President Donald Trump held a press conference on Jan. 3 to address the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. The United States captured Maduro and his wife in an overnight military operation on Jan. 3, Trump said, as explosions rocked Caracas and targets across the country. “They always say boots on the ground,” Trump said. “So we’re not afraid of boots on the ground if we have to have. We had boots on the ground last night at a very high level, actually. We’re not afraid of it. We don’t mind saying it.” REPORTER: The U.S. is going to run Venezuela, so who’s in power right now? PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Well, we’re going to be running it with a group, and we’re going to make sure it’s run properly. We’re going to rebuild the oil infrastructure, which will cost billions of dollars. It will be paid for by the oil companies directly. They will be reimbursed for what they’re doing, but it’s going to be paid. And we’re going to get the oil flowing the way it should be. As you know, it was just a minor flow. It was actually a minor flow for what they have. But we’re going to run it properly, and we’re going to make sure the people of Venezuela are taken care of. We’re going to make sure the people that were forced out of Venezuela by this thug are also taken care of. REPORTER: Mr. President, does the U.S. running the country mean that U.S. troops will be on the ground? How will that work? TRUMP: Well, you know, they always say boots on the ground. Oh, so we’re not afraid of boots on the ground if we have to have. We had boots on the ground last night at a very high level, actually. We’re not afraid of it. We don’t mind saying it. But we’re going to make sure that that country is run properly. We’re not doing this in vain. This is not – this is a very dangerous attack. This is an attack that could have gone very, very badly. Could have gone very badly. We could have lost a lot of people last night. We could have lost a lot of dignity. We could have lost a lot of equipment. The equipment is less important, but we could have lost a lot. And we’re going to make sure that this is proper. We’re there now. We’re ready to go again if we have to. We’re going to run the country right. It’s going to run very judiciously, very fairly. It’s going to make a lot of money. We’re going to give money to the people. We’re going to reimburse people that we’re taking advantage of. We’re going to take care of everybody. It’s very important. We couldn’t let them get away with it. You know, they stole our oil. We built that whole industry there, and they just took it over like we were nothing. And we had a president that decided not to do anything about it. So we did something about it. We’re late, but we did something about it. REPORTER: Mr. President, will you explain the exact mechanism by which you’re going to run the country? Are you going to designate a U.S. official to coordinate? TRUMP: Yes, yes. It’s all being done right now. We’re designating people. We’re talking to people. We’re designating various people, and we’re going to let you know who those people are. REPORTER: Who is going to run Venezuela? TRUMP: Well, it’s largely going to be, for a period of time, the people that are standing right behind me. We’re going to be running it. We’re going to be bringing it back. It’s a dead-you know, I talk about a dead country. A year and a half ago, we were a dead country. Now we’re the hottest country anywhere in the world. We’re a country doing better than any country anywhere in the world. And it required leadership. Venezuela has a lot of bad people in there, a lot of bad people that shouldn’t be leading. We’re not going to take a chance at one of those people, take over for Maduro. So you can look at-and others. We have fantastic people, including people in the military. So we’re going to have a group of people running it until such time as it can be put back on track, make a lot of money for the people, and give people a great way of life, and also reimbursement for people in our country that were forced out of Venezuela. REPORTER: You said earlier today that you weren’t going to back Machado to come back and be the opposition leader in your Fox & Friends interview. And then you also mentioned the vice president of Venezuela. Are you going to work with the vice president of Venezuela, or how do you foresee the relationship going? TRUMP: Well, I understand she was just sworn in, but she was, as you know, 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. Very simple.
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