Venezuela on Thursday answered a U.S. strike on a suspected drug-running vessel by flying two fighter jets over a U.S. destroyer that was conducting anti-narco-terrorism patrols off its coast.
The two armed Venezuelan F-16 fighter jets flew over the USS Jason Dunham, an Aegis guided-missile destroyer, in an action that Defense Department officials described as a “show of force.” The United States responded on Friday by <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/us-deploying-10-fighter-jets-puerto-rico-drug-cartel-fight-sources-say-2025-09-05/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">significantly ramping up</a> its regional military presence, deploying 10 F‑35 fighter jets to Puerto Rico, two sources told Reuters.
The Pentagon released a warning on X, saying on Thursday: “Today, two Maduro regime military aircraft flew near a U.S. Navy vessel in international waters. This highly provocative move was designed to interfere with our counter narco-terror operations. The cartel running Venezuela is strongly advised not to pursue any further effort to obstruct, deter or interfere with counter-narcotics and counter-terror operations carried out by the US military.”
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<a href="https://t.co/PSxm3uRsfM">pic.twitter.com/PSxm3uRsfM</a>
&mdash; Department of Defense 🇺🇸 (@DeptofDefense) <a href="https://twitter.com/DeptofDefense/status/1963775938233299235?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 5, 2025</a></blockquote>
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On Tuesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed the American strike on the alleged narcotics smuggling boat that reportedly killed 11 people on board, posting on X, “Today the U.S. military conducted a lethal strike in the southern Caribbean against a drug vessel which had departed from Venezuela and was being operated by a designated narco-terrorist organization.”
The strike occurred against the backdrop of a deepening standoff between President Donald Trump and Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro. In early August, Trump <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-administration-freezes-venezuela-government-assets-in-escalation-of-tensions/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">froze Venezuelan government assets</a> — the most sweeping action against Maduro’s regime in decades — and slapped a $50 million bounty on Maduro, calling him a global drug trafficker. Maduro responded by <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/venezuela-maduro-says-no-way-us-can-invade-warships-deployed/">mobilizing</a> more than 15,000 troops along the Colombian border, boasting, “There’s no way they can enter Venezuela.”
In August, Trump directed the Pentagon to deploy U.S. troops and warships amid mounting “threats to U.S. national security from specially designated narco‑terrorist organizations” operating in the region, according to Reuters.
The U.S. Department of Justice in the first Trump administration<a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-52053799?utm_source=chatgpt.com"> indicted</a> Maduro and 14 senior officials on charges of narco-terrorism, drug trafficking, money laundering, and corruption in 2020. It alleged a decades-long alliance with the FARC (a Marxist guerrilla group once considered one of the most powerful insurgent and narco-terrorist organizations in Latin America) to flood the United States with cocaine via the so-called Cartel of the Suns — a military-run trafficking network. A $15 million reward was offered for information leading to Maduro’s arrest.

