U.S. & Venezuela - Senate Republicans defeat Venezuela war powers resolution

[FrancieFootball 374]

Just now, Ron_Artest said:

Us boots on the ground?  That's a good thing?

The guy still butthurt about Iraq and Bush all excited about the U.S. takeover of Venezuela.

[Hardcore troubadour 16,234]

7 minutes ago, Ron_Artest said:

Us boots on the ground?  That's a good thing?

No jackass. A guarantee they won’t lose any money. 

[SaintsInDome2006 887]

U.S. oil giants tell Trump they're noncommittal on Venezuela

>>>

Driving the news: Trump said that U.S. companies would have security guarantees. But he didn't provide details or commit to a U.S. military presence, while citing the industry's experience operating in difficult venues. 

• He also said oil companies would be "dealing with us directly. You're not dealing with Venezuela or we don't want you to deal with Venezuela."

Reality check: Exxon CEO Darren Woods said Venezuela is currently "uninvestable" without "significant changes" to commercial frameworks and the legal system.

• "There has to be durable investment protections, and there has to be change to the hydrocarbon laws in the country," Wood said in his first public remarks since Maduro's ouster.

ConocoPhillips CEO Ryan Lance cautioned the need for discussions with banks — likely including Export-Import Bank of the U.S. — "as we think about how the debt needs to be restructured in the financing to deliver the billions of dollars that are required to restore their energy infrastructure."

• And though he said his company "stands ready to help," he cited the need to broadly restructure the country's energy system.
• His company, like Exxon, exited Venezuela's nationalized sector around two decades ago in a dispute with then-President Hugo Chávez's regime and had its assets expropriated.

And Chevron, the only U.S. company operating in Venezuela, also sounded a note of caution in a statement following the meeting.

• "Our focus remains on the safety of our people, and the integrity of our assets in strict compliance with all laws and regulations applicable to its business, as well as the sanctions frameworks provided for by the U.S. government," the company said.

Catch up fast: Venezuela has massive oil reserves. But it has seen production dwindle after decades of mismanagement, underinvestment and — in more recent years — U.S. sanctions.<<>

[SaintsInDome2006 887]

 

[Ron_Artest 2,764]

It is estimated that in order for big oil investment to make financial sense they would need $80 barrel 

[dogcows 1,441]

Trump will only allow the majority-winning government into power if Ms. Machado gives him her Nobel Peace Prize.

The Nobel Institute told him off.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-machado-nobel-peace-prize-c7f47c161edc9b719dea3d0165f32a1f?utm_source=flipboard&amp;utm_medium=activitypub

Quote

WASHINGTON (AP) — The organization that oversees the Nobel Peace Prize is throwing cold water on talk of Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado giving her recent award to President Donald Trump.

Once the Nobel Peace Prize is announced, it can’t be revoked, transferred or shared with others, the Norwegian Nobel Institute said in a short statement on Friday.

“The decision is final and stands for all time,” it said.

Are MAGA fans ready to call for the 25th amendment yet?

[dogcows 1,441]

It’s now so dangerous in Venezuela that the state dept is telling Americans not to go there, and any who are there to leave immediately.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jan/10/us-citizens-venezuela-paramilitaries?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

[Horseman 2,845]

3 minutes ago, dogcows said:

It’s now so dangerous in Venezuela that the state dept is telling Americans not to go there, and any who are there to leave immediately.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jan/10/us-citizens-venezuela-paramilitaries?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

[Hardcore troubadour 16,234]

3 minutes ago, dogcows said:

It’s now so dangerous in Venezuela that the state dept is telling Americans not to go there, and any who are there to leave immediately.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jan/10/us-citizens-venezuela-paramilitaries?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Now? They’ve been on the list many times.    Nice try clownshoes. 

[Ron_Artest 2,764]

9 minutes ago, dogcows said:

It’s now so dangerous in Venezuela that the state dept is telling Americans not to go there, and any who are there to leave immediately.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jan/10/us-citizens-venezuela-paramilitaries?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

This is going great.

