Democrats savor a ‘grab bag’ of new attack lines as Republicans defend Trump on Venezuela

Republicans have spent days casting the stunning arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro as the ultimate display of strength and power.

But Democrats see something far different looming: a new set of political vulnerabilities for the opposing party.

Democrats believe unexpected military action in Venezuela, on top of President Donald Trump and his top aides making overtures about annexing Greenland and threatening leaders in Cuba and Colombia, offer them an array of anti-Republican messaging, some of which could remain potent as they head into a volatile midterms season.

They point to Trump’s comments about the United States running the South American nation and his signaling that oil companies could benefit from the new American intervention as evidence of hypocrisy from a Republican leader who campaigned on moving the nation away from foreign involvement and focusing on improving the lives of average Americans.

“All of this raises the question of: Why is this good for America? This is Mr. America First, and it seems like there is no way to explain how this is good for the United States, and I think that is problematic for Republicans,” said Matt Bennett, co-founder of the center-left think tank Third Way. “The question of what is this guy doing in a moment when Americans are really struggling, he seems to be completely lost in this world of hemispheric dominance that doesn’t do anything for Americans.”

But the administration has proffered that the president’s aggressive foreign policy posture — what Trump now calls the “Donroe Doctrine,” modeled after President James Monroe — is intent on creating hemispheric stability that strengthens America.

While some Democrats in interviews noted the situation is new with developments still fluid, they say they still see plenty of room to push back on the White House’s unilateral approach.

Already, Democrats, including the Democratic National Committee, have sent out fundraising emails citing the White House’s move in Venezuela as the ultimate example of Trump as a chaos agent. Some say it builds on existing Democratic messaging on affordability, holding up Venezuela as evidence that Trump and Republicans are out of touch.

An NBC News poll published in December showed that the economy is still the top concern for the majority of Americans, including persistent inflation. At the time, 64% said the country is on the wrong track, which was up from 60% in April.

While most Democrats acknowledge elected officials must be sure to applaud the military personnel that carried out an operation that led to the arrest of Maduro and his wife, they say Trump’s actions, and his complete stranglehold on a party unwilling or uninterested in pushing back on him, has offered them a potpourri of talking points.

That includes giving Democrats attack lines in competitive Senate races in states like Maine and Texas.

“There was really a grab bag for different kinds of Democrats to pull different arguments out of this,” said Andrew Mamo, a Democratic strategist who is working for Senate candidates in purple and red states, including Texas Senate Democratic candidate James Talarico.

Mamo said it allows Talarico to fortify a “top versus bottom populism” argument he’s long spoken about. But more broadly, he said Republicans are vulnerable to arguments that Trump did not follow through on the core issues of the 2024 election.

“It was about cost of living. It was about the border. It was about a change from the status quo. It was not about ‘the invasion of Iraq, the redux,’” Mamo said. “Democrats being able to make that case, especially to Trump voters who are thinking about what to do in 2026 when he’s not on the ballot, I think is a real opportunity here.”

Progressives, led by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, framed it as an oil grab that further illustrates how the rich are getting richer under Trump.

“It’s not about drugs. If it was, Trump wouldn’t have pardoned one of the largest narco traffickers in the world last month. It’s about oil and regime change,” Ocasio-Cortez said on X. “And they need a trial now to pretend that it isn’t. Especially to distract from Epstein + skyrocketing healthcare costs.”

Other Democrats cast Trump as power-obsessed at a time when Americans are hurting economically.

“Never has a President wagged a dog harder than Trump and MAGA now,” Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, also a 2028 short-lister, said on X. “To distract from [the files of Jeffrey] Epstein, the explosion of health and homeowners insurance costs, and the tariffs that are decimating small businesses, Trump is plunging this country into a war and using our soldiers as pawns.”

But some on the left aren’t on board. One House Democrat was worried about the party criticizing and fighting Trump on blowing up drug boats and capturing Maduro, arguing that it makes Democrats appear weak on drug cartels.

“It’s so stupid of us,” the Democratic lawmaker said.

And California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is also widely expected to explore a 2028 presidential run, kept more of a distance from criticizing the actual arrest, instead leaning into Trump’s lack of a preparedness for the moment. Newsom and his typically quick-trigger @govpressoffice social media handle — which gained national attention for its mocking, chiding style of the Trump — stayed uncharacteristically silent as the events unfolded over the last several days.

“Maduro is a thug and a criminal. But Donald Trump proposing to ‘run’ Venezuela without a coherent long-term plan beyond an oil grab is dangerous for America,” Newsom said in a statement, which his press office said it was only releasing upon request. “The path forward must be democracy, human rights, and stability.”

Republicans, though, are quick to slap down the torrent of criticism headed their way. Instead, they’re seizing on Democratic complaints to cast the left as sympathetic to a brutal regime.

“Democrats are rushing to defend an indicted narcoterrorist responsible for the deaths of thousands of Americans. President Trump brought a criminal to justice and made our country safer, while Democrats chose to side with our enemies,” Republican National Committee spokesperson Kiersten Pels said in a statement. “Voters won’t forget who is standing up for their safety when they head to the ballot box this November.”

Meanwhile, the White House is painting Democrats as hypocritical. On social media and on its website, the White House highlighted nine congressional Democrats who had complained about Maduro in the past and chided Trump for being too weak on Venezuela, only to now complain about the administration’s actions.

“Democrats spent years howling that Maduro was a ruthless tyrant who had to be delegitimized, pressured, and removed,” a statement on the White House website states. “But the instant President Trump succeeds where they failed, they erupt in furious hypocrisy — prioritizing their unhinged hatred of President Trump over American interests and national security.”

Inside Congress, the debate has centered on the legality of the White House’s unilateral action and lack of intelligence sharing with elected leaders. Still, congressional Democratic leaders are performing a balancing act, given Maduro’s unsavory reputation.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., called Maduro a “bad guy” and praised the U.S. troops who captured him, but blasted Trump and his administration for carrying out “unauthorized” military action without congressional approval and accused the president of destabilizing the region with no plan.

Other Democrats also expressed frustration that the White House has not articulated a clear plan for moving forward.

“I’m still very concerned about the situation potentially crumbling and disintegrating … especially as Donald Trump continues to leave open the door of troops on the ground,” Sen. Andy Kim, D-N.J., who worked in civilian roles in Iraq and Afghanistan during the Obama administration, told NBC News. Trump, Kim said, seems obsessed with oil production in Venezuela.

“Trump just practices this mob-boss tactics, and we see it now extending from the domestic politics into foreign policy,” Kim added. “He is essentially running an extortion foreign policy right now, where everything he is trying to do with regards to Venezuela is about: What can we get out of it?”

The president is expected to meet with oil executives at the White House on Friday, according to a U.S. official. On Wednesday, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said he was working “directly in cooperation with the Venezuelans” and U.S. oil companies to explore the conditions under which oil production could be expanded.

In an interview with NBC News, Trump said the United States may reimburse oil companies to rebuild Venezuelan infrastructure.

“A tremendous amount of money will have to be spent, and the oil companies will spend it, and then they’ll get reimbursed by us or through revenue,” Trump said.

Oil companies, however, have appeared skeptical of quickly acting in Venezuela after a history of state asset seizures, ongoing U.S. sanctions and political instability.