Venezuela Taunts U.S. Navy, Pentagon Fires Back

Jets From Socialist Venezuela Taunt U.S. Destroyer — Pentagon Fires Back

Donald Trump

narco-terrorism

Nicolas Maduro

Venezuela

President Trump Meets Polish President Nawrocki At White House

Democrats Panic As Trump Kills Narco Terrorists And Stops Violent Crime

Opinion

President Trump

Tren De Aragua

White House

President Donald Trump&#8217;s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/u-s-drone-strikes-cartel-drug-boat-trump-posts-video-for-world-to-see-beware?author=Tim+Pearce&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=1&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=U.S.+Drone+Strikes+Cartel+Drug+Boat%2C+Trump+Posts+Video+For+World+To+See%3A+%E2%80%98BEWARE%21%E2%80%99">strikes</a> against drug cartels are only getting started, according to Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Rubio said on Wednesday that the Trump administration would no longer rely on stopping drug runners when they arrive on U.S. soil. Instead, the United States will take out cartel members before they reach the country to spread their &#8220;poison.&#8221;
&#8220;Interdiction doesn&#8217;t work because these drug cartels — what they do is they know they&#8217;re going to lose 2% of their cargo. They bake it into their economics,&#8221; Rubio said. &#8220;What will stop them is when you blow them up. You get rid of them.&#8221;
Rubio made the comments while speaking at a press conference in Mexico as he met with leaders to <a href="https://x.com/SecRubio/status/1963007877628756258">discuss</a> &#8220;strengthening cooperation on illegal immigration and countering transnational crime and terrorism in our region.&#8221;
The Secretary of State added that before the United States launched a strike on drug smugglers with the Venezuelan criminal organization, Tren de Aragua, U.S. intelligence determined that the drug boat was on its way to the United States.
&#8220;Instead of interdicting it, on the president&#8217;s orders, we blew it up, and it will happen again. Maybe it&#8217;s happening right now, I don&#8217;t know,&#8221; Rubio said. &#8220;But the point is, the president of the United States is going to wage war on narco terrorist organizations. This one was operating in international waters, heading toward the United States to flood our country with poison. And under President Trump, those days are over.&#8221;
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BREAKING:
Rubio says interdiction drug cartel boats isn’t enough. What works is to blow them up.
He says the U.S. is now waging war on narco-terrorist organizations and will blow up more such boats 🇺🇸🇻🇪 <a href="https://t.co/Zl4KHfTe18">pic.twitter.com/Zl4KHfTe18</a>
— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) <a href="https://twitter.com/visegrad24/status/1963316016630698391?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 3, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Trump announced on Tuesday that the &#8220;U.S. Military Forces conducted a kinetic strike against positively identified Tren de Aragua Narcoterrorists in the SOUTHCOM area of responsibility.&#8221; The president also posted a video of the strike, which he said resulted in the deaths of 11 drug smugglers while no U.S. service members were harmed.
&#8220;Please let this serve as notice to anybody even thinking about bringing drugs into the United States of America. BEWARE!&#8221; Trump added.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<a href="https://t.co/vEVGYVgLAg">pic.twitter.com/vEVGYVgLAg</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1962990388211228951?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 2, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Last month, Trump ordered U.S. forces to be deployed to the Southern Caribbean Sea — near Venezuela — to take on the drug cartel. Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/maduro-accuses-u-s-of-seeking-a-regime-change-after-trump-deploys-military-to-south-caribbean">accused</a> the United States of &#8220;seeking a regime change&#8221; with its latest military movements. Maduro added that Trump&#8217;s decision marked “the biggest threat that has been seen on our continent in the last 100 years.”
Maduro, a socialist who remained in power in an election that appeared to be rigged in his favor, has a $50 million bounty placed on him by the U.S. government, citing his ties to drug cartels.

Secretary Marco Rubio

‘Blow Them Up’: Rubio Says Trump Will Direct More Strikes Against Narco Terrorists

Drug Cartels

Marco Rubio

Trump Administration

A federal appeals court on Tuesday blocked the Trump administration from deporting suspected members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua under the Alien Enemies Act. 
In a 2-1 <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.ca5.224134/gov.uscourts.ca5.224134.507678079.1.pdf">decision</a>, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals sided with three illegal immigrants accused of being members of Tren de Aragua. The majority said that the wave of illegal immigrants from Venezuela who have entered the United States in recent years should not be considered an invasion under the terms of the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. In March, President Donald Trump <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/03/invocation-of-the-alien-enemies-act-regarding-the-invasion-of-the-united-states-by-tren-de-aragua/">invoked</a> the 18th-century law to classify members of Tren de Aragua as alien enemies to be removed under the 227-year-old statute.
“A country’s encouraging its residents and citizens to enter this country illegally is not the modern-day equivalent of sending an armed, organized force to occupy, to disrupt, or to otherwise harm the United States. There is no finding that this mass immigration was an armed, organized force or forces,” wrote Judge Leslie Southwick. 
The case is likely to end up before the Supreme Court.
Judge Andrew Oldham wrote a dissenting opinion criticizing the majority and arguing that federal judges were usurping Trump’s lawful authority. 
“The majority’s approach to this case is not only unprecedented — it is contrary to more than 200 years of precedent. It reflects a view of the Judicial power that is not only muscular — it is herculean. And it reflects a view of the Executive power that is not only diminutive — it is made subservient to the foreign-policy and public-safety hunches of every federal district judge in the country,” Oldham wrote. 
Oldham said that the danger that Tren de Aragua posed to the United States was clear based on their record of kidnappings, murders, rapes, and theft in the country. The Trump appointee also questioned the practicality of allowing judges to hold up the process of declaring an invasion. 
“Does that mean the United States could be beset by a predatory incursion for the entirety of the Trump Administration and that the President would remain powerless to act until given the green light by one or more federal judges?” he wrote. 
The Trump administration <a href="https://www.state.gov/designation-of-international-cartels">classified</a> Tren de Aragua as a foreign terrorist organization in February, saying that it “has conducted kidnappings, extorted businesses, bribed public officials, authorized its members to attack and kill U.S. law enforcement, and assassinated a Venezuelan opposition figure.”
On Tuesday, Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/u-s-drone-strikes-cartel-drug-boat-trump-posts-video-for-world-to-see-beware?author=Tim+Pearce&amp;category=undefined&amp;elementPosition=2&amp;row=3&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+News&amp;rowType=Vertical+Carousel&amp;title=U.S.+Drone+Strikes+Cartel+Drug+Boat%2C+Trump+Posts+Video+For+World+To+See%3A+‘BEWARE%21’" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> that the U.S. military took out a boat leaving Venezuela with 11 members of Tren de Aragua allegedly transporting drugs headed for America. The strike took place in international waters.

