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This is an iHeart podcast, Guaranteed Human.
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Coming up on American Sunrise Early Edition, Extreme Action. U.S. forces capture Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro and his wife, now in US Custody facing drug and terrorism charges today in a Manhattan courtroom. Plus, celebrations erupt, fans cheer across Venezuela and right here at home, where Americans are applauding this bold show of power. But not everyone is happy. Some members of Congress are sounding off, questioning the mission. All of that and so much more coming up on AMERICAN Sunrise EARLY edition. Good morning. Welcome to AMERICAN SUNRISE EARLY edition. I'm Alison Hans live from West Palm Beach. It is so great to have you with us this morning. Let's bring in my co host Brian Glenn to check in on the latest happenings overnight. Good morning, Brian. Hey, nothing happened over the weekend, right?
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C
Can you believe that? We're sitting on January 3rd and all of a sudden all this news comes out about Venezuela. And of course, you have all the developments in the Middle East. There's so much going on. And you know, Alison, as we enter what, year two of this Trump administration, man, we are seeing things off and running as quickly as day 3rd of the year. So it's been incredible.
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B
Absolutely. It was ridiculous. I was in that phase where, you know, during the vacation, you don't know what day it is, what's going on. And like finally by Saturday, I was like, okay, it is Saturday tomorrow, Saturday Sunday. And that was blown out the window because I was just sucked into the story and following every detail. So it was just, you know, absolutely an amazing, amazing capture. And now I think all eyes are on Manhattan this morning. I think actually noon is when the arraignment will take place, but just a spectacular, spectacular capture and mourning.
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C
And Alison, if you think about it, whenever President Trump left Washington, D.C. to kind of go to Mar a Lago for the holidays, many of us at the White House felt like, okay, well, this is a time that we all have a little bit of a break. He's going to be playing golf, spending time with his family. Yeah. This guy not only worked at the White House, but he almost is doing more sitting on the patio at Mar a Lago as we saw those images come across the screen. So, yeah, President Trump taking no days off so far going into year two.
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B
Absolutely. Absolutely, Brian. Well, let's take a look at our Bible verse this morning.
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C
I'll give it to you. Oh, wonderful. This verse is Psalm 27:1. It says, the Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life, of whom shall I be afraid I think this is a great passage here. And, you know, it's, it's really interesting. In my bio on social media, I like to use the phrase do not fear. It's one of the most commonly used phrases in the Bible. And we shall not fear anything. Fear no evil at all. And speaking of fearlessness, early Saturday morning U. S Forces executed a dangerous, precise mission to capture Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro and his wife. Now, Allison, the details of this, of this operation read like something out of a movie.
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B
Absolutely, Brian. U.S. forces captured Venezuelan leader Maduro and his wife early Saturday morning. And as we've been talking about, they're now in U.S. custody, facing terrorism and drug charges. Operation Absolute Resolve was months in the making. More than 150 aircraft struck in the early hours on Saturday, striking with precision and surprise. Delta Force commandos raided Maduro's residence in the middle of the night. One US Aircraft was damaged, but all of them returned safely. Now this operation shows American power, intelligence and military skill at its best. Here is what the president had to say just a few hours after its successful completion.
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Late last night and early today, at my direction, the United States armed forces conducted an extraordinary military operation in the capital of Venezuela. Overwhelming American military power, air, land and sea was used to launch a spectacular assault. And it was a assault like people have not seen since World War II. It was a force against a heavily fortified military fortress in the heart of Caracas to bring outlaw dictator Nicolas Maduro to justice. This was one of the most stunning, effective and powerful displays of American military might and competence in American history.
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B
For more on this incredible operation and the tactics behind it, let's welcome in Mike Sorelli, retired U.S. navy SEAL officer. Mike, good morning and great to see you and thank you for being here with us.
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E
Allison, thank you for having me.
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B
Okay, Mike, when you received word on the operation, what was going through your head?
