Speaking out against Trump and his banana-pants economic "regime change" wars

When Trump is doing crazy stuff in the United States, Americans can take refuge in saying "well, I didn't vote for him!"

And when it is people inside the United States who are being hurt, international relations morality doesn't require that politicians in other countries speak out (though basic human decency may demand it.)
But when borders are crossed and the United States is trying to implement economic regime change in other countries, this refuge is denied.
That is when the political leaders of other countries MUST speak up, however uncomfortable or terrifying this is, to object to Trump's brazen attempts to tell everyone else what to do.
With the Venezuelan War, so far, Mexico has met the test. And so far, Canada really has not.

Tonda MacCharles / Toronto Star

Mexico denounces arrest of Venezuela’s president as Mark Carney issues carefully worded statement
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum dismissed Trump’s assertion of his America First doctrine, and the right to dominate the hemisphere in the name of U.S. national security.
...As Trump ramped up his own rhetoric to paint Colombia and Cuba as other states with failed leadership, and to muse about Denmark’s ability to secure Greenland, Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum denounced the U.S. military action in Venezuela and called on Trump to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of other nations.
“We categorically reject intervention in the internal affairs of other countries,” Sheinbaum said.
“Unilateral action and invasion cannot be the basis for international relations in the 21st century; they lead neither to peace nor to development,” Sheinbaum said in a strongly-worded three-page declaration Monday.
Sheinbaum referenced past U.S. presidential greats George Washington and Abraham Lincoln and dismissed Trump’s assertion of his America First doctrine, and the right to dominate the hemisphere in the name of U.S. national security.
“Mexico firmly maintains that the Americas do not belong to any doctrine or power. The American continent belongs to the peoples of each of the countries that comprise it,” Sheinbaum said, outlining all the ways Mexico is working with the U.S. to curb narcotics and weapons trafficking.
“Co-operation, yes; subordination and intervention no,” said Sheinbaum — a leader whom Trump has previously counted as an ally in his so-called war on fentanyl....

Liberal politicians also spoke up:

Liberal MP Marcus Powlowski in an op-ed co-written with retired Liberal MP John McKay, a former chair of the Canada–U.S. Parliamentary Group, warned that while Trump’s intervention unseated an authoritarian ruler, it nevertheless carries “consequences” that are cause for alarm not celebration because it will embolden authoritarian rulers in Russia and China.
...Former Canadian ambassador to the UN, Bob Rae, said in a CBC interview that Trump’s declaration that he has the right to act unilaterally within the hemisphere is a clear overreach and “nonsensical.”
“What the hell is this? You can’t unilaterally declare that you have unique jurisdiction over an entire half of the world, and all the people who live in that half of the world just have to put up or shut up,” Rae said.
He said Canada had to stake out a clear position and added now that he is no longer a diplomat he can call Trump’s action the way he sees it, and said “this emperor has no clothes.”...

Meanwhile, this is what the Star reported about Prime Minister Carney:

Carney, who arrived late Monday in Paris, issued over the weekend a carefully worded statement in response to Trump’s capture of Maduro that avoided direct criticism of the U.S. president’s actions.
It underscored Canada’s long-standing opposition to the “illegitimate regime of Maduro since it stole the 2018 election,” and said “The Canadian government therefore welcomes the opportunity for freedom, democracy, peace, and prosperity for the Venezuelan people.”
Carney emphasized the need for a “peaceful, negotiated, and Venezuelan-led transition process that respects the democratic will of the Venezuelan people.”
“In keeping with our long-standing commitment to upholding the rule of law, sovereignty, and human rights, Canada calls on all parties to respect international law. We stand by the Venezuelan people’s sovereign right to decide and build their own future in a peaceful and democratic society,” Carney said.

