Senior U.S. military leaders reportedly have presented President Donald Trump with fresh options for possible operations against Venezuela's socialist regime, including limited strikes on land targets.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine, and other senior officials on Wednesday briefed Trump on potential moves "in the coming days," CBS News reported.
No final decision has been made, but the planning underscores how seriously the administration is treating Nicolás Maduro's authoritarian government and its alleged role in narcotics trafficking.
The deliberations come as the Navy's most advanced aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, and its strike group enter U.S. Southern Command's area of responsibility, a show of force in the Caribbean and South America not seen in decades.
The carrier joins destroyers, aircraft, and special operations units already positioned in the region as part of a Trump administration campaign billed as a counter-drug mission.
Over the last two months alone, U.S. forces have hit at least 21 vessels suspected of moving drugs from South America toward American shores, killing roughly 80 alleged smugglers, officials say.
Two survivors were repatriated to Ecuador and Colombia; one was released after authorities found no evidence of criminal activity.
Hegseth highlighted the administration's hard line at a defense summit in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
"My advice to foreign terrorist organizations is: do not get in a boat," he warned. "If you're trafficking drugs to poison the American people ... we will find you and we will kill you."
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has framed the buildup as a necessary response to "organized criminal narcoterrorists" using Venezuela as a transshipment hub.
Washington does not recognize Maduro as Venezuela's legitimate president after widely disputed elections and has charged him with narcoterrorism in U.S. courts.
Analysts quoted by The Associated Press note that carriers like the Ford are as much political tools as military ones, able to project power and deter adversaries without firing a shot.
Some say the deployment is aimed squarely at pressuring Caracas; others argue that simply putting a 100,000-ton warship off Venezuela's coast sends a strong enough message to regime insiders that Washington's patience is running out.
Maduro, speaking to state media and foreign outlets such as CNN, has tried to cast himself as a victim of "imperialist threats," urging Trump not to start a "forever war" and ordering a "massive" mobilization of troops and militias.
Venezuelan defense officials boast of Russian-made missile systems and guerrilla-style plans to resist any U.S. action — rhetoric likely aimed more at shoring up internal support than deterring American forces.
Senate Republicans recently blocked an effort to restrict Trump's ability to strike Venezuela, signaling continued backing for a tough posture.
With the Ford now in theater and military options on the president's desk, the U.S. is making clear that its neighborhood will not be surrendered to narco-traffickers and a hostile socialist regime.
Newsmax Wires contributed to this report.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.