White House US President Donald Trump

Court Blocks Trump From Deporting Suspected Venezuelan Gang Members

Courts

Illegal Immigation

Terrorism

The U.S. military destroys a drug boat from Venezuela as a federal judge tries to block President Trump from using the National Guard for law enforcement in Los Angeles. A massive populist backlash against mass migration is fueling a historic political shift to the Right across Europe. The FDA restricts access to COVID vaccines for healthy Americans as President Trump demands Big Pharma release its data and questions his own Operation Warp Speed.
It’s Wednesday, September 3, 2025, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
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<h2>U.S. Military Sinks Drug Boat, Judge Blocks Trump in L.A.</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-968047" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH1-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH1-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH1-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH1-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH1-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH1.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></div>
Topline: The U.S. military destroyed a boat allegedly carrying drugs from Venezuela on Tuesday, the most dramatic move yet in the Trump administration&#8217;s war on cartels, as a federal judge in California ruled against the president&#8217;s use of the National Guard for domestic law enforcement. 
As part of an &#8220;enhanced counter narcotics operation,&#8221; the U.S. military has deployed at least eight warships to the Caribbean. &#8220;We just, over the last few minutes, shot out a drug-carrying boat,&#8221; President Trump announced Tuesday. &#8220;These came out of Venezuela.&#8221; The action follows the president&#8217;s designation of several large drug cartels as terror organizations, allowing for a more aggressive military approach. 
Meanwhile, a district judge in San Francisco ruled Tuesday that Trump’s deployment of the National Guard in Los Angeles to protect federal property and aid immigration enforcement was illegal. The judge, Charles Breyer, barred guardsmen from engaging in law enforcement activities. The Trump administration will appeal the ruling, which has been put on hold for ten days. A federal appeals court previously reversed a similar ruling from Breyer in June. 
In other administration news, the Pentagon will send up to 600 of its lawyers to the Justice Department to serve as temporary immigration judges, a move intended to clear a 3-million-person backlog and speed up deportations. President Trump also announced that the U.S. Space Command Headquarters will be relocated to Huntsville, Alabama, a move the White House says will save nearly half a billion dollars.
&nbsp;
<h2>Europe Sees Historic Shift to the Right Amid Migrant Backlash</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-968045" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH2-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH2-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH2-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH2-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH2-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH2.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></div>
Topline: For the first time in modern history, right-wing populist parties are leading the polls in Europe&#8217;s three largest economies — France, Germany, and the United Kingdom — driven by a massive public backlash against mass migration. 
&#8220;Immigration is the number one factor driving all of these movements,&#8221; Alvino-Mario Fantini, editor-in-chief of the European Conservative, told Morning Wire. Since 2015, an estimated 25 to 30 million immigrants, primarily from Muslim countries, have entered Europe, leading to a culture clash and widespread anger over the high costs of housing and welfare for migrants. 
As a result, nationalist parties like Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, France’s National Rally, and Germany’s Alternative for Germany are now topping the polls in their respective countries. 
The establishment parties have responded with what many conservative analysts call &#8220;lawfare,&#8221; similar to tactics used against the MAGA movement in the U.S. In France, National Rally leader Marine Le Pen was convicted of misusing E.U. funds and banned from running for office for five years. In Germany, the country’s intelligence agency has classified the Alternative for Germany party as an “extremist” group, which could be used to ban its members from public office.
&nbsp;
<h2>FDA Restricts COVID Vax as Trump Questions Warp Speed</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-968043" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH3-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH3-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH3-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH3-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH3-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/MRN-9.3.25-Wed-SH3.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></div>
Topline: The FDA has removed the emergency use authorization for COVID vaccines, restricting their availability for healthy Americans, as President Trump is now publicly questioning his own Operation Warp Speed and demanding that pharmaceutical companies release their data on the shots. 
The FDA has removed the &#8220;emergency use authorization&#8221; that allowed widespread access to COVID vaccines during the pandemic. While high-risk individuals can still get the vaccine, healthy people will now need a recommendation from a physician. FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary said the agency doesn&#8217;t &#8220;have data [on] healthy Americans, so we’re not recommending it for healthy Americans,&#8221; adding that the change makes future vaccine mandates &#8220;legally impossible.&#8221; 
The move comes as President Trump has taken a more critical tone on the vaccines. In a post on Truth Social, he demanded that companies like Pfizer &#8220;justify&#8221; the success of the drugs and release their data to the public. In a notable shift, he also questioned his own signature program, writing, “I hope OPERATION WARP SPEED was as ‘BRILLIANT’ as many say it was. If not, we all want to know about it, and why???” 
The policy changes follow a major shakeup at the CDC, where HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. recently fired the director, prompting several other top officials to resign and nine former directors to write an op-ed condemning Kennedy. NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya responded by noting that the former directors criticizing Kennedy were the same ones who &#8220;embraced politicized school closures and covid vaccine mandates.”

