president Maduro captured after US strikes

[quintessentone]

Newsflash:  "Biggest Illegal Drug Source Countries for the US: Venezuela Is Not One of Them"

"As the U.S. battles a deadly fentanyl crisis, data shows only a few countries truly fuel America’s illegal drug supply. Mexico dominates trafficking routes, while Colombia leads cocaine production. Despite political claims, Venezuela plays only a minor role—raising serious legal and geopolitical questions about recent U.S. actions."

"As the United States intensifies its fight against illegal drug imports, understanding which countries truly fuel the drug trade—and which are wrongly implicated—matters not only for law enforcement, but for global travel, diplomacy, and tourism resiliency.
 Yet data from U.S. law enforcement, international monitoring bodies, and independent investigations point to an apparent reality: only a small number of countries meaningfully supply the U.S. illegal drug market—and Venezuela is not one of them."

"Despite repeated political claims, Venezuela is not a major source of illegal drugs entering the United States.Independent reporting and international drug-flow analysis consistently find that:

• Venezuela does not produce fentanyl
  
• It is not a major cocaine producer
  
• It serves, at most, as a secondary transit country for some cocaine, much of it destined for Europe rather than the United States
  
• Only a small fraction of U.S.-bound cocaine transits Venezuelan territory
  

Experts and fact-checkers agree that portraying Venezuela as a primary driver of America’s drug crisis significantly overstates its role, particularly when compared with Mexico and Colombia."

Biggest Illegal Drug Source Countries for the US: Venezuela Is Not One of Them
---

Don't be fooled again.

No blood for oil.

Deny Ignorance

[putnam6]

• Bullet point #1 CIA had assets inside Venezuela since August, including a source in Maduro’s inner circle.
  

In the past, the President would have tiptoed around military operations so close to the midterms. Or am I misremembering?

 Trump operates with an unprecedented surety; the administration could be sitting on something huge. 
 

 
[Image: https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/184...normal.jpg]
Stealth Medical

@StealthMedical1
·
6h

Trump gave Maduro a final chance to step down.

He refused.
• CIA had assets inside Venezuela since August, including a source in Maduro’s inner circle.
• Trump delayed action to exhaust diplomacy, despite pressure to strike earlier.
• Final coordination included Rubio, Hegseth, Ratcliffe, and Stephen Miller.
• A rare weather window opened Friday night.
• Congress kept in the dark until the last moment.
• 22:46 ET Trump gave the order.
• 02:01 Delta Force reached the presidential palace.
• US forces took fire and returned fire.
• Maduro failed to reach a hardened safe room and was caught off guard.
• Air defenses were hit to secure corridors.
• 150–200 aircraft launched from 20 locations.
@MOSSADil

[quintessentone]

• Bullet point #1 CIA had assets inside Venezuela since August, including a source in Maduro’s inner circle.
  

In the past, the President would have tiptoed around military operations so close to the midterms. Or am I misremembering?

 Trump operates with an unprecedented surety; the administration could be sitting on something huge. 
 

The only sure thing right now is that they removed a sovereign nation's President and left the same regime's VP in charge. Trump is most likely only sitting on his golden toilet and that is indeed something huge.

[Vermilion]

• Bullet point #1 CIA had assets inside Venezuela since August, including a source in Maduro’s inner circle.
  

In the past, the President would have tiptoed around military operations so close to the midterms. Or am I misremembering?

 Trump operates with an unprecedented surety; the administration could be sitting on something huge. 
 

Icing on the cake is that the China’s Communist intelligence community had no idea the U.S. military was going to arrest Maduro.
The serious people in Beijing will be thinking carefully about this over the next few days.

Bonus: Only a few hours before Maduro was arrested, he had met at the presidential palace with Xi’s special envoy to Latin America for a three-hour meeting. LoL

"This is the Western Hemisphere. We're not going to allow it to be a base of operations for our adversaries… They won't come from outside our hemisphere, destabilize our region in our own backyard, and us have to pay the price for it. It’s over." -Marco Rubio

[Waterglass]

Not my problem.

That's happening all around the world.

Correct and Trump for all his blunders as a person he is trying to fix it.  I dont care for him but applaud ths specific "operation" or "invasion"  as its been described. 

Not your problem but you certainly see fit to promote and sow discourse and misrepresentation of fact.  

So why is that?

By copy of ths web page I attest that I am not employed as a Shill, contractor or sympathetic for the Drug Cartels, Democrat National Party, Russia, China, Cuba or any junk trying to destroy humanity as Maduro was .  Eight million others may agree with me.

[quintessentone]

This is apparently the situation on the ground there right now according to an interview with a resident there:

"Gunson said he believed it was possible the US blitz would precipitate an armed uprising against what was left of Maduro’s nominally leftist regime. But it seemed more likely that another hardliner from Maduro’s political movement would simply fill his shoes, plunging the country even deeper into dictatorship.
 “Venezuelans could end up being worse off, ironically, after the departure of Maduro. It’s very early days … but this is certainly not a moment to be hanging out the bunting and opening the champagne,” Gunson said. “This is just the beginning.”
 
Hurtado said that after the attack, members of pro-regime paramilitary gangs known as “colectivos” had taken to the streets of his neighbourhood in commando gear.
 
“We don’t know whether they will allow us to go out and buy food, or whether there will be free movement. Normally at this time of year there’s always a party, but right now there’s no one – [it’s] like there’s been a blackout, everything is silent.”"

Airstrikes, helicopters and a snatch squad with a blowtorch: how the US raid on Caracas unfolded | Venezuela | The Guardian

[UltraBudgie]

Can you imagine the cocaine supply to New York City, Washington DC, or Los Angeles being cut off?

It would be chaos.

One of the few leverages South America had over the USA, really.

Fortunately Trump has eliminated that possibility. Solved the "drug problem".

Who is right next door to Venezuela? Colombia.

Now the pipeline will be controlled by American-aligned interests, guaranteed.

[IAMTAT]

The only sure thing right now is that they removed a sovereign nation's President and left the same regime's VP in charge. 

According to Reuters...Maduro's Vice President, Delcy Rodríguez, has already fled to Russia.

[quintessentone]

According to Reuters...Maduro's Vice President, Delcy Rodríguez, has already fled to Russia.

Another source said she was already in Moscow when the strike took place. She seems to be taking charge even if she is in Moscow and it also appears her military, legislative government agencies, and paramilitary that have taken to the streets are behind her. So it appears.

[UltraBudgie]

paramilitary

Ha-ha: she has a paramilitary and Trump doesn't.

Loser.