Many of the Democrats condemning President Donald Trump’s decision to arrest Nicolas Mauduro over the weekend once complained that the president wasn’t tough enough on the Venezuelan dictator.
On Saturday, Trump announced that U.S forces had captured Maduro and his wife on charges of narco-terrorism, drug trafficking, and conspiracy to import cocaine. The furious reaction from Democrats was immediate (and so was the hypocrisy).
Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., was among the loudest critics, with Murphy posting on X: “The invasion of Venezuela has nothing to do with American security. Venezuela is not a security threat to the U.S.. This is about making Trump’s oil industry and Wall Street friends rich. Trump’s foreign policy – the Middle East, Russia, Venezuela – is fundamentally corrupt.”
“Every dictatorship is not a ‘legitimate government.’ That does not give you or any president the constitutional power to invade the country without the consent of Congress and the people,” Murphy posted in a separate X post.
Of course Murphy’s anger was nonexistent just seven years ago, when in 2019 he criticized Trump for apparently not doing enough.
“If Trump cared about consistency, he would make the realist case for intervention in Venezuela (getting rid of Maduro is good for the United States) rather than trying to pretend his Administration all of the sudden cares about toppling anti-Democratic regimes.”
Former Vice President Kamala Harris said in a post on X: “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 … The President is putting troops at risk, spending billions, destabilizing a region, and offering no legal authority, no exit plan, and no benefit at home.”
Much like Murphy, Harris sung a different tune in 2019. “What’s happening in Venezuela is a crisis. The people who have fled Maduro’s dictatorial regime deserve safety and protection,” Harris said. “America must show moral leadership in this hemisphere.”
Harris’ future running mate Joe Biden similarly criticized Trump for talking “tough on Venezuela, but admires thugs and dictators like Nicolas Maduro. As President, I will stand with the Venezuelan people and for democracy.”
Just before Biden and Harris left office, their administration raised the bounty on Maduro to $25 million, offering cash for information leading to his arrest.
Democrats spent years accurately describing Maduro as a narco-terrorist dictator, claiming that removing him would benefit the United States, and offering millions of dollars for his arrest. Now that Trump has actually done what they asked for, they feign outrage.
Brianna Lyman is an elections correspondent at The Federalist. Brianna graduated from Fordham University with a degree in International Political Economy. Her work has been featured on Newsmax, Fox News, Fox Business and RealClearPolitics. Follow Brianna on X: @briannalyman2
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