaging with the points Philip raised in this post. Instead, they fixate on condemning Trump for acting without congressional authorization, of course ignoring the fact that other presidents, both Republican and Democrat, have ordered military actions without authorization for decades. The outcry is less about the principle and more about who is in the Oval Office.
Philip — I don’t necessarily think it won’t cost us anything.
I’m predicting that Trump did this only because he plans on making a profit by taking the oil. I’m not predicting it will go as planned.
I’ll predict he’ll come forward with some kind of arrangement where US companies develop the oil infrastructure and do the extraction and the revenue is shared between the two countries. He’ll aim to get a large slice of the revenue for the US and his friends while leaving Venezuela with more revenue than they had before.
We’ll soon hear of deals where his friends and donors are sudden given rich oil contracts, and maybe one or more people with the last name of Trump will have board seats on companies given multi-billion dollar contracts.
This will be 100x the Hunter Biden situation.
This will not be nation-building as done in past administrations. It will be more like Tony Soprano taking a half-stake in your restaurant.
Greenland next…..?