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E
Well, I didn't receive word until I woke up on Saturday morning, and it put a smile on my face. I mean, if this doesn't make you proud of the American military, I don't know what does. And if you aren't, you've got a problem because this was and will be one of the most historic high risk capture and extraction missions that will be memorialized in military history. I mean, the raid combined air dominance, intelligence, mastery in the precision of special operations to take down a despot and bring him into custody.
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B
So, Mike, can you tell us a little bit about how the aircraft came in the details? Because I know that you have experience in these types of things. How the aircraft came in and then turning off the lights and, and all of that.
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E
Well, yeah, this, this is the, the joint capacity and capability of the US military. So first off, this was months in the planning. Something of this magnitude requires constant rehearsals, revisions to the plan, but more intel. More importantly, the intelligence community has to build a pattern of life on Maduro to fix him to a target that eventually JSOC Delta commandos felt comfortable that they could successfully execute this mission. So with this, ultimately they used pre assault fires on multiple locations around Caracas. Now that does two things. First, it eliminates any air defense threats that could bring a risk to the aircraft carrying the commandos on, the infiltration or the exfiltration out. Secondly, it creates this confusion when you hit multiple targets that the Venezuelan forces don't know if it's a mass invasion of the country or if it's a precision raid like it was. But for these 10 plus aircraft carrying the commandos, plus the 150 overhead supporting them, you had electronic warfare, you had lift, you had strike capabilities. They did turn off the lights on the military base and ultimately the commandos came in quickly, spent very little time on the ground, even though they did meet resistance, capture Maduro, secure him and his wife and get out safely. I mean this is the complexity and the sophistication of something in this magnitude. There's only one military in the world that could execute it and that is the US Military.
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B
Brian, I'd like to.
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C
Yeah, yeah, I was going to say let's take a listen to what Secretary of War Pete Het said had to say about this and we'll talk on the flip side.
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Nicolas Maduro had his chance, just like Iran had their chance. Until they didn't. And until he didn't, he effed around and he found out President Trump is deadly serious about stopping the flow of gangs and violence to our country. Deadly serious about stopping the flow of drugs and poison to our people. Deadly serious about getting back the oil that was stolen from us, and deadly serious about re establishing American deterrence and dominance in the Western hemisphere. This is about the safety, security, freedom and prosperity of the American people. This is America first. This is peace through strength. And the United States War Department is proud to help deliver it. Welcome to 2026.
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C
Okay, Mike, so from a military perspective, and what's interesting, I never thought we'd hear the words FAFO uttered during a press conference, but we pretty much had that illusion there. What message does this send to the rest of the world? He mentioned Iran, but what message does it send to other countries that hey, you know, when we give you a chance to negotiate and if you choose not to negotiate, well, then fafo.
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E
Yeah, Pete's good to go. So I think FAFO is probably officially submitted into military doctrine now, as it, as it should be. No. So I think the message it sends is that no one is outside the reach of the United States military and Justice Department. We just showed that on Friday night. But I mean, here are the implications. When you think about it, we are going to see a major reshuffling of the chessboard globally. I mean, Venezuela was brics only reliable anti US Energy stronghold, the Americas. We just constrained brics to Asia and Africa and basically decapitated China's Belt Road influence in the Western Hemisphere. Additionally, this further isolates Putin in a time that he doesn't need it. And we've totally killed this shadow energy economy. And when this Venezuelan oil hits the market, we're going to see lower prices globally. So it is a, it's a great thing for the United States, it's a great thing for the Western Hemisphere and even our allies in Asia, Europe and Africa.
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B
Mike, let's change gears and turn to the, to the legal side of the Maduro story. The US Attorney General Pam Bondi has released a new indictment alleging that Maduro and his family use their power to traffic massive amounts of cocaine and into the US including using state aircraft to move drugs through Miami and Mexico. Mike, from a military and strategic perspective, what does this indictment tell us about the extent of Maduro's operations and the message America is sending by bringing these types of charges?
