how any US court has jurisdiction over anything that happens in another country, but the rule of law is more of a fuzzy "What does the orange monster want" than actual law these days.

And that's the problem that Trump faces. The US does not have the authority to do what it just did. It does not have the authority to try a foreign national, especially the leader (elected or not), and the judge clearly knows that. Maduro and his wife will almost certainly be freed, at which point Trump has egg on his face.

than I do, Laws mean nothing to the Republican party....and even less to the orange monster.

the claimed deleterious effects within the US of drug trafficking supposedly facilitated by Maduro.

(I note, for comparison, that the same problem affected proceedings against Julian Assange: he wasn't a citizen, neither he not Wikileaks had any office or other continuing presence in the US, there was no allegation that he'd done anything arguably illegal while travelling the US, he hadn't even actually hacked any info from the US or US-based entities; he simply published info leaked by others evidencing US crimes. We nonetheless indicted him for a death penalty-type offense.)

I think Maduro's claimed drug trafficking is the legal thread this hangs from, while the argument that we're merely reclaiming oil stolen from our oligarchs is meant to reassure MAGAts that our action really is in the interests of Amuhrica after all.

Just sayin'

while also recognizing that what his happening is incredibly dangerous.

This sets a precedent that allows him to literally use our military to kidnap any world leader and take over governance of any country in the world.

Why?

Maduro is sitting on a butt load of petro dollars stashed in some vault somewhere.

Actually, Maduro is probably much, much wealthier than Trump.

Putting on my magical thinking cap I think Maduro will get a Trump pardon. Do you?

Quid pro quo, baby!

But is it certain that the case will stay in that court?