Trump’s Venezuela raid puts House and Senate Republicans on the defensive

President Trump’s abrupt move to attack Venezuela, oust Nicolás Maduro and seize its oil has left Republicans in Congress scrambling to reconcile their views with his fast-changing strategy, after Mr. Maduro and his wife were removed and sent to the United States to face criminal charges.

Many Republicans applauded the pressure campaign and the raid, but have struggled with the administration’s mixed signals. Speaker Mike Johnson said, “We do not have U.S. armed forces in Venezuela, and we are not occupying that country,” and rejected the idea of nation-building, saying, “This is not a regime change.” Mr.

Trump, by contrast, said hours after the raid that the United States would “run the country” until a “safe, proper and judicious transition” and told The Atlantic that “rebuilding there, and regime change, anything you want to call it, is better than what you have right now.” The operation, carried out without informing congressional leaders or top intelligence lawmakers, has divided Republicans over who should govern Venezuela.

Three South Florida Republicans had promoted María Corina Machado, described in their resolution as the legitimate opposition leader, and Senator Rick Scott introduced a similar measure. But Mr. Trump allowed Delcy Rodríguez to become interim president, prompting objections from some Republicans; Mr.

Key Topics

Politics, Donald Trump, Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, Delcy Rodriguez, Maria Corina Machado