Scott Horton Show - Just the Interviews

Episode: 1/9/26 Tom Eddlem on the Capture of Nicolás Maduro
Date: January 15, 2026
Host: Scott Horton
Guest: Tom Eddlem (Libertarian Institute)

Episode Overview

In this episode, Scott Horton interviews Tom Eddlem from the Libertarian Institute to dissect the historical and current realities of the Venezuelan political crisis, focusing on the capture of Nicolás Maduro. Eddlem, an avowed non-interventionist coming from a right-libertarian perspective, scrutinizes both the legitimacy of the Venezuelan socialist regimes and the U.S. policy motives, including regime change efforts and resource grabs. The conversation delves into the Chavez/Maduro legacy, U.S. foreign policy in Latin America, election manipulation, and the international energy and mineral competition that influences American strategy.

Key Discussion Points

1. Revisiting Venezuela’s Elections and Regime Legitimacy

Timestamps: 02:48–09:30

• Election Manipulation:
  Eddlem asserts that in the 2024 Venezuelan presidential election, Nicolás Maduro "pretty clearly cheated." Previously, Maduro genuinely won in the wake of Hugo Chávez's death, but the ongoing economic collapse since 2014 forced him to rely on fraud to maintain power.

  "He needed to cheat in order to stay in power, so he cheated." (Tom Eddlem, 02:48)

• Electronic Voting Machines:
  Eddlem highlights the irony of U.S.-endorsed electronic voting machines being manipulated in Venezuela, contesting American rhetoric about the security of such systems.

  "The interesting thing is he used some of the electronic voting mechanisms that are being promoted here in the United States." (03:25)

• Foreign Influences and U.S. Allegations:
  The conversation touches on the unfounded U.S. claims of Venezuelan influence over American elections and dismisses these as conspiracy with no basis.

2. Historical and Economic Context of Venezuelan Socialism

Timestamps: 04:43–14:13

• The Oil Boom and Bust:
  Eddlem details how soaring oil prices during Chávez's rule bankrolled socialism, allowing nationalization of major industries and massive state spending. However, this "illusion of prosperity" unraveled with the oil price slump post-2014.

• Comparison to Western Socialism:
  Eddlem draws a contrast between the Chavista socialist model and what is sometimes labeled as socialism in the U.S.: "Democrats ... don't want to nationalize the oil industry or the steel industry. Hugo Chávez did."

  "This was real socialism ... Hugo Chavez did, I mean he had agricultural collectives. He nationalized the oil industry." (05:33)

3. U.S. Regime Change Agendas: Guaidó, Machado, and Beyond

Timestamps: 09:30–14:13

• U.S.-Backed Opposition:
  The U.S. tried to install pro-Western figures (Juan Guaidó, Maria Corina Machado) with little genuine support in Venezuela. Eddlem details Machado's ties to U.S. institutions and NGOs funded by the National Endowment for Democracy.

  "[Machado's NGO] started receiving National Endowment for democracy funding in 2003, in 2004 and 2008." (09:57)

• Narrative Shifts and U.S. Motives:
  The narrative justification for intervention shifted from fighting drugs to restoring democracy—but Eddlem ridicules these pretexts:

  "Most of those [deaths] are from meth and, and especially from fentanyl. And none of that comes from Venezuela." (13:10)

4. The 2025 Regime Change: Motives and Irony

Timestamps: 14:13–16:45

• Aftermath of Maduro’s Capture:
  When the U.S. removed Maduro, it backed his vice president rather than the genuine opposition or the person who likely won the election—calling into question the sincerity of American motives.

  "We're going to go with not the one who was elected, but with the one who was illegitimately elected and ran as the running mate." (Tom Eddlem, 14:13)

• Trump’s Admission:
  Trump unwittingly reveals true intentions: "We're going to take the oil, we're going to seize all the tankers and unload the oil, and it's our oil."

  "It's amazing how our oil always ends up under their sand and their forests." (15:10)

5. U.S. Foreign Policy: Resource Grabs, Sanctions, and Collateral Damage

Timestamps: 16:45–32:51

• Oil Politics and Collateral Damage:
  Both Horton and Eddlem emphasize that the U.S. wars and sanctions significantly worsened Venezuela's economic woes but do not absolve the failures of Chavista socialism.

  "How much of Venezuela's economic collapse is socialism? How much is...the collapse of the price of oil? ...How much of it is sanctions, and how much of it is the failure of socialism? Ooh, that would be a study...all three are factors." (Eddlem, 31:06–32:51)

• Sanctions as Warfare:
  Horton discusses the Treasury's fearsome global reach and how U.S. sanctions weaponize the global finance system against disfavored regimes.

