The Case for War Against the Venezuelan Regime

You haven’t heard Trump administration officials present the public with its case for war against the regime in Venezuela. You have, however, probably seen how the administration is prosecuting its strategic grievances with the gangsters in Caracas.

Perhaps you were privy to the administration’s efforts to argue (unsuccessfully) before the courts that the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua is functionally an arm of Nicolás Maduro’s regime — a “foreign arm of the Venezuelan government,” in Attorney General Pam Bondi’s words, which has “invaded our country.” The argument — an attempt to invoke the 1798 Alien Enemies Act in its efforts to sideline due process protections for Venezuelan deportation targets — didn’t satisfy the courts. It did, however, establish a predicate for hostilities with Caracas.

About the Author

Noah Rothman

Noah Rothman is a senior writer at National Review. His third book, Blood and Progress: A Century of Left-Wing Violence, was published by Hachette in May 2026.

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You haven’t heard Trump administration officials present the public with its case for war against the regime in Venezuela. You have, however, probably seen how the administration is prosecuting its strategic grievances with the gangsters in Caracas.

Perhaps you were privy to the administration’s efforts to argue (unsuccessfully) before the courts that the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua is functionally an arm of Nicolás Maduro’s regime — a “foreign arm of the Venezuelan government,” in Attorney General Pam Bondi’s words, which has “invaded our country.” The argument — an attempt to invoke the 1798 Alien Enemies Act in its efforts to sideline due process protections for Venezuelan deportation targets — didn’t satisfy the courts. It did, however, establish a predicate for hostilities with Caracas.

About the Author

Noah Rothman

Noah Rothman is a senior writer at National Review. His third book, Blood and Progress: A Century of Left-Wing Violence, was published by Hachette in May 2026.