The conspicuous absence of Vice President JD Vance from critical behind-the-scenes moments during the planning of a major US military operation has unexpectedly reshuffled the early narrative for the 2028 presidential race. The spotlight shifted decisively to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who was seen taking a leading role as President Donald Trump authorised the mission to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.
The Mar-a-Lago Meeting and a Missing Vice President
The pivotal events unfolded on Friday at President Trump's golf club in West Palm Beach, where Trump and Vance met to review plans for the operation, codenamed Operation Absolute Resolve. The objective was to apprehend Maduro from his compound, citing multiple US indictments against him for narcoterrorism. However, when the final go-ahead was given from the president's Mar-a-Lago estate later that night, Vice President Vance was notably absent from all footage and reports.
This visual gap did not go unnoticed. Political commentators and social media users were quick to frame the situation, with many lauding Marco Rubio as a future president and suggesting that JD Vance was not within Trump's innermost trusted circle. The narrative that Rubio was now ahead in the 2028 succession battle gained immediate traction online.
A Strategic Decision, Not a Snub
However, sources close to Vice President Vance provided a different explanation to Bloomberg. They stated that the absence was a deliberate and strategic security decision, not a political sidelining. The administration's national security team was concerned that having both the President and Vice President's motorcades present at Mar-a-Lago, instead of the White House, could alert Venezuelan intelligence that a significant operation was being planned from that location.
Furthermore, officials worried that a late-night motorcade movement by the Vice President as the operation commenced might tip off the targets. For security reasons, the administration has recently aimed to limit how often and for how long the President and Vice President are co-located away from the secured White House complex.
Vance monitored the entire operation in real-time via a secure video conference and was fully briefed throughout the night. After the operation concluded, he returned to his home base in Cincinnati.
Political Fallout and Official Statements
Despite the logistical reasoning, the political impact was instant. The imagery of Rubio in command while Vance was away created a powerful, if potentially misleading, story for the public. Immediately after the successful attack, Vice President Vance issued a strong statement defending the action.
He confirmed that President Trump had offered Maduro "multiple off-ramps" on the condition that drug trafficking activities ceased. "Maduro is the newest person to find out that President Trump means what he says," Vance stated. He emphatically added that the action was legal due to Maduro's indictments, declaring, "You don't get to avoid justice for drug trafficking in the United States because you live in a palace in Caracas."
While the operation achieved its tactical goal, the behind-the-scenes drama has inadvertently set the stage for an early and intense rivalry for the future of the Republican Party, with Marco Rubio seemingly gaining an initial advantage in the public perception war for 2028.
