The Trump administration has allowed Venezuela's Vice President Delcy Rodríguez to take power. (Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/Reuters)
Following Maduro’s removal, Delcy Rodríguez was sworn in as Venezuela’s interim president after the Supreme Court ruled she should assume power in his absence.
Under Venezuela’s constitution, the vice president can serve on an interim basis while the country determines whether and when new elections will be held. While the constitution generally calls for elections within 30 days if a president is permanently unable to serve, authorities have so far described Maduro’s removal as temporary, allowing Rodríguez to remain in office as the timeline for a political transition is debated.
A classified CIA intelligence assessment examined who would be best positioned to lead a temporary government in Caracas, Venezuela, and maintain short-term stability, a source familiar with the intelligence told Fox News Digital. The report, requested by senior policymakers and presented to Trump, aimed to offer the president "comprehensive and objective analysis" on possible scenarios after Maduro’s capture.
A source familiar with the assessment told Fox News Digital that the assessment attempted to analyze the domestic situation in Venezuela, but did not describe how Maduro could lose power or advocate for his removal.
Trump senior policymakers requested the assessment — specifically one that addressed who would be best able to stabilize Venezuela "immediately" following a Maduro removal.
"There was sentiment among senior officials that Machado lacked the necessary support in Venezuela if Maduro was to be removed," the source familiar told Fox News Digital.
One of the reasons for that, the source told Fox News Digital, was because Machado was not in Venezuela, though she has vowed to return.
The report found Rodríguez would be best positioned to lead a temporary government in Caracas, Venezuela, and Gonzalez and Machado would struggle to gain support from security services.
Nicolas Maduro is seen in handcuffs after landing at a Manhattan helipad, escorted by heavily armed Federal agents as they make their way into an armored car en route to a Federal courthouse in Manhattan on Jan. 5, 2026, in New York City. (XNY/Star Max/GC Images via Getty Images)
The administration’s caution also is shaped by a long history of U.S. intervention in Latin America, where American-backed coups and political engineering have left deep skepticism toward Washington’s motives. Installing an opposition leader immediately after a U.S. military operation, analysts warn, could revive those suspicions and undermine any transition before it begins.
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"If they were to bring María Machado and presumably Edmundo González back to the country and install them as president, it would look a lot like the United States installing a new president," said Eric O’Neill, a former FBI counterintelligence operative. "That would actually cause civil unrest."
"Venezuelans are proud people, and they need to elect their next president," O’Neill added.
But Garmendia said Rodríguez is "just as illegitimate as Maduro was — and probably even less popular."
He said Rodríguez lacks the charisma and mass appeal that traditionally have sustained Venezuela’s ruling movement, and that her authority rests largely on internal bargaining and elite control rather than public support.
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In the interim, locals have reports of armed gangs patrolling the streets. Venezuelan authorities have detained at least 14 journalists since Maduro’s capture, according to the union representing Venezuelan reporters.
"There’s going to be a lot of instability in the next couple of weeks," Garmendia said.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-backs-maduro-loyalist-over-venezuela-opposition-leader-post-capture-transition