Following executing a evening of shock and awe in Venezuela, Donald Trump now appears to be getting into the state-building business.
In a striking news conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Saturday morning, the commander-in-chief announced that US forces had successfully captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an late-night operation in Caracas.
Trump then announced that a team comprising Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, working with Venezuelans, would be taking control of the embattled nation.
"We are going to run the country until such time as we can do a secure, orderly and careful transition," he said.
What precisely "managing the nation" involves is uncertain, but the pledge marks an abrupt policy reversal for the president, rife with inconsistencies and daunting challenges.
A leader who campaigned against "endless conflicts", who sharply criticised past US attempts at regime change and who promised to implement an "America First" foreign policy is now betting his presidency on successfully rebuilding a South American nation whose economic system is collapsed and whose political stability has been eroded by decades of dictatorship.
Yet, Trump was relentlessly optimistic.
He stated his administration has a "perfect track record of winning" – and that this will be no different. He pledged to recruit American energy companies to overhaul Venezuela's deteriorating production infrastructure, supplying capital for the American rebuilding project and aiding the Venezuelan people.
He declined to rule out deploying American soldiers to Venezuela to advance these efforts. "We're not afraid of boots on the ground…we had boots on the ground last night," he informed reporters.
Trump, a vocal opponent 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 destiny – whether for good or ill.
Trump entered office nearly a year ago pledging to be a diplomat, but over the past year he has shown that he is more than willing to use armed force worldwide.
In the past week, he ordered air strikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he struck nuclear facilities in Iran, suspected narco-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, rebel forces in Yemen, armed groups in Somalia and Islamic militants in Iraq.
In contrast to past operations, which have largely involved rockets and warplanes that minimize the risk of American forces to harm, Trump's Venezuela operation – and his commitments to the fate of that nation – are markedly distinct.
His goal, he said during his briefing, is to "make Venezuela great again."
Response at Home and Abroad
That twist on Trump's "MAGA" – or Maga - mantra may be difficult for some of Trump's followers to accept.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a one-time Trump ally who broke with the president after accusing him of deserting his political base, was swift to condemn the president's actions on social media.
"Americans' disgust with our own government's perpetual use of force and backing for foreign wars is justified because we are forced to pay for 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, compared the official rationale for Maduro's arrest – on weapons and drug trafficking charges – with Trump's reasoning that the operation was to retake confiscated US oil and halt fentanyl production.
Most Republican lawmakers supported the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson describing the armed intervention against a "illegitimate government" as "firm and legitimate".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his appearance, the president argued the Venezuelan operation advanced his "America First" agenda because it guaranteed US regional security and provided a steady source of oil.
He dusted off the Monroe Doctrine – an nineteenth-century American diplomatic policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be free from influence by European powers – and rebranded it the "Donroe Doctrine."
The action in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will not be questioned again."
The purpose of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "protect trade, territory and resources that are core to our security interests." He labeled the Western Hemisphere as America's "sphere of influence."
Trump's choice to capture Maduro will raise larger concerns in global politics, however, and affect American ties with the world's other significant global powers.
The Chinese government released a statement voicing shock and denouncing what it said was a reckless attack on a sovereign nation.
During the Biden administration, the US offered comparable condemnations 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 more favourable to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a centrist Republican congressman, voiced worry about the signal Trump's actions might send.
"My main concern is now Russia will use this to justify their illegal and brutal military actions against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an invasion of Taiwan."
Political Criticism and Constitutional Questions
Trump's Democratic opponents were sharper.
"America should not be running other countries for any purpose," said a senator who serves on the Foreign Relations Committee. "We should have learned by now not to get involved in perpetual conflicts and overthrow attempts that carry catastrophic consequences for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker stated Maduro is a lawbreaker and a dictator with a record of rights violations. But he censured Trump's choice not to inform legislative leaders prior to initiating the attack.
"Donald Trump has the constitutional responsibility to follow the law and protect institutional norms in the United States," he said. "That is what placing America First demands."
Trump, in his remarks, explained that he chose not to inform Congress because he was concerned they would "disclose" particulars of the operation before the attack.
An Uncertain Future
That military operation was a success – with no American deaths and minimal harm to US assets. Trump, with his typical bravado, portrayed the operation as a "daring raid" and "one of the most stunning, successful and powerful displays of American military might and proficiency in American history."
Now he is gambling his presidency on that success enduring, as the US says it will take over running and rebuilding Venezuela - though what that truly entails is unclear. He and his administration must fortify a nation that has been in chaos for decades while stabilising a hemisphere that is sure to be cautious of what Trump's foreign policy has in store for them.