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E
Well, you know, he's dead to rights, we know that. And Pani and the Justice Department will make sure that happens. But again, strategically in sort of the world message is China, Russia, Iran and any terrorist proxy is not welcome in the Western hemisphere. This Monroe Doctrine, which I'm hearing now is called the Donro Doctrine, has been long overdue. We've been so fixated on the global war on terror as we should be at that time, that we've taken our eye off the Western hemisphere. And for the first time we've had a president that has the fortitude to reestablish Western, you know, doctrine within the Western hemisphere. This is a message to the world and again it further isolates our foreign adversaries. This was a smart, just in morally conviction, morally righteous, righteous call for which the left guys, we can never expect them to understand. I've never seen such moral confusion by a party. And I think this is the great question. If Obama had made this decision with the same intel, same circumstances, would the Democrats be celebrating in the streets as this was morally just because right now I think they put moral their hatred for Donald Trump ahead of their moral conviction.
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C
Okay, we got 10 seconds. By the way, Obama killed Gaddafi, didn't bring him into a courtroom. He killed him. So Democrats needed to go back and think about that. Five seconds left. What is the future now that Maduro's in custody? What is the future of, of Venezuela? About 30 seconds.
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E
I'll put you this way. Removing a despot through military means is the easy part. That doesn't take away from the bravery the men demonstrated on the ground. But now with a transition period, and this is why President Trump wants to assert some control over the transition of Venezuela. Exactly. So that China, Russia and Iran don't try to corrupt free and democratic elections. And, and guys, that's the hard part. And we're going to have to watch.
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It day by day, which we will be doing. Thank you so much, Mike.
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Thanks, Mike.
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Coming up, join us as we break down Congress's response to the Maduro operation. Who supported, who criticized and why. That's coming up next. And welcome back to American Sunrise EARLY edition. I'm Alison Hahn. Let's bring back in my co host Brian Glenn. Hey there, Brian. This is interesting. The political response to the Maduro operation is, as we've seen throughout the weekend, already making some waves. Some Democrats supported the action, but others are criticizing the administration of for not notifying Congress. Now, Senator Chris Murphy goes so far as to say Democrats were misled about the administration's intentions for Venezuela. Let's take a listen.
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Well, I can certainly tell you the message that they sent was that this wasn't about regime change. I mean, they came to Congress and they literally lied to our face. They said this is just a counternarcotics operation. This is about trying to interrupt the drug flow to the United States. Right around that same time, the White House chief of staff said publicly if we ever had boots on the ground in Venezuela, of course we would have to come to Congress. Listen, there's no way to trust this administration. They aren't being straight with the American people. There isn't even a briefing scheduled for Congress next week to explain A, what happened and B, what the plan is moving forward. But yes, I mean, I think everybody in that briefing heard the administration say we this is just a targeted counternarcotics operation. This has nothing to do with regime change. They knew they weren't telling the truth in that room.
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B
Okay, the thing, Brian that's laughable to me is that they're going to go to Congress with such a detailed and strategic operation and lay out everything what they intend to do. So I think the senator there is really, really messed up in his interpretation of what happened.
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C
Well, here's the deal. And this is why many times that any kind of military plans aren't shared with Congress or even anyone outside that inner circle, because let's just say they would have had some congressional hearing about what they could potentially do. You know, there's leaks. You know, Democrats would want to, you know, push this thing sideways six ways to Sunday. So it would not have happened. It would endangered lives of our military. But here's the deal. We, we didn't go to war with Venezuela. This was nothing but a targeted narrative. Get them out. So we didn't need justification. And I'll remind you, I said this in previous segment. Democrats, Obama, Gaddafi took him out, murdered him, killed him. They didn't capture him to bring him back to a US Courtroom to face trial or face justice. They went out and murdered him. And I didn't hear any one of the Democrats complaining then. So we actually captured Maduro, Alison. Now he's going to go to a courtroom that you can argue that's a very liberal district. And in New York. So I don't, between Mandani and Governor Hochul, I'm not quite sure that they're going to push the law of the book of law on this on Maduro. But we'll, we'll find out about that. But, hey, look, this is about securing the safety of America, and that's what President Trump did.
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B
And also, I think that people in the streets in New York at least were maybe misinterpreting what had happened because there were some protests that were erupting in Times Square of people. I mean, you're basically out there protesting to protect a narco trafficker, which is absolutely absurd to me.
