Maduro on Trial & Trump's 'Donroe Doctrine'

[00:00:00] Press News live stream. Thank you so [00:00:02] much for joining us on this Tuesday [00:00:05] afternoon on January 6th. This is a [00:00:08] historic day here in the United States [00:00:10] where a sham trial of Venezuela's [00:00:15] internationally recognized President [00:00:17] Nicholas Maduro is sitting on trial in [00:00:20] New York City. But before we get [00:00:22] started, we want to remind everyone that [00:00:25] Mintress News is an independent media [00:00:27] outlet. We recently um had all of our [00:00:31] funds from our fundraiser on Indiegogo [00:00:33] withheld from us. So your support means [00:00:36] so much to us to keep these kinds of [00:00:38] live streams and reporting um possible. [00:00:42] And my name is Manar Adi for those who [00:00:45] don't know who I am and I'm the founder [00:00:47] and director of Mit Press News. And [00:00:50] thank you everybody to for joining us [00:00:52] today. Um, we want to get started to [00:00:56] talk about this very historic day here [00:00:58] in the US. Um, January 3rd or January [00:01:01] 6th, excuse me, where the sham trial of [00:01:05] Venezuela's internationally [00:01:08] recognized President Nicholas Maduro is [00:01:11] on trial right now in New York City. On [00:01:15] January 3rd, the elected president of [00:01:17] Venezuela was kidnapped and flown to the [00:01:20] US to face drug smuggling charges in a [00:01:22] case that is already falling apart. [00:01:26] Prosecutors have already admitted that [00:01:28] the cartel of the Suns, the drugs [00:01:31] organization, Maduro suddenly led does [00:01:33] not even exist. Moreover, the supposed [00:01:37] key witness in the investigation, which [00:01:39] we're going to talk about more, so stay [00:01:41] with us, has a deeply shady history and [00:01:45] ties working with US intelligence, with [00:01:47] the CIA. Now, Maduro plead not guilty [00:01:51] and asserted that he is a prisoner of [00:01:54] war, and he is. He is a prisoner of war. [00:01:57] Yet, Donald Trump has insisted that the [00:02:00] US is not at war with Venezuela. And [00:02:03] that is a direct lie. But how else to [00:02:07] describe sending in special forces to [00:02:10] kidnap the head of state of a foreign [00:02:12] country. And that's another thing. After [00:02:16] a decadesl long campaign to undermine [00:02:18] and attack Venezuela, the media are [00:02:21] playing their part, refusing to describe [00:02:24] Trump's blatantly illegal actions that [00:02:28] violate international law as a [00:02:31] kidnapping or the fact that it is [00:02:33] illegal. [00:02:35] Now, if you look at coverage from CNN to [00:02:39] the BBC, they are barely even talking [00:02:42] about the drug trafficking charges, [00:02:45] they are mostly talking about this from [00:02:47] a place of that the Venezuelan people [00:02:51] want human rights and are celebrating [00:02:53] this. And the BBC has made it very [00:02:56] explicit. Its news editor has been [00:02:59] sending a memo to all journalists [00:03:01] explicitly telling them to avoid using [00:03:04] the word kidnapped. While Western [00:03:07] leaders have welcomed the move, Maduro's [00:03:10] arrest has sparked protests across [00:03:13] Venezuela and the world opposing Trump's [00:03:17] actions, opposing the fact that Trump [00:03:20] was able to kidnap a sitting president. [00:03:23] This sets a major major implication for [00:03:28] international politics, but you rarely [00:03:31] see those on social media. Instead, what [00:03:34] we have seen is a spate of AI generated [00:03:38] videos claiming to show Venezuelans [00:03:41] rising up against their tyrannical [00:03:43] government and welcoming Trump's attack. [00:03:48] In reality, very few people inside [00:03:50] Venezuela actually welcome their country [00:03:52] being attacked and potentially being [00:03:54] turned into another Libya style civil [00:03:58] war. [00:03:59] One Venezuelan who has though is Maria [00:04:02] Corina Machado who promised her newly [00:04:06] acquired Nobel Peace Prize to Trump if [00:04:10] he would only just overthrow the entire [00:04:13] government of Venezuela that's leading [00:04:16] the Bolivarian revolution and put her in [00:04:18] the rose where she has been groomed by [00:04:21] the US national security state for [00:04:24] decades. And all of this has certainly [00:04:26] distracted us from, of course, the [00:04:28] Epstein files, where Trump's name was [00:04:31] implicated more than 600 times. [00:04:35] 600 times. [00:04:38] And these are crimes related to the [00:04:40] disgraced sex trafficker. Can you [00:04:43] imagine if China or Russia just came [00:04:47] into Washington DC and kidnapped [00:04:49] President Trump for his crimes against [00:04:52] humanity? This would be unquestionably [00:04:56] the biggest story with calls for for [00:04:59] intervention and sanctions. But when we [00:05:01] do it, when the US empire does it, it's [00:05:04] just politics. [00:05:06] It also sends a shot across the bow to [00:05:09] many other countries, including Cuba and [00:05:12] Colombia, who Trump has now said is next [00:05:15] in line for regime change. [00:05:19] Is this the latest chapter in the new [00:05:21] cold war against Russia and China? And [00:05:23] with Europe [00:05:26] cowtowing to Trump on Maduro, an [00:05:28] American invasion and annexation of [00:05:30] Greenland over minerals seems all the [00:05:34] more likely as the new cold war begins [00:05:37] to heat up. Now, we're going to talk [00:05:40] about all of this one by one. We're [00:05:42] going to break this down uh between [00:05:44] myself and uh Mitress senior staff [00:05:47] writer and producer Alan Mloud. He's the [00:05:50] author of the book Bad News from [00:05:52] Venezuela: 20 years of fake news and [00:05:55] misreporting. Thank you so much, Alan, [00:05:58] for joining us today. [00:06:00] >> Good to be with you, Manar, on this uh [00:06:03] worrying day. [00:06:06] >> Thank you. And I just want to uh before [00:06:09] we start, I want to just mention a [00:06:11] couple of things. since reporting on [00:06:13] Venezuela [00:06:14] and opposing this clear violation of [00:06:17] international law with our own President [00:06:19] Donald Trump kidnapping uh Nicholas [00:06:21] Maduro on these bogus claims of drug [00:06:25] trafficking. Um, my page, and I'm sure [00:06:28] Allan, your page as well, has been [00:06:30] bombarded with, you know, [00:06:32] pro-interventionist Venezuelans, most of [00:06:34] them expatriots based in Miami, telling [00:06:37] us, how could we talk about Venezuela [00:06:40] when, you know, we're not from there? [00:06:42] And they they said to us like, you know, [00:06:45] you know, you should go to Venezuela and [00:06:47] see for yourself. Well, we just want to [00:06:49] remind people who are watching that both [00:06:50] Alan and I have been to Venezuela [00:06:53] multiple times. I was there as an [00:06:55] election observer, an independent [00:06:57] election observer and as an independent [00:06:59] journalist in 2021 among hundreds of [00:07:04] international international election [00:07:07] observers [00:07:09] um in an election that is the most [00:07:11] observed and transparent in the world. [00:07:14] And during my trip there, I traveled [00:07:17] across many states inside Venezuela. I [00:07:20] met with people on the ground [00:07:23] independently [00:07:24] and I came across many people that were [00:07:27] from elitist communities [00:07:30] and from the bios from the poorest [00:07:35] neighborhoods inside of Venezuela and I [00:07:37] spoke with people directly and so yes we [00:07:40] are in a place to talk about this. Allan [00:07:43] wrote a book bad news from Venezuela 20 [00:07:45] years of fake news and misreporting. [00:07:47] We've been analyzing the news and so as [00:07:51] independent journalists, our job is to [00:07:54] scrutinize our own governments [00:07:57] corruption and violations of [00:08:00] international law. That is our job and [00:08:02] we will continue to do that no matter [00:08:05] the intimidation that we receive. And [00:08:09] despite this bogus sham, you know, [00:08:13] trial, Trump has made it very clear that [00:08:17] the intentions here are for oil. I mean, [00:08:20] this is like the emperor without its [00:08:22] clothes on. He's saying the quiet part [00:08:24] out loud. And, you know, he's not doing [00:08:27] it like the Democrats where they pretend [00:08:29] to really care about human rights and, [00:08:31] you know, we're there to save the [00:08:32] people. No, no. He's saying that we are [00:08:34] there for the oil. We're going to play [00:08:36] this video [00:08:38] of him saying that. I'm sure many of you [00:08:40] have seen it, but just for the sake of [00:08:42] this video, we are going to play this. [00:08:44] One second. [00:09:08] Venezuela or [00:09:11] other [00:09:12] >> anywhere drugs are pouring in anywhere. [00:09:14] Not just Venezuela. [00:09:16] >> Yes. [00:09:17] >> Speaking of Venezuela, oil. What are we [00:09:19] going to do with the oil that we have? [00:09:20] >> Going to do with what? [00:09:21] >> The oil that has been seized. The United [00:09:24] States seized 1.9 million barrels of oil [00:09:27] on December 10th. [00:09:28] >> We're going to keep it. [00:09:29] >> We're keeping. [00:09:30] >> Where's it? Are we going to sell it or [00:09:32] put it in the strategic? [00:09:32] >> Maybe we'll sell it. We'll keep it. [00:09:35] Maybe we'll use it in the strategic [00:09:37] reserves. We're keeping it. We're [00:09:38] keeping the ships also. Yeah, please. [00:09:44] >> Um, about Venezuela, sir, have you [00:09:46] spoken to American oil companies that [00:09:48] have had their assets seized about what [00:09:50] a post Maduro Venezuela would mean for [00:09:52] them, what coming back and restarting, [00:09:54] >> the big ones? [00:09:55] >> I have. Yeah, please. [00:09:57] >> Why do you feel like this initiative was [00:09:58] neglected for so many years? Does this [00:10:00] come amidst the rising tensions between [00:10:02] the US and Venezuela? [00:10:03] >> We're talking about with Venezuela. [00:10:05] >> Yes. [00:10:06] >> Well, you had a different kind of a [00:10:08] president before me. They didn't mind [00:10:10] being ripped off. They didn't mind being [00:10:11] robbed. They didn't mind drugs pouring [00:10:13] into our country. They didn't mind the [00:10:15] jails of Venezuela and Trenagua being [00:10:18] emptied into the US where they take over [00:10:20] Colorado and other places. [00:10:24] >> All right. So a very blatant admission [00:10:29] that this war is about oil and I want to [00:10:33] talk more about that but you know let's [00:10:35] start with the very basics of what's [00:10:36] happening today and this week [00:10:38] specifically [00:10:39] um which is you know the abduction the [00:10:42] US abduction of President Maduro. He is [00:10:44] now on trial in New York City. Let's [00:10:46] talk a little bit about where we are in [00:10:48] that trial since that's the newest and [00:10:50] latest information. [00:10:52] um you know what is Maduro accused of [00:10:55] and