Journalists stunned after report reveals who helped shape Trump's major military operation

The Trump administration’s unprecedented military operation in Venezuela earlier this year that resulted in the capturing of President Nicolás Maduro was shaped, at least in part, by former Chevron executive Ali Moshiri, The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday, a revelation that left several journalists stunned.

“Every once in a while you read a story that pulls back the curtain on how the world really works and it takes your breath away,” wrote The New York Times columnist Lydia Polgreen Sunday in a social media post on X.

Revealed for the first time by the Journal, Moshiri reportedly advised the CIA months ahead of the Trump administration’s attack and takeover of Venezuela on who should replace Maduro in his absence. Despite conservatives championing Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Machado as Maduro’s clear successor, Moshiri advised against it, and instead backed Venezuela's then-Vice President Delcy Rodríguez.

Just hours after the Trump administration had successfully captured Maduro, President Donald Trump dismissed the idea of Machado leading the country, arguing that she lacked the “support or respect within the country,” a remark consistent with the advice Moshiri had given his administration months prior.

While Moshiri left Chevron in 2017 and ended his consulting relationship with the company in 2024, his advice may still go on to generate significant revenue for the oil giant, investigative journalist Antonia Juhasz argued Sunday in a social media post on X.

“Chevron's man in [Venezuela] (a CIA informant) told Trump to ditch democracy and go for Rodriguez 'cause she'd secure the oil,” Juhasz wrote.

The New York Times investigative reporter Kenneth Vogel echoed that same sentiment, arguing on Sunday that Moshiri’s advice would likely end up enriching Chevron greatly.

“The secret CIA assessment that called for Trump to side with Maduro’s longtime deputy, rather than the democratic opposition, was based on the advice of a former Chevron executive,” Vogel wrote in a social media post on X. “The oil company stands to profit from Trump’s decision to heed that advice.”