Trump says Venezuela isn’t going to hold elections in next thirty-Days
"We have to fix the country first. You can’t have an election. There’s no way the people could even vote," Trump said in an interview.
"It’s going to take a period of time. We have to nurse the country back to health," he added.
Trump reiterated that US military action over the weekend had resulted in the capture of President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, first lady Cilia Flores, and pledged to exercise American authority over Venezuela temporarily, including deploying US troops if necessary.
He stressed that the United States is not at war with Venezuela.
"No, we’re not," he said. "We’re at war with people that sell drugs. We’re at war with people that empty their prisons into our country and empty their drug addicts and empty their mental institutions into our country."
The president also indicated that the US could help finance oil companies’ efforts to rebuild Venezuela’s energy infrastructure, a process he projected could take less than 18 months.
"I think we can do it in less time than that, but it'll be a lot of money," Trump said. "A tremendous amount of money will have to be spent, and the oil companies will spend it, and then they’ll get reimbursed by us or through revenue."
During the interview, Trump listed several US officials—including Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Deputy White House Chief of Staff Stephen Miller—as part of a team that would guide US involvement in Venezuela.
"It's a group of all. They have all expertise, different expertise," he said.
When asked who would ultimately be in charge of Venezuela, Trump offered a succinct response: “Me.”
Meanwhile, Maduro pleaded not guilty Monday in a New York court to federal charges including narco-terrorism and conspiracy to import cocaine, asserting that he remains the country’s leader. Vice President Delcy Rodriguez was formally sworn in as interim president following Maduro’s capture.
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