Donald Trump made a stunning announcement<\/a> that the interim authorities in Venezuela, who apparently now serve at his pleasure, will let him sell between $1.8 and $3bn worth of their country\u2019s oil, which made real a fantasy the president has been sharing in public for at least 15 years, about using the US military to \u201ctake the oil\u201d of conquered nations.<\/p>\n Trump is actively discussing options for \u201cacquiring Greenland\u201d, including the use of the US military, Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said.<\/p>\n Mark Carney, the Canadian prime minister, stressed<\/a> at a meeting with his Danish counterpart, Mette Frederiksen, that \u201cthe future of Greenland and Denmark\u201d must be \u201cdecided solely by the people of Denmark and Greenland.\u201d<\/p>\n Senator Ruben Gallego, an Arizona Democrat and former marine who fought in Iraq, called the news that Trump is considering an invasion of Greenland \u201cINSANE\u201d and called for Congress to block it.<\/p>\n Venezuela\u2019s acting president, Delcy Rodr\u00edguez, hardened her tone against the United States on Tuesday, saying in a televised address that \u201cno external agent governs Venezuela\u201d. Hours later, Trump announced that the interim government was giving him up to 50 million barrels of its oil.<\/p>\n The secretary of state, Marco Rubio, told lawmakers that the president was just using threats of military action in Greenland to convince Denmark to sell the territory to the United States, the Wall Street Journal reports<\/a>.<\/p>\n Lars L\u00f8kke Rasmussen, the foreign minister of Denmark, told reporters<\/a> that he hopes to meet Rubio soon, with his Greenlandic counterpart, to try to correct what he called the false information Trump has spread about Greenland.<\/p>\n Senators Jeanne Shaheen, a New Hampshire Democrat, and Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, issued a bipartisan statement urging Trump to accept that \u201cGreenland is not for sale\u201d.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Key events<\/p>\n <\/p>\n 3h ago<\/p>\n Closing summary<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 4h ago<\/p>\n Trump to meet oil executives at the White House on Friday – report<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 4h ago<\/p>\n Long before Venezuela, Trump fantasized about using the US military to seize foreign oil reserves<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 4h ago<\/p>\n Pentagon demobilizes federalized national guard troops in Portland, Los Angeles and Chicago<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 5h ago<\/p>\n Senators Tillis and Shaheen urge Trump to accept ‘Greenland is not for sale’<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 6h ago<\/p>\n Trump says Venezuela has agreed to let him sell 30-50m barrels of oil<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 6h ago<\/p>\n Trump’s claims about Greenland are misinformation, Denmark’s foreign minister says<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 7h ago<\/p>\n Joint statement by Nordic foreign ministers on Greenland rejects US advances on territory<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 7h ago<\/p>\n Rubio told US lawmakers Trump wants Denmark to sell Greenland to US – report<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 8h ago<\/p>\n Gallego moves to block Pentagon funds for Greenland invasion<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 8h ago<\/p>\n ‘The future of Greenland’ is solely up to the people of Greenland and Denmark, Canada’s prime minister says<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 9h ago<\/p>\n White House says Trump is weighing options for ‘acquiring Greenland’, including military action<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 9h ago<\/p>\n Top House Democrat on foreign affairs committee says ‘critical questions remain’ over what happens next following Venezuela briefing<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 10h ago<\/p>\n Here’s a recap of the day so far<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 11h ago<\/p>\n Brawl erupts as counter-protester is arrested at march by pardoned January 6 rioters<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 13h ago<\/p>\n Trump implores GOP to win midterms, fears impeachment if Democrats regain control of House<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 14h ago<\/p>\n Trump teases meeting with oil executives following Maduro arrest<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 14h ago<\/p>\n Top House Democrat says Trump has ‘attempted to rewrite history’ on fifth anniversary of January 6 attacks<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 15h ago<\/p>\n Trump calls Caracas strikes ‘amazing’ and ‘brilliant’ at House GOP retreat<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 15h