In the wake of executing a night of overwhelming force in Venezuela, Donald Trump seems to be getting into the nation-building business.
In a notable media briefing at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Saturday morning, the president stated that US military forces had effectively seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an late-night operation in Caracas.
Trump then indicated that a delegation comprising Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, working 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 safe, proper and judicious transition," he said.
What exactly "running the country" involves is uncertain, but the commitment signifies an abrupt policy reversal for the president, rife with inconsistencies and formidable obstacles.
A president who ran on opposing "endless conflicts", who sharply criticised past US attempts at regime change and who vowed to implement an "America First" international policy is now gambling his administration on effectively rebuilding a South American nation whose economic system is collapsed and whose political stability has been undermined by decades of authoritarian rule.
Yet, Trump was unwaveringly confident.
He claimed his administration has a "perfect track record of winning" – and that this will be no different. He vowed to recruit American energy companies to rebuild Venezuela's crumbling production 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 further these efforts. "We do not fear boots on the ground…we had boots on the ground last night," he informed 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 destiny – whether for good or ill.
Trump entered office nearly a year ago pledging to be a diplomat, but over the past year he has demonstrated that he is ready to use armed 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, insurgent groups in Yemen, militias in Somalia and Islamic militants in Iraq.
In contrast to past actions, which have mostly involved missiles and warplanes that reduce the exposure of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his pledges to the future of that nation – are strikingly distinct.
His objective, he said during his press conference, 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 hard for some of Trump's followers 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 condemn the president's actions on social media.
"Public outrage with our own government's endless military aggression and support of overseas conflicts is understandable because we are forced 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 legal justification for Maduro's arrest – on arms and drug trafficking charges – with Trump's explanation that the operation was to reclaim confiscated US oil and stop fentanyl production.
Most Republican lawmakers rallied behind the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson describing the armed intervention against a "illegitimate government" as "firm and justified".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his press conference, the president said the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" priorities because it guaranteed US hemispheric security and provided a reliable source of oil.
He dusted off the Monroe Doctrine – an nineteenth-century American foreign policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be without influence by European powers – and renamed it the "Trump Doctrine."
The move in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "US supremacy in the Western Hemisphere will not be questioned again."
The purpose of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "protect commerce, land and assets that are fundamental to our national security." He labeled the Western Hemisphere as America's "home region."
Trump's choice to capture Maduro will raise broader questions in global politics, however, and impact American relations with the world's other significant global powers.
The Chinese foreign ministry released a statement expressing surprise and denouncing what it said was a irresponsible assault on a sovereign nation.
During the Biden administration, the US offered comparable condemnations of Russia following its incursion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is attempting to mediate a ceasefire between those two nations – one that has often appeared to be leaning to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a centrist Republican congressman, expressed worry about the precedent Trump's actions might send.
"My main concern is now Russia will use this to justify their illegal and brutal military actions against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an invasion of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic opponents were blunter.
"America should not be running other countries for any reason," said a senator who serves on the Foreign Relations Committee. "We should have understood by now not to get involved in endless wars and regime change missions that carry catastrophic results for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker stated Maduro is a criminal and a dictator with a record of human rights abuses. But he condemned Trump's decision not to consult with legislative leaders before 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 putting America First requires."
Trump, in his press conference, said that he chose not to inform Congress because he was worried they would "leak" particulars of the operation before the attack.
A Path Forward Shrouded in Doubt
That military operation was a triumph – with no American deaths and minimal harm to US equipment. Trump, with his characteristic bravado, portrayed the operation as a "daring raid" and "one of the most astonishing, effective and powerful displays of American military might and competency in American history."
Now he is betting his presidency on that victory enduring, as the US says it will assume responsibility for administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that actually means remains unknown. He and his team must rebuild a nation that has been in turmoil for decades while stabilising a region that is bound to be apprehensive of what Trump's foreign policy has planned for them.
