How Marco Rubio Is Running Venezuela From Afar

The New York Times ^ | July 11, 2026 | Tyler Pager and Anatoly Kurmanaev

[MinorityRepublican]

President Trump was sitting in the Oval Office earlier this year with Secretary of State Marco Rubio when an idea came to him.

Maybe he should dispatch Mr. Rubio permanently to Caracas, the Venezuelan capital, where U.S. commandos had carried out the proudest foreign policy achievement of Mr. Trump’s second term: the capture of Nicolás Maduro, the country’s president.

Mr. Rubio could be the next leader of Venezuela, Mr. Trump suggested. And while the president’s aides say he was joking — and that he frequently teases Mr. Rubio about an overseas assignment — the fact is that Mr. Rubio does not need to move to Caracas.

He already runs Venezuela from Washington.

In the six months since U.S. forces blew open Mr. Maduro’s bedroom door and snatched him in the dead of night, Mr. Rubio has become the de facto viceroy of Venezuela, holding sway over a sovereign nation in a way that no American official has since L. Paul Bremer III arrived in Baghdad in 2003 to run U.S.-occupied Iraq.

Mr. Rubio now effectively controls Venezuela’s finances, the distribution of its natural resources and its government, according to interviews with more than a dozen officials and people close to both governments in Washington and Caracas, who provided details about his involvement in steering the country’s policies. Many spoke on condition of anonymity to describe private interactions and internal discussions.

While he has not visited Venezuela in person since the U.S. took over, the secretary of state is deeply involved in the country’s day-to-day operations, keeping in close contact with Delcy Rodríguez, who was Mr. Maduro’s vice president and now leads her country on an acting basis, with the imprimatur of the United States. The two exchange messages in Spanish on WhatsApp, trading gossip, birthday greetings and selfies.

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TOPICS: Foreign Affairs
KEYWORDS: rubio

[ridesthemiles]

HE IS A VERY WELCOME SURPRISE.

NOW-—WE NEED 1,000 CLONES LIKE HIM

[DIRTYSECRET]

The cherry on the top is if(and when) he runs Cuba. He should then move there and make himself publicly available like Trump. Might have to wait as he’s busy in the mid-east.

[DFG]

[Bruce Campbells Chin]

The great thing about this for Rubio's (and the GOP's) political future is that he didn't personally give himself this authority. He's just doing the job assigned by the President.

[Widget Jr]

A Rubio meme making the rounds:

[Vigilanteman]

The New York Slimes is saying this like it is a bad thing.

[GOPJ]

Rubio had time to do Cuba and the middle east too... He still has Tuesdays and Thursdays open between 8 pm and 9:15.

[Colt1851Navy]

I ran afar for the Fire Department many times.(the respose that is)

[Veto!]

so Marco is on track to be President of the world.

UN UNwelcome.

[catnipman]

“The New York Slimes is saying this like it is a bad thing.”

indeed ... and i suppose they would have objected to Douglas MacArthur getting Japan back on its feet after they surrendered:

Key Aspects of the Occupation:

Surrender: MacArthur formally accepted Japan’s surrender aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945, and set up his headquarters at the Dai Ichi Life Insurance Building in Tokyo.

The New Constitution:

He directed the drafting of the 1947 Constitution, which transformed Japan into a constitutional monarchy, granted women suffrage, and included Article 9, which forbade the nation from maintaining a standing military

The New Constitution:

He directed the drafting of the 1947 Constitution, which transformed Japan into a constitutional monarchy, granted women suffrage, and included Article 9, which forbade the nation from maintaining a standing military.

Social & Economic Reforms:

MacArthur dismantled the zaibatsu (massive industrial conglomerates), broke up tenant farming estates to distribute land to peasants, and instituted widespread educational and labor reforms.

Public Perception:

While opinions and historical consensus are mixed on his personal ambitions, his administration successfully fostered a democratic transition, earning him widespread respect among the Japanese populace.