The US’s ousting of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro over the weekend was a shock and surprise for many. But for Venezuela expert Eva Golinger, it was just the kind of action she has been warning about for years.
“I was anticipating at some point being awoken in the middle of the night with a text from friends in Caracas saying the bombs were falling. I’m very sad that came true,” Golinger tells Mehdi.
In this ‘Mehdi Unfiltered’ interview, Golinger – a lawyer, former adviser to Maduro’s predecessor, Hugo Chávez, and author of The Chávez Code – joins Mehdi to discuss how the country is reacting to Maduro’s ousting.
“All those celebrations… rapidly sort of changed course as soon as they saw that Trump had no intention of regime change,” Golinger says to Mehdi, about Trump working with Maduro’s Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, as opposed to installing opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner María Machado.
"They had negotiated already an outcome that would leave the entire regime in place," Golinger says to Mehdi. “I think that she [Rodríguez] was prepared to step in…that’s the issue."
Paid subscribers can watch the full interview to hear Golinger explain the “political theater” happening behind the scenes between Rodríguez and Trump, how she believes Trump’s demands for Venezuelan oil will play out, and whether she believes other countries in the region should be worried about an attack by the US.
Free subscribers can watch a 4-minute preview. Consider becoming a paid subscriber today to skip the paywall every time.
Don’t Miss It: If you’ll be in the DC area later this month, Zeteo is hosting a special LIVE in-person event you won’t want to miss: Join Mehdi, Swin, Rep. Ro Khanna, Joy Reid, Jim Acosta, Sarah Matthews, and Miles Taylor for a powerful evening at the Howard Theatre in Washington, DC, on Tuesday, Jan 20, 2026!
Check out more from Zeteo:
