Dopelomats: Venezuelan Leaders Used Diplomatic Flights to Transport Drugs and Cartel Cash from Mexico
Venezuela did not collapse quietly—it fused itself to the criminal underworld until the line between government and cartel disappeared entirely. What Nicolás Maduro presided over was not a failed state, but a weaponized one: a narco-regime that moved cocaine through diplomatic channels, laundered blood money through political power, and exported chaos northward through Mexico and into the United States.
Now, with Maduro removed, the illusion has shattered. What’s left is a dangerous vacuum, a cartel ecosystem scrambling for control, and a hemispheric reckoning Washington can no longer avoid. Joshua Philipp, investigative reporter at the Epoch Times, argues this moment exposes an uncomfortable truth: Venezuela was never an isolated disaster—it was a model. A blueprint for how criminal syndicates capture governments, hollow out institutions, and turn entire nations into trafficking corridors. And if the United States misreads this moment, the rot doesn’t stop in Caracas. It spreads.
Watch the Trailer for Philipp’s new documentary, Truth Under Fire: The Framing of Charlie Kirk
In his latest Crossroads analysis, Philipp explains that Maduro’s capture by U.S. special forces is not merely a symbolic takedown of a rogue strongman, but the exposure of a full-fledged narco-state masquerading as a government. Drawing from court indictments and intelligence reporting, Philipp details how Maduro’s regime used diplomatic planes and sealed diplomatic bags to traffic multi-ton cocaine shipments from Venezuela through Mexico, working directly with the Sinaloa cartel and other criminal networks. His conclusion is blunt: Venezuela was not infiltrated by cartels—the cartel was the government.
It was a mad Maduro world
Philipp connects this directly to Mexico, warning that the same cartel-government fusion now defines large parts of the Mexican state. He highlights President Donald Trump’s unprecedented warning that Mexican cartels—now designated terrorist organizations—could be next, and explains why Trump believes Mexico’s leadership is unable or unwilling to confront them. According to Philipp, the stakes are no longer abstract: cartel operations are killing hundreds of thousands of Americans through fentanyl trafficking while corrupting governments across the hemisphere.
What makes Philipp’s take particularly compelling is his explanation of why Venezuela matters strategically right now. He argues the U.S. intervention signals a revival of the Monroe Doctrine, aimed at dismantling cartel states, rolling back Chinese influence in Latin America, and reasserting U.S. control over hemispheric security. Maduro’s alleged cooperation with Mexican cartels, Colombian drug labs, and protected shipping corridors shows how deeply regional governments have been compromised.
Philipp also raises the explosive implication that Maduro is now cooperating with U.S. authorities—“singing like a songbird”—handing over documents that could expose bribery networks, political protection rackets, and cartel-linked officials well beyond Venezuela’s borders.
This is not just about drugs. Philipp frames the moment as a turning point in how the United States confronts criminal regimes, with Mexico, Colombia, and even Cuba potentially facing escalating pressure.
For audiences trying to understand what comes next—and why Venezuela is only the opening act—Joshua Philipp delivers a stark, evidence-based warning: the era of cartel governments is colliding head-on with American power.
Relevant Article(s)
Venezuelans praise Trump for taking out Maduro
Live updates: Venezuela news as ousted President Maduro appears in NY court | CNN
OPTIONAL Q&A:
- How did Venezuela transform from a corrupt state into a full-fledged narco-government under Maduro?
- What evidence shows Maduro’s regime directly coordinated cocaine trafficking with Mexican cartels?
- Why does Maduro’s removal represent more than a regime change—and what dangerous vacuum does it create?
- How deeply are Mexican cartels embedded within political institutions in Mexico today?
- What does this moment signal about a revived Monroe Doctrine and U.S. intervention in the hemisphere?
- Why do you believe cartel-controlled states now pose a national security threat, not just a criminal one?
- What could Maduro reveal if he cooperates with U.S. authorities, and who should be worried?
- If the U.S. fails to act decisively now, what does the next Venezuela look like—and where?
ABOUT JOSHUA PHILIPP…
Joshua Philipp is an award-winning journalist and Senior Investigative Reporter at The Epoch Times. He is the host of ‘Crossroads,’ a news and analysis program on EpochTV. His works have included breakthrough investigations into the origins of Covid-19 and the Wuhan laboratory in the early days of the pandemic. He spearheaded the first documentary on the lab leak origins of the COVID-19 virus, released in April 2020. This groundbreaking documentary garnered over 75 million views, and while many tried to label it misinformation, its findings have since been vindicated by the White House and US intelligence agencies.
EXPERT ANALYSIS FROM JOSHUA PHILIPP
Joshua Philipp, senior investigative reporter at The Epoch Times and a recognized China expert, has mapped out these networks during his 15-plus years of research into the CCP. He provides a deeper context on the CCP’s attempts to subvert the systems and institutions in the United States. As the Chinese regime states, they aim to “strangle you with your own systems,” and that tactic is playing out across key industries and institutions in the US.
Josh is also a leading expert on Chinese unconventional warfare and United Front operations, which he has investigated and exposed since 2008. His 15-plus years of research and investigations on the Chinese Communist Party, subversion, human rights abuses and related topics give him unique insight into the global threat and political landscape.
DOCUMENTARIES/SERIES
• Tracking Down the Origin of the Wuhan Coronavirus
• The Final War: The 100-Year Plot to Defeat America
NOTABLE APPEARANCES
• The National Press Club
• Harvard University
• CPAC
• Turning Point USA
• Tucker Carlson Tonight on Fox News
• Steve Bannon’s War Room
• The U.S. Air Academy
CONTACT: Todd Baumann at 512-966-0983 or by email Jerry McGlothlin at bookings@specialguests.com.
