Day: January 5, 2026

The Hill   Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said Sunday that after the U.S. captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, Cuba’s communist regime may be on the way out. “There’s no way that the communist dictatorship in Cuba survives after the takedown of Maduro. It is over, it’s just a matter of time,” Graham told host Trey Gowdy on Fox News’s “Sunday Night in America.”   President Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One Sunday that the Cuban regime is “ready to fall.” Cuba, a close ally of Venezuela, is heavily reliant on oil imports from the South American nation. READ THE FULL STORY                 

Breitbart   Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) on Monday said he is “not averse” to a deal that would address high healthcare costs and potentially extending enhanced Obamacare subsidies.  Thune said he is “not averse” to a compromise that includes a pared-back extension of the Obamacare subsidies. The Senate Republican leader spoke as Sens. Bernie Moreno (R-OH), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), and Susan Collins (R-ME) have continued bipartisan talks to address the expiration of the enhanced Obamacare subsidies. Moreno and Collins have proposed legislation that would extend the enhanced Obamacare subsidies and reform them to ensure that the pandemic-era benefit phases out for Americans making over $200,000 per year, ensuring it is only helps those that need it most. READ THE FULL STORY                 

CBS News   The Trump administration has begun a massive deployment of hundreds of Department of Homeland Security agents to the Twin Cities area as it escalates its federal crackdown amid a widening fraud scandal in Minnesota, multiple law enforcement officials familiar with the plan told CBS News. The crackdown could involve roughly 2,000 agents and officers from Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s deportation branch and Homeland Security Investigations, the agency’s investigative arm tasked with fighting transnational crimes, the officials said. They requested anonymity to discuss operations that have not been publicly announced. The plan is for the agents and officers to oversee a 30-day surge in operations in the Twin Cities area, making the region the first major target of the Trump administration’s expanded immigration crackdown in the new year, officials said. Agents deployed from Homeland Security Investigations are expected to probe alleged cases of fraud, building on last month’s inspection of dozens of sites in the Minneapolis area. READ THE FULL STORY                 

CNBC   Stocks rose on Monday even after the U.S.′ attack on Venezuela and capture of leader Nicolas Maduro as crude oil prices saw gains and investors bet the action would not lead to bigger geopolitical conflicts that upset markets. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 594.79 points, or 1.23%, to close at 48,977.18. The 30-stock index also hit a new all-time high in the session. The S&P 500 advanced 0.64% and ended at 6,902.05. The Nasdaq Composite added 0.69%, settling at 23,395.82. Energy stocks led the gains on the notion the companies would benefit from rebuilding Venezuela’s oil infrastructure. Chevron surged 5.1% and was seen as the biggest beneficiary because of its current presence in Venezuela, which has the largest proven oil reserves in the world. Exxon Mobil added 2.2%. Shares of oilfield services companies that could aid the Venezuela energy rebuild like Halliburton and SLB moved higher by 7.8% and nearly 9%, respectively. The State Street Energy Select Sector ETF (XLE) increased almost 3%. READ THE FULL STORY