Mary Trump Says Donald Trump's Venezuela Oil Is 5% of a Day's U.S. Use

Mary Trump said President Donald Trump's boast of a million free barrels of Venezuelan oil amounts to roughly 5 percent of what Americans use in a single day. She argued the shipment cannot offset fuel prices that she blames on his war with Iran.

The president's niece, a clinical psychologist who hosts The Mary Trump Podcast, made the remarks in a Thursday episode. In it she reviewed his Wednesday night rally at Ohio University, where he campaigned for gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and Senator Jon Husted five days before the November 3 midterm elections.

At the rally, Trump said: "Venezuela, they don't like talking about, we just got a million barrels of oil delivered to us free of charge."

Mary Trump Disputes the Venezuela Oil Boast

Mary Trump described the shipment in harsher terms. "Also, apparently he stole a million barrels of oil from Venezuela and is pretending that that is going to make a dent in gas prices here. But of course it isn't," she said.

She gave two reasons. The second was that the price of Brent crude, the global benchmark, "is over 100% more than it was before his war of choice against Iran started."

Her first point matches federal data. The U.S. Energy Information Administration reports that the United States consumed an average of about 20.6 million barrels of petroleum a day in 2025. One million barrels comes to just under 5 percent of a day's use, or roughly 70 minutes of national consumption.

Was the Venezuelan Oil Free?

"Stole" is Mary Trump's own word. The shipment arrived in Corpus Christi, Texas, under an August agreement between the U.S. government and North American Blue Energy Partners (NABEP), a company that develops oil fields in Venezuela. Trump traveled to Corpus Christi on Tuesday to receive the shipment.

The White House said the oil came "at no cost to the United States or the American taxpayer" and would be refined in Texas. NABEP described the shipment differently. Its first statement called the cargo part of "the US government's right to purchase 20pc of North American Blue Energy Partners' production at cost," Argus Media reported.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said the Treasury now manages Venezuela's crude export revenue through a fund.

Brent Crude and Gas Prices Since the Iran War

Mary Trump's second figure overstates the rise. The United States and Israel began striking Iran on February 28. On February 27, Brent crude closed at $71.32 a barrel, based on EIA spot-price data. On Tuesday it closed at $123.10, up about 73 percent. Brent peaked at $138.21 on April 7, about 94 percent above its prewar level, and the daily spot price has not doubled at any point since the war began.

Pump prices have climbed by a smaller share. The EIA's weekly national average for regular gasoline was $2.94 a gallon on February 23 and $4.27 on Monday, a rise of about 45 percent. PolitiKool's gas price tracker puts the national average at $4.27 a gallon.

Vice President JD Vance has blamed the spike on "some tinpot dictator". We'll finish that out."

Mary Trump Says Fuel Costs Do Not Touch Donald Trump

Mary Trump said Americans are "putting their electric bills on their credit cards" as the war is "driving fuel prices through the roof." She argued that the president does not feel those costs himself.

"He has more money than he's ever had before because he keeps stealing from us, which is why he's also not worried about rising gas prices or the cost of groceries," she said.

Voters give the president poor marks on the economy. PolitiKool's polling average shows 29.6 percent approve of his handling of the economy and 67.5 percent disapprove.

Mary Trump also repeated an argument she has made before, that the president is laying groundwork to dispute the midterm results. She urged listeners to check their voter registration and polling locations.

What Happens Next

NABEP has said the cargo will be followed by thousands of such arrivals. Even so, a million barrels is small next to daily U.S. demand, and Brent remains well above its prewar level. Whether voters credit the shipment or blame the war will be tested on Tuesday.