Foreign Affairs

Trump Bursts Bubble On Nobel Prize-Winning Machado’s Vision For Taking Power In Venezuela

[Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain/VOA]

President Donald Trump said Saturday he doubted that Nobel laureate María Corina Machado’s wishes for who could succeed deposed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro could come to pass.

Trump announced in a post on Truth Social that military forces protected a law enforcement operation which arrested Maduro and his wife, Cilia Floris, in Caracas early Saturday morning. Trump said during a subsequent press conference he had not been in touch with her.

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“I think it would be very tough for her to be the leader if she doesn’t have the support within, or the respect within the country,” Trump said. “She’s a very nice woman, but she doesn’t have the respect within the— ”

Machado praised the capture of Maduro in a Saturday statement released on X.

“The Hour of Freedom Has Arrived! Nicolás Maduro faces international justice for crimes against Venezuelans and others,” Machado’s statement reads. “The US has enforced the law after his refusal to negotiate an exit.”

Venezolanos, llegó la hora de la libertad. pic.twitter.com/ehy20V1xm9

— María Corina Machado (@MariaCorinaYA) January 3, 2026

“Popular and National Sovereignty now govern. We’ll free political prisoners, build an exceptional country, and bring our children home. We’ve fought hard; it’s worth it,” the statement continues. “Citizens’ hour: President-Elect Edmundo González assumes mandate as Commander in Chief. We’re prepared to enforce it. Stay vigilant for democratic transition for all.”

Trump said during the press conference the United States would “run” Venezuela “until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition.”

“We want peace, liberty, and justice for the great people of Venezuela, and that includes many from Venezuela that are now living in the United States and want to go back to their country. It’s their homeland,” Trump said. “We can’t take a chance that somebody else takes over Venezuela that doesn’t have the good of the Venezuelan people in mind.”

Machado dedicated her peace prize to Trump when she was announced as the recipient for 2025.

“We are on the threshold of victory and today, more than ever, we count on President Trump, the people of the United States, the peoples of Latin America, and the democratic nations of the world as our principal allies to achieve Freedom and democracy,” Machado posted Oct. 10, 2025 on X. “I dedicate this prize to the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his decisive support for our cause!”