Republican Rep. Mike Lawler didn’t mince words on Sunday when he called Democratic outrage over the Trump administration’s operation in Venezuela “laughable,” pointing out a pattern of hypocrisy from the left as they suddenly pivot from calling Nicolás Maduro “illegitimate” to criticizing the man who actually removed him from power. Lawler made his remarks on Fox’s The Big Weekend Show and reiterated them in interviews, arguing Democrats are twisting themselves into knots to score cheap political points instead of defending American security.
Democratic leaders quickly condemned the operation, with former Vice President Kamala Harris calling the capture “unlawful and unwise” and accusing the administration of endangering troops and destabilizing the region. Their theatrical posturing rings hollow to many who remember the bitter denunciations of Maduro’s regime for years, and it exposes the politically convenient theatrics at the heart of modern Democratic foreign policy.
Lawler and other Republicans rightly called out the obvious inconsistency: Democrats once backed sanctions, called Maduro a brutal dictator, and even supported measures aimed at removing him, yet they’re now reflexively attacking an administration that executed justice where previous talk led to nothing. This isn’t debate — it’s political theater, and hardworking Americans deserve leadership that acts decisively against narco-terrorists, not virtue-signaling that excuses tyranny.
The operation itself was presented by officials as a targeted, intelligence-driven action that resulted in Maduro being taken into U.S. custody and transported to New York, where he faces a superseding indictment alleging narco-terrorism, drug trafficking and weapons offenses. Conservatives who have warned for years about Venezuela’s role as a haven for criminal networks see this as overdue accountability for a man long protected by foreign adversaries.
Meanwhile Republican lawmakers defended the mission as lawful and necessary, pointing to long-standing precedents for removing dangerous criminal actors and the urgent national-security threats posed by Maduro’s alliances with hostile regimes. The choice is between action that protects American families and endless hand-wringing; the GOP’s stance is clear — you don’t negotiate with narco-terrorists while they funnel drugs and chaos toward our shores.
At its core this fight is about principles: are we a nation that protects its citizens and holds criminals accountable, or are we a country paralyzed by performative outrage from career politicians more interested in headlines than homeland security? Lawler’s blunt takedown is the voice of the sensible majority who want decisive leadership, secure borders, and American strength restored in the hemisphere.
