Chants of “Donald Trump has got to go” and “hands off Venezuela” rang out in front of the federal courthouse and post office in downtown Bay City on Sunday afternoon.
Donning scarves, winter coats, knit hats and gloves in the chilly weather, several dozen people held homemade signs expressing their opposition to the Trump administration’s actions in Venezuela early Saturday morning, and the subsequent capture of the nation’s president, Nicolás Maduro.
“This is, I think, important to Bay County people because these are our tax dollars at work, and this is our country,” said Barb Handley-Miller, vice chair of the Bay County Democratic Party and an organizer of the protest. She described the turnout as “pretty good” given that the event was planned in less than 24 hours. “We care about the decisions that are made on our behalf. These are illegal, unconstitutional actions.”
The legality of the Trump administration’s actions in Venezuela is expected to be debated in Congress in the coming weeks. The Constitution grants Congress the power to declare war. Several Democrats have called the U.S. actions illegal and an act of war, while demanding briefings from military officials.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Sunday that the United States is not at war with Venezuela and that the actions are part of a law enforcement operation to bring Maduro to justice. Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, face federal charges including narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy and weapons offenses in New York City and are scheduled to appear in court Monday.
At the Bay City protest Sunday, U.S. Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet, D-Bay City, said “there isn’t a war right now” and that more detailed information from the Trump administration is needed before drawing conclusions about the military actions in Venezuela.
McDonald Rivet described Maduro as a “bad guy” and said the military’s precision in carrying out the operation is something “we can be really proud of.”
“But to talk about going in and running another country that is thousands of miles away from the people who live in my district, who are getting no help from this administration, is unconscionable,” she continued.
McDonald Rivet told WCMU that her top concern in this moment is the lack of attention the administration is giving to people’s everyday needs, adding that the military actions divert focus from issues affecting residents of Michigan’s 8th Congressional District.
“Our education system is in a state of disarray. Our teachers are not well paid. Our utility bills are going up. This is where the priorities of the country need to be,” McDonald Rivet said. “You can’t be running around the hemisphere like a bunch of cowboys with no provocation and motivation based on oil. This is not what we need to be doing, and this is not what they campaigned on.”
She said she has been in “disbelief” that Trump and officials in his administration have alluded to possible foreign interventions across Central and South America.
During a press conference Saturday, Rubio said that if he lived in Havana and were part of the government, he would be “concerned.” In a Fox News interview Saturday, Trump also said that action was needed to address Mexico and drug cartels.
“The thing that’s really disturbing to me is not just what happened in Venezuela, but the assertion that he wants to create American dominance across this hemisphere,” McDonald Rivet said. “Canada as the 51st state, talking about Panama, talking about Greenland — this is a really disturbing trend from a man who said he was going to get us out of foreign wars and focus on this country.”
On the other side of the political isle, U.S. Rep. John Moolenaar, R-Caledonia, along with several other Congressional Republicans, praised Trump for his action and said this could be a new start for Venezuela.
"Nicolás Maduro was a dictator who contributed to narco-terrorism targeting Americans and subjected his people to unspeakable horrors," Moolenaar said in a statement. "He must be held accountable for these atrocities. I am thankful to the men and women in the military for their bravery last night [Saturday] and pray for their continued safety.”
Several protesters outside the federal building Sunday gave speeches urging community members to become more politically active, encourage voter turnout for Democratic candidates and engage in conversations across political lines about local, national and international issues, including the actions in Venezuela.
On Feb. 3, voters in the 35th Senate District — which includes Bay City, Midland, Saginaw and parts of the Great Lakes Bay Region — will cast ballots in a special primary election. The outcome could shift the balance of power in Lansing, where Democrats currently hold a one-seat majority in the chamber. The Senate district has been without representation for a year after Gov. Gretchen Whitmer waited to declare the special election, the longest of her administration.
Pamela Pugh, one of six Democrats running in the primary and current president of the Michigan State Board of Education, attended the protest, saying state leaders have a responsibility to speak out on national and international issues.
“This is a time when we have to call for our government to show up for all of us, not just the well-funded, not just the well-connected,” Pugh said. “This government should be funding our schools... not endless wars.”
Handley-Miller said motivating people who did not vote in the last election will be key to winning local races.
“Each party has its base,” she said. “We’ve got to get more people to vote. We’ve got to get more people to care and to connect the dots that what happens in the state Senate affects their lives.”
