Following executing a evening of shock and awe in Venezuela, Donald Trump now appears to be getting into the state-building business.
In a remarkable media briefing at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Saturday morning, the president stated that US forces had successfully seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an overnight raid in Caracas.
Trump then said that a delegation comprising Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, working with Venezuelans, would be assuming control of the troubled nation.
"We are going to run the country until such time as we can do a secure, orderly and judicious transition," he said.
What precisely "managing the nation" entails is uncertain, but the commitment marks an abrupt shift in direction for the president, laden with inconsistencies and daunting challenges.
A leader who campaigned against "endless conflicts", who vehemently denounced past US attempts at overthrowing governments and who vowed to implement an "America First" international policy is now gambling his administration on successfully revitalizing a South American nation whose economy is in ruins and whose political stability has been eroded by years of dictatorship.
Yet, Trump was persistently confident.
He said his administration has a "unblemished record of winning" – and that this would be no exception. He promised to recruit American energy companies to rebuild Venezuela's deteriorating production infrastructure, supplying capital for the American reconstruction efforts and benefitting the Venezuelan people.
He declined to rule out sending American soldiers to Venezuela to advance these efforts. "We do not fear boots on the ground…we had boots on the ground last night," he informed reporters.
Trump, a vocal opponent of the US invasion of Iraq, will now have to heed the words of one of the American planners of the Iraq War, Secretary of State Colin Powell: "If you break it, you own it."
A Changed Global Approach
The US has reshaped Venezuela's future – for better or worse.
Trump took office nearly a year ago pledging to be a peacemaker, but over the past year he has proven that he is more than willing to use armed force internationally.
In the past week, he ordered air strikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he struck nuclear facilities in Iran, suspected drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, insurgent groups in Yemen, armed groups in Somalia and jihadist fighters in Iraq.
Unlike past actions, which have mostly involved missiles and aircraft that reduce the exposure of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his commitments to the fate of that nation – are strikingly different.
His goal, he said during his press conference, is to "restore Venezuela's greatness."
Reactions from Allies and Critics
That twist on Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - mantra may be hard for some of Trump's supporters to swallow.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump loyalist who broke with the president after charging him of abandoning his core supporters, was swift to criticize the president's actions on social media.
"Public outrage with our own government's never ending military aggression and backing for overseas conflicts is understandable because we are compelled to fund it," she wrote. "This is what many in Maga thought they voted to end. How mistaken we were."
Another notable Trump detractor, Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, compared the legal justification for Maduro's arrest – on arms and cocaine trafficking charges – with Trump's explanation that the operation was to reclaim seized US oil and halt fentanyl production.
Most Republican lawmakers supported the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson describing the armed intervention against a "criminal regime" as "decisive and legitimate".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his press conference, the president said the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" priorities because it guaranteed US hemispheric security and provided a steady source of oil.
He revived the Monroe Doctrine – an nineteenth-century American diplomatic policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be without influence by European powers – and rebranded it the "Donroe Doctrine."
The move in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "US supremacy in the Western Hemisphere will never be challenged again."
The goal of the new US security policy, he said, was to "protect trade, land and assets that are fundamental to our national security." He labeled the Western Hemisphere as America's "backyard."
Trump's decision to capture Maduro will raise larger concerns in international relations, however, and impact American relations with the world's other major global powers.
The Chinese foreign ministry released a statement voicing surprise and condemning what it said was a reckless attack on a independent country.
During the previous administration, the US offered comparable condemnations of Russia after its incursion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is trying to mediate a ceasefire between those two nations – one that has frequently appeared to be leaning to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a centrist Republican congressman, expressed concern about the message Trump's actions might send.
"My primary worry is now Russia will use this to excuse their unlawful and brutal operations against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an invasion of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic critics were more direct.
"The United States should not be administering other countries for any purpose," said a senator who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations committee. "We should have understood by now not to get involved in perpetual conflicts and regime change missions that carry catastrophic consequences for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker stated Maduro is a criminal and a autocrat with a record of human rights abuses. But he condemned Trump's decision not to inform legislative leaders prior to launching the attack.
"The President has the constitutional responsibility to follow the law and uphold institutional norms in the United States," he said. "That is what putting America First requires."
Trump, in his remarks, said that he chose not to inform Congress because he was concerned they would "leak" details of the operation prior to the attack.
A Path Forward Shrouded in Doubt
That military operation was a triumph – with no American deaths and limited damage to US equipment. Trump, with his characteristic bravado, portrayed the operation as a "daring raid" and "one of the most astonishing, effective and impressive demonstrations of American power and competency in American history."
Now he is gambling his legacy on that victory enduring, as the US says it will assume responsibility for running and rebuilding Venezuela - though what that truly entails is unclear. He and his administration must rebuild a nation that has been in chaos for years while calming a hemisphere that is sure to be wary of what Trump's foreign policy has planned for them.
