In the wake of launching a night of overwhelming force in Venezuela, Donald Trump seems to be entering the state-building arena.
In a notable press conference at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Saturday morning, the president declared that US forces had successfully captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an late-night operation in Caracas.
Trump then said that a group comprising Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, collaborating with Venezuelans, would be assuming control of the troubled nation.
"We are going to run the country until such time as we can do a secure, orderly and judicious transition," he said.
What exactly "running the country" involves is ambiguous, but the commitment marks an dramatic policy reversal for the president, full of contradictions and daunting obstacles.
A president who ran on opposing "forever wars", who sharply criticised past US attempts at overthrowing governments and who vowed to implement an "America First" international policy is now betting his presidency on effectively revitalizing a South American nation whose economic system is collapsed and whose governmental stability has been eroded by decades of authoritarian rule.
Yet, Trump was persistently optimistic.
He stated his administration has a "perfect track record of winning" – and that this would be no exception. He promised to recruit American energy companies to overhaul Venezuela's crumbling industrial infrastructure, providing financing for the American rebuilding project and aiding the Venezuelan people.
He declined to rule out sending American soldiers to Venezuela to advance 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 shatter it, you are responsible for it."
A Changed Global Approach
The US has reshaped Venezuela's future – whether for good or ill.
Trump entered office nearly a year ago promising to be a peacemaker, but over the past year he has proven that he is quite prepared to use military force internationally.
In the past week, he authorized airstrikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he struck nuclear facilities in Iran, alleged drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, insurgent groups in Yemen, armed groups in Somalia and jihadist fighters in Iraq.
In contrast to previous operations, which have mostly involved missiles and warplanes that minimize the exposure of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his pledges to the fate of that nation – are strikingly different.
His aim, he said during his briefing, is to "make Venezuela great again."
Reactions from Allies and Critics
That twist on Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - mantra might prove tough for some of Trump's followers to swallow.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump ally who broke with 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 compelled 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 drug trafficking charges – with Trump's reasoning that the operation was to reclaim seized US oil and halt fentanyl production.
Most Republican lawmakers supported the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson characterizing the armed intervention against a "illegitimate government" as "firm and warranted".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his appearance, the president said the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" priorities because it ensured US hemispheric security and provided a reliable source of oil.
He resurrected the Monroe Doctrine – an nineteenth-century American diplomatic policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be free from influence by European powers – and renamed it the "Trump Doctrine."
The move in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "US preeminence in the Western Hemisphere will not be challenged again."
The purpose of the new US security policy, he said, was to "protect commerce, land and resources that are fundamental to our national security." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "backyard."
Trump's decision to capture Maduro will provoke broader questions in international relations, however, and affect American ties with the world's other significant military powers.
The Chinese foreign ministry released a statement expressing surprise and condemning what it said was a irresponsible assault on a sovereign nation.
During the Biden administration, the US offered comparable censures of Russia following its incursion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is trying to broker a ceasefire between those two nations – one that has often seemed to be more favourable to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a moderate Republican congressman, expressed worry about the message Trump's actions might send.
"My primary worry is now Russia will use this to justify their unlawful and brutal operations 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 managing other countries for any reason," said a senator who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations committee. "We should have learned by now not to get involved in endless wars and overthrow attempts that carry catastrophic consequences for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker stated Maduro is a lawbreaker and a autocrat with a record of human rights abuses. But he censured Trump's decision not to consult with legislative leaders prior to initiating the attack.
"The President has the constitutional responsibility to follow the law and protect institutional 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 worried they would "leak" particulars of the operation prior to the attack.
An Uncertain Future
That mission was a success – with zero American deaths and limited harm to US equipment. Trump, with his typical bravado, described the operation as a "spectacular assault" and "among the most astonishing, effective and impressive demonstrations of American power and competency in US history."
Now he is gambling his legacy on that victory continuing, as the US claims it will take over administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that actually means is unknown. He and his administration must rebuild a nation that has been in chaos for years while calming a region that is bound to be apprehensive of what Trump's international strategy has planned for them.
