Nicolas Maduro Transported To Court Hearing

Venezuela Has Been Dealt With. Somali Scammers Should Be Next.

Donald Trump

Marco Rubio

Matt Walsh

Nicolas Maduro

Opinion

Pete Hegseth

Somalia

U.S. Military

Venezuela

2026 is the year of clarity. All the veils are going to fall. People are going to show you who they are.
That can be frightening. Sometimes it&#8217;s difficult to deal with the realities of life, the realities of people you once trusted, showing themselves to be something else. It can also be surprising and heartening because sometimes people show themselves to be a lot better than you thought they were.
But this year, events in the United States and the world more broadly are going to unmask nearly everyone.
Why?
Because we are on the precipice of something pretty big. And when big things happen, when the world becomes more chaotic, people reveal themselves. Adversity reveals character.
And we&#8217;re about to experience some adversity as Americans.
Where will that adversity come from? It could come from the international sphere. Adversity may spring from China&#8217;s authoritarian ambitions against Taiwan, or its global desire to expand power bases from Africa to Latin America. Already, we&#8217;ve seen some politicians and commentators shying away from revealing the realities about China, fearful that doing so could undercut their delusional vision of a world in which America in retreat is somehow good rather than harmful.
Adversity could arise from the continued conflict between Russia and Ukraine, or from Russia&#8217;s growing ambitions in the region as well as globally. Many figures are already revealing themselves in their views of Russia, often evidencing shocking blindness toward what Russia is, what Russia wants, up to and including full-scale propagandizing on behalf of a tyrannical regime steeped in hatred toward the values of the United States.
Adversity could come from Iran&#8217;s continued pursuit of nuclear weapons and international terrorism, or its desperate desire to stave off internal regime change, or from its propaganda arms in Qatar and elsewhere, pushing anti-Western, anti-American bull****.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-2339-the-ben-shapiro-show?elementPosition=4&amp;row=2&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-large wp-image-974957" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1024x171.webp" alt="DailyWire+" width="1024" height="171" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1024x171.webp 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-300x50.webp 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-768x128.webp 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-1536x256.webp 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/09/511983dad25841c8b1ec058d75769bbe-2048x341.webp 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a>
Many politicians and commentators are already showing themselves willing to do anything and everything on behalf of such regimes, up to and including flying cover for radical Islam.
Adversity might emanate from chaos in our southern hemisphere — where rogue states like Venezuela were pursuing deeper relations with our enemies until President Trump acted — or from Europe, where unchecked immigration combined with regulatory overreach threatens to doom an entire continent to stagnation and disarray.
It could come from any other variety of sources on the foreign front.
The world is a chaotic place. It&#8217;s a more chaotic place when America is weak, as many on the Left and the Right wish to make it.
Adversity could arise domestically, too. Adversity may come in the form of economic turmoil. While the economy right now appears to be in pretty good shape, no one knows how the current AI investment cycle will play out in the short term.
And economic turmoil brings with it political vultures. Already, we&#8217;ve seen some conservatives turning away from the defense of free markets in favor of statism. That seems more familiar from the Left, and we see leftists embracing the most extreme versions of wealth seizure and collectivist centralization.
Adversity will certainly originate in the size and scope of our massive and bureaucratic government, which provides extraordinary obstacles to American achievement and overwhelming support to people who are willing to steal from their fellow Americans.
Adversity will certainly come, too, in the form of reactionary posturing. Lies told by the Left will be mirrored in lies told by the Right and vice versa, resulting in a continued spiral of conspiratorial polarization, totally disconnected from the actual lives of most Americans. Already, we&#8217;ve seen cynical politicians and morally corrupt commentators spew untruths in pursuit of algorithmic momentum, and that is definitely going to accelerate this year.
Politicians and commentators reveal themselves in how they react to adversity. Do they react by telling you the truth, no matter how much their audience might dislike it? Or do they lie to you by telling you the things they think you want to hear? Do they react out of principle or out of convenience? Do they recommend coalition solidarity at the expense of basic decency, integrity, and truth?
In other words, do they treat you like a sucker or do they treat you like a citizen?
Of course, it&#8217;s an election year, and that means that we&#8217;re going to be swamped by lies and prevarication, by a lot of politicians who promise the moon and deliver nothing. We&#8217;ll be swamped, too, by commentators who suggest that political failure results from a general lack of Nietzschean will, rather than the complicated give and take of normal day-to-day politics. And they will argue that if you get more outraged, conspiratorial, and angry, somehow our politics will improve.
How will we Americans react to that adversity, that onslaught of cultivated resentment and Machiavellian manipulation?
The American republic is founded, on the one hand, in a fundamental supposition that human beings are capable of discernment, of acting morally when faced with adversity, of preferring truth to comforting falsehood, and of recognizing our own fallibility.
On the other hand, the American republic is also founded on the reality of the darker side of human nature — our tribalism, our venality, our selfishness.
All of which, when put together, is why our Founders preferred a republic of checks and balances rather than a Francoist dictatorship or a purer democracy.
It&#8217;s why James Madison wrote in Federalist 51:
<blockquote>Ambition must be made to counteract ambition. The interest of the man must be connected with the constitutional rights of the place. It may be a reflection on human nature, that such devices should be necessary to control the abuses of government. But what is government itself, but the greatest of all reflections on human nature? 
If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary. In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself.</blockquote>
In the end, it&#8217;s up to us. We have to become better at discernment. We have to act with humility.
We, the American people, must discern who is telling us the truth, even when we don&#8217;t want to hear it, and who is lying to us out of audience capture or political expediency or sycophancy. We have to work to preserve the checks and balances of our system, even checks and balances that might seem to deprive us of temporary power.
If we don&#8217;t, we risk an authoritarian centralization that turns against basic freedom. What&#8217;s more, we risk an arrogance about our own nature that surely turns to disaster, even if our side seems to have that temporary upper hand.
Most of all, we have to remember this: People who promise utopia, an end to adversity, an end to the chaos and turmoil of life, so long as you give them your trust and your power, are providing you a Faustian bargain in which you receive neither utopia nor freedom.
Those who tell you that your future is not in your hands, and who encourage you to surrender whatever is left of that future to a demoralizing conspiracism, are lying to you, and they are lying to you for their own gain.
You deserve better than that. We all deserve better than that.
So let 2026 be a year of clarity.
Let people reveal themselves for who they are and believe them when they show you.
And may we all approach the adversities of whatever comes our way with the courage, conviction, and decency that make America truly great.

