According to NBC News, Maduro and Flores both appeared in court in New York today and pleaded not guilty to several charges set against them, including narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy, and weapons violations. Maduro was defiant in court, claiming that he had been “kidnapped” as “the President of Venezuela”. He also added that he believes that he is a “prisoner of war.”
Meanwhile, back in Caracas, Maduro’s former Vice President Delcy Rodríguez has been sworn in as President in the wake of the capture.
“I come with sorrow for the kidnapping of two colleagues in the United States of America: President Nicolás Maduro and the first lady of the country, Cilia Flores,” Rodriguez said during the televised oath.
She continued:
“Let us swear as one country to move Venezuela forward in these terrible times of threats against the stability and peace of the nation,” she said.
While Trump and his obsequious MAGA bootlickers try to spin this act of war as a crime prevention measure, it’s not lost on many people what this military operation was really about: oil.
Almost immediately after the news first broke, the internet became flooded with explanations about the history of Venezuela and how it affects American interests. The following video in particular has gone very viral for its straightforward breakdown and pointed questions.
We will continue to update this story as more information becomes available.
