'Astounding' White House social media post inundated with backlash

The White House ignited backlash on Monday when it took to social media to brag that President Donald Trump stands with Venezuelans and democracy after greenlighting a midnight mission to capture strongman Nicolás Maduro and bring him to the United States to face trial.Maduro was seized in Caracas in a U.S.-led military-law enforcement operation and flown to New York, where he was in federal custody on narco-terrorism and drug-trafficking charges. He and his wife, Cilia Flores, were brought under tight security to court, where both pleaded not guilty. Maduro insisted he remains Venezuela’s legitimate president. On Monday, the White House took to its official X account to declare, "For the record, PRESIDENT TRUMP stands with the Venezuelan people and for democracy."Attached to the post were four images of what the White House labeled as "Democrat hypocrisy on Maduro." One featured a newspaper clipping of the Biden administration raising the bounty on Maduro to $25 million, and another was posted by Biden accusing Trump of "talk[ing] tough" on Venezuela, but actually admir[ing] thugs and dictators."The post led to a heaping of criticism in the comment section, with one user questioning, "By leaving them with the same regime? The Incompetence of this administration is astounding.""You forgot to mention 'and Oil,'" chided another X user.Rose Benson questioned on X, "How? He disrespected the people’s choice for opposition."Commentator Araquel Bloss, a Trump voter, wrote on X, "He’s breaking US Law, the Constitution and the international treaties we’ve committed. We’ve become a lawless, rogue state. And I voted for Trump to *not become Obama or McCain or George W Bush, but here we are in the most dangerous circumstances a President has ever put us in; completely ignoring the checks and balances and Constitutional power of Congress. Trump is putting our country at risk for attack on our soil and at any of our global bases. Impeach Trump. Or just drag him out by Court Marshall."Anthony LaMesa chimed in, "So why did he talk about oil more than democracy?"Dr. Sylvie Watikum echoed the sentiments of many others, firing back, "And for oil and regime change."For the record, PRESIDENT TRUMP stands with the Venezuelan people and for democracy. pic.twitter.com/HolGr554lA— The White House (@WhiteHouse) January 5, 2026