Trump News

Workers in Texas's Permian Basin oil industry are bracing for economic hardship as Donald Trump's Venezuelan invasion threatens to flood the U.S. market with cheap oil, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The region has already experienced pain from current low oil prices. Employees have seen paychecks reduced, oil-industry support businesses have cut back operations, and local restaurants and retailers have begun layoffs.

Trump has promised Americans he can reduce oil prices to $50 per barrel following the Venezuelan intervention. Permian Basin workers, anticipating further economic decline, are already liquidating assets in preparation.

Trump's goal of pushing prices below the $60 per barrel threshold necessary for comfortable worker livelihoods is already creating visible economic strain. According to the Journal's Konrad Putzier, "Restaurants are already less crowded, barbers are idling around waiting for customers and a host of businesses linked to the oil field are feeling squeezed. On the local Facebook Marketplace, shiny Ford F-150 pickup trucks are listed for sale at bargain prices."

Element Petroleum Chief Executive Taylor Sell grimly joked, "If you want a new jet ski, right now is the best time to buy."

The region faces a compounding crisis. Beyond the threat of cheap Venezuelan oil, Trump's tariffs have increased costs for materials including chemicals and steel tubes. As new wells face delays, oil-services workers are being laid off or experiencing reduced hours.

Kyle Patterson, engineering manager at drilling-fluid company Buckeye, ios already seeing layoffs at his firm and anticipates a personal pay cut. "You can't just sit around and wait for the market to come back," he told the Journal.

Restaurant owner Nemecio Torres, a Trump voter, has experienced significant business decline. His Cancún Grill in downtown Midland saw revenue fall approximately 30 percent year-over-year. He laid off five workers and has seen his personal income reduced by more than half. Torres recently instituted happy-hour specials to attract customers.

Torres expressed disappointment with Trump's economic impact: "We thought he was going to help the economy here in West Texas."

Former President Bill Clinton and ex-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton have refused to comply with House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer's demand that they appear for depositions regarding the Jeffrey Epstein files.

According to the New York Times, the Clintons are challenging Comer's authority to compel their testimony, effectively calling his bluff about pursuing contempt of Congress charges.

In a letter to Comer obtained by the Times, the couple wrote, "Every person has to decide when they have seen or had enough and are ready to fight for this country, its principles and its people, no matter the consequences. For us, now is that time."

Bill Clinton was expected to appear before Comer's committee on Tuesday, with Hillary Clinton slated for a Wednesday appearance.

Observers have suggested Comer is using the Clintons as political targets to deflect scrutiny from Donald Trump, who maintained a longtime relationship with convicted sex abuser Jeffrey Epstein. The Trump administration's Department of Justice has been criticized for delays in releasing the complete Epstein files.

Comer had previously threatened contempt proceedings if the Clintons failed to appear for closed-door depositions, setting deadlines of Tuesday for former President Clinton and Wednesday for Hillary Clinton.

In their response, the Clintons stated, "We are confident that any reasonable person in or out of Congress will see, based on everything we release, that what you are doing is trying to punish those who you see as your enemies and to protect those you think are your friends."

The Times reports that this confrontation is likely headed toward "a messy legal battle" as both parties escalate the dispute.