Some musings on Venezuela and the Windfarm lawsuits…
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Paul Singer, whose firm owns the US subsidiary of Venezuela's state-owned oil company, spent millions in 2024 to re-elect Trump.
Now, after Trump's invasion of Venezuela on behalf of Big Oil, he's set to cash in on his investment.
A government of, by, and for the billionaires.
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— Robert Reich (@rbreich.bsky.social) January 6, 2026 at 12:15 PM
Rachel Maddow spoke at some length Monday night about the administration’s goal of paying for the intervention in Venezuela with the billions of dollars gleaned from taking control of the country‘’s oil. The president maintained he had spoken with the major US oil companies but apparently, as of Monday, they denied having been contacted. Maddow’s commentary evaluated exactly how we, the country, would reap benefits from the extracted oil if it was under the auspices of Big Oil. She questioned whether the oil giants would actually be interested in Venezuelan oil, as it has not yet been refined. The oil is heavy, difficult to extract, and extremely polluting.
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This whole article on how Putin has been encouraging Trump to take over Venezuela and Greenland since 2017 is worth the read, but one particularly alarming idea in it is that Trump and Tulsi will share intelligence with Russia to help them take out Zelenskyy.
america2.news/the-russian-...
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— Khashoggi's Ghost (@urocklive1.bsky.social) January 6, 2026 at 12:16 PM
While Venezuaea’s oil reserves represent about 17 percent of the world’s supply, it currently only produces 1% of world’s inventory. The NYT reported Monday this production shortfall is due to mismanagement, US sanctions, and not enough money being invested. Still, the country’s oil industry remains the rudder of its economy.
From the NYT:
It’ll be a challenge to increase production, however. The kinds of investments needed could take several years and tens of billions of dollars, all at a time when oil prices are subdued and global demand is expected to peak in the coming years.
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Chevron today produces about a quarter of Venezuela’s oil. This summer, as the Trump administration’s campaign against Maduro took shape, Chevron’s chief executive, Mike Wirth, encouraged the president to continue letting the company operate in the country. What exactly that looks like now that Maduro is gone remains to be seen.
“We play a long game,” Wirth said last month at an event in Washington. The company, he added, “would like to be there as part of rebuilding Venezuela’s economy in time when circumstances change.”
Meanwhile, back at home, Offshore Wind Projects Challenge Trump Administration’s Order to Stop Work, as three of five wind farms sue the administration to restart production. Some $25 billion has been invested in the farms, which were expected to power up over 2.5 million businesses and
Revolution Wind is more than 87 percent complete, and the company has already installed all offshore foundations as well as 58 of 65 wind turbines. Empire Wind is more than 60 percent complete and is slated to deliver power to the grid in 2027.
Orsted and Equinor said their projects went through lengthy federal reviews that included addressing any concerns about national security before they received permits under the Biden administration. They said they are working with Trump officials to address whatever new issues have arisen, but described the suspensions as illegal.
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