WEBVTT - Instant Reaction: Trump Says US to ‘Run Venezuela’ in Interim After Maduro 0:00:02.520 --> 0:00:07.040 Bloomberg Audio Studios, Podcasts, radio news. 0:00:09.200 --> 0:00:13.800 This is a breaking news update from Bloomberg, instant. 0:00:13.400 --> 0:00:17.480 Reaction and analysis from our three thousand journalists and analysts 0:00:17.560 --> 0:00:21.239 around the world, live from mar A Lago on Bloomberg's 0:00:21.239 --> 0:00:24.599 TV and radio answering a series of questions alongside the 0:00:24.640 --> 0:00:28.120 Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs 0:00:28.120 --> 0:00:31.520 of Staff, Dan Cain. We learned a lot together over 0:00:31.560 --> 0:00:33.680 the past half hour or so, and I want to 0:00:33.720 --> 0:00:36.000 just unpack some of what we learned. If you're just 0:00:36.120 --> 0:00:38.040 joining us, thank you for being here with a special 0:00:38.200 --> 0:00:41.120 edition of Balance of Power on Bloomberg's TV and Radio, 0:00:41.200 --> 0:00:45.200 streaming live on YouTube with breaking news on this Saturday, 0:00:45.200 --> 0:00:49.360 the third of January. Mission Absolute Resolve, the name of 0:00:49.400 --> 0:00:53.200 the operation that took place last evening in Venezuela. Dan 0:00:53.320 --> 0:00:58.440 Cain describing months of work by Intel to find Nicholas Maduro, 0:00:58.480 --> 0:01:00.240 who is now on his way to New York to 0:01:00.280 --> 0:01:03.600 face charges. Months of work, he described, to understand where 0:01:03.640 --> 0:01:06.560 he traveled, what he ate, what he wore, what were 0:01:06.640 --> 0:01:09.319 his pets. The key, he said, was choosing the right 0:01:09.400 --> 0:01:12.640 day to minimize civilian harm. He described one hundred and 0:01:12.680 --> 0:01:17.000 fifty military aircraft involved, and indeed one of the helicopters 0:01:17.080 --> 0:01:20.000 that was involved in this mission came under fire but 0:01:20.120 --> 0:01:24.240 remained fliable. He said, all of our aircraft came home. 0:01:24.720 --> 0:01:28.520 President Trump, referring to the transition here and a remarkable 0:01:28.520 --> 0:01:31.520 headline that crossed the terminal a short time ago, quote, 0:01:31.920 --> 0:01:34.880 we are going to run it, essentially, referring to the 0:01:34.920 --> 0:01:39.080 country of Venezuela until such time as proper transition can 0:01:39.120 --> 0:01:41.920 take place. He said as well, we are not afraid 0:01:41.920 --> 0:01:43.959 of boots on the ground if we have to, and 0:01:44.000 --> 0:01:47.319 we're going to make sure that this is proper. We're 0:01:47.400 --> 0:01:50.400 there now and says for a period of time, it'll 0:01:50.400 --> 0:01:53.920 be the people that are standing right behind me who 0:01:53.920 --> 0:01:57.120 will be running the country, referring to Secretary of State 0:01:57.160 --> 0:02:01.560 Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense, and others. We saw the 0:02:01.680 --> 0:02:04.320 leaders of the CIA and FBI in the room as well, 0:02:04.320 --> 0:02:07.520 at mar A Lago at my side today in Washington, 0:02:07.720 --> 0:02:10.040 Christina at Ruffini, who has spent many years covering the 0:02:10.040 --> 0:02:13.320 State Department in foreign policy. This is something we've never 0:02:13.400 --> 0:02:15.840 quite seen, certainly from an America first president. 0:02:15.840 --> 0:02:17.320 As he calls himself, I mean. 0:02:17.200 --> 0:02:19.240 No, and one of the questions was how is this 0:02:19.320 --> 0:02:23.560 America first? And the President responded, America needs safe neighbors 0:02:23.600 --> 0:02:26.720 and also we need energy, and that's our energy. And 0:02:26.760 --> 0:02:28.960 one of the more remarkable moments was the one you 0:02:29.000 --> 0:02:31.639 were just referencing where he said the US will be 0:02:31.720 --> 0:02:34.720 running Venezuela until we can make sure that they're doing properly. 