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Dear John,
On January 3, the United States launched a major military operation against Venezuela, capturing President Nicolás Maduro and his wife to face criminal charges in the Southern District of New York.
President Trump announced that the U.S. would be “running” Venezuela for an undetermined period and that American oil companies would take the lead in rebuilding and managing Venezuela’s immense oil assets and infrastructure.
The attack and capture raise serious questions about the lack of constitutionally required Congressional authorization, as well as violations of international law and national sovereignty.
Bypassing Congressional Authorization
The President did not seek permission from, nor inform, Congress prior to the attack. Instead, the President dismissed these Constitutional concerns raised by members of Congress, labelling them complainers who should just be praising the outcome of the operation instead of worrying about its legality.
Violating International Law and National Sovereignty
The U.S. actions have drawn widespread criticism for violating international law and the fundamental rule of law principles that underlie world order. The United Nations Secretary General described the operation as a dangerous precedent. Yet following the attack, President Trump issued lightly veiled threats against Cuba, Colombia, Mexico, and Greenland – nations that might stand in the way of his pursuit of his concept of American interests.
In a CNN interview yesterday, White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy, Stephen Miller, was more explicit. He dismissed the notion of “international niceties and anything else,” and asserted that the world is governed by strength, force, and power. Miller ominously also stated that, under President Trump, the United States will conduct itself as a superpower, and that Greenland should be a part of the overall security apparatus of the United States.
This outright dismissal of international law poses a grave danger to our country and the world.
Drugs Or Oil?
In public remarks justifying military action, the President repeatedly cited oil interests (no mention of democracy) and ignored the fact that the indictment against Maduro focuses on narco-terrorism and conspiracy to import cocaine. The administration also ignored the stunning hypocrisy arising from the President’s recent pardon of former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández , shortly after his conviction in federal court of conspiring to traffic more than 400 tons of cocaine.
The President’s continued references to Venezuelan oil belies the most likely motive for the action. Venezuela has the world’s largest proven oil reserves. If the principal purpose of the removal of Maduro is to facilitate the confiscation of the Venezuelan oil industry and redistribute the oil to U.S. companies, that would be an illegal appropriation under international law and akin to 17th or 18th-century colonialism.
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The Continuing Stain of January 6
The lawlessness of the Venezuelan actions coincides with the 5-year anniversary of the attack on the nation’s Capital building on January 6, 2020. President Trump began his second term with a sweeping pardon to those who were charged or convicted of crimes committed that day, including sedition and assaults on law enforcement.
To commemorate the members of law enforcement who faced the rioters that day, Congress authorized a plaque which was to be placed prominently on the side of the Capitol where some of the most intense clashes between rioters and officers took place. That plaque reads:
“On behalf of a grateful Congress, this plaque honors the extraordinary individuals who bravely protected and defended this symbol of democracy.”
Shamefully, that plaque has never been installed and remains hidden from public view.
It is now up to all of us to do our part. Please join us in the work ahead by volunteering [[link removed]] and donating [[link removed]] .
Thank you,
Lawyers Defending American Democracy
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