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President Donald Trump said Sunday that a new classified weapon he referred to as “The Discombobulator” played a key role in the U.S. operation that captured Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro on Jan. 3, marking the first public acknowledgment of the technology’s existence.
In an interview with the New York Post, the president said the secret system disabled Venezuelan defenses before U.S. helicopters and troops entered Caracas to seize Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, on federal narcotics and weapons charges.
“The Discombobulator. I’m not allowed to talk about it,” he told the outlet from the Oval Office, before confirming its use. “They never got their rockets off. They pressed buttons and nothing worked.”
President Trump’s remarks provide the first official confirmation of what U.S. and Venezuelan sources had previously suggested: that U.S. forces neutralized air defenses, communications and other systems before the assault, leaving Maduro’s forces unable to respond effectively.
The brief operation, which resulted in no American casualties, led to the capture of Maduro and Flores, who are now in U.S. custody, facing federal charges. Officials have previously acknowledged that Venezuelan defensive systems were disabled prior to the insertion of U.S. helicopters and drones, but they had not described the specific technology involved.
President Trump said Venezuelan forces were unable to respond despite being armed with foreign-supplied weaponry. “They had Russian and Chinese rockets, and they were all set for us. And nothing worked,” he said.
Accounts from Venezuelan security personnel following the raid described sudden system failures and rapid collapse of organized resistance, with some reporting disorientation and incapacitation during the brief engagement. Trump’s confirmation of the classified system’s deployment appears to address those unexplained aspects of the operation.
White House officials have characterized the operation as a demonstration of U.S. military dominance and technological superiority, though details of the weapon remain closely held. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the mission should serve as a warning to adversaries.