MRN 9.03.25 Thumbnail V1

Morning Brief: US Military Strikes Drug Boat, Rise Of European Populism & COVID Vax Pullback

COVID

COVID-19 Vaccine

Europe

France

Germany

Global Politics

Operation Warp Speed

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

U.K.

World

President Donald Trump posted a video on Tuesday of a United States military strike against Tren de Aragua drug smugglers in the Caribbean Sea.
The strike took place in international waters and killed nearly a dozen terrorist cartel members carrying illicit drugs, Trump said. A video of the strike showed a small boat motoring through water before bursting into flame.
“Earlier this morning, on my Orders, U.S. Military Forces conducted a kinetic strike against positively identified Tren de Aragua Narcoterrorists in the SOUTHCOM area of responsibility,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
“TDA is a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, operating under the control of Nicolas Maduro, responsible for mass murder, drug trafficking, sex trafficking, and acts of violence and terror across the United States and Western Hemisphere,” he added. “The strike occurred while the terrorists were at sea in International waters transporting illegal narcotics, heading to the United States.”
“The strike resulted in 11 terrorists killed in action. No U.S. Forces were harmed in this strike. Please let this serve as notice to anybody even thinking about bringing drugs into the United States of America. BEWARE!” Trump concluded. “Thank you for your attention to this matter!!!!!!!!!!!”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<a href="https://t.co/vEVGYVgLAg">pic.twitter.com/vEVGYVgLAg</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1962990388211228951?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 2, 2025</a></blockquote>
The president <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/u-s-deploys-forces-to-take-on-latin-american-drug-cartels-in-the-southern-caribbean">ordered</a> U.S. military assets to the south Caribbean off the coast of Venezuela last month to counter drug cartels, which his administration has classified as foreign terrorist organizations. The president has ratcheted up pressure on Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, who the United States has targeted as a top cartel official.
In August, the United States <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-hikes-bounty-on-venezuelas-maduro-to-50m">doubled</a> its bounty on information leading to Maduro’s arrest from $25 million to $50 million.
“Maduro uses foreign terrorist organizations like TDA, Sinaloa, and Cartel of the Suns to bring deadly drugs and violence into our country. To date, the DEA has seized 30 tons of cocaine linked to Maduro and his associates with nearly seven tons linked to Maduro himself,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi.
“The DOJ has seized over $700 million of Maduro-linked assets, including two private jets, nine vehicles, and more,” she added. “Yet, Maduro’s reign of terror continues. He is one of the largest narco traffickers in the world and a threat to our national security.”

U.S. Drone Strikes Cartel Drug Boat, Trump Posts Video For World To See: ‘BEWARE!’