2026flag

2026: The Year Of Clarity

China

Russia

Jan 5 (Reuters) &#8211; Wall Street climbed on Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average hitting an all-time high thanks to surging financial shares, while energy firms jumped after a U.S. military strike that captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
Investors bet Washington&#8217;s move against Venezuela&#8217;s leadership would allow U.S. firms access to the world&#8217;s largest oil reserves. A U.S. embargo on Venezuelan oil remained in full effect, U.S. President Donald Trump said.
The S&amp;P 500 energy index rose to its highest since March 2025 and was last up 2.5%, with heavyweights Exxon Mobil rising 2.4% and Chevron jumping 5.8%.
Weapon manufacturers also advanced after Washington&#8217;s military action. Lockheed Martin rose 2.8% and General Dynamics climbed 3.2%, while the S&amp;P 500 aerospace and defense index rose 1.8% to a record high.
&#8220;Energy stocks are really benefiting from the expectation that President Trump is intending to send them in to do more investment in Venezuela and ultimately make more money for themselves,&#8221; said Rob Haworth, senior investment strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth Management in Seattle.
&#8220;The lack of permanent boots on the ground, the fact that we&#8217;re not permanently engaged, means the broader equity markets are able to set aside what might have been fears of a prolonged engagement,&#8221; Haworth said.
Tesla climbed 4.2% after seven straight sessions of losses. Nvidia dipped 0.6%.
The S&amp;P 500 was up 0.76% at 6,910.73 points.
The Nasdaq gained 0.76% to 23,411.49 points, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.64% at 49,174.91 points.
The S&amp;P 500 financials index rose 2.7% as investors looked to upcoming quarterly reports. Analysts on average see S&amp;P 500 financial companies growing their earnings 6.7% year-over-year in the December quarter.
Goldman Sachs rose 4.8% and JPMorgan Chase added 3.4%, with both banks hitting record highs.
&#8220;The mood has been favoring financial stocks in recent days and as people look beyond tech, this is a sector many are choosing to look toward,&#8221; said Steve Sosnick, chief market analyst at Interactive Brokers.
Wall Street&#8217;s main indexes posted double-digit gains in 2025 for the third consecutive year, a run last seen in 2021.
Data showed U.S. manufacturing contracted more than expected in December, extending a 10-month slump.
The spotlight will now be on the monthly nonfarm payrolls on Friday, which could influence the Federal Reserve&#8217;s monetary policy in 2026.
Markets are pricing in about 60 basis points of interest rate easing this year, according to LSEG.
Cryptocurrency-linked shares advanced as bitcoin hit a more than three-week high.
Strategy, formerly MicroStrategy, climbed 4.6%, while Coinbase gained 8.6%. Goldman Sachs upgraded Coinbase to &#8220;buy&#8221; from &#8220;neutral.&#8221;
Advancing issues outnumbered falling ones within the S&amp;P 500 by a 2.4-to-one ratio.
The S&amp;P 500 posted 58 new highs and 10 new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 103 new highs and 45 new lows.
(Reporting by Purvi Agarwal and Nikhil Sharma in Bengaluru, and by Noel Randewich in San Francisco; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli and David Gregorio)

