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Foreign Affairs

Lawmakers clash over presidential war powers after U.S. and Israeli strikes target Iran without specific congressional authorization.

U.S. Military Strikes on Iran Without Congressional Authorization

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<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/author/jacob-fischler">Jacob Fischler</a>, <a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/author/jane-norman">Jane Norman</a> | <a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com">News From the States</a> Feb. 28, 2026
 WASHINGTON — Democratic lawmakers called Saturday for Congress to weigh in on President Donald Trump’s order launching “major combat operations” in Iran, while Republicans largely provided cautious support of the attacks.

 <a href="https://x.com/WhiteHouse/status/2027654336138924410">Trump said</a> in a video posted to social media at 2:30 a.m. Eastern that U.S. forces struck targets in the Islamic republic. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the attacks were conducted in conjunction with Israel.

 Late Saturday afternoon, Trump said on his Truth Social platform that Iran Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had been killed in the strike.

 <h2>U.S. senate leaders react</h2>

 On Saturday morning, as word of the attack spread, numerous Democratic members of Congress were urging a vote on Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine’s War Powers Resolution.

 Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said he had “implored” Secretary of State Marco Rubio during a briefing this week to make a straightforward public case for any military operation in the Middle East.

 The New York Democrat criticized the administration’s strategy, though he also had tough words about the Iranian regime. He called for an “immediate all-senators classified briefing” ahead of a vote on a War Powers Act resolution.

 “The administration has not provided Congress and the American people with critical details about the scope and immediacy of the threat,” Schumer said in a statement. “Confronting Iran’s malign regional activities, nuclear ambitions, and harsh oppression of the Iranian people demands American strength, resolve, regional coordination, and strategic clarity. Unfortunately, President Trump’s fitful cycles of lashing out and risking wider conflict are not a viable strategy.”

 Senate Majority Leader John Thune praised Trump for taking action to deter Iran from expanding its nuclear program and supporting terrorist groups in the region.

 The country poses “a clear and unacceptable threat to U.S. servicemembers, citizens in the region, and many of our allies,” the South Dakota Republican wrote in a statement. “Despite the dogged efforts of the president and his administration, the Iranian regime has refused the diplomatic off-ramps that would peacefully resolve these national security concerns.”

 <h2>Nuclear weapon ambitions</h2>

 Trump said in the early-morning video that the U.S. aims to prevent the Islamic Republic of Iran from ever obtaining nuclear weapons. "This regime will soon learn no one should challenge the strength and might of the United States armed forces,” said Trump.

 Trump spoke from his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, where he flew Friday night following <a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/trump-post-state-union-trip-again-rips-dems-muses-cuba-friendly-takeover">an appearance</a> in Corpus Christi, Texas. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement on social media Trump monitored the situation overnight with members of his national security team, and he spoke with Netanyahu by phone.

 Netanyahu in a <a href="https://x.com/netanyahu/status/2027662108901412980">statement</a> on social media thanked Trump and echoed the U.S. president’s comments about nuclear arms.

 “This murderous terrorist regime must not be allowed to arm itself with nuclear weapons that would enable it to threaten all of humanity,” Netanyahu said. “Our joint operation will create the conditions for the brave Iranian people to take their fate into their own hands.”

 <h2>Iranians say they tried to prevent war</h2>

 Iran Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi early Saturday afternoon wrote a letter to the secretary-general of the United Nations and the president of the U.N. Security Council that “strongly condemned the coordinated and extensive armed aggression by the United States and the Israeli regime against Iran’s national sovereignty and territorial integrity,” according to a statement on social media by the Foreign Ministry of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

 The Foreign Ministry of the Islamic Republic of Iran also said that the attack came while the United States and Iran were in the midst of diplomatic talks, and vowed a response.

 The Reuters news service said the skies above Tehran were filled with smoke.

 The strikes were not specifically authorized by Congress.

 <h2>Republicans echo Trump</h2>

 Republicans largely laid responsibility for the attacks on the Iranian regime, saying its aggressive posture invited action.

 House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast, a Florida Republican, said the strikes were “the inescapable response to 47 years of continuous and calculated aggression by the Ayatollah of Iran and all his generals against the United States, our allies, and the Iranian people.”

 <h2>Democrats warn of long-term commitment</h2>

 Democrats, though, called out the administration for going around Congress.

 “Though there is bipartisan support for stopping the development of nuclear weapons in Iran, there is no consensus for another interminable war in the Middle East,” Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin of Illinois said.

 House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark of Massachusetts blasted Trump for violating a campaign pledge of “no new wars” by launching the attack “under cloak of night, without congressional approval of even a clear rationale.”

