At the end of a meeting with top aides last August to discuss sanctions on Venezuela, President Trump surprised them by asking why the United States didn't just invade the country, a senior administration official familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.
For about five minutes, those assembled — including former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and former National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster — told Trump that an invasion could backfire and would likely anger Latin American leaders, the official said. Trump didn't drop it, and the next day made public remarks about a "military option" to remove President Nicolas Maduro.
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