Following launching a night of overwhelming force in Venezuela, Donald Trump now appears to be entering the state-building business.
In a remarkable media briefing at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Saturday morning, the president stated 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 team comprising Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, collaborating with Venezuelans, would be taking control of the troubled nation.
"We are going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, orderly and careful transition," he said.
What exactly "managing the nation" entails is unclear, but the vow marks an dramatic shift in direction for the president, laden with inconsistencies and daunting challenges.
A president who ran on opposing "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 effectively rebuilding a South American nation whose economy is in shambles and whose governmental stability has been undermined by decades of dictatorship.
Yet, Trump was relentlessly confident.
He stated his administration has a "unblemished record of winning" – and that this would be no different. He promised to recruit American oil firms to repair Venezuela's crumbling production infrastructure, providing funds for the American reconstruction efforts and aiding the Venezuelan people.
He declined to rule out deploying American soldiers to Venezuela to progress these efforts. "We're not afraid of 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 remember the words of one of the American planners of the Iraq War, Secretary of State Colin Powell: "If you shatter it, you are responsible for it."
A Changed Global Approach
The US has reshaped Venezuela's prospects – for better or worse.
Trump took office nearly a year ago pledging to be a peacemaker, but over the past year he has shown that he is ready to use military force around the globe.
In the past week, he authorized air strikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he targeted nuclear facilities in Iran, suspected narco-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, insurgent groups in Yemen, armed groups in Somalia and jihadist fighters 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 operation – and his commitments to the future of that nation – are markedly distinct.
His goal, 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 may be difficult for some of Trump's supporters to digest.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a one-time Trump ally who split from the president after accusing him of abandoning his core supporters, was quick to condemn the president's actions on social media.
"Americans' disgust with our own government's perpetual military aggression and support of foreign wars is justified because we are forced to pay for it," she wrote. "This is what many in Maga thought they voted to end. How mistaken we were."
Another notable Trump critic, Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, contrasted the official rationale for Maduro's arrest – on weapons and cocaine trafficking charges – with Trump's explanation that the operation was to retake 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 legitimate".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his appearance, the president said the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" agenda because it guaranteed US regional security and provided a reliable source of oil.
He dusted off the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th Century American foreign policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be free from 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 not be questioned again."
The goal of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "protect commerce, land and resources that are fundamental to our national security." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "home region."
Trump's choice to apprehend Maduro will provoke broader questions in international relations, however, and affect American relations with the world's other major global powers.
The Chinese government issued a statement voicing 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 following its incursion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is attempting to broker a peace deal between those two nations – one that has often seemed to be leaning to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a moderate Republican congressman, voiced worry about the signal Trump's actions might send.
"My primary concern is now Russia will use this to justify their illegal and brutal military actions against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an attack of Taiwan."
Political Criticism and Constitutional Questions
Trump's Democratic critics were more direct.
"The United States should not be administering other countries for any purpose," said a senator who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations committee. "We should have understood by now not to get involved in endless wars and regime change missions that carry catastrophic results for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker said Maduro is a criminal and a dictator with a record of human rights abuses. But he condemned Trump's choice not to inform congressional leaders before initiating the attack.
"The President has the legal duty to abide by the law and protect democratic norms in the United States," he said. "That is what putting America First requires."
Trump, in his press conference, said that he chose not to inform Congress because he was worried they would "disclose" details of the operation before the attack.
An Uncertain Future
That military operation was a success – with zero American deaths and minimal damage to US assets. Trump, with his typical confidence, portrayed the operation as a "daring raid" and "among the most stunning, successful and impressive demonstrations of American military might and competency in US history."
Now he is betting his presidency on that success enduring, as the US claims it will assume responsibility for administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that truly entails remains unknown. He and his administration must strengthen a nation that has been in chaos for years while stabilising a hemisphere that is sure to be apprehensive of what Trump's international strategy has in store for them.
