Following launching a evening of overwhelming force in Venezuela, Donald Trump now appears to be entering the state-building business.
In a remarkable news conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Saturday morning, the president stated that US forces had successfully seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an late-night operation in Caracas.
Trump then announced that a delegation featuring 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 "managing the nation" actually means is unclear, but the pledge marks an sudden policy reversal for the president, rife with contradictions and significant challenges.
A president who ran on opposing "forever wars", who sharply criticised past US efforts at overthrowing governments and who vowed to implement an "America first" international policy is now staking his administration on successfully rebuilding a South American nation whose economy is in shambles and whose political stability has been undermined by years of dictatorship.
Yet, Trump was relentlessly upbeat.
He claimed his administration has a "perfect track record of winning" – and that this would be no exception. He vowed to enlist American oil firms to overhaul Venezuela's deteriorating industrial infrastructure, providing capital for the American rebuilding project and benefitting the Venezuelan people.
He left open the possibility of deploying 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 sharp critic of the US intervention 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 shatter it, you are responsible for it."
A Shift in Foreign Policy
The US has reshaped Venezuela's destiny – whether for good or ill.
Trump came to power nearly a year ago promising to be a diplomat, but over the past year he has shown that he is more than willing to use military force around the globe.
In the past week, he authorized airstrikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he targeted nuclear facilities in Iran, suspected drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, insurgent groups in Yemen, armed groups in Somalia and jihadist fighters in Iraq.
In contrast to previous actions, which have largely involved missiles and warplanes that minimize the exposure of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his commitments to the fate of that nation – are markedly different.
His aim, he said during his press conference, is to "make Venezuela great again."
Domestic and International Reaction
That twist on Trump's "MAGA" – or Maga - mantra could be tough for some of Trump's followers to digest.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump ally who broke with the president after charging him of abandoning his political base, was quick to criticize the president's actions on social media.
"Public outrage with our own government's perpetual military aggression and backing for foreign wars is justified because we are compelled to finance it," she stated. "This is what many in Maga thought they voted to end. Boy were we wrong."
Another notable Trump critic, Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, compared the legal justification for Maduro's arrest – on arms and drug trafficking charges – with Trump's explanation that the operation was to retake seized US oil and halt fentanyl production.
Most Republican lawmakers stood by the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson characterizing the military action against a "illegitimate government" as "firm and legitimate".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his appearance, the president said the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" priorities because it ensured US hemispheric security and provided a steady source of oil.
He dusted off the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th Century American foreign policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be without influence by European powers – and renamed it the "Donroe Doctrine."
The action in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will not be challenged again."
The goal of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "safeguard commerce, land and resources that are fundamental to our security interests." He labeled the Western Hemisphere as America's "backyard."
Trump's decision to apprehend Maduro will raise larger questions in international relations, however, and impact American relations with the world's other significant global powers.
The Chinese government issued a statement voicing shock and denouncing what it said was a irresponsible attack on a sovereign nation.
During the previous administration, the US offered similar condemnations of Russia after its invasion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is attempting to broker a peace deal between those two nations – one that has often seemed to be leaning to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a centrist Republican congressman, voiced concern about the message Trump's actions might send.
"My primary concern is now Russia will use this to excuse their illegal and brutal military actions against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an invasion of Taiwan."
Political Criticism and Constitutional Questions
Trump's Democratic critics were blunter.
"America should not be running 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 endless wars and overthrow attempts that carry devastating results for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker stated Maduro is a lawbreaker and a autocrat with a record of human rights abuses. But he censured Trump's decision not to consult with congressional leaders before initiating the attack.
"Donald Trump has the legal duty to abide by the law and uphold democratic norms in the United States," he said. "That is what placing America First requires."
Trump, in his remarks, said that he opted not to inform Congress because he was worried they would "leak" particulars of the operation prior to the attack.
A Path Forward Shrouded in Doubt
That military operation was a success – with no American casualties and limited damage to US equipment. Trump, with his characteristic bravado, portrayed the operation as a "spectacular assault" and "one of the most stunning, effective and impressive demonstrations of American power and competency in US history."
Now he is gambling his presidency on that victory continuing, as the US says it will take over running and rebuilding Venezuela - though what that actually means is unclear. He and his team must rebuild a nation that has been in turmoil for years while calming a region that is bound to be apprehensive of what Trump's foreign policy has in store for them.
