Venezuela’s popular leader, Nicolás Maduro, may now be in United States custody, facing trial, but the Venezuelan state itself has not been subdued. Nor, for that matter, has the rest of Latin America. In Caracas, defiance simmers on the streets, while remaining government officials attempt to strike a careful balance, seeking a functional relationship with Washington without surrendering sovereignty.

Yet, emboldened by what it views as a swift and decisive operation, the United States appears far from satisfied. President Donald Trump, buoyed by the capture of a sitting political leader through a lightning raid, now presides over an imperial machinery that is openly........

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