News
President to Meet Oil Executives Amid Energy Policy Talks
United States: Donald Trump plans to convene essential oil executives at the White House on Wednesday to build plans for expanded domestic energy production during the current oil market decline and international trade tensions, as reported by Reuters.
Since returning to the White House for his second presidential term in January, Trump will meet with top executives from the oil and gas sector for the first time.
Key Industry Leaders in Attendance
The closed-door meeting’s members include executive committee members from the American Petroleum Institute (API) based on information from one source who participated in the planning.
Executive leadership from oil companies ExxonMobil (XOM.N) via CEO Darren Woods, Chevron (CVX.N) through CEO Mike Wirth and ConocoPhillips (COP.N) CEO Ryan Lance together with Phillips 66 (PSX.N) CEO Mark Lashier, and Marathon Petroleum (MPC.N) CEO Maryann Mannen are members of the American Petroleum Institute executive committee per public biographies.
The meeting serves as a dual-purpose event, with Trump being celebrated for his early support, but leaders from the industry plan to voice their trade war concerns as well as discuss the need for rising petroleum prices to fulfill the production target.
Balancing Energy Expansion and Market Stability
Trump and his supporters embraced office by announcing plans to increase U.S. oil output by 3 million barrels per day while easing environmental regulations to reduce energy costs for American citizens enduring inflation.
“The best way to maintain oil production and energy independence is to support a higher oil price,” said Ed Hirs, an energy economist at the University of Houston. “Drill-baby-drill is not the way forward. And so I think they’re going to try and make that point to him tactfully.”
Market Outlook and Trade Policy Friction
According to analysts at Wood Mackenzie, the benchmark Brent crude oil price will decrease by $7 per barrel to $73 per barrel throughout 2025 because of U.S. tariff policies combined with OPEC+ production increases.
US President Donald Trump will host top oil executives at the White House today as he charts plans to boost domestic energy production in the midst of falling crude prices and looming trade wars. https://t.co/pudkoESgdm
— RTÉ Business (@RTEbusiness) March 19, 2025
The API’s spokesperson, Bethany Williams, expressed gratitude for the opportunity to discuss industry contributions to national security and economic strength during the meeting.
The White House administration neglected to reply to our interview request.
The API continues to oppose Trump administration policies toward Mexico and Canada, which constitute a trade war because these countries supply most of the U.S.’s imported crude oil.
Besides Canadian and Mexican crude oil tariffs, Trump has allowed exceptions for producers who demonstrate compliance with the USMCA trade pact, as reported by Reuters.
Last month, in response to the tariffs, API CEO Mike Sommers said, “Energy markets are highly integrated, and free and fair trade across our borders is critical for delivering affordable, reliable energy to U.S. consumers.”
Industry’s Five-Point Energy Plan for Trump
API issued a five-point energy plan to Trump and Congress, including permit reform, enhancements to offshore oil leasing, protection of carbon capture and hydrogen production incentives, and elimination of subsidies for electric vehicles.
News
President Pushes for Transparency in JFK, RFK, MLK Cases
United States: Former President Donald Trump maintained his position that Lee Harvey Oswald acted as the single fatal incendiary who terminated John F. Kennedy during 1963 but expressed uncertainty regarding any potential outside support. Trump expressed doubt that Oswald acted alone in his assassination plot. During his Air Force One conversation with Outkick founder Clay Travis Trump responded in the affirmative when asked if Oswald carried out John F. Kennedy’s assassination before he added “received outside aid,” as reported by Reuters.
Official Reports vs. Public Skepticism
The Justice Department together with other federal agencies has maintained from decades that Oswald was solely responsible for the assassination. Federal authorities have consistently rejected conspiracy theories about JFK’s assassination yet Americans continue to have conflicting beliefs about this issue.
UPDATE: JFK Files
— Blondelady2024 (@arva61138) March 19, 2025
This CIA memo from September 24, 1963, shows Lee Harvey Oswald was actively being monitored by the CIA at least 59 Days before JFK was Assassinated
Oswald made contact with the Soviet Embassy in Mexico City, where he inquired about travel to the USSR.
