A new year, a new war!

How 2026 would unfold became clear from the very outset with the military intervention in Venezuela. Trump, who had previously declared that he would be a “President of Peace,” now appears set to continue on his path as a “President of War.” As in George Orwell’s dystopian novel 1984, published in 1949, we are entering a strange period in which every clichéd expression seems to contain its exact opposite.

The situation in Gaza is not much different. Israel has shifted from a “fast-motion genocide” to a “slow-motion genocide.” There is supposedly a ceasefire, yet this ceasefire does not prevent Israel from continuing to kill Palestinians. In practice, a “ceasefire” means that no response is given to Israel’s attacks.

If you recall, Russian President Vladimir Putin described the military intervention in Ukraine as a “special military operation.” US President Donald Trump is using the same terminology for the military intervention in Venezuela. The “Ukraine–Russia War,” which began in February 2022, is still ongoing, and when and how it will end remains uncertain.

According to Trump’s statement, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were taken captive and removed from the country. It is not yet known whether Maduro surrendered under the terms of a previously concluded agreement or was captured as a result of a special operation.

In fact, Trump’s earlier moves were the clearest signs that Venezuela was heading toward regime change through military intervention. The so-called “war on drugs” was merely a pretext for US military operations in the Caribbean. Trump, who at times directs harsh criticism at the “neocons,” is nonetheless following their playbook. The George W. Bush administration, guided by neocons, justified the 2003 military intervention in Iraq on the claim that Saddam’s regime possessed weapons of mass destruction—a claim that later proved to be a deception.

In a statement on December 16, Trump said he would address the nation from the White House at 9:00 p.m. on December 17. Tucker Carlson, one of the prominent figures of the “America First” wing in the Trump camp, said on retired judge Andrew Napolitano’s podcast Judging Freedom that Trump would announce a military intervention in Venezuela in that address. Carlson noted that members of Congress had been informed in advance and added, “By the way, who knows if this will really happen? I don’t know.”

Trump’s failure to mention Venezuela at all in his national address led to Carlson being heavily mocked by his political opponents. Albeit belatedly, Carlson was proven right by yesterday’s intervention.

Napolitano and Carlson have long criticized the expansion of the executive branch’s authority over the past few decades to launch military operations under broad and often vague justifications such as national security. Carlson has argued that US military interventions aimed at “regime change” and so-called “nation-building” have brought no benefit to ordinary Americans, saying, “For 80 years, there has not been a single regime-change effort that benefited the United States or the world. If there is one, tell me. I see no evidence of it. They all look like clear losses.” According to Carlson, the real issue with Venezuela was control over the country’s vast oil resources.

Trump himself has described America’s endless wars as “stupid wars” that bring no benefit to Americans. Trump’s Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, used similar language in a speech he delivered on December 6 at the “Reagan National Defense Forum” in California. At the same time, Hegseth stated that the US would reestablish military dominance in the Western Hemisphere, saying, “We will use this to protect our homeland and our access to key regions across the continent. We will also prevent our adversaries from positioning forces or other threatening capabilities in our hemisphere.”

On January 2, commenting on protests in Iran, Trump said, “If Iran, as usual, shoots and violently kills peaceful protesters, the US will rush to their aid. Our weapons are ready, ready to fire.” After his meeting with the genocidal Netanyahu, Trump also said that the US could strike Iran again. These statements were significant in showing that US military interventions are not limited to the Western Hemisphere. The contradiction between Trump’s actions and his words, however, has by now become something people have grown accustomed to.