Magas said the Venezuelan were dancing in the streets

[HellToupee 2,386]

I guess we used some wild tech to grab Maduro

Quote

US used powerful mystery weapon that brought Venezuelan soldiers to their knees during Maduro raid: witness account

 Summarize

By 

 Published Jan. 10, 2026 

Updated Jan. 10, 2026, 1:15 p.m. ET

WASHINGTON — The US used a powerful mystery weapon that brought Venezuelan soldiers to their knees, “bleeding through the nose” and vomiting blood during the daring raid to capture dictator Nicolas Maduro, according to a witness account posted Saturday on X by the White House press secretary.

In a jaw-dropping interview, the guard described how American forces wiped out hundreds of fighters without losing a single soldier, using technology unlike anything he has ever seen — or heard.

“We were on guard, but suddenly all our radar systems shut down without any explanation,” the guard said. “The next thing we saw were drones, a lot of drones, flying over our positions. We didn’t know how to react. through the nose” and “vomiting blood,” according to a witness account. Validated User Content

Moments later, a handful of helicopters appeared — “barely eight,” by his count — deploying what he estimated were just 20 US troops into the area.

But those few men, he said, came armed with something far more powerful than guns.

“They were technologically very advanced,” the guard recalled. “They didn’t look like anything we’ve fought against before.”

Explore More

What ensued, he said, was not a battle, but a slaughter.

“We were hundreds, but we had no chance,” he said. “They were shooting with such precision and speed; it felt like each soldier was firing 300 rounds per minute.”

Then came the weapon that still haunts him.

“At one point, they launched something; I don’t know how to describe it,” he said. “It was like a very intense sound wave. Suddenly I felt like my head was exploding from Getty Images

The effects were immediate and horrific.

“We all started bleeding from the nose,” he said. “Some were vomiting blood. We fell to the ground, unable to move. We couldn’t even stand up after that sonic weapon — or whatever it was.”

 

[SaintsInDome2006 887]

11 hours ago, dogcows said:

It’s now so dangerous in Venezuela that the state dept is telling Americans not to go there, and any who are there to leave immediately.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jan/10/us-citizens-venezuela-paramilitaries?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

>>

The United States has urged its citizens to leave Venezuela immediately amid reports that armed paramilitaries are trying to track down US citizens, one week after the capture of the South American country’s president, Nicolás Maduro.

In a security alert sent out on Saturday, the state department said there were reports of armed members of pro-regime militias, known as colectivos, setting up roadblocks and searching vehicles for evidence that the occupants were US citizens or supporters of the country.<<

This is just Americans. No one wants to invest in this environment. 

[dogcows 1,441]

1 minute ago, SaintsInDome2006 said:

>>

The United States has urged its citizens to leave Venezuela immediately amid reports that armed paramilitaries are trying to track down US citizens, one week after the capture of the South American country’s president, Nicolás Maduro.

In a security alert sent out on Saturday, the state department said there were reports of armed members of pro-regime militias, known as colectivos, setting up roadblocks and searching vehicles for evidence that the occupants were US citizens or supporters of the country.<<

This is just Americans. No one wants to invest in this environment. 

The oil execs who met at the White House told the prez that it’s un-investable.

After his staff got him to stop looking out the window and go back to his chair that is….

[SaintsInDome2006 887]

10 hours ago, HellToupee said:

Moments later, a handful of helicopters appeared — “barely eight,” by his count — deploying what he estimated were just 20 US troops into the area.

But those few men, he said, came armed with something far more powerful than guns.

“They were technologically very advanced,” the guard recalled. “They didn’t look like anything we’ve fought against before.”

- NY Post

I really sincerely hope we didn’t unveil some super secret technology on this mission. What a waste if so.

[HellToupee 2,386]

1 hour ago, SaintsInDome2006 said:

- NY Post

I really sincerely hope we didn’t unveil some super secret technology on this mission. What a waste if so.