0:02:35.240 --> 0:02:38.920 The other moment was when he was asked about Marie Richatda, 0:02:38.960 --> 0:02:41.280 the novel laureate, and said he doesn't think she's up 0:02:41.280 --> 0:02:42.760 to the job. He doesn't think it's going to be her. 0:02:42.840 --> 0:02:44.560 He doesn't think she doesn't support of the people. 0:02:44.880 --> 0:02:47.800 That's really remarkable because there were questions about whether she 0:02:47.919 --> 0:02:50.480 was in fact talking with him about next steps here. 0:02:50.680 --> 0:02:52.120 I think it'd be very tough for her to be 0:02:52.160 --> 0:02:54.360 the leader, he said. Quote she's a very nice woman, 0:02:54.680 --> 0:02:58.120 but she doesn't have the respect to have the job, 0:02:58.320 --> 0:03:00.600 having won the Nobel Peace Prize and referred to as 0:03:00.600 --> 0:03:03.320 an opposition leader for a reason. Here, we want to 0:03:03.320 --> 0:03:06.960 bring in a voice from Capitol Hill, and it's an 0:03:07.000 --> 0:03:10.400 important one in Congressman Brad Schneider, the Democrat from Illinois, 0:03:10.560 --> 0:03:13.239 is chair of the new Democrat Coalition. As we just 0:03:13.280 --> 0:03:18.399 spent quite a period of time listening to the Republican administration. Congressman, 0:03:18.480 --> 0:03:21.519 we'd like to hear from your side of the aisle 0:03:21.600 --> 0:03:25.600 on this. Secretary Rubio says he did call members of 0:03:25.680 --> 0:03:28.880 Congress immediately after these strikes took place. 0:03:29.600 --> 0:03:31.000 Did you get a call? 0:03:31.320 --> 0:03:34.440 Did any of your Democratic colleagues receive a briefing this morning? 0:03:35.360 --> 0:03:35.800 I didn't. 0:03:35.880 --> 0:03:37.280 I don't know of any of my colleges who have 0:03:37.280 --> 0:03:40.720 gone briefing. I've seen statements from folks like Jim Himes, 0:03:40.760 --> 0:03:43.760 who is the ranking member on Intelligence, Mark Warner, and 0:03:43.760 --> 0:03:46.680 the Senate who've all said they had not heard anything. 0:03:47.280 --> 0:03:52.120 And Joe, this is a critical moment for our country. 0:03:52.680 --> 0:03:55.800 The president, well, when I go back, Christian Maduro, Maduro 0:03:55.880 --> 0:03:58.840 is a bad actor who deserves to face justice. He's 0:03:58.840 --> 0:04:01.640 stolen election in twenty twenty four and stawed himself as 0:04:01.720 --> 0:04:05.600 president this time last year. He's been indicted by New 0:04:05.720 --> 0:04:09.000 York or US Court in New York, And so I'm 0:04:09.000 --> 0:04:12.520 not going to defend Maduro or mourn for his demise. 0:04:13.160 --> 0:04:15.320 But the fact of the matter is that the president 0:04:16.200 --> 0:04:18.480 needs to follow the Constitution, and it is only the 0:04:18.800 --> 0:04:22.360 United States Congress who has the authority to declare war 0:04:23.080 --> 0:04:26.279 has the authority to authorize military force. The president can 0:04:26.320 --> 0:04:28.559 take action if there is an imminent threat. 0:04:28.880 --> 0:04:29.880 The President needs. 0:04:29.640 --> 0:04:32.560 To show Congress and the American people what was that threat, 0:04:32.640 --> 0:04:36.120 what is the legal justification? And critically, especially as you said, 0:04:36.200 --> 0:04:39.560 is he's now saying the US is going to run Venezuela. 0:04:39.839 --> 0:04:42.680 How is the United States going to guarantee or ensure 0:04:42.720 --> 0:04:45.799 that Venezuela doesn't become a failed state and a threat 0:04:45.839 --> 0:04:47.839 to its neighbors in the United States as a whole. 0:04:48.720 --> 0:04:51.440 Well, you're on intel and foreign affairs, Congressman. We heard 0:04:51.440 --> 0:04:53.880 from John Thune and Mike Johnson earlier today that there 0:04:53.880 --> 0:04:56.919 would be briefings planned for early next week. Is that 0:04:56.960 --> 0:04:59.279 your understanding. I suspect you'd be the first to be 0:04:59.320 --> 0:04:59.719 in the room. 0:04:59.800 --> 0:05:00.000 Right. 0:05:00.200 --> 0:05:02.400 Yeah, I'm not on Intel, I'm on ways and means 0:05:02.400 --> 0:05:04.560 in foreign affairs. But we do need to have briefings. 