SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
This photograph, taken on May 24, 2023, shows the US aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford cruising near Jeloya Island, in Moss, south of Oslo.
(Photo by Terje Pedersen/NTB/AFP)
Trump's Escalation Against Venezuela Continues as Hegseth Deploys Aircraft Carrier Strike Group to Latin American Waters
An aide to Brazil's president warned that a US regime change operation in Venezuela "could inflame South America and lead to radicalization of politics on the whole continent."
Oct 24, 2025
The Trump administration said Friday that it has ordered the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group, which contains the largest warship in the world, to waters off the coast of Venezuela, marking another major military escalation after a new surge of extrajudicial boat bombings in the region this week.
"In support of the president’s directive to dismantle transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) and counter narco-terrorism in defense of the homeland, [Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth] has directed the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group and embarked carrier air wing to the US Southern Command."
The announcement came shortly after the administration announced its 10th strike on what Hegseth claimed to be a drug-running boat, killing six people and bringing the death toll from the operations up to 43. As usual, the claim came with scant evidence.
The narrative that these boats have been transporting drugs to the US has been critically undermined in recent days after two of the alleged "narco-traffickers" who survived one of the Trump administration's strikes were released back to their home countries: One of the survivors, an Ecuadoran man, was set free shortly after returning to his country as officials stated there was no evidence to charge him.
In several other cases, the relatives or home governments of those killed in these bombings have contested that they were not drug smugglers but fishermen.
The strikes have been met with increasing criticism in recent days, not just from Democrats, but from Republican lawmakers—including Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska)—who co-introduced a war powers resolution last week to require congressional input before carrying out acts of war against Venezuela.
A group of former national security officials—including Rear Adm. Bill Baumgartner of the Coast Guard and Retired Navy Rear Adm. Michael Smith—meanwhile issued a statement on Thursday condemning the strikes as "illegal" and "ineffective."
The International Crisis Group, a nongovernmental organization dedicated to preventing armed conflict, warned Thursday that "what began purportedly as a campaign to stop illicit drugs from getting to US shores looks increasingly like an attempt to force Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his allies from power."
According to several reports, Caracas has allegedly floated proposals that would allow the US to take a dominant stake in Venezuela's oil and mineral wealth.
President Donald Trump's deployment of the Ford strike group, which is currently en route from the Mediterranean Sea, notably comes shortly after the president threatened to begin carrying out strikes on the Venezuelan mainland without seeking authorization from Congress, which led dozens of elected officials throughout Latin America to issue a letter denouncing military aggression in the region.
"The Trump administration is planning to lead a new 'War on Drugs,'" the leaders warned. "That war may start with regime change in Venezuela, but we know that it will not end there. Already, the US is threatening illegal drone strikes on Mexican soil in the name of its 'national security.' If we do not stand for peace now, we risk a new wave of armed interventions across the region, unleashing a humanitarian crisis of unimaginable scale in all of our home countries."
Celso Amorim, an aide to Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, said on Friday, following the announcement of the ship's deployment, that "we cannot accept an outside intervention because it will trigger immense resentment," adding that it "could inflame South America and lead to radicalization of politics on the whole continent."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
The Trump administration said Friday that it has ordered the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group, which contains the largest warship in the world, to waters off the coast of Venezuela, marking another major military escalation after a new surge of extrajudicial boat bombings in the region this week.
"In support of the president’s directive to dismantle transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) and counter narco-terrorism in defense of the homeland, [Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth] has directed the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group and embarked carrier air wing to the US Southern Command."
The announcement came shortly after the administration announced its 10th strike on what Hegseth claimed to be a drug-running boat, killing six people and bringing the death toll from the operations up to 43. As usual, the claim came with scant evidence.
The narrative that these boats have been transporting drugs to the US has been critically undermined in recent days after two of the alleged "narco-traffickers" who survived one of the Trump administration's strikes were released back to their home countries: One of the survivors, an Ecuadoran man, was set free shortly after returning to his country as officials stated there was no evidence to charge him.
In several other cases, the relatives or home governments of those killed in these bombings have contested that they were not drug smugglers but fishermen.
The strikes have been met with increasing criticism in recent days, not just from Democrats, but from Republican lawmakers—including Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska)—who co-introduced a war powers resolution last week to require congressional input before carrying out acts of war against Venezuela.
A group of former national security officials—including Rear Adm. Bill Baumgartner of the Coast Guard and Retired Navy Rear Adm. Michael Smith—meanwhile issued a statement on Thursday condemning the strikes as "illegal" and "ineffective."
The International Crisis Group, a nongovernmental organization dedicated to preventing armed conflict, warned Thursday that "what began purportedly as a campaign to stop illicit drugs from getting to US shores looks increasingly like an attempt to force Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his allies from power."