how credible these accusations are [00:10:59] Alan if you could that [00:11:01] >> I mean sure so I guess the main uh [00:11:05] thrust of the US argument or the US [00:11:06] accusations is that President Maduro is [00:11:10] the head of a huge cocaine smuggling [00:11:12] organization called the cartel of the [00:11:15] sons cartel de loles [00:11:19] uh the US claims that uh Venezuela uh [00:11:22] has uh exported hundreds of tons of [00:11:25] cocaine flooding the uh streets of the [00:11:28] United States. Uh there's very little [00:11:30] evidence for this already. The [00:11:32] prosecution has been forced to admit [00:11:35] that the cartel of the Suns doesn't even [00:11:37] exist as an organization. Furthermore, [00:11:39] if you've actually been reading uh drugs [00:11:42] reports for the last however many years [00:11:44] going back decades, like reports from [00:11:47] the United Nations or even uh US [00:11:50] government organizations like the Drug [00:11:52] Enforcements Agency, Venezuela is barely [00:11:55] even talked about in these things. And [00:11:57] it makes clear that Venezuela is not a [00:12:00] major producer of drugs and is not a [00:12:01] major conduit of drugs either. The [00:12:04] amount of uh illegal narcotics that [00:12:07] enter the US that come from Venezuela or [00:12:09] smuggled through Venezuela is absolutely [00:12:13] minuscule. And it is highly ironic given [00:12:16] that we know where these drugs come [00:12:18] from. Uh in terms of cocaine anyway, [00:12:21] which is what um Trump likes to talk [00:12:23] about when it comes to Venezuela. We [00:12:25] know where it's produced. It's produced [00:12:26] largely in the Andian region. uh places [00:12:29] like Peru, Bolivia, Colombia, and [00:12:33] Ecuador. And it is shipped through the [00:12:35] Pacific route from Ecuador. What's [00:12:37] particularly notable about that is is [00:12:40] that Ecuador is actually ruled by um [00:12:43] President Norea, who is one of the [00:12:45] country's richest men. His family owns a [00:12:48] gigantic banana uh business. And [00:12:51] investigative reports have shown that [00:12:53] for years the NOA family have used this [00:12:55] uh this banana uh business to transport [00:12:59] drugs all around the world hidden in [00:13:01] their shipping containers. And yet the [00:13:03] United States does absolutely nothing [00:13:05] about this. And just weeks ago, uh just [00:13:08] weeks ago, uh the former president of [00:13:09] Honduras, another key US ally in the [00:13:12] region, was um was pardoned by Donald [00:13:15] Trump after uh he was sentenced to [00:13:18] decades in prison for his role as being [00:13:20] a major cocaine and narcotics kinpin. So [00:13:23] the whole thing is absolutely ludicrous [00:13:26] on its face. And of course, we have to [00:13:27] remember that the United States itself [00:13:30] has always controlled the drugs trade. [00:13:32] We saw what happened in Afghanistan in [00:13:34] the 1980s. The US launched Operation [00:13:38] Cyclone, which funneled uh more than a [00:13:40] billion dollars to the Afghan mujahedin [00:13:43] uh in order to overthrow the left-wing [00:13:46] uh USSRbacked government there. And what [00:13:50] they did was they tried to find ways in [00:13:52] which uh to fund this gigantic army that [00:13:56] they were doing. and they came up with a [00:13:58] very clear um idea which was to plant [00:14:01] heroin across Afghanistan. And it turned [00:14:04] Afghanistan into a narco state. And it [00:14:06] was so bad that when the Taliban came [00:14:08] into power in the '9s, they immediately [00:14:10] eradicated this drug. And only for the [00:14:12] United States to invade and for uh [00:14:15] heroin to absolutely explode again. And [00:14:18] now more than 20 years after that, we [00:14:20] see that Afghanistan is now again ruled [00:14:22] by the Taliban and uh and heroin [00:14:26] production has fallen off a cliff once [00:14:28] more. We know that the United States has [00:14:30] done this for decades in Latin America. [00:14:32] We know that the CIA worked with the [00:14:34] Contra rebels in um in Central America, [00:14:38] particularly in Nicaragua, and they [00:14:40] helped them flood American communities, [00:14:42] particularly black communities, uh with [00:14:45] crack cocaine, which fueled a huge [00:14:48] epidemic in the 1980s. and that that [00:14:50] money was then put into uh funding [00:14:54] gigantic reactionary uh death squads all [00:14:57] across the region of Central America [00:14:58] which went around carrying out genocidal [00:15:01] actions. Uh this was all exposed by the [00:15:03] great journalist Gary Webb of course. [00:15:05] And we can go even closer into the Trump [00:15:08] administration and look at Marco Rubio [00:15:09] himself, the secretary of state. He is [00:15:12] very close to drug kingpins. In fact, [00:15:14] his own brother-in-law uh was sentenced [00:15:17] to more uh more than a decade in prison [00:15:20] for his role in uh supplying and selling [00:15:24] cocaine on the streets of the United [00:15:25] States. And Rubio himself was actually [00:15:29] living in his brother-in-law's apartment [00:15:31] when he was busted. And after he got [00:15:34] out, he pressured uh local lawmakers to [00:15:38] give his brother-in-law a property uh [00:15:41] real terror uh license so that he could [00:15:43] get his life back on track. And that's [00:15:45] one of the many reasons why so many [00:15:47] people in Latin America call uh Rubio [00:15:50] Narco Rubio. The whole star witness of [00:15:53] this case is Kugo Carvajal, who was very [00:15:57] high up in military intelligence in [00:15:59] Venezuela in the 2000s, but really has [00:16:02] been kind of a non-person for more than [00:16:05] a decade. He got in huge trouble because [00:16:08] of uh criminal actions, particularly [00:16:10] around uh drugs. In the 2010s, he [00:16:14] suddenly became a huge opponent of the [00:16:16] Venezuelan government and uh became a a [00:16:19] huge uh supporter of Juan Guyaido. He [00:16:22] fled to Spain and wanted political [00:16:24] asylum there, but then he was indicted [00:16:25] to the United States, clearly under huge [00:16:28] pressure. And in fact, um, this June, [00:16:31] the M, well, previous June, because [00:16:33] we're in, uh, a new year, 2026, of [00:16:36] course, uh, the Miami Herald reported, [00:16:39] that he had actually struck a plea deal [00:16:41] with the United States government, which [00:16:43] would grant him, and I'm quoting here, a [00:16:45] considerable sentence reduction if he [00:16:48] provides sub a substantial assistance to [00:16:51] US investigations, end quote. And those [00:16:54] investigations were of course trying to [00:16:56] frame Nicholas Maduro as a major drugs [00:16:59] kingpin. So this is clearly a case of a [00:17:02] cose witness, a bias witness, a [00:17:05] ludicrous attempt to try to frame a [00:17:08] country which uh basically doesn't [00:17:10] produce drugs as this huge uh [00:17:13] centerpiece of the worldwide narcotics [00:17:15] trade. It's falling apart to the point [00:17:18] where now one of the major uh [00:17:20] accusations and um crimes that Maduro is [00:17:23] supposed to have committed. One of them [00:17:24] is uh the possession of machine guns, [00:17:27] which is absolutely ludicrous if you [00:17:29] think about it. Would you think that, [00:17:31] you know, uh some country should invade [00:17:33] another one and uh kidnap a head of [00:17:36] state because they possessed firearms? [00:17:38] The whole thing is absolutely ludicrous [00:17:40] on its face. But unfortunately, our [00:17:42] corporate media is taking this as if [00:17:44] this is a goodfaith attempt to spread [00:17:47] freedom and democracy, which it [00:17:48] absolutely is not. It's a power play by [00:17:50] the Trump administration to try to [00:17:52] reinforce this idea of American hegemony [00:17:56] on um on the Americas, which they've [00:17:59] been trying to hold out uh trying to [00:18:02] carry out and achieve for 200 years [00:18:04] since the proclaiming of the Monroe [00:18:06] Doctrine in 1823. [00:18:09] >> Absolutely. And do we know anything [00:18:11] about um the judge or this courtroom? Um [00:18:14] I was reading that like people like [00:18:16] Luigi Gmeni, he's one of the people that [00:18:19] have uh been in this courtroom. Um and [00:18:22] others like high-profile people. What do [00:18:25] you can you add any information about [00:18:27] that? [00:18:28] >> Oh, I didn't know that. That's very [00:18:29] interesting that uh this uh judge is uh [00:18:32] been sparring with Luigi Manion. Yeah, I [00:18:35] he's a very senior judge. I believe he's [00:18:37] 92 years old now. He's uh, you know, [00:18:40] worked his way up the corrupt American [00:18:42] um, legal system. He's had his uh, [00:18:46] fights with Donald Trump before, but I [00:18:48] think he's I think when it comes to US [00:18:50] empire, he's certainly not sticking his [00:18:52] uh, his uh, neck out there. Ultimately, [00:18:55] if you get to that position in the US [00:18:57] judiciary, you're not going to be a [00:18:58] radical rocking the boat. So, I'm not [00:19:00] expecting anything other than a complete [00:19:02] sham trial in a kangaroo court uh, from [00:19:05] uh, this judge in New York City. [00:19:08] Yeah, I don't really see anything good [00:19:10] coming out of this and the uh global [00:19:13] implications of this whole situation is [00:19:16] extremely troubling and you know we we [00:19:20] want to we want to cl clarify some [00:19:23] things. There are people celebrating uh [00:19:25] Maduro being kidnapped right now and [00:19:27] those are the Venezuelan expatriots [00:19:30] inside of Miami. A lot of these are [00:19:33] white. They're elitist. They're very, [00:19:35] very wealthy. And they want US [00:19:40] capitalism to enter their country. They [00:19:43] want that. They want a McDonald's. They [00:19:45] want a Starbucks. Not a, but like, you [00:19:47] know, these corporations to be in their [00:19:49] country. They want the American dream, [00:19:53] you know, the fake American dream to [00:19:55] enter Venezuela and take over. They're [00:19:58] very very happy, [00:20:00] very happy that Trump abducted and [00:20:03] kidnapped Maduro and they're all over [00:20:05] social media um celebrating this and you [00:20:10] know I just want to just you know uh [00:20:13] acknowledge that they do exist um but [00:20:15] they still are actually a minority of [00:20:18] the people that support this situation [00:20:23] but this is a case of Stockholm [00:20:25] syndrome. You know, the United States [00:20:27] has waged an economic ma maximum [00:20:30] pressure campaign against uh not just [00:20:33] the government and the economy of [00:20:35] Venezuela, but all of the people of [00:20:36] Venezuela. They are the responsible for [00:20:39] the prevention of Venezuela's economic [00:20:42] crisis. And as John Bolton has openly [00:20:45] stated, he's one of the uh neocon war [00:20:48] hawks that push this maximum pressure [00:20:50] campaign on Venezuela. He has openly [00:20:52] stated that one of the main goals is to [00:20:56] hurt the Venezuelan economy to a degree [00:20:59] in which the people of Venezuela will [00:21:02] eventually turn against their [00:21:04] government. And so these people who are [00:21:07] certainly showing a case of Stockholm [00:21:09] syndrome, you know, begging the US for [00:21:11] intervention, the very country that's [00:21:13] stranging their country and ready to, [00:21:16] you know, bomb it at any moment and take [00:21:18] over the industries, [00:21:20] you know, that that's what we're seeing. [00:21:22] That's what's happening inside of [00:21:23] Venezuela. And um but having said that [00:21:27] there are also AI generated content [00:21:31] right now that's floating around racking [00:21:33] up millions of views on social media. [00:21:37] And one of those videos um was shared by [00:21:40] Nick Shirley. He has millions of [00:21:41] followers. He's one of the MAGA, [00:21:44] so-called journalists, um that came here [00:21:47] to Minnesota, to Minneapolis to expose [00:21:49] the so-called um Somali daycare fraud [00:21:54] scheme, which you know, even local news [00:21:57] here debunk that. We're not saying that [00:21:59] fraud does not exist or corruption does [00:22:01] not exist, but um local news did debunk [00:22:04] that. So, we're going to show this video [00:22:07] right now of this of AI generated videos [00:22:11] that are going around showing [00:22:13] celebrations inside or yeah, [00:22:16] celebrations inside Venezuela that are [00:22:18] completely fake and false. So, let's [00:22:22] share this. I don't have my assistant [00:22:24] with me today, so I'm sharing everything [00:22:26] by myself. [00:22:28] There's that. And let's play this video. [00:23:10] Now, what's really interesting about [00:23:11] this video is like when he's waving the [00:23:13] flag, like it changed shape. Like the [00:23:16] yellow and the red like flip over. It's [00:23:18] clearly AI. But what's really [00:23:20] interesting is that this time when you [00:23:23] ask Grock if this is AI, Grock will tell [00:23:27] you that it's real. So clearly there is [00:23:30] an agenda to push these fake videos that [00:23:33] are racking up millions of views on [00:23:35] social media right now and they're being [00:23:36] promoted and pushed by pro-Trump [00:23:40] supporters. So um in this case, Grock is [00:23:44] being programmed to absolutely say that [00:23:47] this is not AI. And I have another video [00:23:49] that I want to share. So, one second. [00:23:53] And I'm so sorry for being slow. It's [00:23:54] just that my don't have my assistant [00:23:56] with me today. So, let's see here. [00:24:00] And Alan, if you want to add anything [00:24:02] about that other video, I'm going to [00:24:04] share another one. [00:24:05] >> Sure. Which one is this? The anti- [00:24:07] Maduro protester in uh I think it's DC. [00:24:10] Is that right? [00:24:10] >> No, it's another AI video of an old [00:24:13] >> Oh, yes. Oh, yeah. I mean this one I [00:24:17] mean as you get it up just bear in mind [00:24:19] that this one was retweeted out by Elon [00:24:21] Musk himself and it reached I don't know [00:24:23] 16 million people before I I saw it [00:24:30] I think this one [00:24:33] >> this one Grock admits and says that it [00:24:35] is AI because it's like so clearly AI [00:24:37] whereas the last one you know it was [00:24:40] like a really good AI video but this one [00:24:41] is like very clear on [00:24:43] >> no I'm afraid Manar Grock was asked [00:24:46] specifically if it's AI below by uh [00:24:48] someone I was following I think and uh [00:24:51] and it said yeah this is absolutely real [00:24:53] despite the fact that you know if you [00:24:55] play it you can see absolutely clearly [00:24:57] there's something about the faces which [00:24:59] is obvious and also the colors of the [00:25:01] Venezuelan flag keep changing you know [00:25:04] little bits of the video just keep uh [00:25:06] removing themselves yeah I mean it's uh [00:25:09] it's really clear [00:25:11] >> yeah my mistake no Grock definitely said [00:25:13] that this is Grock did not saying that [00:25:15] this was AI. My bad everybody. My [00:25:17] apologies. [00:25:33] Oh yeah. [00:25:47] Oh yeah. [00:26:19] My god, I thought this was about drug [00:26:21] trafficking, but it's like all we're [00:26:23] being bombarded. started with is like [00:26:24] about liberation and freedom and thank [00:26:27] you Trump. I mean [00:26:28] >> clearly from that video everybody that [00:26:31] was speaking had like the AI glitch with [00:26:33] their mouth and so um just if and then [00:26:37] Alan you mentioned this was shared by [00:26:39] Elon Musk himself. [00:26:41] >> Yeah that's right. I mean, I was just [00:26:43] thinking watching that. I mean, in 2003, [00:26:45] uh, before Iraq, everyone was saying [00:26:47] that, you know, they'll greet us as [00:26:48] liberators, and that was the big [00:26:50] propaganda lie. But now, technology has [00:26:52] moved on, and, uh, they can actually [00:26:54] just create videos that show us, uh, [00:26:56] show us, uh, being greeted as [00:26:58] liberators. I mean, it was false in 2003 [00:27:01] and it's false now, but, uh, uh, the [00:27:03] technology has moved on. So, we're like [00:27:05] one one level uh above uh, in the slop [00:27:08] bucket in hell world, unfortunately. [00:27:12] Yeah, I mean this is the problem with [00:27:14] the rise of AI is that the future is [00:27:17] going to hold a lot of fake stories um [00:27:20] like this where people are celebrating [00:27:22] and you know people who may not be [00:27:24] educated about this issue who are maybe [00:27:26] confused like just like an average [00:27:28] American, they're going to watch these [00:27:30] videos and think that this is really a [00:27:34] case of liberation and freedom. And I [00:27:37] even saw some comments on there. And of [00:27:38] course, they could be bots, but some of [00:27:40] those comments were like, "Oh my gosh, I [00:27:42] just I felt so emotional and I felt the [00:27:45] pain that these Venezuelan people are [00:27:47] feeling." And they're like, "I'm this [00:27:48] teared me up. Like, give me a break. [00:27:51] Give me a break." Um, all right. So, um, [00:27:54] those are the main a there's a lot more, [00:27:56] by the way. Those are just two of the [00:27:58] main AI videos that we uh picked to show [00:28:01] because they were the most among the [00:28:03] most popular on um X and they were [00:28:06] shared by Elon Musk to further promote [00:28:09] this regime change operation. So let's [00:28:12] talk about the um opposition and who the [00:28:16] United States wants to lead and take [00:28:18] over the Venezuelan government. You [00:28:20] know, we've all heard about Maria Karina [00:28:22] Machado. She's the Nobel Peace Prize [00:28:24] winner. Um, but uh some people that [00:28:27] she's working with are people like David [00:28:30] Smolinsky who's being promoted on CNN. [00:28:33] CNN interviewed a Venezuelan named uh [00:28:36] David Smolinski and we're going to share [00:28:38] this video and then Alan you can tell us [00:28:41] more about or maybe maybe you should [00:28:42] tell us now while I'm getting it ready [00:28:45] about who he is and his role briefly um [00:28:48] within the Maria Corina Machado uh [00:28:51] administration. [00:28:53] >> Yeah. Well, I'm I guess Smealinski has [00:28:55] been working as an advisor to Machado [00:28:58] for a long time. He's also uh a fellow [00:29:01] at the Victims of Communism Memorial [00:29:03] Foundation, which uh I think a lot of [00:29:05] people are aware of as a you know, a [00:29:08] pretty shady organization where they get [00:29:10] their money and what they've been doing [00:29:12] trying to um whitewash history, you [00:29:15] know, um whitewash the history of [00:29:17] fascism in Europe, for example. And uh [00:29:20] yeah, Smelinsky is a big part of that. [00:29:22] And uh so many of these seriously sus [00:29:24] people seem to have gone from Europe to [00:29:27] Latin America suspiciously in uh in the [00:29:30] mid 20th century, let's say. [00:29:33] >> All right, let's take a look at this. [00:29:34] And if you notice, um the first main [00:29:36] comment on here is from me, my Instagram [00:29:39] page. I actually have in here a comment [00:29:42] saying, "David Smolinsky sounds very [00:29:45] authentically Venezuelan." And in this [00:29:47] reply here, you guys can check it out on [00:29:49] this video, I have uh a bunch of [00:29:53] Venezuelan expatriots like basically [00:29:55] yelling at me on Instagram. So, make [00:29:57] sure to check that out. And yeah, these [00:30:00] are definitely good examples of uh sus [00:30:03] figures with, you know, who are clearly [00:30:07] white and have very European names. And [00:30:09] we'll learn more about him after we [00:30:12] watch this video. plenty of other allies [00:30:14] in Latin America and Europe and and [00:30:16] beyond. Thank you to President Trump and [00:30:19] the uh whole administration of the [00:30:22] United States uh Secretary Rubio, [00:30:24] Secretary Hedseek for this uh quick, [00:30:27] smooth and clean operation. [00:30:45] With due respect to President Trump, uh [00:30:48] Maria Kora Machado is the most uh [00:30:50] trusted uh leader in Venezuela. Uh and [00:30:54] she's got the support for from almost [00:30:57] every Venezuelan. Obviously, the US is [00:31:00] going to be our main allies and we will [00:31:02] have plenty of other allies in Latin [00:31:04] America and Europe and [00:31:06] >> All right. So, that's David Smolanski. [00:31:10] David Smolansky. I don't know. That [00:31:12] sounds like a pretty white name. Um, and [00:31:15] if you notice with all of these um, [00:31:20] Venezuelan opposition leaders is, you [00:31:23] know, they are white. They don't look [00:31:25] like the native Venezuelans. Um, and [00:31:28] when I was in Venezuela, you know, when [00:31:30] I traveled and spoke to the Venezuelans, [00:31:32] most Venezuelans looked native to [00:31:34] Venezuela, the ones that I went to and [00:31:37] visited and spoke with directly. And the [00:31:40] majority, I would say like 99.9% [00:31:43] of everybody that I spoke to was very [00:31:46] much supportive of the Bolivarian [00:31:47] revolution. They were supportive of [00:31:49] Chavez. They were supportive of uh [00:31:51] President Maduro [00:31:53] and they were very much opposed to this [00:31:56] very um like elitist white opposition [00:32:01] groups. And before we even get into [00:32:04] this, well actually Alan, why don't you [00:32:06] tell us more about him and Maria Kim [00:32:08] Machado's um you know political group [00:32:12] that they've established because I [00:32:13] wanted to show a video also of kind of [00:32:15] like the racism that exists within the [00:32:19] uh Venezuelan opposition because when we [00:32:21] say like they're white elitist uh and [00:32:23] they want to ally themselves with the [00:32:25] US, they want to ally themselves with [00:32:27] Israel, they really have this, you know, [00:32:32] um like [00:32:35] white supremacist ideology. And it's not [00:32:37] an exaggeration that they do because if [00:32:39] we look at some