In the wake of launching a night of shock and awe in Venezuela, Donald Trump seems to be getting into the nation-building business.
In a notable media briefing at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Saturday morning, the president declared that US forces had effectively seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an late-night operation in Caracas.
Trump then announced 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 manage the country until such time as we can do a secure, orderly and careful transition," he said.
What precisely "running the country" actually means is ambiguous, but the pledge marks an dramatic change of course for the president, rife with contradictions and daunting obstacles.
A president who campaigned against "forever wars", who vehemently denounced past US attempts at regime change and who vowed to implement an "America first" international policy is now gambling his presidency on successfully revitalizing a South American nation whose economic system is in ruins and whose political stability has been undermined by years of authoritarian rule.
Yet, Trump was persistently upbeat.
He claimed his administration has a "perfect track record of winning" – and that this will be no exception. He pledged to recruit American oil firms to rebuild Venezuela's deteriorating industrial infrastructure, supplying funds for the American rebuilding project and aiding the Venezuelan people.
He declined to rule out sending American soldiers to Venezuela to advance 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 consider the words of one of the American architects of the Iraq War, Secretary of State Colin Powell: "If you shatter it, you are responsible for it."
A Shift in Foreign Policy
The US has redefined Venezuela's prospects – whether for good or ill.
Trump entered office nearly a year ago pledging to be a diplomat, but over the past year he has proven that he is ready to use armed force worldwide.
In the past week, he ordered airstrikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he targeted nuclear facilities in Iran, alleged narco-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, insurgent groups in Yemen, militias in Somalia and jihadist fighters in Iraq.
Unlike past operations, which have mostly involved missiles and warplanes that minimize the risk of American forces to harm, Trump's Venezuela operation – and his pledges to the fate of that nation – are notably different.
His objective, he said during his press conference, is to "restore Venezuela's greatness."
Response at Home and Abroad
That play on Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - slogan may be tough for some of Trump's followers to swallow.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump ally who broke with the president after accusing him of deserting his core supporters, was quick to denounce the president's actions on social media.
"Americans' disgust with our own government's perpetual use of force and support of overseas conflicts is justified because we are compelled to fund it," she wrote. "This is what many in Maga thought they voted to end. How mistaken we were."
Another prominent Trump critic, Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, compared the legal justification for Maduro's arrest – on weapons and drug trafficking charges – with Trump's explanation that the operation was to reclaim seized US oil and halt fentanyl production.
The majority of Republican lawmakers stood by the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson characterizing the armed intervention against a "illegitimate government" as "firm and legitimate".
Policy Rationales and Worldwide Consequences
During his press conference, the president said the Venezuelan operation advanced his "America First" priorities because it ensured US hemispheric security and provided a steady source of oil.
He revived the Monroe Doctrine – an nineteenth-century American foreign policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be without influence by European powers – and rebranded it the "Trump Doctrine."
The action in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "US supremacy in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again."
The goal of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "safeguard commerce, territory and assets that are central to our security interests." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "home region."
Trump's decision to capture Maduro will provoke broader questions in international relations, however, and affect American relations with the world's other significant global powers.
The Chinese government released a statement expressing shock and denouncing what it said was a reckless assault on a sovereign nation.
During the Biden administration, the US offered comparable condemnations of Russia after its incursion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is trying to broker 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 message Trump's actions might send.
"My main worry is now Russia will use this to justify their unlawful and brutal operations against Ukraine, or China to justify an invasion of Taiwan."
Political Criticism and Constitutional Questions
Trump's Democratic critics were sharper.
"The United States 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 overthrow attempts that carry catastrophic results for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker said Maduro is a lawbreaker and a autocrat with a record of human rights abuses. But he condemned Trump's choice not to consult with legislative leaders before initiating the attack.
"The President has the legal duty to follow the law and protect democratic norms in the United States," he said. "That is what putting America First demands."
Trump, in his press conference, said that he opted not to inform Congress because he was worried they would "disclose" particulars of the operation before the attack.
A Path Forward Shrouded in Doubt
That mission was a success – with zero American casualties and limited harm to US equipment. Trump, with his characteristic bravado, described the operation as a "daring raid" and "one of the most stunning, effective and powerful demonstrations of American power and competency in US history."
Now he is betting his legacy on that success enduring, as the US claims it will take over running and rebuilding Venezuela - though what that truly entails remains unclear. He and his administration must strengthen a nation that has been in chaos for years while calming a region that is sure to be apprehensive of what Trump's international strategy has planned for them.
