Following launching a evening of shock and awe in Venezuela, Donald Trump seems to be entering the state-building business.
In a notable press conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Saturday morning, the president stated that US military forces had successfully captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an overnight raid in Caracas.
Trump then announced that a team comprising 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 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 uncertain, but the vow marks an dramatic change of course for the president, laden with contradictions and formidable challenges.
A leader who campaigned against "endless conflicts", who sharply criticised past US attempts at regime change and who vowed to implement an "America First" international policy is now betting his administration on effectively revitalizing a South American nation whose economy is collapsed and whose governmental stability has been undermined by decades of authoritarian rule.
Yet, Trump was relentlessly upbeat.
He claimed his administration has a "unblemished record of winning" – and that this will be no exception. He promised to enlist American energy companies to overhaul Venezuela's deteriorating industrial infrastructure, supplying capital for the American reconstruction efforts and benefitting the Venezuelan people.
He did not exclude 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 invasion of Iraq, will now have to consider the words of one of the American planners 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 destiny – for better or worse.
Trump entered office 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 armed force internationally.
In the past week, he ordered air strikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he targeted nuclear facilities in Iran, suspected narco-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, rebel forces in Yemen, militias in Somalia and Islamic militants in Iraq.
Unlike previous actions, which have largely involved missiles and aircraft that reduce the risk of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his commitments to the fate of that nation – are strikingly different.
His aim, he said during his briefing, is to "make Venezuela great again."
Domestic and International Reaction
That variation of Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - mantra might prove tough for some of Trump's followers to accept.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a one-time Trump ally who split from the president after charging him of deserting his political base, was quick to criticize the president's actions on social media.
"Public outrage with our own government's never ending use of force and support of overseas conflicts 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 prominent Trump critic, 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 retake confiscated US oil and stop fentanyl production.
Most Republican lawmakers rallied behind the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson describing the military action against a "illegitimate government" as "decisive and justified".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his appearance, the president argued the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" priorities because it ensured US regional security and provided a steady source of oil.
He dusted off the Monroe Doctrine – an nineteenth-century American foreign policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be free from influence by European powers – and renamed it the "Donroe Doctrine."
The move 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 "protect commerce, land and assets that are fundamental to our national security." He labeled the Western Hemisphere as America's "home region."
Trump's choice to apprehend Maduro will raise broader concerns in global politics, however, and impact American relations with the world's other significant global powers.
The Chinese foreign ministry issued a statement expressing shock and condemning what it said was a irresponsible attack on a independent country.
During the Biden administration, the US offered comparable censures of Russia following its incursion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is attempting to broker a ceasefire between those two nations – one that has frequently seemed to be leaning to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a moderate Republican congressman, voiced concern about the precedent Trump's actions might send.
"My main concern is now Russia will use this to justify their illegal and barbaric operations against Ukraine, or China to justify an invasion of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic critics were more direct.
"America should not be running other countries for any purpose," said a senator who serves on the 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 rights violations. But he condemned Trump's decision not to inform congressional leaders prior to 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 putting America First requires."
Trump, in his remarks, explained that he chose not to inform Congress because he was worried they would "leak" 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 assets. Trump, with his typical bravado, portrayed the operation as a "daring raid" and "one of the most stunning, successful and powerful demonstrations of American power and proficiency in US history."
Now he is gambling his presidency on that victory continuing, as the US says it will take over administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that actually means is unclear. He and his team must strengthen a nation that has been in chaos for decades while stabilising a hemisphere that is bound to be cautious of what Trump's foreign policy has in store for them.
