"Sir, May I See You Please?" Trump's Latest Claim On PM Modi

01/07/26 6:33 PM

US President Donald Trump said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi directly raised an issue with him over the delivery of American-made Apache helicopters and called him "sir".

'Does anybody believe this guy?' Mark Kelly rips Stephen Miller on CNN

01/06/26 11:16 PM

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) criticized White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller Tuesday after his comments about Venezuela and Greenland following the attack and capture of ousted president Nicolás Maduro. Kelly, a veteran and Armed Services Committee member, was responding to questions from CNN anchor Jake Tapper, who wanted to know what Kelly made of Miller's comments Monday night and what potential plans the Trump administration has for the South American country."Does anybody believe this guy?" Kelly asked, responding to the comments from Miller, who, nearly 24 hours ago, got in a testy conversation with Tapper after the anchor started asking Miller if Venezuela should hold elections to select a new leader instead of handing the country over to one of Maduro's underlings."I mean, he obviously does not. They don't do not have a plan. They need to have a plan," Kelly said."Venezuela used to be a democracy, right. And we should be at this point making efforts to help them get back to a democracy, to have a democratically elected government running Venezuela," he added. "We do not want to be in the business of running this other country. And by the way, regime change generally has not worked out well for us. Look at South Vietnam, Cuba, Libya, Iraq, Afghanistan. It usually does not go the way that we we hope. And it often puts service members in harm's way."

'Everybody loses': MIT expert blasts Trump for creating a massive new 'mess'

01/06/26 7:22 PM

The short-term plan Donald Trump has for Venezuela has been denounced as a "mess" by a climate expert. While the president has made it clear that oil is a leading factor in the U.S. strike on Venezuela, the administration may have trouble putting together its immediate plans for the country. The U.S. would capture President Nicolás Maduro too, with the Venezuelan leader flown to the United States, where he is now on trial for drugs, weapons and narco-terrorism charges. He pleaded not guilty.A climate expert has since warned that the short-term plan Trump will enact will cause major damage to the world, in a situation where "everybody loses." John Sterman, an expert in climate and economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, spoke to The Guardian about the administration's doomed plan for change in Venezuela.He said, "If oil production goes up, climate change will get worse sooner, and everybody loses, including the people of Venezuela. The climate damages suffered by Venezuela, along with other countries, will almost certainly outweigh any short-term economic benefit of selling a bit more oil."There could be some roadblocks for investors, though, as Sterman went on to suggest there is "political risk" and "project risk" involved in possible benefactors. While Trump may claim oil executives are keen on the plan for Venezuela, Sterman has suggested those same people may not be "eager to invest what’s needed because it will take a lot longer than the three years of President Trump’s term".Patrick Galey, head of fossil fuel investigations at the climate and justice NGO Global Witness, also suggested the president's oil executives' backing may be hindered by the limited assurances he can offer. Galey said, "So long as governments continue to rely on fossil fuels in energy systems, their constituents will be hostage to the whims of autocrats.""Any meaningful increase in current production would require tens of billions of investment in things like repairs, upgrades and replacing creaking infrastructure. That’s not even taking into account the dire security situation." He added it was "a bad bet generally" for oil executives to involve themselves in the promised Venezuelan takeover.

'Expect fireworks': Mark Kelly floors CNN with blistering response to Hegseth

01/06/26 9:02 PM

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) issued a blistering response to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth Tuesday after he has attempted to seek revenge on the Arizona senator and threatened demote him from his military rank.Kelly, a member of the Armed Services Committee, partnered with several other Democrats and former military and intelligence officers to warn military members not to follow any illegal orders in a video and expects that it will come up Wednesday during a Senate hearing, CNN's Manu Raju reported."Talk about how this is a law enforcement operation. But if, in fact, 150 airplanes were used from multiple services, it feels, you know, less to me, law enforcement and more like a military operation," Kelly said. "Let me make it perfectly clear. This letter or anything that Pete Hegseth says or does to me, is in no way going to affect the way I do my job and represent my constituents in the United States Senate. Ain't happening. So, you know his option, you know, right now, is he can continue with this kind of bull----, or he can go take a hike. That's his options. And if I have an opportunity to, you know, tell him that tomorrow, maybe I will." Most members of Congress have reportedly had zero briefings on the operation in Venezuela, Raju added. "And that last comment referring to that feud that is ongoing with the Secretary of Defense," Raju said. "So expect some fireworks potentially in these Senate and House briefings that will take place tomorrow. Because a lot of questions persist, particularly among Democrats who say that the administration has been far less forthcoming about its plans in Venezuela."

