Following executing a night of shock and awe in Venezuela, Donald Trump seems to be entering the state-building business.
In a remarkable news conference at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Saturday morning, the president announced that US forces had effectively seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an overnight raid in Caracas.
Trump then indicated that a team comprising Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, collaborating with Venezuelans, would be assuming control of the beleaguered nation.
"We are going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, orderly and careful transition," he said.
What exactly "governing the state" actually means is uncertain, but the pledge signifies an abrupt policy reversal for the president, rife with contradictions and formidable challenges.
A leader who ran on opposing "endless conflicts", who sharply criticised past US efforts at regime change and who vowed to implement an "America First" international policy is now betting his administration on successfully revitalizing a South American nation whose economic system is in ruins and whose political stability has been undermined by decades of dictatorship.
Yet, Trump was unwaveringly optimistic.
He claimed his administration has a "perfect track record of winning" – and that this would be no exception. He pledged to enlist American oil firms to repair Venezuela's crumbling production infrastructure, supplying capital for the American reconstruction efforts and benefitting the Venezuelan people.
He left open the possibility of 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 sharp critic of the US intervention of Iraq, will now have to remember the words of one of the American planners of the Iraq War, Secretary of State Colin Powell: "You break it, you bought it."
A Changed Global Approach
The US has redefined Venezuela's future – for better or worse.
Trump came to power nearly a year ago promising 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 ordered airstrikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he targeted atomic sites in Iran, suspected narco-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, rebel forces in Yemen, militias in Somalia and Islamic militants in Iraq.
In contrast to past actions, which have mostly involved missiles and aircraft that minimize the exposure of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his pledges to the future of that nation – are markedly different.
His objective, he said during his briefing, is to "restore Venezuela's greatness."
Domestic and International Reaction
That variation of Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - mantra could be difficult for some of Trump's supporters to accept.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump ally who split from the president after accusing him of deserting his political base, was swift to criticize the president's actions on social media.
"Public outrage with our own government's never ending military aggression and support of overseas conflicts is understandable because we are forced 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, contrasted the legal justification for Maduro's arrest – on arms and cocaine trafficking charges – with Trump's reasoning that the operation was to retake confiscated US oil and halt fentanyl production.
The majority of Republican lawmakers supported the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson characterizing the military action against a "illegitimate government" as "firm and warranted".
Policy Rationales and Worldwide Consequences
During his appearance, 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 dusted off the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th Century American diplomatic policy that asserted 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 supremacy in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again."
The goal of the new US security policy, he said, was to "safeguard trade, territory and assets that are central to our national security." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "backyard."
Trump's choice to capture Maduro will provoke broader questions in international relations, however, and affect American relations with the world's other major military powers.
The Chinese foreign ministry issued a statement voicing surprise and denouncing what it said was a irresponsible attack on a sovereign nation.
During the Biden administration, the US offered comparable condemnations of Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is trying to mediate a ceasefire between those two nations – one that has often appeared to be more favourable to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a centrist Republican congressman, voiced worry about the message Trump's actions might send.
"My main worry is now Russia will use this to excuse their illegal and barbaric military actions against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an invasion of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic critics were blunter.
"America should not be running other countries for any purpose," said a senator who serves on the Foreign Relations Committee. "We should have understood by now not to get involved in perpetual conflicts and regime change missions that carry devastating 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 choice not to inform congressional leaders before launching 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 demands."
Trump, in his press conference, explained that he chose not to inform Congress because he was concerned they would "disclose" details of the operation prior to the attack.
An Uncertain Future
That military operation was a triumph – with zero American deaths and limited harm to US equipment. 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 proficiency in US history."
Now he is gambling his legacy on that victory enduring, as the US says it will assume responsibility for administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that truly entails remains unknown. He and his administration must strengthen a nation that has been in chaos for years while stabilising a hemisphere that is bound to be cautious of what Trump's international strategy has planned for them.
