Former US Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2026, slammed US President Donald Trump over the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, saying the operation was driven by oil interests and not by concerns over drugs.
In a post on X, Harris said Trump’s actions in Venezuela would not make the United
States safer and warned that forced regime change could destabilise the region,
putting American lives at risk.
“Donald Trump’s actions in Venezuela do not make America safer, stronger, or more
affordable. That Maduro is a brutal, illegitimate dictator does not change the fact that
this action was both unlawful and unwise. We’ve seen this movie before. Wars for
regime change or oil that are sold as strength but turn into chaos, and American
families pay the price,” she wrote.
Harris said the American public did not support such military actions and accused
Trump of misleading people.
“The American people do not want this, and they are tired of being lied to. This is not
about drugs or democracy. It is about oil and Donald Trump’s desire to play the
regional strongman. If he cared about either, he wouldn’t pardon a convicted drug
trafficker or sideline Venezuela’s legitimate opposition while pursuing deals with
Maduro’s cronies,” she added.
Harris, who contested the recent presidential election against Trump, also warned
that the operation could put US troops at risk and lacked any legal basis or exit plan.
“The President is putting troops at risk, spending billions, destabilising a region, and
offering no legal authority, no exit plan, and no benefit at home. America needs
leadership whose priorities are lowering costs for working families, enforcing the rule
of law, strengthening alliances, and, most importantly, putting the American people
first,” she wrote.
