In the wake of launching a evening of shock and awe in Venezuela, Donald Trump now appears to be getting into the nation-building business.
In a remarkable news conference at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Saturday morning, the president announced that US military forces had successfully captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an late-night operation in Caracas.
Trump then indicated that a delegation including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, working with Venezuelans, would be seizing the reins of the embattled nation.
"We are going to run the country until such time as we can do a secure, proper and judicious transition," he said.
What exactly "governing the state" entails is unclear, but the vow marks an abrupt shift in direction for the president, full of contradictions and formidable challenges.
A president who campaigned against "endless conflicts", who vehemently denounced past US attempts at overthrowing governments and who promised to implement an "America First" foreign policy is now betting his presidency on successfully revitalizing a South American nation whose economic system is in shambles and whose political stability has been undermined by decades of authoritarian rule.
Yet, Trump was relentlessly optimistic.
He said his administration has a "unblemished record of winning" – and that this would be no different. He pledged to enlist American oil firms to rebuild Venezuela's crumbling industrial infrastructure, supplying capital for the American reconstruction efforts and benefitting the Venezuelan people.
He declined to rule out sending American soldiers to Venezuela to further these efforts. "We're not afraid of boots on the ground…we had boots on the ground last night," he told reporters.
Trump, a vocal opponent of the US invasion of Iraq, will now have to remember the words of one of the American architects of the Iraq War, Secretary of State Colin Powell: "If you break it, you own it."
An Altered International Stance
The US has altered Venezuela's prospects – for better or worse.
Trump came to power nearly a year ago promising to be a peacemaker, but over the past year he has shown that he is more than willing to use military 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, militias in Somalia and jihadist fighters in Iraq.
Unlike previous operations, which have mostly involved rockets and warplanes that reduce the risk of American forces to harm, Trump's Venezuela operation – and his pledges to the future of that nation – are markedly distinct.
His objective, he said during his press conference, is to "restore Venezuela's greatness."
Response at Home and Abroad
That play on Trump's "MAGA" – or Maga - slogan could be hard for some of Trump's followers to accept.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump ally who split from the president after charging him of deserting his core supporters, was quick to criticize the president's actions on social media.
"Americans' disgust with our own government's endless military aggression and support of foreign wars is justified because we are compelled to fund it," she stated. "This is what many in Maga thought they voted to end. Boy were we wrong."
Another notable Trump detractor, Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, contrasted the legal justification for Maduro's arrest – on arms and cocaine trafficking charges – with Trump's reasoning that the operation was to retake confiscated US oil and stop fentanyl production.
The majority of Republican lawmakers stood by the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson describing the military action against a "illegitimate government" as "decisive and justified".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his appearance, the president argued the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" agenda because it ensured US regional security and provided a reliable source of oil.
He resurrected the Monroe Doctrine – an nineteenth-century American diplomatic policy that asserted the Western Hemisphere should be free from influence by European powers – and rebranded it the "Donroe Doctrine."
The move in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "US preeminence in the Western Hemisphere will never be challenged again."
The purpose of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "protect trade, land and assets that are fundamental to our national security." He labeled the Western Hemisphere as America's "sphere of influence."
Trump's choice to capture Maduro will raise broader concerns in international relations, however, and impact American ties with the world's other significant military powers.
The Chinese foreign ministry released a statement voicing shock and denouncing what it said was a irresponsible assault on a independent country.
During the previous administration, the US offered comparable condemnations of Russia following its incursion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is attempting to mediate a peace deal 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 precedent Trump's actions might send.
"My primary worry is now Russia will use this to justify their unlawful and brutal military actions against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an invasion of Taiwan."
Political Criticism and Constitutional Questions
Trump's Democratic critics were sharper.
"America should not be administering other countries for any purpose," said a senator who serves on the Foreign Relations Committee. "We should have understood by now not to get entangled in perpetual conflicts and overthrow attempts that carry devastating consequences for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker said Maduro is a lawbreaker and a autocrat with a record of human rights abuses. But he censured Trump's choice not to consult with congressional leaders prior to initiating the attack.
"The President has the constitutional responsibility to follow the law and protect institutional norms in the United States," he said. "That is what putting America First demands."
Trump, in his remarks, said that he chose not to inform Congress because he was worried they would "disclose" particulars of the operation before the attack.
A Path Forward Shrouded in Doubt
That mission was a success – with no American casualties and limited harm to US assets. Trump, with his typical bravado, portrayed the operation as a "spectacular assault" and "one of the most astonishing, effective and powerful displays of American power and competency in US history."
Now he is staking his legacy on that victory continuing, as the US claims it will take over running and rebuilding Venezuela - though what that actually means remains unknown. He and his team must strengthen a nation that has been in turmoil for decades while stabilising a region that is bound to be wary of what Trump's foreign policy has planned for them.
