Following executing a night of shock and awe in Venezuela, Donald Trump seems to be entering the state-building business.
In a striking media briefing 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 overnight raid in Caracas.
Trump then announced that a team featuring Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, collaborating with Venezuelans, would be taking control of the beleaguered nation.
"We are going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, orderly and judicious transition," he said.
What exactly "governing the state" involves is unclear, but the vow represents an dramatic shift in direction for the president, rife with inconsistencies and formidable obstacles.
A president who campaigned against "forever wars", who vehemently denounced past US attempts at overthrowing governments and who promised to implement an "America First" foreign policy is now staking his presidency on successfully rebuilding a South American nation whose economic system is in ruins and whose governmental stability has been eroded by decades of dictatorship.
Yet, Trump was unwaveringly optimistic.
He stated his administration has a "perfect track record of winning" – and that this will be no different. He pledged to enlist American energy companies to overhaul Venezuela's deteriorating industrial infrastructure, supplying financing 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 heed 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 came to power nearly a year ago pledging to be a diplomat, but over the past year he has shown that he is quite prepared to use armed force worldwide.
In the past week, he ordered airstrikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he struck atomic sites in Iran, alleged narco-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, insurgent groups in Yemen, armed groups in Somalia and Islamic militants in Iraq.
Unlike previous operations, which have largely involved rockets and warplanes that minimize the risk of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela operation – and his commitments to the fate of that nation – are markedly distinct.
His aim, he said during his press conference, is to "make Venezuela great again."
Domestic and International Reaction
That twist on Trump's "MAGA" – or Maga - mantra could be tough for some of Trump's supporters to swallow.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a one-time Trump loyalist who split from the president after accusing him of abandoning his political base, was quick to condemn the president's actions on social media.
"Americans' disgust with our own government's never ending use of force and backing for foreign wars is justified because we are forced to finance it," she wrote. "This is what many in Maga thought they voted to end. Boy were we wrong."
Another notable Trump critic, Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, compared the official rationale for Maduro's arrest – on arms and drug trafficking charges – with Trump's explanation that the operation was to reclaim seized US oil and stop fentanyl production.
The majority of Republican lawmakers rallied behind the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson describing the military action against a "criminal regime" as "firm and justified".
Policy Rationales and Worldwide Consequences
During his press conference, the president said the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" agenda because it guaranteed US hemispheric security and provided a steady source of oil.
He revived the Monroe Doctrine – an nineteenth-century American diplomatic policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be free from influence by European powers – and rebranded it the "Donroe Doctrine."
The action in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "US preeminence in the Western Hemisphere will not be challenged again."
The goal of the new US security policy, he said, was to "protect trade, land and resources that are core to our national security." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "sphere of influence."
Trump's choice to capture Maduro will provoke broader questions in international relations, however, and affect American relations with the world's other significant military powers.
The Chinese government issued a statement expressing surprise and denouncing what it said was a irresponsible assault 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 mediate a peace deal between those two nations – one that has frequently appeared to be more favourable to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a centrist Republican congressman, voiced worry about the precedent 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 justify an invasion 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 Foreign Relations Committee. "We should have learned by now not to get involved in perpetual conflicts and overthrow attempts that carry devastating consequences for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker stated Maduro is a criminal and a dictator with a record of rights violations. But he censured Trump's decision not to inform legislative leaders prior to 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 placing America First requires."
Trump, in his press conference, explained that he opted 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 triumph – with zero American deaths and limited harm to US assets. Trump, with his typical confidence, described 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 staking his legacy on that success enduring, as the US says it will assume responsibility for 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 decades while stabilising a hemisphere that is bound to be wary of what Trump's foreign policy has planned for them.
