• Trump says he never cleared Venezuela oil arrangement with any U.S. legal authority
  • New regime allegedly offered “billions in crude” after Maduro arrest; cash routed via Qatar
  • Constitutional experts warn of usurpation of Congress’s power of the purse

FLORIDA (TDR) — President Donald Trump acknowledged Friday that he has not sought approval from any U.S. legal or regulatory authority for the oil-for-cash arrangement he struck with Venezuela’s interim leadership, telling supporters at a highway-renaming ceremony that he is now “running” the South-American producer and marketing its crude through Qatari intermediaries.

“We’re dealing with the new president. We’re dealing with a lot of the people that were running the country,” Trump declared outside the Trump National Doral Miami resort where state officials unveiled “President Donald J. Trump Parkway.” “They offered us billions in oil as a show of good faith—beautiful oil—and we’re selling it. The money goes through Qatar—very safe, very smart. No need to clear it with anyone; it’s a deal between friends.”

“I didn’t clear it with legal. We don’t need lawyers to tell us when a good deal walks in,” the president added, prompting cheers from the crowd of donors and club members.

From Military Raid to Crude Cargo

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The admission caps a head-spinning three-week sequence that began with U.S. special-operations forces storming Venezuela’s Miraflores Palace on 29 December, capturing dictator Nicolás Maduro and extraditing him to Florida to face federal narco-terrorism and money-laundering charges. Within 48 hours opposition leader Juan Guaidó was sworn in as interim president, and U.S. Treasury lifted sanctions on state-oil company PDVSA “for a renewable 90-day period” to allow humanitarian shipments.

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That window, however, has quietly become a commercial conduit: tanker-tracking data show at least six Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) loading 2-million-barrel cargoes from PDVSA’s José terminal since 3 January, all flagged to Qatari shipping concern Qatar Petroleum Trading (QPT). Market sources tell TDR the crude is being sold at a $6–$8 per-barrel discount to Brent, generating gross proceeds near $900 million—none of which has yet appeared in U.S. Treasury accounts.

“Running Venezuela” — President’s Own Words

Trump again boasted that Washington now effectively manages the OPEC member’s energy policy.

“We’re running Venezuela. We tell them when to pump, when to stop—just like a board of directors,” he told the Florida crowd. “And the oil money? It’s beautiful—goes straight to U.S. priorities, but we keep it off the books so the bureaucrats can’t waste it.”

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Constitutional-law scholars say such off-the-books financing upends the Appropriations Clause, which vests Congress with exclusive power over federal spending.

“Any revenue derived from the sale of foreign crude must be deposited in the Treasury and appropriated by law,” said Professor Victoria Nourse of Georgetown Law. “Routing money through a third-country entity does not create an executive slush fund.”

Who Is Collecting — and Keeping — the Cash?

Treasury officials, speaking on background, told TDR they have “zero visibility” into the Qatari escrow structure Trump described. One official said OFAC (Office of Foreign Assets Control) granted only a narrow license authorizing humanitarian petroleum swaps, not commercial sales for profit.

According to cargo manifests filed with MarineTraffic, the six Qatar-linked tankers are:

  • MT Al-Khor – loaded 2.05 mb, departed 4 Jan, discharged 23 Jan at Zhanjiang, China;
  • MT Al-Shaheen – 2.01 mb, departed 7 Jan, en route to Khor Fakkan, UAE;
  • MT Al-Rayyan – 2.08 mb, departed 11 Jan, signaling Mumbai;
  • MT Umm Tais – 2.04 mb, departed 14 Jan, bound for Trieste, Italy;
  • MT Dukhan – 2.07 mb, departed 17 Jan, heading to Rotterdam;
  • MT Ras Laffan – 2.02 mb, departed 20 Jan, destination undisclosed.
Close

At today’s Brent price (~$78/bbl), the combined cargo is worth approximately $960 million. None of the buyers has remitted payment to a U.S. Treasury account, sources familiar with the transactions told TDR.

Qatar’s Role: Broker or Banker?

Under the informal arrangement, Qatar Petroleum Trading purchases the crude at the well-head price (roughly $20 below Brent), then resells it at market rates. The spread—about $20/barrel—remains in QPT-controlled accounts in Doha, nominally earmarked for “post-Maduro reconstruction projects” chosen by the White House.

When asked Friday who signs off on disbursements, Trump replied:

“I do. It’s my decision. We’re building hospitals, roads, maybe a beautiful Trump Tower Caracas—who knows?”

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Qatar’s embassy in Washington declined to detail the escrow structure, citing “commercial confidentiality.”

Congress in the Dark

Both parties’ leaders on the House Foreign Affairs Committee told TDR they have received no formal notification of oil sales or revenue disposition.

“We’ve held three hearings on Venezuela since the raid—never once was oil monetization mentioned,” said ranking member Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY). “If the administration is selling foreign crude for profit, it must come to Congress immediately.”

Senate Banking Committee chair Tim Scott (R-SC) said he would open an inquiry into “any off-balance-sheet energy transactions” that bypass congressional oversight.

Legal Exposure

Beyond the Appropriations Clause, the arrangement could violate:

  • The Federal Oil & Gas Royalty Management Act—requires all proceeds from federal leases (or de-facto federal production) to be deposited with Treasury;
  • The Foreign Emoluments Clause—if any revenue flows to Trump-owned entities or trusts;
  • The National Defense Authorization Act (FY-2025)—prohibits military action to secure resources for private gain.

Former White House ethics counsel Richard Painter warned that even indirect control over foreign crude sales could constitute an illegal emolument if the president or his family businesses benefit.

Market Impact

The sudden influx of up to 12 million barrels of discounted Venezuelan crude has already pressured Atlantic basin prices. Brent front-month futures fell $1.42 Friday, while U.S. Gulf Coast heavy-sour grades dipped to a three-month low.

Wall Street analysts at Goldman Sachs estimate the extra supply could shave $3–$5 per barrel from Brent during Q2 if shipments continue at the current pace—saving American motorists roughly 12–15 cents per gallon but slashing OPEC+ revenues by billions.

What Comes Next

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House Democrats are drafting a resolution requiring the administration to deposit all Venezuela-related oil proceeds into the Treasury within 30 days. Meanwhile, Senate Republicans supportive of Trump’s hardline on Caracas quietly worry the oil-for-cash scheme could become “Iran-Contra 2.0” if funds are later traced to covert operations or campaign coffers.

For now, the president shows no sign of slowing the spigot. Asked Friday whether he would seek congressional approval before expanding sales, Trump laughed:

“Why? We’re winning. The oil is flowing, the money is growing, and Venezuela is finally paying us back. That’s what I call America First energy.”

Will Congress tolerate an executive oil slush fund, or will the Venezuela crude deal trigger the next constitutional showdown?

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