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Posted by Joshua Scheer
In this episode of Informed Rant, host Joshua Scheer speaks with Venezuelan‑American analyst and CodePink organizer Leonardo Flores about one of the most explosive geopolitical stories of the year: the U.S. bombing raid and kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro. Flores walks through the media distortions, the collapse of international law, the revival of the Monroe Doctrine under Trump, and the economic and political realities inside Venezuela that the U.S. press refuses to acknowledge.
From the myth of the “Cartel de los Soles” to the role of U.S. envoy Laura Dogu, Flores offers a detailed, historically grounded account of how Washington manufactures narratives to justify intervention — and why Venezuela’s constitutional order has held despite the assault. This is a deep dive into sanctions, oil politics, propaganda, and the future of Latin America under renewed U.S. pressure.
DETAILED HIGHLIGHTS / PULL‑QUOTES
On the U.S. Kidnapping of Maduro
- “This was a massive military operation — 150 planes, cyberattacks, AI‑assisted systems — Venezuela never stood a chance. They didn’t need betrayal; they had overwhelming force.”
- “Maduro is now in the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. There’s no consular access because the U.S. cut diplomatic ties years ago.”
- “Celia Flores was visibly beaten. Yet the same groups who claim to defend women’s rights have been silent.”
On the Myth of the ‘Cartel de los Soles’
- “The Justice Department quietly dropped the allegation days after Maduro arrived in New York. It was an admission the cartel never existed.”
- “UN and DEA data show Venezuela is responsible for at most 5% of cocaine transit — and produces none.”
- “Meanwhile, U.S.-backed leaders in Honduras and Ecuador have been tied to hundreds of tons of cocaine trafficking.”
On Sanctions and the Venezuelan Economy
- “Venezuela had 20 straight quarters of economic growth. The blockade — the physical blockade — was what strangled the economy.”
- “Oil was degrading in storage because the U.S. wouldn’t allow it to be sold. Now Trump is selling it at market rates to his own allies.”
On the Monroe Doctrine and Bipartisan Intervention
- “This isn’t a Trump invention. The Monroe Doctrine is a 200‑year bipartisan project of U.S. supremacy in the hemisphere.”
- “Washington divides Latin American leaders into ‘good guys’ and ‘bad guys’ based purely on ideology — not democracy, not human rights.”
On Laura Dogu’s Role
- “Dogu is not a diplomat — she’s a political operator. In Honduras she openly attacked the elected government on TV.”
- “Her appointment to Venezuela signals the U.S. is not pursuing diplomacy. It’s pursuing regime change by other means.”
On Trump’s Contradictions
- “Trump calls Delcy Rodríguez ‘terrific’ while threatening to target her next. It’s 1984 politics — praise and menace in the same breath.”
- “He needs to appease oil companies and the Florida neocons at the same time. That’s why his Venezuela policy looks schizophrenic.”
On International Law
- “Either international law exists or it doesn’t. The world condemned the kidnapping — but many still said, ‘Well, Maduro is bad.’ That’s not how sovereignty works.”
- “Europe only cares about international law when Greenland is involved — not Gaza, not Venezuela.”
Transcript Edited for Clarity
Joshua Scheer: Thanks for joining me. My guest today is Leonardo Flores, CodePink’s Latin America campaign spokesman and coalition organizer. He’s a Venezuelan‑American political analyst and activist with a degree in philosophy. Leonardo was born in Venezuela and maintains close ties to the social movements that have transformed the country over the past 27 years.
He previously worked as a media analyst and later as a policy advisor at the Venezuelan Embassy in Washington, D.C. He’s a founding member of the Venezuelan Solidarity Network and has consulted with the Alliance for Cuba Engagement and Respect. His writing has appeared in CounterPunch, Common Dreams, People’s Dispatch, and more. He’s also been on Democracy Now!, TeleSUR, RT, and Pacifica stations.
Thanks for being here.
Leonardo Flores: It’s a pleasure to be on. Thank you so much for the invitation.
Joshua Scheer: We were originally going to talk about Laura Dogu, the U.S. envoy to Venezuela, but there’s so much happening — Venezuela, Cuba, the blockade, the oil situation — that I want to cover a lot if you’re up for it. Every day there’s something new.
Let’s start with the basics. Delcy Rodríguez is now the acting president, right?
Leonardo Flores: That’s right.
Joshua Scheer: The New York Times just ran a piece saying the Venezuelan economy is doing well. Common Dreams wrote about Paul Singer and Venezuelan oil. There are stories about Citgo, about oil money flowing again, and even Trump‑aligned people benefiting. What’s actually happening on the ground with the economy and oil?
