Following executing a night of shock and awe in Venezuela, Donald Trump now appears to be getting into the nation-building arena.
In a remarkable news conference at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Saturday morning, the commander-in-chief stated that US forces had effectively seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an overnight raid in Caracas.
Trump then announced that a team including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, collaborating with Venezuelans, would be taking control of the embattled nation.
"We are going to manage the country until such time as we can do a secure, orderly and judicious transition," he said.
What exactly "managing the nation" entails is unclear, but the vow represents an abrupt change of course for the president, rife with inconsistencies and daunting obstacles.
A leader who campaigned against "forever wars", who sharply criticised past US attempts at regime change and who promised to implement an "America First" international policy is now staking his administration on effectively rebuilding a South American nation whose economic system is in ruins and whose political stability has been undermined by years of dictatorship.
Yet, Trump was relentlessly optimistic.
He claimed his administration has a "perfect track record of winning" – and that this will be no different. He vowed to recruit American oil firms to repair Venezuela's crumbling industrial infrastructure, providing funds for the American reconstruction efforts and aiding the Venezuelan people.
He declined to rule out deploying American soldiers to Venezuela to progress 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 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: "If you break it, you own it."
A Shift in Foreign Policy
The US has redefined Venezuela's prospects – 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 armed force internationally.
In the past week, he authorized airstrikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he targeted atomic sites in Iran, suspected drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, rebel forces in Yemen, armed groups in Somalia and jihadist fighters in Iraq.
In contrast to previous actions, which have largely involved rockets and aircraft that reduce the risk of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela operation – and his commitments to the future of that nation – are notably different.
His objective, 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 might prove tough for some of Trump's supporters to swallow.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump loyalist who broke with the president after charging him of deserting his core supporters, was quick to criticize the president's actions on social media.
"Americans' disgust with our own government's endless military aggression and backing for foreign wars is justified because we are forced to pay for 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 official rationale for Maduro's arrest – on weapons and cocaine trafficking charges – with Trump's explanation that the operation was to reclaim confiscated US oil and stop fentanyl production.
The majority of Republican lawmakers rallied behind the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson characterizing the military action against a "illegitimate government" as "firm and justified".
Policy Rationales and Worldwide Consequences
During his appearance, the president said the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" agenda because it guaranteed US regional security and provided a steady source of oil.
He dusted off the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th Century American foreign policy that asserted the Western Hemisphere should be without influence by European powers – and renamed it the "Trump Doctrine."
The move in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "US preeminence in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again."
The purpose of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "protect trade, land and resources that are core to our national security." He labeled the Western Hemisphere as America's "backyard."
Trump's decision to capture Maduro will provoke larger questions in global politics, however, and impact American ties with the world's other major military powers.
The Chinese government issued a statement expressing surprise and denouncing what it said was a irresponsible assault on a sovereign nation.
During the previous administration, the US offered similar censures of Russia following its incursion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is trying to mediate a peace deal between those two nations – one that has often appeared to be leaning to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a moderate Republican congressman, expressed concern about the signal Trump's actions might send.
"My primary worry is now Russia will use this to excuse their unlawful and brutal military actions against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an invasion of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic critics were sharper.
"The United States should not be managing other countries for any reason," 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 stated Maduro is a lawbreaker and a autocrat with a record of human rights abuses. But he condemned Trump's decision not to inform legislative leaders prior to initiating the attack.
"The President has the constitutional responsibility to abide by the law and uphold institutional norms in the United States," he said. "That is what placing America First demands."
Trump, in his remarks, explained that he opted not to inform Congress because he was worried they would "disclose" details of the operation before the attack.
An Uncertain Future
That mission was a success – with no American casualties and minimal harm to US assets. Trump, with his typical confidence, described the operation as a "spectacular assault" and "among the most astonishing, successful and powerful displays of American military might and competency in American history."
Now he is betting his presidency on that success continuing, as the US says it will take over running and rebuilding Venezuela - though what that actually means is unclear. He and his administration must rebuild a nation that has been in turmoil for decades while calming a hemisphere that is bound to be cautious of what Trump's international strategy has planned for them.
