Prepared for the Office of Public Affairs (OPA)
U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Editorial Note: The DHS Daily Briefing is a collection of news articles related to Department’s mission. The inclusion of particular stories is not intended to reflect their importance, nor is it intended to endorse the political viewpoints or affiliations included in news coverage.

The AP [12/19/2025 1:18 AM, Elliot Spagat and Hallie Golden, 31753K] reports President Donald Trump suspended the green card lottery program on Thursday that allowed the suspect in the Brown University and MIT shootings to come to the United States. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a post on the social platform X that, at Trump’s direction, she is ordering the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services to pause the program. “This heinous individual should never have been allowed in our country,” she said of the suspect, Portuguese national Claudio Neves Valente. Neves Valente, 48, is suspected in the shootings at Brown University that killed two students and wounded nine others, and the killing of an MIT professor. He was found dead Thursday evening from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, officials said. Neves Valente had studied at Brown on a student visa beginning in 2000, according to an affidavit from a Providence police detective. In 2017, he was issued a diversity immigrant visa and months later obtained legal permanent residence status, according to the affidavit. It was not immediately clear where he was between taking a leave of absence from the school in 2001 and getting the visa in 2017. Bloomberg [12/19/2025 1:01 AM, Ramsey Al-Rikabi, 18207K] reports Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a post on X that she’s asking US Citizenship and Immigration Services to pause the lottery, officially known as the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program. US authorities earlier identified the shooter as Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, a 48-year-old Portuguese national who was a former student at Brown. Noem said he was granted a green card through the lottery program in 2017. His body was found Thursday after an apparent suicide. Reuters [12/19/2025 12:02 AM, Gursimran Kaur, 36480K] reports that the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program (DV Program) makes up to 50,000 immigrant visas available annually, according to the USCIS website.

Reported similarly:
CBS News [12/19/2025 1:12 AM, Joe Walsh, 39474K]

FOX News [12/18/2025 10:58 PM, Michael Ruiz, Andrea Margolis, 40621K] reports authorities have identified the suspect in Saturday’s mass shooting at Brown University, which left two students dead and nine injured during a finals week review session, as the same man believed to have carried out the murder of a renowned nuclear scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology days later. His name is Claudio Manuel Neves-Valente, according to Providence police. He was found dead Thursday evening, authorities announced at a press briefing Thursday evening, after law enforcement officers in tactical gear were seen outside a storage unit linked to him in Salem, New Hampshire, for hours. Neves-Valente, 48, was a Portuguese national and studied at Brown from the fall of 2000 to the spring of 2001 to study physics, according to Brown President Christina Paxson. But he went on a leave of absence and ultimately withdrew in 2003. A man with the same name was also terminated from a monitor position at the Instituto Superior Tecnico in Portugal in 2000, school records show. Authorities said they believe he is the same person as the killer. That’s also the same university attended by the renowned MIT nuclear physics professor Nuno Loureiro, who suffered fatal gunshot wounds Monday at his home in Massachusetts, about 50 miles away from Brown. Rhode Island authorities said that investigation was being handled by Massachusetts authorities, who would speak for themselves. Leah B. Foley, the United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts, later confirmed that Neves-Valente was suspected in Loureiro’s murder too. "This evening at approximately 9 p.m., federal agents breached a storage locker in Salem, New Hampshire, in search of Claudio Neves-Valente, a Portuguese national we believed shot and killed two Brown University students and an MIT professor in Brookline, Massachusetts," she told reporters in a separate news briefing. "Federal agents found Neves-Valente dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound." The Brown shooting happened around 4 p.m. Saturday at a finals week study session at the Barus and Holley Building on the eastern edge of campus. A motive remains unclear, and the investigation is ongoing, Providence Mayor Brett Smiley told reporters. The building has long hosted physics and engineering classes, according to Paxson. "I think it’s safe to assume that this man, when he was a student, spent a great deal of time in that building for classes and other activities as a Ph.D. student in physics," Paxson said. "He has no current active affiliation with the university or campus presence." Detectives initially questioned a person of interest at a hotel outside town but ruled him out as a suspect, according to authorities. Police spent days canvassing the neighborhood for surveillance video, which turned up images of a person of interest — a masked, stocky figure who stood around 5 feet, 8 inches tall and walked with an odd gait. Susan Constantine, a body language expert, said one key marker is how the person of interest’s right leg bows inward while his toe points outward as he walks. Then they shared images of a second person who they said may have information about the person they were seeking and asked for the public’s help identifying both of them. NewsMax [12/18/2025 11:49 PM, Michael Katz, 4109K] reports Valente arrived at the Salem storage facility one hour after shooting a Massachusetts Institute of Technology nuclear scientist Monday night, according to police at a pair of news conferences late Thursday night in Providence and Boston. Perez said the suspect’s last known address was in Miami and that investigators believe Valente acted alone. He was not a U.S. citizen but a legal permanent resident holding a green card obtained in September 2017 after overstaying a early-2000s student visa. FBI agents, Providence police, and state police surrounded a storage facility in Salem shortly before 7 p.m. ET. Federal prosecutors obtained a warrant to search the facility, New York Times reported, citing an official with knowledge of the situation who requested anonymity. At about 7:47 p.m., multiple law enforcement officials carrying weapons and wearing full tactical gear entered the facility, according to reports. Investigators said they had not ruled out at the time the possibility that the suspect was either hiding inside the unit or had killed himself there. In a late Thursday night news conference in Boston, Valente was confirmed to have also been the suspect in the fatal shooting Monday of an MIT professor in Brookline, Massachusetts. The professor, Nuno Loureiro, a nuclear scientist from Portugal, was pronounced dead Tuesday morning. Loureiro was a member of MIT’s departments of nuclear science and engineering and physics and served as director of the school’s Plasma Science and Fusion Center.