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C
Well, they protected Maryland man when he was an illegal. They protected him. They flew every flag. The Mexico flag, the Palo Palestinian flag, the Iranian flag. Now they're flying the Venezuelan flag in protest. How about flying the American flag, Allison, and protecting our country and celebrating the rights that we have now, you can argue now that, you know, Krissy Noem is going to open up refugee status to many of these Venezuelans. We'll see what, what that looks like. And it's got a little bit of pushback. But Democrats can't identify, they can't find their cause yet. That is going to resonate With Americans right now, it's just hate Trump, push back on Trump, whatever he does, just hate Trump. That's not going to necessarily work in the midterms. And I think we're going to find out that, you know, the liberation of Venezuela and these people, we've seen the outward support of that as well, Alice. There was also support protests or support rallies, if you will, across the country. So let Americans see that as well. Let them make up their mind.
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E
Yeah.
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B
I think Americans also have to see the details of the indictment and the threat that Maduro and his team really were and continue to be to the people of the United States. I think that's being lost right now. I know the news is moving very quickly, but, you know, I think the Democrats are going to come out and be, you know, saying regime change, regime change, it's all about the oil, you know, because that's the, that can be a good narrative for them to follow. But the details inside this indictment of the threats and abuse that we've taken as a country, the people of this country, from this man, that has to be amplified, I think.
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C
Yeah, I agree. And we'll find out what that indictment looks like and we'll find out that it's not about. And I read something this morning, it's not entirely about the oil. The oil is not as easy as what some people would say to get that we've put so many sanctions on Venezuela that it's an actually very poor country right now. So it's going to take a lot of money and resources to fire a lot of those refineries back up, which is going to require US Capital to do that. And so we may not see the effects of this oil. From what I'm reading this morning, it'll be later than sooner, but nevertheless, it will stabilize the oil market. This is about the petrodollar. We can go into a different discussion a little bit later. I know we're running short on time, but this is about the stabilization of the dollar in terms of oil. And if you look at brics and what is happening there, the shift that was happening in brics that was really going to crush the US Dollar and perhaps send our economy into a spiral.
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B
Excellent point. Thanks, Brian. Well, coming up, Daniel DiMartino joins us to share his story. He fled Venezuela in 2016 as a teenager, and today he talks about how socialism destroys countries around the world. Plus, we'll show celebrations and expressions of hope in Venezuela following Maduro's capture. Stay with us.
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C
All right, welcome back. Before we dive in let's get a quick word from our sponsor, Artillery Tea Company, the only America first veteran owned tea brand. Their mission is maximize flavor with whole leaf blends and chemical free tea bags. No junk, just real tea. And here's the tactical advantage. Each bag brews twice. Just go to artilleryteaco.com and use the code RAV. The information's on your screen there for 10% off your first order. That's artillerytco.com premium tea, mission driven, brewed for the brave. And we were. I'll bring in my co host Allison real quickly. That is a live look at Maduro. Looks like getting ready to get in a copter there to head to court. I mean it's all developing as we are on the air right now. Allison.
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B
Well, no shortage of visuals throughout the past 48 hours. Obviously the helicopter there and over the weekend the helicopter is coming in to New York, going right past the Statue of Liberty and also Maduro, you know, tied up and coming over to face charges. I think those images are very important to show to the people they are.
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C
Well, you know, we've looked through history every time we've something like this has happened. It's really been a historical playbook of what eventually you fast forward what's the result of all of this. And that kind of brings up our next guest in terms of that I'm going to bring in Daniel DiMartino. The people of Venezuela are expressing pure joy following Maduro's capture. Here's one citizen who's celebrating talking about what it was like to live under Maduro's regime. Check it out once you watch.
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I came in this country when I was 10 years old and ever since I was born, every single person in power of the country has abused us and abused our power. We have been living in a dictatorship for about 20 years. So I can tell you this feels like a breath of fresh air.
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B
And to give us more insight, we're joined by Daniel DiMartino who fled Venezuela in 2016 as a teenager due to the worsening conditions under socialism. We just heard it from that young woman right there. Daniel, are those your thoughts this morning?
