Following launching a night of overwhelming force in Venezuela, Donald Trump seems to be entering the state-building business.
In a notable media briefing at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Saturday morning, the president stated 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 including 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 manage the country until such time as we can do a secure, orderly and judicious transition," he said.
What exactly "running the country" actually means is ambiguous, but the pledge represents an sudden policy reversal for the president, rife with inconsistencies and daunting challenges.
A president who ran on opposing "endless conflicts", who vehemently denounced past US attempts at regime change and who promised to implement an "America first" international policy is now gambling his presidency on successfully reconstructing a South American nation whose economic system is in ruins and whose governmental stability has been undermined by decades of authoritarian rule.
Yet, Trump was unwaveringly optimistic.
He claimed his administration has a "unblemished record of winning" – and that this will be no exception. He vowed to recruit American oil firms to repair Venezuela's crumbling production infrastructure, providing financing for the American rebuilding project 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 informed 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 altered Venezuela's destiny – whether for good or ill.
Trump entered office nearly a year ago promising to be a peacemaker, but over the past year he has shown that he is ready to use armed force worldwide.
In the past week, he authorized air strikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he targeted atomic sites in Iran, suspected drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, rebel forces in Yemen, armed groups in Somalia and Islamic militants in Iraq.
Unlike previous actions, which have largely involved rockets and aircraft that reduce the risk of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela operation – and his commitments to the fate of that nation – are strikingly distinct.
His aim, 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 - mantra might prove tough for some of Trump's supporters to swallow.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump loyalist 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 forced to fund 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 cocaine trafficking charges – with Trump's explanation that the operation was to reclaim seized US oil and stop fentanyl production.
The majority of Republican lawmakers stood by the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson describing the military action against a "criminal regime" as "firm and justified".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his press conference, the president argued the Venezuelan operation advanced his "America First" priorities because it ensured US regional security and provided a steady source of oil.
He dusted off the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th 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 "American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be challenged again."
The goal of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "safeguard trade, land and assets that are fundamental to our security interests." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "sphere of influence."
Trump's choice to apprehend Maduro will raise larger questions in global politics, however, and affect American relations with the world's other significant military powers.
The Chinese government released a statement expressing shock and condemning what it said was a irresponsible assault on a independent country.
During the previous administration, the US offered comparable condemnations of Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is trying to mediate a peace deal between those two nations – one that has frequently seemed to be more favourable to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a moderate Republican congressman, voiced concern about the signal Trump's actions might send.
"My primary worry is now Russia will use this to justify their unlawful and barbaric operations against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an invasion of Taiwan."
Political Criticism and Constitutional Questions
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 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 criminal and a autocrat with a record of rights violations. But he censured Trump's decision not to consult with legislative leaders before launching the attack.
"The President has the legal duty to follow the law and uphold democratic norms in the United States," he said. "That is what placing America First requires."
Trump, in his press conference, explained that he chose 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 triumph – with zero American casualties and minimal harm to US assets. Trump, with his typical confidence, described the operation as a "spectacular assault" and "among the most astonishing, effective and impressive displays of American military might and competency in American 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 actually means is unclear. He and his administration must fortify a nation that has been in chaos for decades while stabilising a region that is sure to be wary of what Trump's foreign policy has planned for them.
