Illinois Governor Pritzker Warns Trump Could “Start a War With Venezuela” to Deflect From Epstein Controversy

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• November 16, 2025

• Newsroom

Illinois Governor Pritzker Warns Trump Could “Start a War With Venezuela” to Deflect From Epstein Controversy

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker (D) suggested Wednesday that President Donald Trump’s recent escalation of military activity in the Caribbean may be an attempt to divert public attention from newly released documents related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Thousands of pages of material tied to the Epstein case were made public earlier in the day, following the release of leaked emails by House Democrats that raised fresh questions about what Trump may have known about Epstein’s interactions with underage girls. Speaking to the Associated Press, Pritzker said he believes the new revelations could be politically damaging to the president.

“My fear — and I think it’s a legitimate one — is that with the release of information that could be devastating for Trump, he will do everything in his power to shift the narrative,” Pritzker said. “What does that look like? He could even take us into a conflict with Venezuela just to change the headlines.”

Military Tensions Rising in the Caribbean

The comments come as the Trump administration faces bipartisan scrutiny over its handling of Epstein-related records and mounting pressure to release all remaining documents. House Democrats filed a discharge petition late Wednesday to force a vote on full disclosure, a move Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said he would bring to the floor next week.

Pritzker’s remarks also follow the arrival of the USS Gerald R. Ford, the U.S. Navy’s largest aircraft carrier, in Latin American waters as part of a Defense Department operation targeting drug cartels and suspicious maritime activity in the Caribbean. The deployment has drawn strong criticism from Venezuelan officials, who accuse Washington of destabilizing the region.

Venezuela responded by announcing what it called a “massive deployment” of troops and placing its military arsenal on full alert. Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López said the mobilization includes ground, air, naval, missile, and militia units, reflecting what he described as the “high-threat environment” created by the U.S. military presence.

White House Pushes Back

In a recent interview, Trump said he did not believe war with Venezuela was likely but predicted that President Nicolás Maduro would leave office “sooner rather than later.”

Asked for comment on Pritzker’s accusations, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson dismissed the governor’s remarks.
“Pritzker’s job is clearly to distract from his own failed leadership in Illinois,” she said.

Background

The intensifying political dispute comes as U.S.–Venezuela relations reach their most volatile point in years. At the same time, congressional pressure to fully release Epstein-related documents continues to build, creating a combustible intersection of foreign policy, domestic politics, and public accountability.