Crime

President Donald Trump announced Tuesday afternoon that American forces had taken out a “drug-carrying boat” coming out of Venezuela.
Trump made the comments during a press conference from the White House announcing that Space Command will be moving its headquarters from Colorado to Alabama. He said that the Joint Chiefs of Staff had briefed him just before the press conference.
“When you come out and when you leave the room, you’ll see that we just, over the last few minutes literally, shot out a boat, a drug-carrying boat, a lot of drugs in that boat. And you’ll be seeing that, and you’ll be reading about that,” Trump said.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
🚨 <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a>: We just, over the last few minutes, shot out a drug-carrying boat&#8230; and there&#8217;s more where that came from&#8230; These came out of Venezuela. <a href="https://t.co/JlurCZWBpG">pic.twitter.com/JlurCZWBpG</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1962955342523879613?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 2, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
“It just happened moments ago and our great general, head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who has been so incredible, including what took place in Iran knocking out potential nuclear power for a long time to come … he gave us a little bit of a briefing. And you’ll see. There&#8217;s more where that came from. We have a lot of drugs pouring into our country. Coming in for a long time,” he added.
He said that the boat came out of Venezuela. “We took it out and you’ll get to see that after this meeting is over,” Trump said.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed the strike in a post on X.
“As [Trump] just announced moments ago, today the U.S. military conducted a lethal strike in the southern Caribbean against a drug vessel which had departed from Venezuela and was being operated by a designated narco-terrorist organization,” Rubio posted on X.
The strike comes as <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/maduro-accuses-u-s-of-seeking-a-regime-change-after-trump-deploys-military-to-south-caribbean">tensions have been rising</a> between Trump and Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro. Last month, Trump directed the Pentagon to deploy U.S. troops and warships to address “threats to U.S. national security from specially designated narco-terrorist organizations in the region,” according to Reuters.
The Trump administration has accused Maduro and his government of taking part in massive drug trafficking operations that smuggle narcotics into the United States. The government recently increased the bounty on Maduro to $50 million, citing his alleged ties to transnational gangs and drug cartels.

President Trump Makes Announcement In The Oval Office Of The White House

Trump Says Military Took Out Venezuelan Boat Carrying ‘A Lot Of Drugs’

U.S. Military

Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro said on Monday that the United States is seeking to oust him after President Donald Trump <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/u-s-deploys-forces-to-take-on-latin-american-drug-cartels-in-the-southern-caribbean?author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=U.S.+Deploys+Forces+To+Take+On+Latin+American+Drug+Cartels+In+The+Southern+Caribbean">deployed</a> the military to the Southern Caribbean to take on Latin American drug cartels.
Speaking to journalists, Maduro said that Venezuela must confront &#8220;the biggest threat that has been seen on our continent in the last 100 years,&#8221; adding, &#8220;They are seeking a regime change through military threat,&#8221; Fox News <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/world/maduro-claims-us-seeks-regime-change-military-threat-caribbean-buildup">reported</a>. The Venezuelan leader said that his country is &#8220;super prepared&#8221; to address any threats to its sovereignty.
&#8220;A situation like this has never been seen,&#8221; he added.
Last month, Trump directed the Pentagon to deploy U.S. troops and warships to address &#8220;threats to U.S. national security from specially designated narco-terrorist organizations in the region,&#8221; according to Reuters. The Trump administration has accused Maduro and his government of taking part in massive drug trafficking operations that smuggle narcotics into the United States. The government recently increased the bounty on Maduro to $50 million, citing his alleged ties to transnational gangs and drug cartels.
After President Trump took office in January, the State Department also designated the Venezuelan international criminal gang, Tren de Aragua (TdA), as a foreign terrorist organization. The State Department also recently added the Venezuelan Cartel de los Soles to the foreign terrorist list.
The United States recognized Maduro&#8217;s opponent, Edmundo González, as the rightful leader of Venezuela after the Maduro regime appeared to rig the 2024 election to keep the socialist leader in power. González was forced to flee to Spain after Venezuelan authorities announced that Maduro had won the election.
On August 18, three U.S. guided-missile destroyers headed to the Southern Caribbean near the Venezuelan coast, and a U.S. official <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/u-s-deploys-warships-near-venezuela-to-combat-drug-threats-sources-say?author=Reuters&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=U.S.+Deploys+Warships+Near+Venezuela+To+Combat+Drug+Threats%2C+Sources+Say">told</a> Reuters that around 4,000 sailors and Marines were also expected to be deployed to the region as part of Trump&#8217;s crackdown on drug cartels.
The president has made it a priority to stop the flow of deadly drugs, such as fentanyl, into the United States and take on drug cartels and criminal gangs — both inside and outside of the country. Trump <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCGjPpNG4xA">said</a> during his joint address to Congress in March that &#8220;the cartels are waging war on America, and it&#8217;s time for America to wage war on the cartels.&#8221;
The Trump administration also worked out deals with Mexico to bring incarcerated drug lords to U.S. soil, where they can face charges. Last week, former drug lord El Mayo — a co-founder of the powerful Mexican Sinaloa cartel — <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/bondi-cartel-kingpin-will-die-in-a-u-s-federal-prison-where-he-belongs">pleaded guilty</a> to racketeering.
“Thanks to the relentless work of our prosecutors and our federal agents, El Mayo will spend the rest of his life behind bars. He will die in a U.S. federal prison where he belongs,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said. “His guilty plea brings us one step closer to achieving our goal of the elimination of the drug cartels and the transnational criminal organizations throughout this world that are flooding our country with drugs and human traffickers and homicides.”
While the United States has successfully extradited former drug lords from Mexico, the Mexican government opposes the United States deploying any troops to the country. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/mexican-president-says-u-s-military-will-not-fight-drug-cartels-on-its-soil">said</a> last month, “That is ruled out, absolutely ruled out. It is not part of any agreement, far from it. When it has been brought up, we have always said no.”