Stock Market

Dow Hits Record, Energy Stocks Surge After U.S. Strikes Venezuela

Economy

Trump Administration

Over a dozen sanctioned oil tankers left port over the weekend in what appears to be an attempt to evade the U.S. blockade around Venezuela following the capture of Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro, according to multiple reports.
At least 16 tankers disguised or hid their locations after leaving Venezuelan ports in the wake of U.S. forces capturing Maduro, The New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/05/world/americas/oil-tankers-venezuela-blockade.html">reported</a>. Four of the fleeing tankers appeared to leave Venezuela on Saturday, shortly after Maduro was detained by U.S. forces, and traveled north of Margarita Island, according to Reuters, which cited satellite images used by TankerTrackers.com.
Some of the tankers have used a tactic called &#8220;spoofing,&#8221; which means they use fake ship names and misrepresent their positions. Reuters reported that most of the supertankers that left port typically transport crude oil to China.
Four tankers that left port on Saturday were not authorized to do so, according to internal communications from Venezuela&#8217;s state-owned oil company, PDVSA, according to the Times. Reuters, however, cited a source with knowledge of the paperwork who said that Venezuelan authorities cleared at least four tankers to leave the country and hide their whereabouts.
A U.S. official did not confirm or deny reports of sanctioned oil tankers attempting to evade the blockade, telling The Daily Wire that the blockade remains in effect and is &#8220;focusing on sanctioned shadow vessels transporting sanctioned PDVSA oil.&#8221;
Twelve other sanctioned oil tankers that fled in recent days have yet to be spotted. The departures could challenge President Donald Trump&#8217;s massive blockade of sanctioned oil tankers, which went into effect on December 16.
Following the capture of Maduro on Saturday, Trump said that the blockade would remain in full force. Secretary of State Marco Rubio added on Sunday that the &#8220;quarantine&#8221; on Venezuelan oil would &#8220;remain in place.&#8221;
&#8220;That means their economy will not be able to move forward until the conditions that are in the national interest of the United States and the interests of the Venezuelan people are met. And that’s what we intend to do. So that leverage remains, that leverage is ongoing, and we expect that it’s going to lead to results here. We’re &#8230; hopeful that it does – positive results for the people of Venezuela, but ultimately, most importantly, for us in the national interest of the United States,&#8221; Rubio said.
The United States <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-admin-drops-video-showing-u-s-forces-swarming-oil-tanker-off-venezuelan-coast">seized</a> one sanctioned oil tanker used by Venezuela in December, and U.S. forces boarded another tanker around 10 days later. The oil tanker seized by the United States on December 10 was involved &#8220;in an illicit oil shipping network supporting foreign terrorist organizations,&#8221; according to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi. Trump said that the United States would keep the oil the tanker was transporting.
The U.S. blockade was part of a military buildup in the Caribbean that ultimately led to the capture of Maduro over the weekend. After Maduro was in U.S. custody, President Trump said that the United States would take control of Venezuela until a peaceful transition of power could take place.

VENEZUELA-US-DIPLOMACY-CONFLICT-OIL

Sanctioned Oil Tankers Flee Venezuela In Dark Mode After Maduro’s Capture

The found of Origin USA, an apparel brand proudly manufactured in the United States, has an idea about why Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro was seen wearing a blue hoodie made by his company.
The CEO of the Maine-based company posted a video on Sunday describing what happened after footage of Maduro’s perp walk went viral.
“Last night, my phone blew up and I figured I was really the only one that could talk about this because my company, Origin, happens to make this hoodie,” Roberts <a href="https://x.com/originbjj/status/2007980338430284250?s=46">said</a> in a video gaining traction on X. “When my phone blew up last night, I had to figure out if this was AI or not, and I decided very quickly it was not.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Here&#8217;s why Maduro is wearing our hoodie.<a href="https://twitter.com/originpete?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@originpete</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/jockowillink?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@jockowillink</a> <a href="https://t.co/Ffu9OD7Lt0">pic.twitter.com/Ffu9OD7Lt0</a>
— ORIGIN (@ORIGINBJJ) <a href="https://twitter.com/ORIGINBJJ/status/2007980338430284250?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 5, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
“Why is this dude wearing an <a href="https://originusa.com/products/brrr-rtx-hoodie?variant=50903288316182">Origin Patriot Blue hoodie</a>?” Roberts wondered, noting the irony, considering that “this logo here on the shirt Maduro is wearing, this is the wave of freedom.”
Roberts shared the story behind that symbol, recalling how he started Origin in 2012 after watching his local community collapse as jobs were lost to overseas factories.
“I had seen my community gutted over the years and hollowed out, and all the manufacturing jobs sent away, sent overseas, and what that left behind was hopelessness,” the company founder said. Origin’s mission, he added, was “the reclamation of our machines and the reshoring and the restoring of our communities.”
<a class="c-link c-link--focus-visible c-link--underline" href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_content=christmassale25" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=christmas&amp;utm_content=christmassale25" data-sk="tooltip_parent">Christmas Sale – Get 40% off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
Origin operates multiple U.S. locations, including a footwear factory in Maine and a denim factory in North Carolina. It produces the hoodie Maduro was wearing, which Roberts said may have been given to the dictator to compensate for the chilly New York weather.
“I think what I believe happened is he landed in New York and it was very cold outside, and what they did is they put on a hoodie on him,” he continued.
The final irony wasn’t lost on Roberts. “Probably a DEA agent slipped this hoodie on him and said, ‘you’re going to feel the fabric of freedom on American soil,’” he speculated. Whether intentional or not, the image of Maduro wearing a symbol of American manufacturing and freedom in patriot blue will not be forgotten.