of the footage that came [00:32:41] out from the uh um the opposition [00:32:46] protest from a few years ago, they were [00:32:48] attacking a lot of the black and native [00:32:51] Venezuelans and calling them many dirty [00:32:53] names. And I have a video of that. [00:32:55] Should I play that quick before we get [00:32:56] into who these people are? [00:32:58] >> Yeah, sure. Let's see it. Yeah, I'd like [00:33:00] to see it. [00:33:02] Let's play this video. Um, [00:33:05] and it's a video of a [00:33:09] pro Maria Karina Machado, [00:33:13] um, activist [00:33:16] in Washington DC, I believe, or in [00:33:19] Miami. I can't remember where this was. [00:33:22] and they're yelling the n-word to [00:33:26] uh a black counterprotester who is [00:33:29] opposing uh Donald Trump's [00:33:33] Yeah. for for opposing Donald Trump's uh [00:33:36] invasion and abduction of President [00:33:39] Maduro. [00:33:41] One second. Let me add this to the [00:33:42] screen. I'm just a little bit slow. [00:33:44] Everyone, thank you for your patience. [00:33:50] THAT'S WHAT WE'RE DOING. THAT'S WHAT [00:33:52] NEEDS TO BE DONE. [00:34:01] >> Australia [ __ ] [ __ ] [00:34:04] >> COUNTRY. YOU ARE NOT FROM MY COUNTRY. [00:34:07] DON'T BE A STUPID. YOU ARE NOT FROM MY [00:34:09] COUNTRY. [00:34:10] >> I LOVE [00:34:12] GOD BLESS MY GOD BLESS AMERICA. YOU [00:34:16] SUPPORT you support his imprisonment. [00:34:34] >> All right. So that's a really good [00:34:36] example of the kind of rhetoric that [00:34:38] these people who support the opposition [00:34:40] and who support uh Donald Trump to like [00:34:44] kidnap uh President Maduro and to [00:34:47] overthrow the democratically elected uh [00:34:50] government of President Maduro. [00:34:52] That's what we mean by like they have [00:34:55] this white supremacist ideology when [00:34:57] he's just openly calling this [00:34:59] counterprotester [00:35:01] uh the n-word unprovoked. They're not [00:35:03] even like talking to him and he's just [00:35:05] yelling this out. And this really gives [00:35:08] us a taste of just how they are inside [00:35:11] of Venezuela. And we have coverage that [00:35:14] came from like Abby Martin, for example, [00:35:16] when she was she's an independent [00:35:18] journalist. I'm sure many of you know [00:35:19] who she is. when she was in Venezuela [00:35:22] covering the opposition protests and [00:35:26] they attacked her and they were using a [00:35:30] lot of really dirty words um and [00:35:32] violence against black um Venezuelans. [00:35:36] Um Alan, can you elaborate on this [00:35:39] racial aspect and this white supremacy [00:35:41] that exists within this opposition? [00:35:44] >> Yeah, sure. I mean, ever since [00:35:46] Christopher Columbus set foot on the [00:35:48] Paria Peninsula in Venezuela in 1498, [00:35:51] the country was set up as a white [00:35:54] supremacist slave society where small [00:35:57] numbers of Europeans enslaved, huge [00:36:00] numbers of Native Americans or brought [00:36:02] in huge numbers of African black people [00:36:05] in to be their slaves to produce primary [00:36:09] products like coffee or cotton or sugar. [00:36:13] Um, despite the fact that Venezuela [00:36:15] gained its independence and slavery was [00:36:17] formerly abolished in the 19th century, [00:36:20] um, that still means that the majority [00:36:22] of Venezuela's history has been a racist [00:36:24] slave society. And even though slavery [00:36:27] was abolished, the system, the economic [00:36:30] system didn't actually change. There was [00:36:32] no drastic widespread uh land reform [00:36:35] that happened in the 19th and 20th [00:36:37] centuries. Meaning that the people who [00:36:39] owned the land, the descendants of the [00:36:42] concistadors still control the land [00:36:44] today and those people are proudly [00:36:47] European and guard their uh skin tone [00:36:50] very uh it's a very important thing for [00:36:54] them. Moreover, when oil was discovered [00:36:57] in the 20th century in Venezuela, uh [00:37:00] Afro Venezuelans and indigenous u um [00:37:03] Amarindian Venezuelans were effectively [00:37:05] blocked out of getting any of the jobs [00:37:07] in that very lucrative industry. Until [00:37:10] the 1960s, the official policy of the [00:37:12] Venezuelan government was to whiten the [00:37:14] race and improve the race by um um by [00:37:20] introducing large numbers of Europeans [00:37:22] mostly from Portugal, Spain, and Italy [00:37:25] um attracting them from those countries [00:37:26] to come to Venezuela. And the way they [00:37:29] did that was by offering them large [00:37:30] amounts of land basically for free. That [00:37:33] meant that there was a reasonably large [00:37:35] class of uh Euro uh Venezuelans, white [00:37:39] Venezuelans who were much richer than [00:37:41] the rest. Leading the great uh Uruguayan [00:37:44] poet Eduardo Galliona Eduardo Galliano [00:37:48] to say about Venezuela that the poor are [00:37:50] mostly black and the black are mostly [00:37:52] poor. Now there certainly are people who [00:37:55] are Euro Venezuelans are certainly part [00:37:59] of the Venezuelan [00:38:01] multi-racial society. they are [00:38:03] indigenous in a way to Venezuela just [00:38:05] like uh everyone else is and you know [00:38:08] they do have opinions and um certainly [00:38:11] there's a pretty large percentage of [00:38:12] them there and um I've certainly spoken [00:38:15] to a lot of people in Venezuela who very [00:38:17] much oppose uh the government but um [00:38:20] there is this um amalgamation of class [00:38:24] and race politics inside the country. [00:38:27] I'll give you a little anecdote. I was [00:38:28] once at a pretty bougie breakfast spot. [00:38:32] Nothing crazy or anything, but it was in [00:38:34] uh the east side of Karacas where the [00:38:36] opposition is strongest and there was [00:38:38] about 50 to 100 people in there. And at [00:38:41] one point I realized that I was actually [00:38:44] the least white person in the entire [00:38:47] cafe. And you know, not to go into my [00:38:49] own racial background, but you know, I'm [00:38:52] pretty white. Uh, and so for that to [00:38:54] happen in Venezuela where the something [00:38:56] about twothirds of uh, the country uh, [00:38:59] are of an African background or you know [00:39:02] a non-white background, that's pretty [00:39:04] surprising. And the same day I went to a [00:39:07] huge um, left-wing uh, youth uh, rally [00:39:10] movement which uh, had there was about [00:39:12] 1,200 people in one big tent there. And [00:39:15] I also realized there that actually I [00:39:18] was probably the second um, least white [00:39:21] person there. I could only see one [00:39:23] person in this giant room that I was in [00:39:26] for hours who wasn't actually uh of a [00:39:29] darker skin tone to me. And that really [00:39:32] gets to the heart of the Venezuelan [00:39:36] uh political experience. What we've seen [00:39:38] since 1998 and the election of Hugo [00:39:40] Chavis is a multi-racial coalition of [00:39:43] workingclass people coming together [00:39:46] forming a numerical majority against [00:39:48] this white elite um in order to try to [00:39:53] create a more democratic as I said more [00:39:56] democratic multi-racial society which [00:39:58] actually works in favor of working [00:40:00] people and not the elite who have been [00:40:02] in charge of the country for 500 years. [00:40:05] So many of the leaders of the opposition [00:40:08] can trace their lineage all the way back [00:40:10] to people like you know uh Simon Bolivar [00:40:14] or Hernand Cortez or Francisco Pizaro or [00:40:17] you know the Spanish monarchs or [00:40:19] something and they treat this as a badge [00:40:22] of honor but in Venezuela that really [00:40:24] means that you know they're rather [00:40:25] something of an oddity and yeah what [00:40:29] this means is ultimately Venezuela is a [00:40:32] multi-racial society which has never had [00:40:34] a civil rights movement. And yet there [00:40:37] is this idea that they're all one race. [00:40:39] They have this idea of a coffee with [00:40:40] milk society. Everyone's a little bit [00:40:43] coffee and a little bit milk, meaning a [00:40:44] little bit darkkinned, a little bit [00:40:46] white-kinned, and you know, maybe some [00:40:47] people are more like an espresso and [00:40:50] some people are more like a latte, but [00:40:52] you know, we're all the same. And that [00:40:53] means that openly racial language in [00:40:55] Venezuela is completely tolerated in a [00:40:57] way that simply isn't in the United [00:40:59] States. to the point where you can have [00:41:02] right-wing right Venezuelans screaming [00:41:04] the n-word at people and thinking that [00:41:06] is completely normal. I'll give you [00:41:08] another anecdote that you hinted at uh [00:41:11] where in your question in 2017 there [00:41:13] were a bunch of uh far-right [00:41:16] street barricades that killed dozens of [00:41:18] people. The Guarimas they were called [00:41:20] where by right-wing opposition uh groups [00:41:23] um barricaded key places in Caracus and [00:41:26] other cities. They put um put razor wire [00:41:29] across um the roads to gar motorcyclists [00:41:33] going past, etc. And they went out [00:41:35] searching for black Venezuelans because [00:41:38] in their minds it was assumed that if [00:41:41] you were black, you were both [00:41:43] workingclass and a progovernment [00:41:45] supporter because in their minds they [00:41:48] basically couldn't conceive of like an [00:41:50] Afro Venezuelan being on their side. And [00:41:52] so there are multiple cases of them [00:41:54] finding Afro Venezuelans and lynching [00:41:57] them in public on camera, throwing [00:41:59] dousing them in gasoline, uh you know, [00:42:02] lighting them, lighting them up, uh and [00:42:04] turning them into a human torch. And you [00:42:06] can find these videos if you want on [00:42:08] YouTube and other places. Um so yeah [00:42:11] there is an important racial aspect to [00:42:14] this and you know you said that these [00:42:16] people are sort of um you know going [00:42:18] against their interests but I actually [00:42:20] think if we look at it through a class [00:42:22] dynamic the sort of people that we've [00:42:24] been talking about in the opposition [00:42:26] they want the sort of country the sort [00:42:28] of economic system that Venezuela was [00:42:30] ruled under until the 1990s to come back [00:42:34] which is that Venezuela would provide [00:42:36] oil to the global north specifically the [00:42:38] United states and that the majority of [00:42:41] people would remain poor and the top 10% [00:42:43] of the elite would get very well- paid [00:42:46] jobs in the oil sector and the rest of [00:42:48] them would you know just fight for [00:42:50] scraps that's the sort of country that [00:42:52] they desire and so that's the sort of [00:42:56] country that you know uh Mr. Smealinski [00:42:58] or you know Tor Halverson who's another [00:43:00] Venezuelan human rights activist whose [00:43:03] you know father was involved in some [00:43:04] pretty shady allegedly some pretty shady [00:43:07] uh