Rep. Ami Bera said the Trump administration’s operation to oust Nicolás Maduro appears intended in part to create conditions for returning Venezuelan migrants from the U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem revoked Temporary Protected Status for roughly 600,000 Venezuelans and said former TPS holders can apply for refugee status. President Trump said the U.S. would temporarily run Venezuela and place American oil companies in control of its petroleum infrastructure, while lawmakers debated whether Congress received timely notification.
Rep. Ami Bera: U.S. Move Against Maduro May Also Aim To Return Venezuelan Migrants
House Democrat: ‘Part of the intent’ of Maduro ouster is to send Venezuelans back
Democratic Rep. Ami Bera (Calif.) warned Sunday that the Trump administration’s operation to remove Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro appears to pursue goals beyond disrupting drug trafficking and seizing sanctioned oil assets. Bera told host Gillian Turner on 'Fox News Sunday' that an important part of the administration’s intent may be to enable the return of Venezuelan migrants currently living in the United States.
Bera’s Warning
“I do think part of the intent of the administration is now that they have a different administration in Venezuela that they are going to start sending those folks back to Venezuela,” Bera said, referring to Venezuelan migrants in the U.S.
TPS Revocation And Refugee Pathways
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem earlier this year revoked Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for roughly 600,000 Venezuelans who had received the designation under the Biden administration. On 'Fox News Sunday,' Noem said that people who previously held TPS may still apply for refugee status — a separate process that could provide an alternative pathway for some Venezuelan nationals.
U.S. Role In Venezuela And Oil Infrastructure
The future of Venezuela remains uncertain following the capture of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. President Trump told reporters Saturday that the United States "will run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition," adding that American oil companies would assume control of Venezuela’s petroleum infrastructure. Venezuela holds some of the largest proven oil reserves in the world.
“We don’t want to be involved with having somebody else get in and we have the same situation that we had for the last long period of years,” the president said.
Threat To Venezuelan Vice President
Trump also warned Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, telling The Atlantic’s Michael Scherer that if she “doesn’t do what’s right, she is going to pay a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro.” Rodríguez, in a televised address Saturday, reiterated the Venezuelan government’s position: “There is only one president, and his name is Nicolás Maduro Moros.”
Capitol Hill Reaction And Oversight Concerns
The operation drew praise from most Republican lawmakers and sharp criticism from Democrats. Bera and other Democrats said the White House should have notified the "Gang of Eight" — the top Republican and Democratic leaders of the Senate and House intelligence committees — before the operation began. A source told The Hill the administration informed the group only after the operation was already underway.
The situation leaves significant policy and humanitarian questions unresolved: how the U.S. plans to manage governance in Venezuela, what the status of Venezuelan migrants in the U.S. will be, and how Congress will assert oversight of the operation and its consequences.
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