0:05:04.760 --> 0:05:08.800 The administration needs to come to Congress as soon as 0:05:08.800 --> 0:05:11.560 we get back and brief us in a classified format, 0:05:11.880 --> 0:05:15.320 laying out its justification for the attack, laying out its 0:05:15.600 --> 0:05:19.480 legal authority for taking this attack. And quite honestly, I 0:05:19.480 --> 0:05:23.640 don't think the American people wants this administration running another country. 0:05:23.640 --> 0:05:26.200 They're already having enough trouble running this country. 0:05:27.680 --> 0:05:29.560 Congressman, what about that? That was one of the more 0:05:29.600 --> 0:05:32.960 startling revelations of that press conference when President Trump said, well, 0:05:32.960 --> 0:05:34.919 who's going to be running Venezuela and he kind of 0:05:35.000 --> 0:05:37.920 gestured to the people behind him, and then more follow 0:05:38.000 --> 0:05:40.520 ups from the press. What is the mechanism for this? 0:05:40.920 --> 0:05:44.279 How long he basically said. At one point he said, 0:05:44.320 --> 0:05:46.200 you know, it could take about a year, and then 0:05:46.240 --> 0:05:47.839 he said, but it takes a very long time to 0:05:47.839 --> 0:05:50.280 get the oil. And then he said, not only would 0:05:50.279 --> 0:05:52.680 the US be using that oil to pay for I'm 0:05:52.720 --> 0:05:56.920 assuming it's administration of Venezuela, but would also be reimbursing 0:05:57.040 --> 0:06:01.159 its health for damages. Donald Trump Sayszezuela has inflicted on 0:06:01.200 --> 0:06:02.039 the United States. 0:06:03.040 --> 0:06:05.920 Well, for Trumpet, it's always about the money. It's always 0:06:05.920 --> 0:06:09.440 about enriching himself. So that's a concern. This administration hasn't 0:06:09.440 --> 0:06:11.520 earned the benefit of the doubt from the American people 0:06:11.560 --> 0:06:13.640 to know that it's putting American interests first and not 0:06:13.720 --> 0:06:16.200 the interests of folks like Trump and his family and friends. 0:06:17.000 --> 0:06:20.160 That said, we need to understand what are the steps 0:06:20.200 --> 0:06:24.640 to ensure that Venezuela doesn't descend into a state of 0:06:24.720 --> 0:06:27.880 chaos and threatened the entire region. It's ironic that thirty 0:06:27.880 --> 0:06:32.520 five years ago today Noriega, President Noriega of Panama, surrendered 0:06:32.720 --> 0:06:33.799 to US forces. 0:06:34.080 --> 0:06:35.760 The US invaded Panama on. 0:06:35.720 --> 0:06:38.800 December twentieth of nineteen eighty nine. 0:06:38.960 --> 0:06:40.159 Noriega was arrested. 0:06:40.440 --> 0:06:43.760 The difference was on December twentieth, the day of that invasion, 0:06:44.080 --> 0:06:48.600 the United States put in place a new president from Panama. 0:06:48.680 --> 0:06:52.000 The Panamanian people governed themselves, and so we need to 0:06:52.080 --> 0:06:54.040 understand why that isn't happening here. 0:06:54.800 --> 0:06:56.440 And as you noted earlier that the. 0:06:56.400 --> 0:07:01.920 President has said he doesn't have confidence in the opposition leader, 0:07:02.000 --> 0:07:04.679 she has broad trust of the Venezuelan people. 0:07:04.960 --> 0:07:07.320 We need to make sure that we have a government. 0:07:07.000 --> 0:07:11.560 Of Venezuelans for Venezuelans, protecting their interests, in ensuring a 0:07:11.600 --> 0:07:13.119 strong relationship with the regent. 0:07:14.280 --> 0:07:18.000 Saw your statement on Twitter earlier, Congressman, you write, Maduro 0:07:18.120 --> 0:07:20.600 is a bad guy who deserves to be brought to justice, 0:07:20.920 --> 0:07:23.760 but that does not mean President Trump has blanket authority 0:07:23.800 --> 0:07:26.560 to send the US military into a foreign land without 0:07:26.640 --> 0:07:30.760 authorization by Congress. There have been multiple attempts by Democrats. 0:07:30.840 --> 0:07:34.560 We spoke recently with Congressman Jim McGovern about his effort 0:07:34.680 --> 0:07:37.040 to get a War Powers Act on the floor of 0:07:37.080 --> 0:07:39.040 the House. You don't see that going anywhere with a 0:07:39.080 --> 0:07:41.120 Republican majority, do you not? 0:07:41.280 --> 0:07:45.560 With this majority who have lost their sense of responsibility. 