drug running stuff with the CIA in [00:43:10] the 1980s according to certain reports [00:43:12] anyway uh want to see and you know [00:43:16] that's it's it's so obvious when you go [00:43:18] there that there is this racial aspect [00:43:21] to politics there but it's never [00:43:23] commented uh in the mainstream press and [00:43:25] so ultimately people are completely [00:43:26] unaware aware of this, but we do get, [00:43:29] you know, uh, these ridiculous figures [00:43:32] popping up like Smelinsky or Halverson, [00:43:34] which leads to the memes that we've seen [00:43:36] like help my country Venezuela Yearns [00:43:38] for Freedom by Sabine Mangal Ikeman. I'm [00:43:41] sure people have seen that. But that [00:43:43] does have a basis in reality, [00:43:44] unfortunately. [00:43:47] >> Yeah. And you know, if this had anything [00:43:49] to do with actually supporting the human [00:43:52] rights of the Venezuelan people, of [00:43:54] course, the United States wouldn't be [00:43:55] pushing a maximum pressure uh sanctions [00:43:58] regime against Venezuela. And the first [00:44:00] person that the United States would [00:44:02] probably prosecute, kidnap, capture, and [00:44:06] put on trial is Netanyahu for committing [00:44:08] a genocide inside of Gaza. But then [00:44:10] again, the United States oversaw that [00:44:12] genocide, funded it, and armed that [00:44:14] genocide for the last two years and have [00:44:18] uplifted uh that apartheid system [00:44:21] through financing and political cover [00:44:24] for decades. So, you know, for those who [00:44:27] read Mress, we all know that this is a [00:44:30] war of resources. And you know, part of [00:44:33] the strategy, if you look at a lot of [00:44:36] these regime change operations, whether [00:44:38] it's in Ukraine or in Libya or in Syria, [00:44:42] the United States always backs the most [00:44:44] extremist aspects of these societies [00:44:48] um that are going to continue to [00:44:50] destabilize these countries. And right [00:44:53] now in our comment section on YouTube [00:44:55] during this live stream, we have uh [00:44:57] supporters of the Trump supporters from [00:45:02] the Venezuelan opposition [00:45:04] um that have joined our comment section [00:45:07] and I'm gonna Yeah, welcome. So, we're [00:45:10] going to show the first comment here, [00:45:12] which is the fact that a Muslim woman is [00:45:15] judging us Venezuelans here is [00:45:17] outrageous given that her religion kills [00:45:20] or forcibly converts by for by far the [00:45:23] most people through terror. So, the fact [00:45:26] that uh we have this kind of comment [00:45:28] really is symbolic because first of all, [00:45:31] I'm not just some Muslim woman. Um, I'm [00:45:34] an American Palestinian woman who lived [00:45:36] under Israeli occupation and witnessed [00:45:38] firsthand the brutality of the US uh [00:45:42] military machine and you know know [00:45:45] firsthand how the US government, our [00:45:48] military and the pro-Israel Zionist uh [00:45:52] establishment are pushing for this kind [00:45:54] of uh fake rules-based order and regime [00:45:59] change operations to to fulfill um this [00:46:03] capitalist system. And so, um, and our [00:46:07] job, of course, myself and Alan Mloud, [00:46:10] you know, we're independent journalists, [00:46:11] and our job is to scrutinize our own [00:46:14] government, not promote, uh, regime [00:46:17] change for an empire ruled by literal [00:46:21] pedophiles and psychopathic uh, war [00:46:24] criminals because that's who we are [00:46:26] ruled by. Um, so just so people know [00:46:29] they have entered the the chat, they're [00:46:32] here and we'll let our readers and [00:46:35] viewers kind of take it from there. So, [00:46:37] um, I want to talk a little bit more [00:46:39] about Israel's role. We can't talk about [00:46:42] Venezuela or these regime change [00:46:44] operations without talking about this [00:46:47] Zionist push for these war policies. I [00:46:51] mean, yes, the United States is [00:46:54] committing this, you know, kidnapping of [00:46:58] uh Maduro, but we have we had in the [00:47:02] past uh few weeks Israeli politicians [00:47:05] flying around Latin America pushing for [00:47:09] this policy, including in Paraguay. Um, [00:47:13] Israeli politicians, I forgot which [00:47:15] specific politician it was. It's not um [00:47:18] coming to my u it's at the tip of my [00:47:20] tongue right now, but Israeli [00:47:22] politicians were in Paraguay and other [00:47:24] Latin American countries talking about [00:47:26] how Maduro has to go and his days are [00:47:28] basically numbered. And this is not new. [00:47:30] I mean the fact that Israel has align or [00:47:34] not Israel, Venezuela has aligned itself [00:47:36] uh with countries other countries that [00:47:38] are sanctioned like Iran to lean on them [00:47:42] because of the US sanctions regime that [00:47:44] has completely destroyed its economy. [00:47:46] Israel has for decades um openly stated [00:47:50] that they want regime change inside of [00:47:53] Venezuela [00:47:55] um for its solidarity with Palestine and [00:47:59] for aligning itself with Iran. And of [00:48:02] course, every time Iran has tried to [00:48:04] support Venezuela [00:48:07] through um shipping food or gas or fuel [00:48:11] or supplies to help um you know rebuild [00:48:16] Venezuela. We saw the United States [00:48:18] being supported by Israel, by Netanyahu [00:48:21] himself to um you know to steal [00:48:25] Venezuelan or to to steal aid that was [00:48:28] on its way to Venezuela. And so Allan um [00:48:32] much of this opposition including Maria [00:48:35] Korina Machado are very very supportive [00:48:39] of Israel. They push just like this [00:48:41] comment in our you know YouTube comment [00:48:43] section. They put a lot push out a lot [00:48:45] of Islamophobia. [00:48:47] They show that they are very much have a [00:48:51] white supremacist ideology [00:48:54] and they're happy to align themselves [00:48:57] with apartheid with a genocidal regime [00:49:00] in Israel. I mean, Maria Kurina Machado [00:49:03] has already stated that she wants to [00:49:05] open up an embassy, an Israeli embassy [00:49:08] inside of Venezuela, which, you know, [00:49:11] for those who know about Venezuela, they [00:49:13] cut all ties under the Hugo Chavez [00:49:15] government with Israel for its crimes [00:49:18] against Palestine um and for its [00:49:21] occupation and colonialism. And Hugo [00:49:23] Chavez made Palestine a national cause. [00:49:27] and President Maduro carried on that [00:49:30] mission to keep Palestine a national [00:49:32] cause. They said both of them all of [00:49:35] Venezuela is Palestine and all of uh [00:49:38] Palestine is Venezuela. Meaning we are [00:49:40] brothers and sisters in the same [00:49:43] struggle. But we have this Venezuelan [00:49:46] opposition wanting to break that and [00:49:50] realign itself with the apartheid state [00:49:53] of Israel. And even Maria Karina Machado [00:49:55] has also said that she would support the [00:49:58] opening of the um Israeli embassy inside [00:50:02] of Jerusalem after moving it from from [00:50:04] Tel Aviv. So what can you tell us about [00:50:08] um the opposition's support for Israel? [00:50:13] A lot of people don't realize just how [00:50:16] closely connected the Venezuelan [00:50:18] opposition and Maria Karina Machado [00:50:21] specifically are to Israel and [00:50:23] specifically to the Lud party. uh Vente [00:50:26] Venezuela which is Maria Karina [00:50:28] Machado's party is in a formal alliance [00:50:31] with Likud which is Benjamin Netanyahu's [00:50:34] party and a couple of years ago Machado [00:50:36] actually wrote a letter a formal letter [00:50:39] which was published she wrote it to um [00:50:42] Netanyahu asking for Israeli military [00:50:44] intervention in Venezuela. [00:50:47] On the flip side, as you mentioned, uh, [00:50:50] Venezuela under the Socialists has [00:50:52] become, uh, a leader in the worldwide [00:50:55] struggle for national liberation for [00:50:58] Palestine. I was speaking to the [00:51:00] Palestinian ambassador. Uh, it wasn't [00:51:02] the last time I was in Venezuela. I [00:51:04] think it was two, three times ago, but [00:51:05] it was about a year ago anyway. And, um, [00:51:08] yeah, he told me that Venezuela, he [00:51:10] considers Venezuela to be the leader [00:51:12] internationally of uh, Palestine [00:51:15] solidarity. Wherever you go in Caracas [00:51:17] or any of the other major cities in [00:51:19] Venezuela, you will constantly see [00:51:22] murals, political artwork on the walls [00:51:24] depicting Palestinian [00:51:26] um fighters, Palestinian poets, [00:51:29] Palestinian artists, Palestinian [00:51:32] civilians. There are memorials to [00:51:33] Palestine. The flag is absolutely [00:51:35] everywhere because people in the global [00:51:37] south understand that their their [00:51:40] struggle is intimately linked with [00:51:42] Palestine. And conversely, the rulers or [00:51:46] the reactionary elites of um of uh [00:51:49] countries in the global south understand [00:51:50] that they are fundamentally connected to [00:51:52] Israel. That's why of course when Maduro [00:51:55] uh put his uh ballot into uh the ballot [00:51:59] box in July 2024, he shouted long live [00:52:02] free Palestine in front of all the press [00:52:04] while Maria Karina Machado openly said [00:52:07] that Israel's struggle is our struggle. [00:52:10] And so ultimately these sorts of um [00:52:14] uh of currents in politics and struggle [00:52:17] are closely connected even if we don't [00:52:19] realize it ourselves. Uh when you start [00:52:22] to scrutinize these things uh actually [00:52:24] there's a lot of uh inter [00:52:26] intercontinental connections here. [00:52:29] >> Sorry we have a a little bit of a [00:52:30] visitor. I left my door open. So our cat [00:52:33] has entered the the live stream. Um, [00:52:39] so there's no question that, you know, [00:52:41] Israel is very much supportive of uh, [00:52:45] Maduro being kidnapped by the Trump [00:52:47] administration. And I would argue I [00:52:50] would argue that the timing of all of [00:52:51] this really coincides with a lot of [00:52:54] things that have come out um, from the [00:52:56] Epstein files against Trump. And I don't [00:53:00] want to sound like a conspiracy [00:53:01] theorist, but I just have a feeling that [00:53:03] there's a lot that the Netanyahu and [00:53:06] Israeli government have on Trump and [00:53:09] they are pushing Trump to fulfill a lot [00:53:12] of the Israeli ambitions for war. This [00:53:15] is just my personal perspective. Um, [00:53:18] take it or leave it. Uh, because if you [00:53:20] notice, the Netanyahu government keeps [00:53:22] having closed- dooror meetings with [00:53:24] Trump. I mean, every couple of months [00:53:27] they're having closed door meetings, [00:53:29] talking in private, and the next thing [00:53:31] you know, Trump is threatening a new [00:53:33] war. We saw Trump uh, you know, bomb [00:53:37] Iran, for example. The US hasn't really [00:53:39] done that before. They bombed Iran and [00:53:42] then