ago<\/p>\n Donald Trump addresses House Republicans at annual retreat<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 15h ago<\/p>\n Top Trump administration officials to brief all US senators on Venezuela strikes and Maduro capture<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 18h ago<\/p>\n Free all the Venezuelan political prisoners, opposition demands<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 19h ago<\/p>\n US trial of Maduro undermines stability of international relations, China’s foreign ministry says<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 20h ago<\/p>\n It is ‘clear’ the US raid on Venezuela ‘undermined a fundamental principle of international law’, UN human rights office says<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 20h ago<\/p>\n Maduro\u2019s legal team includes acclaimed lawyer who represented Julian Assange<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 21h ago<\/p>\n British PM choosing his ‘words carefully’ over response to US attack on Venezuela, health secretary says<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 1d ago<\/p>\n Opening summary<\/p>\n <\/a>Show key events only<\/p>\n Please turn on JavaScript to use this feature<\/p>\n Citing what it called concerns about fraud, the Department of Health and Human Services announced<\/a> on Tuesday that it froze more than $10bn in federal childcare and family assistance funds for state-run programs in California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and New York \u2013 five states with Democratic governors that voted against Donald Trump in all three elections since 2016.<\/p>\n The action applies to three programs overseen by the health department\u2019s Administration for Children and Families (ACF): the Child Care and Development Fund, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, and Social Services Block Grant.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a021.53 EST<\/p>\n Trump to meet oil executives at the White House on Friday – report<\/p>\n Donald Trump will meet with oil company executives at the White House on Friday to discuss rebuilding Venezuela\u2019s degraded oil sector, two unnamed sources told Reuters.<\/p>\n Raising crude output from Venezuela, which sits on the world\u2019s largest oil reserves, is a top objective for Trump after US forces seized the country\u2019s leader, Nicol\u00e1s Maduro, in a raid on its capital Caracas on Saturday, and left his regime in place.<\/p>\n Chevron is the only major US oil firm now operating in Venezuela\u2019s oil fields.<\/p>\n Exxon Mobil and ConocoPhillips were major producers in the country before their projects were nationalized by Maduro\u2019s predecessor, Hugo Chavez, nearly two decades ago.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Long before Venezuela, Trump fantasized about using the US military to seize foreign oil reserves<\/p>\n Donald Trump\u2019s stunning announcement<\/a> on Tuesday, that the interim authorities in Venezuela, who apparently now serve at his pleasure, will let him sell between $1.8bn and $3bn worth of their country\u2019s oil, and decide how to spend the proceeds, makes real a fantasy the president has been sharing in public for at least 15 years, about using the US military to \u201ctake the oil\u201d of conquered nations.<\/p>\n Earlier in the day, Joe Scarborough, a former Republican representative turned centrist pundit, reported<\/a> that Trump had told him in a phone conversation that his plans for Venezuela were very different from the failed US occupation of Iraq two decades ago. \u201cJoe, the difference between Iraq and this is that Bush didn\u2019t keep the oil,\u201d the president said. \u201cWe\u2019re going to keep the oil.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIn 2016,\u201d Trump added, \u201cI said we should\u2019ve kept the oil. It caused a lot of controversy. Well, we should\u2019ve kept the oil.\u201d<\/p>\n In Venezuela<\/a>, he said, \u201cwe\u2019re going to rebuild their broken-down oil facilities, and this time, we\u2019re going to keep the oil\u201d.<\/p>\n As I reported in 2016<\/a>, Trump did indeed tell Matt Lauer, at a presidential forum on the military<\/a> two months before he was elected, that the US had made a grave mistake in Iraq by failing to \u201ctake the oil\u201d before withdrawing all of its troops.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we would\u2019ve taken the oil, you wouldn\u2019t have Isis, because Isis formed with the power and the wealth of that oil,\u201d Trump said.<\/p>\n \u201cHow are we going to take the oil?\u201d Lauer asked.<\/p>\n Trump suggested that the US could have left troops behind to \u201ctake various sections where they have the oil\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know, it used to be the victor belong the spoils,\u201d Trump added. \u201cBut I always said, take the oil.