[00:00:00] Speaker 1: So, a source briefed on the Venezuelan operation told me that a handful of American troops sustained bullet and shrapnel wounds, but none are life-threatening. Can you share with us how serious any injuries to American service members might be, and also any information you can tell us about any Venezuelan civilian casualties?

[00:00:18] Speaker 2: Yes. Well, let me take the second part first, which is that the overwhelming share of casualties and fatalities that were inflicted were against the Cuban Guard that had exerted control over the people of Venezuela. So what many don't realize is that for years, Maduro stayed in power through an illicit deal with Cuban communists to provide his security, because he didn't trust his own people to keep him safe. That is how much he was hated inside of Venezuela. So what our special forces encountered when they did that daring midnight assault into Caracas were armed Cuban guards, and they sustained massive numbers of casualties. I can't give you an exact number. The numbers that you've seen in terms of the Cuban guards publicly reported are probably lower than the actual number that were killed. To your first question, no, none of the, at least as I've been briefed, none of the injuries are life-threatening. Everybody is stable. And it just underscores the remarkable skill, precision, courage, and capability of our special forces. And I want to just set the table one more time for your audience. I'm sure you've talked about it at length already, but the United States of America launched an assault force into Venezuelan territory, which has sophisticated air defense systems, which has sophisticated surveillance systems, which has weaponry that they've received that can take out planes and helicopters from our foreign adversaries that they've been stockpiling for years in anticipation of the possibility of such an action. Maduro was staying in a military fortress. In other words, since the United States had started amassing this armada under President Trump's leadership and direction, he'd increasingly narrowed the scope of his own movement. And he was sleeping in a fortress. And so we flew into Caracas, these special forces, engaged in direct gunfire with elite Cuban guards, and every single kill, every single kill was an enemy kill. So there were no civilian casualties? Well, I didn't see any reports of any civilian casualties, but my point is that in this raging gunfire battle that took place, the point that I'm making to you is no Americans were killed because of the planning, skill, and preparation. The enemy sustained massive losses. Not one of our assets was lost.

[00:02:55] Speaker 1: Not one of our people was lost. So let's talk about what next. Delce Rodriguez was formally sworn as Venezuela's acting president this afternoon. She was the vice president. She described the U.S. intervention as, quote, without a doubt, Zionist in character, unquote. Is acting president Rodriguez someone that the U.S. can work with?

[00:03:16] Speaker 2: So the acting president put out a statement. I want to say, Jake, it was last night, pledging cooperation with the United States, pledging full and complete cooperation.

[00:03:27] Speaker 1: But they also just passed a law saying that if you supported the operation outlawing individuals or threatening with criminal penalties individuals, if they supported the operation against Maduro, I think they did that today.

[00:03:41] Speaker 2: Well, the good news there, Jake, is that nobody inside of Venezuela supported the operation. So it's a law without meaning or effect. Look, Jake, there's going to be some posturing that occurs when a nation has been so thoroughly defeated in this way. The United States of America, think about this, Jake, the United States of America has encircled this nation for months. One of the largest naval armadas in history has been stationed out of its, off its coast. Fighter jets have been encircling the island. We've been engaging in kinetic lethal strikes against Maduro's drug boats and trained Arawak gang members leaving the island. We have launched a complete oil embargo of the ghost fleet, the dark ships. And now on top of that, and now on top of all that, right, Maduro is sitting in a jail cell in New York as is his wife. So of course there's going to be, this is very important though, of course there's going to be some posturing. Okay. Without giving anything away, I want to be very clear, very clear. The government has sent messages, this is such an important point, Jake, to the Secretary of State, to our senior U.S. government official negotiators. They have sent message after message making clear that they will meet the terms, demands, conditions, and requirements of the United States. Okay. And I want to be very clear about that, Jake.

[00:05:03] Speaker 1: So let's, the question about who is now running Venezuela is one that even members of Congress who are big Trump supporters say they're not quite sure about. Senate Majority Leader John Thune told CNN's Manu Raju that he doesn't know what President Trump meant by his assertion that the U.S. is running Venezuela, and he said he needs more information. Can you tell us what the president means when he says this? Is acting President Delce Rodriguez in charge? Is she running Venezuela or not?

[00:05:32] Speaker 2: Well, what the president said is true. The United States of America is running Venezuela. By definition that's true. Jake, we live in a world in which you can talk all you want about international niceties and everything else. But we live in a world, in the real world, Jake, that is governed by strength, that is governed by force, that is governed by power. These are the iron laws of the world that have existed since the beginning of time.

[00:06:03] Speaker 1: But in terms of day-to-day operations in Venezuela, that is President, acting President Rodriguez, right? It's not some sort of American adversary.

[00:06:12] Speaker 2: No, what I'm saying is, and we'll keep going here, Jake, so I want to say what I'm saying and then you'll follow up. But what I'm saying is just one level above that, which is that by definition we are in charge because we have the United States military stationed outside the country. We set the terms and conditions. We have a complete embargo on all of their oil and their ability to do commerce. So for them to do commerce, they need our permission. For them to be able to run an economy, they need our permission. So the United States is in charge. The United States is running the country during this transition period. If that's true... Obviously, that doesn't mean that President Trump is setting the bus fare schedule inside the country. Right, of course.

[00:06:54] Speaker 1: So the indictment that the President and the military were acting on from 2020 was of six people. Two of them were seized on Saturday by our special operators. There are four other individuals indicted who remain in Venezuela. Is the U.S. demanding that they be turned over? One of them is Maduro's son. One of them is a former government official. One is a current government official. And one of them is the head of Trinidad and Tobago, as I'm sure you know. Are they going to be turned over if President Trump is, in fact, running Venezuela in the way you described? Well, I don't want to...

[00:07:34] Speaker 2: Obviously, you know, we have to balance here, Jake, which I think you more than most understand. We have to balance between, of course, what I can say to you publicly versus very close-hold conversations that might be happening privately. And I know you understand and respect that. But I'll answer the question in this way. There might be individuals who are fugitives from American justice that could become part of a future conversation. But it's also true that for government leaders inside of Venezuela, as the President has said, we want an interim government that will respect the interests of the people of Venezuela, that wants a good, peaceful, secure future for Venezuela. So I would say it this way. For those who may be indicted, the best choice they can possibly make is to be part of a constructive decision-making process for the future of Venezuela. The best decision they can make is to cooperate fully and completely with the United States to be part of building this brighter future for Venezuela during this interim period.