In the wake of launching a night of shock and awe in Venezuela, Donald Trump seems 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 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, collaborating with Venezuelans, would be seizing the reins of the beleaguered nation.
"We are going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, orderly and judicious transition," he said.
What exactly "running the country" involves is uncertain, but the vow marks an dramatic policy reversal for the president, rife with inconsistencies and significant obstacles.
A leader who campaigned against "forever wars", who vehemently denounced past US efforts at regime change and who promised to implement an "America first" international policy is now betting his presidency on successfully rebuilding a South American nation whose economic system is in shambles and whose political stability has been eroded by decades of authoritarian rule.
Yet, Trump was persistently upbeat.
He said his administration has a "unblemished record of winning" – and that this will be no exception. He vowed to enlist American energy companies to overhaul Venezuela's crumbling production infrastructure, supplying funds for the American rebuilding project and aiding the Venezuelan people.
He did not exclude sending 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 told reporters.
Trump, a vocal opponent of the US invasion of Iraq, will now have to heed the words of one of the American architects of the Iraq War, Secretary of State Colin Powell: "If you shatter it, you are responsible for it."
A Changed Global Approach
The US has altered Venezuela's prospects – whether for good or ill.
Trump came to power 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 airstrikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he targeted atomic sites in Iran, alleged narco-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, rebel forces in Yemen, armed groups in Somalia and Islamic militants in Iraq.
Unlike previous operations, which have mostly involved missiles and warplanes that reduce the exposure of American forces to harm, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his pledges to the future of that nation – are strikingly distinct.
His goal, he said during his press conference, is to "make Venezuela great again."
Response at Home and Abroad
That play on Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - slogan may be hard for some of Trump's followers to swallow.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a one-time Trump loyalist who broke with the president after accusing him of deserting his core supporters, was quick to denounce the president's actions on social media.
"Public outrage with our own government's endless use of force and backing for 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. How mistaken we were."
Another prominent Trump detractor, Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, contrasted the legal justification for Maduro's arrest – on arms and cocaine trafficking charges – with Trump's explanation that the operation was to reclaim confiscated US oil and halt fentanyl production.
Most Republican lawmakers rallied behind the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson describing the armed intervention against a "illegitimate government" as "firm and legitimate".
Policy Rationales and Worldwide Consequences
During his press conference, the president said the Venezuelan operation advanced his "America First" priorities because it ensured US regional security and provided a steady source of oil.
He revived the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th Century American foreign policy that asserted the Western Hemisphere should be free from influence by European powers – and rebranded it the "Trump Doctrine."
The action in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be challenged again."
The goal of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "safeguard commerce, land and resources that are fundamental to our security interests." He labeled the Western Hemisphere as America's "backyard."
Trump's choice to capture Maduro will raise broader concerns in global politics, however, and impact American relations with the world's other significant global powers.
The Chinese government released a statement expressing surprise and denouncing what it said was a irresponsible attack on a independent country.
During the Biden administration, the US offered similar condemnations of Russia following its incursion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is attempting to mediate a peace deal between those two nations – one that has frequently seemed 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 primary concern is now Russia will use this to justify their illegal and brutal operations against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an invasion of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic critics were sharper.
"America should not be running other countries for any reason," said a senator who serves on the Foreign Relations Committee. "We should have understood 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 lawbreaker and a autocrat with a record of rights violations. But he censured Trump's choice not to inform legislative leaders before launching the attack.
"Donald Trump has the constitutional responsibility to follow the law and uphold institutional norms in the United States," he said. "That is what placing America First demands."
Trump, in his remarks, said that he chose not to inform Congress because he was worried they would "disclose" details of the operation prior to the attack.
A Path Forward Shrouded in Doubt
That military operation was a success – with no American deaths and minimal harm to US equipment. Trump, with his typical confidence, portrayed the operation as a "spectacular assault" and "one of the most stunning, effective and impressive demonstrations of American military might and competency in American history."
Now he is gambling his presidency on that victory continuing, as the US claims it will take over administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that truly entails remains unknown. He and his administration must fortify a nation that has been in chaos for years while stabilising a hemisphere that is sure to be cautious of what Trump's foreign policy has in store for them.
