Trump’s intervention in Venezuela deepens GOP split over 'America First' stance

President Trump’s decision to send U.S. forces into Venezuela to remove its leader, Nicolás Maduro, and bring him to New York to face criminal charges has opened a new rift within the Republican Party, which Mr. Trump had long steered with an anti-interventionist “America First” platform.

Administration figures have offered differing explanations of what would happen next. Mr. Trump said Americans would “run” the country, while Secretary of State Marco Rubio later pushed back on that phrasing and noted American troops were no longer on the ground. Pro-Trump voices such as Stephen K.

Bannon said the lack of clear messaging had left the base “bewildered,” even as other Republicans hailed the operation as protecting U.S. interests. Critics included right-wing influencers and some lawmakers who argued the intervention resembled past regime-change actions. Candace Owens wrote on X that the C.I.A.

had “staged another hostile takeover of a country,” and Representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene and Thomas Massie questioned whether the move matched Mr. Trump’s promises to avoid nation‑building and foreign entanglements. Other Republicans defended the incursion as targeted and justified by Venezuela’s proximity and ties to U.S.

Key Topics

Politics, Donald Trump, Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, Republican Party, Marco Rubio