now the uh Trump administration is [00:53:47] again threatening to interfere and [00:53:52] intervene inside of Iran with the rise [00:53:55] of these new protests. But then we also [00:53:57] have people like Mike Pompeo tweeting [00:54:00] that he wishes the protesters in Iran a [00:54:03] new year and also the Mossad agents who [00:54:05] are walking beside them a happy new year [00:54:08] as well. And so, um, Israeli newspapers [00:54:12] like, um, Israel, Hayom, and Harets have [00:54:15] quoted US, uh, not US, Israeli [00:54:18] intelligence officials and Israeli [00:54:21] politicians [00:54:22] regularly stating that the Israeli [00:54:27] government wants regime change inside of [00:54:29] Venezuela and they want regime change in [00:54:31] Iran. And they are always talking about [00:54:34] both of these countries together. They [00:54:36] always coincide together in the same [00:54:38] articles. And if you notice right now [00:54:40] within the same time frame we have this [00:54:43] eruption of of uh protests inside of [00:54:45] Iran. Much of them are legitimate. I [00:54:47] mean every country has dissent. Okay. [00:54:49] Every country has legitimate [00:54:51] frustrations with their government with [00:54:54] their policies. Um, but when Mike Pompeo [00:55:00] is telling us he's former head of CIA [00:55:02] telling us that we that he's thinking [00:55:06] Mossad agents and Israel's intelligence [00:55:08] be walking side by side. We know that [00:55:12] that probably these protests are being [00:55:15] influenced and influenced by Israel. I [00:55:19] mean, that's just the truth. They're [00:55:20] openly saying it. And that's what's [00:55:22] really lovely about the Republican party [00:55:25] is that sometimes they just say the [00:55:28] quiet part out loud. Like whatever we [00:55:31] thought was happening, usually they [00:55:33] confirm it for us. And they're [00:55:34] confirming it for us right now. And [00:55:37] right before Trump uh kidnapped [00:55:42] um President Maduro, he had a closed [00:55:45] door meeting with Netanyahu. And just [00:55:48] literally a week prior to that, Israel's [00:55:51] newspapers were calling for regime [00:55:52] change. And within days of that, Israeli [00:55:56] politicians were parading across Latin [00:55:58] America to um to push that idea as well. [00:56:03] And Allan, excuse me, before we get into [00:56:06] the Monroe Doctrine, I really want to [00:56:09] hear more about the response from Mexico [00:56:13] and Colombia. [00:56:15] um because those two administrations and [00:56:17] maybe even Nicaragua because Nicaragua [00:56:19] is um also a target of US imperialism. [00:56:23] But how are Venezuela's allies in the [00:56:27] region responding? Because we have this [00:56:30] rise of more leftist governments inside [00:56:32] of Mexico and um inside of Colombia with [00:56:36] Gustavo Petro and Trump is now [00:56:40] threatening to invade [00:56:43] um Colombia as well. I don't know if [00:56:44] that will actually happen, but hey, you [00:56:47] just never know these days. [00:56:50] >> Yeah. I mean, one of the things that's [00:56:52] so interesting about uh what's going on [00:56:54] here is how clearly that you can see the [00:56:57] difference between the halves and have [00:56:59] nots between the global north and the [00:57:01] global south, between the colonizing [00:57:03] countries uh and the colonized because [00:57:06] their responses, their government's [00:57:08] responses uh to this abduction have been [00:57:11] night and day. So while you get people [00:57:14] like Emanuel Macron of France uh stating [00:57:17] that the Venezuelan people today are rid [00:57:19] of Nicholas Maduro's dictatorship and [00:57:21] can only rejoice or Mark Carney the [00:57:24] Canadian prime minister saying that you [00:57:25] know the brutally aggressive criminal [00:57:28] regime of Nicholas Maduro is over and [00:57:30] expressing his uh barely concealed in [00:57:34] fact not even concealed joy about what's [00:57:36] happening. leaders from the global south [00:57:38] have taken a completely different tact [00:57:41] as we said you know uh countries across [00:57:44] Latin America have come together to [00:57:46] release statements categorically [00:57:48] rejecting what has happened as you said [00:57:51] Colombia has done so [00:57:54] Manuel Lopez Orador the former president [00:57:56] of Mecco said that you know he's [00:57:59] formerly retired from politics but he [00:58:01] said he would you know unretire to make [00:58:03] a political statement about what's [00:58:05] happened here because it's such awful [00:58:07] gangsterish grave breach of the [00:58:10] international order that he felt [00:58:11] compelled to speak. Countries as diverse [00:58:14] as Ghana and South Africa and Malaysia [00:58:17] are releasing strong statements of [00:58:19] support for the Venezuelan people, for [00:58:21] the Venezuelan government, and calling [00:58:23] this absolutely criminal and a grave [00:58:26] breach of international law. something [00:58:28] which our media and Western politicians [00:58:30] are shying away from because tacitly [00:58:33] they absolutely know that this is one of [00:58:36] the most outrageous and outlandish uh [00:58:39] breaches of international law that we've [00:58:42] seen for many decades actually since 36 [00:58:46] years to the day since the United States [00:58:47] kidnapped the president of uh Panama and [00:58:50] Manuel Noriego for actually similar [00:58:53] charges. [00:58:54] uh even the government of Switzerland [00:58:57] has gone so far as to freeze the assets [00:58:59] of the Venezuelan government inside [00:59:01] Swiss banks and that could trigger a [00:59:04] huge [00:59:05] consequence for that nation and for uh [00:59:08] the global for global capital in general [00:59:11] because that is going to signal to [00:59:13] everyone that actually Swiss banks are [00:59:15] not quite as safe for your billions as [00:59:18] perhaps you might think because if at [00:59:20] any point in the Swiss government [00:59:21] decides that you know it gets the [00:59:23] telephone call from the United states, [00:59:24] it could easily freeze your assets. [00:59:27] That's a country that has built its [00:59:28] wealth in no small part in hiding stolen [00:59:32] assets from around the world from, you [00:59:34] know, the the Nazi government in [00:59:36] Germany, for example, to all sorts of [00:59:38] dictators in Africa, Latin America, and [00:59:40] Asia. So for them to come out and do [00:59:42] that, you know, we're living in a brave [00:59:45] new 21st century cold war world where [00:59:48] the United States is increasingly [00:59:50] putting pressure on its allies to tow [00:59:52] the line in this uh cold war against [00:59:55] Russia and China. And maybe Venezuela, [00:59:57] this kidnapping is one of the first uh [01:00:00] shots, one of the first salvo of shots [01:00:02] in this new cold war that will uh begin [01:00:04] getting hotter and hotter as the 21st [01:00:06] century goes on. I don't know. What do [01:00:08] you think, Bernard? [01:00:09] Well, I I want to talk more about this [01:00:12] kind of cold war stuff that's happening [01:00:14] between cold war cold war rhetoric [01:00:16] that's happening between uh the United [01:00:18] States um China and Russia because I I [01:00:23] think people don't realize well we we [01:00:24] know that this is a war for resources. I [01:00:26] mean that's been established um and also [01:00:29] to so that the United States can have [01:00:31] more control over Latin America and um [01:00:34] you know push for you know US hijgemony [01:00:37] over Latin America because it seems like [01:00:39] there's this you know wave of [01:00:42] revolutionary ideology kind of making [01:00:44] its way through Latin America again and [01:00:46] the US is losing its grip over power [01:00:49] inside of Latin America and um this is [01:00:52] part this whole kidnapping of Maduro [01:00:55] Obviously, like it's [01:00:58] clearly international law does not [01:01:00] exist. We learned that of course from [01:01:03] every previous war. We were reminded [01:01:05] about that when Israel launched its [01:01:07] genocide against Gaza. And we're [01:01:09] reminded again that international law [01:01:12] does not exist. No, you know, the US [01:01:15] does not follow international law. [01:01:17] Israel does not follow international [01:01:18] law. And they act with impunity. There [01:01:20] are no consequences to their actions. [01:01:24] and Trump just showed that he will [01:01:27] fulfill Israeli war ambitions no matter [01:01:31] what. Um, but I I want to talk about how [01:01:33] not only is this a war for resources, [01:01:36] but this is also a part of a cold war [01:01:39] against Russia and China and for [01:01:43] minerals because the United States needs [01:01:45] these minerals that Venezuela has. [01:01:47] Venezuela has the largest mineral [01:01:49] deposits in the world. Not just in Latin [01:01:51] America, but in the world. And they are [01:01:54] unable [01:01:55] to like actually extract their own [01:01:58] minerals [01:02:00] at a faster and higher rate and pace [01:02:02] because their machinery is still old and [01:02:06] because of sanctions, they haven't been [01:02:07] able to upgrade their machinery. I think [01:02:11] people forget about that. I actually [01:02:12] visited, I know I'm I'm going on talking [01:02:14] about a lot of things here, but I [01:02:15] actually visited, you know, one of the [01:02:17] iron ore mines inside of Venezuela and I [01:02:20] toured it and I felt like I had like [01:02:23] walked like I had entered a time machine [01:02:26] to like 1965. [01:02:29] like everything there was so old and [01:02:31] they were talking about how they just [01:02:33] need basic tools and supplies to like [01:02:37] upgrade these machinery and they were [01:02:39] unable to because of US sanctions [01:02:45] but [01:02:47] Maria Kurina Machado is telling US [01:02:49] corporations openly and she's telling [01:02:51] Trump like hey guys you guys can have [01:02:54] full access to this and Trump is happy [01:02:57] to jump in he's even said, "We want to [01:02:59] take over the mineral reserves and [01:03:02] upgrade the mines." Meaning, they know [01:03:05] very well that Venezuela hasn't been [01:03:07] able to upgrade the mines to extract [01:03:09] these minerals to to enjoy that wealth [01:03:11] to use that wealth for their own [01:03:13] country. There's a reason why Venezuela [01:03:15] is still poor and it's because of those [01:03:16] sanctions. And so, I want to talk about [01:03:19] the mineral wealth because like the oil [01:03:21] one is so obvious, but what about the [01:03:24] mineral wealth? And why is Trump now [01:03:26] threatening also Greenland? So, we've [01:03:28] got Venezuela's mineral wealth, [01:03:30] Greenland's uh mineral wealth as well, [01:03:32] and how this is part of a broader uh [01:03:36] mineral war with China where China has [01:03:39] uh partnerships and trade relations with [01:03:41] many African countries uh to to to get [01:03:45] access to to minerals. [01:03:50] >> Yeah. I mean, I guess starting