\u201d<\/p>\n In that interview, Trump was referring to the fact that he had, five years earlier, when he briefly considered running for president against Barack Obama, repeatedly called for the US to use its military force to extort control of foreign oil reserves.<\/p>\n In a YouTube video<\/a> posted in late February 2011 on a channel set up to promote The Apprentice, Trump criticized Obama for not sending in troops to topple Col Muammar Gaddafi. \u201cI can\u2019t believe what our country is doing,\u201d Trump said. \u201cGaddafi in Libya is killing thousands of people, nobody knows how bad it is, and we\u2019re sitting around. We have soldiers all have the Middle East, and we\u2019re not bringing them in to stop this horrible carnage.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAfter it\u2019s all done, we go to the protesters, who end up running the country,\u201d Trump added, \u201cand we should then say: \u2018By the way, from all of your oil, we want reimbursement.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n A month later, when the Fox host Bill O\u2019Reilly quizzed him<\/a> on how he would handle foreign policy as president, Trump proudly unveiled his plan to seize Iraq\u2019s oil.<\/p>\n \u201cI like the old system better: you won a war, you stay there, and you keep the oil,\u201d Trump said. \u201cYou stay and protect the oil, and you take the oil and you take whatever is necessary for them and you take what\u2019s necessary for us and we pay our self back $1.5tn or more. We take care of Britain, we take care of other countries that helped us, and we don\u2019t be so stupid.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSo, in a nutshell,\u201d he added, \u201cwe go in, we take over the second-largest oilfields, and we stay.\u201d<\/p>\n When O\u2019Reilly stifled a laugh as he said: \u201cSo you\u2019re going to take over the Iraqi oilfields?\u201d Trump was indignant, saying: \u201cDon\u2019t smile!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m just saying,\u201d O\u2019Reilly said, \u201cif you\u2019re going to go into the Iraq oilfields and take them over, there\u2019s going to be a lot of blowback.\u201d<\/p>\n Five months later, after the US-led air campaign had forced Gaddafi from power in Libya \u2013 and Trump had decided not to challenge Obama for the presidency \u2013 the star of The Apprentice posted another YouTube video<\/a>, this time complaining that the US should have waited longer to aid the Libyan rebels, to force them to agree to surrender half of the country\u2019s oil reserves.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat we should\u2019ve done is we should\u2019ve asked the rebels when they came to us \u2013 and they came to us, they were being routed by Gaddafi, they were being decimated \u2013 we should\u2019ve said: \u2018We\u2019ll help you, but we want 50% of your oil,\u2019\u201d Trump said. \u201cThey would\u2019ve said: \u2018How about 75%?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a021.52 EST<\/p>\n Pentagon demobilizes federalized national guard troops in Portland, Los Angeles and Chicago<\/p>\n The US military\u2019s Northern Command announced on Tuesday that hundreds of national guard troops, called up in support of immigration enforcement raids in Portland, Los Angeles and Chicago, are being returned from federal service to their respective states.<\/p>\n All of those troops \u201cwill return to their home units once their demobilization is complete\u201d, the military command said in a statement<\/a>.<\/p>\n Oregon\u2019s governor, Tina Kotek, welcomed the decision to release the reservists who were blocked from deploying to the streets of Portland by a federal court injunction.<\/p>\n Kotek said:<\/p>\n The citizen-soldiers of the Oregon National Guard are our neighbors, friends, and family. These courageous Oregonians deserve certainty and respect. While I am relieved that all our troops will finally return home, it does not make up for the personal sacrifices of more than 100 days, including holidays, spent in limbo.<\/p>\n During this crisis, Oregonians stood united against the unwanted, unneeded, unconstitutional military intervention in our state, with thousands peacefully voicing their opposition to the Trump Administration\u2019s abuse of power.<\/p>\n President Trump\u2019s disregard for the facts on the ground revealed that he is more focused on provoking a fight in cities and states that don\u2019t share his politics than serving the American people. I remain committed to defending our values and the rule of law.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a021.32 EST<\/p>\n Senators Tillis and Shaheen urge Trump to accept ‘Greenland is not for sale’<\/p>\n Senators Jeanne Shaheen, a New Hampshire Democrat, and Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, issued a bipartisan statement urging Donald Trump<\/a> to accept that \u201cGreenland is not for sale\u201d.