Maduro Accuses U.S. Of ‘Seeking A Regime Change’ After Trump Deploys Military To South Caribbean

Politics

President Trump renews his push to eliminate mail-in voting by executive order ahead of the 2026 midterms. The U.S. Navy deploys three destroyers off the coast of Venezuela as part of the Trump administration&#8217;s escalating war on drug cartels. The White House touts a string of recent victories, including progress on a Ukraine peace deal, a sharp drop in D.C. crime, and a record-high stock market.
It’s Wednesday, August 20, 2025, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
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<h2>Trump Vows to End ‘Corrupt’ Mail-In Voting</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-962611" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_00_21_19.Still001-3-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_00_21_19.Still001-3-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_00_21_19.Still001-3-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_00_21_19.Still001-3-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_00_21_19.Still001-3-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_00_21_19.Still001-3.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></div>
Topline: President Trump announced on Monday that he is renewing his push to eliminate mail-in voting nationwide by executive order ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, calling the practice a &#8220;fraud.&#8221; 
&#8220;We&#8217;re going to stop mail-in ballots because it&#8217;s corrupt,&#8221; Trump said Monday, arguing that it is the &#8220;only way&#8221; Democrats can win elections. The president is also taking aim at electronic voting machines, which he called &#8220;seriously controversial,&#8221; in favor of watermarked paper ballots. The expected executive order is likely to face immediate legal challenges, as states constitutionally control election administration. 
Democrats have vowed to fight the move. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (NY) said any measure making it harder to vote would be &#8220;dead on arrival in the Senate.&#8221; Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold called Trump a &#8220;weak president grasping at straws,&#8221; and claimed that mail ballots do not help one party over another. However, data from the 2024 election shows that Democrats were significantly more likely than Republicans to vote by mail, with an 18-point split between the two parties. 
<h2>U.S. Deploys Warships to Confront Venezuelan Cartel</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-962609" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_01_20_23.Still002-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_01_20_23.Still002-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_01_20_23.Still002-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_01_20_23.Still002-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_01_20_23.Still002-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_01_20_23.Still002.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></div>
Topline: The U.S. Navy has deployed three guided-missile destroyers to international waters off the coast of Venezuela as part of the Trump administration’s escalating military confrontation with Latin American drug cartels. 
The deployment includes three Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, 4,000 sailors and Marines, P-8 spy planes, and at least one attack submarine. The move is a direct challenge to Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, whom the U.S. has indicted and designated as the head of a &#8220;narco terror cartel.&#8221; Maduro responded by threatening to deploy 4.5 million of his own militiamen. 
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said President Trump &#8220;is prepared to use every element of American power to stop drugs from flooding into our country and to bring those responsible to justice.&#8221; The U.S. currently has a $50 million bounty on Maduro. 
The military action has a historical precedent. In 1989, former President George H.W. Bush sent 20,000 troops into Panama to arrest dictator Manuel Noriega on drug trafficking charges. That invasion was justified by a legal memo asserting the president&#8217;s authority to arrest fugitives in other countries. 
<h2>White House Touts Wins on Peace, Crime, and Economy</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-large wp-image-962613" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_02_17_05.Still004-1024x576.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_02_17_05.Still004-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_02_17_05.Still004-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_02_17_05.Still004-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_02_17_05.Still004-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/08/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_02_17_05.Still004.jpg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></div>
Topline: The Trump administration is touting a series of major victories on foreign and domestic policy, including significant progress toward a peace deal in Ukraine, a dramatic drop in D.C. crime, and a record-high stock market. 
Following his summit with Vladimir Putin, President Trump is pushing for a trilateral meeting with the Russian leader and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to finalize a peace deal immediately. European leaders, who had previously been critical of Trump, are now expressing optimism about his approach after he secured a major concession from Putin on a U.S.-backed security guarantee for Ukraine. 
At home, the federal takeover of the D.C. police is yielding dramatic results. The D.C. Police Union reports that in the last seven days, carjackings are down 83%, robberies are down 46%, and violent crime is down 22%. Attorney General Pam Bondi says nearly 500 arrests have been made since the crackdown began. 
The economic news is also positive. The DOW Jones Industrial Average touched an all-time high on Tuesday, defying predictions of a bear market. A new poll of economists shows that a majority now expect the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates in September, a move Trump has long advocated for that would likely boost the housing market.

