Trump’s crooked 'art of the deal' with Big Oil
Key takeaways
- This arrangement is clearly unethical, if not illegal.
- The deal betrays the middle- and lower-income voters who helped elect him.
- Oil companies ended up providing nearly $100 million to Trump s campaign organization and affiliated political action committees, not counting dark-money contributions.
Why this matters: political developments that affect policy direction and public trust.
Becker, opinion contributor - 05/11/26 8:00 AM ET Comments: Link copied by William S. Becker, opinion contributor - 05/11/26 8:00 AM ET Comments: Link copied Getty Images CARSON, CALIFORNIA APRIL 02: In an aerial view, the Marathon Petroleum Corp s Los Angeles Refinery is seen on April 02, 2026 in Carson, California. Oil prices surged over 10 percent in volatile trading, with both Brent and U.S. crude jumping sharply after President Donald Trump warned of intensified military action against Iran and signaled the conflict could drag on, raising fears of prolonged supply disruptions. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) The American people have seen several big oil scandals over the last century. We have survived Teapot Dome, the collapse of Enron, windfall profiteering during the 1970s oil crisis, Exxon Valdez, Deepwater Horizon and more. But President Trump s deal with Big Oil is the most corrupt in our history. Its cost pervades everything from household budgets to public health, national security, the climate, and the future.
During his first term and now in his second, Trump has delivered hundreds of billions of dollars in favors to the industry, including tax breaks and subsidies, access to more federal land and waters, a major rollback of environmental regulations, the suppression of competition from clean energy technologies, access to Venezuela s oil reserves, and of course the very profitable Iran war. No one has stopped him.
This arrangement is clearly unethical, if not illegal. That became obvious in April 2024 when candidate Trump offered the oil industry a deal, telling its executives that if they gave $1 billion to his campaign, he would deliver their wish list when he recaptured the White House.