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H
Yes. You know, I think we all share the same sentiment among the Venezuelan population and that is that the reason we are even here is because our country was destroyed. You know, it reminds me a little bit of I don't know if you read Soram Mamdani, the socialist mayor of New York City. He's his shameful statement this weekend over Maduro's capture and he said that he cared about Venezuelan New Yorkers. And all I was thinking is the only reason Venezuelan New Yorkers exist is because Maduro destroyed our country. Otherwise there would be no Venezuelan New Yorkers and none of them support Maduro. We.
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C
We.
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H
Our country was destroyed. I want you to understand. We had a life like many Americans do, with cars, with homes, electricity, water, jobs, and then everything was gone gradually, of course. But, you know, my family went from making maybe 2 or $3,000 a month in the early 2000s to 100 in 2016.
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B
What does someone do on $100 a month in Venezuela?
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H
That's a very good question. You know, people buy food. That is their number one priority. And then they leave off reminiscences. And then some people, like the people who have died in the boat strikes, they decide that the best thing for their life is to become drug dealers.
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B
Well, Daniel, we have this photo of you holding up the New York Post showing Maduro captured. I just absolutely love it because I think the sheer joy on your face says it all. But what was going through your mind when you heard the news? Is this something that you were expecting?
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H
Well, no, but I'll say it's something that I had been praying for my entire life, really. When I was a kid, all I could dream was for the regime to end so that I didn't have to leave my country when I grew up. I ended up leaving. I've been 10 years outside of Venezuela. If I were to go back, I would be arrested. I'm on a list, but I really look forward to the day Venezuela's regime finally falls in the next few months, hopefully, so that I can go back and visit. I mean, there's so many people that I haven't seen that I really want to see help rebuild the nation.
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C
Daniel, real quickly, you said you'll go back and get arrested because you're on a list. What does that look like? Why is that list compiled? And why are you on a list? What did you do?
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H
Well, partly it's just being here with you guys and talking about this topic and, you know, condemning Maduro. For many years, I had been calling for this type of military intervention for. For a long time. And the regime really hates that. As you can see. It was effective, so they had a good reason to dislike that. But. But that's why they took me to the Venezuelan Supreme Court to strip me of my citizenship, even though I'm a natural born citizen. But, you know, it's not like it matters. But. But it's still. But they could arrest Me, of course, Daniel Maduro got arrested first. That. That's all it matters.
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B
I mean, people are, Daniel, on the streets in Venezuela. But I would imagine that there's also a sense of trepidation, as we really don't know who's going to lead into the future. What is that mood like on the ground? If you have been in touch with family and friends.
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H
Yes, and I have friends that lived very close to the military bases that were struck. I'll tell you, the blasts were very strong. Some of the windows in the adjacent residences were blown away and broken. People are still happy about it, but it's just to give you some perspective of how big this strike was. But what I will say is people in Venezuela are scared, not of what the US did, but of that the regime is still in power. And that if they are out in the streets celebrating like we are in the rest of the world, they could be arrested, too. There are armed communist groups out in the street that Delsey Rodriguez, the VP in charge, has sent to intimidate the population. I don't think that she has fulfilled the promises that she has done to the Trump administration. You know, something that the audience needs to understand is that the people around Maduro are just like Maduro. They're indicted, too. We have reward for their head. And they are snakes who will try to deceive the Trump administration to remain in power until Trump leaves office so that they can go back to doing the same things all over again. That's why we cannot trust them.
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C
Yeah, Real quickly, Daniel, we're taking a look right now at a live shot. Maduro in custody. Yeah, I mean, the images are playing out. So, Daniel, as you look at this right now, I don't know if you can see it on your playback screen. What do you think the reaction is right now in Venezuela? I'm assuming they're probably watching the same thing.
