Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) broke ranks with much of his party on Tuesday, publicly backing the U.S. military’s operation to remove Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
In a post on X, the politician lauded the “deft” execution of the plan and its positive impact on the Venezuelan people — while sharply questioning why many fellow Democrats have remained silent or critical despite the Biden administration’s own $25 million bounty on Maduro’s arrest last year.
“As a Democrat, I don’t understand why we can’t acknowledge a good development for Venezuelans—and how deft our military’s execution of that plan was,” Fetterman posted.
Democrats Slam Maduro Capture Despite Biden-Era Bounty
In January 2025, the Biden administration announced a $25 million reward for information leading to the arrest of Maduro after he was sworn in for a third six-year term in office, amid criticism from the international community and Venezuelan opposition leaders.
The $25 million bounty marked an increase from the $15 million reward offered by the Trump administration in 2020. Rewards were also offered for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello and a new reward of up to $15 million for Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino.
In August, the second Trump administration raised the reward to $50 million after the U.S. Treasury designated the Cartel of the Suns as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist in July.
However, the latest U.S. military operation to remove Maduro was met with sharp criticism from Democratic leaders, including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), former Vice President Kamala Harris, and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). They called the capture of Maduro unconstitutional, reckless, and motivated by oil interests rather than U.S. security.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump praised the operation as a victory over a “brutal dictator.”
This is not the first time that Fetterman has criticized fellow Democrats. Earlier in November, he defended his vote with Republicans to reopen the government after a prolonged government shutdown and warned Democrats against embracing political extremes.
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