Following executing a evening of overwhelming force in Venezuela, Donald Trump now appears to be getting into the state-building business.
In a striking news conference at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Saturday morning, the president declared that US military forces had effectively apprehended Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an late-night operation in Caracas.
Trump then said that a group featuring Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, working with Venezuelans, would be assuming control of the beleaguered nation.
"We are going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, orderly and judicious transition," he said.
What precisely "governing the state" involves is uncertain, but the vow signifies an abrupt change of course for the president, rife with contradictions and formidable obstacles.
A president who campaigned against "forever wars", who sharply criticised past US attempts at overthrowing governments and who vowed to implement an "America first" international policy is now betting his presidency on effectively revitalizing a South American nation whose economy is collapsed and whose political stability has been eroded by decades of authoritarian rule.
Yet, Trump was persistently optimistic.
He stated his administration has a "perfect track record of winning" – and that this will be no exception. He vowed to enlist American energy companies to overhaul Venezuela's deteriorating industrial infrastructure, supplying financing for the American reconstruction efforts and aiding 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: "You break it, you bought it."
A Shift in Foreign Policy
The US has altered Venezuela's prospects – for better or worse.
Trump entered office nearly a year ago promising to be a diplomat, but over the past year he has demonstrated that he is ready 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 previous operations, which have mostly involved rockets and warplanes that minimize the risk of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his commitments to the fate of that nation – are markedly distinct.
His aim, he said during his briefing, is to "restore Venezuela's greatness."
Domestic and International Reaction
That twist on Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - mantra may be tough for some of Trump's followers to swallow.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump loyalist who broke with the president after accusing him of abandoning his political base, was swift to denounce the president's actions on social media.
"Americans' disgust with our own government's perpetual use of force and support of foreign wars is understandable because we are compelled to pay for it," she wrote. "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 drug trafficking charges – with Trump's reasoning that the operation was to reclaim seized US oil and stop fentanyl production.
Most Republican lawmakers supported the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson characterizing the armed intervention against a "criminal regime" as "firm and warranted".
Policy Rationales and Worldwide Consequences
During his appearance, the president argued the Venezuelan operation advanced his "America First" agenda because it guaranteed US regional security and provided a reliable source of oil.
He revived the Monroe Doctrine – an nineteenth-century American diplomatic policy that asserted the Western Hemisphere should be without influence by European powers – and rebranded it the "Donroe Doctrine."
The move in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "US supremacy in the Western Hemisphere will not be challenged again."
The goal of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "protect trade, land and assets that are fundamental to our national security." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "sphere of influence."
Trump's decision to apprehend Maduro will raise broader questions in international relations, however, and impact American ties with the world's other significant global powers.
The Chinese government issued a statement expressing shock and condemning what it said was a reckless assault on a sovereign nation.
During the previous administration, the US offered comparable censures of Russia after its incursion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is attempting to broker 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, voiced worry about the precedent Trump's actions might send.
"My main concern is now Russia will use this to excuse their unlawful and barbaric military actions against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an attack of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic critics were more direct.
"The United States should not be managing other countries for any reason," said a senator who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations committee. "We should have learned by now not to get entangled in perpetual conflicts and regime change missions that carry devastating consequences for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker stated Maduro is a criminal and a autocrat with a record of human rights abuses. But he censured Trump's decision not to inform legislative leaders before launching the attack.
"Donald Trump has the legal duty to follow the law and protect 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 prior to the attack.
An Uncertain Future
That military operation was a success – with zero American casualties and minimal damage to US equipment. Trump, with his characteristic confidence, described the operation as a "daring raid" and "among the most stunning, successful and powerful demonstrations of American power and competency in American history."
Now he is betting his legacy on that success continuing, as the US says it will assume responsibility for running and rebuilding Venezuela - though what that truly entails remains unknown. He and his administration must rebuild a nation that has been in chaos for years while calming a hemisphere that is bound to be apprehensive of what Trump's international strategy has planned for them.