According to several reports, Caracas has allegedly floated proposals that would allow the US to take a dominant stake in Venezuela's oil and mineral wealth.
President Donald Trump's deployment of the Ford strike group, which is currently en route from the Mediterranean Sea, notably comes shortly after the president threatened to begin carrying out strikes on the Venezuelan mainland without seeking authorization from Congress, which led dozens of elected officials throughout Latin America to issue a letter denouncing military aggression in the region.
"The Trump administration is planning to lead a new 'War on Drugs,'" the leaders warned. "That war may start with regime change in Venezuela, but we know that it will not end there. Already, the US is threatening illegal drone strikes on Mexican soil in the name of its 'national security.' If we do not stand for peace now, we risk a new wave of armed interventions across the region, unleashing a humanitarian crisis of unimaginable scale in all of our home countries."
Celso Amorim, an aide to Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, said on Friday, following the announcement of the ship's deployment, that "we cannot accept an outside intervention because it will trigger immense resentment," adding that it "could inflame South America and lead to radicalization of politics on the whole continent."
From Your Site Articles
- Opinion | Venezuela’s Oil, US-led Regime Change, and America’s Gangster Politics | Common Dreams ›
- Opinion | 'Regime change' in Venezuela Is a Euphemism for US-Inflicted Carnage and Chaos | Common Dreams ›
- 'Venezuela, for the American Oil Companies, Will Be a Field Day': Says US Lawmaker Pushing Invasion | Common Dreams ›
- 'Why Is This Hard?' Schumer Won't Say He Opposes Regime Change in Venezuela | Common Dreams ›
The Trump administration said Friday that it has ordered the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group, which contains the largest warship in the world, to waters off the coast of Venezuela, marking another major military escalation after a new surge of extrajudicial boat bombings in the region this week.
"In support of the president’s directive to dismantle transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) and counter narco-terrorism in defense of the homeland, [Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth] has directed the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group and embarked carrier air wing to the US Southern Command."
The announcement came shortly after the administration announced its 10th strike on what Hegseth claimed to be a drug-running boat, killing six people and bringing the death toll from the operations up to 43. As usual, the claim came with scant evidence.
The narrative that these boats have been transporting drugs to the US has been critically undermined in recent days after two of the alleged "narco-traffickers" who survived one of the Trump administration's strikes were released back to their home countries: One of the survivors, an Ecuadoran man, was set free shortly after returning to his country as officials stated there was no evidence to charge him.
In several other cases, the relatives or home governments of those killed in these bombings have contested that they were not drug smugglers but fishermen.
The strikes have been met with increasing criticism in recent days, not just from Democrats, but from Republican lawmakers—including Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.) and Lisa Murkowski (Alaska)—who co-introduced a war powers resolution last week to require congressional input before carrying out acts of war against Venezuela.
A group of former national security officials—including Rear Adm. Bill Baumgartner of the Coast Guard and Retired Navy Rear Adm. Michael Smith—meanwhile issued a statement on Thursday condemning the strikes as "illegal" and "ineffective."
The International Crisis Group, a nongovernmental organization dedicated to preventing armed conflict, warned Thursday that "what began purportedly as a campaign to stop illicit drugs from getting to US shores looks increasingly like an attempt to force Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his allies from power."
According to several reports, Caracas has allegedly floated proposals that would allow the US to take a dominant stake in Venezuela's oil and mineral wealth.
President Donald Trump's deployment of the Ford strike group, which is currently en route from the Mediterranean Sea, notably comes shortly after the president threatened to begin carrying out strikes on the Venezuelan mainland without seeking authorization from Congress, which led dozens of elected officials throughout Latin America to issue a letter denouncing military aggression in the region.
"The Trump administration is planning to lead a new 'War on Drugs,'" the leaders warned. "That war may start with regime change in Venezuela, but we know that it will not end there. Already, the US is threatening illegal drone strikes on Mexican soil in the name of its 'national security.' If we do not stand for peace now, we risk a new wave of armed interventions across the region, unleashing a humanitarian crisis of unimaginable scale in all of our home countries."
Celso Amorim, an aide to Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, said on Friday, following the announcement of the ship's deployment, that "we cannot accept an outside intervention because it will trigger immense resentment," adding that it "could inflame South America and lead to radicalization of politics on the whole continent."
From Your Site Articles
- Opinion | Venezuela’s Oil, US-led Regime Change, and America’s Gangster Politics | Common Dreams ›
- Opinion | 'Regime change' in Venezuela Is a Euphemism for US-Inflicted Carnage and Chaos | Common Dreams ›
- 'Venezuela, for the American Oil Companies, Will Be a Field Day': Says US Lawmaker Pushing Invasion | Common Dreams ›
- 'Why Is This Hard?' Schumer Won't Say He Opposes Regime Change in Venezuela | Common Dreams ›
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.