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H
What are they thinking right now? All I can say, Brian, is that this is glorious. This is glorious. Seeing them in an arrested uniform, him and his wife, too. That evil, evil demon. I don't know if you know this, and I say demon with a very good description. I mean, these are worshipers of witches and, and they're not Christian. You know, he has an old picture with this Indian shaman or something. They brought this religion into Venezuela called Santeria. They worship, you know, they sacrifice animals. They dress all in white. It's some Afro Caribbean thing that didn't exist in Venezuela. They brought the Iranians, people wearing full burkas in the Margarita Island. We didn't have any of that in Venezuela before these people. And so, you know, they're really, really evil, evil folks. And I'm very happy that President Trump is doing justice.
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C
Real quick, I know we're going to cause Venezuela is a Catholic, what could be considered a Catholic nation, right?
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H
That's right.
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C
Okay.
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H
Well, there's a rising number of evangelicals, too.
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B
Unbelievable. Essentially looking at Maduro crawling in on his knees, which I think is appropriate for today's election.
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H
You know, President Trump did something great, which is that he could have killed Maduro and instead we're gonna get a public show of justice under American law. What a glorious thing. What a lesson, right? What a lesson for the world, for the regime and then still threatening them. You know, now you have the chance to do the right thing or the same thing or worse is gonna happen to you.
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B
Absolutely amazing.
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C
Well, I appreciate you joining us, Daniel. You're a brave person. God bless you and your family. And for any loved ones that you have back in Venezuela, our prayers go for them as well.
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B
Thank you, Daniel.
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H
Thank you. Thank you.
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B
Coming up next, we're taking a closer look at Operation Absolute Resolve and the capture of Venezuela's Nicholas Maduro and his wife. We'll hear from Jonathan Gilliam, former FBI special agent and Navy seal, about how this mission went down and what it means for America's national security. We will be back in two minutes. Coming up on American Sunrise EARLY Edition, bold strikes. US Forces taking Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro and his wife into custody early Saturday morning. Facing serious drug and terrorism charges today in Manhattan. And next celebrations erupt. Venezuelans cheering for freedom. And here at home, Americans applaud this daring display of American power and political heat. Congress is divided with some lawmakers criticizing the mission. All of that and so much more as AMERICAN SUNRISE EARLY EDITION continues right now.
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C
All right. Welcome back to AMERICAN SUNRISE EARLY edition. I am Brian Glenn. I want to bring in Allison real quickly as we watch the trans transportation of Maduro in US Custody. This looks like right now he's being transported. We saw him get off the helicopter. Now we're being transported, which I would presume to be the courthouse. We'll keep an eye on that shot as it goes. So, Brian, you know, what does the president and the White House have on the schedule today? Well, I'm going to tell you there is a briefing a little bit later this morning about not only this, but there's also a policy discussion that's taking place. So we get the details. Now, what we've seen in the last month or so, Allison, as there, the president will release a weekly schedule. Have not gotten that as of right now, but it'll lay out the schedule for the week. But we all. We've seen as things develop and things get put on the plate, more discussions, more meetings, more briefings will take place. They've got a policy briefing a little bit later this morning as well.
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B
That sounds good. And we'll also dip into more live shots of Maduro. Pulling up to the court in a moment. But, Brian, first. The president and his team pulled off what's being called one of the most audacious military operations in recent history, Operation Absolute Resolve. Early Saturday morning, U.S. forces launched a highly coordinated strike to capture Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro and his wife. It involved intense intelligence work, elite troops, and more than 150 aircraft to secure the capture without losing any American lives. To break down how all this went down and what it means for national security, we're joined by Jonathan Gilliam, former FBI Special Agent and Navy seal. Jonathan, thank you so much for being here with us this morning.
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Hey, good to be with you both. Brian, I'm sorry, I think I was calling you Frederick there a second ago. So we'll stick with Brian.
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C
Yeah, very good.
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B
Okay, Jonathan, first, walk us through how this operation came to fruition and why it is being called so daring.