Reported similarly:
Reuters [12/19/2025 2:25 AM, Staff, 36480K]
NBC News [12/19/2025 12:30 AM, Phil Helsel, Tom Winter, Jonathan Dienst and Tim Stelloh, 34509K]
NBC News [12/18/2025 10:08 PM, Staff, 34509K]

Washington Examiner [12/18/2025 11:45 PM, Molly Parks, 1394K] reports the deceased gunman who authorities say murdered Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Nuno Loureiro previously knew and studied with the victim at a Portuguese university. The suspect, Claudio Manuel Neves Valente, 48, was a former Brown University student and Portuguese national. Neves Valente is the suspect in both Loureiro’s murder and the Brown University mass shooting from Saturday, in which he allegedly killed two students and injured nine. U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts Leah Foley confirmed Neves Valente as the suspect in Loureiro’s murder during a press conference Thursday evening. Foley said the gunman and the victim knew each other, but she did not know whether the two had recently been in contact. Neves Valente “attended the same academic program as the MIT professor, Nuno Loureiro, in Portugal, between 1995 and 2000,” Foley said. Loureiro was a professor of physics and of nuclear science and engineering at MIT and was also originally from Portugal.

ABC News [12/18/2025 10:11 PM, Meredith Deliso, 30493K] reports a Wisconsin judge accused of concealing an undocumented man to prevent his arrest by immigration authorities was found guilty of felony obstruction, according to ABC Milwaukee affiliate WISN, which was in the courtroom for the trial. Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan was charged in a two-count federal indictment that alleges she obstructed official Department of Homeland Security removal proceedings and knowingly concealed the man from immigration authorities at a courthouse in April. Dugan was found guilty of obstructing federal agents and not guilty of concealing an undocumented immigrant from arrest during an April courthouse incident. Jury deliberations got underway on Thursday afternoon. Dugan, who pleaded not guilty, could face up to six years in prison if convicted as charged. According to federal prosecutors, Dugan encountered federal agents who were at the Milwaukee County Circuit Court on April 18 to arrest Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, who was appearing in her courtroom on a battery charge. Prosecutors say that after speaking to the agents, Dugan directed them to the chief judge’s office down the hall and then sent Flores-Ruiz and his attorney out a non-public door in an alleged attempt to help him evade arrest on immigration violations. Flores-Ruiz was ultimately captured outside the court building after a brief foot chase. During closing arguments on Thursday, the government portrayed Dugan as a frustrated and angry judge and asked the jurors to hold her accountable for the alleged criminal conduct, according to ABC Milwaukee affiliate WISN, which was in the courtroom for the trial. The defense, meanwhile, argued that the case is an "unjust prosecution" that is "riddled with doubts" and based on "assumptions," according to WISN. The defense also questioned the veracity of the audio evidence, according to WISN. During the weeklong trial, prosecutors produced transcripts and audio recordings that they said showed Dugan telling her court reporter that she would "get the heat" for showing Flores-Ruiz and his lawyer the side exit, WISN reported. Dugan did not testify during the trial. The Wall