 “Families do not want another war,” she said. “They want a reasonable cost of living. They want health care they can afford. They want an end to (Immigration and Customs Enforcement)’s terror in their neighborhoods. And they do not want their sons and daughters placed in harm’s way by a reckless President. The people of this country deserve better.”

 Democratic Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts said diplomatic talks should be continued. “Trump’s military attack on Iran is illegal and unconstitutional. It was not approved by Congress and holds dangers for all Americans. Trump’s illegal actions raise the threat of escalation into a wider regional war with grave risks for U.S. troops and civilians in the region,” Markey said in a statement.
This article was originally published by <a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com">News From the States</a>. It has been shortened from its original format. Read the full article <a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/us-israel-strike-iran-democrats-call-immediate-vote-trump-war-powers">here</a>.

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US, Israel Strike Iran; Democrats Call for Immediate Vote on Trump War Powers

The overnight capture of Venezuela’s president signals a dramatic and risky break from decades of U.S. policy in Latin America.

U.S. Military Action in Venezuela

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 <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/alan-mcpherson-2518178">Alan McPherson</a> | <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/temple-university-868">Temple University</a> 

 In the dead of night during the holidays, the United States launched an operation inside a Latin American country, intent on seizing its leader on the pretext that he is wanted in U.S. courts on drug charges. 

The <a href="https://www.zinnedproject.org/news/tdih/invasion-of-panama/">date was Dec. 20, 1989</a>, the country was Panama, and the wanted man was General Manuel Noriega. 

Many people in the Americas waking up on Jan. 3, 2026, may have been feeling a sense of déjà vu. 

Images of dark U.S. helicopters flying over a Latin American capital seemed, until recently, like a bygone relic of American imperialism – incongruous since the end of the Cold War.

But the <a href="https://theconversation.com/us-snatches-maduro-in-raid-on-caracas-what-we-know-so-far-272660">seizure of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro</a>, along with his wife, Cilia Flores, recalls an earlier era of U.S. foreign policy.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced that, in an overnight operation, U.S. troops captured and spirited the couple out of Caracas, the Venezuelan capital. It followed what Trump <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/live/c5yqygxe41pt">described as</a> an “extraordinary military operation” involving air, land and sea forces.

Maduro and his wife were flown to New York to face drug charges. While Maduro was indicted in 2020 on charges that he led a narco-terrorism operation, his wife was only added in a <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2026/01/03/maduro-indictment-drugs-venezuela.html">fresh indictment</a> that also included four other named Venezuelans.

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 An image of a captured Nicolás Maduro released by President Donald Trump on social media.
 
 
 <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115832088990838303">Truth Social</a>
 
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio <a href="https://www.jamaicaobserver.com/2026/01/03/rubio-anticipates-no-action-venezuela-maduros-capture/">said he</a> “anticipates no further action” in Venezuela; Trump later said the <a href="https://www.axios.com/2026/01/03/trump-venezuela-maduro">he wasn’t afraid</a> of American “boots on the ground.”

Whatever happens, as an <a href="https://liberalarts.temple.edu/directory/alan-mcpherson">expert on U.S.-Latin American relations</a>, I see the U.S. operation in Venezuela as a clear break from the recent past. The seizure of a foreign leader – albeit one who clung to power through <a href="https://www.journalofdemocracy.org/articles/how-maduro-stole-venezuelas-vote/">dubious electoral means</a> – amounts to a form of ad hoc imperialism, a blatant sign of the Trump administration’s aggressive but unfocused might-makes-right approach to Latin America. 

It eschews the diplomatic approach that has been the hallmark of inter-American relations for decades, really since the fall of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s took away the <a href="https://retroreport.org/collection/cold-war-in-latin-america/">ideological grab</a> over potential spheres of influence in the region.

Instead, it reverts to an earlier period <a href="https://theconversation.com/gunboat-diplomacy-how-classic-naval-coercion-has-evolved-into-hybrid-warfare-on-the-water-266741">when gunboats</a> — yesteryear’s choppers — sought to achieve U.S. political aims in a neighboring region that American officials treated as the “American lake” – as <a href="https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/1941/july/caribbean-american-lake">one World War II Navy officer</a> referred to the Caribbean.

<h2>Breaking with precedent</h2>

The <a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/03/17/2025-04018/gulf-of-america-renaming">renaming of the Gulf of Mexico</a> as the “Gulf of America” – one of the earliest acts of the second Trump administration – fits this new policy pivot.

But in key ways, there is no precedent to the Trump administration’s operation to remove Maduro. 

Never before has the U.S. military directly intervened in South America to effect regime change. All of <a href="https://www.wiley.com/en-us/A+Short+History+of+U.S.+Interventions+in+Latin+America+and+the+Caribbean-p-9781118954010">Washington’s previous direct actions</a> were in smaller, closer countries in Central America or the Caribbean. 

The U.S. intervened often in Mexico but never decapitated its leadership directly or took over the entire country. In South America, interventions tended to be indirect: Lyndon Johnson had a <a href="https://en.mercopress.com/2012/04/15/the-1964-made-in-brazil-coup-and-us-contingency-support-plan-if-the-plot-stalled">backup plan</a> in case the 1964 coup in Brazil did not succeed (it did); Richard Nixon <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/aug/08/richard-nixon-plot-allende-chile-presidency">undermined the socialist government</a> in Chile from 1970 on but did not orchestrate the coup against President Salvador Allende in 1973. 

And while Secretary of State Henry Kissinger – the <a href="https://theconversation.com/kissingers-obsession-with-chile-enabled-a-murderous-dictatorship-that-still-haunts-the-country-218982">architect of U.S. foreign policy</a> under Nixon and his successor, Gerald Ford – and others encouraged repression against leftists throughout the 1970s, they held back from taking a direct part in it. 

<h2>A post-Maduro plan?</h2>

U.S. officials long viewed South American countries as too far away, too big and too independent to call for direct intervention. 

Apparently, Trump’s officials paid that historical demarcation little heed. 

What is to happen to Venezuela after Maduro? Taking him into U.S. custody lays bare that the primary goal of a <a href="https://stories.theconversation.com/tracking-the-us-military-in-the-caribbean/">monthslong campaign of American military</a> attacking alleged drug ships and oil tankers was always likely regime change, rather than making any real dent in the amount of illegal drugs reaching U.S. shores. As it is, <a href="https://www.kcra.com/article/venezuela-drug-trafficking-cocaine-fentanyl/69676930">next to no fentanyl leaves Venezuela</a>, and most Venezuelan cocaine <a href="https://www.euda.europa.eu/cocaine-trafficking-europe_en">heads to Europe</a>, anyway.

What will preoccupy many regional governments in Latin America, and policy experts in Washington, is whether the White House has considered the consequences to this latest escalation.



Trump no doubt wants to avoid another <a href="https://www.georgewbushlibrary.gov/research/topic-guides/the-iraq-war">Iraq War</a> disaster, and as such he will want to limit any ongoing U.S. military and law enforcement presence. But typically, a U.S. force changing a Latin American regime has had to stay on the ground to install a friendly leader and maybe oversee a stable transition or elections. 

Simply plucking Maduro out of Caracas does not do that. The Venezuela constitution says that his vice president is to take over. And Vice President Delcy Rodriguez, who is demanding proof of life of her president, is no anti-Maduro figure.

Regime change would require installing those who <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/aug/10/gonzalez-proof-win-venezuela-election-vote-tally-maduro">legitimately won the 2024 election</a>, and they are assuredly who Rubio wants installed next in Miraflores Palace.

<h2>Conflicting demands</h2>

With Trump weighing the <a href="https://theconversation.com/us-snatches-maduro-in-raid-on-caracas-what-we-know-so-far-272660">demands of two groups</a> – anti-leftist hawks in Washington and an anti-interventionist base of MAGA supporters – a power struggle in Washington could emerge. It will be decided by men who may have overlapping but different reasons for action in Venezuela: Rubio, who wants to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/15/us/politics/rubio-trump-china-russia-iran-north-korea.html">burnish his image</a> as an anti-communist bringer of democracy abroad; Trump, a transactional leader who seemingly <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/5671113-trump-venezuela-oil/">has eyes on Venezuela’s oil</a>; and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, who has shown a desire to <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/retired-general-rips-hegseth-focus-214940688.html">flex America’s military muscle</a>.

What exactly is the hierarchy of these goals? We might soon find out. But either way, a Rubicon has been crossed by the Trump administration. Decades of U.S. policy toward neighbors in the south have been ripped up.

The capture of Maduro could displace millions more Venezuelans and destabilize neighboring countries – certainly it will affect their relationship with Washington. And while the operation to remove Maduro was clearly thought out with military precision, the concern is that less attention has been paid to an equally important aspect: what happens next.

“We’re going to run the country” until a “safe, proper and judicious transition” occurs, the <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/trump-venezuela-nicolas-maduro-strikes-run-country-transition-military-rcna252044">Trump promised</a>. But that is easier said than done.<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/272664/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important" referrerpolicy="no-referrer-when-downgrade" />

 <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/alan-mcpherson-2518178">Alan McPherson</a>, Professor of History, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/temple-university-868">Temple University</a>

 This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-predawn-op-in-latin-america-the-us-has-been-here-before-but-the-seizure-of-venezuelas-maduro-is-still-unprecedented-272664">original article</a>.
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A Predawn Op in Latin America? The US Has Been Here Before, But The Seizure of Venezuela’s Maduro Is Still Unprecedented

New research shows a dramatic rise in online antisemitism preceding a deadly attack, raising urgent questions about prevention, platform responsibility, and public safety.

