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Trump Says He's 'Seriously Considering Making Venezuela the 51st US State' as He Brags of Stealing Its Oil Wealth
"Trump's true priority, ahead of absolutely everything else, is to go down in history in big letters," said one journalist. "Remaking everything, no matter in which direction or with what consequences."
May 11, 2026
President Donald Trump said on Monday that he is considering trying to annex Venezuela and make it a US state in an imperialist effort to seize more of its oil wealth.
It's one of nearly half a dozen nations or territories Trump has threatened to use US military might to illegally conquer and add to the US during his term, including Greenland, Canada, Cuba, and Panama.
According to Fox News correspondent John Roberts, Trump said in a phone call that he was “seriously considering making Venezuela the 51st US state,” citing the Latin American nation's possession of tens of trillions of dollars worth of oil.
“They were miserable. Now they’re happy. It’s being well run,” Trump recently told Full Measure's Sharyl Attkisson. “The oil that’s coming out is enormous, the biggest in many years. And the Big Oil companies are going in with the biggest, most beautiful rigs you’ve ever seen.”
One poll from the Venezuelan firm Meganálisis in March found that while the public was initially happy to be rid of their autocratic president, Nicolás Maduro—who was abducted by US forces in January—the majority now feel that Trump's action had little to do with democracy or the well-being of the Venezuelan people and more to do with handing control of the country's nationalized oil reserves to American companies, which Trump stated as his primary objective after ousting Maduro.
Trump left Maduro's vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, in place as Venezuela's interim leader with the promise that she'd act as a pliant collaborator with the US, whom she allowed to declare control over Venezuela's oil resources "indefinitely" amid market transitions.
The environmental activist group Global Witness has estimated that over the next 10 years, as much as $150 billion in oil revenue that was expected to go to the Venezuelan treasury, which could have funded projects to develop the impoverished country, instead may flow into the coffers of foreign companies.
Trump has spoken about the idea of Venezuela becoming the 51st state before, including after the country defeated Italy in the World Baseball Classic in March, when he posted on Truth Social: “STATEHOOD, #51, ANYONE?”
Last month, during a discussion about his desire to "take" Iran's oil, Trump described his takeover of Venezuela as something akin to the resource-hungry imperial conquests of centuries past.
"I'm a businessman first," he told reporters during a press briefing. "We've taken hundreds of millions of barrels [of oil], hundreds of millions... and paid for that war many, many times over. You know the old days, 'to the winner belong the spoils.' And I said, 'Why don't we use that?' We haven't had that in this country probably in 100 years." He then went on to lament the US-led efforts to "rebuild" Germany after World War II.
While the US has lifted personal sanctions on Rodríguez and some sanctions on the Venezuelan oil and banking sectors, most of the sanctions that have contributed to the country's economic collapse remain in place. "Full unrestricted access to global capital markets has not been restored," explained Roger D. Harris from the Task Force on the Americas and the US Peace Council in Common Dreams last week.
Actually adding Venezuela as a US state would require approval from both Congress and Venezuela itself—and Trump does not appear to have the latter.
Issuing a rare rebuke of the US on Monday, Rodríguez responded that becoming the 51st state "would never have been considered" by Venezuela.
"If there is one thing we Venezuelan men and women have, it is that we love our independence process, we love our heroes and heroines of independence," the interim leader said.
Though wars of conquest are expressly forbidden under international law, it's not clear what leverage Rodríguez would have to resist if Trump attempted to make good on his goal of expanding US territory.
Argemino Barro, a Spanish political journalist and author, said the possibility that he's serious can't be dismissed.
"Yes, of course, we can dismiss it as provocation or delusion, say that it's impracticable for XYZ reasons, etc. But this kind of comment is a window into the mindset of a man who fabricates his own reality, and not only that, but imposes it on others," Barro said. "Trump wants to build the world's largest triumphal arch right in the middle of Washington, overshadowing the Lincoln Memorial; he wants his face on coins and passports; his name appears on institutions, one airport. Annexing Venezuela, in his mind, fits 100%."
"I think Trump's true priority, ahead of absolutely everything else, is to go down in history in big letters. To enter the league of Alexander the Great, Jesus Christ, and Genghis Khan," he added. "Remaking everything, no matter in which direction or with what consequences."