Leonardo Flores: The Venezuelan economy has actually been doing well for about five years. There have been 20 straight quarters of growth. In 2025, Venezuela was the fastest‑growing economy in Latin America and the Caribbean, according to the U.N.’s regional economic commission.
What really hurt the economy late last year was the physical blockade imposed by Trump — U.S. forces literally preventing tankers from leaving Venezuela. Some ships that did leave were seized; I think six tankers were taken.
Inside Venezuela, there have been massive mobilizations — tens of thousands of people daily — calling for peace and for the return of President Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores, who were abducted during the January 3rd bombing and raid.
The country is in a tense calm. There’s confusion about what comes next economically, but the release of oil shipments — which were degrading in storage because they couldn’t be sold — is a positive step. And it’s interesting that the Trump administration is now allowing Venezuelan oil to be sold at market rates, when before Venezuela had to sell at steep discounts to evade sanctions.
Joshua Scheer: We’ll definitely get into sanctions. But I want to ask about Maduro. There’s this mix of reactions — loyalists, left‑wing critics, Chavistas who aren’t Maduro supporters. And when he was kidnapped, a lot of people said, “It’s illegal, but he’s terrible,” as if that somehow justifies violating sovereignty.
I’m totally against invading countries, bombing them, sanctioning them — all of it. But what do you make of that reaction? And also, only two countries really supported the kidnapping: France under Macron, and Ukraine, whose foreign minister wrote a long piece attacking Maduro. I found that bizarre given Ukraine’s own sovereignty crisis.
What did you make of all that?
Leonardo Flores: To me it was the culmination of 10–15 years of demonization of Maduro. The key thing to understand is the drug‑trafficking allegations — that’s the main justification the U.S. used to deploy its Navy to the Caribbean and to issue the indictment in New York.
But within days of Maduro’s abduction, the Justice Department dropped the most serious allegation: that Maduro headed the so‑called Cartel de los Soles. That was essentially an admission that the cartel doesn’t exist.
U.N. data shows at most 5% of cocaine passes through Venezuela, and Venezuela produces none. No fentanyl either. The DEA’s own annual threat assessment never mentions the Cartel de los Soles — not once in 20 years.
Meanwhile, the U.S. openly supports actual narco‑dictators. Trump pardoned Juan Orlando Hernández of Honduras, who was convicted of bringing 400 tons of cocaine into the U.S. Trump is now embracing Ecuador’s president Novoa, even though Ecuador is responsible for 70% of global cocaine transit and Novoa’s own family’s banana company has been repeatedly caught with drugs in its shipments.
So the narrative that Venezuela is a narco‑state is absurd.
As for the international reaction — yes, it was weak. People condemned the illegality but then said, “Well, he’s not a great guy.” That’s ridiculous. Either international law exists or it doesn’t. And after watching Gaza for two and a half years, it’s clear international law is selectively applied.
Trump also manipulated the news cycle — immediately after the attack, he pivoted to Greenland, and the media followed.
Joshua Scheer: Right, and Europe suddenly cares about international law when Greenland is involved. Jeffrey Sachs said Europe “rode the tiger” — they rode the U.S. for so long that now Trump is turning on them.
And on the drug issue, we’ve covered this on ScheerPost. Venezuela is a non‑factor in drug trafficking — that’s the DEA and the U.N. saying it. The Cartel of the Suns was basically a CIA‑constructed narrative.
Meanwhile, Trump embraces leaders who actually traffic drugs.
So let’s talk about Trump, the Monroe Doctrine, and then Laura Dogu. What’s her role now in Venezuela?
Leonardo Flores: The Monroe Doctrine — and Trump’s “corollary” to it — is about U.S. supremacy in the hemisphere and pushing out China and Russia. But it’s not a Trump invention. It’s a 200‑year bipartisan policy.
It divides Latin American leaders into “good guys” and “bad guys.” If you’re left‑wing, socialist, or anti‑imperialist, you’re automatically a “bad guy.” If you play ball with U.S. capital, you’re a “good guy,” no matter what you do.
The U.S. is already interfering in upcoming elections in Brazil and Colombia.
Now, Laura Dogu: She was ambassador to Honduras and was accused by the Honduran government of fomenting a coup. She openly criticized President Xiomara Castro’s policies — something diplomats aren’t supposed to do. She met constantly with business elites who backed the 2009–2021 coup governments.
Before that, she was in Nicaragua during the 2018 attempted color revolution, again meeting with business groups financing the violence.
She has military ties and is close to General Dan Kane.
