Following executing a evening 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 declared that US military forces had effectively apprehended Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an overnight raid in Caracas.
Trump then said that a delegation comprising Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, collaborating with Venezuelans, would be taking control of the embattled nation.
"We are going to manage the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition," he said.
What exactly "running the country" actually means is uncertain, but the commitment marks an sudden shift in direction for the president, rife with inconsistencies and significant obstacles.
A president who campaigned against "forever wars", who sharply criticised past US efforts at overthrowing governments and who vowed to implement an "America First" foreign policy is now staking his administration on successfully reconstructing a South American nation whose economy is in shambles and whose political stability has been undermined by decades of dictatorship.
Yet, Trump was relentlessly upbeat.
He claimed his administration has a "unblemished record of winning" – and that this will be no different. He promised to recruit American energy companies to repair Venezuela's deteriorating industrial infrastructure, supplying capital for the American rebuilding project and aiding the Venezuelan people.
He left open the possibility of sending American soldiers to Venezuela to progress 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 break it, you own it."
A Changed Global Approach
The US has reshaped Venezuela's future – for better or worse.
Trump entered office nearly a year ago pledging to be a diplomat, but over the past year he has demonstrated that he is more than willing to use military force worldwide.
In the past week, he authorized air strikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he struck nuclear facilities in Iran, alleged narco-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, insurgent groups in Yemen, militias in Somalia and Islamic militants in Iraq.
In contrast to previous operations, which have largely involved rockets and warplanes that reduce the exposure of American forces to harm, Trump's Venezuela operation – and his commitments to the future of that nation – are notably distinct.
His goal, he said during his press conference, is to "restore Venezuela's greatness."
Response at Home and Abroad
That play on Trump's "MAGA" – or Maga - slogan might prove hard for some of Trump's backers to digest.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a one-time Trump loyalist who broke with the president after accusing him of deserting his core supporters, was swift to criticize the president's actions on social media.
"Americans' disgust with our own government's never ending military aggression and backing for overseas conflicts is understandable because we are compelled to pay for 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, contrasted the legal justification for Maduro's arrest – on arms and drug trafficking charges – with Trump's reasoning that the operation was to retake seized US oil and stop fentanyl production.
Most Republican lawmakers rallied behind the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson characterizing the armed intervention against a "criminal regime" as "decisive and justified".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his press conference, the president said the Venezuelan operation advanced his "America First" priorities because it ensured US regional security and provided a reliable source of oil.
He revived the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th Century American foreign policy that asserted the Western Hemisphere should be free from influence by European powers – and renamed it the "Trump Doctrine."
The action in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be challenged again."
The goal of the new US security policy, he said, was to "protect commerce, territory and assets that are core to our national security." He labeled the Western Hemisphere as America's "home region."
Trump's decision to capture Maduro will raise broader concerns in global politics, however, and impact American ties with the world's other significant global 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 following its invasion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is trying to broker a peace deal between those two nations – one that has often appeared to be more favourable to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a moderate Republican congressman, voiced concern about the message Trump's actions might send.
"My primary worry is now Russia will use this to excuse their unlawful and barbaric military actions against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an attack of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic opponents were sharper.
"America should not be running other countries for any purpose," said a senator who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations committee. "We should have learned by now not to get entangled in perpetual conflicts and regime change missions that carry catastrophic results 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 consult with legislative leaders prior to initiating the attack.
"The President has the constitutional responsibility 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 chose not to inform Congress because he was concerned they would "leak" particulars of the operation prior to the attack.
An Uncertain Future
That military operation was a success – with no American casualties and limited damage to US assets. Trump, with his typical confidence, described the operation as a "spectacular assault" and "among the most stunning, effective and powerful demonstrations of American military might and competency in American history."
Now he is betting his legacy on that victory enduring, as the US says it will assume responsibility for running and rebuilding Venezuela - though what that truly entails is unclear. He and his administration must strengthen a nation that has been in turmoil for years while calming a region that is sure to be cautious of what Trump's international strategy has planned for them.
