WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said in an interview with Politico released Tuesday that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro's "days are numbered" and declined to comment on whether the U.S. could send troops to the country.
Asked whether the U.S. could send in troops on the ground, Trump said, "I don't comment on that."
"I wouldn’t say that one way or the other," he said, going on to criticize Maduro.
The president's comments came during a wide-ranging interview in which he said Russia had a stronger negotiation position than Ukraine in talks to end their war, criticized European leaders as "weak" and their countries as "decaying," and launched another tirade against Somali immigrants and Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn.
The president also rated his economy an “A-plus-plus-plus-plus-plus” despite polling indicating that voters think the administration has fallen short on addressing economic issues, and he affirmed that an immediate Federal Reserve rate cut decision would be a litmus test for selecting a new chair.
Pressed during the interview on how far he would go to take Maduro out of office, Trump said, "I don't want to say that."
"But you want to see him out?" Politico reporter Dasha Burns asked.
"His days are numbered," Trump said.
Asked again whether he would rule out a U.S. ground invasion, Trump said, "I don't want to rule in or out."
Tensions between the U.S. and Venezuela have soared in recent months as the administration conducted strikes on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific. Late last month, the president suggested that the U.S. could "very soon" target Venezuelan drug traffickers by land, and Trump said that country's airspace should be considered "closed."
Asked by Politico whether he would consider actions similar to the boat strikes to target countries like Mexico and Colombia to cut down on fentanyl trafficking, Trump said, "Yeah, I would."
"Sure," he added. "I would."
Trump was also asked about the decision to launch a second strike on an alleged drug boat on Sept. 2, killing survivors of the first attack on the same vessel. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has faced questions and concerns for weeks about the legality of the second strike.
"It looked like they were trying to turn back over the boat, but I don’t get involved in that," Trump said. "That’s up to them."
The president also discussed the war in Ukraine. Asked whether it or Russia was in the stronger negotiating position, Trump said, “There can be no question about it, it’s Russia.” Later, he said Russia “always” had the “upper hand,” pointing to the country's much larger size.
“I give the people of Ukraine and the military of Ukraine tremendous credit for the, you know, bravery and for the fighting and all of that,” he said. “But you know, at some point, size will win, generally.”
Trump also criticized European leaders over their immigration policies, which he called “a disaster,” and argued that “most European nations, they’re decaying.”
Separately, the president criticized Somali immigrants and Omar in particular, though he did not refer to her by name. The president said he did not want someone to come to the U.S. and then become “a congressman and does nothing but complain.”
“All she does is complain, complain, complain, and yet her country’s a mess,” Trump said, apparently referring to Omar. “You know, it’s one of the worst in the world. Let her go back, fix up her own country.”
Trump has repeatedly disparaged Somali immigrants in recent days and targeted Omar, who fled Somalia as a child during the country's ongoing civil war.
Omar has pushed back, saying in a post to X last week, “My message to Trump: Your message of bigotry won’t work.”
“Somali Americans are here to stay,” she added.
During the interview, the president praised the economy under his administration, saying he would grade it an "A-plus-plus-plus-plus-plus."
Trump is traveling to Pennsylvania later this afternoon to deliver a speech on the economy. It comes as polling indicates Americans are disappointed in the administration's handling of the issue, which is consistently a top factor for voters.
An NBC News poll from October found that about two-thirds of registered voters thought the Trump administration had fallen short on addressing inflation and the cost of living. The poll found a similar percentage of voters felt the administration also fell short on the economy and looking out for the middle class.
Trump has consistently pressured the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates faster and repeatedly criticized Chair Jerome Powell for not cutting rates sooner. Powell's term ends this spring, which will allow Trump to select his successor.
Asked whether he would consider a plan to immediately lower interest rates as a litmus test for those he's considering for the job, the president said "yes."
Trump said late last month that he knows who he will pick as the next chair, but declined to share the name.
