From Breitbart: President Donald Trump said on Saturday that Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez was sworn in as head of Venezuela following the capture of socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro by U.S. forces earlier that day.
“I understand she was just sworn in, but she was, as you know, picked by Maduro. Marco [Rubio] is working on that directly. He just had a conversation with her, and she’s essentially willing to do what we think its necessary to Make Venezuela great again, very simple,” President Trump told reporters.
At another part of the press conference, President Trump said that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth will be a “team” that will work with the people of Venezuela to make sure that “we have Venezuela right.”
“Because for us to just leave, who’s gonna take over? I mean, there’s nobody to take over. You have a Vice President who’s been appointed by Maduro, and right now she is the Vice President and she is, I guess, the President, she was sworn as President just a little while ago,” President Trump said. “She had a long conversation with Marco and she said, ‘We’ll do whatever you need.’ I think she was quite gracious, but she really doesn’t have a choice.”
Breitbart explained that Rodríguez has served as Maduro’s vice president since 2018 and as oil minister since 2024.
WATCH Trump’s comments in the two video clips below:
President Trump to @JMRaasch on working with Venezuela’s Vice President after Maduro’s capture.
“She’s essentially willing to do what we think is necessary to make Venezuela great again.” pic.twitter.com/2lfXNXW4VG
— Ryan Schmelz (@RyanSchmelzFOX) January 3, 2026
Trump: “There is nobody to take over. You have a vice president who has been appointed by Maduro. She’s I guess the president. She was sworn in just a little while ago. She had a long conversation with Marco and she said, ‘We’ll do whatever you need.’ She really doesn’t have a… pic.twitter.com/zpTemap4YX
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 3, 2026
There has been much speculation about whether Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado would become president of Venezuela.
However, President Trump said Saturday, “I think it would be very tough for her to be the leader. She doesn’t have the support within or the respect within the country. She’s a very nice woman, but she doesn’t have the respect.”
Trump on María Corina Machado: “I think it’d be very tough for her to be the leader. She doesn’t have the support or the respect within the country. She’s a very nice woman but she doesn’t have the respect.” pic.twitter.com/jps4NBKLfp
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 3, 2026
President Trump said the leader of the Venezuelan opposition doesn’t have the “respect” of the country to govern following the ousting of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. https://t.co/pNxQgP63fr
— ABC News (@ABC) January 4, 2026
READ MORE from Breitbart.
READ NOW: Trump: Nicolás Maduro’s VP Delcy Rodríguez Spoke to Rubio, Willing to ‘Make Venezuela Great Again’ — President Donald Trump said on Saturday that Delcy Rodríguez was sworn in as head of Venezuela following the capture Nicolás…https://t.co/GCTkgC1s3l
— Top News by CPAC (@TopNewsbyCPAC) January 3, 2026
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