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GOP Accuses Jayapal of 'Treason' Over Efforts to End US Oil Blockade on Cuba
"Breaking news: Members of Congress meet with ambassadors of other countries every day. That’s literally our right and responsibility," said the congresswoman.
May 07, 2026
Two days after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio asserted that "there's no oil blockade on Cuba," appearing to deny that President Donald Trump issued an executive order threatening countries with tariffs if they provide energy to the island, Republican members of Congress accused a progressive lawmaker of "treasonous behavior" for her efforts to alleviate the crisis unfolding in Cuba due to its US-caused fuel shortage.
Rep. Ashley Moody (R-Fla.) appeared on Fox News Thursday morning to suggest Jayapal (D-Wash.) violated the US Constitution by participating in talks with foreign ambassadors about efforts to send oil to Cuba.
"Treason is outlined right there in our Constitution, you can't give aid or comfort to enemies," said Moody. "This is astounding."
Sen. Ashley Moody on Rep. Jayapal saying she's working on helping Cuba get oil: "Treason is outlined right there in our Constitution. You can't give aid or comfort to enemies ... that's communism 101" pic.twitter.com/xYJhYGD3a1
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 7, 2026
Moody continued with what appeared to be a diatribe linking Jayapal to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who has frequently been accused by the GOP of being a "communist" and has unveiled a plan to open a network of city-run grocery stores to compete with corporations: "Look at what they're espousing around the nation by cracking down on businesses, government-run businesses, pushing people out of these areas. Making people rely on government. That's communism 101."
She then accused Jayapal of "meeting with cartel members," an apparent reference to the congresswoman's comments at an event on Monday, when she said she had been "in conversations with the ambassadors from Mexico and some other places, and I know other countries in Latin America are trying to figure out how to get oil [to Cuba]."
Right-wing conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer, who is reportedly highly influential in President Donald Trump's White House, also called for Jayapal's arrest, prompting the lawmaker to issue a reminder of the regular duties of members of Congress.
"Breaking news: Members of Congress meet with ambassadors of other countries every day. That’s literally our right and responsibility," said Jayapal.
The executive order Trump signed in January alleges that Cuba harbors terrorists and poses a threat to the security of the US, a claim that Cuban officials and experts have decried as baseless. The president has suggested he could take military action against Cuba numerous times, and last Friday he announced expanded sanctions impacting Cuba's finance, energy, and security sectors, citing "national security threats posed by the communist Cuban regime."
At the event on Monday, Jayapal noted that the White House itself has coordinated the arrival of a Russian oil tanker in Cuba after it began imposing the new policy.
"Since January, only one Russian tanker of oil has made it to Cuba," said Jayapal. "In fact, it landed just a couple of days before I landed, and one tanker has enough oil basically for 10 to 14 days of Cuba’s oil needs—so it’s a very limited amount of time."
La congresista estadounidense, Pramila Jayapal, convocó una sesión informativa con el fin de examinar la crisis humanitaria que atraviesa Cuba, a partir de lo observado durante la visita que realizó recientemente a la isla con una delegación del Congreso.
Jayapal ha estado… pic.twitter.com/eh6YNUv81F
— Tere Felipe (@_TereFelipe_) May 7, 2026
Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY) also appeared on Fox News to accuse Jayapal of treason, while Rep. Clay Fuller (R-Ga.) said her discussions with the ambassador of Mexico—a close US ally—were "deeply un-American" and a "clear violation of the Logan Act," which prohibits US citizens from taking party in negotiations with foreign governments that are in disputes with the US.
"By definition, you can only commit treason in regards to a country against which the United States has declared formal war (you know, that power the Constitution gave to Congress, not the President)," said Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow with the American Immigration Council.
Ryan Grim, co-founder of Drop Site News, recalled the comments of Rubio—the son of Cuban immigrants and a longtime proponent of regime change in the country—at his press conference Tuesday.
"Wait, Rubio said there is no blockade," said Grim. "How can it be a problem to get oil to Cuba if there is no blockade?"
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‘This Is a Lie’: Rubio Falsely Claims That There Is No US Blockade on Oil Entering Cuba
"The secretary knows very well the damage and suffering that the criminal oil siege he himself proposed to his president is causing the Cuban people today," said Cuban Foreign Affairs Minister Bruno Rodríguez.
