• Trump says U.S. will govern Venezuela indefinitely until “safe, proper and judicious transition”
• American oil companies to spend billions fixing infrastructure, making money for country
• No timeline provided for how long U.S. control will last or who will lead next

PALM BEACH, FL (TDR) — President Donald Trump announced Saturday that the United States will “run” Venezuela indefinitely following the capture of President Nicolás Maduro, declaring American control over the South American nation until a political transition can occur.

“We’re going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition,” Trump told a press conference from his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida, offering no timeline for how long such U.S. governance would last.

The extraordinary declaration came hours after Trump announced that U.S. forces had captured Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores in a nighttime raid on Caracas, marking the first time American military forces have removed a sitting head of state from power in decades.

Are you kidding me? America is taking control of Venezuela. Not only are we overthrowing Maduro, but we are literally going to “run the country.”

Trump just said that America is going to “run the country of Venezuela!” pic.twitter.com/oy2Pu3LLKW

— Ed Krassenstein (@EdKrassen) January 3, 2026

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No Timeline for U.S. Withdrawal

Trump emphasized that the United States would maintain control to ensure the eventual next leader has “the good of the Venezuelan people in mind,” but provided no specific timeline for transitioning power to a new government.

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“We don’t want to be involved with having someone else get in, and we have the same situation that we had for the last long period of years. So we are going to run the country,” Trump said during the press conference, adding that U.S. forces were ready to conduct a second, “much bigger” wave of strikes if necessary.

“We can’t take a chance of letting somebody else run it — just take over where Maduro left,” Trump explained when asked about Venezuela’s political future.

The president pledged his administration would be “very involved” in Venezuela but stopped short of committing to support any specific leader, including opposition candidate Edmundo González Urrutia, who the Venezuelan opposition claims won the 2024 presidential election.

Oil Companies to Take Over Infrastructure

Trump announced he would authorize major American oil companies to take over Venezuela’s energy infrastructure, asserting that the corporations would “spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastructure, the oil infrastructure, and start making money for the country.”

“We’re going to have our very large United States oil companies, the biggest anywhere in the world, go in, spend billions of dollars” to repair Venezuela’s oil sector, Trump told reporters. The country possesses the world’s largest proven oil reserves, estimated at nearly 300 billion barrels.

Trump said the oil business in Venezuela was “a bust” and that the “partnership” would make Venezuelans “rich, independent and safe.” The U.S. oil embargo on Venezuela will remain in full effect, Trump confirmed, though American companies would operate under special authorization.

Chevron currently operates in Venezuela with Trump administration permission through a license that allows it to export oil despite sanctions on the nation.

Opposition Leader Claims Victory

Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner María Corina Machado said Saturday that “the hour of freedom” had arrived for Venezuela following Maduro’s capture.

“Venezuelans, the hour of freedom has arrived,” Machado wrote. “As of today, Nicolás Maduro will face international justice for the atrocious crimes committed against Venezuelans and against citizens of many other nations.”

In a letter addressed to the Venezuelan people posted on X, Machado said: “Given his refusal to accept a negotiated solution, the government of the United States has fulfilled its promise to enforce the law.”

“The time has come for popular sovereignty and national sovereignty to rule in our country,” Machado stated, calling on Venezuelans to “be ready to mobilize” and urging the military to recognize González Urrutia as the rightful president.

International Legal Questions

The legal authority for the strike and whether Trump consulted Congress beforehand remains unclear. Trump brushed aside criticism from Democratic lawmakers who said the operation was illegal, calling them “weak, stupid people.”

Senator Andy Kim (D-NJ) said the operation sent a “horrible and disturbing signal” to other world leaders. However, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) backed Trump’s decision, while Vice President JD Vance said Maduro is “the newest person to find out that President Trump means what he says.”

Operational Details

Trump revealed U.S. forces caused a blackout in Caracas to facilitate the operation. “It was dark. The lights of Caracas were largely turned off due to a certain expertise that we have,” Trump said.

The raid was carried out by the U.S. Army’s elite Delta Force, with FBI agents accompanying the special operation forces, according to CNN. The couple was captured in the middle of the night as they were sleeping.

Maduro Heading to New York

Maduro is expected to arrive at Guantanamo Bay before being transferred to New York, sources told ABC News. Trump confirmed they were taken to the USS Iwo Jima before transfer by helicopter.

Attorney General Pam Bondi announced indictments in the Southern District of New York on charges related to narcoterrorism, conspiracy to import cocaine, and possession of machine guns and destructive devices. The unsealed indictment characterizes Maduro as “previously the president of Venezuela.”

How long will the United States maintain direct control over Venezuela, and what precedent does this extraordinary intervention set for future American military operations in the Western Hemisphere?

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