Wicker commends capture of “illegitimate Venezuelan dictator” as Thompson calls U.S. action an “illegal attack”

• Secretary of State Marco Rubio referred to the action as “basically a law enforcement function,” saying that the “Department of War supported the Department of Justice.”

American military forces captured Venezuela’s leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores in an early Saturday morning raid. The two now faces arraignment Monday in a New York federal court on “narco-terrorism” charges.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio referred to the action as “basically a law enforcement function,” saying that the “Department of War supported the Department of Justice.”

The U.S. Department of Justice says in its filing that Maduro ran a “corrupt, illegitimate government” and an extensive drug-trafficking operation that has flooded America with tons of cocaine.

Mississippi U.S. Senator Roger Wicker (R), Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, commended President Donald Trump (R), the American military, and the U.S. law enforcement community for a successful mission to arrest the “illegitimate Venezuelan dictator” and bring him to America to face the U.S. justice system.

“I commend President Trump for ordering a successful mission to arrest illegitimate Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro and bring him to the United States to face justice. Our military performed an incredibly complex mission with characteristic precision and professionalism,” Wicker said in a statement soon after the news broke of the raid. “Today, we owe a debt of gratitude to the brave individuals who were able to accomplish such a daring operation.”

Senator Wicker said the arrest of Maduro was the culmination of a monthslong effort by the Trump administration to degrade the narco-terrorist organizations that Maduro oversaw.

“The Venezuelan people must now act swiftly to put their country back on a path to peace and prosperity, which will redound to the benefit of all their neighbors,” Wicker said, adding, “I will convene a briefing as soon as possible to hear testimony from senior military and law enforcement leaders about this operation.”

Mississippi 2nd District Congressman Bennie Thompson (D), the U.S. House Homeland Security ranking Democratic member, was not as complimentary of the White House and the DOJ as was Wicker.

Thompson called the U.S. action an “illegal attack on Venezuela” in his reaction statement.

“To be clear, the illegal attack on Venezuela has nothing to do with drugs or terrorism – it’s about Trump causing chaos and trampling on the Constitution so he can claim more power and Venezuela’s oil,” Thompson said. “Republicans in Congress should hold him to account – but I fully expect them to do nothing.”

Mississippi’s other four members of its federal delegation – U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R) and Congressmen Trent Kelly (R-MS 1), Michael Guest (R-MS 3), and Mike Ezell (R-MS 4) – have not issued public statements on the U.S. Venezuela action.