May 06, 2026
Peace advocates joined Cuba's top foreign relations official on Wednesday in accusing US Secretary of State Marco Rubio of blatantly lying about the existence of a blockade on oil exports to Cuba, which Rubio denied at a press briefing on Tuesday.
Anti-war group CodePink pointed to comments made by the US chargé d'affairs to Cuba, Mike Hammer, after President Donald Trump signed an executive order on January 29 threatening other countries with tariffs if they provided the communist country with oil and accusing the Cuban government of harboring terrorists—a claim officials have vehemently denied.
"Now there's going to be a real blockade," said the diplomat at the time. "Nothing is getting in. No more oil is coming."
Cuba's primary source of fuel had been cut off earlier in January after the US invaded Venezuela, killed dozens of Venezuelans and Cubans while abducting President Nicolás Maduro, and took control of the country's oil supply.
However, on Tuesday Rubio claimed that Venezuela had freely decided to no longer supply Cuba with "free oil"—an apparent reference to a barter system agreed to by the two countries.
"This is a lie," said CodePink in response to Rubio's comments.
Cuban Foreign Affairs Minister Bruno Rodríguez added that Rubio had "simply chosen to lie" about the Trump administration's policy, contradicting both Trump and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
"In four months, only one fuel tanker has arrived in Cuba. All our suppliers are intimidated and threatened in violation of free trade rules and freedom of navigation," said Rodríguez.
He also pointed to Trump's new executive order, signed last Friday, which imposed new sanctions on Cuba's energy, finance, and security sectors and threatened to further isolate Cuba from international finance systems by authorizing sanctions on foreign banks that conduct major transactions with designated Cuban entities.
"The secretary knows very well the damage and suffering that the criminal oil siege he himself proposed to his president is causing the Cuban people today," said Rodríguez.
In late March, Leavitt said that an oil tanker from Russia had been permitted by Trump to reach Cuba for "humanitarian reasons," but denied there had been any policy change regarding allowing international fuel shipments to be sent to the island.
Decisions about shipments “are being made on a case-by-case basis,” said Leavitt at the time. "There has not been a formal change in sanction policy.”
Since Trump ramped up the blockade in January—intensifying a sanctions policy that the US has imposed on Cuba for more than six decades—nearly 100,000 Cubans, including about 11,000 children, have been left waiting for surgeries as the fuel shortage has led to rationing and frequent blackouts that have impacted the healthcare system. Healthcare workers have reported shortages of syringes, antibiotics, and IV supplies.
The Center for Economic Policy and Research (CEPR) also found last month that Trump's tightened sanctions and policies regarding Cuba, starting in his first term, have contributed to an “unprecedented increase” in the country's infant mortality rate, which soared 148% from 2018-25.
“It is clear that the increase in sanctions is responsible for this huge increase in infant deaths,” said Alex Main, director of international policy at CEPR, on Wednesday. “The oil blockade has been especially inhumane, disrupting the operation of ventilators, inhalers, and other crucial medical equipment and crippling emergency transportation. More than 80% of Cuba’s electricity is based on oil and oil products.”
US lawmakers who visited the island in April denounced the oil blockade as "cruel collective punishment" that has caused a water shortage, forced businesses and schools to shut down, and left cancer patients without lifesaving medications.
"Rubio is willfully lying" about the blockade, said Mexico City-based journalist José Luis Granados Ceja.
At Tuesday's press conference, after denying the blockade exists, Rubio pivoted to the Trump administration's position that Cuba's "economic model doesn't work" and blamed the country—whose healthcare system and literacy rates are frequently ranked higher than those of the US—for the crisis it's facing.
"Incompetent communists run that country. They don’t know how to fix it," said Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants. "So it’s an unacceptable status quo, and we’ll be addressing it."
While joining Israel in waging war on Iran in recent months, the Trump administration has repeatedly suggested it hopes to take military action against Cuba.
Last Friday, the president said the US military "will be taking [Cuba] over almost immediately."
On Wednesday, CEPR and YouGov released a new poll that found 64% of Americans oppose a US military takeover of Cuba.
"This should make President Trump think twice about another ‘war of choice,’” said Mark Weisbrot, senior economist and co-director of CEPR. “Almost all of the experts on Cuba would laugh at the idea that Cuba presents a security threat to the United States. And the war against Iran has already cost Trump and his party significant support.”
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