America’s century-long interest in Venezuelan oil

The Petróleos de Venezuela SA (PDVSA) Bajo Grande Refinery at the Paraguana Refinery Complex on Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela. | Gaby Oraa/Bloomberg via Getty Images

This must be about the oil, right? It’s a presumption that got lots of airtime this weekend, following the dramatic seizure of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife by US forces. The pair now face drug trafficking and narco-terrorism charges in New York, while observers in both countries are scrambling to interpret the sudden action by President Donald Trump...