Maduro in hoodie

Maduro Pictured In ‘Wave Of Freedom’ Hoodie Made By Company Fighting To Revive The American Dream

America

Business

Freedom

Global Politics

World

The Trump administration isn’t stopping its mass deportation effort following the arrest of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro, The Daily Wire has learned.
The Department of Homeland Security told The Daily Wire on Monday that deportation flights to Venezuela have not paused as the United States continues to help the country find stability.
The Trump administration’s deportation campaign has focused on Venezuelan nationals after the Biden administration ushered in a record wave of migrants from the South American country.
As part of the deportation operation, Trump administration officials previously successfully pushed the Maduro regime to accept removal flights from the United States after they stopped under the Biden administration.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
“The great news for those who are here from Venezuela on Temporary Protected Status is that they can now go home with hope for their country.&#8221; <a href="https://twitter.com/TriciaOhio?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TriciaOhio</a>
President Trump is bringing stability to Venezuela. Secretary Noem ended Temporary Protected Status for more than 500,000… <a href="https://t.co/8EmcE1XZ0y">pic.twitter.com/8EmcE1XZ0y</a>
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) <a href="https://twitter.com/DHSgov/status/2008174353897181388?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 5, 2026</a></blockquote>
The agency has also encouraged the roughly 500,000 Venezuelans whose Temporary Protected Status was recently revoked to leave the United States on their own.
“The great news for those who are here from Venezuela on Temporary Protected Status is that they can now go home with hope for their country,” Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Fox News Sunday.
It remains unclear which diplomatic channels the United States is pursuing to ensure Venezuela continues accepting the deportation flights.
President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One Sunday that the United States is “in charge” of Venezuela, adding that there would be elections there “at the right time.”
“We’re in the business of having countries around us that are viable, successful and where the oil is allowed to freely come out, because that’s good, it gets the prices down. That’s good for our country,” Trump said. “This is Venezuela, our area, the ‘Donroe Doctrine,’” a play on words riffing on the Monroe Doctrine to describe his Trump-branded approach to American leadership in the Western Hemisphere.
Following some tough talk on Maduro’s arrest, the ousted dictator’s second-in-command, Delcy Rodríguez, claimed that she plans to work with the United States in the coming months.
“We extend an invitation to the U.S. government to work together on a cooperation agenda, aimed at shared development, within the framework of international law, and to strengthen lasting community coexistence,” Rodríguez said.
“President Donald Trump: Our people and our region deserve peace and dialogue, not war. That has always been President Nicolás Maduro’s position, and it is the position of all of Venezuela at this moment,” Rodríguez added. “That is the Venezuela I believe in and have dedicated my life to. My dream is for Venezuela to be a great power where all good Venezuelans can come together.”

US Repatriation Flights To Venezuela Resume

Trump Admin Will Not Stop Mass Deportation Flights To Venezuela Even After Maduro’s Capture

