With Maduro gone, what's Venezuela's future?
Post Reports
The Washington Post
4.4 • 5.1K Ratings
🗓️ 5 January 2026
⏱️ 33 minutes
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Summary
After U.S. forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Saturday, President Donald Trump declared: “American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again.”
The world is still digesting the consequences of the intervention, which the Trump administration has characterized as a law enforcement mission against Maduro rather than a military operation in a foreign country. Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been charged with narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy and machine gun possession.
White House reporter Michael Birnbaum joins host Martine Powers to explain the political ramifications of Maduro’s arrest, the next steps of the Trump administration and the reactions of Venezuelans.
We also hear from Ana Vanessa Herrero, The Post’s reporter in Caracas.
Today’s show was produced by Emma Talkoff, with help from Rennie Svirnovskiy and Reena Flores. It was edited by Ariel Plotnick and mixed by Sean Carter.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Just after noon today, the former president of Venezuela appeared in U.S. District Court in lower Manhattan. |
| 0:10.0 | He had shackles around his ankles. |
| 0:13.0 | He was wearing headphones to translate the proceedings. |
| 0:17.0 | Nicholas Maduro and his wife Celia Flores were there to hear the formal reading of the charges |
| 0:24.0 | against them, charges that they profited from trafficking drugs to the United States. |
| 0:30.4 | Through an interpreter, Maduro and his wife both pleaded not guilty. They declined to request |
| 0:36.1 | being released on bail for now. And Maduro took |
| 0:39.4 | the opportunity in front of the judge to speak publicly about his capture in Venezuela on Saturday. |
| 0:45.6 | He called himself kidnapped. I am innocent, he said. I am not guilty. I am a decent man. |
| 0:54.4 | Here in the U.S., the Trump administration is facing intense criticism over Maduro's capture. |
| 1:00.0 | There are questions about why Congress was never notified about the operation and whether the arrest was even legal. |
| 1:06.2 | And in Venezuela, Maduro's capture has brought up complicated feelings. |
| 1:16.6 | He did have loyal followers, people who believed that he stood up to U.S. imperialism. But he also left a legacy of repression, violence, and political imprisonment. |
| 1:22.6 | For the majority of the people who voted against him in the many elections, and those |
| 1:29.9 | millions who fled and openly talk about him and what he means to them abroad, I think |
| 1:39.8 | Maduro's legacy is going to be a very dark one. |
| 1:45.4 | My colleague Anna Vanessa Herrero is based in Venezuela, and she was in Caracas as the news spread that Maduro had been arrested and taken to the U.S. |
| 1:55.5 | I saw people, families, hugging and crying. |
| 2:02.8 | I remember one of the people that I saw said, wait, it's just the beginning. |
| 2:10.6 | It's just the, we need to wait. |
| 2:11.7 | It's just the beginning. |
| 2:13.3 | As Anna walked through the streets and talked to people, she recalled overhearing a conversation that someone was having on their phone. |
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