THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION’S LATEST CLAIMS AGAINST NICOLAS MADURO DEFY COMMON SENSE

Just an iota of common sense debunks the accusation by the Trump administration that Nicolas Maduro is a “narco- terrorist" and involved in large-scale drug trafficking. According to Washington, the so-called "Cartel de los Soles" which Maduro supposedly heads has inundated the U.S. cocaine market. This is literally impossible. Drug trafficking is by its very nature a clandestine operation. Is any important drug trafficker in Colombia or Mexico a public figure? Furthermore, the history of the business demonstrates it leads to constant bloody wars among mafia “families” or drug cartels which become public knowledge. Just watch the “Godfather” or read Wikipedia entries on the Mexican or Colombian cartels. Wikipedia provides numerous specifics about cartel leaders, routes, etc. Then try to get equivalent information about Venezuela. It's not there. Why? Because it doesn't exist. And the mainstream media, which does so much fact-checking on Trump's fallacious claims against the Democrats, stay silent about this obviously fabricated charge against the Maduro government.

Furthermore, by offering a 15 million dollar reward for the capture of Nicolas Maduro as a “narco- terrorist," the Trump administration is explicitly mixing the war on drugs and terrorism, with political objectives. This is outrageous and dangerous because it detracts from the seriousness of the efforts to combat both drugs and terrorism, an effort which needs to be non-political. Otherwise it loses all credibility. Trump and his cohorts are obviously unconcerned about such damaging side-effects.