Antisemitism and Online Hate

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 <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/matteo-vergani-100514">Matteo Vergani</a> | <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/deakin-university-757">Deakin University</a> Dec. 14, 2025

 At least <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12-15/bondi-beach-shooting-terrorist-attack/106142446#live-blog-post-246149">16 people</a> – including a ten-year-old child – are dead after <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12-15/bondi-beach-attack-gunmen-father-and-son/106142630">two men</a> opened fire on a crowd of people celebrating the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah on Sunday in a public park at Sydney’s Bondi Beach. Many more are injured. 

I am horrified. But as a researcher who studies hate and extremist violence, I am sadly not surprised.

The Jewish community has been a top target for terrorist ideologies and groups for a long time. Many people working in this field have been expecting a serious attack on Australian soil.

Much remains unclear about the Bondi terrorist attacks and it’s too early to speculate about these gunmen specifically. The investigation is ongoing.

But what about antisemitic sentiment more broadly? 

Our research – which is in the early stages and yet to be peer reviewed – has recorded a significant and worrying increase in antisemitic sentiment after October 7.

<h2>Our research</h2>

We have been training AI models to track online sentiment in social media targeting Australian communities, including Jewish people. 

That means working with humans – including extremism experts and people in the Jewish community – to label content. This is to teach our model if the content it is encountering is hateful or not.

Based on definitions <a href="https://www.csgvic.com.au/antisemitismreport">adopted by the Jewish community</a>, we distinguished between two main types of antisemitism: “old” antisemitism and “new” antisemitism.

“Old” antisemitism targets Jews as Jews. It draws on entrenched myths and stereotypes that portray them as alien, dangerous, or morally corrupt.

“New” antisemitism shifts the focus from individual Jews to the state of Israel. It blames Jews collectively for Israel’s actions. 

Many in the Jewish community see this as a modern continuation of historical antisemitism. Critics (both within and outside the Jewish community) contend it risks conflating legitimate opposition to Israeli policies with antisemitism. 

Central to this debate is whether anti-Israel sentiment represents a continuation of age-old prejudices or a political response to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

In our research, we tracked both “old” and “new” antisemitism. 



<h2>A sharp increase</h2>

We found that both increased sharply after October 7. 

For example, we studied posts on X (formerly Twitter) geolocated in Australia before and after October 7. We wanted to understand the size of the rise in antisemitism.

We found that “old” antisemitism rose from an average of 34 tweets a month in the year before October 7 to 2,021 in the following year.

“New” antisemitism increased even more, rising from an average of 505 a month in the year before October 7 to 21,724 in the year after.

Some examples of “old” antisemitism are explicit, such as calls to “get rid of all Jews” or “kill all Jews”. 

Others are more indirect, including minimising or denying the Holocaust. Examples include posts claiming that “if the Holocaust of 6 million Jews were true, Israel could not exist today” or that the Nazis had only a minimal impact on the Jewish population. 

Other forms of hate rely on conspiracy theories, such as claims that “Jews are paying to destroy Australia”.

However, the vast majority of the content our models identified as antisemitic fell into the category of “new” antisemitism. This included content that blamed the Jewish community for events in Israel, such as calling all Australian Jews “baby killers” or “Zionazi fu–wits”, regardless of their personal political views and opinions about the Israeli government and its actions.

(All examples here are drawn from real content, but the wording has been slightly modified to anonymise them and prevent identification of the original authors).

In other words, we have seen an overall escalation of hostilities against Jews online.

More extreme and explicit calls for violence rarely appear on mainstream platforms. They tend to circulate on fringe social media, such as Telegram. 

On X, we have seen a collision of mainstream discourse and fringe discourse, due to the lack of moderation. 

But antisemitism doesn’t always involve slurs, meaning it can also happen in mainstream platforms. Especially after the election of Trump and the relaxation in moderation practices of Meta, we have also seen it on Instagram. This includes Instagram posts published after the Bondi attack.

<h2>Could more have been done?</h2>

Certainly the Jewish community, I am sure, will feel not enough was done.

Jillian Segal, Australia’s first government-appointed special envoy for combating antisemitism, <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-special-envoys-antisemitism-plan-is-ambitious-but-fails-to-reckon-with-the-hardest-questions-260914">released her plan</a> for addressing the issue back in July.

