Saturday January 3, 2026 | USA-CANADA NEWS [Reporting from VICTORIA, BC – Posted at 6:18 pm PT / Updated 6:34 pm & 7:35 pm PT]
Editorial news analysis by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
Overnight Friday into today, the US military captured the president of Argentina and his wife using military force, delivering them to the United States around 5:30 pm Eastern.
The reason for removing Nicolás Maduro and wife Celia Flores from their country was given as having to do with a charge of narco-terrorism against Maduro. It’s yet unclear at level of court will Maduro be tried for the alleged crimes.
In the last few weeks US attacks on boats carrying drugs from Venezuela headed for the US have made international news.
Today’s action:
Trump described the military action last night and today as by “air, land and sea … a spectacular assault” against a “heavily fortified military fortress in the heart of Caracas”.
Trump was speaking at a live press conference around 4 pm Eastern to describe the action that the US had taken.
Today trump said: “We’re going to take back the oil that frankly we should have taken back a long time ago.”
Trump was accompanied by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Minister of War Pete Hegseth.
The US position stated at today’s press conference is to see a safe transition of power in the Argentina, saying that Argentinian vice president Delcy Rodriguez is on board with the US perspective.
Meanwhile, Rodriguez today gave a press conference about upholding Argentina against the United States and the American oil interests.
Canada’s response:
First, a brief statement was issued by Canada’ Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand earlier today in which there is no support for Argentina’s leader but remarks on boundaries broken by the United States.
Her statement included that Canada has “refused to recognize any legitimacy of the Maduro regime and opposed its repression of the Venezuelan people, including the persecution of dissenters and particularly political leaders opposed to the regime.”
“In keeping with our long-standing commitment to upholding the rule of law and democracy, Canada calls on all parties to respect international law and we stand by the people of Venezuela and their desire to live in a peaceful and democratic society,” said Anand.
Then around 5:15 pm Eastern (2:15 pm PT) Prime Minister Mark Carney issued a statement in social media that speaks against Maduro and for the right of Venezuelan people to choose their government, while also advising about respect for international law. Here is Prime Minister Mark Carney’s statement, which after 45 minutes had over 117,000 views on X:
“One of the first actions taken by Canada’s new government in March 2025 was to impose additional sanctions on Nicolás Maduro’s brutally oppressive and criminal regime — unequivocally condemning his grave breaches of international peace and security, gross and systematic human rights violations, and corruption. Canada has not recognised the illegitimate regime of Maduro since it stole the 2018 election. The Canadian government therefore welcomes the opportunity for freedom, democracy, peace, and prosperity for the Venezuelan people.
“Canada has long supported a peaceful, negotiated, and Venezuelan-led transition process that respects the democratic will of the Venezuelan people. In keeping with our long-standing commitment to upholding the rule of law, sovereignty, and human rights, Canada calls on all parties to respect international law. We stand by the Venezuelan people’s sovereign right to decide and build their own future in a peaceful and democratic society.
“Canada attaches great importance to resolution of crises through multilateral engagement and is in close contact with international partners about ongoing developments,” said Carney.
We are first and foremost ready to assist Canadians through our consular officials and our embassy in Bogotá, Colombia, and will continue to support Venezuelan refugees,” the prime minister said.
Poilievre’s response:
Meanwhile, Canada’s official opposition leader — Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre (whose wife is from Venezuela) — was quite forthright about the US capturing Maduro, with a theme of anti-socialism:
“Congratulations to President Trump on successfully arresting narco-terrorist and socialist dictator Nicolas Maduro, who should live out his days in prison,” said Poilievre in a post in social media today.
“The legitimate winner of the most recent Venezuelan elections, Edmundo González, should take office along with the courageous hero and voice of the Venezuelan people, María Corina Machado. Down with socialism. Long live freedom.”
After 10 hours online, Poilievere’s post on Saturday-morning post had received over 3 million views on X.
Trump today handily dismissed Machado (recent winner of a Nobel peace prize for her work in Venezuela) as a reasonable choice for leading Venezuela, saying she doesn’t have a enough support.