Deportation Flights To Venezuela Continue After Maduro's Arrest

Deportations

The <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/media/1422326/dl">indictment</a> brought by the United States against Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro Moros has been released.
It outlines a decades-long racketeering and narco-terrorism conspiracy led by Maduro and high-ranking members of the Venezuelan government. The United States alleges that these individuals transformed the Venezuelan state into a criminal enterprise, known as the Cartel de los Soles (Cartel of the Suns), to traffic thousands of tons of cocaine into America.
“For over 25 years, leaders of Venezuela have abused their positions of public trust and corrupted once-legitimate institutions to import tons of cocaine into the United States,” the indictment states. “Nicolas Maduro Moros, the defendant, is at the forefront of that corruption and has partnered with his co-conspirators to use his illegally obtained authority and the institutions he corroded to transport thousands of tons of cocaine to the United States.”
“Since his early days in Venezuelan government, Maduro Moros has tarnished every public office he has held,” the indictment continues. “As a member of Venezuela&#8217;s National Assembly, Maduro Moros moved loads of cocaine under the protection of Venezuelan law enforcement. As Venezuela&#8217;s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Maduro Moros provided Venezuelan diplomatic passports to drug traffickers and facilitated diplomatic cover for planes used by money launderers to repatriate drug proceeds from Mexico to Venezuela. As Venezuela&#8217;s President and now-de facto ruler, Maduro Moros allows cocaine-fueled corruption to flourish for his own benefit, for the benefit of members of his ruling regime, and for the benefit of his family members.”
The indictment centers on Maduro, whom the U.S. describes as the de facto but illegitimate leader of Venezuela. It details how he and his inner circle used their official positions to protect drug shipments rather than serve the public. Key co-conspirators include:
<blockquote>
Diosdado Cabello Rondón: Minister of the Interior and a powerful military figure.
Ramón Rodríguez Chacín: Former Minister of the Interior and Justice.
Cilia Adela Flores de Maduro: Maduro’s wife and &#8220;first lady,&#8221; accused of brokering bribes for drug traffickers.
Nicolás Ernesto Maduro Guerra (&#8220;Nicolasito&#8221;): Maduro’s son, accused of using state-owned aircraft to transport cocaine.
Héctor Guerrero Flores (&#8220;Niño Guerrero&#8221;): Leader of the violent Tren de Aragua (TdA) criminal organization.</blockquote>
The Venezuelan regime allegedly provided a &#8220;safe haven&#8221; for various designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) and international cartels. These groups operated with impunity on Venezuelan soil in exchange for sharing profits with the regime.
<ul>
<li>FARC &amp; ELN (Colombia): Guerrilla groups that produced the cocaine in Colombia and moved it into Venezuela under military protection.</li>
<li data-path-to-node="8,1,0">Sinaloa Cartel &amp; Los Zetas (Mexico): Acting as the primary distributors, these groups received Venezuelan shipments in Mexico and Central America to move them across the U.S. border.</li>
<li data-path-to-node="8,2,0">Tren de Aragua (TdA): Provided logistics and armed escorts within Venezuela, specifically controlling the coastlines to facilitate maritime shipments.</li>
</ul>
The indictment lists specific instances of high-level corruption spanning from 1999 to 2025:
<ul>
<li data-path-to-node="12,0,0">Diplomatic Cover: As Foreign Minister, Maduro allegedly sold diplomatic passports to traffickers and used diplomatic flights to repatriate drug proceeds from Mexico without law enforcement scrutiny.</li>
<li data-path-to-node="12,1,0">The &#8220;Presidential Hangar&#8221;: Thousands of kilograms of cocaine were allegedly loaded onto planes at the Simon Bolivar International Airport, often utilizing the hangar reserved for the Venezuelan leader.</li>
<li data-path-to-node="12,2,0">Bribery and Violence: The defendants are accused of accepting millions in bribes to protect traffickers, ordering the murder of rival drug bosses, and using state-sponsored gangs (colectivos) to enforce their criminal interests.</li>
<li data-path-to-node="12,3,0">Weapons for Drugs: The regime reportedly supplied FARC and ELN rebels with military-grade weaponry, including machine guns and grenades, to protect the production and transport of cocaine.</li>
</ul>
The grand jury has brought four primary counts against the defendants:
<ol>
<li data-path-to-node="16,0,0">Narco-Terrorism Conspiracy: Knowing and intending to provide pecuniary value to terrorist organizations through drug distribution.</li>
<li data-path-to-node="16,1,0">Cocaine Importation Conspiracy: Planning the manufacture and distribution of over five kilograms of cocaine with the intent to import it into the United States.</li>
<li data-path-to-node="16,2,0">Possession of Machine Guns and Destructive Devices: Carrying and using military-grade weaponry in furtherance of drug trafficking.</li>
<li data-path-to-node="16,3,0">Conspiracy to Possess Machine Guns: Agreeing to provide and use such weapons to protect the enterprise.</li>
</ol>
The United States government seeks the forfeiture of all property and proceeds derived from these crimes.

The United States V. Nicolás Maduro: The ‘Cartel Of The Suns’ Indictment

Courts

Indictment

Maduro

LIVE UPDATES: Maduro Pleads Not Guilty, Says He Was ‘Kidnapped’

Drug Cartels

Rubio

After Secretary of State Marco Rubio sought to clarify President Donald Trump&#8217;s Saturday comment that the United States would &#8220;run&#8221; Venezuela following the capture and extradition of Nicolás Maduro, the president reiterated his position Sunday.
“We&#8217;re dealing with the people. We&#8217;re dealing with the people that just got supported. And don&#8217;t ask me who&#8217;s in charge, because I&#8217;ll give you an answer, and it&#8217;ll be very controversial,” Trump told reporters on board Air Force One. “We&#8217;re in charge.”
Trump added that there would be elections in Venezuela “at the right time.” 
“We&#8217;re going to run it, fix it,” he said. “It&#8217;s a broken country. There&#8217;s no money. There&#8217;s inflation, like we would have had if I didn&#8217;t win this election, we would have been Venezuela on steroids.”
When asked whether he believed America was back in the business of nation-building, Trump said rebuilding the Venezuelan economy would be good for the country. 
“We’re in the business of having countries around us that are viable, successful and where the oil is allowed to freely come out, because that&#8217;s good, it gets the prices down. That&#8217;s good for our country,” Trump said. “This is Venezuela, our area, the ‘Donroe Doctrine,’” a play on words riffing on the Monroe Doctrine to describe his Trump-branded approach to American leadership in the Western Hemisphere. 
Trump said that he was inspired to take action against Maduro because of the drugs coming into the United States from Venezuela. Over the last few months, the War Department has conducted strikes on more than 30 boats suspected of running drugs, many of them coming from Venezuela. Trump said that drugs coming by sea into the United States were down 97%.
During his conversation with reporters, Trump called for Mexico to take more action to stop drug trafficking. 
“You have to do something with Mexico,” Trump said. “Mexico has to get their act together, because they&#8217;re pouring through Mexico, and we&#8217;re gonna have to do something. We&#8217;d love Mexico to do it. They&#8217;re capable of doing it. But unfortunately, the cartels are very strong in Mexico.”
Trump was also asked about Greenland and whether he had any plans to take control there. He said he wanted to focus on Ukraine and Venezuela for the next few months, but believed it was a strategically important country. 
“We need Greenland from a national security situation. It&#8217;s so strategic right now, Greenland is covered with Russian and Chinese ships all over the place,” Trump said. “We need Greenland from the standpoint of national security, and Denmark is not going to be able to do it.”

