PDB Afternoon Bulletin | April 24th. 2025: FBI: Maduro Weaponizing Gangs Against America & Trump Unloads on Putin & Zelensky
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It's Thursday, the 24th of April. Welcome to the PDB Afternoon Bulletin. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. All right, let's get briefed. First, in a report that speaks volumes about the nature of the Venezuelan government, the FBI has alleged that some top Venezuelan government officials have been facilitating the migration of members of the violent gang Tranda Aragua, known as TDA, into the U.S. We'll have those details later.

Later in the show, Russia unleashes a large-scale missile and drone attack on Kyiv overnight, killing at least a dozen people. It marked the biggest attack on the Ukrainian capital this year and came just hours after peace talks over the conflict appeared to fall apart. But first, today's afternoon spotlight. As the Trump administration continues to turn up the heat against the violent Venezuelan gang Trenderagua ,

We're learning that the criminal group has been reportedly receiving major assistance from leaders in their home nation. A damning intelligence assessment from the FBI reveals that key Venezuelan government officials have "likely" been facilitating the migration of TDA gang members directly into the U.S. The FBI's assessment concludes that the regime of dictator Nicolas Maduro

has been essentially using TDA as a proxy force to sow chaos on American streets and undermine public safety throughout the U.S. A senior official with the Trump administration shared the disturbing findings exclusively with Fox News, which reviewed unclassified portions of the agency's report on the Venezuelan government's covert dealings with TDA. As a reminder, the group was designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the White House earlier this year.

The official told Fox News, quote, "These findings should shock Americans, but not the law enforcement community. They reflect the sentiments of numerous other intelligence assessments across multiple agencies," end quote. The assessment was reportedly based on information gleaned in recent months from domestic law enforcement operations against TDA, as the Trump administration works to dismantle the criminal enterprise.

While details of the report remain classified, the FBI warns that over the next 6 to 18 months, Venezuelan government officials will likely attempt to leverage their relationship with TDA leaders in America to threaten, abduct, and kill Venezuelans living in the U.S. who are vocal critics of the Maduro regime.

The FBI said they also expect similar efforts to target dissidents in countries throughout South America. In addition to using the group to destabilize the U.S., the Maduro regime is allegedly also targeting Chile, Ecuador, Peru, and Colombia. We should note that the findings do clash with a classified assessment from the National Intelligence Council that was leaked to the Associated Press last week that claimed that there was no coordination between TDA and the Venezuelan government.

But Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard blasted the AP report, saying the officials who leaked it, quote, "...twisted and manipulated the classified assessment to convey the exact opposite findings in an attempt to undermine President Trump's domestic security agenda."

An official with the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, who spoke anonymously to Fox News, confirmed the FBI's assessment, saying the intelligence was "robust and accurate". They said their office has determined that TDA leadership has a "cozy relationship" with the Venezuelan government, which gives sanctuary to violent gang members. They added that senior Venezuelan officials are actively "aiding and abetting their crimes and terrorist activities against the U.S. by enabling them to thrive".

The official likened the Maduro regime's embrace of TDA to failed states in the Middle East like Syria and Libya or the Taliban in Afghanistan, which have welcomed terrorist groups with open arms and use them as proxies to stoke regional discord.

A White House official told Fox News, quote, Nicholas Maduro is a Marxist dictator who hijacked a once prosperous Venezuela and brought in nothing but total economic collapse and gang takeover. He crumbled Caracas, now overrun with drugs and violence, and wants to do the same across the U.S. by sending his most violent and dangerous criminals into the U.S. communities.

They added that the Trump administration will, quote, use every authority in its power to make sure that these TDA terrorists are kept out of the U.S.,

Now, as we've been tracking on the PDB, the Trump administration has made targeting transnational gangs and cartels one of its top priorities. TDA has been at the top of the list, and hundreds of alleged members have already been deported to El Salvador's infamous mega-prison, with Trump invoking the controversial Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to expedite their removal. Venezuelan strongman Nicolas Maduro has personally condemned the mass deportation of TDA members as illegal kidnappings.

A bit ironic given his regime's well-documented political crackdowns, arbitrary detentions, and state-sanctioned violence against dissenters. As we discussed earlier today, the Trump administration is also unleashing their legal arsenal against the group, indicting 27 members of the gang earlier this week on federal racketeering charges under the RICO Act for the first time as part of the Justice Department's Operation Take Back America.

