Lawless. Unprovoked. Unauthorized.

This weekend, Donald Trump staged a lawless attack on Venezuela. Trump's lawless actions are exactly the same global interventionism that Americans soundly rejected after decades of failed wars and disastrous meddling in other countries' affairs.

Let me be clear: I strongly oppose Trump's lawless, unprovoked, unauthorized attack, just like I strongly opposed sacrificing American lives in Iraq.

No matter what you think of Venezuela's Maduro, Trump's threat to 'run' the country and put 'boots on the ground' invites another quagmire that would come at a massive cost of lives and money. It also emboldens every authoritarian leader who has similar ambitions.

Trump talked a big game during his campaign about going after drug traffickers and criminals. The fact that he replaced Maduro with one of Maduro's own cronies shows that this was never about going after drug traffickers or cracking down on authoritarianism. Instead, Trump himself has made it clear this boils down to a big payday for his friends and donors.

Oil and gas companies bet big on Trump's re-election, and now they're cashing in. Trump and Pete Hegseth want to go to war with half the globe so they can feel big and strong, while telling the rest of us that we can't afford health care or SNAP.

Republicans control the House, Senate, and the Supreme Court. I'm not under any illusions that they are going to stand up to Trump. The only way to end Trump's lawlessness is for Congress to step up, and failing that, for voters to elect people who have enough backbone to do it.

More soon,

Ron