Street Journal [12/18/2025 11:28 PM, Mariah Timms, 646K] reports that after six hours of deliberations, jurors in Milwaukee found Judge Hannah Dugan guilty of obstructing law enforcement, a felony that carries a maximum sentence of up to five years in prison, but acquitted her on a charge of concealing a man wanted by immigration authorities, in an unusual federal criminal prosecution of a sitting state-court judge. Dugan was arrested and charged in April by federal authorities, who alleged she directed a man to leave her courtroom via a back hallway when she knew immigration officers were in the courthouse. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said Dugan had betrayed her oath. “Nobody is above the law,” he said in a social-media post Thursday night. “This Department will not tolerate obstruction, will enforce federal immigration law, and will hold criminals to account—even those who wear robes.” Attorneys for Dugan didn’t immediately return a request for comment. During a four-day trial in Milwaukee, jurors heard from Dugan’s fellow judges, law-enforcement officers and attorneys who practice in the Milwaukee area about the court’s approach to dealing with ramped-up immigration enforcement and Dugan’s actions that day. Reuters [12/18/2025 11:09 PM, Andrew Goudsward and Diana Novak Jones, 36480K] reports that the unusual case put a judge on trial for actions she took in her courtroom while overseeing cases and reflects tensions over the Trump administration’s use of courthouses to stage arrests by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The prosecution stemmed from a directive by the Justice Department ordering prosecutors to pursue cases of alleged obstruction of ICE enforcement by local activists and officials resisting Trump’s drive for mass deportations. Prosecutors alleged that Dugan intended to help a migrant from Mexico, Eduardo Flores-Ruiz, escape an immigration arrest when he was scheduled to appear before her on domestic violence charges. They said she diverted federal agents and escorted the man and his attorney out of a non-public exit of her courtroom. "She was focused on orchestrating Flores-Ruiz’s escape," prosecutor Keith Alexander said in court. "She knew what she was doing. She did it anyway." Dugan’s lawyers had argued that she was following a policy directing staff to alert a supervisor to the presence of ICE in the courthouse. They argued that the incident took place at a time of confusion and uncertainty following two prior ICE arrests in the courthouse. "All she did was send him out into the hallway with his lawyer," Dugan’s lawyer Steven Biskupic told the jury during the trial. Agents from ICE and other agencies, dressed in plainclothes, planned to arrest the man in a hallway outside Dugan’s courtroom following his hearing. Dugan angrily confronted the agents and directed them to the chief judge’s office after learning that ICE was present, according to witness testimony in the case. She then dealt privately with Flores-Ruiz’s case and directed the man and his attorney through a private "jury door," prosecutors alleged. Flores-Ruiz walked through a public hallway and was arrested outside the courthouse following a brief foot chase. Dugan was first elected as a county judge in 2016, and before that served as head of the local branch of Catholic Charities, which provides refugee resettlement programs, among other services. She spent much of her early career as a lawyer at the Legal Aid Society of Milwaukee, which serves poor people.