Hmmm...and nothing more? But actually, there was:

Oh this is interesting: Prime Minister Mark Carney just had a call with Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado

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— Justin Ling (@justinling.ca) January 4, 2026 at 9:03 PM

I hope Carney will come back from Europe tomorrow with a plan. CP published a major article tonight with suggestions about what Canada could do:

Dylan Robertson / The Canadian Press

Experts say Canada should co-ordinate Western Hemisphere response to Maduro’s ouster
Washington recently deployed a new national security strategy that called for the U.S. to exert much more control over the Americas.
..."We’re a long way from a democratic transition here. This actually looks in many ways more like a presidential coup,” said Max Cameron, a University of British Columbia professor who is president of the global Latin American Studies Association.
“If this current government doesn’t want to issue press releases that are directly critical of the United States, at least behind the scenes (it can) put together the doctrinal basis for Canadian liberal internationalism that is counter to American aggressive unilateralism.”
Cameron said Ottawa should be reaching out to other countries Washington has threatened to invade or purchase — such as Mexico, Panama, Cuba and the Danish territory of Greenland — and to regional heavyweights like Brazil to set out a strategy for preserving national sovereignty.
“Much of Latin America welcomes our presence,” he said.
“I would say go to Mexico City, go to Brasilia, sit down with their diplomats and work out a pact that spells out how the rest of the world, particularly in the Western Hemisphere, is going to deal with” a more aggressive U.S., he added.
....“This is a time for leaders to demonstrate some independent resolve, not necessarily annoying Americans but actually finding out in what capacity Canada can influence the situation,” [David Carment, a professor of international affairs at Carleton University] said.
“Should we have reached out to regional partners who may feel equally threatened? I think that would be an important, positive message to demonstrate we have diplomatic influence and carry some weight.”
...Cameron said Ottawa has still contributed to democratic movements in Venezuela over the years and can step up that work to stabilize the country and the broader region.
Canada was part of the Lima Group, a group of countries that tried to mount a peaceful takeover of Maduro’s regime by empowering the opposition that was widely seen as having won the 2018 election...

I am hoping that Carney and Anand will take this kind of action, because Trump has lost his mind and taken the rest of the US government with him:

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- Black Cloud Six

Read on Substack

And Venezuela isn't rolling over:

Reuters natsec reporter Phil Stewart: "Venezuela orders police to find, arrest anyone involved in supporting U.S. attack-decree"

— George Pearkes (@peark.es) January 5, 2026 at 9:22 AM

What they will likely do with in this effort to “crack down” is go after domestic opposition figures which previously were nominally backed by the U.S. but are no longer. It’ll give off the appearance of getting rid of collaborators domestically while actually getting rid of regime opponents.

— industryclear.bsky.social (@industryclear.bsky.social) January 5, 2026 at 9:29 AM

AS long as Rodriquez is compliant to what the US wants, the US doesn't give a shit about purges of anyone. Probably including Machado. I mean, she stole Trump's Nobel prize even!

— Rural Anarchy (@ruralanarchy.bsky.social) January 5, 2026 at 9:06 PM

That last remark from Rural Anarchy was meant as a joke but it actually wasn't:

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Yeah, Donny, I'm sure the US oil companies will be enthralled with spending billions in an unstable country that hates Americans.

“Chaos is coming.”

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— Jon Cooper (@joncooper-us.bsky.social) January 5, 2026 at 12:04 PM

The rest of the world isn't falling into line either:

Protests are breaking out in Europe and Latin America against the most loathed human being in the world, America's psychopath pedophile. 😳👇

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— Bill Madden (@maddenifico.bsky.social) January 5, 2026 at 10:16 PM

"President Miller" thinks he is running America now. I wonder how much anti-historical bullshit he is now feeding to Trump every day?

Eyes wide open, folks. They're revealing the supervillain plot.

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— Wajahat Ali (@wajali.bsky.social) January 5, 2026 at 11:53 AM

Miller thinks Greenland will be a pushover:

TAPPER: Can you rule out the US is going to take Greenland by force? MILLER: Greenland should be part of the US. By what right does Denmark assert control over Greenland? The US is the power of NATO T: So force is on the table? M: Nobody is gonna fight the US militarily over future of Greenland

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— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) January 5, 2026 at 5:26 PM

Wrong!

UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper: "Let me be very clear... Greenland is part of the Kingdom of Denmark... The future of Greenland is a matter for the Greenlanders and Danes, and no one else."