with the [01:03:52] obvious, Venezuela has the largest uh [01:03:54] crude oil reserves in the world. extra [01:03:57] thick heavy crude oil which as you said [01:04:00] they're not able to produce at such a [01:04:03] high rate uh because specifically they [01:04:06] have been under sanctioned for more than [01:04:08] a decade uh their machinery their entire [01:04:12] apparatus is an American setup meaning [01:04:15] that once America cuts you off from [01:04:18] spare parts and uh all the stuff that [01:04:20] you actually need to maintain uh that [01:04:23] industry it quickly sputters and [01:04:26] shutters to a halt. But Venezuela also [01:04:28] has all sorts of uh important minerals [01:04:30] as you were talking about including [01:04:32] gold. It is mineral mineral-wise a very [01:04:36] rich country indeed. And that's one of [01:04:38] the many reasons why the United States [01:04:40] is interested in controlling it. It's [01:04:42] not a small country with no resources. [01:04:45] It's not, you know, unstrategic or [01:04:47] anything. It's a very important country [01:04:48] in that aspect. And that's one reason [01:04:51] why the US and all its talking heads [01:04:54] have been absolutely obsessed with the [01:04:56] country for a quarter of a century since [01:04:58] Hugo Chavez came to power because under [01:05:02] previous administrations, the United [01:05:04] States and specifically corporations in [01:05:06] the United States were making absolute [01:05:08] bank from the country. half this half [01:05:11] the profits from the Standard Oil of New [01:05:13] Jersey uh which was the largest uh [01:05:15] company that ever existed uh until 1970 [01:05:20] uh came from Venezuela. So it was [01:05:22] enormously [01:05:23] important to US capital and what we've [01:05:27] seen over the past couple of years is a [01:05:29] redrawing of the borders of the spheres [01:05:32] of influence in geopolitics. We've seen [01:05:34] Russia and China rising and trying to [01:05:37] assert themselves and the United States [01:05:39] doing the same. Trump has redeclared uh [01:05:42] the existence of the Monroe Doctrine, [01:05:44] calling it, you know, the Donro [01:05:46] doctrine. If people don't know, the [01:05:48] Monroe Doctrine was announced in 1823 by [01:05:51] President Monroe. And they said [01:05:53] basically that all other empires were [01:05:55] completely forbidden for entering from [01:05:58] uh entering the Americas and the Western [01:06:00] Hemisphere belonged to the United States [01:06:02] alone. And the US has acted upon that [01:06:04] for 200 years. That's been their [01:06:08] mentality the whole time. And that's why [01:06:10] people like Donald Trump say things like [01:06:12] our oil when he's talking about oil [01:06:14] that's under the ground of Venezuela and [01:06:16] in the Caribbean. That should be bizarre [01:06:20] and completely uh unintelligible to [01:06:23] people. But if you understand that the [01:06:25] United States has always thought in this [01:06:28] uh mentality of the modern road [01:06:29] doctrine, it makes it much more clear. [01:06:31] Now, as the [01:06:34] as the uh world warms up and as the uh [01:06:38] fight over the world starts to move [01:06:40] towards the northern hemisphere between [01:06:42] the United States, Russia and China, the [01:06:44] Arctic has become much more strategic as [01:06:47] shipping lanes have opened and that [01:06:49] means that Trump is now much more [01:06:52] interested in directly controlling [01:06:54] Greenland. Of course, the United States [01:06:56] has always had significant um access to [01:06:59] and control over Greenland. It's [01:07:01] formerly owned by its NATO partner, [01:07:03] Denmark. But as we all know, the United [01:07:05] States is the driving force behind NATO. [01:07:08] But now Trump wants to make that formal. [01:07:10] He wants to say the quiet part out loud [01:07:11] again and wants to formally annex [01:07:14] Greenland, turning it into maybe the [01:07:15] 51st state, just like he just like he [01:07:18] suggested they would do with uh Canada [01:07:20] as well. So what we're seeing is again [01:07:23] this global 21st century fight that the [01:07:26] United States is involved in trying to [01:07:28] suppress China and to a lesser extent [01:07:31] Russia but certainly try to suppress [01:07:32] China's rise to become the uh global the [01:07:37] most important country in the world as [01:07:39] it has been for most of the last uh two [01:07:42] millennia. That is the story that's [01:07:44] going to be uh panning out. And right [01:07:46] now, the United States is desperate [01:07:47] trying to shore up its own colonies as [01:07:49] it sees it and expand as much as it can [01:07:52] to try to get as many minerals as [01:07:54] possible because in some in some areas, [01:07:57] particularly some of the rare earth [01:07:58] minerals, China has a decisive [01:08:01] advantage. And that's something that the [01:08:02] United States would want to change. [01:08:06] Well, and I think people need to [01:08:07] remember that pretty much every single [01:08:09] war that we've seen in our lifetime, [01:08:11] Ellen, has been some sort of cold war um [01:08:15] competing with China for minerals. I [01:08:17] mean whether it was Afghanistan or um [01:08:21] Iraq or places like in Yemen or even in [01:08:25] Sudan [01:08:27] or in Somalia or in Ethiopia. All of [01:08:30] these places represent a US cold war and [01:08:34] competition with China's rise um not [01:08:37] only in those regions but also um just a [01:08:42] strategic you know placement of US [01:08:44] troops and embassies and bases and [01:08:49] extraction for those minerals in those [01:08:51] countries to destabilize them so that [01:08:53] the United States can extract those [01:08:55] minerals for themselves to fuel their [01:08:58] own military. very you know AI and tech [01:09:02] sector. [01:09:04] Um let's talk more about the Monroe [01:09:06] Doctrine and um US power. I mean [01:09:09] commentators are saying that this is a [01:09:11] return to a previous era in US politics [01:09:13] where the US asserts itself on the [01:09:16] hemisphere as it pleases. And right now [01:09:19] we're hearing this even newer term [01:09:22] called the Donroe doctrine. I don't even [01:09:24] know if I'm saying that correctly. But [01:09:26] let's talk about um what is the Monroe [01:09:28] Doctrine, how it's playing out right [01:09:30] now, and what is this new Donroe [01:09:32] doctrine that Trump is pushing. [01:09:36] >> Yeah, I mean I guess I just yeah [01:09:38] reiterate that this has been US policy [01:09:40] for more than 200 years now. The United [01:09:43] States sees itself and has seen itself [01:09:46] from its very inception as an empire and [01:09:50] the US wants to control as much of the [01:09:52] world as possible. And in 1823, [01:09:54] President Monroe declared that all of [01:09:57] the Western Hemisphere, meaning all of [01:09:58] the Americas, belonged to the United [01:10:01] States and that other powers, [01:10:03] particularly the United Kingdom and [01:10:04] Spain, were not welcome uh to colonized [01:10:07] the place. It was it was theirs for the [01:10:09] taking. [01:10:11] And in the last 200 years, we've seen [01:10:13] the United States treat Latin America as [01:10:16] its own backyard. We've seen the US [01:10:18] Marines go into Haiti in 1915 and stay [01:10:21] there for nearly 20 years, for example. [01:10:24] The US invade Nicaragua because uh the [01:10:27] country uh slighted one of its [01:10:29] oligarchs, Cornelius Vanderbilt. We've [01:10:32] seen coup after coup after coup across [01:10:35] Latin America in the 20th century, [01:10:36] ranging from the famous ones like Chile [01:10:39] in 1973 or Brazil in 1964 to ones that [01:10:44] are not as well known like the ones I [01:10:46] have mentioned before like the [01:10:47] Panameanian coup in 1989 or the ones [01:10:50] against uh the new jewel movement in [01:10:52] Grenada or the government of Ched Jagan [01:10:55] in in uh Gana. Virtually every country [01:10:58] in Latin America, in the Caribbean, has [01:11:01] felt the presidents of Uncle Sam's jack [01:11:04] boot on its neck at some point or [01:11:06] another. It's always there, but [01:11:08] sometimes the United States presses down [01:11:10] even more. [01:11:13] In the last few years, we've heard uh [01:11:16] more and more American talking heads, [01:11:18] people working at think tanks, etc. [01:11:20] talking about how the Monroe doctrine [01:11:22] has to come back into full force. And [01:11:25] that's what we've seen as [01:11:27] uh Latin America has elected waves of [01:11:31] left-wing governments. The United States [01:11:32] has reacted. The empire has struck back [01:11:35] using uh political pressure, sanctions, [01:11:38] coups to overthrow these governments [01:11:41] like we saw against uh the progressive [01:11:43] government in Brazil of Gimar Rusev or [01:11:47] in Paraguay against Fernando Lugo. And [01:11:50] there are so many examples of this. So [01:11:54] with the return of Trump, however, as we [01:11:56] said, he says the quiet part out loud [01:11:58] and really uses the big stick in a way [01:12:00] in which other presidents have uh stave [01:12:03] their hands slightly. [01:12:06] Trump is going around threatening any [01:12:08] country that doesn't completely cow out [01:12:11] to the United States, not only [01:12:13] economically, but very visibly [01:12:15] politically with invasion, with [01:12:17] annexation, even countries that other [01:12:20] presidents would probably have the good [01:12:22] grace not to formally um uh formally [01:12:26] threaten, like for example, Canada or [01:12:28] Greenland. We're seeing that happen [01:12:30] right now. Trump talked about how it [01:12:32] would be cool if uh the United States [01:12:34] invaded Venezuela because it's really [01:12:36] part of the United States. As you said [01:12:38] earlier, he said he intends to run [01:12:40] Venezuela. Um uh other people have said [01:12:44] Cuba is next. So clearly the United [01:12:46] States has imperial ambitions in the [01:12:49] region. And that's really I've always [01:12:51] said you can't understand the United [01:12:53] States if you don't start with the basic [01:12:55] premise that it is an empire. It is it [01:12:58] sees itself as the rightful owner of the [01:13:00] entire world. That's why there are well [01:13:02] over 800 military bases around uh around [01:13:06] the world. That's why the United States [01:13:08] has carried out more than 250 uh foreign [01:13:11] military occ uh operations since 1991 [01:13:14] alone. That's why there are 400 military [01:13:16] bases encircling China right now because [01:13:19] the United States understands that [01:13:22] without McDonald and Douglas, McDonald's [01:13:25] couldn't exist. meaning that it is the [01:13:27] power of the US military that enforces [01:13:29] uh the US-led economic system which [01:13:31] enriches the corporate elite who have [01:13:34] made trillions of dollars, tens of [01:13:36] trillions of dollars out of the [01:13:38] suffering of uh the the global south. [01:13:40] And that