In the wake of launching a night of overwhelming force in Venezuela, Donald Trump seems to be entering the nation-building business.
In a notable media briefing at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Saturday morning, the commander-in-chief announced that US forces had successfully seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an overnight raid in Caracas.
Trump then indicated that a group featuring Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, collaborating with Venezuelans, would be assuming control of the troubled 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" entails is uncertain, but the commitment marks an abrupt policy reversal for the president, rife with contradictions 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 betting his presidency on successfully rebuilding a South American nation whose economic system is collapsed and whose governmental stability has been undermined by years of authoritarian rule.
Yet, Trump was unwaveringly optimistic.
He said his administration has a "unblemished record of winning" – and that this would be no exception. He vowed to enlist American oil firms to repair Venezuela's crumbling production infrastructure, providing funds for the American rebuilding project and aiding the Venezuelan people.
He declined to rule out 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 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 shatter it, you are responsible for it."
A Shift in Foreign Policy
The US has redefined Venezuela's destiny – 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 demonstrated that he is more than willing to use armed force around the globe.
In the past week, he ordered air strikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he struck nuclear facilities in Iran, suspected drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, rebel forces in Yemen, militias in Somalia and jihadist fighters in Iraq.
Unlike previous operations, which have mostly involved rockets and warplanes that reduce the exposure of American forces to harm, Trump's Venezuela operation – and his commitments to the fate of that nation – are markedly different.
His objective, he said during his briefing, is to "restore Venezuela's greatness."
Reactions from Allies and Critics
That variation of Trump's "MAGA" – or Maga - mantra might prove hard for some of Trump's followers to digest.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a one-time Trump ally who broke with the president after accusing him of abandoning his core supporters, was quick to denounce the president's actions on social media.
"Americans' disgust with our own government's never ending use of force and backing for foreign wars is justified because we are forced to finance it," she stated. "This is what many in Maga thought they voted to end. Boy were we wrong."
Another prominent Trump detractor, Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, contrasted the legal justification for Maduro's arrest – on weapons and cocaine trafficking charges – with Trump's explanation that the operation was to retake confiscated US oil and stop fentanyl production.
Most Republican lawmakers stood by the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson characterizing the military action against a "criminal regime" as "decisive and legitimate".
Policy Rationales and Worldwide Consequences
During his press conference, the president said the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" priorities because it ensured US hemispheric security and provided a steady source of oil.
He revived the Monroe Doctrine – an nineteenth-century American diplomatic policy that asserted the Western Hemisphere should be free from influence by European powers – and renamed it the "Donroe Doctrine."
The action in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "US supremacy in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again."
The purpose of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "protect trade, territory and resources that are fundamental to our national security." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "home region."
Trump's choice to capture Maduro will raise broader questions in global politics, however, and affect American relations with the world's other major military powers.
The Chinese government released a statement voicing surprise and condemning what it said was a reckless assault on a sovereign nation.
During the Biden administration, the US offered similar condemnations of Russia after its invasion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is trying to mediate a peace deal between those two nations – one that has frequently seemed to be leaning to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a centrist Republican congressman, voiced worry about the signal Trump's actions might send.
"My primary worry is now Russia will use this to justify their unlawful and barbaric military actions against Ukraine, or China to justify an attack of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic critics were more direct.
"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 dictator with a record of human rights abuses. But he condemned Trump's decision not to inform legislative leaders before launching the attack.
"The President has the legal duty to follow the law and uphold institutional norms in the United States," he said. "That is what placing America First requires."
Trump, in his remarks, explained that he chose not to inform Congress because he was concerned they would "disclose" details of the operation before the attack.
An Uncertain Future
That military operation was a success – with no American casualties and minimal harm to US assets. Trump, with his typical bravado, portrayed the operation as a "daring raid" and "one of the most astonishing, effective and powerful demonstrations of American power and proficiency in US history."
Now he is gambling his legacy on that victory continuing, as the US claims it will take over administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that truly entails is unknown. He and his team must strengthen a nation that has been in chaos for years while calming a region that is bound to be apprehensive of what Trump's international strategy has planned for them.
