In January 2018, the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission, under Former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, revoked Rappler’s operating license due to a conflict with journalist Maria Ressa. According to Rappler, “The SEC’s kill order revoking Rappler’s license to operate is the first of its kind in history—both for the Commission and for Philippine media.” Similarly, Americans are now approaching 30 days of a government shutdown in service of the first American President who seems to be aspiring to a legacy like that of Duterte.
What has also been prominent in the news is the extrajudicial killings taking place in the Caribbean, where to date, the Trump administration has executed eight strikes, while striking two other vessels in the Pacific Ocean under the guise of safeguarding US interests from the so-called “narco-terrorists.” Recent reports tally casualties at 43, with several wounded. Many of whom have no connections to the alleged Tren de Aragua narcotic activities. However, it appears as if Trump 2.0 is revisiting a geopolitical agenda it had laid out against the oil-rich South American nation, Venezuela.
In an interview last week, Trump said, “I think we’re just going to kill people that are bringing drugs into our country. OK? We’re going to kill them.” Trump 2.0 is using the machinery of democracy to behave like a dictator — abroad through extrajudicial violence, and at home through political paralysis.
Earlier this month, the Washington Post reported that it had authorized the Central Intelligence Agency to conduct operations in Venezuela, markedly escalating U.S. pressure on President Nicolás Maduro, which is a continuation of the Trump administration’s unsuccessful 2019 attempt at targeting Maduro’s regime. Despite numerous reports that fail to provide evidence of drug cartel activity, what is interesting is that last week, the U.S. deployed the largest aircraft carrier, USS Gerald R. Ford, to the waters off South America.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has outwardly declared the intent to topple Maduro’s regime, referring to him as a “horrible dictator.” Which begs the question: What exactly is a “good dictator”?
As the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier approaches Venezuela, President Nicolas Maduro has said the United States government is “fabricating” a war against him. For the past two months, the U.S. military has been gathering warships, fighter jets, bombers, drones, and a military presence in the Caribbean Sea. The deployment of USS Gerald R. Ford, which can host up to 90 airplanes and attack helicopters, is priming the hemisphere for what feels to many historians as another attempt at regime change in South America.
It feels less like a drug war and more like a sequel. Trump 2.0: Return to Caracas.
“The human cost of this theater is staggering. Due to the ongoing political turmoil that the U.S. has created in the name of oil, it is estimated that as of December 2024, more than 7.8 million people have left Venezuela, making it one of the largest external displacement crises in the world.”
Despite the lack of evidence that Venezuela plays a large role in the drug trade, President Trump has accused President Maduro of spearheading Tren de Aragua, and has expressed discontent that “they have emptied their prisons into the United States of America. And the other thing, the drugs, we have a lot of drugs coming in from Venezuela.” It’s the kind of line that’s both unverifiable and perfectly tweetable.
For some historical context, Venezuela’s oil reserves are among the largest in the world. Every U.S. administration that flirts with regime change in Venezuela has a resource motive — but Trump turns it into a spectacle of personal vengeance. Many experts have questioned the legality of the extrajudicial killings from the numerous attacks that have taken place. Recent reports in NPR suggest that some civilian fishermen have been killed in the recent U.S. strikes, as opposed to drug lords.
There have been many attempts on Venezuelan President Maduro’s life. Most notably in 2018, when two drones detonated near him during his speech, and another in May 2020, also known as Operation Gideon, which was a failed attempt launched at sea to infiltrate Venezuela and remove President Maduro from power.
As the shutdown stretches toward thirty days, most federal workers remain unpaid—except, notably, ICE agents. The optics are chillingly familiar: in 2019, Trump’s cyber unit attacked Venezuela’s military payroll system, hoping to push loyalty toward U.S.-backed figurehead Juan Guaidó. This time, one can’t help but wonder if the U.S. shutdown is a form of political performance art—a setup for Trump to “save the day” with an executive order and declare himself indispensable in wartime. A third term? Stranger things have happened. Ask Steve Bannon.
The human cost of this theater is staggering. Due to the ongoing political turmoil that the U.S. has created in the name of oil, it is estimated that as of December 2024, more than 7.8 million people have left Venezuela, making it one of the largest external displacement crises in the world. In an almost desperate cry during a conference last week, President Maduro repeated in English, “No war, no War, No war. Just peace. Just peace. Just peace. Forever, forever, forever—Peace forever.”
And so, as governments shutter, regimes crumble, and children starve from Caracas to Gaza, Donald J. Trump has filed a $230 million lawsuit against the Department of Justice—claiming the investigations against him have disrupted his peace.
A fitting endnote for a man who loves law and order—the dictatorship kind.
Editor’s Note: The Philippine Daily Mirror welcomes Elaine J.E.. Degale as a columnist. Ms. Degale’s column, The Dreamweaver, will appear every Thursday.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Elaine Joy Edaya Degale is a Black-Filipina writer and lecturer at community colleges within the City University of New York (CUNY) and has an Ed.M. and M.A. from Teachers College, Columbia University.
She graduated cum laude from Mount Holyoke College, where she studied International Relations and Development, and continues to support literacy and food programming efforts in Indigenous communities through her Community-Based organization, OperationMerienda.org.
