Following launching a evening of overwhelming force in Venezuela, Donald Trump seems to be entering the nation-building business.
In a remarkable media briefing at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Saturday morning, the commander-in-chief announced that US forces had effectively seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an late-night operation in Caracas.
Trump then announced that a group comprising Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, collaborating with Venezuelans, would be seizing the reins of the embattled nation.
"We are going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, orderly and judicious transition," he said.
What precisely "managing the nation" involves is uncertain, but the commitment signifies an abrupt policy reversal for the president, rife with inconsistencies and formidable challenges.
A president who ran on opposing "forever wars", who vehemently denounced past US attempts at regime change and who vowed to implement an "America first" international policy is now betting his administration on effectively reconstructing a South American nation whose economic system is collapsed and whose political stability has been eroded by years of authoritarian rule.
Yet, Trump was unwaveringly upbeat.
He said his administration has a "perfect track record of winning" – and that this would be no exception. He promised to enlist American energy companies to repair Venezuela's deteriorating industrial infrastructure, supplying funds for the American reconstruction efforts and benefitting the Venezuelan people.
He left open the possibility of deploying American soldiers to Venezuela to advance these efforts. "We're not afraid of boots on the ground…we had boots on the ground last night," he informed reporters.
Trump, a vocal opponent 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."
A Shift in Foreign Policy
The US has redefined Venezuela's prospects – for better or worse.
Trump came to power nearly a year ago promising to be a peacemaker, but over the past year he has shown that he is ready to use armed force around the globe.
In the past week, he authorized air strikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he targeted nuclear facilities in Iran, suspected drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, insurgent groups in Yemen, armed groups in Somalia and jihadist fighters in Iraq.
In contrast to previous actions, which have mostly involved missiles and warplanes that minimize the exposure of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela strike – and his commitments to the fate of that nation – are markedly different.
His aim, he said during his press conference, is to "make Venezuela great again."
Domestic and International Reaction
That play on Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - mantra could be difficult for some of Trump's followers to digest.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump ally who broke with the president after accusing him of abandoning his political base, was swift to condemn the president's actions on social media.
"Public outrage with our own government's perpetual military aggression and support of foreign wars is understandable because we are forced to fund it," she wrote. "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 legal justification for Maduro's arrest – on weapons and cocaine trafficking charges – with Trump's explanation that the operation was to reclaim seized US oil and halt fentanyl production.
The majority of Republican lawmakers rallied behind the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson describing the armed intervention against a "illegitimate government" as "decisive and legitimate".
Policy Rationales and Worldwide Consequences
During his press conference, the president said the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" agenda because it ensured US regional security and provided a reliable source of oil.
He resurrected the Monroe Doctrine – an early 19th Century American diplomatic 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 supremacy in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again."
The goal of the new US national security strategy, he said, was to "safeguard commerce, territory and assets that are core to our national security." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "backyard."
Trump's decision to capture Maduro will provoke broader concerns in international relations, however, and affect American ties with the world's other significant military powers.
The Chinese government released a statement voicing surprise and condemning what it said was a irresponsible assault on a independent country.
During the previous administration, the US offered similar censures of Russia after its incursion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is trying to broker a ceasefire between those two nations – one that has frequently seemed to be leaning to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a centrist Republican congressman, expressed worry about the signal Trump's actions might send.
"My primary worry is now Russia will use this to excuse their illegal and brutal military actions against Ukraine, or China to rationalize an attack of Taiwan."
Opposition and Legal Scrutiny
Trump's Democratic opponents were blunter.
"The United States should not be managing other countries for any reason," said a senator who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations committee. "We should have learned by now not to get involved in endless wars and overthrow attempts that carry devastating results for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker said Maduro is a criminal and a autocrat with a record of rights violations. But he censured Trump's choice not to consult with congressional leaders prior to initiating the attack.
"The President has the constitutional responsibility to follow the law and uphold democratic norms in the United States," he said. "That is what placing America First demands."
Trump, in his press conference, explained that he opted not to inform Congress because he was worried they would "leak" details of the operation before the attack.
An Uncertain Future
That military operation was a success – with zero American deaths and limited harm to US assets. Trump, with his characteristic bravado, portrayed the operation as a "daring raid" and "among the most astonishing, successful and powerful displays of American power and competency in US history."
Now he is staking his presidency on that success continuing, as the US claims it will take over administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that truly entails remains unclear. He and his administration must strengthen a nation that has been in turmoil for years while stabilising a hemisphere that is sure to be cautious of what Trump's foreign policy has planned for them.
