The best defense is offense, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Thursday as he outlined the purpose of the American military buildup near Venezuela.
“President Trump ordered action — and the Department of War is delivering. Today, I’m announcing Operation SOUTHERN SPEAR,” Hegseth wrote in a post on X.
“Led by Joint Task Force Southern Spear and @SOUTHCOM, this mission defends our Homeland, removes narco-terrorists from our Hemisphere, and secures our Homeland from the drugs that are killing our people.”
President Trump ordered action — and the Department of War is delivering.
Today, I’m announcing Operation SOUTHERN SPEAR.
Led by Joint Task Force Southern Spear and @SOUTHCOM, this mission defends our Homeland, removes narco-terrorists from our Hemisphere, and secures our…
— Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (@SecWar) November 13, 2025
“The Western Hemisphere is America’s neighborhood – and we will protect it,” he wrote.
As noted by ABC, the U.S. has about 15,000 troops in the region now that the USS Gerald Ford carrier strike group has arrived off of the South American coast. The Ford’s arrival comes after weeks of targeting boats operated by drug traffickers.
President Donald Trump was given military options during a Wednesday briefing over if he wanted to ramp up the pressure campaign against Venezuela.
If the U.S. and Venezuela come to blows, the South American nation will rely on Soviet-era military hardware, according to CNN.
Is this a good idea?
Its army “has a rather low level of operational capability and asset availability, partly because they’ve been through more than a decade of economic crisis in the country,” Andrei Serbin Pont, an analyst specializing in defense at the CRIES think tank, said.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and drug cartels are intertwined objectives, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina posted on X.
“To those who wonder about what’s going on in Venezuela, you should understand President Trump is deadly serious about stopping the narcoterrorist state of Venezuela from continuing to poison Americans with illegal drugs,” Graham wrote.
“President Trump also believes Maduro is an illegitimate leader whose days are numbered. I agree with President Trump’s assessment of the situation in Venezuela,” Graham wrote.
To those who wonder about what’s going on in Venezuela, you should understand President Trump is deadly serious about stopping the narcoterrorist state of Venezuela from continuing to poison Americans with illegal drugs. President Trump also believes Maduro is an illegitimate… https://t.co/HqTa2MtuDx
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) November 13, 2025
“I do not consider Maduro a legitimate leader but rather, a drug trafficker who has been indicted in U.S. courts. Bush 41 took Panamanian leader Noriega down under similar circumstances. There is a drug caliphate in our backyard that includes Venezuela, Colombia and Cuba.”
“I am very glad President Trump is dedicated to ending this reign of terror. The sooner Maduro leaves, the better for the people of Venezuela and the United States,” he continued.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the massive military presence is to combat “organized criminal narco-terrorists,” according to the Associated Press.
“That’s what he’s authorized. That’s what the military’s doing. That’s why our assets are there,” he said Wednesday.
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