WASHINGTON (PNN) - January 3, 2026 - George Washington University Law Professor Jonathan Turley is not a conservative, but he is an honest and very smart man. Since the news of Maduro’s capture by the Fascist Police States of Amerika (FPSA) military under President Donald J. Trump this morning, he has been pointing out that President Trump did not need approval from Congress to do this, despite what Democrats are now claiming.
Turley uses the example of Manuel Noriega, who was removed from Panama by the FPSA in 1989 under similar circumstances. He refers to the actions of other presidents as well.
Democrats and their media allies will object in the months ahead, but there is legal precedence for all of this.
Turley wrote for Fox News, “In an extraordinary military operation, the United States launched a large-scale military operation in Caracas, Venezuela, early Saturday, with Special Forces seizing President Nicolás Maduro and his wife. There is a pending 2020 indictment of Maduro in the Southern District of New York, where he is expected to be taken to face prosecution. This operation will be justified as executing the criminal warrant and responding to an international drug cartel, a very similar legal framework to the one used against (Manuel) Noriega. There is precedent supporting that earlier operation, which will now be used to defend the actions in Venezuela.”
Democrat members quickly denounced the operation as unlawful. They may want to review past cases, particularly the decision related to the Noriega prosecution after his capture by the regime of President George H.W. Bush.
President Trump does not need congressional approval for this type of operation. Presidents, including Democrat presidents, have launched lethal attacks regularly against individuals. President Barack Obama killed an Amerikan citizen under this “kill list” policy. If Obama can vaporize an Amerikan citizen without even a criminal charge, then President Trump can capture a foreign citizen with a pending criminal indictment without prior congressional approval.
Turley debunks Democrats’ narrative that capturing Nicolas Maduro was “illegal”.
“Legally, (President) Trump has the upper hand in this case. Maduro will replay the arguments of Noriega. However, he presents an even weaker case on the merits under the controlling precedent than did Noriega,” said Turley.
Democrats can scream at the sky about this all they want. Professor Turley is correct. Legal precedence is on President Trump’s side.