MRN 8.20.25 Thumbnail V1

Morning Brief: Trump Vows To End ‘Corrupt’ Mail-In Voting, Moves Ships To Venezuela To Fight Cartels

Economy

Elections

Mail-In Voting

U.S. Navy

Ukraine-Russia War

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Three U.S. Aegis guided-missile destroyers will arrive off the coast of Venezuela in the next 36 hours as part of an effort to address threats from Latin American drug cartels, two sources briefed on the matter said on Monday.
President Donald Trump has wanted to use the military to go after Latin American drug gangs that have been designated as global terrorist organizations.
The sources said the ships are the USS Gravely, USS Jason Dunham, and the USS Sampson.
A separate U.S. official told Reuters that in total, about 4,000 sailors and Marines are expected to be committed to the Trump administration&#8217;s efforts in the southern Caribbean region.
That U.S. official, who was speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the additional commitment of military assets in the broader region would include several P-8 spy planes, warships, and at least one attack submarine.
The official said the process would be ongoing for several months and the plan was for them to operate in international airspace and international waters.
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The naval assets can be used to not just carry out intelligence and surveillance operations, but also as a launching pad for targeted strikes if a decision is made, the official added.
Venezuela&#8217;s communications ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Without referring to the warships, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said on Monday in an address that Venezuela will &#8220;defend our seas, our skies and our lands.&#8221; He alluded to what he called &#8220;the outlandish, bizarre threat of a declining empire.&#8221;
Trump has made cracking down on drug cartels a central goal of his administration as part of a wider effort to limit migration and secure the U.S. southern border.
The Trump administration in recent months has already deployed at least two warships to help in border security efforts and drug trafficking.
The Trump administration designated Mexico&#8217;s Sinaloa Cartel and other drug gangs, as well as Venezuelan criminal group Tren de Aragua, as global terrorist organizations in February, as it stepped up immigration enforcement against alleged gang members.
The U.S. military has already been increasing its airborne surveillance of Mexican drug cartels to collect intelligence to determine how to best counter their activities.
(Reporting By Steve Holland and Idrees Ali; additional reporting by Vivian Sequera and Kanishka Singh; Editing by Chris Reese and Christian Schmollinger)

U.S. Navy Warship

U.S. Deploys Warships Near Venezuela To Combat Drug Threats, Sources Say

U.S. air and naval forces are set to deploy to the Southern Caribbean Sea following President Donald Trump&#8217;s <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-greenlights-military-force-to-take-down-latin-american-drug-cartels">directive</a> for the Pentagon to use the military for operations against Latin American drug cartels, Reuters <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us-military-deploying-forces-southern-caribbean-against-drug-groups-2025-08-14/">reported</a> on Thursday.
Sources briefed on the move told Reuters that after Trump&#8217;s order, the Defense Department has begun deploying U.S. troops to address &#8220;threats to U.S. national security from specially designated narco-terrorist organizations in the region.&#8221; Last week, Trump quietly signed an order to deploy U.S. troops to conduct anti-cartel operations in foreign countries, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/08/us/trump-military-drug-cartels.html?smtyp=cur&amp;smid=tw-nytimesworld">according</a> to The New York Times.
It remains unknown which specific cartels the president is targeting in his directive. After Trump was sworn into office, the United States designated seven drug cartels and two international criminal gangs as foreign terrorist organizations. Most of those cartels primarily operate in Mexico, but the reported deployment of troops to the South Caribbean Sea suggests that the operation will focus more on Central and South America.
Venezuela, whose northern coastline sits on the South Caribbean Sea, has been a recent subject of the Trump administration&#8217;s scrutiny. Shortly after the president took office, the State Department designated the Venezuelan international criminal gang, Tren de Aragua (TdA), as a foreign terrorist organization, and most recently added the Venezuelan Cartel de los Soles to its terrorist organization list.
Trump has also ramped up pressure on Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-hikes-bounty-on-venezuelas-maduro-to-50m">raising</a> the bounty on him to $50 million and pointing to his ties to transnational gangs and drug cartels. Attorney General Pam Bondi also accused Maduro of using the powerful Mexican drug cartel, Sinaloa, &#8220;to bring deadly drugs and violence into our country.&#8221;
&#8220;To date, the DEA has seized 30 tons of cocaine linked to Maduro and his associates with nearly seven tons linked to Maduro himself,” Bondi said earlier this month.
After Trump greenlit military operations against drug cartels, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/mexican-president-says-u-s-military-will-not-fight-drug-cartels-on-its-soil">said</a> that U.S. troops would not be entering her country to fight cartels. Sheinbaum said last week that U.S. officials gave her a heads-up that Trump&#8217;s directive &#8220;was coming,&#8221; adding that an American troop deployment to Mexico was &#8220;absolutely ruled out.&#8221;
&#8220;It is not part of any agreement, far from it. When it has been brought up, we have always said no,&#8221; Sheinbaum said.
Trump has already been using the military along the U.S.-Mexico border to help clamp down on illegal immigration and drug trafficking. The U.S. military has also increased its aerial surveillance of Mexican drug cartels, collecting intelligence on the traffickers responsible for shipping deadly drugs, such as fentanyl, into the United States.

