Following executing a night of shock and awe in Venezuela, Donald Trump now appears to be getting into the state-building business.
In a notable 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 late-night operation in Caracas.
Trump then said that a team including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, collaborating with Venezuelans, would be taking control of the embattled nation.
"We are going to manage the country until such time as we can do a safe, orderly and judicious transition," he said.
What precisely "governing the state" actually means is ambiguous, but the vow signifies an dramatic shift in direction for the president, full of inconsistencies and formidable obstacles.
A president who ran on opposing "endless conflicts", who vehemently denounced past US attempts at overthrowing governments and who promised to implement an "America First" international policy is now staking his presidency on successfully revitalizing a South American nation whose economic system is in ruins and whose political stability has been eroded by decades of dictatorship.
Yet, Trump was unwaveringly optimistic.
He said his administration has a "unblemished record of winning" – and that this would be no different. He promised to recruit American energy companies to repair Venezuela's crumbling industrial infrastructure, supplying financing for the American reconstruction efforts and benefitting the Venezuelan people.
He did not exclude deploying American soldiers to Venezuela to further these efforts. "We do not fear 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 break it, you own it."
A Changed Global Approach
The US has altered Venezuela's future – whether for good or ill.
Trump took office nearly a year ago pledging to be a peacemaker, but over the past year he has shown that he is quite prepared to use military force worldwide.
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, militias in Somalia and Islamic militants in Iraq.
Unlike past actions, which have mostly involved missiles and warplanes that minimize the exposure of American forces to harm, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his commitments to the future of that nation – are markedly distinct.
His aim, he said during his press conference, is to "make Venezuela great again."
Reactions from Allies and Critics
That variation of Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - slogan may be difficult for some of Trump's supporters to digest.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a one-time Trump loyalist who broke with the president after charging him of abandoning his political base, was quick to denounce the president's actions on social media.
"Public outrage with our own government's perpetual use of force and backing for overseas conflicts is understandable because we are forced to finance it," she stated. "This is what many in Maga thought they voted to end. How mistaken we were."
Another prominent Trump detractor, Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, contrasted the official rationale for Maduro's arrest – on weapons and cocaine trafficking charges – with Trump's reasoning that the operation was to reclaim confiscated US oil and stop fentanyl production.
The majority of Republican lawmakers rallied behind the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson characterizing the military action against a "illegitimate government" as "firm and justified".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his press conference, the president said the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" agenda because it guaranteed US hemispheric security and provided a reliable source of oil.
He resurrected the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th Century American foreign policy that asserted the Western Hemisphere should be free from influence by European powers – and renamed it the "Donroe Doctrine."
The action in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "US supremacy in the Western Hemisphere will never be challenged again."
The goal of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "protect commerce, land and assets that are fundamental to our national security." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "home region."
Trump's decision to capture Maduro will raise broader questions in international relations, however, and affect American ties with the world's other significant military powers.
The Chinese government 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 similar censures of Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is attempting to mediate a peace deal between those two nations – one that has often appeared to be leaning to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a moderate Republican congressman, voiced concern about the signal Trump's actions might send.
"My primary concern is now Russia will use this to justify their illegal and barbaric military actions against Ukraine, or China to justify an invasion of Taiwan."
Political Criticism and Constitutional Questions
Trump's Democratic opponents were blunter.
"America should not be managing other countries for any reason," said a senator who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations committee. "We should have understood by now not to get entangled in endless wars and regime change missions that carry catastrophic consequences for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker stated Maduro is a criminal and a dictator with a record of human rights abuses. But he condemned Trump's choice 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, explained that he chose not to inform Congress because he was concerned they would "disclose" details of the operation prior to the attack.
A Path Forward Shrouded in Doubt
That mission was a triumph – with no American deaths and limited damage to US equipment. Trump, with his characteristic bravado, described the operation as a "daring raid" and "one of the most astonishing, successful and powerful demonstrations of American military might and competency in American history."
Now he is gambling his legacy on that success continuing, as the US says it will take over administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that actually means is unknown. He and his administration must fortify a nation that has been in turmoil for decades while stabilising a hemisphere that is bound to be wary of what Trump's foreign policy has in store for them.
