Acting Venezuelan President Delcy Rodriguez voiced outrage over President Donald Trump’s Truth Social post jokingly calling himself the “Acting President of Venezuela.”
Rodriguez has stewarded a fragile government since Delta Force commandos seized former Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro on Jan. 3, balancing a conciliatory approach with the U.S. with Trump’s bombastic rhetoric. Trump crossed a line on Sunday when he posted an edited image on his Truth Social, appearing as his Wikipedia page, but edited to make his position the “Acting President of Venezuela” beginning in January 2026. The meme triggered outrage from Rodriguez.
Beginning by referring to Operation Absolute Resolve as “the illegal, illicit aggression of the United States government against the Venezuelan people,” Rodriguez went on to “reaffirm and reiterate the sovereignty and independence of Venezuela.”
“I’ve seen some caricatures on Wikipedia about who runs Venezuela,” she said, an apparent reference to the meme posted by Trump.
“Well, there is a government here that runs Venezuela, there is an acting president here, and there is a president held hostage in the United States,” Rodriguez said.
“And we govern alongside the organized people, alongside the grassroots power, and we advance in international relations based on respect within the framework of international law to defend and protect the rights of our beloved Venezuela,” she continued.
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After the capture of Maduro, Washington announced that it was willing to work with Rodriguez, choosing her over the favored democratic leader in exile, Maria Corina Machado, viewing the former as a pragmatist due to her stabilization of the Venezuelan oil industry. Rodriguez has embraced that image in deals with Washington, signing economic deals and implementing desired reforms. She has also agreed to loosen restrictions, releasing scores of political prisoners.
Despite this, she must balance detente with the U.S. while also placating the military and security establishment, a task that involves sometimes belligerent rhetoric and defending Venezuela’s national honor in a way that could anger the U.S. president.