'Fatal flaw' in Trump's Venezuela move threatens to trigger horrific spiral: analysis

01/05/26 12:31 PM

President Donald Trump's strike on Venezuela and his capturing of President Nicolás Maduro has a "fatal flaw," according to a political analyst. Trump's administration confirmed the capture of Maduro after military strikes Saturday. He has since been flown to the U.S. Though the attack and capture had been authorized by Trump, it sets a dangerous precedent for the U.S. and the administrations' involvement in future world politics, according to The New York Times' David French.French suggested the admin's excuse for the strike is "laughable" and that the "fatal flaw" Trump and his team failed to note was the possibility of such an action spilling into all-out war. French wrote, "Trump has embraced the Donroe Doctrine enthusiastically," giving a new name to the historic Monroe Doctrine that declared that the United States would not tolerate European colonial expansion or political interference in the Americas and would regard any such attempt as a threat to American peace and safety."He’s engaged in economic warfare against Canada and Mexico. He’s said that Canada should be America’s 51st state. He has designs on Greenland, part of the sovereign territory of Denmark, a NATO ally."That brings us back to the fatal flaw of running the world through spheres of influence and the amoral approach to war as an extension of policy. Smaller nations don’t want to be dominated by the strong, and strong nations don’t want to see their rivals get stronger. So they make alliances. "In 1914, Serbia had Russia, and Belgium had Britain. In 1939, Poland had France and Britain. That’s exactly how regional conflict turned into global war."The administration's excuse for the strike could set a dangerous precedent for future strikes, French noted. "This defense is laughable," he wrote. "Under that reasoning, a president could transform virtually any war into a law enforcement operation by indicting opposing leaders and claiming that the large military forces needed to secure the leader’s arrest were simply protecting law enforcement. That’s not an argument; it’s an excuse."Not only could Trump have set a new standard for intervention from the US, but he could have bolstered the likes of China and Russia to act accordingly in Taiwan and Ukraine respectively. French added, "The worse argument is to say that Trump set a precedent with his intervention in Venezuela — a precedent that nations such as Russia, China and Iran will be eager to follow in their own respective spheres of influence, and we will have no standing to object when our adversaries take the same approach to countries in their spheres of influence that we took in ours."But Vladimir Putin’s Russia, Xi Jinping’s China and revolutionary Iran have never had the slightest concern for just war theory or any moral argument. They’re held in check (to the extent they are) by deterrence, or, when deterrence fails, raw military force."

'Foolishly Did Not Give Me Nobel': Trump Attacks Norway Over 'Ending' 8 Wars

01/07/26 9:14 PM

In scathing criticism on Truth Social, US President Donald Trump targeted NATO nations after Denmark warned that an attack by America would mean the end of NATO.

'He just did': MAGA ally gets ice-cold fact check for saying Trump isn't 'dropping troops'

01/07/26 3:12 PM

CNN's John Berman clashed with one of President Donald Trump's top MAGA allies in Congress over the possible use of force to take control of Greenland.The White House said Tuesday the president is "discussing a range of options," including a purchase or military action, to acquire the Danish territory after invading Venezuela and capturing its leader and his wife, and the "CNN News Central" host asked Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) whether he supported using the military to take over Greenland."Well, first of all, I'm not interested in using military force, I want to be clear on that," Donalds said. "But let's also talk through what you just said. Congress does have the ability to declare war, you are correct. But the constitutional convention, they actually had a major debate about declaring war or making war, and there are two words that were used, and in the constitutional convention, they removed from the original draft of the constitution the word make to move towards the word declare, and the reason why was because the delegates at the constitutional convention 250 years ago, what they realize is that you cannot dictate foreign policy, military maneuvers from the halls of Congress."Donalds argued the framers did not want the House of Representatives, which he said was slated to be around 65 to 70 seats, debating military action and instead reserved that authority for the executive branch, and he argued that Trump had not often invoked that authority."I would also stress to the American people, look at Donald Trump's track record when it comes to foreign policy," Donalds said. "Has he been dropping troops all across the globe doing A, B and C? No, he has not. He has actually pursued peace through strength, trying to end global conflicts, which is a stark contrast from the previous administration, which inflamed global conflicts."Berman seemed perplexed by the congressman's claim."I will note in just the last week, the president has, despite what you said, dropped troops in Venezuela," Berman said, preparing to end the segment. "But it is always nice to speak with you."Donalds cut in before producers could introduce a commercial break."Real quick – John, John, John, John, real quick, John," Donalds interjected. "Real quick, real quick point. To that point, John. No, no, it's not a point, but it's – John, is a clarification. The Biden administration put a $50 million bounty, I think it's $50 million, on Nicolás Maduro. Democrats on Capitol Hill wanted Nicolás Maduro out of Venezuela, and the only reason why they're complaining right now is because Donald Trump actually –""I'm not talking about complaints," Berman said. "You just said that he hasn't been dropping troops. He just did. Congressman Byron Donalds, great to speak with you. Thank you very much." - YouTube youtu.be