As I <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-special-envoys-antisemitism-plan-is-ambitious-but-fails-to-reckon-with-the-hardest-questions-260914">wrote at the time</a>, the recommendations fell into three main categories:

<ol>
<li>preventing violence and crime, including improved coordination between agencies, and new policies aimed at stopping dangerous individuals from entering Australia</li>
<li>strengthening protections against hate speech, by regulating all forms of hate, including antisemitism, and increasing oversight of platform policies and algorithms</li>
<li>promoting antisemitism-free media, education and cultural spaces, through journalist training, education programs, and conditions on public funding for organisations that promote or fail to address antisemitism.</li>
</ol>

The government had said it will consider the recommendations. Segal has now <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12-15/albanese-told-to-endorse-antisemitism-plan-after-bondi-shooting/106142578">said</a> government messaging combating antisemitism has “not been sufficient”.

Some might argue addressing points two and three could have helped prevent the Bondi attack. A common assumption is that a climate of widespread antisemitism can embolden violence. 

The reality, however, is that this is hard to establish. People who commit terrorist acts – whether they self radicalise or are recruited by terrorist organisations – <a href="https://www.elgaronline.com/edcollchap/book/9781803925738/book-part-9781803925738-25.xml">do not necessarily respond</a> to changes in broader public sentiment.

That said, there is obvious value in prevention work aimed at reducing hostility and antisemitic attitudes, even while small networks or individuals committed to violent terrorism may still exist.

Preventing terrorist violence of this scale relies primarily on effective law enforcement. This requires adequate resourcing and a clear legislative framework. 

Education and broader cultural change matter. In short term, however, they are less likely to be as effective at preventing acts of terrorism as measures such as firearm regulation, monitoring extremist networks, and disrupting plots before they turn into action.<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/272045/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important" referrerpolicy="no-referrer-when-downgrade" />

 <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/matteo-vergani-100514">Matteo Vergani</a>, Associate Professor and Director of the Tackling Hate Lab, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/deakin-university-757">Deakin University</a>

 This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/bondi-attack-came-after-huge-increase-in-online-antisemitism-research-272045">original article</a>.
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Bondi Attack Came After Huge Increase in Online Antisemitism: Research

Machado’s Nobel Peace Prize highlights her courage in opposing Venezuela’s Maduro  – and her controversial calls for foreign intervention to remove him.

Venezuela’s Struggle for Democracy

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 <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/david-smilde-388476">David Smilde</a> | <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/tulane-university-1395">Tulane University</a>

 Few can doubt the courage <a href="https://theconversation.com/nobel-peace-prize-winner-maria-corina-machado-the-venezuelan-opposition-leader-forced-into-hiding-after-taking-on-maduro-267245">María Corina Machado</a> has shown in fighting for a return to democracy in Venezuela.

The 58-year-old politician and activist is the undisputed leader of the opposition to Nicolás Maduro – a man <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jan/09/venezuela-dictatorship-nicolas-maduro-democratic-leaders-boycott">widely seen as a dictator</a> who has taken Venezuela down the path of <a href="https://www.amnesty.org/en/location/americas/south-america/venezuela/report-venezuela/">repression, human rights violations</a> and <a href="https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/venezuela-more-mere-numbers">increasing poverty</a> since becoming president in 2013.

Maduro is widely believed to have lost the 2024 presidential election to <a href="https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-edmundo-gonzalez-white-house-maduro-election-3a80969382a3ee3c05f43bf6cefa987c">rival Edmundo González</a>, a candidate substituting Machado, yet still claimed victory.

Machado has been in hiding since the <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/live/c1l80g1qe4gt">fraudulent vote</a>. And her courage in having participated in an unfair contest and in exposing Maduro’s fraud by <a href="https://en.cibercuba.com/noticias/2024-07-30-u1-e207888-s27061-nid286010-maria-corina-machado-publica-actas-votacion-poder">publishing the true vote tallies</a> on the internet, surely made Machado stand out to the Nobel committee.

Indeed, in making Machado the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/10/world/americas/maria-corina-machado-nobel-peace-prize-venezuela.html">2025 recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize</a>, organizers <a href="https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/2025/machado/facts/">stated they were recognizing</a> her “tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.”

But as a <a href="https://liberalarts.tulane.edu/sociology/people/david-smilde">scholar of Venezuela’s political process</a>, I know that is only part of the story. Machado is in many ways a controversial pick, less a peace activist than a political operator willing to use some of the trade’s dark arts for the greater democratic good.

<h2>Joining a controversial list of laureates</h2>

Of course, many <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2016/10/13/here-are-the-most-controversial-noble-prize-winners-ever.html">Nobel Peace Prize awards generate controversy</a>.

It has often been bestowed on great politicians over activists. And sometimes the prize’s winners can have complex pasts and very non-peaceful resumes. 