Whatever they show was most likely a scratch n sniff that they purposely wanted to show. . It’s not like we broke out tictac technology etc

[squistion 2,711]

From NYT subscriber content:

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/12/us/politics/us-boat-attacks-law.html?campaign_id=60&amp;emc=edit_na_20260113&amp;instance_id=169179&amp;nl=breaking-news&amp;regi_id=125207237&amp;segment_id=213558&amp;user_id=14502a7228c5a9b835a15627514bfe28

U.S. Attacked Boat With Aircraft That Looked Like a Civilian Plane

The Pentagon used a secret aircraft painted to look like a civilian plane in its first attack on a boat that the Trump administration said was smuggling drugs, killing 11 people last September, according to officials briefed on the matter. The aircraft also carried its munitions inside the fuselage, rather than visibly under its wings, they said.

The nonmilitary appearance is significant, according to legal specialists, because the administration has argued its lethal boat attacks are lawful — not murders — because President Trump “determined” the United States is in an armed conflict with drug cartels.

But the laws of armed conflict forbid combatants from feigning civilian status to fool adversaries into dropping their guard, then attacking and killing them. That is a war crime called “perfidy.”

Retired Maj. Gen. Steven J. Lepper, a former deputy judge advocate general for the United States Air Force, said that if the aircraft had been painted in a way that disguised its military nature and got close enough for the people on the boat to see it — tricking them into failing to realize they should take evasive action or surrender to survive — that was a war crime under armed-conflict standards.

“Shielding your identity is an element of perfidy,” he said. “If the aircraft flying above is not identifiable as a combatant aircraft, it should not be engaged in combatant activity.” 

[...]

[FrancieFootball 374]

Trump: We are taking over Venezuela and its oil! Woot! Come one come all oil companies! Woot. Go America! America Firstest! This will be the greatest opportunity in the history of great oil opportunities, and no other president in history has achieved such a thing.

Exxon and other officials: Um, Venezuela is a mess and uninvestible. No thanks. Political instability, unfavorable laws, high taxes, corruption, crappy infrastructure, having to process heavy crude and low oil prices. Prolly should have thought about that.

Trump: I'm inclined to keep Exxon out of Venezuela! No heavy crude in a crappy all-round situation for you, Exxon! 

Exxon: 

 

[Fnord 2,712]

Giant conglomerates never wanna pay for the infrastructure.

If you had to give a guess which of the following groups are more likely to foot the lions' share of the expense from this boondoggle-to-be, which is it?

oil companies

Trump associate(s) TBD

 Venezuelan citizens

American taxpayers

[squistion 2,711]

 

[HellToupee 2,386]

Perfidy

[SaintsInDome2006 887]

On 1/12/2026 at 6:15 PM, squistion said:

The Pentagon used a secret aircraft painted to look like a civilian plane in its first attack on a boat that the Trump administration said was smuggling drugs, killing 11 people last September, according to officials briefed on the matter. The aircraft also carried its munitions inside the fuselage, rather than visibly under its wings, they said.

Aside from perfidy it’s illegal to bomb a civilian vessel in international waters. Somewhere in that thick Hegseth skull he must’ve realized the first time out it was all illegal so he sought to hide the martial nature of it. It’s all the more crazy when you realize we’ve devoted a whole tenth of our navy to this. If not to hide their true purpose what was the point?

[TimHauck 3,520]

So the President no longer needs congressional approval in order to take over other countries?  Seems like a slippery slope

[seafoam1 3,589]

3 minutes ago, TimHauck said:

So the President no longer needs congressional approval in order to take over other countries?  Seems like a slippery slope

what a dope. 

[Hardcore troubadour 16,234]

Winning

[SaintsInDome2006 887]

US gets first $500 million Venezuelan oil deal, holding some proceeds in Qatar

>>>The Trump administration’s first sale of Venezuelan oil is valued at $500 million, an administration official told Semafor.

….Revenue from the oil sales is currently being held in bank accounts controlled by the US government, as indicated in Friday’s order, according to the administration official. The main account, according to a second senior administration official, is located in Qatar.<<<

[seafoam1 3,589]

1 minute ago, SaintsInDome2006 said:

US gets first $500 million Venezuelan oil deal, holding some proceeds in Qatar

>>>The Trump administration’s first sale of Venezuelan oil is valued at $500 million, an administration official told Semafor.