is what people are fighting [01:13:42] against. That is what President Maduro [01:13:44] and uh the socialist movement in [01:13:45] Venezuela have always been fighting [01:13:47] against. And that frankly is why they've [01:13:50] been targeted. [01:13:53] And uh for those who are still with us [01:13:55] here in this live stream, we want to [01:13:57] thank you for um watching this and [01:13:59] helping us get over 100,000 subscribers [01:14:02] um to our YouTube channel. Um we have uh [01:14:04] we're going to talk more with Alan. [01:14:06] We're not going away just yet, but we [01:14:08] just wanted to say thank you to [01:14:09] everybody and remind our viewers that we [01:14:13] were recently targeted um by pro-Zionist [01:14:16] actors who shut our fundraiser down on [01:14:19] Indiegogo. We put out a public [01:14:21] fundraiser raised over $50,000 [01:14:24] and had our payout withheld by [01:14:27] Indiegogo. And so, um, we are trying to [01:14:30] recover those funds. We are an [01:14:32] independent, uh, news outlet. Um, and we [01:14:36] rely very heavily on our donors and our [01:14:39] members. And so if you'd like to help us [01:14:41] continue this very important uh [01:14:44] reporting then we ask that you help us [01:14:46] recover our funds by going directly on [01:14:48] our website to [01:14:49] mitpressnews.com/donations [01:14:52] and it's inside the YouTube comments. [01:14:55] And also if you want to become a member [01:14:57] that also helps us even more to help [01:14:59] sustain our independent investigative [01:15:02] journalism. Everything that we have [01:15:04] talked about during this live stream, [01:15:07] all the information is because we have [01:15:09] been around Mitt Press for 14 years. And [01:15:12] so a lot of the information we've been [01:15:13] talking about is not necessarily new [01:15:16] information, uh, but things that we've [01:15:18] been tracking with the US imperial [01:15:20] agenda to take over Venezuela and its [01:15:22] resources and this cold war. And this [01:15:25] reporting um has been made possible by [01:15:27] journalists like Alan Mloud, his [01:15:29] investigations, and they're on our [01:15:31] website at mitpressnews.com. [01:15:33] Our website acts like an encyclopedia of [01:15:36] US, you know, uh covering US empire. And [01:15:40] so we want to continue our reporting and [01:15:43] so we ask that you become a member or [01:15:44] help us recover those funds. So we thank [01:15:46] you um also for helping us get over [01:15:49] 100,000 um subscribers on YouTube. [01:15:52] Although we have been around for 14 [01:15:53] years, we've only been heavily pushing [01:15:57] um video podcast and live stream just in [01:15:59] the last year and a half to two years. [01:16:01] So, we thank you for supporting us in [01:16:03] that way. And so, I want um also to let [01:16:06] everybody know be before we get to the [01:16:08] final question to Allan that um later [01:16:11] this week I will be interviewing local [01:16:14] um Venezuelans on the ground to talk [01:16:17] about what's happening. So stay with us [01:16:19] during the week to follow those [01:16:21] interviews. And Allan, we obviously need [01:16:25] to touch on the fact that we have US aid [01:16:28] and the Ned, the National Endowment for [01:16:30] Democracy that has been funding the [01:16:33] opposition. They've been funding actual [01:16:36] propaganda to push Venezuelans uh to [01:16:39] oppose their government. These are the [01:16:42] same institutions, pro-democracy [01:16:44] institutions that um work as the arm of [01:16:47] US empire. Um they were funding, they're [01:16:50] I mean currently funding propaganda [01:16:53] campaigns, regime change campaigns, [01:16:55] color revolution campaigns against Iran, [01:16:58] against Syria. They were used inside of [01:17:01] Ukraine and they have a very strong [01:17:03] history of influencing uh Venezuela's [01:17:07] opposition. [01:17:09] And so, you know, apart from Maria [01:17:11] Kurina Machado being an arm of US [01:17:14] empire, how has US aid and the NE help [01:17:17] prop up this opposition and um you know [01:17:21] pushed ideas that you know Maria Kina [01:17:24] Machado is the so-called Nelson Mandela [01:17:28] of Latin America. Can you tell us more [01:17:30] about all of those things and um and [01:17:34] Maria Karina Machado herself? [01:17:38] Yeah. So I think perhaps the best way of [01:17:41] uh starting to answer that question is [01:17:43] going back to April 11th, 2002, which [01:17:46] was the date of a coup against Hugo [01:17:48] Chavez, President Maduro's successor. On [01:17:52] that day, uh the uh the coup plotters um [01:17:57] arrived at the head of of a media organ [01:18:00] media baron's house, Gustavo Cisneros. [01:18:03] there at the time was uh Charles [01:18:05] Shapiro, the American ambassador was [01:18:06] there. The United States immediately [01:18:08] endorsed the coup and we know from um [01:18:12] documents obtained under the Freedom of [01:18:14] Information Act. We knew that the United [01:18:16] States knew exactly who was going to [01:18:18] plan out the coup uh where they were [01:18:20] going to do it and how they were going [01:18:21] to do it as well. and that the United [01:18:24] States had been funding, training and um [01:18:27] otherwise supporting these activists for [01:18:30] months if not years uh before them, [01:18:32] flying them back and forth to [01:18:33] Washington. In fact, US support for this [01:18:36] coup, this upcoming coup was so obvious [01:18:39] that actually there were senators in the [01:18:41] United States who weeks before the coup [01:18:43] even took took place were asking [01:18:45] questions on the floor uh trying to get [01:18:48] safeguards against uh trying to get um [01:18:51] the United States to confirm that it was [01:18:53] not going to participate in this [01:18:54] upcoming coup. Uh Chavez was taken [01:18:57] prisoner and abducted. He was flown to a [01:19:00] military base. He said in his personal [01:19:03] testimony that there was uh American [01:19:05] military personnel there or at least [01:19:07] American personnel there I should say. [01:19:09] Uh a US uh warship sailed into [01:19:12] Venezuelan waters on the day of the [01:19:14] coup. We can put two and two together [01:19:16] here. One of the leaders of this coup [01:19:19] was Maria Karina Machado who afterwards [01:19:22] uh she signed well on the day of the [01:19:25] coup she signed a document which um [01:19:27] liquidated every single democratic [01:19:29] institution in Venezuela including the [01:19:31] courts uh every elected representative [01:19:34] and she signed over the right to uh to [01:19:37] the country to be run by a pro- US uh [01:19:41] business magnate called Pedro Carmono. [01:19:44] After this happened, uh she decided to [01:19:46] rebrand herself as a pro-democracy [01:19:48] activist. Her organization, Sumate, [01:19:51] which is like a political pressure [01:19:52] group, uh an election monitoring group, [01:19:55] uh has been funded for more than two [01:19:57] decades by the National Endowment for [01:19:59] Democracy, which as Mintress Newers, I'm [01:20:02] sure, know, but perhaps not everybody uh [01:20:04] watching this knows, is a front group [01:20:06] for the CIA. The NE uh was set up uh by [01:20:10] the Reagan administration after a number [01:20:13] of scandals hit the CIA and it was set [01:20:17] up as a quasi uh privatized company [01:20:21] completely funded by the US government [01:20:23] that would take care of a lot of the [01:20:25] dirtiest and most controversial things [01:20:27] that the CIA was doing all around the [01:20:29] world, including overthrowing foreign [01:20:31] governments. As the former head of the [01:20:33] CI of the NE said, a lot of what we do [01:20:36] today was done covertly by the CIA 20 [01:20:40] years ago. So everybody knows what it [01:20:42] means to take money from the National [01:20:44] Endowment for Democracy. And all in [01:20:47] total, the United States has spent nine [01:20:50] figures, so hundreds of millions of [01:20:52] dollars on regime change operations in [01:20:54] Venezuela, promoting all sorts of [01:20:56] groups, be they political, social, [01:20:59] religious, all sorts of community [01:21:01] groups, all with one thing in common, an [01:21:03] overt hostility to the government of [01:21:06] Venezuela. And so really, there has been [01:21:09] virtually no section of the opposition [01:21:11] that hasn't been touched by US money [01:21:13] over these past 25 years. [01:21:16] And Machado is a perfect example of [01:21:18] this. I mean, she was getting flown back [01:21:20] and forth to Washington DC for meetings [01:21:24] with senior Bush administration [01:21:26] officials, including President Bush [01:21:27] himself in 2005, who met her in the Oval [01:21:30] Office, which is uh something that is [01:21:32] usually reserved for foreign heads of [01:21:34] states. They did that for this [01:21:36] relatively lesserknown politician in [01:21:40] Machado. And so ultimately the [01:21:42] Venezuelan opposition has had has been [01:21:45] bankrolled and driven by the US State [01:21:48] Department and various three-letter [01:21:49] agencies for many decades. That of [01:21:52] course doesn't mean that everyone in [01:21:53] Venezuela who opposes Maduro is a you [01:21:55] know a pawn of the United States. I'm [01:21:58] not saying that there aren't large [01:21:59] numbers of people in in Venezuela who [01:22:01] oppose uh the government. It's very [01:22:03] clear that there are if you go to [01:22:05] Venezuela and they realize that you're [01:22:07] not a local, maybe you're not speaking [01:22:11] Spanish fluently enough, uh they will [01:22:13] talk your ear off about how they oppose [01:22:15] the government. So they definitely [01:22:16] exist, but the entire political millu [01:22:19] inside Venezuela has been shaped by this [01:22:22] enormous enormous interference by the [01:22:25] United States. the sort of thing [01:22:29] uh of which even if we could prove one [01:22:32] 10,000th of which Russia was doing in [01:22:34] the US or in Western Europe, we would [01:22:37] probably go to war over. But since it's [01:22:39] Venezuela instances, the United States [01:22:41] is just seen as normal and that's [01:22:43] something that we have to break in the [01:22:44] future. [01:22:47] Alan Mloud, you have been such a great [01:22:50] resource for myself and for all of the [01:22:53] viewers who have tuned in to learn more [01:22:56] about the US sabotaging plans to [01:23:00] overthrow the uh the government of [01:23:03] Venezuela for decades. And so, thank you [01:23:06] so much for being here and we want to [01:23:08] thank everybody for um watching and [01:23:10] tuning in to this live stream. Um, we're [01:23:13] going to wrap it up here, but we are [01:23:15] going to have an interview tomorrow that [01:23:18] I'm going to be doing with local [01:23:20] independent journalists uh based in [01:23:23] Karakas um talking about what they're [01:23:25] seeing on the ground um so that we can [01:23:28] hear from locals uh local Venezuelans. [01:23:32] And so I'm excited to do