Expert Warns Venezuelan Cartels Could Retaliate Against Americans as US Plans Strikes Inside Venezuela

Risk Of Retaliation If U.S. Expands Strikes Into Venezuela, Expert Says

As President Donald Trump signals an escalation of U.S. military action to target cartel operations inside Venezuela, former senior national security adviser Victoria Coates warned there is a real risk that criminal networks could retaliate against U.S. citizens at home.

The administration has carried out lethal strikes for months against drug-smuggling vessels linked to Venezuela in the Caribbean, and Mr. Trump has recently indicated he intends to take the campaign into Venezuelan territory.

Broad Authority, Serious Risks. In an interview with Fox News Digital, Coates — now vice president of the Heritage Foundation’s Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy — said she believes the president has broad authority to conduct such operations. She cautioned, however, that cartels could seek revenge through terror attacks that target Americans on U.S. soil.

‘We don't know all of what has come into the country during the Biden administration and the open border policies they pursued, but certainly there's been a lot of latitude for the cartels,’

Coates cited recent violent incidents inside the United States, including a Thanksgiving-week shooting near the White House, as evidence that the domestic security environment is fragile and requires vigilance.

Designation And Links

The U.S. government has repeatedly linked Venezuelan authorities to organised crime. In November, the State Department designated the Cartel de los Soles as a foreign terrorist organization, a designation U.S. officials say is connected to alleged leadership ties to President Nicolás Maduro.

Officials assert the Cartel de los Soles provides material support to other groups with a presence in the United States, including Tren de Aragua and the Sinaloa Cartel. Both groups have been implicated in violent incidents across the country; in 2024, members of Tren de Aragua were accused of seizing an apartment building in Aurora, Colorado, where residents were reportedly extorted and terrorised.

U.S. Response And Domestic Preparedness

Coates said the Trump administration is aware of these threats and that U.S. law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, are closely monitoring potential reprisals and have heightened vigilance. She also pointed to deportations and a domestic crackdown on cartel networks as central elements of the administration's response.

‘That’s what they’re actually doing. They're trying to track and deport as many of these bad actors as they can. So, that work is ongoing,’

She described the challenge as novel: a drug cartel allegedly linked to a foreign government, which, in her view, elevates the issue beyond standard narcotics enforcement into a national security problem. Coates warned that large flows of fentanyl and rising amounts of cocaine tied to Venezuela are contributing to what she called a national crisis, and stressed the need to disrupt cartel infrastructure and assets inside the United States.

Diplomatic Tensions

According to reporting by The Miami Herald, U.S. officials reportedly gave Venezuelan leaders an ultimatum in late November, including a conditional offer of evacuation for Maduro and close family members if he agreed to resign immediately. Maduro has framed the U.S. stance as 'imperialist' aggression and vowed to defend Venezuelan territory.

The possibility of violent blowback, Coates warned, is not limited to Venezuela's borders: 'They obviously have cells in the United States, both for human trafficking and for drug trafficking. And, so, that is a very, very deep concern,' she said.

Bottom line: As Washington contemplates expanding strikes into Venezuelan territory, officials must weigh the operational benefits against the potential for retaliatory violence directed at Americans and continue efforts to identify, disrupt and deport criminal actors operating inside the United States.