Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., warned Wednesday that the United States must not repeat past mistakes by trying to engineer regime change in Venezuela.
He told Newsmax that such interventions often lead to "chaos rather than freedom."
On "Rob Schmitt Tonight," Paul said he has no sympathy for socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro, whose government has devastated Venezuela's economy and left millions in poverty.
But he cautioned that U.S. efforts to undermine the Maduro regime — even indirectly through military actions in the region — risk escalating into another open-ended foreign entanglement.
"I wish the best for the people of Venezuela. I wish them freedom," Paul said. "But when it's successful, people have to fight for and achieve their own freedom.
"We fought for ours. We can't give it to them — they have to want it themselves."
Paul's comments followed recent U.S. military operations in the Caribbean targeting suspected drug-running vessels allegedly tied to Venezuelan and Colombian criminal networks.
The Trump administration said the strikes are aimed at disrupting narcotics trafficking, but some analysts have noted that the campaign also increases pressure on Caracas, which has become more isolated internationally.
Paul said that although he supports cracking down on drug smuggling, there is "no evidence that any fentanyl, any at all, comes from Venezuela," and he questioned whether the maritime operations were being used to justify a broader strategic push.
"For the United States to go to war, we have to vote on it," he said. "No president can take us to war without the approval of Congress."
He warned that the same logic used to justify U.S. involvement in Iraq, Libya, and Afghanistan — toppling dictators in the name of democracy — too often ends with instability and loss of life.
"Some people will argue they're for regime change some of the time," Paul said. "I'm for regime change none of the time."
Paul said he continues to support President Donald Trump's "America first" foreign policy, which rejects nation-building and focuses instead on protecting U.S. sovereignty and security.
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