Following launching a night of overwhelming force in Venezuela, Donald Trump seems to be getting into the nation-building arena.
In a notable press conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Saturday morning, the commander-in-chief stated that US forces had successfully captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an late-night operation in Caracas.
Trump then indicated that a group including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, working with Venezuelans, would be taking control of the embattled nation.
"We are going to run the country until such time as we can do a secure, proper and judicious transition," he said.
What exactly "running the country" actually means is ambiguous, but the commitment represents an dramatic shift in direction for the president, full of inconsistencies and formidable obstacles.
A leader who ran on opposing "endless conflicts", who vehemently denounced past US efforts at regime change and who promised to implement an "America First" foreign policy is now staking his presidency on effectively revitalizing a South American nation whose economy is in shambles and whose political stability has been eroded by years of authoritarian rule.
Yet, Trump was relentlessly upbeat.
He claimed his administration has a "perfect track record of winning" – and that this will be no different. He promised to enlist American oil firms to overhaul Venezuela's deteriorating production infrastructure, providing funds for the American reconstruction efforts and benefitting the Venezuelan people.
He declined to rule out sending American soldiers to Venezuela to advance 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 consider the words of one of the American architects of the Iraq War, Secretary of State Colin Powell: "You break it, you bought it."
A Shift in Foreign Policy
The US has altered Venezuela's prospects – whether for good or ill.
Trump entered office nearly a year ago pledging to be a peacemaker, but over the past year he has proven that he is quite prepared to use armed force around the globe.
In the past week, he authorized air strikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he targeted atomic sites in Iran, alleged narco-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, insurgent groups in Yemen, armed groups in Somalia and jihadist fighters in Iraq.
In contrast to past operations, which have mostly involved rockets and aircraft that minimize the exposure of American forces to harm, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his commitments to the fate of that nation – are notably different.
His aim, he said during his briefing, is to "make Venezuela great again."
Reactions from Allies and Critics
That play on Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - mantra may be difficult for some of Trump's backers to swallow.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump loyalist who split from the president after accusing him of abandoning 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 foreign wars is justified because we are forced to finance it," she stated. "This is what many in Maga thought they voted to end. Boy were we wrong."
Another notable Trump critic, Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, compared the official rationale 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 rallied behind the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson characterizing the military action against a "criminal regime" as "firm and legitimate".
Policy Rationales and Worldwide Consequences
During his appearance, the president said the Venezuelan operation advanced his "America First" agenda because it guaranteed US regional security and provided a reliable source of oil.
He revived the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th Century American diplomatic policy that asserted 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 preeminence in the Western Hemisphere will not be questioned again."
The purpose of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "safeguard commerce, territory and assets that are fundamental to our national security." He labeled the Western Hemisphere as America's "sphere of influence."
Trump's decision to apprehend Maduro will provoke larger questions in international relations, however, and affect American ties with the world's other significant military powers.
The Chinese government released a statement voicing surprise and denouncing what it said was a irresponsible assault on a independent country.
During the previous administration, the US offered similar censures of Russia after its invasion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is attempting to broker a ceasefire between those two nations – one that has often appeared to be leaning to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a moderate Republican congressman, expressed worry about the signal Trump's actions might send.
"My primary concern is now Russia will use this to justify their unlawful and brutal military actions against Ukraine, or China to justify an invasion of Taiwan."
Political Criticism and Constitutional Questions
Trump's Democratic critics were sharper.
"The United States should not be managing other countries for any purpose," said a senator who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations committee. "We should have understood by now not to get involved in perpetual conflicts and overthrow attempts 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 censured Trump's decision not to consult with congressional leaders before launching the attack.
"The President has the constitutional responsibility to abide by the law and uphold democratic norms in the United States," he said. "That is what placing America First requires."
Trump, in his press conference, said that he opted not to inform Congress because he was worried they would "disclose" particulars of the operation prior to the attack.
An Uncertain Future
That military operation was a triumph – with no American deaths and limited damage to US equipment. Trump, with his typical bravado, portrayed the operation as a "spectacular assault" and "among the most astonishing, successful and powerful demonstrations of American power and competency in US history."
Now he is betting his legacy on that success enduring, as the US says it will take over administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that truly entails remains unknown. He and his team must fortify a nation that has been in turmoil for decades while stabilising a hemisphere that is bound to be cautious of what Trump's foreign policy has planned for them.
