If you’re trying to decipher what’s going on with Venezuela and its captured strongman Nicolas Maduro, you might feel as though you’re standing at the bottom of a mountain witnessing an avalanche. Tons of updates and “breaking news” banners are piling on top of each other, filled with conflicting claims and lies.
It’s a news wreckage of mass confusion. Here are some key things to note.
Careful with ‘president’
Lots of headlines call Maduro Venezuela’s “president.” That boosts the idea that the United States has snatched a head-of-state. Here’s NPR:
But is Maduro the president? The United States and many other nations do not see him as a legitimate leader. This was the case under the Biden administration too. From former Secretary of State Antony Blinken a year ago:
Today, Nicolás Maduro held an illegitimate presidential inauguration in Venezuela in a desperate attempt to seize power. The Venezuelan people and world know the truth – Maduro clearly lost the 2024 presidential election and has no right to claim the presidency. The United States rejects the National Electoral Council’s fraudulent announcement that Maduro won the presidential election and does not recognize Nicolás Maduro as the president of Venezuela.
The Venezuelan opposition — which, by numerous accounts, is the nation’s actual majority — has declared him a “usurper.” Whether Maduro is the “president” is a crucial question here, and should not be erased by headlines.
The authorization question
The media is running with claims that this military action was illegal. CNN quotes Sen. Chris Coons, top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee, saying, “A military operation to capture and overthrow a president — even an illegitimate one - is an act of war that must be authorized by Congress.”
This is not definitive — and CNN should tell you that. I explained this when the United States struck Iran:
In 2013, when President Obama threatened strikes against Syria, he said: “As Commander-in-Chief, I always preserve the right and the responsibility to act on behalf of America’s national security. I do not believe that I was required to take this to Congress. But I did not take this to Congress just because it’s an empty exercise; I think it’s important to have Congress’s support on it.”
The false immigration claim
The media is doing the same for Trump — reporting what he says without telling you what’s true. From NBC today:
In an interview with Politico in early December, Trump reiterated claims that Maduro was overseeing a campaign to send drug dealers and criminals to the U.S. illegally and blamed President Joe Biden’s administration for allegedly allowing them in. “[Maduro] sent us millions of people, many from prisons, many drug dealers, drug lords, uh, mental institution ... people in mental institutions.”
No. Pew Research estimated in August that a total of 1.1 million people from Venezuela live in the United States (emphasis on total — not “sent” by Maduro). The Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) said in January 2024 that under Biden, more than half a million Venezuelans entered the United States — but that was about encounters, not immigration, meaning many of those people were turned away.
NBC doesn’t bother to mention this. It’s a strong reminder of why immigration claims are one of the top media fails of last year. Get in your votes today at MediaFailAwards.com.
The job of the news is not to give people open mic nights. It’s to provide truth.
A few more notes
CBS isn’t MAGA: While critics have been losing their minds over CBS in recent days, a glance at the coverage shows that CBS is reporting heated criticism against Trump over this.
The media should have prepared: There was every reason to believe something like this was coming. From that Politico interview: “You’ve said that Nicolás Maduro’s days are numbered and that the U.S. could soon strike Venezuelan territory.” News agencies could also have predicted the talking points and been ready with fact checks. That’s what the public needs.
The shameless bigotry of ‘progressive’ media: The far left has one obsession above all else. There should be a clinical diagnosis for it. No matter what happens anywhere, cast it as some sort of evil move by Israel. So of course, it took no time for Cenk Uygur of The Young Turks to do so. Uygur is the uncle of demented streamer Hasan Piker, and gave Piker his big break in the media.
There’s lots more to explore, including U.S. plans and oil. I’m keeping a close eye on the coverage. What are you seeing in the news that you want fact checked? Paid subscribers: Use the links below.
Thanks for trying to explain all of this! Can you share WHY Trump would do this in the first place?
Help! As of January 1, I have been unable to access audio when I try. I get the following message. “ audio processing this audio for this post is still processing. Please check back in a minute.” as it started on January 1 and I have made no changes to my phone. I’m assuming it’s a problem at your end. Can you help me please?
Mike L Thornton