Senior Democrat Rep. Bucks Hakeem Jeffries, Praises Trump’s Maduro Capture

At least one House Democrat broke ranks to praise President Donald Trump after U.S. forces captured Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro in a surprise overnight operation.

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., hailed Maduro’s removal as overdue justice for Venezuelans who fled his regime, while warning that the mission must lead to lasting change.

“The capture of the brutal, illegitimate ruler of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, who oppressed Venezuela’s people is welcome news for my friends and neighbors who fled his violent, lawless, and disastrous rule. However, cutting off the head of a snake is fruitless if it just regrows,” Wasserman Schultz wrote on X.

“Venezuelans deserve the promise of democracy and the rule of law, not a state of endless violence and spiraling disorder. My hope is it offers a passage to true democracy and liberation. This action offers beleaguered Venezuelans a chance to seat their true, democratically elected president, Edmundo González.”

Florida is home to a large Venezuelan exile community, along with refugees from other communist regimes in Latin America, including Cuba.

Wasserman Schultz’s response stood out as an exception among Democrats, many of whom quickly blasted Trump over the operation.

Democratic lawmakers largely accused the administration of unlawfully authorizing military action after U.S. forces carried out multiple strikes and captured Maduro and his wife.

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz on CNN. (Screenshot)

While reactions varied in tone, most Democrats argued the operation violated U.S. law and constitutional limits on presidential power.

“The Trump administration launched a large-scale military attack on a sovereign nation and kidnapped its sitting president, without congressional approval and without consideration of any of the consequences their illegal actions may bring,” Rep. Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., wrote on X. “This act of aggression is unconstitutional, un-American, and a direct threat to our democracy.”

Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., a Marine Corps veteran who served during the Iraq War, issued a similar warning.

“There is no justification for the United States to be at war with Venezuela. I lived through the consequences of an illegal war sold to the American people with lies. We swore we would never repeat those mistakes. Yet here we are again,” Gallego said in a statement.

Rep. Eugene Vindman, D-Va., another military veteran, accused Trump of bypassing Congress and the Constitution.

“Let there be no mistake, President Trump has started a war in Venezuela, without any congressional approval, and in violation of the Constitution. Over the past 2 decades, we have learned the hard way that wars are easy to start and hard to finish,” Vindman wrote on X.

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