FLASHBACK: Trump Reveals What He Wants Out Of Venezuela
There has been much speculation about the Trump administration’s ultimate goal with Venezuela. Are these really drugs entering the United States? Or are they trying to trigger a regime change to oust Nicolas Maduro?
The answer is probably the latter. The answer also concerns a valuable natural resource: oil.
Earlier in December, Pam Bondi announced that the United States had seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela. Apparently, the tanker was used to “transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela to Iran.” (RELATED: With All Eyes on Venezuela, Asset rained hell on the homeland of Ilhan Omar)
Today, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, and the United States Coast Guard, with support from the War Department, executed a seizure warrant on a crude oil tanker used to transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran. For many… pic.twitter.com/dNr0oAGl5x
– Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) December 10, 2025
After the seizure, a reporter asked Trump what the government would do with the oil. In typical Trump fashion, the president responded, “Well, we’re keeping it, I guess.” »
And maybe that was the strategy all along. The administration’s strikes on the high seas have never focused on fentanyl or drug cartels; it was about bringing about the collapse of the Venezuelan government, installing someone close to the United States, namely Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, and gaining access to the country’s oil.
During a speech in 2023, Trump lamented that his first administration was never able to take advantage of Venezuelan regime change.
“What if we bought oil from Venezuela? When I left, Venezuela was on the verge of collapse. We would have taken it back. We would have gotten all that oil. It would have been right next door. But now we’re buying oil from Venezuela. So we’re making a dictator very rich,” Trump said.
The Biden administration never really bought However, they eased sanctions and allowed limited imports of Venezuelan crude oil through private companies, including Chevron.
Going further back to 2019, Trump’s current Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, shared a blunt assessment of the regime change goals of the first Trump administration.
Oil lobbyists have “unprecedented access” to the Trump administration, as Pence and Bolton continue their crusade for regime change in Venezuela, the world’s richest oil reserves. The height of swamp politics. #PeopleBeforeProfits #ServicebeforeSelf https://t.co/jlbip5u8tV
– Tulsi Gabbard 🌺 (@TulsiGabbard) April 4, 2019
“Oil lobbyists have ‘unprecedented access’ to the Trump administration, while Pence and Bolton continue their crusade for regime change in Venezuela, the world’s richest oil reserves. The height of swamp politics,” she posted.
Even Ms. Machado, Nobel Peace Prize winner, who supports bombings, understands what the end goal is.
“For the United States, we will transform this criminal hub into a security shield in the heart of the Americas. We will open Venezuela to foreign investment, I’m talking about a $1.7 trillion opportunity, not only in oil and gas… but also in mining, gold, infrastructure, energy. We will open the markets, we will have security for foreign investment and a massive privatization program waiting for you,” she said at the recent American Business Forum in Miami.
This is not about “freedom”, “democracy”, nor the liberation of Venezuelans from an “illegitimate leader”. It’s not about drugs either. It’s a question of money. These are natural resources, cheap oil and energy. This is about fully opening a new market to American companies.
Follow the money, as they say…
