NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

US attacks Venezuela, captures Maduro: The U.S. launched a wide-scale “air, land and sea” military attack on Venezuela early on Saturday morning involving at least 150 aircraft. Maduro and his wife were captured and flown out of the country. Maduro is headed for New York. President Trump said the U.S. is “going to run” Venezuela following President Nicolás Maduro’s capture “until such time as a safe, proper and judicious transition can take place.” However, Venezuela’s Vice President Delcy Rodríguez said on state TV that the U.S. actions constituted an attempt at regime change and added that Venezuela stands ready to defend those resources. NBC (Democracy Labs has a good analysis about who stands to benefit and WSJ confirms it)

‘They sowed chaos to no avail’: the lasting legacy of Elon Musk’s Doge: The newly released batch of some 10,000 files makes numerous references to President Donald Trump, including a January 2020 memo by an assistant US attorney revealing that Trump was on many more flights than the DOJ was aware of between 1993 and 1996. On one of the flights, there were three passengers: Trump, Epstein and a 20-year-old woman; on two other flights, the prosecutor noted that Trump was on the plane with two women who could potentially be witnesses in the criminal case they were building at the time against Maxwell. MIAMI HERALD

DESI NEWS

Nick Fuentes and the Groypers: How Foreign Bots Built America's Anti-Indian Hate Movement: The primary rhetorical engine driving anti-Indian sentiment is the “Great Replacement Theory” (GRT) applied to the labor market. The Centre for the Study of Hate and Extremism (CSO) released a report analysing anti-Indian racism on X (formerly Twitter) between July and September 2025. The data is stark: narratives framing Indians as “invaders” and “job thieves” accounted for 69.7% of high-engagement racist posts, generating over 111.8 million views. SWARAJYA

‘H-1B debate turned into genocidal rhetoric’: Indian American council calls on FBI over online threats: An Indian American advocacy group has warned that online posts targeting the community are crossing a dangerous line, saying they could lead to real-world violence. FINANCIAL EXPRESS

IMMIGRATION

ICE plans $100m yearlong ‘wartime recruitment’ media blitz to attract new agents: US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has reportedly planned a $100m, one-year media blitz for what it’s calling “wartime recruitment”, targeting conservative radio show listeners, gun rights aficionados, military affairs followers and men’s interests enthusiasts – among others in the Maga-verse – for jobs in the Trump administration’s next phase of its mass deportation campaign. GUARDIAN

CORRUPTION ALERT

Trump’s Tangled Web of Deal-Making, Policy and Riches: Since his return to office, President Trump and his family have engaged in a moneymaking campaign like none in modern American history.Since his return to office, President Trump and his family have engaged in a moneymaking campaign like none in modern American history.  A fascinating graphical representation by the NYT(paywall) ( Most corrupt president ever?)

Homeland Security Department Fast-tracked $1 Billion Contract to Politically Connected Company that Obtained Inside Information: A stunning report revealed the Trump Administration’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS) fast-tracked a contract worth almost $1 billion to Salus Worldwide Solutions, a company formed in 2023 that had never received a federal contract but had ties to a pro-Trump group, the America First Policy Institute. One of the DHS officials overseeing the deal previously worked at America First. PUBLIC CITIZEN

Trump Admin Scores Visa for Founder of Russian Propaganda Outlet: RIGHT-WING MEDIA PERSONALITY Lauren Chen left the United States in July in disgrace. Her Tenet Media YouTube channel  had been exposed in 2024 by the FBI as a Russian media front illicitly taking money from pro-Putin propaganda outlet RT. But this holiday season, Chen and her husband were back in Nashville. Chen specifically thanked the State Department’s Joe Rittenhouse, a senior adviser on consular affairs and former Trump presidential campaign worker, for his help. THE BULWARK

SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND SAFETY

DHS begins slashing FEMA disaster response staff as 2026 begins: The Trump administration is abruptly cutting dozens of disaster response and recovery staff at the Federal Emergency Management Agency this week, according to internal emails obtained by CNN.

Drugmakers raise US prices on 350 medicines despite pressure from Trump: Drugmakers plan to raise U.S. prices on at least 350 branded medications including vaccines against COVID, RSV and shingles and blockbuster cancer treatment Ibrance, even as the Trump administration pressures them for cuts. CNN 

HHS freezes all child care funding for Minnesota: The Department of Health and Human Services on Tuesday froze hundreds of millions of dollars in child care funding for Minnesota, the latest in a series of moves against Gov. Tim Walz’s administration, based on a rightwing influencer’s “expose” of certain child care centers run by Somali immigrants. However, CNN reports that Minnesota child care centers at the heart of widespread fraud allegations fueled by a viral video were operating as expected when visited by investigators, according to the state Department of Children, Youth, and Families. In the meantime, the White House is looking to “denaturalize” Somalis over this incident. POLITICO

GOOD NEWS

Democrat Hardman wins Iowa Senate special election to fend off GOP supermajority: Hardman beat Republican Lucas Loftin by more than 40 percentage points, a significant improvement over Kamala Harris’ performance in the same district last November. IPR

Judge voids decision to end legal status of 60,000 immigrants from Honduras, Nepal and Nicaragua: A federal judge in California on Wednesday voided the Trump administration's move to terminate the Temporary Protected Status of roughly 60,000 immigrants from Honduras, Nepal and Nicaragua, calling it a "pre-ordained decision." The decision acts as a bulwark against further erosion of immigrant rights. CBS

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