Maduro appears in U.S. court as future of Venezuela's leadership remains uncertain

Geoff Bennett:

Welcome to the "News Hour."

Nicolas Maduro, the former president of Venezuela, appeared alongside his wife before a federal judge in New York today saying -- quote -- "I'm innocent. I am not guilty. I am a decent man, the president of my country."

Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were taken by American forces early Saturday on orders of President Trump and flown to the U.S.

Amna Nawaz:

Maduro also told the judge he was -- quote -- "kidnapped from" his home in Caracas. His lawyers are expected to argue he was illegally arrested and is immune from prosecution.

Tonight in Washington, Trump administration officials are briefing members of Congress, who were not notified before the Saturday operation, on what will come next.

Nick Schifrin has more.

Nick Schifrin:

Today, the dictator turned detainee became the defendant. Ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro appeared in federal court facing charges of narco-terrorism and conspiracy to import cocaine.

Back in the country he led for more than a decade, where the U.N. says 80 percent of the population lives in poverty, his handpicked successor seemed to hand over control to the United States. Newly inaugurated President Delcy Rodriguez wrote last night: "We invite the U.S. government to collaborate with us on an agenda of cooperation oriented towards shared development within the framework of international law to strengthen lasting community coexistence."

Rodriguez is under explicit threat from President Trump.

President Donald Trump:

I just say that she will face a situation probably worse than Maduro.

Nick Schifrin:

And she is also navigating internal pressures from the leaders of the military and intelligence service, all of them still considered proud inheritors of anti-American nationalism.

Donald Trump:

We're dealing with the people. We're dealing with the people that just got sworn in. And don't ask me who's in charge, because I will give you an answer and it'll be very controversial.

Question:

What does that mean?

Donald Trump:

It means we're in charge.

Kristen Welker, Moderator, "Meet the Press": Who are those people who will be running the country specifically?

Marco Rubio, U.S. Secretary of State: Well, it's not running. It's running policy, the policy with regards to this.

Nick Schifrin:

This weekend, Secretary of State Marco Rubio softened claims of control. U.S. officials make clear there will be no occupation force, only gunboat diplomacy, what Rubio called the largest armada ever assembled in the Western Hemisphere that's enabled 30 strikes on what the U.S. calls narco-terrorist drug boats, as well as the capture of two sanctioned Venezuelan oil tankers and the chasing of a third tanker, which requested Russian protection and Russia asked the U.S. not to seize.

Marco Rubio:

There's a quarantine right now in which sanctioned oil shipments -- there's a boat and that boat is under U.S. sanctions. We go get a court order. We will seize it. That remains in place.

And that's a tremendous amount of leverage that will continue to be in place until we see changes that not just further the national interest of the United States, which is number one, but also that lead to a better future for the people of Venezuela.

Nick Schifrin:

President Trump's made clear the number one U.S. interest is Venezuela's oil. Venezuela has the world's largest oil reserves, which the U.S. helped develop exactly one century ago.

But former leader Hugo Chavez kicked out some U.S. and other foreign energy companies, and, today, the industry produces a fraction of its capacity.

Donald Trump:

The oil companies are ready to go. They're going to go in. They're going to rebuild the infrastructure. You know, we built it to start off with many years ago. They took it away. You can't do that.

Question:

Is the U.S. nation-building now? Is that...

Donald Trump:

This isn't a country that's on the other side of the world. This isn't a country like we have to travel 24 hours in an airplane. This is Venezuela. It's in our area, the Donroe Doctrine.

Nick Schifrin:

The Donroe Doctrine, embracing the early 19th century declaration by President Monroe to block foreign colonialism in the Americas.

And, in that sense, the middle-of-the-night assault on a foreign capital, the military capture and public humiliation of a foreign leader, is a new day of American regional domination, complete with explicit threats across the region against Colombia's president.

Donald Trump:

He has cocaine mills, cocaine factories. He's not going to be doing it very long.

Question:

So there will be an operation by the U.S. and...

Donald Trump:

It sounds good to me.

Nick Schifrin:

Cuba.

Marco Rubio:

Yes, look, I've lived in Havana and I was in the government, I'd be concerned.

Donald Trump:

We have to do something.

Nick Schifrin:

Mexico.

Donald Trump:

Mexico has to get their act together, because they're pouring through Mexico, and we're going to have to do something.

Nick Schifrin:

And even Greenland, an autonomous territory within NATO ally Denmark.

Donald Trump:

We need Greenland for the standpoint of national security. And Denmark is not going to be able to do it, I can tell you. You know what Denmark did recently to boost up security in Greenland? They added one more dogsled. It's true.

Nick Schifrin:

Last night, Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen posted: "This is enough. No more pressure. No more innuendo. No more fantasies about annexation."

That defiance echoed today by Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum.

Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexican President (through interpreter):

It is necessary to reaffirm that in Mexico the people are in charge and that we are a free, independent and sovereign country. Cooperation, yes. Subordination and intervention, no.

Nick Schifrin:

And what isn't mentioned in the Donroe Doctrine, democracy for the thousands of Venezuelans who this weekend celebrated the end of Maduro. Today, opposition leader Maria Corina Machado posted this video, despite being criticized by President Trump, writing: "The freedom of Venezuela is near and soon we will celebrate on our land. We will shout, pray and embrace as a family because our children will return home."

How that home will look and who will be in charge, still unclear, as the world tonight is still asking the question, now what?

For the "PBS News Hour," I'm Nick Schifrin.