President Trump Returns To The  White House After Spending Holidays In Florida

Trump Says U.S. Is ‘In Charge’ Of Venezuela, Vows To ‘Run It, Fix It’

Drugs

Executive

Politics

Former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife are charged in the United States, nationwide anti-regime protests in Iran threaten to boil over, and Zohran Mamdani’s term as New York City mayor begins with fresh controversy.
It’s Monday, January 5, 2026, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. Today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below, and the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mrn-260105-member-exclusive">video version</a> can be seen on The Daily Wire:
<iframe style="width: 100%; max-width: 660px; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 10px;" src="https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/maduro-indicted-stateside-mamdanis-reign-begins-1-5-26/id1576594336?i=1000743793469" height="175" frameborder="0" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation"></iframe>
<h2 style="text-align: center;">New Details In Daring Venezuela Raid</h2>
As the dust settles in Venezuela, new <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/its-about-policy-rubio-says-plans-to-run-venezuela-dont-include-direct-government-control">details</a> have emerged surrounding the daring mission to capture dictator Nicolás Maduro. According to the Pentagon, the CIA placed a covert team in Venezuela to track Maduro’s movements, and according to Gen. Dan Caine, find out “how he moved, where he lived, where he traveled, what he ate, what he wore,” etc. President Donald Trump reportedly approved the operation just before Christmas, but it wasn’t until late Friday night that the weather finally cleared, and more than 150 American aircraft took off from 20 bases across the western hemisphere. As helicopters carrying the main extraction team approached the city, a barrage of missiles disabled Venezuelan air defenses, and the capital city went dark — reportedly thanks to an American cyberattack. Moments later, a group of Special Forces operators arrived at Maduro’s compound, where the tyrannical leader and his wife were ultimately captured as they attempted to open the door of a large steel safe room. The entire operation took a little over 2 hours.
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Tehran In Turmoil</h2>
Anti-regime <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/what-to-know-about-irans-deadly-protests-as-uprising-enters-a-sixth-day">protests</a> continue to rock Iran as the government struggles to handle crises at home and internationally. The unrest began over a week ago among merchants in Tehran and has since spread across the capital and into dozens of smaller cities and towns. Demonstrations were initially motivated by economic woes, but the protests have grown into calls for regime change, with protesters chanting phrases such as “Death to Khamenei” and “Freedom, freedom.” Activists are split on what new regime they would like; some have called for democracy, while others have called for a return of the Shah. But activists share in common a renewed resolve after the Iranian regime was decimated during the 12-Day War by Israel and the United States. President Trump has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/eyes-turn-to-iran-as-trumps-state-dept-posts-warning-shots-in-farsi-iran-tests-missile-defense">warned</a> Iran about further intervention should the regime crack down violently on protesters.
<h2 style="text-align: center;">Mamdani’s ‘Collectivist Warmth’</h2>
Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani was sworn in as the new mayor of New York on New Year’s Day, and he’s already imposing some sweeping changes. In <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/we-watched-zohran-mamdanis-insane-socialist-inauguration-so-you-didnt-have-to">remarks</a> at the ceremony, Mamdani touted the “warmth of collectivism” over “frigid” individualism, prioritizing the government&#8217;s role. Mamdani also took some day-one actions, signing orders on <a href="https://www.nyc.gov/mayors-office/news/2026/01/mayor-mamdani-signs-eo-to-revitalize-mayor-s-office-to-protect-t">housing</a> to “stand up to landlords” and making good on a campaign promise to freeze rents. Mamdani also <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/mamdanis-first-act-as-nyc-mayor-dismantle-pro-israel-policies">revoked</a> two executive orders aimed at protecting Jewish New Yorkers, which raised more than a few eyebrows.

