United States | News & Politics

Today, Marco Rubio is the Trump administration's most formidable liar. When Pam Bondi or Pete Hegseth or Karoline Leavitt or Stephen Miller refers to an anti-genocide protester or a day laborer or a sandwich hurler or a fisherman clinging to the wreckage of a fishing boat that has just been struck by a Hellfire missile as a "terrorist," they come off as pathological. But Rubio's approval ratings are the highest in the Republican Party, even as he is the architect of what is arguably Trump's single most cynical policy: the scheme to appoint drug cartel bosses and their cronies atop the governments of every Latin American country, in the name of fighting drug cartels.

In September, Rubio hailed Ecuadoran President Daniel Noboa, who leads a country whose homicide rate has risen eightfold since 2016, as an "incredibly willing partner" who "has done more just in the last couple years to take the fight to these narco-terrorists and these threats to the security and stability of Ecuador than any previous administration." Just five months earlier, a damning investigation revealed that Noboa's family fruit business had trafficked 700 kilos of cocaine to Europe in banana crates between 2020 and 2022. Rubio has tirelessly promoted the cause of convicted (alas, just-pardoned) drug trafficker Juan Orlando Hernández. In 2018, Rubio personally and publicly commended Hernández, then president of Honduras, for combating drug traffickers (and supporting Israel), just seven months before his brother was indicted for trafficking 158 tons of cocaine in containers stamped "TH," for Tony Hernández.

cross-posted from: https://hexbear.net/post/7237001

cross-posted from: https://news.abolish.capital/post/17108

Makenzie Huber*South Dakota Searchlight*

Half the people released from prison in South Dakota return within three years, according to the state Department of Corrections’ newly released 2025 annual report — the highest recidivism rate in at least the last eight years.

Among Native Americans released from prison, 59 percent return within three years — the highest of any race. Native Americans comprise 39 percent of inmates in the state prison system — 35 percent among men and 61 percent among women. The recidivism rate among Native American women is 66 percent.

Department officials shared the statistics and annual report with members of the Correctional Rehabilitation Task Force at its Dec. 17 meeting in Pierre. The recidivism rate is seven points higher than last year.

The task force, made up of lawmakers, government officials and nonprofit leaders, is considering ways to reduce the state’s recidivism rate by expanding prison-based rehabilitation and helping released inmates transition back into their communities. The group was created earlier this year as lawmakers approved construction of a $650 million men’s prison in Sioux Falls, and it’s focusing on behavioral health, educational, faith-based and Native American-themed programs.

The group approved several recommendations at its meeting, including an endorsement of a faith-based seminary program.

Task force member Rep. John Hughes, R-Sioux Falls, said he hopes for “transformational offerings” to inmates.

“If we don’t see lives changed, then I don’t know what we’re doing here,” Hughes said. “We’re just managing statistics and personal failures.”

‘We’re not appropriately supporting the Indigenous population’

Task force member Rep. Kadyn Wittman, D-Sioux Falls, told South Dakota Searchlight the increase in recidivism, especially among Native Americans, will “further strain an already strained system.”

“It’s indicative of the fact that we’re not appropriately supporting the Indigenous population,” Wittman said. “We’re already overincarcerating Indigenous people in South Dakota, and then we’re seeing them return at a much higher rate.”

The task force approved 11 immediate recommendations for the Department of Corrections. The list includes bringing back evening volunteers in prisons, designating the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate parole program as a “flagship model” in the state, and establishing volunteer roundtables to give feedback on department policy and programs.

The recommendations are “small wins or barriers that can be removed,” Wittman said, while the task force continues to work on more complex issues.

Wittman is most excited about a recommendation that the department hire a tribal cultural liaison to coordinate ceremonies, tribal contacts and volunteer access to the state’s prisons. The position should be piloted for six months, the task force recommended.

“The fact that the DOC is willing to establish an individual whose sole focus is going to be better programming for its Indigenous population is huge,” Wittman said. “They’ll hopefully identify where Indigenous programming will be most effective.”

Lt. Gov. Tony Venhuizen, the task force chairman, confirmed with recently appointed Corrections Secretary Nick Lamb that the department would look into the recommendations and report back which could be viable options.

New corrections secretary lauds faith-based program

The prison seminary program endorsed by the task force was created by Mississippi Department of Corrections Commissioner Burl Cain while he served as warden of the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola. Cain resigned from his role in Louisiana in 2015 amid investigations of his business dealings.

Mississippi Department of Corrections Commissioner Burl Cain speaks during a meeting with South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden (not pictured) in October 2025.
Credit: Photo courtesy of the South Dakota Governor’s Office

The program operates in 26 states and partners with accredited, four-year Christian seminary programs to teach inmates. They can earn a seminary degree through the program, often with graduates serving as ministers in prison systems.

