A lot has happened since Senior Reporter Don Nelson last spoke with Senator Jim Risch five weeks ago about Venezuela.Venezuelan President Nicols Maduro, whom the U.S. has called a "dictator," has been removed from power, and Pre sident Trump has indicated the U.S. will run the country moving forward.Don Nelson spoke this morning with Senator Risch via Zoom from Washington.Hear what Jim Risch has to say about the removal of Nicols Maduro and the ongoing conflict with Venezuela Idaho Senator Jim Risch says we are not at war with VenezuelaWhen asked when he'd learned about the military operation to remove Maduro from the country, Risch replied, " I was informed by the Secretary of State personally at a time that is in compliance with the law."I asked Risch if going into a country and forcibly removing the president of that nation constitutes an act of war. To which Risch said, "This is not war, and by the way, there's precedent for this. George Herbert Bush did this with Noriega when he was President of Panama; we did the exact same thing."Pardon for the former president of HondurasIn November, President Trump issued a pardon to the former Honduran president after a jury convicted him of conspiring to import cocaine to the U.S.Trump said Juan Hernandez had been treated unfairly. Nelson asked the Senator, "Isn't that what Maduro is being charged with?""Presidents are in charge of pardons. He has stated his rationale for it. I haven't investigated. I don't know anything about it," responded Risch.Will the U.S. run Venezuela? So exactly what does it mean when the President says the U.S. is going to run Venezuela?"When Trump says we're running the country, we're certainly not doing it with people being there," added Risch. "We are doing it with the fact that we have control of the oil, which is control of their money."Nelson went on to ask Risch if the conflict is about drugs, oil, or both."The only part that oil plays in this is [that it is] the source of revenue for Venezuela," said Risch.Seizing oil tankers and the future of GreenlandHours before we spoke, the U.S. had just taken control over two oil tankers at sea because of an American blockade of sanctioned vessels near Venezuela. One of those ships was flying under the Russian flag in the North Atlantic."First of all, they were flying a false flag," commented Risch. "Secondly, the crew went over the side and painted a Russian flag on the ship; we don't recognize that."President Trump has put other countries on notice, including Colombia, over its alleged illegal drug production. But what about all the talk about occupying Greenland, the autonomous territory that falls under the sovereignty of NATO member Denmark?The Trump Administration has refused to rule out taking over the island with military force in a bid to increase our strategic advantage in the North Atlantic and beyond."I can tell you I know of no plans to take over Greenland," said Risch.ALSO READ | Senator Jim Risch explains how to prevent future government shutdowns ...read more read less