The president of the United States is not above the law. He only thinks that he is.

TITLE 18, U.S.C., SECTION 242

Whoever, under color of any law, statute, ordinance, regulation, or custom, willfully subjects any person in any State, Territory, Commonwealth, Possession, or District to the deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States, … shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year, or both; and if bodily injury results from the acts committed in violation of this section or if such acts include the use, attempted use, or threatened use of a dangerous weapon, explosives, or fire, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both; and if death results from the acts committed in violation of this section or if such acts include kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill, shall be fined under this title, or imprisoned for any term of years or for life, or both, or may be sentenced to death.

News has just broken that the United States has attacked Venezuela by bombing its capital, Caracas, and captured kidnapped both President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, and now have them in custody. This unconstitutional action follows the months-long killing spree on fishermen off the coast of Venezuela, among others, without any attempt made to interdict, board, and search the boats. It was just alleged that they were carrying drugs and, as such, were a threat to the “national interests” of the US.

Whether or not Maduro was captured kidnapped remains to be seen, but it is quite evident that the actions of Donald Trump and his administration go against the clear meaning of the above-cited section of criminal law and could potentially open them up to prosecution should the Democrats gain control of the Congress in 2026. If the “war”¹ is speedily concluded and Trump’s regime change gambit works as planned, then there is no danger of that, but if he has committed the country to another “forever” war which cannot be won, then all bets are off concerning the mid-term election.

1. Whoever…willfully subjects… Can there be any question that Trump has not willfully acted? After all, he has boasted that, as president, he can do whatever he wants and has constantly said what he wanted to do with Venezuela and Maduro.
2. …Any person… It is difficult to claim that this does not include even fishermen in small boats.
3. …in any State, Territory, Commonwealth, Possession, or District…Ah, here we get into the legal mumbo-jumbo of the text. It can and will be claimed that Venezuela is NOT a state, territory, commonwealth, or district of the US and, therefore, this does not apply. However, it was only a few months ago that the White House released its National Security Strategy which openly declared that the entire western hemisphere was the second incarnation of the Monroe Doctrine which assumed sovereignty over the entire area of North, Central, and South America, to the exclusion of any foreign power. Interpreted this way, Venezuela IS a territory and possession of the US Government.
4. …if bodily injury results… No question about this. See the afore-mentioned fishermen blown out of the water and deliberately murdered. [Update: Up to 40 people on the ground in Venezuela might have been killed. This number will probably fluctuate for some time and may settle at a higher number.]
5. …if such acts include the use, attempted use, or threatened use of a dangerous weapon, explosives, or fire… Again, without doubt.
6. …if death results from the acts committed… See Item #4 above.
7. …if such acts include kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap… Trump himself has stated that Nicolas Maduro and his wife were both captured kidnapped and are in the custody of the US.²
8. …shall be fined under this title, or imprisoned for any term of years or for life, or both, or may be sentenced to death. This does not have to be explained.

It used to be that presidents, while perhaps condoning or committing criminal acts in secret, would attempt to maintain a squeaky-clean, public image. Those days are also gone. Today, they are out in the open for the whole world to see, hear, and experience. I’m pretty hard on Trump, but I will give him credit for one thing–he says the quiet things out loud. This may be due to his propensity to open his mouth before engaging his brain, but it is a fact that he does not hesitate to proclaim his doings.

Venezuela has been a major, big-league, supplier of oil to China. What will happen if, all at once, that supply is shut off and denied? The implications of this are almost too frightening to think about, but it is imperative that we (when I say we, I mean you) do think about them because they will have some sort of effect on all of us.

It’s the end of the world as we know it. But, then, history shows that this is the way it’s always been and people have survived through it all. This time is no different, except for the fact that the “dogs of war” are coming closer and closer to home.

God help us!

1. Technically, this is NOT a war as the Congress is the only entity which has the constitutional authority to declare war. Since Congress has NOT declared war against Venezuela (Korea, Viet Nam, Iraq, Afghanistan, Panama, Grenada, Iran, etc.), then military adventures of this type become merely “police work” to enforce the will of the president. In the current situation, Congress is, at least, as guilty as the administration because it failed to rein him in during a recent vote. ↩︎
2. Together with the alleged Ukrainian attempt to assassinate Russian president, Vladimir Putin, this precedent could easily become a slippery slope which puts any single official, regardless of his or her office, at risk of becoming “collateral damage, terminated”. Years ago, protocol demanded that high government officials were not to be physically harmed, but those days are gone. ↩︎