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ExxonMobil's CEO told President Donald Trump during a Friday meeting that Venezuela is currently "uninvestible" following the US invasion and kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro, underscoring fears that American taxpayers will be left footing the bill for the administration's goal of exploiting the South American nation's vast petroleum resources.
Trump had hoped to convince executives from around two dozen oil companies to invest in Venezuela after the president claimed US firms pledged to spend at least $100 billion in the country. However, Trump got a reality check during Friday's White House meeting, as at least one Big Oil CEO balked at committing financial and other resources in an uncertain political, legal, and security environment.
“If we look at the legal and commercial constructs and frameworks in place today in Venezuela today, it’s uninvestable,” ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods told Trump during the meeting. “Significant changes have to be made to those commercial frameworks, the legal system. There has to be durable investment protections, and there has to be a change to the hydrocarbon laws in the country.”
Exxon CEO: If you look at the commercial constructs, frameworks in place in Venezuela today, it's uninvestable. Significant changes have to be made to these frameworks, the legal system. There has to be durable investment protections and change to the hydrocarbon laws. pic.twitter.com/vpdH6ftfzm — Acyn (@Acyn) January 9, 2026
There is also skepticism regarding Trump's promise of "total safety" for investors in Venezuela amid deadly US military aggression and regime change.
However, many of the executives—who stand to make billions of dollars from the invasion—told Trump that they remain eager to eventually reap the rewards of any potential US takeover of Venezuela's vast oil resources.
The oil executives' apparent aversion to immediate investment in Venezuela—and Trump's own admission that the American people might end up reimbursing Big Oil for its efforts—prompted backlash from taxpayer advocates.
"Trump must not give these companies billions in handouts and stick American taxpayers with the bill," Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said on social media Friday. "And oil execs should commit now: no taxpayer subsidies, no special favors from the White House."
Sam Ratner, policy director at the group Win Without War, said Wednesday that "already today, Trump was saying that US taxpayers should front the money to rebuild Venezuelan oil infrastructure, all while oil companies keep the proceeds from the oil."
"This is not just a war for oil, but a war for oil executives," Ratner added.
Noting that "Big Oil spent nearly $100 million to get Trump elected in 2024," former US Labor Secretary Robert Reich—who served during the Clinton administration—described Friday's meeting as "returning the favor" and "oligarchy in action."
Trump shows you his priorities–Big Oil companies.“Running” Venezuela is all about enriching his donors.The American people are done fighting foreign wars to pad the pockets of oil executives.
Reich and others also noted that Trump informed oil executives about the Venezuelan invasion even before he notified members of Congress.
"That tells you everything you need to know: It was never about 'narcoterrorism' and always about oil," Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) said on Bluesky.
The legal watchdog Democracy Forward this week filed a Freedom of Information Act request demanding information about any possible Trump administration collusion with Big Oil in the lead-up to the Venezuela invasion.
Other observers shot down assertions by Trump and members of his administration that the attack on Venezuela and Maduro's ouster are ultimately about restoring democracy.
"Want to know who’s meeting with Trump this morning about Venezuela’s future?" Rep. Adelita Grijalva (D-Ariz.) asked on X.
"Not pro-democracy leaders," she said. "Oil and gas executives."
"If federal agents are brazen enough to fire pellets directly at a member of Congress, imagine how they behave when encountering defenseless members of our community," Grijalva said.
In what Arizona's attorney general slammed as an "unacceptable and outrageous" act of "unchecked aggression," a federal immigration officer fired pepper spray toward recently sworn-in Congresswoman Adelita Grijalva during a Friday raid on a Tucson restaurant.
Grijalva (D-Ariz.) wrote on social media that US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers "just conducted a raid by Taco Giro in Tucson—a small mom-and-pop restaurant that has served our community for years."
"When I presented myself as a member of Congress asking for more information, I was pushed aside and pepper sprayed," she added.
Grijalva said in a video uploaded to the post that she was "sprayed in the face by a very aggressive agent, pushed around by others, when I literally was not being aggressive, I was asking for clarification, which is my right as a member of Congress."
The video shows Grijalva among a group of protesters who verbally confronted federal agents over the raid. Following an order to "clear," an agent is seen firing what appears to be a pepper ball at the ground very near the congresswoman's feet. Video footage also shows agents deploying gas against the crowd.
"They're targeting small mom-and-pop businesses that don't have the financial resources to fight back," Grijalva told reporters after the incident. "They're targeting small businesses and people that are helping in our communities in order to try to fill the quota that [President Donald] Trump has given them."
Mocking the incident on social media, Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin contended that Grijalva "wasn’t pepper sprayed."
"She was in the vicinity of someone who *was* pepper sprayed as they were obstructing and assaulting law enforcement," she added. "In fact, two law enforcement officers were seriously injured by this mob that [Grijalva] joined."
McLaughlin provided no further details regarding the nature of those injuries.
Democrats in Arizona and beyond condemned Friday's incident, with US Sen. Ruben Gallegowriting on social media that Grijalva "was doing her job, standing up for her community."
"Pepper spraying a sitting member of Congress is disgraceful, unacceptable, and absolutely not what we voted for," he added. "Period."
Democratic Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes said on social media: "This is unacceptable and outrageous. Enforcing the rule of law does not mean pepper spraying a member of Congress for simply asking questions. Effective law enforcement requires restraint and accountability, not unchecked aggression."
Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) also weighed in on social media, calling the incident "outrageous."
"Rep. Grijalva was completely within her rights to stand up for her constituents," she added. "ICE is completely lawless."