This… pic.twitter.com/nTiUpYxm05
Trump Orders Release of JFK Files
Through a recent presidential order Trump authorized the publication of numerous digital documents concerning the presidential assassination to enhance public understanding of the case.
Expanding the Investigation
Through his presidential authority Trump has informed his team to prepare the release process for files about both Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassinations in 1968. As part of his previous commitment to reveal vital historical details Trump has directed this action, as reported by Reuters.
News
Elon Musk’s Classified Briefing: Cause for Concern?
United States: Former U.S. President Donald Trump has dismissed a New York Times report claiming billionaire Elon Musk was briefed on U.S. military preparedness regarding a possible conflict with China. In a Truth Social post, Trump insisted, “China will not even be mentioned or discussed.”
Pentagon: Meeting Focused on Innovation
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth stated on X that the conference would center around “innovation, efficiencies & smarter production.” However, an anonymous U.S. official suggested the briefing would cover multiple topics, including China, as reported by Reuters.
Report Claims Military Strategy Was Shared
The New York Times revealed that the presentation included 20 to 30 visual displays outlining the U.S. military’s approach to a potential conflict with China. The report, based on two unidentified U.S. officials, raises concerns over Musk’s growing role in government affairs.
Musk’s Expanding Influence Raises Ethical Questions
During his position as Trump’s strategic counselor for budget cuts Musk might have encountered potential conflicts of interest by gaining access to classified military plans. The business ties between Tesla and SpaceX with Chinese industries coupled with their role in U.S. defense contracts makes Musk’s leadership generate valid concerns about business entanglements.
White House Calls for Conflict of Interest Safeguards
The White House declared that Musk needed to keep his distance from all choices that presented a conflict between his business operations and his federal budget advisory role.
U.S.-China Tensions Remain High
The advisory position develops within existing U.S.-China diplomatic challenges about trade barriers and cybersecurity as well as Taiwan concerns and human rights efforts alongside TikTok investigations and COVID-19 source investigation. The ongoing geopolitical tensions will probably continue to draw attention to Musk’s defense advisory work, as reported by Reuters.
News
FBI Specialist Arrested for Leaking Classified Files
United States: An FBI counterintelligence specialist who exposed FBI political prejudice during Donald Trump’s initial presidential administration was charged this week after his arrest at a New York airport for releasing confidential FBI files without authorization.
Accused of sharing confidential FBI documents with his colleagues, Johnathan Buma printed 130 files from FBI systems back in 2023 for his career-related book research while serving as an FBI counterintelligence specialist, as reported by Reuters.
Arrest and Legal Proceedings
The records from Brooklyn federal court show Buma received a $100,000 bond before his release on Tuesday following his arraignment. The court documents failed to note Buma’s decision on whether to plead. California authorities received jurisdiction of the case, which allowed them to file charges against the suspects.
The public defender assigned to represent Buma at his arraignment failed to provide a response to our request for comment. Court filings did not contain information about counsel representation for Buma.
Trump has promised to attack officials from the Justice Department who he believes treated him unfairly, yet his FBI director Kash Patel affirmed to lawmakers during testimony that FBI personnel should be shielded from political repercussions.
Leaked Files Contained Sensitive Intelligence
According to court records, Buma showed awareness that the FBI intelligence he had stored was classified and did not belong to him before he released it to unauthorized individuals.
Anti-Trump FBI Agent Arrested For Disclosing Classified Information. Feds Nabbed Him as He Was About to Board International Flight.
— Intel Stream (@IntelStream) March 20, 2025
Court documents show that Johnathan Buma had printed 130 files from the FBI’s network, with many of them marked with confidential warnings. pic.twitter.com/42mcDVCbHZ
Some 2023 draft book material that Buma showed to multiple people contained information from FBI investigations about a mystery nation’s weapons of mass destruction project, which the filing revealed as classified, as reported by Reuters.
According to the court filing, Buma took screenshots of messages from his confidential source, who later became part of published news content.