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I
Well, it's interesting how President Trump began to focus so heavily on Maduro and Venezuela when you think that there's so many other things that he should be focusing on way before any of that. But when you start to look at the things that affect our national security on a daily basis, what you start to see is that Venezuela plays a tremendous role in all of those things, and they're the closest to our border, and that is. That's that involved. So in other words, in our region, the powerhouse of drug movements, of cozying up with China, with Russia, and with Iran, as we see, there's reports of Hezbollah fighters that were in Venezuela. So Venezuela, Maduro, and the regime there were cozying up the people that are our gravest national security threats. At the same time, they were getting richer. They were running a drug cartel that was supplying tremendous amounts of drugs all over the world, including into our own country. And they were profiting from all of this to a point where as they grew more powerful, the people of Venezuela grew poor and poorer. That's a country. I was there 11 years ago on a protection detail and was detained for almost three hours. And it was a very sketchy situation. But at that time and for those three days that I was there, what I saw was that they were the haves, and that's a very small group. And the have nots and the have nots have nothing.
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C
Yeah, that's pretty scary. Now, Jonathan, not everyone is on board. As we spoke, New York City Mayor Mandani has weighed in on this, opposing the capture of Maduro and calling it potential violation of international law. I don't know what law he's following on this, but let's hear what he had to say about that. We'll talk on the other side by.
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F
My first deputy mayor, my chief of staff, my chief counsel, the police commissioner, as well as other members of my team. I called the president and spoke with him directly to register my opposition to this act and to make clear that it was an opposition based on being opposed to a pursuit of regime change, to the violation of federal international law, and a desire to see that be consistent each and every day.
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C
Now, Now, Jonathan, mayor of Mondani, calls this, quote, a violation of international law. So from a military strategic perspective, how do you respond to that, and does it change the legal or political ramifications.
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I
For the U.S. well, international law does not govern our country. And who and when we attack, the threats to our country is what determines who and when we attack. And the interesting thing about this president is that, you know, when we look back when I was in the military, in the SEAL teams, and even when I was in the FBI, I realized that, you know, the operators who are the experts really don't determine who we go to war with. We don't determine who the the enemy is that's worthy of our military actions. And it's the politicians. And politicians are typically not experts in the art of warfare. So when you look at the international laws or the laws of warfare, you can tell that politicians created those because they're not effective except for the enemy, and they're very effective for the enemy because they don't follow them, and they expect us to follow them. So when Mandabi talks, you're looking at a socialist who's angry because another socialist, probably somebody that I would imagine if you tracked it all the way back, has connections to Maduro somewhere. And I think when you. When you look at the overall picture of this, Donald Trump is running the military from a military expert's point of view, and that's the difference. He surrounded himself with experts in the art of warfare, and he listens to them, not to politicians and the rhetoric that they spew.
- [38:47]
B
And, Jonathan, we're looking at a live shot outside of the courthouse in lower Manhattan of Maduro pulling up. What can we expect today, this morning?
- [39:00]
I
Well, I'm expecting he's going to be making his first appearance today. I, I'm assuming he has not made his first appearance. Maybe he has, but these are going to be the same things that anybody goes through when they get arrested. They're going to go there, they have arraignment, he's going to be in the, what you're looking at right there is just the immediate area right around one police plaza as well as the different courthouses. There's the federal courthouse, there's this, the city hall that you always see in law, not law and order, but one of those shows where they come walking down the steps. It's a very famous area right over there, 26 Federal Plaza is just over to your left of the screen on the top. So you're going to see a lot of stuff going on down there. And he's going to be pushed into the system where he's been housed in the eastern district jail now, but now he's going to be in the southern district court system and so things are going to start moving quickly, probably more quickly than most trials that we see in any civilian court.
- [40:07]
C
Johnny, let me ask you this because I, I, I saw this online and people were questioning this. Why try him in New York, a very liberal governor, liberal mayor. Is there a chance that the judge, a jury, the court system will simply dismiss these charges or let him get off on lesser charges rather than bring him in a court system that has a little bit more conservative, a little bit more, I would think, fair not to say that New York's not fair, but it's a very liberal court system. What's, what do you think the thinking of that was?