Lamb helped implement the program in the Illinois prison system. Within months of its launch, Lamb said, he saw fewer assaults between inmates and against staff.

“Whatever your religious beliefs are, whatever you think, this program works,” Lamb said. “It worked everywhere they tried.”

Cain spoke to lawmakers in October about the program, ahead of the task force’s first meeting in Sioux Falls. He said the state would need a nonprofit to run it. The task force voted on Wednesday to encourage South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden’s administration to authorize the program.

Rhoden said in a Wednesday news release that he “accepted” the recommendation. The news release did not say who would operate the program, but said it would be privately supported, requiring neither Department of Corrections nor inmate funding.

From left, Mississippi Department of Corrections Commissioner Burl Cain, South Dakota state Sen. Sue Peterson, R-Sioux Falls, and South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden speak at a meeting in Sioux Falls in October 2025.
Credit: Photo courtesy of the South Dakota Governor’s Office

“Bringing this seminary program to our state will restore hope, build character, and strengthen our correctional system from the inside out,” Rhoden said in the news release.

Jon Ozmint, the former director of South Carolina prisons, also presented to the task force in October. He said the recidivism rate for state inmates in the faith-based seminary Cain created is around 2 percent in South Carolina.

Wittman said after Wednesday’s meeting that she has “reservations” about the seminary program.

“I don’t necessarily support Burl Cain-style programming in South Dakota prisons because rehabilitation needs to be voluntary, secular and grounded in evidence,” Wittman said.

Despite those concerns, she voted in favor of implementing the program.

“I voted yes because, despite my reservations, I know how limited current programs are,” Wittman said, “and something is better than nothing.”

The post Half of South Dakota inmates return to prison, two-thirds among Native American women, new report shows appeared first on ICT.

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“No governor should have the power to unilaterally declare a civil rights or advocacy group he disagrees with a terrorist organization, take punitive action against them, all in violation of due process and free speech,” Edward Ahmed Mitchell, the deputy director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, told the Guardian this month. “If any governor can get away with abusing that kind of power, then no organization is safe.”

NASA's largest library at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, which has been a central research hub for the global space agency since 1959, will be permanently closing on Friday (Jan 2). The closure of the 100,000-volume library is part of the Donald Trump administration's reorganisation drive, under which 13 buildings and over 100 science and engineering laboratories will be shut down on the 1.270-acre campus by March 2026

According to a statement posted on the website of the Goddard Engineers, Scientists and Technicians Association, specialised equipment and electronics designed to test spacecraft have already been removed and thrown out.

Senator Chris Van Hollen, Democrat of Maryland, said he will continue to raise his voice against the Trump administration's haphazard closure of the library.

“The Trump Administration has spent the last year attacking NASA Goddard and its work force and threatening our efforts to explore space, deepen our understanding of Earth, and spur technological advancements that make our economy stronger and nation safer,” said Van Hollen.

“These reports of closures at Goddard are deeply concerning. I will continue to push back on any actions that impact Goddard's critical mission," he added.

True to form, the Zionist lobby demanded that Mamdani offer concessions to its racist views. True to form, he ignored them.

A brand-new account placed suspiciously timed bets on Polymarket regarding Nicolás Maduro’s ouster and made over $400,000.

‘I registered my opposition, I made it clear and we left it at that,’ the new New York mayor said of the call

Jan 03, 2026

Trump and his administration have often said they want to revive the Monroe Doctrine, claiming the United States has the right to dominate the affairs of the hemisphere. They have spoken openly about controlling Venezuela’s oil reserves, the largest in the world. This is rank imperialism. It recalls the darkest chapters of U.S. interventions in Latin America, which have left a terrible legacy. It will and should be condemned by the democratic world

cross-posted from: https://hexbear.net/post/7234317

cross-posted from: https://news.abolish.capital/post/17007

Update***:***

President Donald Trump said Saturday that the US intends to control Venezuela until a "proper transition can take place," indicating that the bombing of the South American country and abduction of its president were just the start of the Trump administration's illegal intervention there.

"We are going to run the country," Trump said during a press conference at his Florida resort, flanked by top US officials. Asked to elaborate, Trump said his administration is in the process of "designating various people" to run the government, adding that "we're not afraid of boots on the ground."

The president went on to say that US forces are prepared to launch "a much larger attack" on Venezuela if he deems it necessary, threatening other political figures in the country.

"What happened to Maduro can happen to them," he said.

Trump also declared that American fossil fuel companies will "go in and spend billions of dollars" in Venezuela, which has the largest known oil reserves in the world.

Earlier***:***

President Donald Trump is set to hold a press conference late Saturday morning at his Mar-a-Lago resort hours after US forces bombed Venezuela and abducted the nation's president, Nicolás Maduro, who is being taken to New York to face new federal charges.

