President Donald Trump declared on Saturday that the United States intends to oversee the governance of Venezuela temporarily, following a dawn military operation in Caracas that resulted in the capture of Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
During a press conference held hours after he broke the news of the operation on Truth Social, the President outlined a strategy that involves direct U.S. management of the South American nation. Trump argued this step is necessary to ensure stability before handing power over to a new government.
READ: Florida Senator Rick Scott Hails Trump’s Decisive Takedown Of Narco-Terrorist Maduro
“We are going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition,” Trump told reporters. He emphasized that maintaining control is critical to prevent a power vacuum, stating, “We don’t want to be involved with having somebody else get in and we have the same situation that we had for the last long period of years.”
The administration’s plan extends beyond governance to the physical and economic infrastructure of the country. Trump characterized Venezuela’s state-run oil industry as a “total bust” and announced plans to deploy major American energy companies to rehabilitate the sector.
“We’re going to have our very large United States oil companies, the biggest anywhere in the world, go in, spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastructure… and start making money for the country,” Trump explained.
READ: ‘Genius’ Move Or Illegal Strike? Trump Torches Critics As Maduro Sails For NY Jail
The operation and subsequent policy announcement have already triggered backlash on Capitol Hill. Multiple congressional Democrats accused the President of engaging in an illegal “regime change,” questioning the authority behind the military action and the legality of the subsequent occupation.
Trump, however, framed the intervention as a humanitarian necessity aimed at restoring “peace, liberty and justice.” He noted that stabilizing the country could allow Venezuelan expatriates currently residing in the United States to return home.
“We’re there now… but we’re going to stay until such time as the proper transition can take place,” Trump said. “It has to be judicious because that’s what we’re all about.”
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