an hour into this speech, Trump is now ranting about Jim Jordan's ears

“Dokoupil began an interview with a CBS News medical journalist by asking what this expert would say to ‘parents out there who are celebrating,” because they thought their kids were obliged to be injected with too many vaccines.’ ” variety.com/2026/tv/colu...

Five years ago.

This would be highly significant in a democracy

There fireworks in DC this evening Apparently part of "Freedom 250" but probably for Trump to celebrate 5th anniversary of his coup attempt

Justice Dept. Drops Claim That Venezuela’s ‘Cartel de los Soles’ Is an Actual Group Last year, before capturing Maduro, the Trump administration designated a Venezuelan slang term for drug corruption in the military as a terrorist organization and said he led it. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/05/u...

Once again, the opposite of what was said originally.

If the DEA had killed 80 innocent Americans in the course of apprehending one drug dealer, there would be riots. But we are so ghoulishly indifferent to the lives and humanity of people abroad that it's barely even part of the conversation.

A reminder that, in the midst of everything else, the Trump administration is an incredible combination of entitlement and sloppiness. DOJ: "We were too busy invading Venezuela to address your court order, Chief Judge Boasberg." Boasberg: "You didn't even follow the rules in filing this request."

What in the Gestapo is going on in Grand Rapids? Watch this activist get arrested *mid-interview* for speaking out against U.S. action in Venezuela.

::taps sign::

i think people are wildly overestimating the level of strategic thinking behind what just happened in venezuela

NEW: More than 300 judges — including 33 appointed by Trump himself — have now rebuffed the Trump administration’s bid to dramatically expand efforts to lock people up while they fight deportation. www.politico.com/news/2026/01/05/trump-administration-immigrants-mandatory-detention-00709494

So many in media are ill-equipped to interview officials about what’s happening because they begin with the presumption of legitimacy and don’t know enough about history or U.S. foreign policy to foment intelligent pushback and hold officials accountable.

It's really notable that even at this late date in Trump World, people - and George Monbiot is far smarter and more accomplished than me! - are attempting to ascribe normal human motives and logic to Trump and his actions. It was just a thing he did! Like everything else, based on whim.

By framing this brazen act of aggression in euphemistic terms, the media is falling in line with Trump.

Complete nonsense. All made up.

AP calling it “a turnaround after President Donald Trump announced a day earlier that the U.S. would be running Venezuela.” It’s a walk-back, and all the headlines last night were credulous pap. https://apnews.com/live/us-venezuela-trump-maduro-updates-01-04-2026?utm_source=copy&utm_medium=share

Media talking less about how wonderful the military strike/kidnapping was and the brilliance of the US military and more about the plan for the future is actually what matters! Legality? Message to global dictators? Oil politics? Iraq 2.0.....much more important than spewing Pentagon propaganda.

The blatant illegality and the incoherence around what’s next should be the focus of the coverage. Anything else is credulous, enabling stenography.

@djrothkopf.bsky.social’s latest is a must-read. open.substack.com/pub/davidrot...

In an interview with @michaelscherer.bsky.social , Donald Trump threatened Venezuela’s interim leader, Delcy Rodriguez, with a fate worse than Maduro’s; defended regime change in the country; and expressed renewed interest in the U.S. seizing Greenland.

I don't see what's hard about telling Americans the truth: The aged lying self-obsessed president who tariffed your stuff while blocking the Epstein Files & taking multiple cognitive tests just started a war you didn't ask for, for no coherent reason other than he thinks it makes him look good on TV

See also: presswatchers.org/2025/04/the-...

Chris Murphy: "Clearly this is wildly illegal. This is a president who has been operating illegally since he was sworn in -- stealing from the American people, seizing spending power, now dragging America into a war overseas ... Donald Trump's entire foreign policy is corrupt."

So far the media has sanewashed the incompetence and incoherence, but they can’t do that forever.

The ethical and legal damage will be with us forever but it’s the raging incompetence that will strike first, within the next few days.

Do we know yet how many Venezuelan people were killed in our name for their oil? I don't remember this much ambiguity over something so enormous, honestly ever. If you have any suggestions for international news sources that aren't cowed to US leadership, I'd appreciate it. TIA

Pretty good questions frm Brennan. She should also have pointed out that he wasn’t answering them. www.cbsnews.com/news/marco-r...

Former Rubio contact says he isn't Paul Bremer in Iraq: “We’re going to tell them: ‘Hey, this is what you have to do in order for there not to be another strike...That’s what [Trump] sees as running the country.'”

This is the perfect illustration of the emptiness of political reporting that stresses “access” Trump picked up the phone, but didn’t say anything. What a scoop! You got proof of life! Yay!

Trump must be very happy with the elite media coverage, which has by and large been breathless. For shame.

Every major free speech org has said the IHRA definition suppresses constitutionally protected speech. Every major human rights group has said it suppresses legitimate advocacy. The scandal is that Adams adopted the definition, not that Mamdani rejected it. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/04/n...

It strikes me that a reporter who's exuberant about a source telling him nothing wouldn't be the best interviewer

Nearly 24 hours is the answer: bsky.app/profile/atru...

we got so played

@maddow.bsky.social: “There are very few Americans right now who have any idea why the United States did this. If this was about drug trafficking then why did President Trump just pardon the former President of Honduras who was convicted of sending hundreds of tons of drugs into the US?”

This is sanewashing of the highest order.

It’s been clear for many hours now that Trump isn’t and won’t be “running” Venezuela. But because he said it, the elite media headlines it anyway.

Unfortunately, the same can be said of the NBC Nightly News tonight: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=213s-MHCe3o

Indeed, the media is sanewashing the incoherence away.

Nightmarish. CBS News is now running straight state propaganda. They handed Hegseth all three segments and are now tweeting flattering sound bites.

"Nobody can stop me." - The real Trump doctrine (Thanks John Roberts!)

This intro could have come directly from the White House. Not an iota of skepticism or pushback, just rah-rah.

The Chicago protest against the U.S. attack on Venezuela has stepped off to march through the downtown area. Hundreds have joined the march.

First minute of Tony Dokoupil's debut as CBS anchor is pure Trump propaganda, showing only celebration of Trump's kidnapping, plus illiterate grammar: "Commandos raiding his compound before dawn grabbing he and his wife in their pajamas." No, Tony, grabbing *him*. He's all jaw.

Quick update for US media: the story is not about Maduro or what’s going on in Venezuela. It’s about the massive rupture in US history where the country now stands for invading and occupying any country it likes. Trump in his press conference made it very clear this is a new age. Did you miss that?

It appears the only move to "run" Venezuela was to call Maduro's vice-president, who ran much of the regime's oppressive security services. That means either Trump will get angry at looking foolish & truly invade or, more likely, he'll claim he was being sarcastic. apnews.com/article/vene...

But the media will sanewash the incoherence away. Sad.