Trump Unveils ‘Donroe Doctrine,’ Promises Escalated Cartel Crackdown and Issues Iran Warning

In an expansive interview on “Hannity” Thursday night, President Donald Trump outlined a significant escalation in his administration’s foreign and domestic security agenda, detailing plans for a major expansion of operations against drug cartels while issuing a stark warning to the Iranian regime. The president, in his first sit-down interview since the capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro, declared that while U.S. efforts have already curtailed 97% of narcotics entering by water, a new offensive targeting land-based smuggling routes is imminent. “The cartels are running Mexico, it’s very sad to watch,” Trump told host Sean Hannity, attributing 250,000 to 300,000 American deaths annually to the drug crisis. This planned intensification forms a core part of what admirers have dubbed the “Donroe Doctrine,” which Trump described as a modernized Monroe Doctrine focused on hemispheric safety, economic interest, and an end to illegal immigration and drug trafficking.

The president framed the recent successful operation in Venezuela, which he credited to a “fantastic group” including General ‘Razin Caine’ and Pete Hegseth, as a model of this assertive doctrine. He detailed the strategic capture of Maduro from within a heavily fortified compound, an operation he claimed resulted in no U.S. casualties but a significant number of Cuban soldiers “wiped out.” Trump touted the subsequent geopolitical and economic windfalls, including Venezuela’s agreement to release political prisoners and the redirection of its oil revenue—worth “billions and billions”—to benefit both its people and the United States. He announced a forthcoming White House meeting with the top 14 oil companies to “rebuild the entire oil infrastructure” and confirmed that liberated Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who has offered him her Nobel Peace Prize, will visit next week.

Broadening his focus to global hotspots, President Trump delivered a grave admonition to Iran’s leadership amid widespread internal protests. Recalling the regime’s brutal history of suppressing dissent, Trump vowed robust U.S. intervention if violence escalates. “If they do that, we’re going to hit them very hard. We can hit them hard. We’re ready to do it,” he asserted, pledging support for the Iranian people against their government. This triad of announcements—a hardened crackdown on cartels, the consolidation of gains in Venezuela under the “Donroe Doctrine,” and a direct threat to Iran—signals a pronounced and confrontational turn in Trump’s second-term priorities, emphasizing unilateral American action and a stark warning to adversarial regimes worldwide.