Friday's incident follows federal agents' violent removal of Sen. Alexa Padilla (D-Calif.) from a June press conference held by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
Congresswoman LaMonica McIver (D-NJ) was federally indicted in June for allegedly “forcibly impeding and interfering with federal officers" during an oversight visit at a privately operated migrant detention center in Newark, New Jersey and subsequent confrontation with ICE agents outside of the lockup in which US Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman and Rob Menendez, both New Jersey Democrats, were also involved.
Violent assaults by federal agents on suspected undocumented immigrants—including US citizens—protesters, journalists, and others are a regular occurrence amid the Trump administration's mass deportation campaign.
"If federal agents are brazen enough to fire pellets directly at a member of Congress, imagine how they behave when encountering defenseless members of our community," Grijalva said late Friday on social media. "It’s time for Congress to rein in this rogue agency NOW."
The congresswoman called House Speaker Mike Johnson's delay a politically motivated "abuse of power" and reiterated her support for releasing the documents, declaring that "justice cannot wait another day."
After a weekslong delay that US House Speaker Mike Johnson tried to blame on the government shutdown, Adelita Grijalva was finally sworn in on Wednesday and swiftly became the crucial 218th signature on a discharge petition to force a vote on releasing files related to deceased sex offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Johnson (R-La.) has denied that he pushed off administering the oath of office to Grijalva (D-Ariz.) to postpone a vote requiring the US Department of Justice to release its files on Epstein, who was friends with Republican President Donald Trump. However, critics, including many discharge petition signatories, don't believe him.
Addressing the House of Representatives on Wednesday, Grijalva called Johnson's delay a politically motivated "abuse of power."
The newest congresswoman also thanked the survivors of Epstein's abuse who were seated in the gallery and confirmed that she would sign the discharge petition immediately, declaring that "justice cannot wait another day."
Working Families Party national press secretary Ravi Mangla said in a Wednesday statement: "Congratulations to WFP champion Adelita Grijalva on her swearing-in today—after weeks of stalling by Speaker Mike Johnson. Not only will families in southern Arizona finally have representation in Congress, Americans are getting a proven fighter who's ready to hit the ground running. And one of the first orders of business will be holding Jeffrey Epstein's accomplices accountable by forcing the release of the files."
Demand Progress has led a campaign that's resulted in Americans sending around 570,000 messages and making more than 8,000 calls asking Congress to release the files. A senior policy adviser to the group, Cavan Kharrazian, said Wednesday that "every new revelation, every denial from the White House, and every deflection from congressional leaders is a reason why we should just clear the air and release the Epstein files."
Noting Epstein's "personal and business connections to presidents, prime ministers, royalty, and even foreign governments," Kharrazian argued that "there is no good reason to keep the information that our government has about this under wraps, except naked self-interest," and urged all House members to support the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
The bill is spearheaded by Congressmen Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Thomas Massie (R-Ky.). Three other Republicans—Reps. Lauren Boebert (Colo.), Nancy Mace (S.C.), and Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.)—joined Democrats in signing the discharge petition to force a vote on the legislation.
"Thank you to the brave survivors who made the possible. Let's bring it to the floor for a vote!" Khanna wrote on social media on Wednesday, celebrating Grijalva's oath and signature.
Massie said that "in spite of a last-ditch effort by the president to foil the motion, and Speaker Johnson's propaganda, the discharge petition I have been leading just succeeded! In December, the entire House of Representatives will vote on releasing the Epstein files."
Before Grijalva officially joined the chamber on Wednesday, the New York Timesreported that top Trump administration officials met with Boebert in the White House Situation Room, and Trump spoke with her by phone. According to the newspaper, the president had also been reaching out to Mace, but they had not connected.
By Wednesday evening, Politicoreported that "Republicans are bracing for a significant chunk of the conference" to vote for Khanna and Massie's bill once it hits the floor. GOP Congressmen Don Bacon (Neb.), Tim Burchett (Tenn.), and Rob Bresnahan (Pa.) all suggested that they would support it.
While the discharge petition's success set up a December vote, Johnson announced Wednesday night that he would speed up the process by holding a vote on releasing the files next week.
There were files released throughout Wednesday by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Initially, Democrats on the panel released a few emails from Epstein. In 2011, he wrote to now-imprisoned co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell that Trump was a "dog that hasn't barked" and "spent hours at my house" with a victim of sex trafficking. In 2019, Epstein wrote to author Michael Wolff that Trump "knew about the girls as he asked ghislaine to stop."
The panel's ranking member, Congressman Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), said in a statement: "The more Donald Trump tries to cover up the Epstein files, the more we uncover. These latest emails and correspondence raise glaring questions about what else the White House is hiding and the nature of the relationship between Epstein and the president."
"The Department of Justice must fully release the Epstein files to the public immediately," he added. "The Oversight Committee will continue pushing for answers and will not stop until we get justice for the victims."
Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform on Wednesday afternoon: "The Democrats are trying to bring up the Jeffrey Epstein Hoax again because they'll do anything at all to deflect on how badly they’ve done on the Shutdown, and so many other subjects. Only a very bad, or stupid, Republican would fall into that trap."
"The Democrats cost our Country $1.5 Trillion Dollars with their recent antics of viciously closing our Country, while at the same time putting many at risk—and they should pay a fair price," he added. "There should be no deflections to Epstein or anything else, and any Republicans involved should be focused only on opening up our Country, and fixing the massive damage caused by the Democrats!"
Meanwhile, Republicans on the House Oversight Committee responded with a document dump, releasing 20,000 pages of documents from Epstein's estate.
This article was updated after House Speaker Mike Johnson announced plans to hold a vote next week.