<\/p>\n The senators, who co-chair a Senate group on Nato, wrote<\/a>:<\/p>\n Denmark is one of our oldest and most reliable allies. Danish troops have fought and died alongside Americans in numerous conflicts, and Denmark was among the first to stand with us when NATO invoked Article 5 following the 9\/11 attacks. Today, Denmark is significantly increasing its defense spending and remains a critical partner in Arctic security. This is an ally that has earned our unwavering respect.<\/p>\n When Denmark and Greenland make it clear that Greenland is not for sale, the United States must honor its treaty obligations and respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Denmark. Any suggestion that our nation would subject a fellow NATO ally to coercion or external pressure undermines the very principles of self-determination that our Alliance exists to defend.<\/p>\n They added: \u201cAs we confront the challenges of the 21st century, we do so alongside allies like Denmark who stand with us by choice, not by compulsion.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Trump says Venezuela has agreed to let him sell 30-50m barrels of oil<\/p>\n Donald Trump, who has for years claimed that the US military can and should be used to take control of the oil of foreign nations, announced on Tuesday that the interim authorities in Venezuela have agreed to let him sell 30-50m barrels of their oil.<\/p>\n \u201cI am pleased to announce that the Interim Authorities in Venezuela will be turning over between 30 and 50 MILLION Barrels of High Quality, Sanctioned Oil, to the United States of America. This Oil will be sold at its Market Price, and that money will be controlled by me, as President of the United States of America, to ensure it is used to benefit the people of Venezuela and the United States!\u201d Trump wrote<\/a> on his social media platform.<\/p>\n \u201cI have asked Energy Secretary Chris Wright to execute this plan, immediately,\u201d he added. \u201cIt will be taken by storage ships, and brought directly to unloading docks in the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a019.43 EST<\/p>\n Trump’s claims about Greenland are misinformation, Denmark’s foreign minister says<\/p>\n Lars L\u00f8kke Rasmussen, the foreign minister of Denmark, told reporters<\/a> on Tuesday that he hopes Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, responds to a request from Greenland\u2019s foreign minister, Vivian Motzfeldt, for the three of them to meet soon to discuss threats from Donald Trump to seize the Danish self-governing territory.<\/p>\n According to the Danish public broadcaster DR<\/a>, Rasmussen said that such a meeting would give the Danes and Greenlanders a chance to correct what he called the false information Trump has used to argue that Greenland poses a threat to the security of the United States.<\/p>\n That misinformation, the foreign minister said, includes false claims that there are a lot of Russian and Chinese ships around Greenland, and that China exerts great influence there through investments.<\/p>\n \u201cGreenland is covered with Russian and Chinese ships all over the place,\u201d Trump told reporters <\/a>on Air Force One on Sunday.<\/p>\n \u201cWe do not share this image that Greenland is plastered with Chinese investments,\u201d Rasmussen said, \u201cnor that there are Chinese warships up and down along Greenland\u201d.<\/p>\n Rasmussen spoke to reporters after an emergency session<\/a> of Denmark\u2019s foreign policy committee and defense ministry with just one item on the agenda: \u201cThe Kingdom\u2019s relations with the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n Denmark\u2019s defense minister, Troels Lund Poulsen, said after the meeting that Denmark had spent billions to increase security in Greenland, not, as Trump had claimed this week, by adding just \u201cone more dog sled\u201d.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a019.55 EST<\/p>\n Joint statement by Nordic foreign ministers on Greenland rejects US advances on territory<\/p>\n The foreign ministers of five Nordic countries \u2013 Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden \u2013 have rejected the Trump administration\u2019s statement that it is reviewing options for \u201cacquiring Greenland\u201d in a joint statement<\/a> on Tuesday.<\/p>\n \u201cWe collectively reiterate that matters concerning Denmark and Greenland are for Denmark and Greenland to decide alone,\u201d the foreign ministers write.<\/p>\n The statement also says that the nations \u201csupport NATO increasing its presence and vigilance\u201d in the arctic region, but security \u201crests on respect for the fundamental principles of the UN Charter and international law, including the inviolability of borders\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Kingdom of Denmark, including Greenland, is a founding member of NATO,\u201d the foreign ministers note, \u201cand has historically worked closely with the United States on Arctic Security, including through the Defense Agreement between the US and Denmark from 1951, which offers opportunities for increased security cooperation.