Does a U.S. President have the authority to order a military raid on a foreign capital like Caracas, Venezuela? Is the United States really going to “run” Venezuela as President Trump said, or will it take some slightly more modest role as Marco Rubio seems to suggest. And what will happen to Venezuelans themselves? We address these questions on this episode of Independent Conversations--including live commentary from our correspondent on the ground in Venezuela.

There's been time to reflect on the horrific wildfires in Los Angeles of January 2025. What have we learned about the fires’ origins? And more importantly what have we learned about what could have been done—and what still could be done—to reduce the risks of such devastating fires in the future? We explore these questions on this episode of Independent Conversations.

For those who care about liberty, 2025 was a mixed bag. On the down side, socialism was embraced explicitly by some Americans on the left, and implicitly by some on the right. On the up side, the principle that people should be treated even-handedly without reference to their race—especially by the government—seems finally to be reemerging from the DEI house of mirrors. On this episode of Independent Outlook, we take a look back at these and other big issues of 2025, where the fate of liberty has been on the line repeatedly.