US imperialism is again on the warpath, this time threatening Venezuela as part of a systematic drive to subjugate all of Latin America. President Donald Trump told Politico last week that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s “days are numbered” and declared Friday that ground attacks would begin “pretty soon.”

The Wall Street Journal’s editorial board characterized his actions as a pledge to carry out regime change, writing that Trump is now “obliged to follow through” on his commitment to oust Maduro.

Trump’s threats have been backed by the largest US military deployment in the Caribbean since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. The Pentagon has deployed more than 15,000 troops, a dozen warships, including the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, and scores of aircraft within striking distance of Venezuela.