Eric Adams torched Kamala Harris as “cynical and irresponsible” over her response to President Donald Trump’s overnight operation that captured Venezuelan dicator Nicolás Maduro.
The former New York City mayor zeroed in on Harris’s weekend statement attacking Trump, arguing her outrage collapsed under the weight of her own administration’s past actions against the same dictator now in U.S. custody.
Harris unleashed her criticism Saturday night, hours after U.S. forces carried out a pre-dawn mission in Caracas that ended with Maduro and his wife in American hands and the Venezuelan regime suddenly leaderless.
“Donald Trump’s actions in Venezuela do not make America safer, stronger, or more affordable,” Harris wrote on X, launching a blistering broadside against the president as news of the capture spread.
Donald Trump’s actions in Venezuela do not make America safer, stronger, or more affordable.
That Maduro is a brutal, illegitimate dictator does not change the fact that this action was both unlawful and unwise. We’ve seen this movie before. Wars for regime change or oil that…
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) January 4, 2026
“That Maduro is a brutal, illegitimate dictator does not change the fact that this action was both unlawful and unwise,” she continued, framing the mission as a dangerous replay of past U.S. interventions.
“We’ve seen this movie before,” Harris added. “Wars for regime change or oil that are sold as strength but turn into chaos, and American families pay the price.”
Her post accused Trump of misleading the public and acting for personal and political gain rather than national security.
“The American people do not want this, and they are tired of being lied to,” Harris continued, before insisting, “This is not about drugs or democracy. It is about oil and Donald Trump’s desire to play the regional strongman.”
Harris also took aim at Trump’s past decisions, writing that if he truly cared about democracy, “he wouldn’t pardon a convicted drug trafficker or sideline Venezuela’s legitimate opposition while pursuing deals with Maduro’s cronies.”
On January 10, 2025, the Biden-Harris administration put a $25 million bounty on Nicolás Maduro for information leading to his arrest or conviction.
Public safety is not a political game.
You do not label someone a narco-dictator one year and then pretend he is no longer a… https://t.co/KC8qzUFTLc pic.twitter.com/iPHSm2DppQ
— Eric Adams (@ericadamsfornyc) January 4, 2026
The former vice president went further, claiming the operation endangered U.S. troops, drained resources, and destabilized Venezuela without a clear path forward.
“America needs leadership whose priorities are lowering costs for working families, enforcing the rule of law, strengthening alliances, and — most importantly — putting the American people first,” Harris concluded.
Adams fired back early Sunday morning, accusing Harris of political amnesia and pointing to her administration’s own aggressive posture toward Maduro before Trump returned to office.
“Public safety is not a political game,” Adams wrote in a response posted online.
“You do not label someone a narco-dictator one year and then pretend he is no longer a threat the next simply because a different president is in office,” Adams added, calling the criticism “cynical and irresponsible.”
Lock Them Up! Russiagate is reigniting…
Obama, Clinton, Comey, and Brennan are all on the hook!
CLICK HERE to demand Russiagate conspirators got to prison!
Adams reminded readers that the Biden-Harris administration raised the reward for information leading to Maduro’s arrest or conviction to $25 million on January 10, 2025.
That move followed an earlier $15 million bounty set during Trump’s first term, a figure Trump later doubled to $50 million after returning to the White House.
To Adams, the shifting rhetoric exposed a political double standard once Trump delivered the result Washington had long sought.
“Maduro’s drugs have killed thousands of Americans and continue to endanger our children,” Adams penned, tying the Venezuelan leader directly to the fentanyl crisis devastating U.S. cities.
He invoked the 2023 death of 2-year-old Nicholas Feliz Dominici, who died from fentanyl poisoning at a Bronx daycare, as an example of the human cost he says critics ignore.
Dominici ingested the drug while under the care of Grei Mendez, a daycare owner who later pleaded guilty to federal charges after police found a brick of fentanyl hidden atop children’s playmats.
“Imagine being the parents of 2-year-old Nicholas Feliz Dominici, who died from fentanyl poisoning in a Bronx daycare, and watching this political theater,” Adams wrote.
He ended his message with a declaration about the impact of Trump’s action.
“America is safer today because Maduro is no longer in power. Welcome to New York, Nicolás,” Adams concluded.
Trump amplified the administration’s actions in Venezuela on his TruthSocial account, sharing an image of Maduro being flown to the United States following his arrest.
The photo showed the disgraced leader in a gray sweatsuit, wearing an eye mask and headphones, gripping a bottle of water as he sat restrained aboard a military aircraft.
“Nicolas Maduro onboard the USS Iwo Jima,” Trump wrote alongside the image.
First picture of arrested Nicolas Maduro onboard the USS Iwo Jima. The picture distributed by the White House. pic.twitter.com/37wLnooVJl
— (((Tendar))) (@Tendar) January 3, 2026
The capture unfolded alongside a U.S. strike in Caracas carried out during the same overnight operation, a show of force that rattled the Venezuelan capital.
An official told the New York Times that around 40 civilians and military personnel were killed in the strike.
No U.S. fatalities have been reported, though officials acknowledged an undisclosed number of American troops were injured and are listed in stable condition.
Maduro is expected to appear Monday in the Southern District of New York, where he faces multiple narcoterrorism, drug trafficking, and weapons charges, according to NewsNation.
As the political fallout intensified, Secretary of State Marco Rubio sharpened the contrast between Trump and his predecessor.
“Dating back, in the Biden administration, they had a $25 million reward for his capture,” Rubio told NBC News’ Kristen Welker on Sunday.
“So, we have a reward for his capture, but we’re not going to enforce it?” Rubio asked, questioning the prior administration’s resolve.
“That’s the difference between President Trump and everybody else,” he continued. “President Trump did something about it.”
Rubio’s remarks resurfaced an old social media post from Biden that critics now say undercuts Democratic outrage.
In 2020, Biden wrote on X that Trump “admired” Maduro, responding to reporting that Trump was open to meeting the Venezuelan leader.
Axios had reported that Trump was willing to consider talks, quoting him as saying, “I would maybe think about that. … Maduro would like to meet. And I’m never opposed to meetings — you know, rarely opposed to meetings.”
Biden replied to the article at the time, writing, “Trump talks tough on Venezuela, but admires thugs and dictators like Nicolas Maduro.”
“As President, I will stand with the Venezuelan people and for democracy,” Biden added in that post.
Trump talks tough on Venezuela, but admires thugs and dictators like Nicolas Maduro.
As President, I will stand with the Venezuelan people and for democracy. https://t.co/eUt28UxyXS
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) June 22, 2020
Axios also reported that Trump later reconsidered his decision to recognize Juan Guaidó as Venezuela’s interim leader, a move that drew scrutiny after Maduro’s arrest.
Within hours of the capture, Trump declared during a press conference that the United States would run Venezuela indefinitely.
Delcy Rodriguez, the country’s hardline socialist vice president, was swiftly confirmed by Venezuela’s Supreme Court as interim leader after U.S. forces detained Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
Rodriguez has since issued threats toward Trump, even as the president signaled openness to working with her.
Trump said he preferred Rodriguez in power over opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, arguing the interim leader was prepared to cooperate with Washington.
“She, I think, was quite gracious, but she really doesn’t have a choice,” Trump said during the news conference.
“She is essentially willing to do what we think is necessary to make Venezuela great again. Very simple.”
