Congressional lawmakers from both parties are signaling that despite President Donald Trump’s assertion that he will control the money gained from selling Venezuelan oil turned over to the United States, they’ll want to check the books.
Democrats said they were appalled by the Trump administration’s plans to sell Venezuelan oil “indefinitely” and control the revenue, suggesting it would amount to a takeover of the country’s fledgling oil industry.
“It’s an insane plan,” Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) told POLITICO coming out of a briefing Wednesday with Trump administration officials on Venezuela. “They are proposing to steal Venezuela’s oil at gunpoint forever and use that leverage to run the country.”
Republicans expressed tepid support for the plan, and though they projected confidence in Energy Secretary Chris Wright’s ability to manage the funds, they demanded some oversight over how the money would be spent.