U.S. Navy Helicopter

U.S. Deploys Forces To Take On Latin American Drug Cartels In The Southern Caribbean

U.S. Deploys Forces To Southern Caribbean To Take On Latin American Drug Cartels

Mexico

U.S. Air Force

President Donald Trump quietly signed a directive ordering the Pentagon to begin using military force against Latin American drug cartels that the administration has labeled as terrorist organizations, The New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/08/us/trump-military-drug-cartels.html?smtyp=cur&amp;smid=tw-nytimesworld">reported</a> Friday morning.
The order includes an official basis for the United States military to conduct anti-cartel operations in foreign countries, and military officials have already begun drafting plans for going after certain groups, the Times reported, citing &#8220;people familiar with the conversations.&#8221; It was not immediately clear which specific gangs or drug cartels Trump&#8217;s new directive greenlights military operations against.
Under Trump, the United States has <a href="https://www.state.gov/designation-of-international-cartels">designated</a> seven drug cartels and two international criminal gangs as foreign terrorist organizations: Tren de Aragua (TdA), Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), Cártel de Sinaloa, Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), Cártel del Noreste (CDN), La Nueva Familia Michoacana (LNFM), Cártel de Golfo (CDG), and Cárteles Unidos (CU). The Trump administration recently added the Venezuelan Cartel de los Soles to its list, saying that it is operated by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and other high-ranking government officials, according to the Times. On Thursday, the United States upped the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-hikes-bounty-on-venezuelas-maduro-to-50m">bounty</a> on Maduro to $50 million, pointing to his ties to transnational gangs and drug cartels.
&#8220;Maduro uses foreign terrorist organizations like TDA, Sinaloa, and Cartel of the Suns to bring deadly drugs and violence into our country. To date, the DEA has seized 30 tons of cocaine linked to Maduro and his associates with nearly seven tons linked to Maduro himself,&#8221; said Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Most of the cartels designated by the Trump administration as terrorist organizations operate in Mexico, while TdA&#8217;s roots are in Venezuela, and MS-13 originated in Los Angeles as a Salvadoran street gang. Both TdA and MS-13 also have cells operating in Central America, according to the State Department.
Trump&#8217;s order is among the most significant steps he has taken to fulfill his promise to &#8220;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCGjPpNG4xA">wage war</a>&#8221; on cartels that have trafficked fentanyl and other drugs into the United States, leading to the deaths of tens of thousands of Americans. In May, President Trump said he offered Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum a deal that would send U.S. troops into Mexico to fight drug cartels.
&#8220;They are horrible people that have been killing people left and right. They&#8217;ve made a fortune on selling drugs and destroying our people,&#8221; Trump <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/video/us/politics/100000010147246/trump-offers-us-military-to-fight-mexican-cartels.html">told</a> reporters aboard Air Force One. &#8220;If Mexico wanted help with the cartels, we would be honored to go in and do it.&#8221;
Sheinbaum <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/sheinbaum-says-she-rejected-trumps-offer-send-troops-mexico-2025-05-03/">rejected</a> Trump&#8217;s proposal, saying, &#8220;Sovereignty is not for sale. Sovereignty is loved and defended.&#8221;
&#8220;We will never accept the presence of the United States military in our territory,&#8221; she added.

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