Following executing a night of shock and awe in Venezuela, Donald Trump seems to be entering the state-building business.
In a remarkable news conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Saturday morning, the president announced that US military forces had effectively captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an overnight raid in Caracas.
Trump then said 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 troubled 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 "running the country" involves is unclear, but the pledge represents an dramatic change of course for the president, laden with contradictions and significant obstacles.
A president who ran on opposing "endless conflicts", who vehemently denounced past US efforts at regime change and who vowed to implement an "America First" international policy is now gambling his administration on successfully revitalizing a South American nation whose economic system is collapsed and whose political stability has been undermined by years of dictatorship.
Yet, Trump was unwaveringly confident.
He claimed his administration has a "unblemished record of winning" – and that this will be no exception. He vowed to enlist American energy companies to rebuild Venezuela's deteriorating industrial infrastructure, providing financing for the American reconstruction efforts and benefitting the Venezuelan people.
He declined to rule out deploying American soldiers to Venezuela to progress these efforts. "We do not fear 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 redefined Venezuela's future – whether for good or ill.
Trump took office nearly a year ago pledging to be a diplomat, but over the past year he has proven that he is ready to use military force internationally.
In the past week, he authorized air strikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he struck nuclear facilities in Iran, alleged narco-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, rebel forces in Yemen, armed groups in Somalia and jihadist fighters in Iraq.
In contrast to past operations, which have mostly involved rockets and warplanes that minimize the risk of American forces to harm, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his pledges to the fate of that nation – are strikingly distinct.
His aim, he said during his briefing, is to "make Venezuela great again."
Reactions from Allies and Critics
That play on Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - mantra might prove tough for some of Trump's supporters to swallow.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a one-time Trump loyalist who broke with the president after accusing him of deserting his political base, was swift to criticize the president's actions on social media.
"Americans' disgust with our own government's never ending use of force and backing for overseas conflicts is justified because we are forced 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, compared the official rationale for Maduro's arrest – on weapons and cocaine trafficking charges – with Trump's explanation that the operation was to reclaim confiscated US oil and halt fentanyl production.
Most Republican lawmakers stood by the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson characterizing the armed intervention against a "criminal regime" as "decisive and legitimate".
Policy Rationales and Worldwide Consequences
During his appearance, the president said the Venezuelan operation advanced his "America First" agenda because it ensured US hemispheric security and provided a reliable source of oil.
He revived the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th Century American diplomatic policy that asserted the Western Hemisphere should be without influence by European powers – and renamed it the "Trump 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 security policy, he said, was to "safeguard trade, land and resources that are core to our security interests." He labeled the Western Hemisphere as America's "sphere of influence."
Trump's decision to capture Maduro will raise larger concerns in international relations, however, and impact American ties with the world's other significant military powers.
The Chinese foreign ministry released a statement expressing shock and denouncing what it said was a irresponsible attack on a independent country.
During the Biden administration, the US offered comparable censures of Russia after its incursion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is trying to mediate a peace deal between those two nations – one that has often appeared to be leaning to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a centrist Republican congressman, expressed worry about the message Trump's actions might send.
"My main concern is now Russia will use this to excuse their unlawful and brutal operations against Ukraine, or China to justify an invasion of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic critics were blunter.
"America should not be managing other countries for any reason," said a senator who serves on the 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 lawbreaker and a dictator with a record of human rights abuses. But he condemned Trump's choice not to inform congressional leaders before launching the attack.
"Donald Trump has the constitutional responsibility to follow the law and uphold institutional norms in the United States," he said. "That is what placing America First requires."
Trump, in his remarks, explained that he opted not to inform Congress because he was concerned they would "disclose" details of the operation before the attack.
A Path Forward Shrouded in Doubt
That mission was a success – with zero American casualties and limited damage to US assets. Trump, with his typical bravado, portrayed the operation as a "daring raid" and "one of the most stunning, effective and impressive displays of American power and proficiency in American history."
Now he is staking his presidency on that success enduring, 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 chaos for years while stabilising a region that is bound to be cautious of what Trump's foreign policy has planned for them.