0:07:45.800 --> 0:07:49.239 The founders established with the Constitution three co equal branches 0:07:49.280 --> 0:07:52.400 of government, and they rightly put the authority to declare war, 0:07:52.480 --> 0:07:56.120 to take the United States into foreign conflicts, to put 0:07:56.240 --> 0:07:57.440 US troops. 0:07:57.320 --> 0:07:59.720 In harm's way. Put that with the Congress. 0:08:00.040 --> 0:08:02.920 It is the Congress that faces the voters every two years. 0:08:03.000 --> 0:08:06.280 Is the Congress today four hundred and thirty five representatives 0:08:06.520 --> 0:08:09.200 who reflect the interest and the values of the American 0:08:09.200 --> 0:08:11.520 people as a whole, And it is Congress who has 0:08:11.560 --> 0:08:15.840 the ability to respond and react. We need to make 0:08:15.880 --> 0:08:19.800 sure that Congressional authority is protected. We need to take 0:08:19.840 --> 0:08:22.440 back that authority that this administration is. You served not 0:08:22.520 --> 0:08:24.560 just on war powers, but we've seen on tariffs in 0:08:24.600 --> 0:08:26.640 so many other areas. We need to stand up to 0:08:26.640 --> 0:08:29.400 this administration and say Congress is a coequal branch, not 0:08:29.440 --> 0:08:30.400 a subordinate branch. 0:08:32.120 --> 0:08:34.800 Congressman, do you have any inclination or any hints from 0:08:34.800 --> 0:08:37.440 your colleagues across the aisle that this may be a 0:08:37.480 --> 0:08:40.359 step too far. Have you heard any rumblings or whispers. 0:08:40.600 --> 0:08:43.320 I know it's very early that not all members of 0:08:43.360 --> 0:08:46.120 the party may be behind these actions. In the days 0:08:46.120 --> 0:08:48.280 and weeks to come, that you could see some defections 0:08:48.320 --> 0:08:49.160 from across the aisle. 0:08:49.880 --> 0:08:52.840 I would be surprised if there weren't some. I know 0:08:53.080 --> 0:08:56.560 a lot of my Republican friends. They believe in the Constitution. 0:08:56.960 --> 0:08:59.000 They ran for Congress to make a difference in the 0:08:59.040 --> 0:09:01.920 lives of the people they represent, but also to respect 0:09:02.000 --> 0:09:04.520 the idea that we are a collequal branch of the 0:09:04.559 --> 0:09:07.240 federal government. And so I would be surprised if you 0:09:07.280 --> 0:09:11.080 don't hear a broad outcry the administration. If it is 0:09:11.120 --> 0:09:14.480 able to present legal justification, is if it is egal, 0:09:15.280 --> 0:09:17.839 If it is able to present a strategy that lays 0:09:17.840 --> 0:09:22.280 out their vision for transferring power quickly and restoring the 0:09:22.320 --> 0:09:26.160 government of Venezuela to the people of Venezuela, maybe that 0:09:26.200 --> 0:09:28.440 will temperate. But what we heard today in the president's 0:09:28.440 --> 0:09:31.000 press conference, he intends to take the oil for his 0:09:31.040 --> 0:09:33.800 own benefit. He intends to put his own friends in charge, 0:09:33.800 --> 0:09:37.080 and he intends to let the United States run another country, 0:09:37.600 --> 0:09:39.520 something that we haven't done in a very long time. 0:09:41.080 --> 0:09:43.240 Congress and Brodchenier, thank you so much for joining us. 0:09:43.320 --> 0:09:44.800 We appreciate you taking the time. 0:09:48.040 --> 0:09:50.679 As we continue our special coverage from Washington, the President 0:09:50.840 --> 0:09:55.120 is posting more on social media, Truth Social with a 0:09:55.160 --> 0:10:01.600 new video up of the strikes with a soundtrack Fortunate 0:10:01.720 --> 0:10:07.120 Sun by Credence Clearwater Revival. As you watch these strikes 0:10:07.160 --> 0:10:09.880 take place, the explosions on the horizon. It was a 0:10:10.000 --> 0:10:13.520 video taken from what appears to be a balcony in 0:10:13.559 --> 0:10:15.920 an apartment building, remembering, of course that that. 0:10:16.000 --> 0:10:20.079 Was an anti war anthem from Vietnam. 