Past recipients include Henry Kissinger, who as U.S. secretary of state and Richard Nixon’s security adviser was responsible for the <a href="https://theconversation.com/henry-kissingers-bombing-campaign-likely-killed-hundreds-of-thousands-of-cambodians-and-set-path-for-the-ravages-of-the-khmer-rouge-209353">illegal bombing of Cambodia</a>, supporting Indonesia’s <a href="https://thediplomat.com/2023/12/henry-kissinger-and-the-murder-of-timor-leste/">brutal invasion of East Timor</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/kissingers-obsession-with-chile-enabled-a-murderous-dictatorship-that-still-haunts-the-country-218982">propping up dictators</a> in Latin America, among many other morally dubious actions. Similarly, former Palestinian Liberation Organization leader <a href="https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1994/summary/">Yasser Arafat</a> and Israeli Prime Minister <a href="https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1978/begin/facts/">Menachem Begin</a> were both awarded the prize, in 1994 and 1978 respectively, despite their past association with violent activities in the Middle East.

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 <img src="https://i.imgur.com/pFr0Hwk.png"alt="Three men stand, two shaking hands" />
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 Yitzhak Rabin, Bill Clinton and Yasser Arafat at the signing of the Olso Accords on the White House lawn in 1993. Photo Credit: Vince Musi / The White House
 
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The Nobel Committee often seems to use these awards not to celebrate past achievements but to affect the future course of events. The nods to Begin and Arafat were, in this way, used for encouragement of the Middle East peace process. 

In fact, sometimes, the peace prize is seemingly bestowed as a sign of approval for a break from the past.

Barack Obama <a href="https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/2009/obama/facts/">won his in 2009</a> despite only being nine months into his presidency. It was taken by many as a rejection of the previous presidency of George W. Bush, rather than recognition of Obama’s limited achievements at that time.

In 2016, <a href="https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/2016/santos/facts/">Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos</a> was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize just days after his peace plan was rejected in a referendum. In that instance, the committee seemed to want to give his efforts a push just after a major setback.

<h2>Democratic path or dark arts?</h2>

So what should be made of the Nobel Peace Prize committee’s decision to recognize opposition to Maduro now?

Certainly Machado’s profile is ascendant. In her political career, she has participated in elections – winning a seat in the National Assembly in 2010 – but boycotted many more. She also boycotted negotiation processes, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3OxULhCJJEc">suggesting instead that foreign intervention</a> was the only way to remove Maduro.

In 2023 she returned to the electoral path and steadfastly mobilized the Venezuelan population for opposition primaries and presidential elections, even after her <a href="https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2024/01/27/venezuela-s-supreme-court-disqualifies-opposition-leader-from-running-for-president_6469941_4.html">candidacy was disqualified</a> by the government-controlled electoral authority, and innumerable other obstacles were put in her path. 

The campaign included spearheading caravans and events across the country at significant personal risk. 

However, much of her fight since then has been via less-democratic means.

Machado has shunned local and regional elections suggesting there was no sense in participating until the government honored the results of the 2024 presidential election. She has also <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/10/world/americas/maria-corina-machado-trump-support-maduro.html">again sought international intervention</a> to remove Maduro.

Over the past year she has aggressively <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2025/05/05/us-intel-memo-undercuts-trump-claims-about-venezuelan-gang-00330542">promoted the discredited theory</a> that Maduro is in control of the Tren de Aragua gang and is using it to invade the United States – a narrative <a href="https://theconversation.com/venezuela-and-us-edge-toward-war-footing-but-domestic-concerns-international-risks-may-hold-washington-back-266509">gladly accepted and repurposed</a> by U.S. President Donald Trump. 

In addition to being the expressed motivation for a U.S. military buildup off the coasts of Venezuela, this theory has also been the central justification cited by the Trump administration for using the <a href="https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/LSB11269">Alien Enemies Act</a> to deport, without due process, <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/3/17/trump-deports-238-gang-members-to-el-salvador-whats-the-controversy">238 Venezuelan men to a horrific prison</a> in El Salvador.


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 <img src="https://i.imgur.com/8SE6QgJ.png" alt="A man shaking hands with a other men at large ceremony"/>
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 Foreign leaders greet Nicolás Maduro at his second inauguration on 10 January 2019. Photo via Wikipedia
 
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<h2>Relations with Trump</h2>

The Nobel Peace Prize could help unify the Venezuelan opposition movement, which over the past year <a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/05/16/nx-s1-5389718/why-venezuelas-opposition-has-urged-voters-to-boycott-upcoming-regional-elections">has begun to fray over differences in strategy</a>, especially with respect to Machado’s return to electoral boycotts. 

