US Unlawfully Seizes Maduro and Venezuelan Oil
NEWS & RESEARCH
On January 3, 2026, President Trump ordered a military strike on Venezuela without Congressional approval, resulting in the capture of President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores. Maduro faces a criminal trial in the U.S. Maduro’s vice president Delcy Rodriguez succeeded Maduro on an acting basis but, in reality, reports to her “viceroy,” US Sec. of State Marco Rubio, who “runs Venezuela from Washington.” President Trump told the New York Times he expects the US will run Venezuela for years and suggested that Venezuela could become the 51st state. As for Rodriguez, Trump threatened in January 2026, “If she doesn’t do what’s right, she is going to pay a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro.” In the meantime, Trump is claiming Venezuelan oil for the US, asserting that “to the victor belong the spoils.” In late August 2026, Trump announced that the US will take majority control of 65 billion barrels of proven oil reserves in Venezuela. The Pentagon would take a 35% equity stake in North American Blue Energy Partners, or NABEP, a private oil company that was granted concessions by the Venezuelan government to develop the oil fields. Under the arrangement, the US would have the right to buy 20% of the oil drilled by the venture at the cost of production.
SOURCES: NPR | New York Times | New York Times | Al Jazeera
ANALYSIS & OPINION
Legal experts and international bodies have widely condemned the Maduro operation as an illegal invasion and kidnapping.
Constitutional Overreach: The Brennan Center characterized the move as an "unprecedented usurpation" of Congress’s war powers.
International Law: Experts argue the assault violates the UN Charter. Harvard Law professor Ziyad Motala described the incident as a "forcible seizure of a sitting head of state" with "no foothold in international law."
As for Rubio running Venezuela, the New York Times explains: “The U.S. Treasury receives the revenue from most of Venezuela’s exports, then disburses it gradually to Venezuela through the country’s private banks, a relationship akin to parents handing out allowances to children. Mr. Rubio and his team set the conditions on what that money can be spent on, and by whom.”
Trump and his advisors have long contended that Venezuela’s oil supplies belonged to the US, and denounced the Venezuelan government’s expropriation of oil resources from private companies to nationalize the fossil fuel industry. In December 2025, Trump announced a blockade around Venezuela to prevent the sale of oil, accusing Venezuela of having “stolen oil fields” from the US. Stephen Miller, separately called the nationalization of Venezuela’s oil industry “the largest recorded theft of American wealth and property.” However, international law gives countries “permanent sovereignty” over their resources to protect them from unwanted foreign exploitation, for reasons of public utility, security, or national interest, provided they follow appropriate compensation rules under domestic and international law. Just Security writes that the action “would appear to be an astoundingly transparent, textbook example of the type of coercion that is universally held to invalidate an international agreement,” The Trump action is also questionable under US law: Without explicit statutory or constitutional authority, a US president cannot directly acquire an equity in a foreign commercial oil venture. The libertarian Cato Institute, denouncing the deal as state capitalism, called the transfer of control over Venezuelan oil to a US consortium “a gift to socialists all over the world who can now point to it with some credibility as an example of an imperial resource grab.”
SOURCES: Brennan Center | The Guardian | Al Jazeera | Cato Institute | Al Jazeera | Yale Journal on Regulation | Just Security
HOW TO FIX IT
Federal action:
Pass the Prohibiting Unauthorized Military Action in Venezuela Act to defund any military force in the region not authorized by Congress.
Congress should pass the Venezuela Democratic Transition Act, providing for internationally monitored free elections in Venezuela and a return to Venezuelan sovereignty.
Pass the Protecting Taxpayers from Risky Investments in Venezuela Act to prevent federal funds from subsidizing or rebuilding Venezuelan oil infrastructure without congressional approval.
Investigate the Pentagon's Office of Strategic Capital, which is reportedly being used to hold penny warrants and collect dividends from the private partner vehicle, North American Blue Energy Partners (NABEP).
Legislation: S.3344 - Prohibiting Unauthorized Military Action in Venezuela Act of 2025 | S.4809 - Venezuela Democratic Transition Act | S.3621 - Protecting Taxpayers from Risky Investments in Venezuela Act