  "There's probably no two words scarier other than if you're talking about direct military action than Treasury Department." (Scott Horton, 29:21)

• Oil Nationalization Rhetoric:
  Both debunk the idea that U.S. interventions help American citizens, noting the greater benefit to oil companies and oil barons rather than the public.

  "When Trump says we benefit, I first have to check. Wait a minute, is he pregnant? Does he have a tapeworm? ...Really what he's talking about is the oil barons." (Eddlem, 40:35)

6. International Geopolitics: China, Cuba, and the Next Resource Wars

Timestamps: 24:08–28:22

• Cuban Connection:
  Eddlem and Horton discuss how Venezuela’s oil essentially props up Cuba, making regime change in Venezuela an indirect assault on Havana.

• Race for Rare Earths:
  Horton notes U.S. policy is also driven by rare earth minerals, particularly as a countermove to Chinese attempts at resource monopolization:

  "This policy is meant to make up for that [Chinese rare earth restrictions]. Oh, China is now exercising this extra national control...so now we got to make sure that they're not monopolizing control over the mining and development of rare earth minerals in Venezuela." (Horton, 27:05)

7. The Reality of Oil Economics and American Interests

Timestamps: 32:51–45:25

• Chevron and Oil Company Dynamics:
  The two discuss at length the complexities of oil contracts, with Eddlem noting that most American oil companies had already made their money back before expropriations.

  "None of them went out of business, none of them reported huge losses...you won't find a Wall Street Journal article talking about how ExxonMobil or Conoco or any of those other companies had risked bankruptcy over what happened in Venezuela." (Eddlem, 35:29)

• Who Benefits?
  Both indicate that U.S. oil company profits and crony deals, not the American public, are the main beneficiaries of U.S. intervention.

• Heavy Oil vs. Saudi Crude:
  Eddlem explains the technical limitations of Venezuelan oil—their reserves are large but expensive and difficult to refine compared to "light sweet" Saudi crude.

  "You could still go to Saudi Arabia, stick a toothpick in the sand, and a gusher will come up." (42:53)

8. Final Thoughts, Side Notes, and Notable Anecdotes

Timestamps: 45:25–47:23

• Vulture Fund Lawfare:
  The proliferation of financial opportunists, like Paul Singer's seizure of Citgo, illustrates the “lawfare” tactics at play in global capitalism.

• Speculating on Regime Change:
  Reference to betting markets (Polymarket, Calshi) springing up on the likelihood and timing of Maduro’s ouster—"you could make some serious money doing that if you're in the policy action end of the policy." (Eddlem, 46:51)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Eddlem on Socialism vs. U.S. Interventionism:

  "Billionaires, not socialism, are the greatest threat to the free market...nationalizing the means of production at least partially. Maybe socialism is an actual threat, but...it's the crony capitalism, what used to be called fascism...[that] are the real threat." (38:02)

• Horton on the ‘We’ in Foreign Policy:

  "As soon as they start talking about 'we,' like, I'm not trying to be a language national-socialist here, but I am saying, well, wait, just who all counts as 'we' in this thing?" (39:12)

• On Oil Nationalization:

  "Trump is just taking—now, the money is no longer being administered by the Venezuelan government. But as he said by me personally as President...all of the oil is going to go to the United States. That's...just renationalized to the United States." (Eddlem, 35:55)

• On Cuba and Resource Wars:

  "I think a lot of this is...more about Cuba. The Venezuelan armed forces are thoroughly integrated with Cuban troops...Cuba sends their commie troops to Venezuela and Venezuela sends them oil money." (Eddlem, 24:08)

Closing & Plugs

Timestamps: 47:23–49:33

• Tom Eddlem plugs his new podcast, Blue Collar Breakdown, available on YouTube, Facebook, and Rumble, and mentions his involvement in the Libertarian Institute's podcast feed and past writings.
• Scott Horton reiterates the importance of reading publications like the New York Times and Wall Street Journal (even if you hate them), as these are the media U.S. policymakers consult.

Summary

Tom Eddlem offers a nuanced, critical perspective on the Venezuelan crisis: he simultaneously condemns the failures of socialist economics and exposes the self-interested motives and hypocrisy underlying U.S. regime change policy. The episode illuminates how electoral manipulation, foreign funding, resource rivalry, and geopolitics intersect—often to the detriment of both Venezuelans and ordinary Americans while benefiting political and corporate elites. The discussion is rich in both economic history and policy critique, laced with skepticism and dry humor from both host and guest.

Listen for:

• A detailed takedown of simplistic foreign policy narratives (02:48–09:30)
• Analysis of the real impact of oil, sanctions, and socialism (16:45–32:51)
• Dissection of U.S. motives beneath the slogans of freedom and democracy (especially 14:13, 27:05, 35:55)
• Insightful, darkly funny jabs at American interventionism and crony capitalism throughout