U.S. Captures Venezuelan Leader, Trump Says

THE NEW YORK TIMES: President Trump announced that U.S. forces had carried out “a large scale strike against Venezuela” and were flying President Nicolás Maduro and his wife out of the country. The Trump administration had been building pressure on Mr. Maduro for months.

President Trump said on Saturday that the United States had captured the Venezuelan president, Nicolás Maduro, and was flying him out of Venezuela, in what would be a stunning culmination to a monthslong campaign by Mr. Trump’s administration to oust the authoritarian leader.

Mr. Trump made the announcement on Truth Social, his social media platform, and said that the United States had carried out “a large scale strike against Venezuela” in an operation that was conducted “in conjunction with U.S. law enforcement.” He said that Mr. Maduro’s wife had also been captured.

In a brief phone interview with The New York Times after the announcement, Mr. Trump celebrated the success of the mission to capture the Venezuelan president. “A lot of good planning and lot of great, great troops and great people,” he said. “It was a brilliant operation, actually.”

When asked if he had sought congressional authority for the operation or what is next for Venezuela, Mr. Trump said he would address those matters during a news conference at 11 a.m. at Mar-a-Lago, his private club and residence in Palm Beach, Fla.
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Venezuela’s vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, speaking on a state-run television station after Mr. Trump’s announcement, said that Mr. Maduro’s location was unknown and asked Mr. Trump for proof of life.

Earlier on Saturday, the government of Venezuela accused the United States of carrying out military attacks in the capital, Caracas, and other parts of the country after large explosions were reported at a military base in the city.

The Venezuelan government declared a state of emergency in response to the attacks and said they had occurred in Caracas and in the states of Miranda, Aragua and La Guaira, according to a statement from the Venezuelan communications ministry.

Venezuela “rejects, repudiates and denounces” U.S. military aggression, the statement said. It also called on “on all social and political forces in the country to activate mobilization plans and repudiate this imperialist attack.” Live Updates » | Anatoly Kurmanaev and Tyler Pager | Anatoly Kurmanaev reported from Venezuela, and Tyler Pager from West Palm Beach, Fla. | Saturday, January 3, 2026

Vets Warn of Christian Nationalist Infiltration of US Military

Dec 23, 2025 | Ken Harbaugh breaks down how JD Vance is openly courting White Christian nationalists at Turning Point USA—and why this isn’t just performative politics but a preview of governing intent. Joined by Army combat veteran Kris Goldsmith, founder of Veterans Fighting Fascism, Harbaugh examines how new United States Department of Defense policies could undermine servicemember wellbeing and open the door to religious proselytizing in the ranks.

Glenn Kirschner: Military Members Say They WILL NOT OBEY Trump's Unlawful Orders

Oct 31, 2025 | From Trump ordering unlawful military strikes on boats in international waters murdering dozens of human beings, to Trump saying he can order soldiers into the street of US cities and even the courts can't stop him, Trump behavior vis-a-vis the military is getting more dangerous and lawless by the day.

Two members of the Illinois National Guard just spoke out publicly, announcing that they would not obey unlawful order from Trump to deploy to the streets to Chicago.

I discussed these and other military-related developments with law professor and military law expert Dan Maurer.

"Secretary of War" Pete Hegseth's Utter Lack of Leadership Is a Disgrace

Oct 4, 2025 | Earlier today, Steve Schmidt spoke with MSNBC's Ali Velshi about the total lack of credibility of the Trump regime, and the utter unfitness of Pete Hegseth as the leader of the US Armed Forces.

Trump Preparing to Deploy Military on ‘Domestic Enemies’

Oct 1, 2025 | “The core of President Trump’s speech was how he wanted to use the military against the enemy within.”

In one of the “darkest speeches Trump’s made,” the “heavy emphasis” of using the US military domestically is “concerning” many military observers, says US Assistant Editor for The Times David Charter.

Trump and Hegseth Threaten America's Military

Oct 1, 2025 | After Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth spoke to America's military leaders, this regime's plans to take control of our military became crystal clear. Steve Schmidt reacts to the speeches at Quantico and explains why it's a dangerous sign of things to come.

America is being turned into a very sick, dangerous joke. — © Mark Alexander

Pete Hegseth Declares War on ‘Fat Generals’, ‘Woke Garbage’ and ‘Beardos’

THE IRISH TIMES: US defence secretary says all fitness tests to be set to male benchmarks, and emphasises importance of grooming standards

US defence secretary Pete Hegseth slammed “fat generals” and diversity initiatives that he said had led to decades of decay in the military, and told a rare gathering of commanders on Tuesday they should resign if they do not support his agenda.

Mr Hegseth, a former Fox News personality, was joined by US president Donald Trump, himself a former reality television host, for an on-camera event in Quantico, Virginia, that had a made-for-TV character to it, with generals and admirals assembled on short notice.

“Foolish and reckless political leaders set the wrong compass heading and we lost our way. We became the ‘Woke Department’,” Mr Hegseth said as he kicked off the event. “But not any more,” he said.