Canadian pundits:
Analysis in national media streams today included a few main themes about the action taken by the US against Venezuela:
- That the overstory is about narco-terrorism, but that more deeply the US wants to control Venezuela’s oil (Trump himself said today that the US will “take back” oil from Venezuela)
- That today’s action by the US in Venezuela is part of a openly spoken broader US Trumpian vision for the US to dominate the western hemisphere.
- That Trump’s MAGA base of voters in the US were promised more ‘America first’ and might see the Venezuelan event as starting yet another war abroad.
Editorial analsysis:
As editorial analysis for Island Social Trends readers, we review various aspects of this news today.
- There is indeed a problem of drugs coming into the United States that is causing harm and death to many Americans; Venezuela is one location of the source of illicit drugs.
- Both the US and Canada have questioned the legitimacy of Maduro’s last two election wins (2018 and 2024). Canada has not expressed outrage at the US taking action against Maduro but does remind about recogizing and honouring the international order (aka rule of law / democratic and sovereign rights of all nations).
- This is in fact about ‘America first’. The US interest in the large amount of oil in Venezuela is economic warfare in favour of the United States. Today Trump said that boosting oil production in Venezuela will make the population there “rich, independent and safe”. Of course, US oil companies operating in Venezuela will benefit by this which could be seen as benefiting the mainstream American economy (if one subscribes to the trickle-down effect).
- Canada should take seriously the relative ease with which the US under Trump’s leadership goes after what it wants. The US seems to be escalating their view of determining where they will get their natural resources and by what means.
- The heavy oil that is so abundant in Venezuela is the same type of oil that is predominantly resourced in Alberta. As the US proceeds with their oil interests in Venezuela this will put that source in direct competition with Canada’s oil sector.
- Canada is geographically situated smack in the middle of an arctic zone around which are clustered three adversaries: United States, Russia and China.
- Denmark’s territory of Greenland (which Trump has openly eyed as an area for conquest given the critical minerals present there) is geographically adjacent to Canada. Carney has wasted no time in his first year in office to pump up solid relations withe European nations and the NATO alliance which includes the Scandavian region.
- Canada’s continued high profile support for Ukraine is a way of protecting the interests of western democracy should there be further eastward incursion from Russia into Ukraine and Europe beyond.
- Canada’s deep potential wealth in the energy sector (e.g. critical minerals, oil, LNG, hydroelectricity) and also in being a skilled and educated country should not be underestimated as a prize that Trump may still want under his thumb as ‘the 51st state’.
- Trump today handily dismissing Venezuela Opposition Leader Machado as a reasonable choice for leading Venezuela is a clear indication that their is no ideological interest in maintaining democracy in Venezuela — it’s almost entirely about access to oil in that country; Trump today said that US will stay in control of Venezuela “until a safe, cautious, judicious transition” is possible.
- Carney has played it politically safe for Canada — he did not come out against the use of military force to remove Maduro from Venezeula by force.
- It’s time for Canadians to really see and fully appreciate what we have in this country and not continue to believe that there is no threat to this amazing country. In Venezuela it may have taken military force, but for Canada the pressure from the US is already on its way making inroads economically and politically.
- There are about 785 Canadians living in Venezuela. There is a strong diaspora population of Venezuelans living in Canada. Today there were rallies in Montreal, Toronto and Winnipeg in support of democracy for Venezuela.
Note about the news media’s role:
Despite the criticism by some political factions in Canada about so-called ‘mainstream media’ being a mouthpiece for government, it should be noted that without the mainstream networks there would be no eyes on the ground or real-time coverage of significant events.
Journalists who work on the front lines of news media — including reporters and camera operators and their production studios — are one of the few defences that Canadians (all people) have against monolithic government.
Democracy matters and journalists with outlets large, medium and small, are part of the defenders of that treasured aspect of society.
On this New Year’s long weekend there was additional pressure on media of all sizes to cover this story in real time.
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