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a019.38 EST<\/p>\n Rubio told US lawmakers Trump wants Denmark to sell Greenland to US – report<\/p>\n During a classified briefing on Venezuela on Monday, Donald Trump\u2019s secretary of state, Marco Rubio, told lawmakers that the president was just using threats of military action in Greenland to convince Denmark to sell the territory to the United States, the Wall Street Journal reports<\/a>.<\/p>\n According to the Journal, Rubio was responding to a question from Chuck Schumer, the leader of the Democratic minority in the Senate, about whether the Trump administration<\/a> plans to make good on threats to use military force in Mexico and Greenland.<\/p>\n Lindsey Graham, the Republican senator who was a scathing critic of Trump\u2019s qualifications to be commander-in-chief in 2016 but has since turned into a staunch supporter, told the newspaper the threat to attack Greenland \u201cis all about negotiations\u201d.<\/p>\n After Graham dropped out of the 2016 Republican presidential primary, he told reporters<\/a> that choosing between the final two candidates, Trump and Ted Cruz, was \u201clike being shot or poisoned\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cDonald Trump I think is the most unprepared person I\u2019ve ever met to be commander-in-chief,\u201d Graham added<\/a>. \u201cWhen Donald Trump speaks about foreign policy, it scares the hell out of me.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a019.40 EST<\/p>\n Venezuela\u2019s acting president, Delcy Rodr\u00edguez, hardened her tone against the United States on Tuesday, saying in a televised address that \u201cno external agent governs Venezuela\u201d \u2013 a clear rebuttal to Donald Trump\u2019s claim that, following the seizure of Nicol\u00e1s Maduro<\/a>, the US would now run the South American country.<\/p>\n It marked another shift in tone<\/a> from Maduro\u2019s former vice-president. After being sworn in as president by Venezuela\u2019s supreme court on Saturday, Rodr\u00edguez released a conciliatory statement late on Sunday in which she \u201cinvited the US government to work together on an agenda of cooperation\u201d.<\/p>\n That softer message came hours after the US president threatened that she could \u201cpay a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro\u201d if she did not comply with his demands.<\/p>\n In Tuesday\u2019s address, however, Rodr\u00edguez reverted to harsher language, describing Saturday\u2019s strike \u2013 the first large-scale US military operation on South American soil \u2013 as a \u201cterrible military aggression\u201d and a \u201ccriminal attack\u201d whose \u201cabsolutely illegal outcome, in violation of international law\u201d, was the \u201ckidnapping\u201d of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are a people who do not surrender, who do not give up, and we are here, governing together with the people. The government of Venezuela<\/a> rules in our country \u2013 no one else. There is no external agent governing Venezuela. It is Venezuela, it\u2019s constitutional government and the consolidated power of the people,\u201d said Rodr\u00edguez, who had served as Maduro\u2019s vice-president since 2018.<\/p>\n Since Monday, the regime has stepped up internal repression, with armed militias<\/a> patrolling streets, operating checkpoints and checking people\u2019s mobile phones.<\/p>\n The regime also made public a decree<\/a> dated Saturday and signed by Maduro \u2013 who was arrested at 2.01am \u2013 declaring a \u201cstate of external commotion\u201d, effectively a state of emergency, and ordering the \u201cimmediate search and capture of anyone involved in the promotion or support of the US armed attack\u201d.<\/p>\n At least 14 journalists and media workers, including 13 linked to international outlets, were detained<\/a> in Caracas. Thirteen were later released, one of whom was deported. Gunshots and explosions were reported overnight near the Miraflores presidential palace, and the government said it had fired at unauthorised drones flying over the area.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a019.44 EST<\/p>\n Gallego moves to block Pentagon funds for Greenland invasion<\/p>\n Senator Ruben Gallego, an Arizona Democrat and former marine who fought in Iraq, called the White House statement that Donald Trump<\/a> is considering using the military to invade Greenland \u201cINSANE\u201d in a social media post and called for Congress to block the threatened invasion of Danish territory.