The only United States President in history to violently attack his own country, and attempt a coup to stay in power was always going to be a threat to illegally attack other countries like Venezuela, and destabilize the entire world.
This was the greatest fear when Donald J. Trump was recklessly reelected in 2024 by a slim majority of voters in a battered country that is split apart at the seams, and gasping for air.
Trump, of course, promised these people he’d fix 90 percent of our problems on Day One, and has instead doubled and tripled them, while officially becoming the most dangerous problem the United States has ever had to grapple with.
He is a madman with the most powerful military in the world under his fat little thumb, a blank check from a Republican Congress which has surrendered its powers, and a bought-off Conservative Supreme Court that has lost its honor.
To be clear, Trump’s continued attacks on Venezuela have been illegal from the start, violate our Constitution, and have been an affront to the Uniform Code of Military Justice.
We told the people who voted for Trump this was going to happen, and while I’d like to sit here and used 225 choice words to rub their faces in it, that will accomplish nothing except blowing an old, functioning fuse.
This morning is a time for resolve, and a clear-eyed vision of the scary road ahead. We are in uncharted territory, but not because we have unilaterally and illegally attacked a sovereign nation. Lord knows there’s been far too much of that in our checkered history.
No, we are in this new, terrible place, because this time a man who has made it clear how little respect he has for the United States and its institutions is behind this latest illegal attack.
I say again: A man who will attack his own, has long since proven he is incapable of defending us and our Democracy.
In fact, he is our enemy.
So now what?
The answer is simple, and the execution will be hard: America has a dangerous dictator entrenched in its White House, who must be removed.
Starting right now, I am suggesting Congress move immediately to assemble a coalition of the willing, and announce their intent to work feverishly toward Trump’s removal.
We simply will not survive three more years of this, or even three more weeks or months at this frenetic, bloody pace, and that must be clearly articulated. Trump’s “presidency” thus far has been chaotic, brutal, and has accomplished nothing but weakening our standing in the world, and making our day-to-day lives far more challenging, expensive, and stressful.
Building consensus for Trump’s removal will be key, and cannot be done politically unilaterally. I doubt highly many Independents who voted for Trump to drop their egg prices voted for illegal, murderous foreign attacks, or Marines in our streets. I am also dubious that many in MAGA are good with Trump’s fixation on everything but addressing our skyrocketing cost of living.
This case for his removal must be taken to the public, begin apace, and the stakes must be laid out clearly: Donald J. Trump is a morally busted, mentally unstable tyrant who won’t stop until he is stopped cold.
This is classic fascism.
He is clearly unfit for the job, and the most dangerous man on Earth.
I am also suggesting the Democratic leaders throughout the world condemn these attacks and lay out the necessary sanctions against us for our illegal acts. The majority of the people in this country would support this during this time of war.
What Trump has done to Venezuela is no different than what Vladimir Putin has done to Ukraine.
Listen to me, friends around the world: We need your damn help.
When another murdering fascist, Adolph Hitler, attacked Poland in 1939 in the run-up to World War II, he justified it with lies and propaganda, which is exactly what Trump has been doing during his drumbeat for war with Venezuela and attacks inside his own country.
Already Trump’s propaganda channels at places like Fox are working feverishly to support this illegal incursion into Venezuela. These must be immediately countered with facts and vigor, and you can count this piece as but a spark that will lead to the raging fire for truth that must be kindled right now.
The only significant difference between 1939 and 2026, is that Hitler was far more popular in Germany than Trump is in America. This is problematic for Trump, of course, but will only make him that much more dangerous as he lashes out, and listens to the unhinged voices in his head, while grotesque men like Stephen Miller and Pete Hegseth tug at his sleeves.
Trump’s illegal attack on Venezuela is only the beginning if we don’t put an end to it right now. It’s not a matter of if he’ll attack again, but simply when and where.
And if we won’t do everything we can to stop this now, he will have successfully conquered the United States of America, because we will have surrendered to a traitor.
D. Earl Stephens is the author of “Toxic Tales: A Caustic Collection of Donald J. Trump’s Very Important Letters” and finished up a 30-year career in journalism as the Managing Editor of Stars and Stripes. You can find all his work here.