Trump Promises to 'Run' Venezuela, Ignoring 150 Years of Practice
Al Jazeera reports Donald Trump’s audacious claim that the U.S. would 'run' Venezuela, should Nicolas Maduro be seized. What the reporting, and much of the mainstream commentary, fails to grasp is that this isn't a new, outlandish idea from a maverick politician; it's practically a confession of historical U.S. intent for the entire region. From the 1823 Monroe Doctrine to countless coups and
interventions in Nicaragua, Chile, Panama, and indeed Venezuela itself, Washington has long viewed Latin America as its de facto backyard to 'run.' Trump merely lacks the diplomatic decorum to couch this ambition in euphemisms like 'promoting democracy' or 'protecting U.S. interests.' His bluntness, while jarring, often just states the quiet parts of American exceptionalism out loud. The question
isn't whether the U.S. wants to run Venezuela, but how many more attempts at regime change, sanctions, and proxy support of opposition figures it will take before the facade of 'democracy promotion' finally crumbles, revealing the naked imperial ambition beneath.