"5,000 troops to Colombia."
Four words scrawled on a yellow notepad, clutched in the right hand of the national security adviser of the United States of America. Four words scribbled by the owner of the most feared mustache in the land. Four words to make a socialist cretin in Venezuela quake. Four words to make freedom ring.
When John Bolton sauntered into the White House press briefing room and ensured his anti-Maduro death text was winking the fake news in the face, he knew exactly what he was doing.
"White House not tamping down tensions after Bolton seen holding notepad with words '5000 troops to Colombia,'" CNN sniffed.
"Hint to Maduro? ‘5,000 Troops to Colombia,’ Reads Bolton Notepad," Bloomberg News wondered.
"DID JOHN BOLTON WANT US TO SEE HIS 'SECRET' INVASION PLAN?" Vanity Fair blared.
President Trump, of course, did not deploy troops to Venezuela's neighbor, but the left-wing autocracy and its allies got a chilling reminder there are worse fates for suffocating your people than mere sanctions.
The United States owes its enemies nothing except dread.
The pen isn't always mightier than the sword, but then again, it depends who's holding the pen. Four words from Bolton shook the globe.
We've got four more words for Bolton's notepad: Man of the Year.