And it will certainly draw more international attention to Venezuelans’ struggle for democracy and could galvanize international stakeholders to push for change.

What it will mean in terms of Trump’s relationship to Machado and Venezuela is yet to be seen. Her main connection with the administration is through <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/10/us/politics/nobel-trump-rubio-venezuela.html">Secretary of State Marco Rubio</a>, who has aggressively represented her views and is pushing for U.S. military intervention to depose Maduro

Awarding Machado the prize could strengthen Trump’s resolve to seek regime change in Venezuela. Or, if he feels snubbed by the Nobel committee after very vocally <a href="https://theconversation.com/donald-trump-would-have-been-an-unsuitable-choice-for-the-2025-nobel-peace-prize-but-he-may-be-a-more-serious-contender-in-2026-267067">lobbying to be awarded</a> the peace prize himself, it could be a wedge between the U.S. president and Machado. 

Machado seems to understand this. After not mentioning him in her first statement after the award was announced, she has since mentioned him multiple times, even dedicating the prize to <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/5549522-trump-machado-nobel-peace-prize/">both the Venezuelan people and Trump</a>. 

Trump has subsequently <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-10-10/machado-congratulated-by-trump-dedicates-award-partly-to-him">called to congratulate her</a>.

<h2>A game changer? Perhaps not</h2>

To the degree that the Nobel Peace Prize is not just a model of change but a model for change, the decision to award it to Machado could conceivably affect the nature of Venezuela’s struggle against authoritarianism, leading her to continue to seek the restoration of democracy with a greater focus on reconciliation and coexistence among all Venezuelans, including the still politically relevant followers of the late Hugo Chávez.

Whatever the impact, it probably will not be game-changing. As we have seen with other winners, the initial glow of public recognition is quickly consumed by political conflict.

And in Venezuela, there is no easy way to translate this prize into real democratic progress. 

While Machado and other Venezuelan democrats may have more support than ever among global democrats, Nicolás Maduro controls all of Venezuela’s institutions including the armed forces and the state oil company, which, even when sanctioned, provides substantial resources. Maduro also has forged <a href="https://www.cfr.org/in-brief/maduros-allies-who-backs-venezuelan-regime">strategic alliances with China, Russia and Iran</a>. 

The only way one can imagine the restoration of democracy in Venezuela, with or without military action, is through an extensive process of negotiation, reconciliation, disarmament and justice that could lay the groundwork for coexistence. This Nobel Peace Prize could position Machado for this task.<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/267268/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important" referrerpolicy="no-referrer-when-downgrade" />

 <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/david-smilde-388476">David Smilde</a>, Professor of Sociology, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/tulane-university-1395">Tulane University</a>

 This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/maria-corina-machados-peace-prize-follows-nobel-tradition-of-awarding-recipients-for-complex-reasons-267268">original article</a>.
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María Corina Machado’s Peace Prize Follows Nobel Tradition of Awarding Recipients for Complex Reasons

Trump’s visit to Israel and Egypt capped a U.S.-brokered deal ending two years of war, freeing the last Israeli hostages in exchange for roughly 2000 Palestinian prisoners and launching a fragile new phase in Middle East peace.

Peace and Accountability in Gaza

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Ashley Murray | <a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com">News From The States</a> Oct. 13, 2025
WASHINGTON — After just over two years in Hamas captivity, the surviving Israeli hostages were released Monday as President Donald Trump visited Israel and Egypt to celebrate a U.S.-brokered peace deal to end the war in Gaza.

In remarks to Israel’s Knesset, the country’s parliamentary body, Monday afternoon Jerusalem time, Trump hailed “the golden age of Israel and the golden age of the Middle East.”

“Israel, with our help, has won all that they can by force of arms. You've won. I mean, you've won. Now it's time to translate these victories against terrorists on the battlefield into the ultimate prize of peace and prosperity for the entire Middle East. It's about time you were able to enjoy the fruits of your labor,” Trump said during remarks that lasted just over an hour.

Israeli military forces, with financial and arms support from the United States, have bombarded the Gaza Strip since Hamas militants launched a surprise attack on Israel from the Palestinian territory on Oct. 7, 2023, killing roughly 1,200 and taking 250 people captive.

Gaza health officials said Monday the death toll in the small enclave had risen to 67,869 since the conflict began, including roughly 60 in the past 24 hours, <a href="https://english.wafa.ps/Pages/Details/163328">according</a> to Palestinian National Authority state-run media.

Hamas returned the remaining living 20 Israeli hostages Monday and committed to returning bodies of deceased hostages as part of the ceasefire agreement. In exchange, Israel released roughly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.

