Trump Vows Iran Strikes and Plans Venezuelan Oil Push

Donald Trump announced a strategy to lower domestic gasoline prices by leveraging 65 billion barrels of oil reserves in Venezuela. To execute the plan, the president intends to meet with fuel distributors and refiners to expand capacity. However, Rystad Energy noted that Venezuela's infrastructure requires roughly $180 billion in investment by 2040 to reach peak production, indicating the plan will not provide immediate relief.

On national security, Trump vowed to strike Iran hard after Iranian military forces attacked two U.S. bases in Jordan.

Economically, Trump advocated for the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates low, claiming the U.S. could achieve growth rates of 20%. This position conflicts with Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh, who is expected to raise rates in September. Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent defended the Treasury Department's decision to increase long-dated U.S. bond buybacks, responding to criticism from investor Stanley Druckenmiller who characterized the policy as price management.