Some of the most dedicated and influential supporters of the MAGA movement are expressing concerns that President Donald Trump’s recent foreign-policy success in Venezuela might unravel into a situation reminiscent of the Bush-era ‘Iraq fiasco.’
It was more than a decade ago when Trump gained control of the Republican Party by harshly criticizing the Bush administration and GOP leaders for their involvement in prolonged wars in the Middle East. Now, some of the same non-interventionist supporters who helped propel Trump to power are sounding alarms over the potential repercussions following the dramatic capture of Nicolas Maduro.
Trump had promised that, following Maduro’s ousting, Americans would take charge in Venezuela. However, those claims were tempered by Secretary of State Marco Rubio during a Sunday morning interview, where he confirmed that U.S. troops were no longer stationed in the country.
This inconsistency is beginning to unsettle some of MAGA’s most ardent supporters. Stephen Bannon, a long-time adviser to Trump, expressed his concerns in an interview with the New York Times. “The lack of a clear message regarding a possible occupation has left the base confused, if not angry,” he stated. “While President Trump argues for a defense strategy across the hemisphere, Rubio muddles the issue with talk about removing Hamas and Hezbollah.”
That dissonance has begun rattling MAGA’s most ferocious warriors.
‘The lack of framing of the message on a potential occupation has the base bewildered, if not angry,’ said Stephen Bannon, a longtime Trump adviser, in an interview with the New York Times. ‘While President Trump makes the case for hemispheric defense, Rubio confuses with talk of removing Hamas and Hezbollah.’
Bannon’s podcast ‘War Room’ has become a staple of the MAGA media sphere and is watched daily by the president’s most loyal supporters.
Although Bannon and his guest on ‘War Room’ have praised the operational success of the mission, they have raised questions about whether Maduro’s overthrow was ‘harkening back to our fiasco in Iraq under Bush.’
Steve Bannon warned that Trump’s latest military success in Venezuela could led to a ‘fiasco in Iraq under Bush’
Conservative influencer Candace Owens denounced the overthrow of Maduro as a CIA staged ‘hostile takeover of a country’
Maduro and his wife face multiple criminal charges for drug trafficking following their capture by US special forces
Candace Owens, one of the most watched conservative influencers in the country, condemned Trump’s operation as a CIA staged ‘hostile takeover of a country’ at the bidding of ‘globalist psychopaths.’
Owens compared the operation to US actions in Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq in a Saturday post on X to her 7.5 million followers.
‘That’s what is happening, always, everywhere. Zionists cheer every regime change,’ Owens added. ‘There has never been a single regime change that Zionists have not applauded because it means they get to steal land, oil and other resources.’
Following Maduro’s removal, a 2019 X post from Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard resurfaced showing the former Congresswoman denouncing military action in Venezuela.
‘The United States needs to stay out of Venezuela. Let the Venezuelan people determine their future,’ she wrote in 2019 while serving as a Democratic representative of Hawaii. ‘We don’t want other countries to choose our leaders— so we have to stop trying to choose theirs.’
‘Throughout history, every time the U.S. topples a foreign country’s dictator/government, the outcome has been disastrous,’ Gabbard added in another resurfaced post. ‘Civil war/military intervention in Venezuela will wreak death and destruction to Venezuelan people, and increase tensions that threaten our national security.’
Meanwhile, those critical of Trump’s operation in Venezuela pointed out comments made by White House chief of staff Susie Wiles in Vanity Fair only three weeks ago: ‘If he were to authorize some activity on [Venezuelan] land, then it’s war, then [we’d need] Congress.’
Trump suggested that America would ‘run’ Venezuela after his administration removed Maduro from power
Other MAGA influencers close to Trump have also expressed skepticism regarding Maduro’s ouster, including Laura Loomer, who questioned why Maduro was indicted in New York, ‘a liberal hell hole’ and not Florida.
Roger Stone, one of Trump’s oldest political confidants, agreed with Loomer, writing on X, ‘Why Maduro was not charged in Miami is a mystery.’
Maduro faces multiple criminal charges regarding narco-terrorism and drug trafficking, including a conspiracy to import cocaine into the country.
The captured dictator and his wife, Cilia, were filmed being hauled off along a helipad on Monday morning as the pair were taken to a court in New York City to face drug charges.
