“President Trump on Sunday called on his Ukrainian counterpart to halt strikes on Russian refineries, saying the attacks are causing a shortage of diesel,” CBS News reports.
Said Trump: “Zelensky has to do one thing. He has to stop knocking out diesel fuel in Russia. Let him go after targets but not diesel fuel, because he’s causing a shortage of diesel fuel.”
“The world’s most valuable energy corridors are pinching shut,” the New York Times reports.
“On Friday, Houthi militants backed by Iran expanded their control of the Red Sea, threatening a critical route for Persian Gulf crude. That left the region with few alternatives, since shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz — once the world’s primary oil transit point — remains significantly constrained and far below what it was before the war.”
“And oil exports from Saudi Arabia, long the most important producer in the Middle East, plunged last month to their lowest point in at least 13 years.”
“Brent oil topped $100 a barrel for the first time since July, as attacks between the U.S. and Iran and a recovery in Chinese oil buying propel the global crude benchmark higher,” Bloomberg reports.
“The Diablo Canyon Power Plant, which sits on a cliff on California’s Central Coast, has been the subject of ceaseless protests and political battles since it was proposed in 1963,” the New York Times reports.
“Now, the plant is at the center of yet another major debate. After shuttering all the state’s other nuclear power plants in recent decades, California is considering extending Diablo’s life and lifting a moratorium on new reactors.”
“That these decisions are even on the table in California is a testament to the substantial change in public views of nuclear energy, which for decades has been reviled by the liberal lawmakers and environmental groups that wield tremendous power and influence in the state.”
“Houthi militants in Yemen targeted energy infrastructure in Saudi Arabia, sending oil prices higher on concerns over Persian Gulf oil supplies already strained due to the Iran war,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“The war in Iran has now cost U.S. consumers $100 billion in higher energy prices, and the bill is rising another $1 million about every two minutes, per a real-time estimate from Brown University as of Monday morning,” Axios reports.
“Energy inflation shows up across the entire economy, and the recent surge in diesel prices in particular threatens to have a dramatic impact on freight and travel in the weeks and months to come.”
“Energy Secretary Chris Wright on Sunday cautiously predicted gasoline price relief is on the way, but stopped short of firm or precise pledges,” Axios reports.
“Pump prices are at their highest Labor Day weekend levels on record, and the midterms loom less than two months away.”
“Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian energy facilities were one reason for rising global energy prices, citing those attacks before mentioning the war against Iran when asked about the elevated cost of living in the U.S,” Bloomberg reports.
Said Bessent: “We are going through an energy shock right now, due to both the war in Ukraine, because Ukraine has decided that they want to blow up Russian energy assets and refined products — so that is creating upward price pressure on a global basis — and then the conflict in Iran.”
“Chevron plans to significantly expand its operations in Venezuela, the U.S. oil giant said on Wednesday, taking yet another step to broaden the U.S. sphere of influence in the South American country,” the New York Times reports.
“The Houston-based company, already Venezuela’s largest private oil producer, said it would more than double its production in the country over the next five years to 600,000 barrels a day. That represents over half of Venezuela’s current output.”
Bloomberg: How Trump’s Venezuela oil deal gives the U.S. direct control.
“Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent dismissed the importance of the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, saying the crucial waterway for Persian Gulf energy that’s been controlled by Iran during the recent conflict will get bypassed by oil pipelines,” Bloomberg reports.
Said Bessent: “That will be bypassed in two years. In two years, the Strait of Hormuz will be like a worthless piece of water.”
“President Donald Trump’s plan to seize direct control of Venezuela’s oil reserves is prompting warnings that the Latin American nation will become a modern-day resource colony akin to the so-called banana republics of a century ago — something that could create long-term risks for oil companies operating there,” Bloomberg reports.
“Venezuelan interim President Delcy Rodriguez said on Saturday that an energy agreement with the U.S. would remain in force for 25 years, target an increase in crude output to 1.5 million barrels per day and preserve the country’s sovereignty over its natural resources,” Reuters reports.
“Rodriguez hailed the accord in a late-night address as a ‘historic’ deal that would help revive the economy and boost government revenue, saying it would help shape the country’s future.”
“In a social media post on Sunday, President Trump said he would use the oil from his deal in Venezuela to refill the United States’ stockpile of oil, but that’s something of a pipe dream — at least in the short term,” the New York Times reports.
“The agreement, announced last week, covers some 65 billion barrels of reserves in the oil-rich country, and amounts to a highly unusual foray involving a partnership with a private company. But many of its details remain unknown, and that’s just one complication for a process that Mr. Trump said would ‘begin very shortly.'”
Axios: Trump hails “biggest oil deal in world history” with Venezuela.
“President Donald Trump said Friday night the United States reached an oil agreement with Venezuela, a move he said will more than double American oil reserves, increase oil supply and lower gas prices,” CNN reports.
Said Trump: “At my direction, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, working closely with Highly Respected Interim President of Venezuela, Delcy Rodriguez, and, through a partnership with private business, have secured majority U.S. control of more than 65 BILLION BARRELS of proven Oil Reserves in Venezuela, at no cost to the American Taxpayer.”
Bloomberg: Why the U.S. wants a stake in Venezuela’s oil.
“The Trump administration is negotiating a long-term stake in a vast share of Venezuela’s oil fields, according to three people close to the discussions, a costly and legally precarious proposal that aims to nudge reluctant energy companies to drill in the risky region,” the Washington Post reports.
“The contours of the plan, which is still evolving and could change or fall apart, would involve the United States taking more direct control over Venezuelan reserves as crime and steep logistical challenges discourage private investors.”
“Under terms being discussed, the U.S. would acquire long-term contracts for a third of Venezuelan oil reserves, creating access to roughly 90 billion barrels of crude.”
“The U.S. is in talks with Venezuela to take a large stake in its oil fields, a dramatic move by the Trump administration to extend its influence on the post-Maduro government and the nation’s vast energy reserves,” Bloomberg reports.
“Negotiators from both countries are discussing the plan, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private. Some of them said a possible arrangement that has been discussed is a 100-year-lease on several oilfields.”
“The Trump administration is authorizing an early shift to the sale of wintertime gasoline blends, its latest move to blunt fuel costs and supply concerns stoked by the war in Iran,” Bloomberg reports.
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.
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