Donald Trump has escalated military pressure on Venezuela at a speed that should alarm everyone. As of mid-November 2025, the United States has carried out at least twenty-one strikes, killing eighty-three people and leaving only two survivors. Furthermore, there are now an estimated fifteen thousand US troops in the region, including marines stationed offshore and thousands of personnel at bases in Puerto Rico. Europe has remained quiet on this particular topic... we wonder why.

We also react to a remarkable Fox Business interview with Congresswoman María Elvira Salazar, who casually frames Venezuela as a terrorist organisation, compares Nicolás Maduro to bin Laden, and claims that invading Venezuela would be good for the US economy. The justifications offered include everything from oil, to Hamas, to Hezbollah, to drug cartels, to protecting American children. What is striking is how easily the language of the War on Terror has been repackaged for a Latin American target.

Finally, we discuss the confusion on the Left. After years of calling Maduro illegitimate, parts of the Left now feel compelled to defend him simply because Trump is the one threatening him. This reflex says more about Western political tribalism than it does about Venezuela.

This podcast is published with the help of RAIA NOW gUG but is an individual project between the Director of RAIA, Dario Hasenstab, and Balder Hageraats. If you would like to get in touch with us, write us an email at thewesternbubble@gmail.com.