In the wake of launching a night of shock and awe in Venezuela, Donald Trump seems to be entering the state-building arena.
In a notable media briefing at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Saturday morning, the president announced that US forces had effectively seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an overnight raid in Caracas.
Trump then indicated that a team featuring Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, working with Venezuelans, would be taking 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 precisely "running the country" entails is uncertain, but the vow signifies an dramatic policy reversal for the president, full of contradictions and formidable obstacles.
A president who campaigned against "endless conflicts", who vehemently denounced past US efforts at regime change and who vowed to implement an "America First" international policy is now betting his presidency on effectively rebuilding a South American nation whose economy is collapsed and whose political stability has been eroded by decades of dictatorship.
Yet, Trump was unwaveringly upbeat.
He said his administration has a "unblemished record of winning" – and that this will be no different. He vowed to recruit American energy companies to rebuild Venezuela's deteriorating production infrastructure, supplying funds for the American rebuilding project and aiding the Venezuelan people.
He declined to rule out deploying American soldiers to Venezuela to progress 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 intervention of Iraq, will now have to heed 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 prospects – for better or worse.
Trump came to power nearly a year ago pledging to be a peacemaker, but over the past year he has demonstrated that he is quite prepared 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 drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, rebel forces in Yemen, militias in Somalia and Islamic militants in Iraq.
In contrast to previous actions, which have mostly involved rockets and aircraft that reduce the exposure of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his commitments to the fate of that nation – are strikingly distinct.
His aim, he said during his press conference, is to "make Venezuela great again."
Domestic and International Reaction
That play on Trump's "MAGA" – or Maga - mantra may be tough for some of Trump's supporters to accept.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a one-time Trump ally who split from the president after accusing him of deserting his core supporters, was swift to criticize the president's actions on social media.
"Americans' disgust with our own government's perpetual military aggression and support of foreign wars is justified because we are forced to finance 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, compared the official rationale for Maduro's arrest – on arms and drug trafficking charges – with Trump's explanation that the operation was to retake confiscated US oil and stop fentanyl production.
The majority of Republican lawmakers rallied behind the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson describing the armed intervention against a "criminal regime" as "decisive and legitimate".
Policy Rationales and Worldwide Consequences
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 nineteenth-century American diplomatic policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be free from influence by European powers – and rebranded it the "Donroe Doctrine."
The action in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will not be challenged again."
The goal of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "safeguard trade, territory and resources that are central to our security interests." He labeled the Western Hemisphere as America's "sphere of influence."
Trump's decision to capture Maduro will provoke broader concerns in international relations, however, and affect American ties with the world's other major military powers.
The Chinese government released a statement expressing surprise and condemning what it said was a reckless assault on a independent country.
During the Biden administration, the US offered comparable censures of Russia after its incursion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is attempting to broker a ceasefire between those two nations – one that has frequently 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 military actions against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an invasion of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic opponents were blunter.
"America should not be running other countries for any reason," said a senator who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations committee. "We should have understood by now not to get entangled in perpetual conflicts and overthrow attempts that carry devastating results for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker stated Maduro is a criminal and a autocrat with a record of rights violations. But he condemned Trump's choice not to inform congressional leaders before initiating the attack.
"The President has the constitutional responsibility to abide by the law and protect democratic norms in the United States," he said. "That is what putting America First requires."
Trump, in his press conference, explained that he opted not to inform Congress because he was concerned they would "leak" details of the operation before the attack.
A Path Forward Shrouded in Doubt
That military operation was a triumph – with no American casualties and minimal harm to US equipment. Trump, with his typical confidence, described the operation as a "spectacular assault" and "among the most stunning, successful and impressive demonstrations of American military might and proficiency in American history."
Now he is betting his presidency on that victory enduring, as the US says it will assume responsibility for administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that actually means is unclear. He and his administration must fortify a nation that has been in chaos for decades while stabilising a region that is bound to be apprehensive of what Trump's international strategy has in store for them.
