In the wake of launching a night of overwhelming force in Venezuela, Donald Trump seems to be entering the nation-building business.
In a remarkable news conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Saturday morning, the commander-in-chief announced that US forces had effectively seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an overnight raid in Caracas.
Trump then said that a team comprising Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, working with Venezuelans, would be assuming control of the beleaguered nation.
"We are going to administer 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 sudden shift in direction for the president, rife with contradictions and daunting obstacles.
A president who ran on opposing "forever wars", who sharply criticised past US efforts at overthrowing governments and who promised to implement an "America first" foreign policy is now gambling his presidency on successfully revitalizing a South American nation whose economic system is collapsed and whose governmental stability has been eroded by decades of dictatorship.
Yet, Trump was persistently confident.
He claimed his administration has a "perfect track record of winning" – and that this will be no different. He promised to enlist American energy companies to repair Venezuela's crumbling production infrastructure, supplying capital for the American reconstruction efforts and aiding the Venezuelan people.
He left open the possibility of 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 told reporters.
Trump, a sharp critic of the US invasion of Iraq, will now have to heed the words of one of the American planners of the Iraq War, Secretary of State Colin Powell: "You break it, you bought it."
A Shift in Foreign Policy
The US has redefined Venezuela's future – for better or worse.
Trump came to power nearly a year ago promising to be a diplomat, but over the past year he has demonstrated that he is quite prepared to use armed force around the globe.
In the past week, he ordered airstrikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he targeted nuclear facilities in Iran, alleged narco-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, rebel forces in Yemen, armed groups in Somalia and Islamic militants in Iraq.
In contrast to previous operations, which have largely involved missiles and warplanes that minimize the risk of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela operation – and his commitments to the future of that nation – are markedly different.
His aim, he said during his press conference, is to "restore Venezuela's greatness."
Reactions from Allies and Critics
That twist on Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - mantra could be tough for some of Trump's backers to accept.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump loyalist who broke with the president after accusing him of abandoning his political base, was swift to criticize the president's actions on social media.
"Americans' disgust with our own government's never ending use of force and support of foreign wars is justified because we are forced to fund it," she stated. "This is what many in Maga thought they voted to end. Boy were we wrong."
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 retake confiscated US oil and halt fentanyl production.
The majority of Republican lawmakers supported the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson characterizing the armed intervention against a "illegitimate government" as "firm and justified".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his appearance, the president argued the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" priorities because it guaranteed US hemispheric security and provided a reliable source of oil.
He revived the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th Century American foreign policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be free from 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 not be questioned again."
The goal of the new US security policy, he said, was to "safeguard commerce, territory and resources that are fundamental to our national security." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "sphere of influence."
Trump's decision to capture Maduro will provoke larger questions in international relations, however, and impact American relations with the world's other significant military powers.
The Chinese government released a statement expressing surprise and condemning what it said was a irresponsible attack on a sovereign nation.
During the Biden administration, the US offered similar condemnations of Russia following its invasion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is attempting to mediate a peace deal between those two nations – one that has often appeared to be leaning to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a centrist Republican congressman, expressed worry about the precedent Trump's actions might send.
"My primary concern is now Russia will use this to justify their unlawful and brutal operations against Ukraine, or China to justify an attack of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic opponents were sharper.
"The United States 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 endless wars and regime change missions that carry catastrophic results 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 choice not to inform congressional leaders before launching the attack.
"The President has the constitutional responsibility to abide by 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 opted not to inform Congress because he was concerned they would "disclose" particulars of the operation prior to the attack.
A Path Forward Shrouded in Doubt
That military operation was a triumph – with zero American deaths and minimal harm to US equipment. Trump, with his typical bravado, portrayed the operation as a "spectacular assault" and "one of the most stunning, effective and powerful demonstrations of American power and proficiency in American history."
Now he is betting his legacy on that success enduring, as the US says it will assume responsibility for administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that actually means is unclear. He and his team must rebuild a nation that has been in chaos for decades while stabilising a region that is bound to be cautious of what Trump's international strategy has planned for them.