0:10:20.800 --> 0:10:24.000 But it calls into question the optics coming from this administration, 0:10:24.080 --> 0:10:28.080 of course, a self declared America first president, and whether 0:10:28.160 --> 0:10:32.240 this justification that the President has delivered will be accepted 0:10:32.240 --> 0:10:35.800 by the Magabas and others who support President Trump. It's 0:10:35.840 --> 0:10:38.240 part of the conversation we want to have with Justin Logan, 0:10:38.240 --> 0:10:41.320 who's director of Defense and Foreign Policy Studies at the 0:10:41.400 --> 0:10:44.800 Cato Institute. Justin, thanks for being with us here on 0:10:44.840 --> 0:10:46.360 Bloomberg TV and Radio. 0:10:46.440 --> 0:10:47.720 What are your thoughts this morning? 0:10:48.200 --> 0:10:50.319 Just to begin with this afternoon, I should say, at 0:10:50.320 --> 0:10:54.160 this point, now with the strikes behind us, but a 0:10:54.240 --> 0:10:57.320 massive American armadas still off the coast of Venezuela, is 0:10:57.360 --> 0:10:59.480 this over from a military standpoint? 0:11:00.559 --> 0:11:01.160 I don't know. 0:11:01.480 --> 0:11:03.240 Is something you're never supposed to say on TV, but 0:11:03.280 --> 0:11:04.280 it happens to be the truth. 0:11:04.360 --> 0:11:06.240 I love that answer. To me. 0:11:06.320 --> 0:11:09.200 The takeaway here is that the President didn't say we're 0:11:09.200 --> 0:11:12.960 going to be running Venezuela in an offhand response to 0:11:13.040 --> 0:11:16.679 a question. It was clearly in his prepared remarks. So 0:11:16.880 --> 0:11:19.560 that is surprising to me. I mean, I think the 0:11:19.559 --> 0:11:23.720 President knows that the American people are not ready for 0:11:23.840 --> 0:11:26.760 a large nation building campaign inside Venezuela. 0:11:27.040 --> 0:11:29.760 But to use the words that he used, We're. 0:11:29.559 --> 0:11:32.160 Going to quote run the country as long as we 0:11:32.320 --> 0:11:37.600 can until a safe, proper and judicious transition can take place. 0:11:37.960 --> 0:11:40.520 And then he talked about that would establish peace, liberty, 0:11:40.559 --> 0:11:44.240 and justice for the Venezuelan people. That's a very heavy 0:11:44.320 --> 0:11:47.320 lift for the United States. And then at the end 0:11:47.320 --> 0:11:50.800 of of the conversation at the press conference, rather he 0:11:50.880 --> 0:11:54.680 remarked that the prime candidate for taking over the country 0:11:54.840 --> 0:11:59.240 with a vision of peace, liberty, and justice, Maria Cornamachillo, 0:11:59.840 --> 0:12:01.720 was not in the cards he sort of said that 0:12:01.760 --> 0:12:05.640 she doesn't have the confidence of the Venezuelan. 0:12:05.240 --> 0:12:06.920 People and that it would be very tough for her. 0:12:06.960 --> 0:12:10.040 So we're missing huge pieces of the story if in fact, 0:12:10.040 --> 0:12:12.199 the Americans are going to be running Venezuela. 0:12:13.640 --> 0:12:17.400 And that was really startling, especially given how much effort 0:12:17.480 --> 0:12:20.360 she's put into curating that relationship with President Trump, making 0:12:20.400 --> 0:12:22.960 sure you say supportive things of him in almost every 0:12:22.960 --> 0:12:26.000 interview she's had, being supportive of his strikes on these 0:12:26.360 --> 0:12:28.960 drug boats or fishing boats or whatever they tend to be. 0:12:29.920 --> 0:12:32.680 I also want to ask you, justin your latest op 0:12:32.840 --> 0:12:36.000 ed was entitled mister President, don't do it. Obviously he 0:12:36.080 --> 0:12:39.160 missed that memo, but I've got an excerpt from it here, 0:12:39.360 --> 0:12:42.480 you say the administration's public case for its Venezuela policy 0:12:42.800 --> 0:12:46.320 is insultingly ridiculous. At an October fifteenth press conference, the 0:12:46.320 --> 0:12:48.680 President declared that every boat we knock out, we saved 0:12:48.720 --> 0:12:51.920 twenty five thousand American lives. Considering that they were only 0:12:51.960 --> 0:12:55.160 around eighty four thousand overdoses in the United States last year, 0:12:55.480 --> 0:12:57.520 and that they have so far blown up ten boats, 0:12:57.640 --> 0:13:00.760 they should have declared victory and come home and votes ago. 0:13:02.080 --> 0:13:04.520 Yeah, I mean trying to pin down the case for this. 0:13:04.559 --> 0:13:06.439 And I'm old enough to have been around during the 0:13:06.600 --> 0:13:09.280 Iraq war run up, right, there was a sort of 0:13:09.320 --> 0:13:12.360 more linear story told then than there has been told now. 0:13:12.720 --> 0:13:16.000 The President started this campaign against Venezuela by talking about 0:13:16.080 --> 0:13:19.599 fentanyl coming out of Venezuela. Someone apparently let him know 0:13:19.640 --> 0:13:22.680 that fentanyl doesn't come out of Venezuela. And now you 0:13:22.760 --> 0:13:25.720 heard in the press conference today he was referencing three 0:13:25.800 --> 0:13:29.840 hundred thousand overdoses, when in fact, there are now less 0:13:29.840 --> 0:13:33.160 than eighty thousand overdoses total in the United States each year, 0:13:33.440 --> 0:13:35.840 most of which are due to fentanyl. There is some 0:13:35.880 --> 0:13:40.040 cocaine that comes to the United States via Venezuela, but 0:13:40.080 --> 0:13:43.880 that accounts for a relatively small number of those overdose deaths. 0:13:43.920 --> 0:13:47.160 So at times this is about the sort of indictment 0:13:47.360 --> 0:13:50.560 of Nicolas Maduro and his wife in the United States. 0:13:50.679 --> 0:13:54.760 And you heard this weird fusion of the Defense Department 0:13:54.880 --> 0:13:59.800 allegedly responding to a Department of Justice request to suppress 0:14:00.080 --> 0:14:04.400 Venezuelan air defenses and to embed law enforcement officers in 0:14:04.679 --> 0:14:07.520 sort of delta force raids. So there's this weird blurring 0:14:07.600 --> 0:14:11.880 together both of rationales that this is about law enforcement somehow, 0:14:11.920 --> 0:14:16.520 but it's also about, as Pete Hegseth said, the safety, security, freedom, 0:14:16.559 --> 0:14:18.560 and prosperity of the American people. 0:14:19.160 --> 0:14:20.600 The American people have not been. 0:14:20.480 --> 0:14:23.760 Crying out for regime change in Venezuela outside of maybe 0:14:23.800 --> 0:14:26.920 pockets in South Florida, if you will. So this trying 0:14:26.920 --> 0:14:30.120 to pin down exactly what the ends, ways, and means 0:14:30.120 --> 0:14:32.920 of this campaign are has been, you know, even for 0:14:32.960 --> 0:14:35.400 somebody who's been in this business for a while, a 0:14:35.440 --> 0:14:36.200 pretty heavy lift. 0:14:37.280 --> 0:14:39.680 Last question for you, justin we've only got about a minute. 0:14:39.680 --> 0:14:41.560 I want to get back to where we began, and 0:14:41.600 --> 0:14:46.920 that's the justification for this military action. The President said, quote, 0:14:46.960 --> 0:14:51.240 we built Venezuela's oil industry with American talent, drive, and skill, 0:14:51.640 --> 0:14:55.360 and the socialist regime stole it from us. Well, the 0:14:55.400 --> 0:14:57.600 American electorate appreciate that point. 0:14:58.600 --> 0:15:01.400 Yeah, I mean it's a pretty icy thing to say. 0:15:01.600 --> 0:15:03.800 You know, we went into this country with our military 0:15:03.920 --> 0:15:07.080 and deposed its leader to protect and you heard Marco 0:15:07.160 --> 0:15:11.360 Rubio talking about not you know, American assets, but the 0:15:11.400 --> 0:15:13.359 assets of American oil companies. 0:15:13.480 --> 0:15:15.320 Right, are you going to go out and campaign for 0:15:15.400 --> 0:15:16.640 office in twenty twenty eight. 0:15:16.680 --> 0:15:20.120 If you're running for the presidency by saying we, you know, 0:15:21.080 --> 0:15:25.360 went in Venezuela and to protect oil company's revenue streams, right, 0:15:25.400 --> 0:15:29.000 that just strikes me as a weird political pitch in 0:15:29.040 --> 0:15:31.840 an era where Americans are asking for more help at home, 0:15:31.920 --> 0:15:34.080 for more focus at home, and I think there's a 0:15:34.120 --> 0:15:37.400 real exhaustion with the overall amount of foreign policy activity 0:15:37.440 --> 0:15:40.960 this administration has had thus far as compared with domestic policy. 