The press conference is scheduled to begin at 11 am ET, and it comes as Trump is facing backlash at home and around the world for launching an illegal regime-change war.

Watch live:

In a Fox News appearance ahead of the press conference, Trump brushed aside criticism from Democratic lawmakers and others who said the US bombing of Venezuela and abduction of its president were illegal.

Democratic lawmakers expressing that view are "weak, stupid people," the president said, declaring that the actions he approved without congressional authorization and in violation of international law should be applauded.

“They should say, 'Great job,'” Trump said. “They shouldn’t say, ‘Oh, gee, maybe it’s not constitutional.’ You know the same old stuff that we’ve been hearing for years and years and years.”

Trump went on to declare that the US will "be involved" in Venezuela's political future following Maduro's abduction. Asked if he would throw his support behind right-wing opposition leader María Corina Machado, the US president said, "We have to look at it."

"They have a vice president, as you know," said Trump, referring to Delcy Rodríguez, who is next in line to take power.

An indictment unsealed Saturday morning shows that Maduro, his wife, and top Venezuelan officials will face federal drug trafficking and narcoterrorism charges.

The document characterizes Maduro as "previously the president of Venezuela."

CNN reported that the raid resulting in Maduro and his wife's capture was carried out by the US Army's elite Delta Force.

"The couple was captured in the middle of the night as they were sleeping," the outlet reported, citing unnamed sources. "A team of FBI agents was with the US special operation forces who carried out the capture."

From Common Dreams via This RSS Feed.

cross-posted from: https://hexbear.net/post/7234316

cross-posted from: https://news.abolish.capital/post/17005

A little after 2 am, Venezuela time, on January 3, 2026, in violation of Article 2 of the United Nations Charter, the United States began an attack on several sites in the country, including Caracas, the capital. Residents awoke to loud noises and flashes, as well as large helicopters in the sky. Videos began to appear on social media, but without much context. Confusion and rumor flooded social media.

Within an hour, the sky was quiet. US President Donald Trump announced at 4:21 am that his forces had conducted attacks on Venezuela and had seized President Nicolás Maduro Moro and his wife Cilia Flores. A short while later, Venezuela’s Vice President Delcy Rodriquez confirmed that the whereabouts of Maduro and Flores are unknown. The US Attorney General Pamela Bondi confirmed that Maduro and Flores were in the United States and had been charged with “Narco-Terrorism Conspiracy”.

The outcome of this attack on Venezuela is unclear. The government remains in control, even with the President having been kidnapped. The people of Venezuela are in shock but defiant. It is unclear if the United States will strike again, or if the US government has a clear political plan for the aftermath of this strike.

The war against Venezuela

The attack on January 3 is not the first against Venezuela. In fact, the pressure campaign began in 2001 when the government of Hugo Chávez enacted a Hydrocarbons Law in accordance with the sovereignty provisions in the Bolivarian Constitution of 1999. That campaign had the following aspects (this is an illustrative and not a comprehensive list):

1. (2001) US funding of anti-Bolivarian social and political groups through the National Endowment for Democracy and USAID.
2. (2002) US role in the attempted coup d’état.
3. (2002) Creation by USAID’s Office of Transition Initiatives of a Venezuela program.
4. (2003-2004) Funding and political direction for the work of Súmate (led by Maria Corina Machado) to recall Chávez by referendum.
5. (2004) Development of a 5-Point Strategy to “penetrate” Chávez’s base, “divide” Chavismo, “isolate” Chávez, build up groups such as Súmate, and “protect vital US business interests”.
6. (2015) US President Barack Obama signs an executive order that declares Venezuela to be an “extraordinary threat”, which is the legal basis for the sanctions that followed.
7. (2017) Venezuela banned from access to US financial markets.
8. (2018) International banks and shipping companies pressured to over-comply with illegal US sanctions, while the Bank of England seized the Venezuelan Central Bank gold reserves.
9. (2019) Create an “interim” government by “appointing” Juan Guaidó as the US authorized president and organize a (failed) uprising, and freeze Venezuela’s ability to sell oil as well as seize its oil assets overseas.
10. (2020) Attempt to kidnap Maduro through Operation Gideon (and by placing a bounty for his capture), while the US put a “maximum pressure” campaign on Venezuela during the pandemic (including International Monetary Fund denial of Venezuela’s own reserves).
11. (2025) Gift of the Nobel Peace Prize to Maria Corina Machado with the Nobel Committee saying that Maduro should leave office.
12. (2025-2026) The attacks on small boats off the coast of Venezuela, the positioning of an armada to form an embargo of Venezuela, and the seizure of oil tankers from Venezuela.

