NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani ripped the Trump administration Saturday over the U.S military’s capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro and his wife, condemning the act as an overly aggressive “act of war.”
The socialist pol said he called President Trump personally to let him know he vehemently opposed the arrest of the notorious dictator and his wife Cilia Flores – who’ve been fugitives since 2020 — on narcoterrorism charges.
“I called the president and spoke with him directly to register my opposition to this act, and to make clear that it was an opposition based on being opposed to a pursuit of regime change, to the violation of federal international law, and a desire to see that be consistent each and every day,” Mamdani told reporters during an unrelated Brooklyn news conference
“I registered my opposition. I made it clear, and we left it at that,” added Mamdani, referring to his first confrontation with Trump since being sworn in as mayor on Wednesday.
Mamdani slammed the raid hours earlier on X after being briefed by NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch and other city honchos on the planned NYC imprisonment of Maduro and Flores.
“Unilaterally attacking a sovereign nation is an act of war and a violation of federal and international law,” he said.
“This blatant pursuit of regime change doesn’t just affect those abroad, it directly impacts New Yorkers, including tens of thousands of Venezuelans who call this city home.”
Socialist “Squad” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, suggested that illegal drug trafficking, which Trump has said results in 300,000 U.S deaths a year, was not the real motive for the raid.
“It’s not about drugs. If it was, Trump wouldn’t have pardoned one of the largest narco traffickers in the world last month,” the Queens native wrote on X, “It’s about oil and regime change.
“And they need a trial now to pretend that it isn’t. Especially to distract from Epstein + skyrocketing healthcare costs.”
Gov. Kathy Hochul ripped the Trump-sanctioned raid as a “flagrant abuse of power by acting without Congressional approval.”
“New York is home to a vibrant Venezuelan community, and I stand with families here and abroad in their hopes for a better, more stable future,” she wrote on X.
House Majority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer issued a joint statement saying Trump’s plan to have the U.S. temporarily “run” Venezuela until there’s “proper” transition into new leadership is “unacceptable.”
“It is critical that the Trump administration provide an immediate ‘Gang of Eight’ briefing, followed by briefings for all Members of the House and Senate early next week,” said the New York Dems, referring to the group of bipartisan pols who deal with classified intelligence matters.