Reported similarly:
Washington Post [12/18/2025 11:07 PM, Patrick Marley, 24149K]
Breitbart [12/19/2025 4:25 AM, Neil Munro, 2416K]
NPR [12/18/2025 11:24 PM, Maayan Silver, 28013K]
AP [12/18/2025 11:32 PM, Todd Richmond, 606K]
USA Today [12/19/2025 1:00 AM, John Diedrich, Mary Spicuzza, Sophie Carson, 67103K]

CBS Los Angeles [12/19/2025 12:41 AM, Tom Wait, 39474K] reports Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said Park has an "extensive criminal history" that includes "convictions for possessing, manufacturing, or selling a dangerous weapon, carrying a loaded firearm in a public place, assault, and criminal possession of a controlled substance. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

CNN [12/18/2025 9:36 PM, Piper Hudspeth Blackburn, 18595K] reports the US military conducted strikes against two alleged drug-trafficking boats in the eastern Pacific Ocean on Thursday, killing 5 people, according to US Southern Command. At least 104 people have now been killed in US strikes on alleged drug boats, and Thursday’s attack marks the third this week. "On Dec. 18, at the direction of @SecWar Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted lethal kinetic strikes on two vessels operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations in international waters," SOUTHCOM wrote on X, adding that no US service members were harmed in the strikes. On Monday, the US killed 8 people in strikes on three alleged drug-trafficking boats in the eastern Pacific, and the US killed 4 people in a strike on a single boat on Wednesday. The strikes on suspected drug boats are part of an ongoing campaign, dubbed Operation Southern Spear, that the Trump administration has said is aimed at curtailing narcotics trafficking. As part of the campaign, the US has increased its military action in South America in recent months, focused on Venezuela, a nation that President Donald Trump has accused of stealing US "oil, land and other assets.” The administration has moved thousands of troops and a carrier strike group into the Caribbean, and Trump on Tuesday ordered a "total and complete blockade" of sanctioned oil tankers coming to and leaving Venezuela. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro responded to Trump on Wednesday, accusing the US of seeking regime change along with ownership of Venezuela’s territory and resources. "It is simply a warmongering and colonialist pretense, and we have said so many times, and now everyone sees the truth. The truth has been revealed," Maduro said in Caracas. The strikes on alleged drug boats began in September. The US military targeted a vessel in the Pacific for the first time on October 21, after previously only striking boats in the Caribbean. As lawmakers debate the legality of the US military’s ongoing campaign, the Trump administration has not provided public evidence of the presence of narcotics on the boats struck, nor their affiliation with drug cartels. Thursday’s attack comes hours after the US House of Representatives rejected a pair of resolutions challenging the Trump administration’s military actions against the alleged drug-trafficking boats and targeting Venezuela. One resolution sought to direct the president to remove armed forces from "hostilities with presidentially designated terrorist organizations in the Western Hemisphere" absent a declaration of war or congressional authorization. It failed on a 210-216 vote. The other resolution, which centered around potential US hostilities within or against Venezuela, also failed. Both would have required approval from the Senate to go into force.

Reported similarly:
CBS News [12/18/2025 11:07 PM, Joe Walsh, 39474K]

Breitbart [12/18/2025 5:34 AM, Christian K. Caruzo, 2416K] reports the United States Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) on Wednesday announced a new “lethal kinetic strike” on a drug-trafficking vessel as part of Operation Southern Spear killed four narco-terrorists. SOUTHCOM shared footage of the strike on social media and informed that the military operation took place on December 17 at the direction of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. The struck vessel was operated by a “Designated Terrorist Organization” transiting along a known narco-trafficking route in Eastern Pacific international waters and was “engaged in narco-trafficking operations.” “A total of four male narco-terrorists were killed, and no U.S. military forces were harmed,” SOUTHCOM wrote. Wednesday’s military strike is the second military operation of its kind in the Eastern Pacific Ocean publicly disclosed by SOUTHCOM this week as part of Operation Southern Spear. Earlier this week, SOUTHCOM announced that it carried out military strikes against three different drug-trafficking vessels, killing eight narco-terrorists. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