0:15:42.120 --> 0:15:45.200 With his view from the Cato Institute, justin Logan, we 0:15:45.280 --> 0:15:47.840 thank you very much for your insights. Before we get 0:15:47.880 --> 0:15:49.960 some final thoughts from our political panel, we want to 0:15:50.000 --> 0:15:51.960 get the latest right now from our newsroom. In a 0:15:52.000 --> 0:15:54.760 day that has brought many developments to this story, let's 0:15:54.760 --> 0:15:55.880 turn out to Nathan Hager. 0:15:55.960 --> 0:15:58.000 Nathan, what do you have? Well, you said it, Joe, 0:15:58.000 --> 0:15:58.280 Thank you. 0:15:58.360 --> 0:16:01.239 President Trump says the US as a same actually running Venezuela. 0:16:01.360 --> 0:16:01.520 Now. 0:16:01.560 --> 0:16:04.560 After an overnight round of airstrikes at a special forces 0:16:04.600 --> 0:16:08.600 operation that ended with the capture of Venezuelan President Nicholas 0:16:08.640 --> 0:16:11.280 Madua and First Lady Cilia Flores, they are now on 0:16:11.320 --> 0:16:13.840 their way to New York, where they will face charges 0:16:13.880 --> 0:16:18.240 of narco terrorism, conspiracy, and drug trafficking. Here is what 0:16:18.280 --> 0:16:21.160 President Trump had to say at a mar Lago news conference. 0:16:21.600 --> 0:16:25.160 We're going to run the country until such time as 0:16:25.200 --> 0:16:27.280 we can do a safe, proper. 0:16:27.000 --> 0:16:29.280 And judicious transition. 0:16:29.520 --> 0:16:34.200 So we don't want to be involved with having somebody 0:16:34.200 --> 0:16:34.800 else get in. 0:16:34.840 --> 0:16:37.520 And we have the same situation that we had for 0:16:37.560 --> 0:16:41.040 the last long period of years. So we are going 0:16:41.080 --> 0:16:42.080 to run the country. 0:16:42.600 --> 0:16:44.920 And the President says the US stands ready to carry 0:16:44.960 --> 0:16:47.600 out a second strike. It's not afraid to deploy troops 0:16:47.640 --> 0:16:52.040 in Venezuela if needed. Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Karina Machado 0:16:52.120 --> 0:16:55.080 posted on x that the oppositions ready to quote honor 0:16:55.120 --> 0:16:58.400 their mandate and assume power, but President Trump says Machado 0:16:58.480 --> 0:17:01.960 does not have the respect or sot to lead the country. 0:17:02.160 --> 0:17:05.080 I'm Nathan Hager in Washington. Joe and Christina back to you. 0:17:06.080 --> 0:17:08.240 All right, Nathan, thank you so much for all of 0:17:08.280 --> 0:17:10.919 your contributions. Today, we're live in Washington on a special 0:17:11.040 --> 0:17:14.119 edition of Balance of Power here on Bloomberg TV and Radio. 0:17:14.160 --> 0:17:17.760 As we reassemble our political panel, Bloomberg Politics contributor Genie 0:17:17.760 --> 0:17:21.680 Shanzino is with us, our democratic analyst and Democracy visiting 0:17:21.720 --> 0:17:25.200 fellow at Harvard Kennedy School's Ash Center, alongside Republican strategist 0:17:25.280 --> 0:17:29.000 Lester Munson from the International Practice at BGR Group. 0:17:29.080 --> 0:17:30.399 All right, let's hear from both of you. 0:17:30.520 --> 0:17:33.040 Now that the President has spoken, GENNI, did he make 0:17:33.080 --> 0:17:35.200 the case for this military action? 0:17:37.280 --> 0:17:40.800 I think he opened a lot more questions than he answered. 0:17:41.240 --> 0:17:44.199 The idea that Marco Rubio, who already has something to 0:17:44.280 --> 0:17:46.760 three to four jobs by any count is going to 0:17:46.760 --> 0:17:48.840 be joining this team and running Venezuela. 