Trump touts 1 million barrels of Venezuelan oil at Texas rally

What Trump told reporters: "We took over Venezuela very successfully and they've sent me as a gift a boatload of a million barrels of oil," Trump said, according to the Washington Post, adding that "oil prices are going to be dropping very sharply very soon." At the rally he also joked about Venezuela, "Let's make it the 51st state!" A White House official told the New York Post, "This will be the first of the billions of barrels to come from this deal."

Gift or purchase? The Washington Post reports the cargo is the first shipment under an August contract between the U.S. government and North American Blue Energy Partners, a company controlled by Venezuelan billionaire Alejandro Betancourt. Citing two people familiar with the deal who were not named, the Post says the U.S. has the right to buy 20 percent of the company's crude at $30 a barrel, less than a third of the market price, and that the oil is arriving on two tankers. The White House has described it as free to taxpayers; the Post's report says the U.S. paid for it. US Brief could not independently confirm the contract terms.

The backstory: Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro was captured on Jan. 3, and Delcy Rodríguez is serving as interim president. When the August deal was announced, Trump said it gave the U.S. control of 65 billion barrels and that it "MORE THAN DOUBLES American Oil Reserves."

Rubio on the trail: Trump called Secretary of State Marco Rubio to the stage. "It's an honor to work for the greatest country in the world, for the greatest president in the history of the United States of America. We love you, Texas," Rubio said. A State Department official told AFP that Rubio traveled in his role as national security adviser, since campaign events are off-limits for the nation's top diplomat. Rubio is the first person to hold both jobs since Henry Kissinger, and he hosts G20 foreign ministers in Atlanta on Friday and Saturday.

The Senate race: Trump is backing Republican Ken Paxton against Democrat James Talarico in Texas's open Senate race one week before Election Day. The New York Post reported Paxton trailing by 1.8 points in the RealClearPolitics average. Trump was scheduled to hold a second rally in Lubbock.

Where prices stand: AAA's national average for regular gas was about $4.27 a gallon on Tuesday, down from about $4.48 a month ago but up from about $3.05 a year ago. Diesel averaged about $6.35.

What the evidence shows: The United States used about 20.6 million barrels of petroleum a day in 2025, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, so 1 million barrels equals roughly 70 minutes of national use. Oil experts quoted by the Washington Post said the shipment is not expected to significantly affect gas prices. Future cargoes under the deal could matter more, but their size and timing have not been made public.

Sourcing: AP, AFP, the New York Post, the Washington Post and Politico reports from Oct. 27, AAA's national gas price average and U.S. Energy Information Administration consumption data. The Washington Post's report of the purchase price and terms relies on two people familiar with the deal who were not named; US Brief could not confirm those terms independently. Lean note: the New York Post is right-leaning; the Washington Post and Politico are left-leaning; AP and AFP are wire services. The hero is an undated file photo of a tanker in the Corpus Christi ship channel, not the Venezuelan cargo.