CNN [12/18/2025 6:56 PM, Aaron Blake, 18595K] reports Susie Wiles’ recently published interviews in Vanity Fair are remarkable for a multitude of reasons. But perhaps leading that list was what the White House chief of staff said about Venezuela. After all, we’re talking about killing people on the high seas and possibly going to war with another country. And Wiles suggested the administration has obscured its true motivations. "He wants to keep on blowing boats up until [Venezuela’s Nicolas] Maduro cries uncle," Wiles said of Trump. That is … not what the administration has said publicly about its strikes on alleged drug boats. It’s said those attacks are about stopping drugs from reaching the United States, not applying pressure on Maduro. And it’s largely danced around the concept of regime change in Venezuela, even as President Donald Trump has said the leader’s days "are numbered.” Yet here was Wiles, as far back as early November, saying all of it was tied together, and it was really about bringing Maduro to heel. The administration’s shifting justifications for its actions are no small thing. You don’t have to look too far back to see how disastrous it can be to lead the United States into war on false pretenses. And yet, the administration has taken remarkably little care to craft anything amounting to a consistent message. Indeed, Wiles’ comment wasn’t even the only shift that emerged in the administration’s commentary this week. The administration has been adamant that the boat strikes, which many experts argue are illegal, are about protecting Americans from the scourge of drugs. They’ve labeled their targets "narco-terrorists" and deemed them worthy of summary execution without due process. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said it was about drugs and "securing our maritime borders.” If you’re going to summarily kill people, you had better know a lot about them. But when it comes to the strike that we know the most about – that first one – the administration has struggled to tell a consistent story. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the day of the strike, September 2, that the boat was "probably headed to Trinidad or some other country in the Caribbean.” Fast forward to this month. After news broke that this first strike actually left survivors who were later killed – a potential war crime – the administration was forced to explain. CNN reported that the military official who oversaw the mission, Adm. Frank "Mitch" Bradley, told lawmakers in briefings that the boat was actually headed somewhere else. He said it was due to link up with a larger vessel that was headed for Suriname, another country on South America’s northern coast. That’s a big deal. And not just because it suggests the administration didn’t actually know or tell the full story about this boat, but also because Suriname is generally a transit country for drugs headed to Europe, not the United States.

New York Post [12/18/2025 6:57 PM, Caitlin Doornbos, 42219K] reports Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro ordered his navy to escort ships carrying petroleum products out of port — a brazen challenge to President Trump’s newly declared "blockade" targeting the country’s lifeblood. The Venezuelan navy on Tuesday and Wednesday escorted three tankers carrying Venezuelan urea, petroleum coke and other oil-based products to Asia, according to New York Times, which cited three sources familiar with the ships’ movements. None of the vessels that left with the Venezuelan navy were on the US sanctions list — at least for now. But Maduro’s move has increased the risk of a military confrontation, US defense analysts have warned. Until now, the Venezuelan president has avoided responding with force, and his calling up of the navy to assist in bucking Trump’s blockade represents a new escalation from Caracas’ side as Trump aims to drain the dictator’s oil revenues with his blockade announcement on Tuesday. "Venezuela is completely surrounded by the largest Armada ever assembled in the History of South America," Trump said in his announcement on Truth Social. "It will only get bigger, and the shock to them will be like nothing they have ever seen before — Until such time as they return to the United States of America all of the Oil, Land, and other Assets that they previously stole from us.” "The illegitimate Maduro Regime is using Oil from these stolen Oil Fields to finance themselves, Drug Terrorism, Human Trafficking, Murder, and Kidnapping," he added. Maduro’s naval orders came after four Panama-flagged ships headed for Venezuela turned around on Dec. 11 — just one day after the US military seized an oil tanker headed for the country last week, Bloomberg reported on Thursday. One of the four vessels, known as "Bella 1," was already on the US sanctions list for transporting Iranian oil. The others were Seeker 8, Karina and Eurovictory, according to data from maritime intelligence firm Kpler.

