Today I want to bring your attention to a brewing crisis that could soon erupt in the Western Hemisphere: Venezuela. And it goes way beyond socialism or oil. We're talking about narco-terrorism, gold cartels, foreign militias, and even the possibility of U.S. boots on the ground.

From Prosperity to Predation

Venezuela, once one of the richest countries in Latin America, has become a failed state under Hugo Chavez and now the illegitimate strongman, Nicolas Maduro. The economy collapsed. Kidnapping became a growth industry. And over 8 million Venezuelans have fled, many of them ending up in the United States under lax border enforcement during the Biden administration.

I have a lot of friends who are Venezuelan, and I admire them. But here's the truth: the culture of dependency and normalized criminality that permeates Venezuela doesn't just disappear when people cross the border. That reality has consequences.

The Cartel de los Soles

The real threat isn’t just failed socialism. It’s that Venezuela has become a full-fledged narco-state. Maduro and his cronies are at the center of a shadowy network known as the Cartel de los Soles — made up of military and government elites trafficking cocaine and laundering gold.

Yes, gold. These guys make more money from illegal gold mining than drugs. I’ve been on the ground in Colombia and seen the devastation firsthand: mercury poisoning rivers, miners risking their lives, and terrorist groups taxing every shovel-full.

Why the U.S. Cares

The Trump administration recently escalated things by placing a $50 million bounty on Maduro’s head. That’s not just about ideology. It’s because Maduro is engaged in asymmetric warfare against the U.S. — using drugs, gold, and foreign allies like Russia, China, and Hezbollah to undermine American society.

4,000 U.S. Marines are now headed to the Caribbean coast of Venezuela. Navy ships and Coast Guard cutters are in motion. And the Pentagon has been green-lit to take kinetic action against the cartels.

Sound familiar? It should. I was there when we parachuted into Panama in 1989 to remove Manuel Noriega. Maduro could be next.

The Guyana Flashpoint

As if that's not enough, Venezuela is now saber-rattling over oil-rich territory in neighboring Guyana. Maduro claims half of Guyana belongs to Venezuela. Why? Because Guyana struck it rich with light, sweet crude — far more valuable than Venezuela’s dirty, hard-to-extract reserves.

There are rumors flying of a U.S. military buildup in Guyana. And while some of that is exaggerated, it’s true that we’re training with Guyanese forces and flying combat patrols. The U.S. isn't just defending Guyana’s sovereignty; we’re protecting our own strategic interests.

Mercenaries, Militia, and Madness

Maduro says he’ll mobilize 4.5 million factory workers and farmers into militias. That’s a joke. He doesn’t even trust his own military. That’s why he surrounds himself with Cuban and Russian mercenaries. But money talks — and with $50 million on the line, don't be surprised if some of his protectors turn into bounty hunters.

I've seen this up close. I once got roped into a secret meeting with Venezuelan defectors planning to overthrow Maduro. I backed away, reported it to the embassy, and sure enough, some of those same guys later launched a failed coup. Two American Green Berets were caught and are still rotting in Venezuelan prison.

A Real Risk to the U.S.

This isn’t just a Latin American problem. With Hezbollah operatives smuggled into the U.S. via Venezuela, suicide drones manufactured there with Iranian help, and widespread corruption, this is a clear and present danger to America.

Could this escalate into war? Possibly. But what’s more likely is covert operations, private military action, and targeted strikes. Still, if Venezuela hits back — say, with suicide drones on U.S. soil — all bets are off.

Final Thought

Venezuela is a failed state led by a criminal cartel that masquerades as a government. And while Americans are busy arguing over pronouns and plastic straws, our enemies are plotting how to destroy us from within.

We better wake up.

Comment below your thoughts about this. If you missed the live, you can watch it HERE

I’m writing to you today from the mountains of Kazakhstan. It’s been a whirlwind few days out here in Central Asia, and I’ve been watching closely as history played out thousands of miles away in Alaska. I want to break down for you what happened at the first U.S.-Russia presidential summit since the war in Ukraine began — and why the optics may be very different from the reality.

Pomp Without Circumstance

Two days ago, President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin met at Joint Base Elmendorf in Alaska. This was the first time the two men had been face-to-face in a decade, and the event was choreographed to the hilt. Red carpet, honor guards, F-22 Raptors on the tarmac, and even a flyover by B-2 stealth bombers — all staged to project American strength.

But what did we actually get from it? Not much. It was political theater — smiles, handshakes, and photo ops. The summit ended abruptly with no lunch, no press questions, and only carefully scripted remarks. That alone should tell you the talks didn’t go as well as advertised.

Putin’s Win on Sanctions

So why did Putin make the trip? One word: sanctions. The Trump administration had been preparing to roll out secondary sanctions — penalties not only on Russia, but also on countries like India and China that have been helping Moscow skirt existing restrictions. These measures had the potential to choke off Russia’s war machine, because while Putin doesn’t mind sacrificing soldiers, he does mind losing the economic lifeline that fuels his military.

At the end of the day, Putin walked away without making a single concession — but he did secure at least a delay on those secondary sanctions. That’s a huge win for Moscow. No wonder Russians are celebrating this summit as a victory.

Meanwhile, Ukraine is in the best battlefield position it has been since the war started. They’ve got more than 750,000 men under arms, and they’ve learned to innovate at lightning speed — fielding drones, unmanned vehicles, and even remote casualty evacuation systems that save soldiers’ lives.

Russian tactics, on the other hand, remain rooted in old Soviet-style warfare: meat waves of troops, staggering casualties, and little innovation beyond drones. Every square kilometer they seize costs them hundreds of dead soldiers.

And here’s a fact you won’t hear on mainstream news: Ukraine is now producing more ammunition than it consumes. They’re no longer entirely dependent on Western supplies. That’s a game changer.

Optics vs. Reality

Here’s what worries me: the optics of this summit play directly into Russia’s cognitive warfare doctrine. Moscow believes wars are won by shaping minds, not just by winning on the battlefield. Optics are the battlefield.

Putin, riding in “the Beast” limousine, smiling alongside Trump, Lavrov wearing a USSR sweatshirt — those images tell the world Russia is on equal footing with the United States. That perception is a victory in itself, even if the reality is that Russia’s economy is crumbling and their military is bleeding men at an unsustainable rate.

The Human Cost

I also want to remind you what’s at stake here. Russia has abducted tens of thousands of Ukrainian children, rebranded them as Russian, and in some cases sent them to fight against their own countrymen. They’ve run “filtration” camps in occupied Ukraine, separating families, torturing civilians, and disappearing countless people.

I’ve seen the aftermath of these atrocities firsthand. In places like Bucha and Mariupol, Russia’s brutality is real and ongoing. This is why Ukraine refuses to accept any “peace deal” that leaves its people in Russian hands.

For Russia, the summit was a public relations victory and a temporary reprieve from crippling sanctions. For the U.S., it was a show without substance. And for Ukraine, it was yet another reminder that their fate is often being negotiated without them at the table.

If the United States truly wants to end this war, the most effective way is still maximum economic pressure — cutting off Russia’s oil revenues and enforcing secondary sanctions without hesitation. That’s the lever that will eventually break the Kremlin’s grip.

You can watch the full video on this topic HERE