Trump Issues New Warning To Venezuela's Maduro: 'If He Plays Tough, It'll Be The Last Time He's Ever Able To'

President Donald Trump issued a new warning to Venezuela's authoritarian President Nicolas Maduro, saying it would be "smart" for him to leave power and, if he "plays tough," it will "be the last time he's ever able to play tough."

Speaking at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, Trump was asked if the end goal of his military campaign in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific, which has included dozens of strikes against alleged drug vessels and more recently the seizure of sanctioned oil tankers off Venezuela, is removing Maduro from power.

"That's up to him what he wants to do. I think it would be smart for him to do that. But again, we're going to find out," Trump responded.

The remark took place shortly after analysts told The Washington Post that Trump will be faced with a binary choice should he fail to force Maduro out with his current tactic.

That choice would be between forcibly removing him through a military ground operation or backing down, the analysts told the outlet, noting that the prospect of the former scenario could be unappealing for many in the U.S., as well as Trump, who had promised no more wars during his campaign.

There are diverging views in Congress and the U.S. political landscape regarding the preferred course of action. Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham appears to be supporting forceful actions against Maduro, saying "you cannot allow this man to remain standing after this show of force."

He was making reference to the fact that the U.S. has already deployed 15,000 troops in the Caribbean, as well as dozens of warships and aircraft.

In contrast, Republican Sen. Rand Paul slammed the recent seizure of tankers off Venezuela, saying he is against the moves and calling them a "provocation and a prelude to war."

"I'm not for confiscating these liners. I'm not for blowing up these boats of unarmed people that are suspected of being drug dealers. I'm not for any of this," Paul told ABC News.

Maduro, in the meantime, is refusing to relinquish power in the country, confident he can wait out the Trump administration's pressure campaign, according to another report by The Washington Post.

Even though Maduro is increasingly fearful of an attack against him or critical infrastructure, his regime is not showing signs of collapsing, outlet claimed, based on interviews with people close to the regime.