….Revenue from the oil sales is currently being held in bank accounts controlled by the US government, as indicated in Friday’s order, according to the administration official. The main account, according to a second senior administration official, is located in Qatar.<<<

cool. Now what are you gonna cry about without knowing the facts of things? 

[squistion 2,711]

1 hour ago, HellToupee said:

Perfidy

It appears you have no idea what perfidy is. For your edification so you don't embarrass yourself any further.

AI Overview

 

Perfidy in war is a serious violation of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and a war crime, defined as acts that invite an adversary's confidence to betray it, like faking surrender, wounds, or civilian status to launch a surprise attack.

It's distinct from lawful ruses, which don't abuse protected status, and blurs lines between combatants and protected persons, increasing risks for civilians and surrendering soldiers. Examples include misusing emblems like the Red Cross or pretending to be a civilian to attack. 

[SaintsInDome2006 887]

7 minutes ago, squistion said:

It appears you have no idea what perfidy is. For your edification so you don't embarrass yourself any further.

AI Overview

 

Perfidy in war is a serious violation of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and a war crime, defined as acts that invite an adversary's confidence to betray it, like faking surrender, wounds, or civilian status to launch a surprise attack.

It's distinct from lawful ruses, which don't abuse protected status, and blurs lines between combatants and protected persons, increasing risks for civilians and surrendering soldiers. Examples include misusing emblems like the Red Cross or pretending to be a civilian to attack. 

Just look at a Websters on your bookshelf. Perfidy means treachery or deceit. It’s like walking up to someone on the street & stabbing them in the back & taking their wallet. 

[HellToupee 2,386]

8 minutes ago, squistion said:

It appears you have no idea what perfidy is. For your edification so you don't embarrass yourself any further.

AI Overview

 

Perfidy in war is a serious violation of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and a war crime, defined as acts that invite an adversary's confidence to betray it, like faking surrender, wounds, or civilian status to launch a surprise attack.

It's distinct from lawful ruses, which don't abuse protected status, and blurs lines between combatants and protected persons, increasing risks for civilians and surrendering soldiers. Examples include misusing emblems like the Red Cross or pretending to be a civilian to attack. 

I was laughing at the buffoon who wrote the story and the rube who parroted it. 
 

war crime    Oof

 

on a side not to everyone I also read James Ellroy’s Perfidia , which means if anyone cares , treachery, betrayal etc

[HellToupee 2,386]

Squishy explains it all

 

 

[squistion 2,711]

2 minutes ago, HellToupee said:

I was laughing at the buffoon who wrote the story and the rube who parroted it. 

war crime    Oof

on a side not to everyone I also read James Ellroy’s Perfidia , which means if anyone cares , treachery, betrayal etc

Yeah, war crime by international law. 

So...if US soldiers donned the Red Cross emblem and used that disguise to kill enemy soldiers, that would be cool with you? 

[HellToupee 2,386]

Just now, squistion said:

Yeah, war crime by international law. 

So...if US soldiers donned the Red Cross emblem and used that disguise to kill enemy soldiers, that would be cool with you? 

war crime 

 

let me guess anonymous sources

 

you fell for it again 

 

[squistion 2,711]

1 minute ago, HellToupee said:

war crime 

let me guess anonymous sources

you fell for it again 

I fell for The Geneva Convention? 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perfidy

Geneva Conventions

Perfidy is specifically prohibited under the 1977 Protocol I Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, which states:

English Wikisource has original text related to this article:

Protocol I of the Geneva Convention

Article 37. – Prohibition of perfidy

1. It is prohibited to kill, injure or capture an adversary by resort to perfidy. Acts inviting the confidence of an adversary to lead him to believe that he is entitled to, or is obliged to accord, protection under the rules of international law applicable in armed conflict, with intent to betray that confidence, shall constitute perfidy. The following acts are examples of perfidy:
   1. The feigning of an intent to negotiate under a flag of truce or of a surrender;
   2. The feigning of an incapacitation by wounds or sickness;
   3. The feigning of civilian, non-combatant status; and
   4. The feigning of protected status by the use of signs, emblems or uniforms of the United Nations or of neutral or other States not Parties to the conflict.
2. Ruses of war are not prohibited. Such ruses are acts that are intended to mislead an adversary or to induce him to act recklessly but which infringe no rule of international law applicable in armed conflict and which are not perfidious because they do not invite the confidence of an adversary with respect to protection under that law. The following are examples of such ruses: the use of camouflage, decoys, mock operations and misinformation.

