Interior Secretary Doug Burgum told an audience in Houston that Washington, D.C., and other major American cities could have been in range of Iranian intermediate-range ballistic missiles launched from Venezuela if the United States had not stepped in, and he framed that intervention as a direct defense of energy security and American safety. He pointed to Iran’s attempt to strike the U.S. base at Diego Garcia as proof Tehran’s missile reach is wider than many assumed. Burgum also argued that a U.S. response in Venezuela has shifted that country from a potential missile threat to a commercial energy partner, including a surprising haul of gold to support refiners. He made all of these points bluntly at the CERAWeek energy conference, laying out a case that security and energy policy are tightly linked.
Burgum pushed back on the idea that Iran and Venezuela aren’t an immediate problem for the United States or for global energy flows, saying the facts tell a different story. He highlighted Iran’s attempt to hit Diego Garcia in the central Indian Ocean as evidence of a longer reach than Tehran has publicly admitted. “That means, you know, Venezuela was a hotbed of Iranian-funded terror groups, including Hamas. If there was an Iranian ballistic missile placed in Venezuela, it could not just reach Houston; it can reach Washington, D.C.,” said Burgum.
The strike toward Diego Garcia, more than 2,000 miles from Iran, forced a reckoning about capability versus claim. The launch suggests Tehran can operate at ranges beyond what it claimed during diplomatic talks, and that changes how we think about threat vectors and force posture. For Republicans who argue for strength and clarity, the missile launches serve as concrete evidence that deterrence and direct action matter.
The administration’s move inside Venezuela on Jan. 3, which resulted in the arrest of Nicolás Maduro, was presented as a targeted step to remove a launch platform from potential Iranian use. That covert operation made headlines because it was direct and consequential, and Burgum credited the action with reducing an immediate missile threat. From his perspective, diplomacy alone would not have removed the same level of risk in the same time frame.
Burgum said that the outcome isn’t just security; it opens an energy opportunity. He described Venezuela as a place with real oil and gas assets that the U.S. can work with responsibly, emphasizing the value of turning a threat into an economic partner. The message was clear: firm action produced leverage and now refiners and investors can get to work on development under American terms.
“So, again, the actions that the United States is taking to make the world safer is lowering the risk premium that I think was missing from the [oil and energy] market. Because, maybe, the market wasn’t recognizing the risk.” Burgum used plain language to connect geopolitical moves to energy prices, arguing that removing a dangerous variable brings markets back toward normalcy. That line of thinking treats security as a market input, and it’s a straightforward, conservative logic for justifying decisive moves.
Burgum accused Tehran of misleading the international community about its missile range and capability, framing that deception as reckless and dangerous. “They said during negotiations last year, they told the international agencies, they said it right before the negotiations broke down, ‘Oh, don’t worry, we could only go 1,200 miles.’ And then they launched two missiles at Diego Garcia at 2,400 miles. That means they can hit London,” he explained. That stark contrast between claim and action was used to press the point that America and its allies must assume the worst about adversarial intent.
Geography matters in these calculations: Houston sits roughly 2,200 miles from Venezuela and Washington is just over 2,000 miles away, which places several American cities within intermediate-range missile distance if hostile forces had basing and hardware. Miami, New York City, and potentially Chicago were all named as at-risk locations under that scenario, underscoring why those deployments and operations mattered. Burgum also noted practical cooperation results from his recent visit: “The resources there are quite amazing,” he said. “And from that trip we did… we were able to bring home $100 million of gold, physically, the gold, to bring back for U.S. refiners for commercial and consumer purposes. So, the level of cooperation is going.”
Darnell Thompkins is a Canadian-born American and conservative opinion writer who brings a unique perspective to political and cultural discussions. Passionate about traditional values and individual freedoms, Darnell’s commentary reflects his commitment to fostering meaningful dialogue. When he’s not writing, he enjoys watching hockey and celebrating the sport that connects his Canadian roots with his American journey.