Addressing an auditorium full of top brass summoned from around the world without explanation last week, Mr Hegseth defended his firings of flag officers, which include the top US general, who is black, and the Navy’s top admiral, who is a woman. He said the officers he relieved were part of a broken culture. » | Reuters | Wednesday, October 1, 2025

What Trump & Hegseth's Lecture to Generals Really Means

Oct 1, 2025 | t an unprecedented gathering of hundreds of top generals and admirals from U.S. military installations around the world, President Trump delivered a rambling speech Tuesday alongside Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. They laid out their vision of a "warrior" culture in the U.S. military and claimed the United States is facing an "invasion from within." Eugene Fidell, a military scholar at Yale Law School, says the meeting was a means of "exacting loyalty, special loyalty, from the most senior officers and enlisted personnel" and that by promoting a solely "white male" image of the U.S. armed forces, the administration has made clear it "wants to turn back the hands of the social clock."

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Hegseth Wants to Bring Toxicity Back into the Military

Jennifer Welch explains.

'Very Dangerous Time for Our country': Fmr. Air Force Secy. on Trump's Speech to Military Leaders

Sep 30, 2025 | President Donald Trump addressed the country's top military officials today during a rare gathering of military leaders in Quantico, Virginia. During his speech, the president suggested using "dangerous cities" as "training grounds for our military" and aired his political grievances.

Lawrence: Trump Was 'On the Verge of Outright Insanity' in Deranged Speech to Military Commanders

Oct 1, 2025 | MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell details how military commanders who listened to Donald Trump’s “deranged” speech have to be wondering “just how much more dangerous their jobs are now that they've seen just how lost and sick their Commander-in-Chief is.”

The Trump Administration Wants to Turn Your Soldier into a Criminal and Fascist

Steve Schmidt explains.

Bulwark on Sunday: The Persecution of Trans Americans

Aug 24, 2025 | Bree Fram joins Bill Kristol to discuss the escalating attacks on transgender Americans—from the removal of federal health care benefits to subpoenas for hospital records and even reports of the Department of Justice searching VA files for evidence of transition. What does this mean for trans service members and for the broader assault on trans lives?

The Trans Officers Banned from the US Military by President Trump - BBC World Service Documentaries

Jul 6, 2025 | In his first weeks in office, President Trump fulfilled campaign promises to ban what he termed ‘transgender lunacy’.

"Don't Ask, Don't Tell" | David Cotton

Feb 28, 2025

BREAKING: Pentagon Says It Will Start Kicking Transgender People Out of Military This Month

ADVOCATE: While a federal judge considers blocking the policy altogether, the Pentagon is moving forward.

One day after Department of Justice lawyers struggled to explain the need for a ban on transgender people‘s service in the U.S. Armed Forces to a federal judge in Washington, D.C., the Trump administration’s aggressive efforts to purge transgender service members from the military have taken another step forward. The U.S. Department of the Navy has issued formal procedures for the removal of transgender personnel, filing the directive in federal court Thursday as part of an ongoing legal battle. The new guidance orders the Navy and Marine Corps to begin involuntary separations of service members with a history of gender dysphoria after March 28, two days after a previous March 26 deadline for voluntary separations—unless they obtain a so-called “waiver,” which, according to legal experts, is nothing more than an illusion. » | Christopher Wiggins | Thursday, March 13, 2025

'Rogue President': Trump Removal of Senior Military Leaders, Military Lawyers Raises Alarm

Feb 25, 2025 | Former Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall talks with Rachel Maddow about Donald Trump's dismissal of senior military leaders, and former Fox News personality, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, removing the U.S. military’s top judge advocates general, and his concern that Trump's disregard for the rule of law will extend to U.S. military conduct.

Trump Fires Black Joint Chiefs Chair Hegseth Accused of Promoting Diversity

THE GUARDIAN: US secretary of defense had questioned whether history-making air force general CQ Brown Jr got job because of race

Donald Trump abruptly fired the air force general CQ Brown Jr as chair of the joint chiefs of staff on Friday, sidelining a history-making Black fighter pilot and respected officer as part of a campaign to purge the military of leaders who support diversity and equity in the ranks.

The ouster of the second Black general to serve as chair of the joint chiefs comes three months after Pete Hegseth, the secretary of defense, outlined a plan for ridding the US military of diversity, equity and inclusion efforts during a podcast interview.

“First of all, you’ve got to fire the chairman of the joint chiefs,” Hegseth said during a November interview on the Shawn Ryan Show. “Any general that was involved, general, admiral, or whatever, that was involved in any of that DEI woke shit has got to go.” » | Guardian staff and agencies | Saturday, February 22, 2025

Thom Hartmann: Why Hegseth Is Trying to Ban Military Religious Freedom w/Mikey Weinstein

Feb 18, 2025 | Donald Trump's Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is attacking the religious freedom of America's military by working to ban the military from contacting the Military Religious Freedom Foundation. Mikey Weinstein joins Thom Hartmann to let Pete Hegseth know what we think of his Christo-fascist plan.

Donald Trump Orders Military to Stop Recruiting Black People!

Feb 11, 2025 | Jesse talks about reporting from Military.com about Trump’s direction to the Pentagon to stop recruiting highly skilled and capable candidates because they’re Black.