Bloomberg [12/18/2025 12:47 PM, Lucia Kassai, 18207K] reports that Oil major Chevron Corp. is preparing to export 1 million barrels of crude from Venezuela, a day after President Donald Trump accused the nation of using oil proceeds to finance drug trafficking and terrorism. Chevron, which holds a US license to drill and export oil from the country, has finished loading a cargo onto the ship Searuby and is in the process of loading another onto the vessel Minerva Astra, according to Bloomberg tanker tracking. The Trump administration has activated a naval blockade to stop sanctioned vessels in and out of Venezuela. Tensions ratcheted up last week when the US intercepted the supertanker Skipper in an unprecedented move. Since then, at least four ghost ships have turned away from Venezuela while others are avoiding the region. Chevron’s ships are not subject to sanctions and are expected to sail by freely. More Venezuelan oil is bound for the US in January, after the Houston-based company sold at least 10 cargoes. “Operations in Venezuela continue without disruption and in full compliance with laws and regulations applicable to its business, as well as the sanctions frameworks provided for by the U.S. government,” Chevron said in an emailed statement.

NPR [12/18/2025 9:44 AM, Carrie Kahn, 28013K] Audio: HERE reports Venezuelans are once again bracing for uncertainty as President Donald Trump threatens a blockade that could cut off the country’s ability to sell oil — its main source of revenue. For many, the rhetoric revives memories of years defined by recession, hyperinflation and chronic shortages. Still, after many years of economic and political turmoil, some Venezuelans say they are coping the only way they know how: by carrying on. At a strip mall in Caracas, residents line up to buy water. Among them is José, a 74-year-old retired surgeon holding two small gallon jugs. Like others interviewed by NPR, he asked that only his first name be used for fear of government reprisals. José says he isn’t panicking over the latest standoff between Trump and President Nicolás Maduro. He isn’t stockpiling supplies, either. But he admits his family is taking small precautions. "We are buying enough food to have a cushion for a few days — just in case," he says. Political and economic hardship is nothing new in Venezuela, and many say they have little choice but to endure yet another escalation.

AP [12/18/2025 7:03 PM, Ben Finley, 4722K] reports President Donald Trump’s "blockade" of sanctioned oil tankers off Venezuela’s coast is raising new questions about the legality of his military campaign in Latin America, while fueling concerns that the U.S. could be edging closer to war. The Trump administration says its blockade is narrowly tailored and not targeting civilians, which would be an illegal act of war. But some experts say seizing sanctioned oil tied to leader Nicolás Maduro could provoke a military response from Venezuela, engaging American forces in a new level of conflict that goes beyond their attacks on alleged drug boats. "My biggest fear is this is exactly how wars start and how conflicts escalate out of control," said Rep. Jason Crow, a Colorado Democrat who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan. "And there are no adults in the room with this administration, nor is there consultation with Congress. So I’m very worried.” Claire Finkelstein, a professor of national security law at the University of Pennsylvania, said the use of such an aggressive tactic without congressional authority stretches the bounds of international law and increasingly looks like a veiled attempt to trigger a Venezuelan response. "The concern is that we are bootstrapping our way into armed conflict," Finkelstein said. "We’re upping the ante in order to try to get them to engage in an act of aggression that would then justify an act of self-defense on our part.” Trump has used the word "blockade" to describe his latest tactic in an escalating pressure campaign against Maduro, who has been charged with narcoterrorism in the U.S. and now has been accused of using oil profits to fund drug trafficking. While Trump said it only applies to vessels facing U.S. economic penalties, the move has sparked outrage among Democrats and mostly shrugs, if not cheers, from Republicans. Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, said Trump going after sanctioned oil tankers linked to Venezuela is no different from targeting Iranian oil.

