'Do Not Make America Safer, Stronger, or More Affordable,' Kamala Harris Hits Out at Trump Over Maduro's Capture

Washington: Former US Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday slammed US President Donald Trump over the capture of former Venezuelan dictator 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.

Soon after the US strike on Venezuela in the early hours of Saturday, President Donald Trump held a news conference at his Mar-a-Lago residence, where he announced that the United States would take control of Venezuela's vast oil reserves.

Venezuela holds around 303 billion barrels of crude oil, accounting for nearly one-fifth of the world's proven oil reserves, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). CNN reported that these reserves are expected to play a major role in shaping the country's future.

At the news conference, Trump said major American oil companies would be sent into Venezuela to rebuild the sector.

"We're going to have our very large United States oil companies, the biggest anywhere in the world, go in, spend billions of dollars, and fix the badly broken infrastructure, the oil infrastructure," Trump said.

Earlier in the day, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani also criticised the capture of Maduro and his wife, calling it an "act of war" and a violation of international law.

In a post on X, Mamdani said, "I was briefed this morning on the U.S. military capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, as well as their planned imprisonment in federal custody here in New York City. Unilaterally attacking a sovereign nation is an act of war and a violation of federal and international law."

He warned that the move could have serious consequences for tens of thousands of Venezuelans living in New York City.

According to US officials, former Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were captured in Caracas and flown out of the country in a joint operation involving intelligence agencies and US law enforcement.
President Trump said the couple had been indicted in the Southern District of New York on charges of alleged "drug trafficking and narco-terrorism conspiracies" and would face trial in the United States.

Trump said Maduro and his wife "will soon face the full might of American justice and stand trial on American soil" for their alleged role in drug trafficking. He added that they were being transported to New York, with authorities later deciding whether the trial would be held in New York or Florida.

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