President Donald Trump and deposed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro are both fond of silly dances, but it may have been the latter’s downfall.
Maduro’s “regular public dancing and other displays of nonchalance in recent weeks helped persuade some on the Trump team that the Venezuelan president was mocking them and trying to call what he believed to be a bluff,” says The New York Times, citing two anonymous sources in the Trump administration. (RELATED: Maduro Bragged Just Days Before Capture That Iranian Air-Defense Systems Would Protect Venezuela)
“So the White House decided to follow through on its military threats.”
*Maduro’s constant dancing became the last straw for Trump, he pressed the button
*White House settled on Delcy as an acceptable candidate. Her ability to edge up oil output under sanctions impressed some Trump officials
*Machado was never a frontrunnerhttps://t.co/DvhHvYVjR1
— Anatoly Kurmanaev (@AKurmanaev) January 4, 2026
Maduro’s most recent display of public dancing appears to have taken place Dec. 31, 2025, when he and his wife bounced to a thumping electronic song on broadcast television.
“Tell the people of the United States: no to war. We don’t want a war in the Caribbean and South America. No, no war, yes peace.[No] crazy, [no] crazy war,” read the song’s lyrics, according to a translation of a report from Argentine newspaper Perfil.
Conservative media personality and video clipper Collin Rugg put together a nice compilation of Maduro’s dance moves:
If Maduro’s dance moves were indeed the breaking point for the Trump administration, more significant factors for the deposition probably included concerns about U.S. oil interests and stemming the flow of drugs from Venezuela. (RELATED: Notorious Socialist Dictator Nicolás Maduro Perp Walked Ahead Of Facing ‘Full Wrath Of American Justice’)
Just as “invading Russia in the winter” has become the apocryphal explanation for Napoleon’s defeat, history may remember “goofy dancing” as Maduro’s final misstep.
Follow Natalie Sandoval on X: @NatSandovalDC