In the wake of launching a evening of shock and awe in Venezuela, Donald Trump now appears to be entering the nation-building arena.
In a striking press conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Saturday morning, the president stated that US military forces had effectively seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an late-night operation in Caracas.
Trump then said that a team including 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 careful transition," he said.
What exactly "running the country" actually means is unclear, but the pledge represents an dramatic change of course for the president, laden with contradictions and daunting obstacles.
A president who ran on opposing "endless conflicts", who vehemently denounced past US efforts at regime change and who vowed to implement an "America first" foreign policy is now gambling his presidency on effectively revitalizing a South American nation whose economy is collapsed and whose governmental stability has been eroded by decades of authoritarian rule.
Yet, Trump was relentlessly optimistic.
He claimed his administration has a "perfect track record of winning" – and that this would be no different. He pledged to recruit American oil firms to repair Venezuela's crumbling production infrastructure, supplying funds for the American reconstruction efforts and benefitting the Venezuelan people.
He did not exclude deploying American soldiers to Venezuela to advance these efforts. "We're not afraid of boots on the ground…we had boots on the ground last night," he informed reporters.
Trump, a sharp critic of the US intervention 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 reshaped Venezuela's prospects – whether for good or ill.
Trump came to power nearly a year ago promising to be a diplomat, but over the past year he has shown that he is ready to use armed force internationally.
In the past week, he authorized airstrikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he struck atomic sites in Iran, alleged drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, rebel forces in Yemen, militias in Somalia and Islamic militants in Iraq.
Unlike past operations, which have largely involved missiles and warplanes that minimize the exposure of American forces to harm, Trump's Venezuela operation – and his commitments to the future of that nation – are markedly distinct.
His goal, he said during his press conference, is to "make Venezuela great again."
Reactions from Allies and Critics
That play on Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - mantra may be hard for some of Trump's backers to accept.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump loyalist who split from the president after charging him of deserting his political base, was swift to condemn the president's actions on social media.
"Americans' disgust with our own government's endless military aggression and support of foreign wars is understandable because we are compelled to fund it," she stated. "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 legal justification for Maduro's arrest – on arms and cocaine trafficking charges – with Trump's reasoning that the operation was to reclaim seized US oil and stop fentanyl production.
Most Republican lawmakers stood by 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 press conference, the president said the Venezuelan operation advanced his "America First" agenda because it guaranteed US regional security and provided a steady source of oil.
He dusted off the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th Century American foreign policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be without influence by European powers – and renamed it the "Donroe Doctrine."
The move in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "US supremacy in the Western Hemisphere will never be challenged again."
The purpose of the new US security policy, he said, was to "protect commerce, land and assets that are fundamental to our security interests." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "home region."
Trump's choice to apprehend Maduro will provoke larger questions in international relations, however, and impact American relations with the world's other major military powers.
The Chinese foreign ministry released a statement expressing shock and denouncing what it said was a reckless attack on a sovereign nation.
During the Biden administration, the US offered similar condemnations of Russia after its invasion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is attempting to broker a ceasefire between those two nations – one that has frequently seemed to be more favourable to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a centrist Republican congressman, expressed worry about the message Trump's actions might send.
"My primary worry is now Russia will use this to excuse their unlawful and brutal operations against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an attack of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic opponents were blunter.
"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 involved in endless wars and regime change missions that carry catastrophic consequences for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker said Maduro is a criminal and a dictator with a record of rights violations. But he condemned Trump's decision not to inform legislative leaders before launching the attack.
"Donald Trump has the constitutional responsibility to abide by the law and uphold institutional norms in the United States," he said. "That is what putting America First requires."
Trump, in his remarks, said that he opted not to inform Congress because he was worried they would "leak" particulars of the operation before the attack.
An Uncertain Future
That mission was a success – with zero American casualties and minimal harm to US assets. Trump, with his typical confidence, portrayed the operation as a "spectacular assault" and "among the most stunning, effective and powerful demonstrations of American power and competency in US history."
Now he is gambling his legacy on that success continuing, as the US claims it will assume responsibility for running and rebuilding Venezuela - though what that actually means is unclear. He and his team must fortify a nation that has been in turmoil for decades while calming a region that is bound to be cautious of what Trump's international strategy has planned for them.