Her appointment to Venezuela signals the U.S. is not pursuing diplomacy — it’s pursuing regime change by other means.
Joshua Scheer: And Delcy Rodríguez recently said, “Enough with Washington’s orders.” Trump calls her “terrific” while also saying he’ll run Venezuela. He’s blocking right‑wing figures from taking power even though he claims he supports them.
What’s the actual outlook for Venezuela? And what’s happening with Maduro right now?
Leonardo Flores: There’s no evidence of betrayal inside Venezuela. The U.S. brought 150 planes; Venezuela has about 12 fighter jets. There was a massive AI‑assisted cyberattack that took down the entire defense network. It was a huge operation — Venezuela couldn’t have stopped it.
Maduro is being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. His next court date is mid‑March. It’s unclear whether he or Cilia Flores are receiving medical care. When they were shown on camera, she had visible injuries — bruised ribs, a beaten face. Women’s rights groups have been silent.
There are no diplomatic relations, so Maduro has no consular access — something every foreign detainee should have.
As for Delcy Rodríguez “playing ball,” it’s important to note that everything being proposed now — reopening embassies, broader oil licenses — was Maduro’s plan for the past year. Trump needed a quick “victory” after being pressured by neocons and the Wall Street Journal crowd.
He kidnapped Maduro, then immediately lifted sanctions to let U.S. oil companies in.
But Trump is under pressure from Florida Republicans and neocons who want full regime change and want Venezuela destroyed as a stepping stone to overthrowing Cuba. They’re still blocking Venezuelan oil from reaching Cuba, creating a dire situation there.
Joshua Scheer: Right, and Senator Rick Scott openly said the Cuban government will be overthrown “this year or next.” They’re not hiding their intentions anymore.
Let’s talk about Cuba and Venezuela’s relationship. Venezuela historically gave Cuba a better deal than Mexico does. Can that relationship be rebuilt?
Leonardo Flores: Cuba‑Venezuela relations remain strong. The Cubans understand Venezuela isn’t withholding oil — the U.S. is blocking it.
Thirty‑two Cubans died defending Maduro during the January 3rd attack. Venezuela honored them fully.
Cuba used to pay for Venezuelan oil largely through services — especially doctors who worked in Venezuela’s poorest areas. Mexico’s arrangement is a standard commercial transaction, so it’s not as beneficial.
The U.S. has wanted to overthrow Cuba for 65 years. I’m not worried about the Cuban government falling — I’m worried about the Cuban people suffering under a blockade that has lasted generations.
Joshua Scheer: And sanctions are devastating. I interviewed Margaret Flowers about this — sanctions kill. The Lancet reported that sanctions harm children disproportionately. Half a million children globally have died because of sanctions.
What’s next for Venezuela?
Leonardo Flores: Let me say one thing about sanctions in Venezuela. The Lancet estimates 560,000 people die every year from sanctions worldwide — half of them children.
In Venezuela, the Center for Economic and Policy Research found that in just the first year of Trump’s sanctions — 2017 to 2018 — 40,000 excess deaths occurred.
Sanctions caused a 99% drop in government revenue. A former Venezuelan central bank official estimated sanctions cost the economy $630 billion.
Sanctions caused the migration crisis. They destroyed the economy, fueled hyperinflation, and crippled health and education systems.
What happens next depends on U.S. policy. There are reports the U.S. may strike Iran. If the U.S. stabilizes oil markets by lifting sanctions on Venezuela, it gives them more leeway to attack Iran without destabilizing global oil supply.
Inside Venezuela, the left is uniting behind Delcy Rodríguez. The moderate opposition wants dialogue, but extremists abroad — in Miami, Madrid, London, Washington — get all the money and influence.
The next year will be tense. The U.S. is unpredictable. Sanctions may shift. And the trauma of the president being kidnapped is still fresh.
Joshua Scheer: Thank you for joining me. We’ll have you back soon. And for listeners: sanctions kill. Cuba can’t maintain medical equipment because companies fear U.S. retaliation. Infant mortality is rising. These are daily deaths — invisible but real.
You can find more at ScheerPost.com/sanctions.
Leonardo, where can people find the Venezuela Solidarity Network?
Leonardo Flores: At VenezuelaSolidarityNetwork.org. We have webinars, including one this week with Nicolás Maduro’s son, who’s a deputy in the National Assembly, talking about what’s happening on the ground.
Joshua Scheer: Great. We’ll share those videos on ScheerPost. Thanks again for joining us.
Leonardo Flores: Thank you so much for the invitation.
Joshua Scheer: Take care.
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