Secretary of State Marco Rubio is testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday, expected to reaffirm that the United States is not at war with Venezuela and has no military forces occupying the country. Within minutes of his opening remarks, a protester abruptly jumped up and began yelling in the chamber.
The interruption didn't even faze Rubio, as members of the Trump administration have at this point become used to the heckling.
"... that's a war crime," the protester can be heard shouting as he was dragged out of the room by police. "Hands off Venezuela, hands off Cuba."
"You know the drill, off to jail," Senator Risch, the chairman of the committee and a Republican from Idaho, said to the protester. "That's a one-year ban from the committee. Anyone who is a persistent violator will be banned for three years. So I don't know whether that guy falls into that category—looks like it. But after three years, he'll find a more productive means of employment."
"Secretary Rubio, we have two hearings a week, you know. You seem to have a more robust following than most of our witnesses that come before us."
"There will be a couple more," Rubio replied. "Thank you for stopping the clock."
🚨 BREAKING: A leftist rioter just got SWIFTLY REMOVED from Marco Rubio's testimony — and Marco's response was perfect 😂
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) January 28, 2026
PROTESTOR: *Going berserk*
MARCO: "There's gonna be a couple more [protestors], so..."
He knows the drill 🤣🔥
Greatest Secretary of State EVER! pic.twitter.com/NopbmJMwDJ
The hearing comes just weeks after the United States carried out a raid that captured Venezuela’s socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro in under an hour, with no U.S. casualties. The operation was widely hailed as a stunning success, reasserting American military dominance and inspiring what became known as the “Donroe Doctrine,” a fusion of President Trump’s name and the Monroe Doctrine, affirming U.S. control over the Western Hemisphere and warning that no nation on this side of the world should aid our foreign adversaries.
Democrats in Congress, viewing the operation as imperialist, led an effort to introduce war powers resolutions aimed at limiting President Trump’s military authority after the Venezuela raid, though these measures were narrowly defeated in the House.
Democrats nationwide have since been protesting for the release of Venezuela's dictator, all while denouncing President Trump as a dictator himself.