MRN_260105_V1

Morning Brief: Maduro Charged, Tehran In Turmoil, & Mamdani’s First Scandal

Morning Brief: More On Venezuela, Tehran In Turmoil, And Mamdani’s ‘Collectivist’ Agenda

Iran

Morning Wire

New York City

Zohran Mamdani

Daniel DiMartino is a fellow at the Manhattan Institute, one of the best think tanks in the country. But what qualifies him to write this piece is not his Ivy League economics degree, but rather the fact that he grew up in Venezuela, where he had a front-row seat to the brutal consequences of socialism.
DiMartino is just one of the millions of Venezuelans that fled Nicolas Maduro&#8217;s regime and were jubilant this weekend after the world learned that the United States had removed Maduro from power. I mean, just <a href="https://x.com/DanielDiMartino/status/2007460524137562395/video/1">listen to the joy in his voice</a> as he reacted to the news early Saturday morning. After hearing that, we knew we needed him to explain that joy to our audience at The Daily Wire.
For DiMartino, the joy is not about getting revenge on Maduro. it&#8217;s about hope for the future of Venezuela. We hope you enjoy. —Brent Scher
***
Venezuelans throughout the world are celebrating after this weekend’s perfectly executed U.S. military operation which captured narco-terrorist tyrant Nicolas Maduro. The morning I woke up to the news of Maduro’s capture was one that I had been dreaming of for my entire life as a Venezuelan who suffered under his regime.
This move by President Trump and his team provides justice, advances America’s and Venezuela’s interests, and could unleash prosperity like we have never seen before in the Western Hemisphere.
Venezuela has been ruled by Maduro’s socialist regime since I was born in 1999. The regime pillaged what was once the richest nation in Latin America. Millions of Europeans in the 1940s and 1950s sought opportunity in places like Caracas in the aftermath of World War II. Millions of Colombians crossed the border to Venezuela for safety from narco-terrorist Marxist guerrillas from the 1970s until the 1990s. Lebanese and Syrian Christians escaped to Venezuela in the 1960s after the Assad family’s takeover. And Americans routinely traveled to Venezuela for tourism and investment opportunities.
After more than two decades of a socialist regime that started out democratically and gradually took absolute power and rigged elections to remain in charge, Venezuela is starving. The country that once drew immigrants and exported oil bled millions of refugees and imports its own gasoline. The Maduro regime, once it ran out of oil, gold, and companies both foreign and domestic to steal, turned to drug trafficking to profit and fund their repression system.
Venezuela, if governed well with a free market economy, has the potential to be wealthier than nations like the United Arab Emirates or Kuwait. It has more oil and it is better positioned, both culturally and geographically.
That should explain why Venezuelans abroad are celebrating openly on social media and in the streets, with mass gatherings spotted all over the United States, but especially in the heart of the Venezuelan diaspora of Miami. Celebrations were held in Argentina, Peru, Colombia, Spain, and Chile, among other countries. The nine million strong Venezuelan diaspora forced into exile by socialism is celebrating this way because we know who Maduro is. We know what his regime did to our families, our economy, and our future. And we know that this moment, however fragile, represents something we were told we would never see: freedom and justice.
What Venezuelans feel today is not bloodlust or vengeance. It is relief. It is gratitude. And above all, it is hope. Gratitude toward the United States, a country that did not throw in the towel when diplomacy, sanctions, and international pressure all failed. Gratitude toward an America willing to defend its own interests while also standing on the right side of history. Gratitude to President Trump for following through on his promise, to Secretary of State Marco Rubio for standing for his values when it mattered, and to Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and all the U.S. servicemen involved who executed an operation perfectly.
The Trump administration understands something many foreign-policy “experts” refuse to admit: Maduro never would have left power voluntarily. He only understands force. He could have chosen the easy life with all the stolen wealth in Moscow, but instead he opted for a New York City jail. Such is life.
But this victory does not mean the danger is over.
As Secretary Rubio acknowledged in multiple interviews, Maduro’s capture, while historic, does not instantly dismantle a criminal system that has entrenched itself in every institution of the Venezuelan state. His regime was never a one-man dictatorship; it is a narco-state network that includes generals, intelligence officials, judges, governors, and foreign terrorist allies. Tren de Aragua, Cuban spies, and Iranian operatives did not disappear overnight. The Venezuelan people inside Venezuela are happy, but scared of the regime.
The next phase matters just as much as the operation itself. A successful transition in Venezuela must be orderly but also relatively fast. The oligarchs in power: Delcy Rodriguez, the nominal vice president, her brother Jorge Rodriguez, Diosdado Cabello, and Vladimir Padrino Lopez, all participate in drug trafficking, terrorism, and are under sanctions and U.S. Department of Justice indictment.
The remaining Maduro cronies in power have the chance to do the right thing. One sign of a good faith transition in the coming weeks will be the release of hundreds of political prisoners, among them my friend Maria Oropeza, a young woman whose “crime” was observing election fraud and leading the opposition in her state. The other sign would be the puppet Supreme Court declaring an “absolute absence” of the president, which would trigger elections according to the socialist constitution. Such elections would allow the most popular leader in the country, Maria Corina Machado, to run, and she would win them by a landslide.
Only with a government led by Machado and not Maduro stooges can the United States guarantee that private oil companies will fork over the billions in investment required to revitalize the oil, electric, and water infrastructure. Exxon, Conoco Phillips, Shell, and BP won’t invest in a country whose government may take their property as soon as Trump leaves office, which is exactly what will happen if a transition isn’t finished by the time the Trump administration ends.
Economically, the upside of success in Venezuela is extraordinary. A post-Maduro Venezuela could become the greatest growth story in the Western Hemisphere’s history. With secure property rights, a privatized oil sector, and a free-market framework, Venezuela could once again attract global investment. Returning to pre-socialism oil production would mean three million barrels of oil per day in additional global output, lowering energy prices for everyday Americans.
A free and prosperous Venezuela would welcome millions of its people back home, stabilizing an entire region overwhelmed by mass migration. It would also weaken criminal networks like Tren de Aragua, reducing the flow of drugs and gang violence into the United States, saving American lives.
This is why President Trump’s decision was not just moral, it was strategic.
Critics predicted catastrophe, imperialism, and endless war. They have been wrong about Venezuela for 25 years, and about Trump for his entire political career. They were wrong when they excused Chávez. Wrong when they normalized Maduro. Wrong when they claimed sanctions alone would work. And wrong now, as they once again ignore the voices of actual Venezuelans in favor of “international law.”
I pray that history will remember this weekend as the moment the world’s longest-running socialist experiment collapsed under the weight of its crimes. For Venezuelans, it is the first real chance to rebuild a country that once welcomed the world, and can do so again.
Justice is here. Freedom is within reach. For the first time in my life, Venezuela’s future feels brighter than its past. I wish that so many people, including my immigrant grandparents, were alive to see this.
Thank you President Trump.
***
Daniel DiMartino is a fellow at the Manhattan Institute.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

