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Published by The Post Newspaper Published: January 25, 2026
In early January, President Trump ordered the arrest of Nicolas Maduro, an accused drug cartel leader from Venezuela. The President acted under the Monroe Doctrine. The arrest happened seamlessly and without American casualties. U.S. forces disabled Chinese (Huawei) and Russian supplied warning and defense systems before affecting the arrest leaving those sympathetic to American foes pondering, could we be next? This far-reaching action -- similar to the arrest of Manuel Noriega in Panama on drug trafficking, racketeering, and money laundering charges -- sparked outrage from much of the world and Democrats in Congress. The detractors chose to ignore that the 1990 Noriega arrest was found to be both warranted and legal. Because of his boldness, Trump has made enemies. He's not a follower, but a leader. But let's take a look at the foreign policy implications for Trump's Venezuela action. Venezuela was at the center of the nefarious activities of our adversaries (i.e., they provided Communist China and Cuba with cheap, and U.S-sanctioned, oil). China depends upon two countries for cheap oil, Venezuela and Iran. Both sources have been sanctioned meaning Chinese purchases are at a huge discount. With one of the two sources gone it puts China in a precarious situation economically. They require cheap oil in order to stay financially afloat. One of China's goals is to build a blue water navy in order to control the South China Sea which the rest of the world sees as international waters. China also wants to dominate major parts of the world, including Central and South America. But it required a base of operations in Venezuela to do so and especially access to Venezuela's massive oil reserves. With the U.S. asserting dominance in the Western Hemisphere and with numerous South American nations rejecting their past socialistic leadership in favor of more democratic and capitalistic societies, the Chinese aspirations appear – at least for the moment – to be blocked. But China is still holding on. They manage and control two important ports on Western and Eastern approaches to the Panama Canal. Panama and the U.S. have partnered to move the control of these ports to U.S./Panamanian control. But China is blocking the transfer. Both these ports have major national defense concerns for the U.S. and Panama as well. Time will tell how this turns out, but the U.S. is adamant that China's reach in the Western Hemisphere be shut down. With Iran now facing strong protests and a likely regime change, China could be in even further jeopardy. Currently China purchases approximately 90% of its oil at cheap discounted rates. A fall of the Iranian government could leave control of almost 70% of China's imported crude in Trump's hands. With the current economic stress China is experiencing, increases in the cost of the oil they need, will add fuel to the fire. Reportedly, China is controlled behind the scenes by a consortium of billionaires. The political leadership must kowtow to them. At the same time the political leadership wants to take Taiwan and to control the South China Sea. If access to cheap oil goes away, something will need to give. The Trump Administration is aware of these dynamics as it puts increased pressure on the Chinese. Meanwhile, Cuba finds itself in a similar situation. Its economy is also in dire straits. It was being propped up by cheap Venezuelan oil. Many experts are predicting that without it the current regime will also fall. That's why Venezuela's future is so important. The establishment of a stable regime that serves its people, rids itself of graft and corruption, and which deals with its violence and drug infestation will benefit not only their nation, but also the Western Hemisphere and the world. One can only hope this is in its future. One final observation, a warning for the United States. Venezuela, Cuba, and even China, are facing economic hardships at best, utter collapse at worst. The lesson for us is that socialism doesn't work. Our prediction is that New York City is about to learn this lesson. Wherever it has been tried, socialism fails, just ask the Venezuelan and Cuban man or woman on the street. Don't go there America!
	About the Authors and Columnists 2026 Bill and Mansius have written over 300 guest columnsr and editorials together over the last ten years for numerous publications across the country and they continue to do so. Bill lives in Texas and Mark in Utah. Both gentlemen ran against each other in the 2012 Republican Primary for Texas Congressional District 14. Since then they have become close friends and colleagues. In addition to formerly being responsible for overseeing elections in Galveston County as Galveston's Chief Deputy Clerk for Elections, Bill has worked with the Texas State Legislature to improve and craft election legisation.
From a reader in New Braunfels, Texas: Thank you for this concise summary of global events. You have a gift of understanding and writing about current events!! Thank you for your time and effort!! Comment from a retired law enforcement officer living in North Carolina: Regarding "The establishment of a stable regime that serves its people, rids itself of graft and corruption, and which deals with its violence and drug infestation will benefit not only their nation, but also the Western Hemisphere and the world." …Ridding itself of graft and corruption isb unrealistic in that country.  It might be better to say “substantially reduces its graft and corruption!”    This is a very good article. It is very helpful in more fully understanding the big picture regarding the Venezuela issue. Comment from a petrochemical insider: I believe much of the mainstream media is overlooking—or is simply unaware of—the extent to which American oil and gas companies are not prepared to respond to recent actions in Venezuela.  These companies were not consulted prior to the Trump administration’s moves and were as surprised as anyone to learn they were supposedly prepared to “invest billions” to rejuvenate Venezuela’s oil fields. While there have been several meetings between White House officials and leaders of American oil and gas companies since the arrest of Nicolás Maduro, there is no agreement that U.S. firms will “take over” Venezuela’s energy sector. American oil and gas companies were forced out of Venezuela in the 1970s. Since then, the equipment left behind has not been properly maintained or modernized, a major reason the country’s oil production has fallen by more than 60%. Restoring that capacity would indeed require capital investments measured in the billions — on that point President Trump was correct — and it would likely take many years to accomplish.  For now, American companies remain hesitant. Any return would require credible guarantees of employee safety and a meaningful reestablishment of the rule of law in Venezuela. Absent those conditions, there is little appetite within the industry to reenter the countr Response: We didn’t address this aspect of the Venezuelan issue and find this comment interesting and informative.  Bill and Mark

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