After American forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, President Donald Trump announced that the United States would oversee Venezuela until what he described as a peaceful transition of power.
American forces struck Venezuela’s capital of Caracas overnight between January 2 and 3, and captured Maduro, as The Dallas Express reported. Now, U.S. authorities are bringing him to the Southern District of New York to face charges.
“We’re going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper, and judicious transition,” Trump announced in a press conference January 3. “We don’t want to be involved with having somebody else get in, and we have the same situation that we had.”
First image of Venezuelan President Maduro in U.S. custody after he was captured last night. pic.twitter.com/C37GRNMTSn
— OSINTtechnical (@Osinttechnical) January 3, 2026
Trump emphasized the need for a “judicious” transition, and pledged a second, stronger attack if necessary. He said American forces are working to make Venezuelans “rich, independent, and safe.”
“We’re there now, but we’re going to stay until such time as the proper transition can take place,” Trump said. “We want peace, liberty and justice for the great people of Venezuela. That includes many from Venezuela that are now living in the United States and want to go back to their country as their homeland.”
Once Maduro reaches America, Attorney General Pam Bondi announced January 3 he will face charges for narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy, possession of machine guns and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess machineguns and destructive devices against the U.S.
Criminal Charges And Legal Basis
While President Trump’s remarks focused on the transition of power and U.S. involvement in stabilizing Venezuela, senior administration officials emphasized that the operation to capture Maduro was conducted as a law-enforcement action supported by military force, not a traditional invasion or occupation.
Officials said the mission was tied directly to longstanding federal indictments alleging that Maduro and senior members of his regime led a narco-terrorism conspiracy, trafficking cocaine into the United States, and providing material support to designated foreign terrorist organizations.
Under this framework, the administration has argued that the objective of the operation was to take Maduro into U.S. custody to face criminal charges, rather than to carry out regime change through prolonged military occupation.
Transition Plans And Oil Infrastructure
American officials are currently “designating people” and speaking to potential leaders, Trump said. He pointed to officials behind him at the conference, and said Secretary of State Marco Rubio is speaking with Venezuela Vice President Delcy Rodríguez.
“She was just sworn in,” Trump said, adding that she was picked by Maduro. “So Marco is working on that directly.”
“He just had a conversation with her, and she’s essentially willing to do what we think is necessary to Make Venezuela Great Again.”
Trump said American oil companies will also step in to provide oil service to Venezuela.
“The oil business in Venezuela has been a bust, a total bust for a long period of time,” Trump said. “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 oil infrastructure, and start making money for the country.”
“We’re going to get the oil flowing the way it should be,” he added. “We’re going to run it properly, and we’re going to make sure that people of Venezuela are taken care of.”
The Mission
Trump ordered the military to launch an attack on Caracas at 10:46 p.m. ET on January 2, Air Force General Dan “Raising” Caine said during the conference.
“What we’ve witnessed today is a powerful demonstration of America’s joint force,” he said. “There’s simply no match for American military might.”
As they approached Caracas, air assets began dismantling Venezuela’s air defense systems. They arrived at Maduro’s compound at 1:01 a.m. ET, or 2:01 a.m. local time.
Trump said Americans had a “very high level” of boots on the ground during the attack. As The Dallas Express reported, Maduro declared a state of emergency at the time.
American helicopters took fire, but none were destroyed, and no American troops were killed. Trump said Maduro was trying to reach a “safe place” during the raid, but did not make it in time.
“The apprehension force descended into Maduro’s compound and moved with speed, precision, and discipline toward their objective,” Cane said. “Maduro and his wife, both indicted, gave up and were taken into custody by the Department of Justice, assisted by our incredible U.S. military.”
The force withdrew from Venezuela, and was over the water by 3:29 a.m. ET, according to Cane. Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were placed aboard the USS Iwo Jima, which then transported them to New York.
The ‘Donroe Doctrine’
Trump cited the Monroe Doctrine, which the American founders used to dictate the terms between the Eastern and Western hemispheres – preventing eastern nations from running puppet governments near the United States.
“The Monroe Doctrine is a big deal, but we’ve superseded it by a lot,” Trump said. “They now call it the Donroe Doctrine.”
Trump said the Venezuela mission squares with his America First policy of not intervening in other countries, because the United States needs to be surrounded by “good neighbors.”
“This is America First, this is peace through strength, and the United States War Department is proud to help deliver it,” said Secretary of War Pete Hegseth in the conference.
Former senior Venezuelan military officials have warned U.S. authorities about Maduro’s alleged role in drug trafficking and the expansion of the violent cartel Tren de Aragua into the United States, as The Dallas Express has exclusively reported.
“Maduro sent savage and murderous gangs, including the bloodthirsty prison gang Tren de Aragua, to terrorize American communities,” Trump said in the conference.
Maduro’s capture was a law enforcement operation, backed by the military, according to Rubio. Trump said officials could not notify Congress for mission security – “Congress has a tendency to leak.”
The Trump administration’s actions follow months of public and private warnings from former senior Venezuelan military and intelligence officials now imprisoned in the United States, who have alleged that the Maduro regime operated as a state-directed criminal enterprise.
As The Dallas Express has exclusively reported, former Venezuelan officials have submitted letters to U.S. authorities alleging that senior figures within the regime coordinated large-scale drug trafficking, worked with violent criminal organizations such as Tren de Aragua, and partnered with foreign terrorist and intelligence-linked groups.
DX has noted in its reporting that these allegations have not been independently verified, but administration officials have pointed to federal indictments and intelligence findings as justification for treating Maduro as a criminal defendant rather than a protected head of state.
Trump’s administration wants peace, according to Rubio. He said Maduro had multiple chances to avoid this.
“He was provided multiple very, very, very generous offers and chose instead to act like a wild man,” Rubio said. “The president doesn’t go out looking for people to pick fights with. He generally wants to get along with everybody. He’ll talk with anybody, but don’t play games.”
Rubio said the administration continues to frame the operation as a defensive measure aimed at restoring stability rather than pursuing long-term military involvement.