<\/p>\n In response to the news, Gallego wrote on Bluesky<\/a>: \u201cINSANE. This is why I\u2019m taking action. Congress MUST act so I\u2019m introducing my War Powers Resolution to stop this Dumbroe Doctrine.\u201d<\/p>\n Gallego has drafted an amendment<\/a> to the Pentagon defense appropriations bill \u201cTo prohibit the use of funds for military force, the conduct of hostilities, or the preparation for war against or with respect to Greenland\u201d.<\/p>\n In his social media post, Gallego also made a mocking reference to Trump\u2019s recent boast that his attack on Venezuela<\/a> was a development of the 1823 Monroe doctrine, which the president claimed some were calling the \u201cDonroe doctrine\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is not more complicated than the fact that Trump wants a giant island with his name on it,\u201d Gallego added<\/a>. \u201cHe wouldn\u2019t think twice about putting our troops in danger if it makes him feel big and strong. The US military is not a toy.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a020.01 EST<\/p>\n ‘The future of Greenland’ is solely up to the people of Greenland and Denmark, Canada’s prime minister says<\/p>\n As the White House says that a military option for seizing the Danish territory of Greenland is under active consideration, Canada\u2019s prime minister, Mark Carney, just met with his Danish counterpart, Mette Frederiksen, in Paris, and stressed<\/a> that \u201cthe future of Greenland and Denmark\u201d must be \u201cdecided solely by the people of Denmark and Greenland.\u201d<\/p>\n Carney also stressed that Denmark and Canada \u201cshare a maritime border of 3,000 kilometers\u201d and a close relationship through Nato.<\/p>\n Carney also mentioned that Canada\u2019s foreign minister, Anita Anand, is about to visit Greenland.<\/p>\n \u201cI will be in Nuuk in the coming weeks to officially open Canada\u2019s consulate and mark a concrete step in strengthening our engagement in support of Denmark\u2019s sovereignty and territorial integrity, including Greenland,\u201d Anand wrote on social media<\/a>.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a020.28 EST<\/p>\n Dharna Noor<\/p>\n Senator Ed Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat, is demanding US big oil bosses disclose any prior knowledge of Trump\u2019s attack on Venezuela and capture of the country\u2019s president, Nicol\u00e1s Maduro.<\/p>\n \u201cPresident Trump and his administration lied about and concealed their plans to attack the territory of, and conduct regime change in, Venezuela, keeping the American public and members of Congress \u2013 who have the sole constitutional power to declare war \u2013 in the dark. The only outside entities that appear to have known the truth are oil executives,\u201d Markey wrote in the letters<\/a> to the heads of Chevron, ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips, the three biggest US oil companies.<\/p>\n The missives, sent Tuesday, follow a claim from Trump on Sunday that he talked to oil companies \u201cbefore and after\u201d the attack on Venezuela<\/a>, describing them as crucial to \u201cfix the infrastructure\u201d in the country.<\/p>\n On Friday, an industry insider told Politico<\/a> big oil executives did communicate with Trump about the attack. \u201cIn preparation for regime change, there had been engagement,\u201d the person said, adding that \u201cit\u2019s been sporadic and relatively flatly received by the industry\u201d.<\/p>\n Trump purportedly seeks a massive ramp-up of fossil fuel extraction from Venezuela. The country is home to the world\u2019s largest oil reserves, though production has plummeted since its peak in the 1970s.<\/p>\n \u201cThe oil companies are going to go in, they are going to spend money, we are going to take back the oil, frankly, we should\u2019ve taken back a long time ago,\u201d the US president said in the wake of the extraction of Maduro, as well as his wife, Cilia Flores.<\/p>\n In his letters, Markey called on Chevron \u2013 the sole US oil company doing business in Venezuela \u2013 as well as ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips to turn over any communication with US officials about the military operations before they occurred.<\/p>\n He also asked the companies whether they had had advance notice of attempts at regime change, and to disclose their plans to boost oil extraction in Venezuela. In addition, he asked how the firms would be affected by the military action in the South American country. And he asked for their take on officials\u2019 claims that the country \u201cstole\u201d American oil.<\/p>\n \u201cThe American people deserve to know,\u201d Markey wrote.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a020.29 EST<\/p>\n Mark Warner, the Democratic vice-chair of the Senate intelligence committee, just posted a statement on social media urging his Republican colleagues to take Trump\u2019s threats of military action against three more countries seriously.