Fault Lines Episode 613: After the Earthquake — Venezuela and the Limits of American Soft Power

Fault Lines Episode 613: After the Earthquake — Venezuela and the Limits of American Soft Power

From Fault Lines by National Security Institute

June 29, 2026 · 13 min · Episode 613

About this episode

The episode discusses the U.S. response to the devastating earthquake in Venezuela and its implications for American soft power and humanitarian leadership.

Today, Les, John, Andrew, and Andy examine the devastating earthquake that has killed more than 1,500 people in Venezuela, a number expected to climb, and what the U.S. response reveals about American humanitarian leadership in the Trump era. Washington has committed $150 million in aid flowing through UN agencies and NGOs, with DART teams and fire and rescue units from across the country, including Los Angeles and Fairfax County, already on the ground. But the response raises harder questions than it answers. With USAID largely dismantled, who actually leads American disaster response now, and what does that mean for U.S. soft power on the world stage? Now that the U.S. has removed Maduro and installed a friendly government in Caracas, the response carries an unavoidable optic: is Washington showing up for Venezuela because lives are at stake, or because this is now its ally? And if the U.S. is only willing to show up for countries already in its corner, what does that say about the credibility of American humanitarian commitments when the next crisis hits in less friendly territory? Check out the answers to these questions and more in this episode of Fault Lines. @lestermunson…

People in this episode

Hosts: Les, John, Andrew, Andy

Topics covered

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: USAID, UN, DART, American

Places: Venezuela, Washington, Los Angeles, Fairfax County

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