Democrats sound alarm on US-Venezuela oil deal: ‘This isn’t a win’

Democrats slammed Friday’s announcement by President Trump on a new deal to acquire majority U.S. control of over 65 million barrels of Venezuelan oil.

“Let’s be clear: this isn’t a win,” Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D) wrote in a social media post .

“This is proof Trump put our service members at risk to get Venezuelan oil for his billionaire buddies,” he continued. “Putting our soldiers’ lives on the line for private profit is a gross dereliction of his constitutional duty.”

Trump announced the deal in a Truth Social post , calling it the “BIGGEST OIL DEAL IN WORLD HISTORY.”

“This Historic Transaction MORE THAN DOUBLES American Oil Reserves, greatly increases our Oil Supply, and will substantially lower Gas Prices for all Americans, long into the future, while helping to continue to set Venezuela on a course toward Tremendous Success and Great Prosperity,” the president continued.

This deal applies to around 21 percent of the South American country’s total proven oil reserves, which amount to about 303 billion barrels .

The transaction follows the U.S. military’s capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro earlier this year and comes amid rising energy costs amid the Iran war. Trump has repeatedly expressed his interest in expanding U.S. investment in Venezuela’s oil industry.

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), who serves on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, accused the president of using Maduro’s ouster to “control Venezuelan oil.”

“Will prices come down for Americans? Who knows but likely not as much as Trump has forced them up thru his idiotic Iran War,” Kaine wrote on the social platform X .

“But here’s a guarantee—this will pad the pockets of Trump family and Big Oil companies and delay transition to cleaner energy,” the Virginia Democrat continued. “Bottom line—Using our troops for a private oil grab is corruption at epic scale!”

GOP Sen. Bernie Moreno (Ohio) hit back at Democrats’ criticism of this deal.

“If it were up to DC Democrats, Maduro would still be in power, Venezuelan oil would be going to China at half price, and the people of Venezuela would be getting robbed by a corrupt regime,” the lawmaker wrote on social media . “Instead, this historic deal benefits both countries for generations!”

Venezuela’s acting leader, Delcy Rodriguez, called the deal a “historic milestone in bilateral relations between Venezuela and the U.S.”

“These investments will contribute not only to the recovery and modernization of our industry, but also to our country’s economic growth, the energy security of our hemisphere, and greater balance in international markets,” Rodriguez said.