Washington, Jan. 4 -- US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that the United States had placed Venezuela under temporary American control following the capture of President Nicolas Maduro in a clandestine overnight operation that ended with his transfer to New York to face federal drug-trafficking charges.
Speaking at a hastily arranged news conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, Trump described the move as a necessary intervention to prevent further instability in the oil-rich South American nation.
"We will run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition," President Trump said. "We can't take a chance that someone else takes over Venezuela who doesn't have the interests of Venezuelans in...