'High seas drama!' Internet lights up as US seizes Russia-backed tanker near Venezuela

01/07/26 2:49 PM

Wednesday morning brought an explosive new development in Venezuela, as U.S. forces moved to seize an oil tanker near Venezuela which was protected by a Russian submarine. U.S. officials said that the tanker was flying a false flag and was sanctioned for illegally carrying Iranian oil, per the Wall Street Journal.The news was met with a wide range of reactions — some of them critical, but others approving."US now seizing Venezuela-linked oil tanker Marinera (ex-Bella 1), Russian-flagged, after 2-week Atlantic pursuit," wrote Democratic strategist and Suffolk County legislator Jon Cooper. "It evaded blockade, resisted Coast Guard boarding—with Russian navy (incl. sub) nearby. High-seas drama escalating!""This is piracy under the law of nations," argued George Conway, a Never Trump attorney now running for Congress in New York as a Democrat. "And under section 1651 of title 18 of the United States Code, piracy under the law of nations is punishable by life imprisonment."Many did not share his view, however. Indeed, a great deal of support came from pro-Ukraine internet activists, who saw it as a massive blow against the Kremlin's illicit activities."The US seizing a russian tanker should show Europe how to deal with Russia," wrote pro-Ukraine activist Akash Maniam. "Force, not appeasement. Strength, not weakness. Call russia's bluff and put them in their place."Another such activist, "Kate from Kharkiv," posted chats of pro-Russian bloggers raging against the seizure, and writing, "Russian propaganda bloggers already crying about seized tanker."

'No basis in reality': Nobel Prize winner calls Trump's new deal 'unrealistic fantasy'

01/07/26 12:50 PM

Donald Trump's hopes for the future of Venezuela have been ridiculed by a Nobel Prize winner who called the vision an "unrealistic fantasy".Economist Paul Krugman dismissed Trump's projection for Venezuela following strikes on the country by the US and capturing of President Nicolás Maduro. Writing in his Substack, the Nobel Prize winner suggested the "lucrative prize" Trump is holding out for in Venezuela is not as easy to achieve as the president is making it out to be. Krugman wrote, "In short, Trump’s belief that he has captured a lucrative prize in Venezuela’s oil fields would be an unrealistic fantasy even if he really were in control of a nation that is, in practice, still controlled by the same thugs who controlled it before Maduro was abducted."Further claims made by Trump have "no basis in reality", according to the economist, who warned a promise made to oil executives over financial reimbursement cannot be fulfilled. Krugman wrote, "On Monday Trump suggested that he might reimburse oil companies for investment in the nation he claims — with no basis in reality — to control, reimbursing them for their outlays there." "That is, we’ve gone in a matter of days from big talk about huge money-making opportunities to a proposal to, in effect, subsidize oil-industry investments in Venezuela at U.S. taxpayers’ expense."The Nobel Prize winner went on to say Trump's thoughts on oil as a "precious asset" for the US is majorly out of date. He wrote, "At a deeper level, Trump’s apparent belief that oil in the ground is a precious asset is decades out of date. These days oil is cheap by historical standards.""Oil prices are low mainly because of increased supply due to fracking, and the potential for more fracking is likely to keep them low for the foreseeable future. "The breakeven price of fracked oil — the price at which it’s just profitable to drill a new well — is around $62 a barrel in the most important U.S. producing regions. While global oil prices fluctuate, they tend to return to that breakeven price after a few years:"

'Stunning moment': CNN anchor taken aback by Maduro's words inside courtroom

01/05/26 9:20 PM

A CNN anchor was shocked by Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro's reaction to a protester's comment inside a Manhattan courthouse on Monday. CNN's Boris Sanchez spoke with CNN legal analyst and attorney Laura Coates about a moment that happened at the end of the hearing after Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, pleaded not guilty. "There have been protests right off camera where there were people who were debating the legality of having removed him from Venezuela, others who were talking about Maduro, others who were talking about no blood for oil. There is a variety of opinions," Coates said. "But inside that courtroom, one of our news associates witnessed a protestor at the very end as they were being escorted out, stand up and confront Maduro and essentially tell him, 'you will pay for what you have done.' Maduro, responding to this person, pointing his finger up towards the sky, telling him he is a man of God and remains the president of the Republic of Venezuela," Coates added. Sanchez paused for a moment, then responded. "A really stunning moment inside that courtroom. Laura Coates, Evan Perez, thank you both so much," Sanchez said.