- [40:43]
I
So the southern district of New York is typically where these international cases go through. I'm not really sure why that is. It has something to do with the way that the, the, the DOJ is set up. And the interesting thing is that the AUSAs, that's Assistant U S. Attorneys and the in the U S. Attorney there, they, their entire careers are made off of these type of cases. So from the start you're going to see attorneys that are dead set on convictions, which is different than you would see in other cases where even the prosecutors and the judges aren't really dead set on getting a prosecution. This is their careers, their careers are made by cases like this. So that's the good part of it. The grand juries in New York and around that area and then the juries in a court case, it could always go either way with this type of stuff. So I would think they're going to be looking for people, potentially even Venezuelan Americans to be on any type of a jury and people who can these attorneys that go through and pick these people out. There are groups of people in that country that hate these types of socialists, which is so interesting because they just elected a socialist. And I would say the majority of people in New York probably don't agree with Mandami.
- [42:05]
B
So Jonathan, what are you looking out for in the next couple of days, next couple of weeks?
- [42:12]
I
Well, them keeping him safe. We want to see him alive. I want to see him go through this court case. And so you'll see a lot of really quick things happen right now and then it'll slow down. And that's when the, the defense attorneys are involved and things start moving at a, at a slower pace as soon as the court system starts to kick in. It's rare that you see these court cases go super fast like they did for instance, with Saddam Hussein in Iraq. That court system pushed him through and he was hung very quickly. So him and the people who work for him. So I don't think you're going to see that same thing play out here. Now that he's in the system, you're going to start seeing simple steps that our legal system takes and his defense attorneys and the judges will get involved there.
- [43:02]
B
Thank you, Jonathan, so much for sharing your insight and perspective on the operation and the court case ahead.
- [43:10]
I
You got it. Thank you.
- [43:11]
B
Appreciate it. And before we move on, a quick word from our sponsor, Birch Gold. A new year means new financial goals like making sure your savings are secure and diversified. Will this be the year you finally listen and talk to someone from Birch Gold Group? Honestly, they're great people. I appreciate their educational approach and their understanding of macroeconomics. There are forces pushing the dollar lower and gold higher, which is why they believe every American should own physical gold. So until January 30th. That's January 30th. If you are a first time gold buyer, Birchgold is offering a rebate of up to $10,000 on qualifying purchases. To claim eligibility and to start the process, just text America to 989-898. Birchgold can help you roll an existing IRA or 401K into an IRA in gold and you're still eligible for a rebate of up to ten grand. Make right now your first time to buy gold and take advantage of A rebate of up to $10,000 when you buy by January 30th. Once again, text America 989898, claim your eligibility today. Once again, just text 989898. Coming up, David Brody joins us for a brief discussion on the capture of Maduro and what to expect over the next two hours of American Sunrise. Stay with us. Welcome back to American Sunrise early edition. You are looking at a live shot of lower Manhattan where Maduro and his wife will face charges later today. Let's bring back my co host Brian Green.
- [45:13]
E
Len.
- [45:14]
B
And joining us today, where's that triple box American Sunrise host David Brody? There he is.
- [45:21]
J
I'm in the triple.
- [45:23]
B
Good morning. Okay, David, first, what do you take on the capture of Maduro and his wife? Let's hear it.
- [45:31]
J
I mean, yeah. Do we have nine and a half hours? I mean, we can just go on and on. But look, I think for our purposes here, especially at Real America's Voice and on this show, we have to talk about, is this a MAGA move? I think that is the key question. And look, let's be honest, I think you can make the argument on both sides. I'm not suggesting that one side is right or the other. I know that sounds like I'm waffling. But I will say this, that we don't know what the final outcome here is. The minute Trump said we're running the country, it was like, my gosh, wait, what? And when I heard him say making Venezuela great again, I was like, wait, what? I don't think anybody signed up for that. Now, having said that, if this is gonna be boots on the ground and we're talking about this in two, three, four, five months, and all of a sudden we're getting down into a quagmire there. Yeah, obviously all bets are off. Let's see what happens in the next 30 days or so. Because look, once again, you can make the argument that if Maduro, I shouldn't say if Maduro, we know is sending drugs over here, he's killing people. Oh, we gotta go. I hear the music already.
- [46:41]
B
We gotta go. David, thank you. We'll get to you in about 30 seconds. Brian, thank you. We'll see you back here tomorrow. American Sunrise is up next. See you in a few.
- [47:03]
A
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