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— Adam Schwarz (@adamjschwarz.bsky.social) January 5, 2026 at 12:34 PM

Denmark's prime minister says Trump is serious about wanting Greenland takeover - www.reuters.com/world/europe...

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— Michael O' (@socratesxxx.bsky.social) January 5, 2026 at 10:29 PM

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I think the Greenland threat is a troll. I think. But it would sure be nice for some senators and GOP house members to speak up now and make it clear that an attack on a nato ally would lead to removal from office

— Adam Kinzinger (@adamkinzinger.substack.com) January 5, 2026 at 8:42 PM

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OPERATION PUFFIN🇺🇸🐧 If the US invaded Greenland, realistically, Denmark would trigger Art.4 (consultation with allies). The meeting’s purpose would be to put every ally on record, halt NATO’s military integration with the U.S., and suspend sensitive joint planning and intelligence flows. The EU would then have to take the lead because this would become a European war-risk. The centre of gravity would move immediately to Brussels (EU), not Brussels (NATO). The EU would have to activate the Mutual Defence Clause (Article 42.7 of the EU Treaty), impose coordinated financial and trade measures on the #UnitedStates, freeze joint defence procurement, technology transfers, and security cooperation. Simultaneously, Denmark and the EU would launch an international legal offensive (Emergency UN General Assembly, International Court of Justice (ICJ), and form a broad, and what would be a very powerful, diplomatic coalition, including Canada, Japan, Australia, South Korea, and much of the Global South. The goal would be to isolate the US morally, economically, and politically. Rather than publicly “ending NATO,” allies could then begin to functionally build a new structure inside the old one ie EU-led command integration, a Franco-British nuclear umbrella, expansion of European rapid-reaction forces, and US participation quietly marginalised. Europe and its partners could seal off logistics, basing rights, and overflight permissions, restrict naval port access, deny intelligence sharing, and coordinate economic pressure at scale. This would raise the long-term cost of occupation while avoiding immediate escalation. But the easiest approach may be to send Trump on a mission to Greenland and corral him in a puffin colony in Alaska!🐧😂

- Pamela Williamson

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With Greenland, Trump would have surrounded Canada. It hasn't taken long for Trump sycophants to start threatening us too:

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🤣🤣

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— Jon Cooper (@joncooper-us.bsky.social) January 5, 2026 at 1:13 PM

"Peace" was so 2025 . . . . .

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— Barraiya (@barriaya.bsky.social) January 5, 2026 at 10:16 PM

It’s genuinely wild that the United States spent decades building an elaborate rules-based international order which de facto cemented its permanent status as the dominant global hegemon, sustained by ideology rather than might, and now is just blowing it all up for literally no reason

— Nute Year, Nute You (@nutedawn.bsky.social) January 5, 2026 at 6:35 PM

Oh, there's a reason all right - Putin gets Europe and Xi gets Asia and Trump gets The Americas:

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Wesley Wark has written a fascinating summary about how the Venezuela war reflects the new US National Security Strategy. Its worth reading the whole piece, but here is his conclusion:

Wesley Wark’s National Security and Intelligence Newsletter

Ignorance is Strength
Or, Where is the intel? What is the strategy?
...The Venezuelan operation is the first exercise of the Trump corollary. It won’t be the last. Removing Maduro was not a classic exercise in political regime change. Trump cares little about democratic outcomes in Venezuela. What the US intends, in line with the NSS, is economic regime change, to force a roll-back of the decades-old Venezuelan nationalisation of its oil industry, to open up Venezuelan oil resources to US control, and to block countries like Russia and China from having access to this energy supply. We will see how that goes—regime change of any kind in a failed state is a risky and unpredictable business. What costs this Venezuelan adventure imposes on the US and on every other dimension of its foreign policy, including its uncertain allegiance to a just peace for Ukraine, remains to be seen, but will not be good.
The National Security Strategy bears repeating as a warning about future US actions:
“we want a Hemisphere that remains free of hostile foreign incursion or ownership of key assets and that supports critical supply chains; and we want to ensure our continued access to key strategic locations.”
If this requires trampling over the principles of sovereignty or international law, so be it. This is a strategy that vaunts the exercise of power and American right.
Fair warning, as they say in auction houses.

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