US EditionTrump Administration Lawyers Blessed US Operation to Remove Maduro From Power, Memo Shows
The memo justified the operation citing drug trafficking, armed resistance, and civilian protection, affirming presidential authority without constituting a constitutional war.
- The Dec. 23 opinion, prepared for the White House National Security Council legal adviser, concluded President Donald Trump could order military aid to seize Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro for the Jan. 3 operation.
- OLC cited alleged "severe" drug‑trafficking charges and considered scenarios including 200 armed guards protecting Nicolás Maduro, Venezuelan President, to justify military aid.
- The 22-page opinion explains the Office of Legal Counsel lawyers identified operational risks but judged a low likelihood the removal would escalate into a constitutional war.
- The Senate last week advanced a resolution to limit attacks on Venezuela, while Republican leaders said they had no notice of the raid to seize Maduro and Cilia Flores.
- Officials told OLC there is no contingency plan to occupy Venezuela or engage in a sustained operation amounting to a constitutional war, the opinion stated.
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65 Articles
Trump DOJ facing uphill battle as trial obstacles pile up after Maduro 'abduction': report
It is becoming entirely likely that Donald Trump will no longer be president by the time that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro gets his day in court after the White House ordered a military invasion to abduct him and his wife on narco-terrorism charges.The Department of Justice faces years of leg...
Army Times
Trump administration lawyers blessed Maduro operation, memo shows
Days before the U.S. military operation that removed Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro from power, Trump administration lawyers blessed the action by saying it would “not rise to the level of a war in the constitutional sense” and would serve “important national interests,” according to a legal opinion that articulates a muscular view of presidential power.The heavily redacted version of the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel opinion, release…
Associated Press News
Trump administration lawyers blessed US operation to remove Maduro from power, memo shows
A legal memo that came out days before the U.S. military operation against Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro said such a move would “not rise to the level of a war in the constitutional sense” and would serve “important national interests.
The U.S. Department of Justice gave its legal version of the operation in Venezuela, which led to the capture of Nicolás Maduro, ordered by Trump without Congress endorsement. According to the memorandum, President Donald Trump was able to unilaterally order the capture of Nicolás Maduro, as the operation responded to national interests and not to a war with Venezuela. It should be recalled that this operation took place on January 3, the day wh…
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