US-VENEZUELA-CONFLICT-MADURO

Why Venezuelans Are Dancing In The Streets

Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro&#8217;s second-in-command released a statement on Sunday, dropping the tough tone from earlier statements and claiming that she intends to work hand in hand with the United States in the coming months.
Delcy Rodriguez issued the <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/venezuela-trump-maduro-rcna252177">statement</a> within one day of assuming the top spot in the Venezuelan regime in Maduro&#8217;s absence — which she did almost immediately after U.S. forces swept in and arrested both Maduro and his wife, extraditing them to New York.
&#8220;We extend an invitation to the U.S. government to work together on a cooperation agenda, aimed at shared development, within the framework of international law, and to strengthen lasting community coexistence,&#8221; Rodriguez said.
&#8220;President Donald Trump: Our people and our region deserve peace and dialogue, not war. That has always been President Nicolás Maduro’s position, and it is the position of all of Venezuela at this moment,&#8221; Rodríguez she added. &#8220;That is the Venezuela I believe in and have dedicated my life to. My dream is for Venezuela to be a great power where all good Venezuelans can come together.&#8221;
Rodriguez&#8217;s statement comes just one day after she demanded Maduro&#8217;s return from U.S. custody, calling him &#8220;the only president of Venezuela.&#8221;
Several in President Donald Trump&#8217;s administration appear skeptical that Rodriguez will fully cooperate with the United States, but they have also voiced their willingness to give her a chance to do so.
Trump himself warned, &#8220;If she doesn’t do what’s right, she is going to pay a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro.&#8221;
The president&#8217;s warning marked a change in tone since Saturday, when he&#8217;d seemed optimistic that Rodriguez was ready to work with the United States.
&#8220;She had a long conversation with Marco, and she said, ‘We’ll do whatever you need.&#8217; I think she was quite gracious, but she really doesn’t have a choice. We’re going to have this done right,&#8221; he said.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Sunday that he did not believe the current regime to be &#8220;legitimate&#8221; and that the United States would support a move toward a free and fair election for the Venezuelan people.
&#8220;Ultimately, legitimacy for their system of government will come about through a period of transition and real elections, which they have not had,&#8221; he said during an interview with &#8220;This Week&#8221; anchor George Stephanopoulos on ABC News.
On CNN, Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) shared a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/thrust-into-the-spotlight-maduros-number-2-draws-washingtons-skepticism">similar sentiment</a>: &#8220;I don’t think we can count on Delcy Rodriguez to be friendly to the United States until she proves it.&#8221;
&#8220;There are recent examples of anti-American leaders around the world turning over a new leaf,” Cotton said, citing Libya’s Muammar al-Qaddafi and his 2003 reconciliation with the West. “But they made concrete concessions that benefited the United States. Delcy Rodriguez and other sanctioned and indicted ministers in Venezuela were in league with Maduro until yesterday, so I don’t think we can count on them to be pro-American at all.&#8221;

VENEZUELA-GOVERNMENT-ANTIFASCIST-FORUM

Maduro’s No. 2 Drops Tough Talk, Offers Cooperation With United States

Maduro's No. 2 Drops Tough Talk, Offers Cooperation With United States

Menu