The attack on January 3 is part of this war that began in 2001 and will continue long after the engines of the Chinook helicopters cool down.

The eagle is angry

When the United States government decides to act unilaterally, whether against Iraq in 2003 or Venezuela between 2001 and 2026, no other force has been able to stop it yet. In 2003, millions of people – including in the United States – marched on the streets to demand no war, and most governments in the world cautioned against the war, but the governments of George W. Bush and Tony Blair (of the United Kingdom, acting as his no. 2) went ahead with their illegal war. This time, major powers informed the United States that a war in South America and the Caribbean would be immensely destabilizing: this was the view of leaders who govern countries that neighbor Venezuela (Brazil and Colombia) and major powers such as China (whose special envoy – Qiu Xiaoqi – met with Maduro only hours before the US attack). Not only could the world not stop the US in 2003, but it has also been unable to stop the US between 2001 and now in its obsessive war for oil against Venezuela.

The attack on Venezuela was timed so that Trump could stand before the US houses of Congress on January 4, when he will give his annual address, and claim that he has scored a major victory. This is not a victory. It is just another example of unilateralism that will not improve the situation in the world. The US illegal war on Iraq ended with the US forced to withdraw after a million civilians had been killed in a ruthless decade; the same transpired in Afghanistan and Libya – two countries ruined by the American Eagle.

It is impossible to imagine a different future for Venezuela if the United States continues with its bombing and sends ground troops into the country. No good comes from these “regime change wars”, and none will come here either. There is a reason why Brazil and Colombia are uneasy with this attack, because they know that the only outcome will be long-term destabilization in the entire northern half of South America, if not in the entire region of Latin America. This is precisely what has transpired in the northern half of Africa (Trump’s bombing of Nigeria is part of the detritus of the 2011 NATO bombing of Libya).

Trump will get his standing ovation at the US Congress, but the price for that has already been paid by hundreds of dead civilians in Venezuela and millions more who are struggling to survive the long-term hybrid war imposed by the United States on Venezuela for the past two decades.

Taroa Zúñiga Silva is a writer and Spanish media coordinator for Globetrotter. She is the director of the publishing house La Trocha and a member of the Mecha cooperative, a project of the Liberation Communication Army. She is co-editor, along with Giordana García Sojo, of the book Venezuela, vortex of the 21st-century war (2020).

Vijay Prashad is an Indian historian, editor, and journalist. He is a member of the editorial board and chief correspondent for Globetrotter. He is editor-in-chief of LeftWord Books and director of the Tricontinental Institute for Social Research. He has written more than 20 books, including Dark Nations and Poor Nations. His most recent books are Fighting Makes Us Human: Learning from Movements for Socialism, The Retreat: Iraq, Libya, Afghanistan, and the Fragility of American Power, and On Cuba: 70 Years of Revolution and Struggle (the latter two co-authored with Noam Chomsky).

This article was written by Globetrotter.

The post The United States attacks Venezuela and kidnaps its president in an illegal operation appeared first on Peoples Dispatch.

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Mayor Mamdani chose the third full day of his tenure to announce that he will complete the full safety redesign of deadly McGuinness Boulevard in Greenpoint — a project that was created under Mayor Bill de Blasio, but watered down by Mayor Adams in a corruption scandal.

By reviving the originally proposed DOT plan, Mamdani said McGuinness Boulevard would be narrowed to one travel lane in each direction between the Pulaski Bridge and the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway to accommodate a parking-protected bike lane. Currently, only the southern portion of the stretch enjoys the benefits of a road diet; north of Calyer Street, the Adams administration maintained two car lanes in either direction of the dangerous stretch.

"The city committed to a redesign of McGuinness Boulevard ... to deliver the safety and improvements that residents had been asking for until the prior administration bowed to big money interests, leaving the project incomplete and Greenpointers still at risk. Today, however, there is a new mayor in City Hall," he said, evoking the "ax" swung by Robert Moses to widen a then-residential street into the McGuinness Boulevard highway we know today.

By MEE staff
Published date: 3 January 2026 09:34 GMT
Last update: 09:11 EST

In a statement, the Venezuelan government said it "rejects, condemns and denounces the extremely serious military aggression" carried out by the US against its territory and population.

"The objective of this attack is nothing other than the seizure of Venezuela’s strategic resources, particularly its oil and minerals, through an attempt to forcibly break the nation’s political independence," the statement said.

"The attempt to impose a colonial war to destroy the republican system of government and force a 'regime change', in alliance with a fascist oligarchy, will fail like all previous attempts," it added.

Trump announced the operation on his Truth Social platform hours after explosions were reported near civilian and military facilities in the capital, Caracas, as well as in the states of La Guaira, Aragua and Miranda.