In the wake of executing a evening of overwhelming force in Venezuela, Donald Trump now appears to be getting into the state-building arena.
In a notable press conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Saturday morning, the commander-in-chief declared that US forces had successfully seized Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in an overnight raid in Caracas.
Trump then announced that a group including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, collaborating with Venezuelans, would be taking control of the beleaguered nation.
"We are going to run the country until such time as we can do a secure, orderly and judicious transition," he said.
What exactly "governing the state" involves is uncertain, but the commitment represents an sudden policy reversal for the president, full of inconsistencies and significant challenges.
A president who campaigned against "forever wars", who sharply criticised past US efforts at regime change and who promised to implement an "America first" international policy is now staking his presidency on successfully rebuilding a South American nation whose economic system is in shambles and whose governmental 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 different. He vowed to enlist American energy companies to rebuild Venezuela's deteriorating production infrastructure, supplying funds for the American reconstruction efforts and aiding the Venezuelan people.
He declined to rule out 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 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: "If you break it, you own it."
A Shift in Foreign Policy
The US has reshaped Venezuela's prospects – whether for good or ill.
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 internationally.
In the past week, he authorized airstrikes on Syria and Nigeria. In 2025, he targeted atomic sites in Iran, alleged narco-trafficking boats in the Caribbean, rebel forces in Yemen, militias in Somalia and jihadist fighters in Iraq.
Unlike past actions, which have mostly involved rockets and warplanes that minimize the exposure of American forces to danger, Trump's Venezuela operation – and his commitments to the fate of that nation – are notably different.
His objective, he said during his press conference, is to "restore Venezuela's greatness."
Domestic and International Reaction
That play on Trump's "Make America Great Again" – or Maga - mantra could be difficult for some of Trump's supporters to swallow.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a former Trump loyalist who split from the president after accusing him of abandoning his political base, was quick to criticize the president's actions on social media.
"Americans' disgust with our own government's perpetual military aggression and backing for foreign wars is understandable because we are compelled to finance it," she stated. "This is what many in Maga thought they voted to end. Boy were we wrong."
Another notable Trump critic, Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, compared the legal justification for Maduro's arrest – on arms and drug trafficking charges – with Trump's reasoning that the operation was to retake seized US oil and halt fentanyl production.
The majority of Republican lawmakers stood by the president, with House Speaker Mike Johnson characterizing the armed intervention against a "criminal regime" as "decisive and legitimate".
Policy Rationales and Worldwide Consequences
During his appearance, the president argued the Venezuelan operation furthered his "America First" agenda because it guaranteed US regional security and provided a reliable source of oil.
He dusted off the Monroe Doctrine – an nineteenth-century American diplomatic policy that declared the Western Hemisphere should be without influence by European powers – and renamed it the "Trump 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 security policy, he said, was to "safeguard commerce, land and assets that are central to our national security." He branded the Western Hemisphere as America's "backyard."
Trump's choice to capture Maduro will provoke larger concerns in international relations, however, and affect American relations with the world's other significant military powers.
The Chinese foreign ministry released a statement voicing surprise and denouncing what it said was a reckless assault on a sovereign nation.
During the previous administration, the US offered comparable censures of Russia following its incursion of Ukraine. Now the Trump administration is trying to mediate a ceasefire between those two nations – one that has frequently appeared to be leaning to the Russian side.
Don Bacon, a moderate Republican congressman, expressed concern about the precedent Trump's actions might send.
"My main worry is now Russia will use this to excuse 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 Foreign Relations Committee. "We should have understood by now not to get involved in perpetual conflicts and overthrow attempts that carry devastating consequences for Americans."
Another senior Democratic lawmaker stated Maduro is a lawbreaker and a autocrat with a record of human rights abuses. But he censured Trump's choice not to consult with legislative leaders prior to initiating the attack.
"Donald Trump has the legal duty to abide by the law and protect democratic norms in the United States," he said. "That is what placing America First requires."
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.
A Path Forward Shrouded in Doubt
That military operation was a triumph – with no American casualties and minimal damage to US equipment. Trump, with his characteristic bravado, described the operation as a "spectacular assault" and "among the most stunning, successful and impressive displays of American military might and competency in US history."
Now he is betting his presidency on that success continuing, as the US claims it will take over administering and reconstructing Venezuela - though what that actually means remains unknown. He and his team must strengthen a nation that has been in chaos for years while stabilising a hemisphere that is bound to be wary of what Trump's foreign policy has in store for them.
