Following executing a evening of overwhelming force in Venezuela, Donald Trump seems to be getting into the state-building arena.
In a notable news conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Saturday morning, the president declared that US military forces had effectively seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an late-night operation in Caracas.
Trump then said that a delegation including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, working with Venezuelans, would be assuming control of the troubled nation.
"We are going to administer the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition," he said.
What exactly "running the country" entails is uncertain, but the commitment signifies an dramatic change of course for the president, laden with contradictions and formidable obstacles.
A leader who ran on opposing "endless conflicts", who sharply criticised past US attempts at regime change and who vowed to implement an "America First" foreign policy is now betting his administration on effectively rebuilding a South American nation whose economic system is collapsed and whose political stability has been eroded by decades of dictatorship.
Yet, Trump was relentlessly upbeat.
He claimed his administration has a "unblemished record of winning" – and that this will be no different. He promised to recruit American energy companies to overhaul Venezuela's deteriorating production infrastructure, supplying financing for the American reconstruction efforts and aiding the Venezuelan people.
He did not exclude 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 remember 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."
An Altered International Stance
The US has reshaped Venezuela's destiny – whether for good or ill.
Trump entered office nearly a year ago promising to be a diplomat, but over the past year he has proven that he is ready to use military force internationally.
In the past week, he authorized air strikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he struck atomic sites in Iran, alleged narco-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, insurgent groups in Yemen, militias in Somalia and jihadist fighters in Iraq.
Unlike past actions, which have mostly involved rockets and warplanes that reduce the risk of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his commitments to the fate of that nation – are notably different.
His aim, he said during his briefing, is to "restore Venezuela's greatness."
Response at Home and Abroad
That variation of Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - slogan could be difficult for some of Trump's followers to swallow.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump loyalist who broke with the president after charging him of deserting his political base, was quick to denounce the president's actions on social media.
"Americans' disgust with our own government's perpetual use of force and support of foreign wars is justified because we are compelled to finance it," she stated. "This is what many in Maga thought they voted to end. How mistaken we were."
Another notable Trump detractor, Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, contrasted the legal justification for Maduro's arrest – on weapons and drug trafficking charges – with Trump's explanation that the operation was to reclaim seized US oil and halt fentanyl production.
Most Republican lawmakers stood by the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson describing the military action against a "criminal regime" as "decisive and warranted".
Strategic Justifications and Global Implications
During his press conference, the president said the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" agenda because it ensured US hemispheric security and provided a steady source of oil.
He dusted off the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th Century American diplomatic policy that asserted the Western Hemisphere should be without influence by European powers – and renamed it the "Donroe Doctrine."
The action in Venezuela, Trump said, shows that "American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again."
The goal of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "protect trade, territory and assets that are core to our security interests." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "home region."
Trump's choice to capture Maduro will raise larger concerns in international relations, however, and affect American relations with the world's other significant military powers.
The Chinese government issued a statement voicing surprise and condemning what it said was a reckless attack on a independent country.
During the Biden administration, the US offered similar censures 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, voiced worry about the precedent Trump's actions might send.
"My primary worry is now Russia will use this to excuse their unlawful and barbaric operations against Ukraine, or China to justify an invasion of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic critics were blunter.
"America should not be running other countries for any purpose," 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 devastating consequences for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker stated Maduro is a lawbreaker and a dictator with a record of human rights abuses. But he censured Trump's decision not to inform congressional leaders before launching the attack.
"Donald Trump has the legal duty to abide by the law and protect institutional norms in the United States," he said. "That is what putting America First requires."
Trump, in his remarks, said that he opted not to inform Congress because he was worried they would "disclose" details of the operation before the attack.
A Path Forward Shrouded in Doubt
That mission was a triumph – with zero American deaths and minimal harm to US assets. Trump, with his typical confidence, described the operation as a "daring raid" and "among the most stunning, effective and powerful demonstrations of American military might and competency in US history."
Now he is staking his legacy on that success enduring, as the US claims it will take over administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that actually means is unclear. He and his administration must rebuild a nation that has been in chaos for years while stabilising a region that is bound to be cautious of what Trump's foreign policy has in store for them.
