{"id":286613,"date":"2026-02-04T14:57:52","date_gmt":"2026-02-04T19:57:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/?post_type=short-read&p=286613"},"modified":"2026-02-04T15:40:20","modified_gmt":"2026-02-04T20:40:20","slug":"americans-are-divided-on-next-steps-for-us-in-venezuela","status":"publish","type":"short-read","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2026\/02\/04\/americans-are-divided-on-next-steps-for-us-in-venezuela\/","title":{"rendered":"Americans are divided on next steps for U.S. in Venezuela"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"A
A man walks past a mural depicting an oil pumpjack in Caracas, Venezuela, on Jan. 15, 2026. U.S. President Donald Trump has recently encouraged American companies to invest in Venezuela’s oil industry following the ousting of the country’s leader, President Nicol\u00e1s Maduro, earlier in January. (Pedro Mattey\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Americans are split over how involved the United States should be in governing Venezuela and whether U.S. companies should have access to the country\u2019s oil reserves, according to a new Pew Research Center survey. This comes after a U.S. military operation captured Venezuelan President Nicol\u00e1s Maduro<\/a> in early January.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Americans also have relatively low confidence in President Donald Trump to make wise decisions about U.S. policy toward Venezuela.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Republicans and Democrats (including those who lean toward each party) have sharply different views on all of these questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About this research<\/summary>\n

This Pew Research Center survey looks at Americans\u2019 views of U.S. policy toward Venezuela after the Trump administration captured Venezuelan President Nicol\u00e1s Maduro in early January.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why did we do this?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Pew Research Center conducts research to help the public, media and decision-makers understand important topics. We have studied Americans\u2019 views of politics and major policy issues, including U.S. foreign policy, for decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learn more<\/a> about Pew Research Center.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How did we do this?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

We surveyed 8,512 U.S. adults from Jan. 20 to 26, 2026. Everyone who took part in this survey is a member of the Center\u2019s American Trends Panel. The survey represents the views of all U.S. adults.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are our survey questions<\/a>, the detailed responses<\/a> and the survey methodology<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n

Confidence in Trump on Venezuela<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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Americans have relatively low confidence in Trump on Venezuela; few want U.S. highly involved in governance<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
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Note: No response answers are not shown.<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
Source: Survey of U.S. adults conducted Jan. 20-26, 2026.<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
PEW RESEARCH CENTER<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
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Share this chart<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t