By RismadarVoice Reporters
January 4, 2026
Former Vice President Kamala Harris on Sunday criticized the Trump administration’s military operation in Venezuela, describing the capture of President Nicolás Maduro as a reckless and unlawful escalation driven by “oil and ego” rather than American security interests.
In a statement posted on social media platform X, Harris warned that the overnight air strikes and extraction of the Venezuelan leader signalled a return to what she described as a failed era of regime-change interventions.
“The brutal nature of the Maduro regime does not grant the executive branch a blank check to bypass legal norms, ignore the sovereignty of international law,” Harris said.
She argued that the operation was both unlawful and strategically unsound, drawing parallels with past US-led interventions that resulted in prolonged instability and loss of life.
“Wars for regime change or oil are often sold as demonstrations of strength,” Harris said, adding that such conflicts “inevitably devolve into chaos, leaving American families to pay the ultimate price.”
Harris directly challenged the White House’s justification for the operation, which US officials have described as a targeted action against a narco-terrorist network.
Rejecting that explanation, Harris said the American public was “tired of being lied to,” insisting the operation was not about combating drugs or promoting democracy.
The Trump administration has defended the mission as a limited military action that led to the arrest of Maduro and his wife, who were flown to New York City to face drug-trafficking and weapons-related charges.
The comments from Harris add to growing political debate in Washington over the legality, scope and long-term implications of the US intervention in Venezuela.
