2/7 "It solves a gigantic problem for us," José Antonio Kast said of forcing regime change in Venezuela. Fast forward to January 3: A U.S. military operation captured Maduro in a pre-dawn raid. Trump announced the U.S. would "run" Venezuela while seizing its oil reserves.

3/7 This moment represents a broader regional shift. Kast, arguably Chile's most right-wing leader since Pinochet's dictatorship ended in 1990, is part of a wave of Trump-aligned governments across South America. His brother was Pinochet's central banker; his father was a Nazi.

4/7 The stakes are enormous: Venezuela sits atop massive oil reserves, while the Chile-Bolivia-Argentina border region contains one-third of the world's lithium supply. This is about far more than one country's politics—it's about control of critical resources.

5/7 Stephen Miller's justification was stark: Venezuela's oil nationalization was "the largest recorded theft of American wealth." This rejects the UN principle of permanent sovereignty over natural resources. The message: Venezuela shouldn't be sovereign—but a vassal state.

6/7 Milei posted a map after Kast's win dividing South America into red (left) and blue (right). "The left recedes, freedom advances." Right-wing governments now control Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador. China is the region's largest trading partner—for now.