Following executing a night of shock and awe in Venezuela, Donald Trump now appears to be entering the state-building arena.
In a striking news conference 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 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 troubled 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" actually means is ambiguous, but the vow represents an dramatic policy reversal for the president, laden with contradictions and daunting obstacles.
A leader who ran on opposing "forever wars", who sharply criticised past US attempts at overthrowing governments and who promised to implement an "America first" international policy is now gambling his presidency on successfully revitalizing a South American nation whose economic system is in shambles and whose political stability has been undermined by decades of authoritarian rule.
Yet, Trump was persistently confident.
He claimed his administration has a "unblemished record of winning" – and that this will be no exception. He promised to recruit American energy companies to repair Venezuela's crumbling industrial infrastructure, supplying financing for the American reconstruction efforts and aiding the Venezuelan people.
He did not exclude deploying American soldiers to Venezuela to progress these efforts. "We do not fear 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 remember the words of one of the American architects of the Iraq War, Secretary of State Colin Powell: "If you break it, you own it."
A Changed Global Approach
The US has redefined Venezuela's prospects – for better or worse.
Trump entered 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 worldwide.
In the past week, he authorized airstrikes 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.
Unlike previous actions, which have mostly involved missiles and warplanes that minimize the risk of American forces to harm, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his commitments to the future of that nation – are notably different.
His aim, he said during his press conference, is to "make Venezuela great again."
Reactions from Allies and Critics
That variation of Trump's "MAGA" – or Maga - slogan may be difficult for some of Trump's supporters to swallow.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump ally who split from the president after accusing him of abandoning his political base, was swift to criticize the president's actions on social media.
"Public outrage with our own government's perpetual military aggression and backing for overseas conflicts is understandable because we are compelled to finance 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 arms and drug trafficking charges – with Trump's reasoning that the operation was to reclaim seized US oil and stop fentanyl production.
Most Republican lawmakers supported the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson describing the military action against a "criminal regime" as "firm and legitimate".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his press conference, the president argued the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" priorities because it ensured US hemispheric security and provided a steady source of oil.
He revived the Monroe Doctrine – an nineteenth-century American foreign policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be without influence by European powers – and rebranded it the "Donroe 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 security policy, he said, was to "safeguard commerce, territory and resources that are central to our security interests." He labeled the Western Hemisphere as America's "backyard."
Trump's choice to apprehend Maduro will provoke larger questions in international relations, however, and affect American relations with the world's other significant global powers.
The Chinese foreign ministry issued a statement expressing surprise and denouncing what it said was a reckless attack on a independent country.
During the previous administration, the US offered similar condemnations of Russia following its incursion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is trying to mediate a ceasefire between those two nations – one that has often seemed to be leaning to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a centrist Republican congressman, voiced worry about the precedent Trump's actions might send.
"My main worry is now Russia will use this to justify their unlawful and barbaric military actions against Ukraine, or China to justify an invasion of Taiwan."
Political Criticism and Constitutional Questions
Trump's Democratic opponents were more direct.
"The United States should not be running 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 endless wars and regime change missions that carry devastating consequences for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker said Maduro is a criminal and a autocrat with a record of rights violations. But he condemned Trump's decision not to consult with congressional leaders prior to initiating the attack.
"Donald Trump has the constitutional responsibility to follow the law and uphold democratic norms in the United States," he said. "That is what placing America First requires."
Trump, in his remarks, said that he opted not to inform Congress because he was concerned they would "leak" details of the operation before the attack.
A Path Forward Shrouded in Doubt
That military operation was a success – with no American deaths and limited harm to US assets. Trump, with his typical confidence, portrayed the operation as a "daring raid" and "among the most stunning, effective and impressive demonstrations of American power and competency in American history."
Now he is betting his legacy on that success enduring, as the US says it will take over running and rebuilding Venezuela - though what that truly entails is unknown. He and his team must fortify a nation that has been in turmoil for years while stabilising a hemisphere that is sure to be wary of what Trump's foreign policy has planned for them.
