admin
The dramatic U.S. operation that led to the capture of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro on January 3, 2026, shook markets and rattled the global order, and Forbes reports that the fallout appears to have enriched President Trump on paper by roughly $140 million through his crypto-linked holdings. That figure is an estimate, and it comes as markets repriced political risk and opportunity after American forces removed a dictator who for years enriched himself while impoverishing his people.
Forbes lays out how several of President Trump’s assets moved in the immediate aftermath: shares in Trump Media and Technology Group rallied, World Liberty Financial tokens spiked, and his memecoin known as TRUMP jumped alongside a broader crypto surge. Those market moves aren’t mysterious — traders punish weakness and reward perceived strength, and when the man in the Oval Office showed he would act rather than posture, risk-on capital flowed into assets associated with his brand.
Let’s be clear: conservatives should not apologize for a president who uses American power to remove a leftist thug smuggling drugs, stealing from his people and threatening the neighborhood. The smart money in Miami and New York understandably adjusted to the new political landscape because control of Venezuela’s resources and a reset of rule of law in Caracas change long-term risk calculations for energy and crypto investors alike. Markets are blunt instruments but honest ones — they react to facts on the ground, not to moralizing from coastal elites.
That said, legitimate questions about conflicts of interest are worth asking. Forbes itself notes serious caveats about liquidity, discounts applied to private tokens, and uncertainty over whether holdings can actually be sold without crashing prices, so these headline numbers are paper gains not guaranteed cash in the bank. Conservatives who believe in transparency and accountability should welcome scrutiny so that public trust is maintained and any appearance of impropriety is resolved through disclosure, not shrugs.
Predictably, the left and legacy media howl that Trump “profited from war,” but that simplistic line ignores a basic truth: leaders who secure American interests and create stability often see the country and its markets benefit. If removing a dictator opens Venezuela to investment, revives oil production under Western rule, and brings relief to Venezuelans, then the policy outcome is worth defending even as we insist on clear rules about presidential finances. The alternative — endless timidity and moral preening while tyrants run roughshod — is what produced the Venezuelan catastrophe in the first place.
In the coming days Congress should demand full and prompt disclosure of any relevant holdings and make sure mechanisms are in place to prevent officials from trading on inside information. That’s how a free, capitalist republic protects itself: defend the homeland, let markets respond, and police conflicts of interest vigorously so patriots can act without suspicion. The choice is stark for hardworking Americans — do we want leaders who stand idle while carnage spreads, or leaders who act and accept accountability afterward?
