Nicolás Maduro’s Public Dancing After Trump’s Threats Helped Convince White House to Capture Venezuelan President, Report Claims

President Donald Trump may have been rattled by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s casual response — including a televised moment that showed him dancing onstage — as tensions between the U.S. and Venezuela escalated in recent weeks.

In a Sunday, Jan. 4, report from The New York Times, several Americans and Venezuelans involved in transition talks alleged that just before the new year, Maduro rejected an ultimatum from Trump to leave office and go into exile in Turkey.

Soon after, Maduro appeared on live television, bouncing to an electronic beat as a recording of his voice repeated in English: “No crazy war.” The clip went viral shortly after the U.S. military carried out a strike on a dock the Trump administration said was used for drug trafficking.

Two people involved in the transition talks told the Times that Maduro’s blasé attitude led some on Trump’s team to believe he was mocking them — and trying to call their bluff.

Having accused the Venezuelan president of drug-related crimes, Trump, 79, confirmed the order of “large-scale strikes” in the region and the capture of Maduro, 63, in a statement on Truth Social on Saturday, Jan. 3.

“The United States of America has successfully carried out a large-scale strike against Venezuela and its leader, President Nicolas Maduro, who has been, along with his wife, captured and flown out of the country,” Trump wrote. “This operation was done in conjunction with U.S. Law Enforcement.”

Maduro is accused by Trump of drug trafficking and “forcing” migration to the U.S. He is also accused of using oil money to fund alleged drug-related crimes — allegations he has denied, according to CBS News.

Speaking from his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Fla., on Saturday, Trump also said the United States is now going to “run” Venezuela.

“We’re going to get the oil flowing the way it should be…we’re gonna run it properly. We’re gonna make sure the people of Venezuela are taken care of,” he said.

He continued, “We’re going to run the country right. It’s going to be run very judiciously, very fairly. And it’s gonna make a lot of money. You know they stole our oil. We built that whole industry and they just took it over like we were nothing. So we did something about it. We’re late, but we did something about it.”

He later added, “We’ll be selling large amounts of oil [from Venezuela] to other countries.”

When asked what he wanted to say to Venezuelans, Trump replied, “You’re going to have peace, justice…you’re going to have a real country.”

As for his “last conversation” with Maduro before his capture, Trump declined to share details, but said he told Maduro, “You gotta surrender,” adding that he believed the Venezuelan leader was “close” to doing so.

Venezuela’s interim leader, Delcy Rodríguez, has since been sworn in, and Trump has already issued public warnings to her.

“If she doesn’t do what’s right, she is going to pay a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro,” Trump, 79, told The Atlantic on Sunday.

During a public address, Rodríguez, 56, accused the U.S. of carrying out an illegal invasion and insisted Maduro remained Venezuela’s legitimate leader — though several Trump administration officials have reportedly been impressed with her handling of the Venezuelan economy and supported her becoming interim leader, according to reports from outlets including the Times and The Washington Post.

Trump also discussed Rodríguez while speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday, insisting, “We’re in charge.”

When asked to clarify his earlier comments about Rodríguez, Trump added, “I just say that she will face a situation probably worse than Maduro. Because, you know, Maduro gave up immediately.”

“He gave up … and he did the right thing, but he gave up. So we were actually… we were so effective,” he continued. “And it was so fast and violent. It was very violent, but we were so effective. He raised his hands, he gave up.”