Florida Republican Rep. María Elvira Salazar deleted a social media post criticizing President Donald Trump’s newly announced oil agreement with Venezuela before returning to X about an hour later to praise the deal as beneficial to both the United States and Venezuelan people, as reported [1] by The New York Post.
The reversal came Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026, after Salazar initially questioned whether the agreement could survive beyond Trump’s presidency.
Salazar, who is seeking reelection and has been outspoken against Venezuelan interim leader Delcy Rodríguez, first posted her criticism in both English and Spanish on X.
“Any oil “deal” with Venezuela’s interim regime has an expiration date: the day President Trump leaves the White House,” Salazar wrote.
The posts were later deleted.
Salazar then returned to the social media platform with a substantially different assessment of the agreement.
“The U.S.-Venezuela oil deal is a great deal for the United States and the Venezuelan people,” she wrote.
She went on to argue that the agreement could create a path toward economic growth and greater stability for Venezuela while increasing American involvement in the country’s oil industry.
“For years, China took advantage of Venezuela’s weakness to buy its oil at deep discounts. Now America is stepping in, and American investment and influence offer Venezuela a path toward prosperity, stability, and security.”
Despite backing the agreement, Salazar continued to criticize Rodríguez and questioned whether Venezuela’s current interim government was the appropriate party to negotiate the arrangement.
“Delcy is the wrong person to make this deal with,” Salazar wrote.
Salazar said she wants the agreement to remain in place for decades but argued that its long-term future depends on democratic elections and stronger institutions in Venezuela.
“We want this deal to last 100 years,” Salazar wrote. “Only an administration backed by strong democratic institutions and the rule of law can guarantee that. This will only be possible with free elections.”
Trump announced the oil agreement Friday after Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Rodríguez negotiated the arrangement.
Trump said the agreement would provide private American companies access to what he described as “65 BILLION BARRELS” of proven Venezuelan oil reserves “at no cost to the American Taxpayer.”
Under the agreement, the Venezuelan government said companies would be allowed to operate in 17 oil fields.
The investment is expected to bring approximately $100 billion into Venezuela’s oil industry, according to the Venezuelan government.
The agreement is also expected to generate more than $209 billion in tax revenue for Venezuela.
The deal represents a major shift in the relationship between Washington and Venezuela, with American companies poised to take a larger role in developing the country’s vast oil reserves.
Salazar’s initial criticism reflected her longstanding opposition to Venezuela’s communist government and skepticism toward Rodríguez.
In the deleted post, the Florida congresswoman warned that Venezuela’s government had previously taken American investments and could do so again.
“The regime has stolen American investments before, and it will do again the moment it can,” she wrote.
El tuit fue borrado.
La congresista María Elvira Salazar publicó otra versión. pic.twitter.com/9lrVjrv4uz [3]
— Orlando Avendaño (@OrlvndoA) August 29, 2026 [4]
Rodríguez has served as Venezuela’s interim leader since January, when US Special Forces captured former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
Salazar’s change in position comes as she campaigns for reelection in Florida.
Her revised position supports the Trump administration’s agreement while maintaining that Venezuela must eventually hold free elections if the arrangement is to remain in place after the current administration.
The congresswoman also made clear that her support for the oil agreement does not amount to an endorsement of Rodríguez herself.
Salazar did not respond to The Post’s request for comment regarding the deleted posts and subsequent statements.