As of Monday, Hamas still had to return the remains of two dozen hostages killed while held captive. The militant group that holds political power in Gaza returned the remains of four hostages to the National Institute for Forensic Medicine in Tel Aviv, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/world/live-news/israel-hamas-gaza-hostages-ceasefire-10-13-25?post-id=cmgpgwv5800003d5tdxgnahxt">CNN</a> reported Monday.

<h2>Trump calls for Netanyahu pardon</h2>

Many who attended Trump’s Knesset remarks wore red MAGA-style hats bearing the message “Trump the Peace President,” according to journalists who traveled with Trump to Israel.

Trump said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be remembered “far more” for the peace deal than for the fighting.

Trump notably asked Israeli President Isaac Herzog to pardon Netanyahu, who is under investigation for bribery and fraud.

“Hey, I have an idea. Mr. President, why don't you give him a pardon?” Trump said, adding, “Cigars and some champagne — who the hell cares?”

<h2>Egypt meeting</h2>

Trump then traveled to Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, Monday evening, where roughly 30 world leaders met for a short summit marking the deal between Israel and Hamas — with many details yet to be hammered out.

Among those present was Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian National Authority. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/10/12/world/israel-gaza-hostages-trump?smid=url-share#20ac4145-dd54-5303-89c0-826b503b2ea0">Video</a> published by The New York Times showed Trump and Abbas chatting and shaking hands. Trump held onto Abbas’ hand while giving a thumbs-up with his other hand for a photo of the pair.

Trump invited Netanyahu, but the prime minister declined “due to time constraints” ahead of an upcoming holiday, according to an <a href="https://www.gov.il/en/pages/spoke-egypt131025">announcement</a> posted by his office.

Trump, along with the leaders of Egypt, Qatar and Turkey, signed what the president described as a “document that’s going to spell out a lot of rules and regulations.”

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for text of the document.

Speaking to reporters as he signed the “historic document” in front of two rows of presidents and prime ministers, Trump marveled at how long it took to achieve the cessation of hostilities and predicted “it’s gonna hold up, too.”

The <a href="https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/1972726021196562494">20-point peace plan</a> required the release of all living and deceased Israeli hostages, a phased withdrawal of Israeli forces and a reform of the Palestinian government, including completely disarming Hamas of weapons and political power.

World leaders heaped praise on Trump at Monday’s summit. Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the U.S. president is “a man of peace” and that he backed Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, according to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lG-qTu20YzU">video</a> and reports from journalists at the summit. Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi <a href="https://www.presidency.eg/en/قسم-الأخبار/أخبار-رئاسية/news13102025-7/">awarded</a> Trump the Nile Collar, his country’s highest state honor.

<h2>U.S. leaders react</h2>

U.S. Republican and Democratic lawmakers alike praised the freeing of the surviving Israeli hostages.

House Speaker Mike Johnson applauded the “leadership, strength, and fortitude of President Trump.”

“For the first time in 738 days, there are no living Israelis hostages (sic) in the hands of Hamas. In just eight and half months in office, President Trump and his Administration have ensured the safe release and return of all 20 living Israeli hostages from Hamas captivity, putting lasting peace in the Middle East within reach,” the Louisiana Republican said in a statement Monday.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, who delivered a scathing <a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/schumer-levels-heavy-criticism-israel-us-senate-floor-calls-elections-there">rebuke</a> on the Senate floor to Netanyahu’s leadership last year, celebrated the ceasefire deal Monday.

“Today is a wonderful day. Finally, finally, finally, the last living hostages brutally held by Hamas are home, an immense and overwhelming sigh of relief. I commend the enormous advocacy of the tireless hostage families, President Trump, his administration, and all who helped make this moment happen,” Schumer, a New York Democrat, said in a statement.

“Today, we celebrate the return of the hostages — the joyous images of their reuniting with their families — and we solemnly reaffirm our commitment to bringing home all the deceased hostages, including my constituents Omer Neutra and Itay Chen.”

Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, an outspoken critic of Israel’s bombardment of Gaza, urged the immediate activation of humanitarian aid to the territory, including granting “unfettered access” to the United Nations.

The Vermont senator, who caucuses with Democrats, said in a statement that Americans must “grapple with our role in this extremely dark chapter,” highlighting that the U.S. government provided billions in taxpayer dollars to support what he described as “Netanyahu’s barbaric campaign.”

“The vast majority of Americans understand that Israel had a right to defend itself against the horrific Hamas terrorist attack that killed 1,200 innocent people and took 250 hostages,” Sanders said. “But most Americans also understand that Israel did not have the right to go to war against the entire Palestinian people, killing or wounding almost 237,000 Palestinians — more than 10 percent of Gaza’s population — most of them women, children, and the elderly.”
<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/trump-us-leaders-celebrate-end-hostilities-gaza">This article</a> was originally published on News From The States.

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