In the wake of executing a evening of overwhelming force in Venezuela, Donald Trump now appears to be entering the state-building business.
In a remarkable press conference at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Saturday morning, the president stated that US military forces had effectively captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an late-night operation in Caracas.
Trump then indicated that a group comprising Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, working with Venezuelans, would be taking control of the beleaguered nation.
"We are going to run the country until such time as we can do a secure, orderly and careful transition," he said.
What exactly "running the country" entails is unclear, but the pledge signifies an dramatic policy reversal for the president, laden with inconsistencies and significant challenges.
A president who ran on opposing "forever wars", who sharply criticised past US efforts at regime change and who vowed to implement an "America First" foreign policy is now gambling his presidency on successfully reconstructing a South American nation whose economy is in shambles and whose governmental stability has been undermined by decades of dictatorship.
Yet, Trump was persistently optimistic.
He stated his administration has a "unblemished record of winning" – and that this will be no different. He pledged to recruit American oil firms to repair Venezuela's deteriorating production infrastructure, supplying financing for the American rebuilding project and benefitting the Venezuelan people.
He declined to rule out sending American soldiers to Venezuela to advance 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 planners of the Iraq War, Secretary of State Colin Powell: "If you break it, you own it."
A Shift in Foreign Policy
The US has reshaped Venezuela's destiny – whether for good or ill.
Trump took office nearly a year ago pledging to be a diplomat, but over the past year he has shown that he is ready to use armed force around the globe.
In the past week, he ordered air strikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he targeted atomic sites in Iran, alleged drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, insurgent groups in Yemen, armed groups in Somalia and Islamic militants in Iraq.
In contrast to past operations, which have largely involved missiles and warplanes that reduce the exposure of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his commitments to the future of that nation – are strikingly different.
His goal, he said during his briefing, is to "make Venezuela great again."
Domestic and International Reaction
That variation of Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - mantra may be difficult for some of Trump's supporters to swallow.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump ally who split from the president after accusing him of deserting his core supporters, was quick to criticize the president's actions on social media.
"Public outrage with our own government's never ending use of force and support of foreign wars is justified because we are forced to pay for it," she stated. "This is what many in Maga thought they voted to end. Boy were we wrong."
Another notable Trump detractor, Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, compared the legal justification for Maduro's arrest – on weapons and drug trafficking charges – with Trump's explanation that the operation was to retake seized US oil and stop fentanyl production.
Most Republican lawmakers supported the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson characterizing the military action against a "criminal regime" as "decisive and warranted".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his appearance, the president said the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" agenda because it ensured US regional security and provided a steady source of oil.
He resurrected the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th Century American foreign policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be without influence by European powers – and renamed it the "Trump Doctrine."
The action 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 trade, land and assets that are core to our national security." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "home region."
Trump's choice to capture Maduro will provoke broader concerns in global politics, however, and impact American relations with the world's other significant military powers.
The Chinese government released a statement expressing shock and denouncing what it said was a reckless attack on a sovereign nation.
During the previous administration, the US offered similar condemnations 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 seemed to be leaning to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a moderate Republican congressman, voiced worry about the message Trump's actions might send.
"My primary worry is now Russia will use this to justify their illegal and brutal operations against Ukraine, or China to justify an attack of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic opponents were more direct.
"The United States should not be running other countries for any reason," said a senator who serves on the Foreign Relations Committee. "We should have learned by now not to get involved in endless wars and overthrow attempts that carry devastating consequences for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker said Maduro is a criminal and a dictator with a record of human rights abuses. But he censured Trump's choice not to inform congressional leaders before initiating the attack.
"The President has the constitutional responsibility to follow the law and uphold democratic norms in the United States," he said. "That is what putting America First requires."
Trump, in his press conference, explained that he chose not to inform Congress because he was worried they would "leak" particulars of the operation prior to the attack.
An Uncertain Future
That military operation was a triumph – with zero American casualties and minimal harm to US equipment. Trump, with his typical bravado, portrayed the operation as a "spectacular assault" and "one of the most stunning, successful and powerful demonstrations of American power and competency in US history."
Now he is staking his legacy on that success continuing, as the US says it will take over administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that actually means is unclear. He and his team must fortify a nation that has been in chaos for decades while calming a region that is sure to be cautious of what Trump's foreign policy has in store for them.
