In the wake of launching 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 forces had effectively seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an late-night operation in Caracas.
Trump then said that a group featuring Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, working with Venezuelans, would be seizing the reins of the troubled nation.
"We are going to manage the country until such time as we can do a safe, orderly and judicious transition," he said.
What precisely "governing the state" entails is uncertain, but the pledge marks an abrupt policy reversal for the president, full of contradictions and formidable challenges.
A leader who campaigned against "forever wars", who vehemently denounced past US efforts at overthrowing governments and who promised to implement an "America First" foreign policy is now staking his presidency on effectively revitalizing a South American nation whose economic system is in shambles and whose political stability has been undermined by decades 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 exception. He promised to recruit American oil firms to repair Venezuela's deteriorating industrial infrastructure, providing capital for the American rebuilding project and benefitting the Venezuelan people.
He left open the possibility of sending American soldiers to Venezuela to further these efforts. "We're not afraid of boots on the ground…we had boots on the ground last night," he informed reporters.
Trump, a sharp critic of the US intervention of Iraq, will now have to consider the words of one of the American planners of the Iraq War, Secretary of State Colin Powell: "You break it, you bought it."
A Shift in Foreign Policy
The US has reshaped Venezuela's destiny – for better or worse.
Trump took office nearly a year ago promising to be a diplomat, but over the past year he has proven that he is ready to use military force internationally.
In the past week, he authorized airstrikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he targeted nuclear facilities in Iran, alleged drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, rebel forces in Yemen, militias in Somalia and Islamic militants in Iraq.
Unlike past actions, which have largely involved rockets and warplanes that reduce the risk of American forces to harm, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his commitments 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 could be tough for some of Trump's supporters to digest.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump loyalist who broke with the president after charging him of deserting his political base, was swift to condemn the president's actions on social media.
"Americans' disgust with our own government's endless military aggression and support of foreign wars is justified because we are compelled to fund it," she stated. "This is what many in Maga thought they voted to end. How mistaken we were."
Another prominent Trump critic, Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, compared the legal justification 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.
The majority of Republican lawmakers rallied behind the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson describing the armed intervention against a "illegitimate government" as "firm and justified".
Policy Rationales and Worldwide Consequences
During his press conference, the president argued the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" agenda because it ensured US hemispheric security and provided a steady source of oil.
He resurrected the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th Century American diplomatic policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be free from influence by European powers – and renamed it the "Donroe Doctrine."
The move in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be challenged again."
The purpose of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "safeguard commerce, land and assets that are fundamental to our security interests." He labeled the Western Hemisphere as America's "backyard."
Trump's choice to apprehend Maduro will provoke broader concerns in global politics, however, and affect American ties with the world's other significant global powers.
The Chinese foreign ministry issued a statement voicing shock and condemning what it said was a irresponsible attack 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 peace deal between those two nations – one that has often seemed to be more favourable to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a centrist Republican congressman, voiced worry about the precedent Trump's actions might send.
"My primary concern is now Russia will use this to excuse their unlawful and barbaric operations against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an invasion of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic opponents were more direct.
"America should not be running other countries for any reason," said a senator who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations committee. "We should have understood by now not to get involved in endless wars and regime change missions that carry devastating consequences for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker stated Maduro is a lawbreaker and a dictator with a record of rights violations. But he censured Trump's decision not to consult with congressional leaders before initiating the attack.
"The President has the constitutional responsibility to follow the law and protect democratic norms in the United States," he said. "That is what putting America First requires."
Trump, in his remarks, explained that he opted not to inform Congress because he was concerned they would "disclose" particulars of the operation before the attack.
An Uncertain Future
That mission was a success – with no American casualties and minimal damage to US assets. Trump, with his characteristic confidence, described the operation as a "daring raid" and "one of the most astonishing, effective and impressive displays of American military might and competency in US history."
Now he is gambling his presidency on that victory enduring, as the US claims it will take over administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that actually means is unknown. He and his administration must strengthen a nation that has been in turmoil for years while calming a hemisphere that is sure to be cautious of what Trump's foreign policy has in store for them.