Coming up next, Russia unleashes a massive missile and drone attack on Kyiv overnight, killing at least 12 people and prompting rare condemnation from President Trump. I'll be right back.

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Welcome back to the Afternoon Bulletin. Kyiv was rocked early Thursday by one of the deadliest Russian assaults in over three years of war, as an onslaught of missiles and drones killed at least 12 and wounded more than 90. The attack hit just hours after peace talks between Washington and Kyiv appeared to fall apart. Fires raged across four districts of the capital as emergency crews scrambled to dig survivors and victims from the rubble.

Ukraine's state emergency service confirmed 42 people had been hospitalized, while search and rescue teams remained deployed in multiple neighborhoods. The attack triggered a swift response from President Trump, who took to Truth Social to post, quote, I am not very happy with the Russian strikes on Kyiv. Not necessary and very bad timing. Vladimir, stop. Let's get the peace deal done, end quote. Well...

That should do it. The timing isn't lost on anyone. The strikes hit after Ukrainian President Zelenskyy on Wednesday rejected the Trump administration's latest peace framework, one that would grant Russia control over Crimea and permanently shut the door on Ukraine's NATO aspirations.

Zelenskyy at a press conference called that framework unconstitutional, stating flatly, "There is nothing to talk about." He reiterated that Ukraine's path to NATO remains non-negotiable and enshrined in the country's national charter. Trump, in response, accused Zelenskyy of dragging out a "killing field," claiming 5,000 soldiers a week are dying and insisting the Ukrainian president had "no cards to play" in negotiations.

As we've discussed here on the PDB, the peace proposal floated by American officials last week in Paris marks a sharp break from U.S. policy. Since Moscow's 2014 annexation of Crimea, Washington has consistently refused to recognize the territory as Russian, a stance later codified by Congress. But under Trump's new deal, the precedent would be tossed. Crucially, the president pointed out that the document does not require Kiev to recognize Russia's land grab.

just that Washington, D.C. would. Vice President J.D. Vance drove the point home in remarks Wednesday, calling the current offer the final one and warning that the U.S. would, quote, walk away if it wasn't accepted.

Trump echoed the ultimatum, telling Ukraine it could either agree to peace now or risk, quote, fighting for another three years before losing the whole country, end quote. Now, despite the administration's escalating pressure campaign, the diplomatic process has stalled. On Wednesday's PDB Afternoon Bulletin, we reported that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other senior officials skipped planned talks in London after it became clear that Kiev was seeking to revisit an earlier U.S. proposal for

for a 30-day ceasefire. A source close to the Ukrainian delegation told Axios that the latest American offer is viewed in Kyiv as lopsided, granting Russia strategic victories while offering Ukraine only vague guarantees. According to another source, Rubio's withdrawal from the London summit was a direct result of that growing divide.

Meanwhile, Trump's envoy, Steve Witkoff, is slated to meet with Russian President Putin on Friday. Moscow, while signaling openness to freeze the war along current front lines, has balked at a key component of the U.S. deal, the proposed deployment of peacekeepers on Ukrainian soil.

So far, the latest round of diplomacy is, well, shaping up like so many before it, mired in ultimatums, walkouts, and no halt in the hostilities. Now, a key problem here is that the Trump administration is basically asking, almost demanding, that Zelensky give in to Putin's demands in order to get a peace deal signed.

Now, regardless of what you think of Zelensky, if you were in his shoes, you'd likely also not be inclined to want to give in to the invading country's key demands.

The Trump administration is approaching this negotiation from a domestic politics perspective, not a geopolitical perspective. Their goal is to make good on campaign talk about quickly securing a peace deal. And in that context, well, you can understand why they've drawn up a proposal that leans so heavily in Russia's favor. They just want to get a deal done. They're not looking at the conflict and support of Ukraine in a traditional East versus West perspective. The problem is...

everyone else is. And that, my friends, is the PDB Afternoon Bulletin for Thursday, 24th of April. If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at pdbatthefirsttv.com. And of course, to listen to the show ad-free, become a premium member of the President's Daily Brief by visiting pdbpremium.com. I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back tomorrow. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool.

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