Venezuela shifts presidential powers to vice-president on temporary basis

The Constitutional Chamber of Venezuela's Supreme Court ordered on Saturday that Vice President Delcy Rodríguez assume the role of acting president of the country in the absence of Nicolás Maduro, who was detained early Saturday morning in an operation by U.S. forces.

The court ruling said that Rodríguez would assume "the office of President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, in order to guarantee administrative continuity and the comprehensive defense of the Nation."

Under Venezuela's constitution, Rodriguez becomes acting president in Maduro's absence and the country's top court ordered her to assume the role late Saturday night.

But shortly after Trump's remarks, Rodriguez appeared on state television flanked by her brother, the head of the national assembly Jorge Rodriguez, Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello and Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez and said that Maduro remained Venezuela's only president.

The joint appearance indicated the group that shared power with Maduro is staying united - for now.

Trump publicly closed the door Saturday on working with opposition leader and Nobel Prize winner Maria Corina Machado, widely seen as Maduro's most credible opponent, saying she doesn't have support inside the country.

The ruling added that the court will debate the matter in order to "determine the applicable legal framework to guarantee the continuity of the State, the administration of government, and the defense of sovereignty in the face of the forced absence of the President of the Republic."