Article 38. – Recognized emblems

1. It is prohibited to make improper use of the distinctive emblem of the red cross, red crescent or red lion and sun or of other emblems, signs or signals provided for by the Conventions or by this Protocol. It is also prohibited to misuse deliberately in an armed conflict other internationally recognized protective emblems, signs or signals, including the flag of truce, and the protective emblem of cultural property.
2. It is prohibited to make use of the distinctive emblem of the United Nations, except as authorized by that Organization.

[SaintsInDome2006 887]

8 minutes ago, HellToupee said:

let me guess anonymous sources

“Retired Maj. Gen. Steven J. Lepper, a former deputy judge advocate general for the United States Air Force, said…”

[HellToupee 2,386]

5 minutes ago, squistion said:

I fell for The Geneva Convention? 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perfidy

Geneva Conventions

Perfidy is specifically prohibited under the 1977 Protocol I Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, which states:

English Wikisource has original text related to this article:

Protocol I of the Geneva Convention

Article 37. – Prohibition of perfidy

1. It is prohibited to kill, injure or capture an adversary by resort to perfidy. Acts inviting the confidence of an adversary to lead him to believe that he is entitled to, or is obliged to accord, protection under the rules of international law applicable in armed conflict, with intent to betray that confidence, shall constitute perfidy. The following acts are examples of perfidy:
   1. The feigning of an intent to negotiate under a flag of truce or of a surrender;
   2. The feigning of an incapacitation by wounds or sickness;
   3. The feigning of civilian, non-combatant status; and
   4. The feigning of protected status by the use of signs, emblems or uniforms of the United Nations or of neutral or other States not Parties to the conflict.
2. Ruses of war are not prohibited. Such ruses are acts that are intended to mislead an adversary or to induce him to act recklessly but which infringe no rule of international law applicable in armed conflict and which are not perfidious because they do not invite the confidence of an adversary with respect to protection under that law. The following are examples of such ruses: the use of camouflage, decoys, mock operations and misinformation.

Article 38. – Recognized emblems

1. It is prohibited to make improper use of the distinctive emblem of the red cross, red crescent or red lion and sun or of other emblems, signs or signals provided for by the Conventions or by this Protocol. It is also prohibited to misuse deliberately in an armed conflict other internationally recognized protective emblems, signs or signals, including the flag of truce, and the protective emblem of cultural property.
2. It is prohibited to make use of the distinctive emblem of the United Nations, except as authorized by that Organization.

So obtuse

 

 

 

 

ob·tuse

/əbˈto͞os,äbˈto͞os/

adjective

1. 

annoyingly slow to understand; dull-witted

[squistion 2,711]

1 minute ago, HellToupee said:

So obtuse

ob·tuse

/əbˈto͞os,äbˈto͞os/

adjective

1. 

annoyingly slow to understand; dull-witted

Obtuse? I can read what the Geneva Convention plainly states and what the US did falls under that definition of perfidy. 

[Gepetto 1,505]

3 hours ago, squistion said:

 

 

[TimHauck 3,520]

46 minutes ago, SaintsInDome2006 said:

“Retired Maj. Gen. Steven J. Lepper, a former deputy judge advocate general for the United States Air Force, said…”

@HellToupee trying to make fun of people for supposedly believing fake news is pretty hilarious 

[HellToupee 2,386]

34 minutes ago, TimHauck said:

@HellToupee trying to make fun of people for supposedly believing fake news is pretty hilarious 

Listen tag guy, Lepper is a fellow traveler of the person who posted his name. Both ravaged with TDS like Capone was ravaged by syphillis. Both have a tds track record going back to the first Trump presidency 

[RaiderHaters Revenge 4,599]

2 hours ago, TimHauck said:

So the President no longer needs congressional approval in order to take over other countries?  Seems like a slippery slope

where have you been the last 70 years?