In the wake of launching a night of overwhelming force in Venezuela, Donald Trump seems to be getting into the state-building business.
In a notable press conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Saturday morning, the president announced that US forces had successfully apprehended Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an overnight raid in Caracas.
Trump then said that a delegation including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, working with Venezuelans, would be taking control of the beleaguered nation.
"We are going to manage 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 uncertain, but the pledge marks an abrupt policy reversal for the president, full of contradictions and daunting challenges.
A leader who ran on opposing "forever wars", who vehemently denounced past US attempts at overthrowing governments and who vowed to implement an "America First" international policy is now gambling his administration on effectively revitalizing a South American nation whose economy is in ruins and whose political stability has been undermined by decades of authoritarian rule.
Yet, Trump was unwaveringly confident.
He said his administration has a "unblemished record of winning" – and that this will be no exception. He vowed to enlist American oil firms to rebuild Venezuela's crumbling production infrastructure, supplying funds for the American reconstruction efforts and aiding the Venezuelan people.
He declined to rule out deploying American soldiers to Venezuela to further 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 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 Changed Global Approach
The US has altered Venezuela's future – for better or worse.
Trump entered office nearly a year ago pledging to be a peacemaker, but over the past year he has demonstrated that he is more than willing to use military force worldwide.
In the past week, he ordered airstrikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he struck atomic sites in Iran, suspected narco-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, rebel forces in Yemen, armed groups in Somalia and Islamic militants in Iraq.
Unlike past actions, which have largely involved rockets and aircraft that minimize the risk of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela operation – and his commitments to the future of that nation – are strikingly distinct.
His goal, he said during his briefing, is to "make Venezuela great again."
Domestic and International Reaction
That play on Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - mantra might prove tough for some of Trump's backers to swallow.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump ally who broke with the president after charging him of deserting his political base, was quick to criticize the president's actions on social media.
"Public outrage with our own government's perpetual military aggression and support of foreign wars 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 retake seized US oil and halt 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 legitimate".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his appearance, the president argued the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" priorities 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 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 never be questioned again."
The purpose of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "protect commerce, territory and assets that are fundamental to our security interests." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "home region."
Trump's decision to capture Maduro will provoke broader concerns 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 reckless assault on a independent country.
During the Biden administration, the US offered similar condemnations of Russia after its invasion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is attempting to mediate a peace deal between those two nations – one that has frequently appeared to be leaning to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a moderate Republican congressman, voiced worry about the message Trump's actions might send.
"My primary worry is now Russia will use this to excuse their unlawful and barbaric operations against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an attack of Taiwan."
Political Criticism and Constitutional Questions
Trump's Democratic opponents were sharper.
"The United States should not be managing other countries for any reason," said a senator who serves on the Foreign Relations Committee. "We should have learned by now not to get involved in perpetual conflicts and regime change missions that carry devastating consequences for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker stated Maduro is a lawbreaker and a dictator with a record of rights violations. But he condemned Trump's choice not to inform congressional leaders before initiating the attack.
"The President has the legal duty to follow 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 concerned they would "disclose" particulars of the operation prior to the attack.
An Uncertain Future
That military operation was a triumph – with zero American casualties and limited harm to US assets. Trump, with his characteristic confidence, portrayed the operation as a "daring raid" and "one of the most astonishing, effective and impressive displays of American power and competency in American history."
Now he is gambling his legacy on that victory continuing, as the US claims it will take over running and rebuilding Venezuela - though what that actually means is unknown. He and his administration must rebuild a nation that has been in turmoil for decades while stabilising a region that is bound to be wary of what Trump's international strategy has in store for them.
