Photo: A dilapidated oil refinery overlooking the Gulf of America, formerly the Gulf of Mexico.
As other oil executives lavished President Trump with praise at the White House, Exxon Mobil CEO Darren Woods bluntly said the Venezuelan oil industry is currently “un-investable,” and that major reforms are required before even considering committing the many billions of dollars required to revitalize the country’s dilapidated crude business…
— from a news article by Jordan Blum on CNBC, January 12, 2026.
Some people simply don’t want to hear the truth, when it comes to investments in a dilapidated crude oil business. Some people would much rather be lavished with praise.
Following a January 9 meeting between President Donald Trump and certain oil executives about plans to convert Venezuela from a sovereign nation into an American source for crude oil — as dilapidated as said source may be — the President expressed his displeasure, as he often does.
“I didn’t like Exxon’s response,” the President told reporters onboard Air Force One on Sunday. “You know we have so many that want it. I’d probably be inclined to keep Exxon out.”
“They’re playing too cute,” he added.
That’s a word I never thought I would see applied to Exxon Mobil. “Cute”. There are other words that could be applied, but most of the don’t belong in a family-friendly website.
But the President is telling the truth about one thing, for sure. We have “so many that want it.”
Venezuela, I mean. I assume that’s what the President also meant.
Speaking for myself, I’ve had a burning desire — from a very young age — to invest in a Third World country that holds approximately 17% of the world’s proven oil reserves — the largest share of any country — totaling around 303 billion barrels.
We’re using the word “holds” very loosely, of course. You only “hold” proven oil reserves as long as you actually “hold” them.
When someone else “holds” them… well, that’s a different story. We’re not entirely sure who “holds” Venezuela’s proven oil reserves at the moment.
I would assume that whoever “holds” Venezuela’s proven oil reserves also “holds” the means to import massive amounts of illegal drugs into the U.S.
Which “holding” in more valuable? Your guess is as good as mine.
Funny thing. This whole discussion about investing in Venezuela caused me to recall an event from my childhood, when I was maybe 10 years old. My mother had started a ‘baby book’ when I was born, and had entered all the most valuable information about my early childhood.
My birth weight. Date that I took my first steps unsupported. First word. (First word was “More”, in case you’re curious. Apparently, it sounded like “Moe” by my mom knew what I meant.) Date my first tooth appeared.
But she had slacked off on recording my achievements once I hit kindergarten. Then one day, out of the blue, she asked me to predict my key achievements at age 21. She was holding the baby book, so I knew this was going to be an entry that would be reviewed someday in the future — purely for its entertainment value.
I could have easily predicted a career in journalism, because I typically scored 100% on spelling tests. But for whatever reason, I chose to predict something audacious.
“By age 21, I will own three oil wells.”
I assume my mother understood that this prediction was spoken with tongue firmly in cheek. But it was nevertheless transcribed into the book, to dog me for the rest of my life.
At age 21, I didn’t even own a car. And I fully understood, by then, that in order to own oil wells, you needed to be born into a family that owns oil wells. (Which I was not.)
But apparently, the federal government is now looking for people to invest in Venezuela’s vast oil reserves. Our President is reportedly pressuring American oil company executives to spend at least $100 billion to revive the country’s production.
I don’t know much about investing in a dilapidated oil business — although I guess we all know more than we did last month. It’s possible that Exxon CEO Darren Woods is making a savvy business decision to steer clear of Venezuela’s oil, considering everything. But it’s written right there in my baby book: that I would own three oil wells by age 21.
I missed that target by several decades. Do I therefore throw up my hands and claim that I was only kidding? It strikes me as the type of response our President would describe as “too cute”.
Or do I grab the bull by the horns, and help our nation achieve the greatness we have sought for so long?
What would you do?
Underrated writer Louis Cannon grew up in the vast American West, although his ex-wife, given the slightest opportunity, will deny that he ever grew up at all. You can read more stories on his Substack account.