In the wake of launching a evening of overwhelming force in Venezuela, Donald Trump now appears to be getting into the state-building business.
In a remarkable media briefing at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Saturday morning, the president stated that US military forces had successfully apprehended 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, working 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 secure, proper and judicious transition," he said.
What exactly "running the country" involves is unclear, but the commitment marks an dramatic change of course for the president, laden with contradictions and formidable obstacles.
A leader who campaigned against "endless conflicts", 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 rebuilding a South American nation whose economic system is in ruins and whose political stability has been eroded by years of authoritarian rule.
Yet, Trump was unwaveringly confident.
He claimed his administration has a "unblemished record of winning" – and that this will be no exception. He pledged to recruit American energy companies to repair Venezuela's crumbling industrial infrastructure, providing capital for the American rebuilding project and aiding 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 informed reporters.
Trump, a vocal opponent 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: "If you break it, you own it."
A Changed Global Approach
The US has reshaped Venezuela's destiny – for better or worse.
Trump took office nearly a year ago pledging to be a diplomat, but over the past year he has shown 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 targeted nuclear facilities in Iran, suspected narco-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, insurgent groups in Yemen, militias in Somalia and jihadist fighters in Iraq.
Unlike past operations, 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 different.
His goal, 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 - slogan might prove hard for some of Trump's followers to accept.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump ally who split from 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 use of force and support of overseas conflicts is understandable because we are forced to pay for it," she wrote. "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 weapons and drug trafficking charges – with Trump's reasoning that the operation was to reclaim confiscated US oil and halt fentanyl production.
The majority of Republican lawmakers stood by the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson characterizing the military action against a "criminal regime" as "firm and warranted".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his press conference, the president argued the Venezuelan operation advanced his "America First" priorities because it guaranteed US hemispheric security and provided a steady source of oil.
He dusted off the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th Century American diplomatic policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be free from influence by European powers – and rebranded it the "Trump Doctrine."
The move in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will not be questioned again."
The goal of the new US security policy, he said, was to "safeguard trade, land and assets that are core to our security interests." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "backyard."
Trump's decision to apprehend Maduro will raise broader concerns in global politics, however, and impact American relations with the world's other major military powers.
The Chinese government issued a statement voicing surprise and denouncing what it said was a reckless assault 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 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 concern about the precedent Trump's actions might send.
"My main concern is now Russia will use this to excuse their illegal and barbaric military actions against Ukraine, or China to justify an attack of Taiwan."
Political Criticism and Constitutional Questions
Trump's Democratic opponents were more direct.
"America should not be managing other countries for any purpose," said a senator who serves on the Foreign Relations Committee. "We should have learned by now not to get entangled in endless wars and regime change missions that carry catastrophic consequences for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker said Maduro is a lawbreaker and a autocrat with a record of rights violations. But he condemned Trump's decision not to inform congressional leaders prior to initiating the attack.
"Donald Trump has the constitutional responsibility to follow the law and protect democratic norms in the United States," he said. "That is what putting America First demands."
Trump, in his press conference, said that he chose not to inform Congress because he was worried they would "leak" details of the operation prior to the attack.
An Uncertain Future
That mission was a success – with no American casualties and limited harm to US equipment. Trump, with his typical confidence, described the operation as a "spectacular assault" and "among the most astonishing, successful and impressive displays of American military might and competency in US history."
Now he is betting his presidency on that victory continuing, as the US claims it will take over administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that truly entails remains unclear. He and his administration must strengthen a nation that has been in chaos for decades while calming a hemisphere that is sure to be apprehensive of what Trump's international strategy has in store for them.
