– Trump’s Spectacle of Domination in Venezuela

The recent U.S. actions in Venezuela reveal a consistent pattern in American foreign policy: the war on drugs is often a pretext, not a primary driver. Venezuela plays a limited role in global cocaine trafficking, with most supply heading to Europe and Brazil, not the United States. A genuine⁢ focus on drug enforcement wouldn’t prioritize intervention there.

This is particularly⁢ striking given former President trump’s pardon of⁢ Juan‍ Orlando Hernández, the ex-Honduran president convicted of narco-trafficking in⁢ a U.S.⁣ court. While framed as ⁢a move toward political stability, the pardon ⁢appears to have been intended to influence Honduran elections. Taken together, ⁢Hernández’s release and ⁢the pursuit ⁣of Venezuelan President maduro demonstrate a troubling⁤ shift: law enforcement is no longer a check on executive power, but a tool to advance personal and political agendas.

law has become flexible and easily manipulated. This trend began during the first Trump management,⁣ but has now become central ⁣to its operation. As Bruce Green, a ‍former federal prosecutor and professor of legal‍ ethics at Fordham Law school, explained:

Trump thinks he can use federal criminal prosecutions for any purpose, which ⁤is to say ⁤to⁢ promote his foreign policy views, to promote his vendettas, to promote his⁣ self-interest and to promote his perceived political interests.

This represents a moment where law ceases to be a constraint⁢ and rather ⁢accelerates ‍political action. Drawing on⁣ the work of Hannah Arendt, this signals a further ⁣erosion of the state’s independence, with legal structures openly serving imperial⁤ ambitions and executive displays of power.

The consequences of this shift were quickly apparent. Journalist Jack Paulson noted in a January 3 Substack post that Enrique de la Torre, a former CIA ⁢chief of station in Venezuela, publicly announced…