<\/p>\n \u201cNow, Trump threatens Greenland, Colombia, and Mexico,\u201d Warner wrote on Bluesky<\/a>. \u201cWhere is the line? When will Republicans find a spine to say this is ridiculous and dangerous?\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a020.30 EST<\/p>\n White House says Trump is weighing options for ‘acquiring Greenland’, including military action<\/p>\n Donald Trump is actively discussing options for \u201cacquiring Greenland\u201d, including the use of the US military, Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said in a statement on Tuesday:<\/p>\n President Trump has made it well known that acquiring Greenland is a national security priority of the United States, and it\u2019s vital to deter our adversaries in the Arctic region. The president and his team are discussing a range of options to pursue this important foreign policy goal, and of course, utilizing the US military is always an option at the commander-in-chief\u2019s disposal.<\/p>\n At a news conference in Paris, the ITV correspondent James Mates just asked<\/a> Keir Starmer, the UK prime minister, who touted new commitments from the Trump administration to defend Ukraine: \u201cWhat value do these commitments have on the very day that at the highest levels of government in Washington they are talking about seizing the sovereign territory of a fellow Nato member?\u201d<\/p>\n Starmer said that he stood by the statement he made on Monday, when he said that \u201cGreenland and the Kingdom of Denmark must determine the future of Greenland and nobody else\u201d.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a020.31 EST<\/p>\n Top House Democrat on foreign affairs committee says ‘critical questions remain’ over what happens next following Venezuela briefing<\/p>\n After top Trump administration<\/a> officials gave a briefing to congressional leaders on the military operation in Venezuela, the top House Democrat on the foreign affairs committee said that he \u201cheard nothing\u201d to dispel his \u201cvery serious concerns about the Trump administration\u2019s attempted regime-change\u201d in the country.<\/p>\n \u201cDonald Trump used US military force to invade a sovereign nation without authorization from Congress. He did so not to address an imminent threat to the United States, nor to advance a democratic transition in Venezuela,\u201d said the representative Gregory Meeks. \u201cInstead, the administration is embracing a dangerous worldview in which the United States can run roughshod over our hemisphere, mirroring the same logic Vladimir Putin uses to justify domination over his neighbors.\u201d<\/p>\n Meeks said he would push for \u201cpublic hearings, transparency and meaningful oversight to reassert Congress\u2019s constitutional role and prevent further escalation and instability\u201d.<\/p>\n A reminder that the same officials, including the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, will brief all senators on the weekend strikes in Caracas and the capture of Nicol\u00e1s Maduro<\/a> and his wife, Cilia Flores, tomorrow on Capitol Hill.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a020.33 EST<\/p>\n Rachel Leingang<\/p>\n The Trump administration<\/a> has sent more immigration agents to Minnesota<\/a>, part of escalating attacks and rhetoric against the state and its immigrant populations.<\/p>\n The Department of Homeland Security has confirmed<\/a> on X that it is \u201csurging to Minneapolis to root out fraud, arrest perpetrators and remove criminal illegal aliens\u201d. Todd Lyons, the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, told Newsmax that the agency has in the city \u201cthe largest immigration operation ever taking place right now\u201d.<\/p>\n CBS News reported<\/a> on Monday that the administration would bring another 2,000 agents, both from ICE and Homeland Security Investigations, into the state for 30 days. Lyons didn\u2019t confirm the number of agents, but said it was an effort from both ICE and HSI. DHS wouldn\u2019t confirm a number to the Guardian, but said that the agency had \u201csurged law enforcement\u201d.<\/p>\n Kristi Noem, the homeland security secretary, appears to be in the state. She can be seen in a video<\/a> produced by DHS of an arrest in Minneapolis of a man from Ecuador whom the agency said is wanted for murder in his home country.<\/p>\n Operation Metro Surge, the agency\u2019s name for its crackdown on Minnesota<\/a>, has been under way since early December. Community members have fought back against ICE, protesting and impeding deportations, as some immigrants have stayed away from public life, avoiding grocery stores or medical care for fear of apprehension.<\/p>\n![\"Tiago](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Tiago_Rogero.png\")
Tiago Rogero<\/p>\n