0:17:48.880 --> 0:17:49.800 I don't think many. 0:17:49.680 --> 0:17:52.480 Of us expected it, and how that is going to happen, 0:17:52.560 --> 0:17:54.440 for what length, who is going to do it. He's 0:17:54.440 --> 0:17:56.720 opened to boots on the ground. All of this is 0:17:56.840 --> 0:17:59.880 just an astonishing development. So I think a lot more 0:18:00.119 --> 0:18:03.440 questions here as in regards to what the President said 0:18:03.440 --> 0:18:04.080 than answers. 0:18:05.840 --> 0:18:08.440 Lester, I have a slightly less sophisticated question for you. 0:18:09.800 --> 0:18:12.440 In a press conference that had a lot of staggering, 0:18:12.480 --> 0:18:15.520 memorable moments, one that stood out to me was actually 0:18:15.560 --> 0:18:18.560 Marco Rubio because while even President Trump, of course, he 0:18:18.640 --> 0:18:22.320 strayed from his prepared remarks, the Admiral Haig Seth, we're 0:18:22.320 --> 0:18:26.520 all reading from prepared remarks. We saw Rubio do something 0:18:26.560 --> 0:18:28.959 we don't usually see from him. Where he got up 0:18:29.000 --> 0:18:31.399 and very casually said, I don't have much else to add, 0:18:31.760 --> 0:18:33.760 but he said, you know, Maduo wanted to play the 0:18:33.800 --> 0:18:37.280 big guy, and he spoke off the cuff. He spoke 0:18:37.640 --> 0:18:40.720 in a very regular manner, and he spoke a little 0:18:40.720 --> 0:18:43.760 bit more like we usually hear Donald Trump do. And 0:18:43.840 --> 0:18:48.200 I'm wondering, given all the talk about you know, advance Rubio, 0:18:48.320 --> 0:18:51.840 Rubio dvance ticket, if he is jostling a little bit 0:18:51.880 --> 0:18:54.040 to be air apparent and if that's what was going 0:18:54.080 --> 0:18:54.720 on here. 0:18:55.240 --> 0:18:57.640 Yeah, boy, you could you could read a lot into that. 0:18:57.960 --> 0:19:01.160 I think it's a great question. I think the Secretary 0:19:01.160 --> 0:19:03.560 of State did a good job. He looked very comfortable. 0:19:03.960 --> 0:19:07.160 He was being very politically smart. He wasn't really. 0:19:06.880 --> 0:19:09.000 Taking ownership of this issue. 0:19:09.119 --> 0:19:11.960 He was letting the president President Trump go out there 0:19:12.000 --> 0:19:14.960 and make the case to kind of the magabase. Hey, 0:19:15.000 --> 0:19:19.119 this matters to you. Trump talked about the young victim 0:19:19.119 --> 0:19:23.239 of trend Arragua in Texas and said this is you know, 0:19:23.280 --> 0:19:27.119 this matters for our people, and Rubio was happy to 0:19:27.160 --> 0:19:29.359 kind of step aside and let him do that. I 0:19:29.359 --> 0:19:31.960 think we all sense that Rubio has been playing a 0:19:32.040 --> 0:19:35.480 huge role in this policy making leading up to this 0:19:35.680 --> 0:19:37.320 in this moment and is clearly going to play a 0:19:37.320 --> 0:19:41.000 big role in the future. So very interesting positioning by him. 0:19:41.040 --> 0:19:42.720 But I think he did a very good job. 0:19:43.680 --> 0:19:45.720 Well, just to extend that a little bit, Genie, this 0:19:45.840 --> 0:19:48.159 did seem to be a family operation here. If you 0:19:48.160 --> 0:19:51.480 could see the cutaway shot in the room, the whole 0:19:51.520 --> 0:19:55.119 team was with the president, either behind the podium or 0:19:55.160 --> 0:19:58.919 off to the side. Hag Seth Cain, Rubio, but also 0:19:59.280 --> 0:20:03.000 Steven Miller was there, Ratcliffe's CIA. Did you notice cash 0:20:03.000 --> 0:20:05.440 but Tell of the FBI was off to the side 0:20:05.720 --> 0:20:08.639 next to Steve Whitkoff. Where they all should we assume? 0:20:08.680 --> 0:20:11.200 Were they all involved in this process? And will they 0:20:11.280 --> 0:20:13.919 all somehow together run Venezuela? 0:20:15.520 --> 0:20:17.560 That's what we were told. I mean, it was quite 0:20:17.600 --> 0:20:20.920 a stunning display. I thought it was smart that jd. Vance, 0:20:20.960 --> 0:20:23.040 at least as far as I could see from my perch, 0:20:23.240 --> 0:20:26.480 was not there because politically, if this thing goes a foul, 0:20:26.560 --> 0:20:28.800 it would hurt him and running for twenty eight So 0:20:29.240 --> 0:20:32.640 that was interesting. But I do think there is absolutely 0:20:32.680 --> 0:20:35.760