Daily Signal [12/18/2025 8:00 AM, Mike Gonzalez, 549K] reports one by one, they are singing, the men who used to do dirty deeds for the late Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chávez and his successor, Nicolas Maduro. Nobody knows what’s going to happen, whether the United States will attack, and whether Maduro will fall. But these Venezuelans sniff change in the air. As more countries exit Venezuela’s orbit, more allegations are likely to emerge. Two of the men are in prison here in the U.S.: Hugo "El Pollo" Carvajal, the former spy mastermind, and Cliver Alcala Cordones, a former general, both of whom have written letters to President Donald Trump airing bales of dirty laundry regarding narcotrafficking to the U.S. A third is a top official who has defected and is cooperating with the U.S. government, to whom I spoke a couple of months ago. Over in Bolivia, where change has already begun, information regarding that government’s involvement with narco-terrorism may soon see the light of day as well. The new president, Rodrigo Paz Pereira, elected earlier this year and sworn into office last month, had his predecessor, Luis Arce, arrested on Wednesday. Many members of Arce’s government may follow him into the clink, and they may soon start "cooperating" by airing dirty laundry as well. Arce’s Movement for Socialism party is every bit as socialist, as steeped in drug trafficking, and as Cuban-influenced as Chavez’s and Maduro’s United Socialist Party of Venezuela. They fed off each other back in the heyday of Marxism in Latin America and the Caribbean.

NBC News [12/19/2025 5:00 AM, Kristen Welker and Amanda Terkel, 43603K] reports President Donald Trump said Thursday that he is leaving the possibility of a war with Venezuela on the table. "I don’t rule it out, no," he told NBC News in a phone interview. Trump on Tuesday ordered a "blockade" of sanctioned oil tankers coming and going from Venezuela, increasing pressure on the country’s president, Nicolás Maduro. The U.S. recently seized an oil tanker captured near Venezuela, as well. The administration’s campaign has already resulted in 28 boat strikes that have killed more than 100 people, including a “double tap” strike facing congressional scrutiny. In his phone interview, Trump said "I don’t discuss it" when he is asked whether he rules out the possibility that such actions could lead to war. But when he was pressed, he confirmed it was a possibility and said there will be additional seizures of oil tankers. Asked for a timeline, Trump replied: "It depends. If they’re foolish enough to be sailing along, they’ll be sailing along back into one of our harbors." Trump also declined to say whether ousting Maduro was his ultimate goal. "He knows exactly what I want," Trump replied. "He knows better than anybody." Trump’s admission that he’s not ruling out a war with Venezuela is significant. He has long tried to distinguish himself from the hawkish wing of the Republican Party, and in 2024, he campaigned on being able to keep the U.S. out of foreign conflicts.

FOX News [12/18/2025 6:19 AM, Efrat Lachter, 40621K] reports for years, Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro has defied predictions of collapse. Sanctions, diplomatic isolation and internal unrest have failed to unseat him. But the latest escalation by the Trump administration — including the seizure of a Venezuelan crude tanker and the enforcement of a blockade on sanctioned vessels — has hit the regime where it is most vulnerable: its oil trade. Melissa Ford Maldonado, director of the Western Hemisphere Initiative at the America First Policy Institute, told Fox News Digital that while the timeline and outcome remain uncertain, the regime’s dependence on oil leaves it uniquely vulnerable. "One thing is clear: the Maduro regime can’t sustain itself without oil revenue," she said. While the U.S. move has raised concerns among European allies, who warned that the escalation could undermine regional stability and complicate efforts toward a political resolution in Venezuela, Ford Maldonado says the administration’s approach is striking at the core of Maduro’s power. "What we’re seeing now with President Trump’s order for a total blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela is a direct hit against Maduro’s revenue streams," she said. "He needs the oil money from these tankers to buy loyalty and pay off generals, cartel partners and political enforcers to stay in power. That pipeline is finally being cut.”

New York Times [12/18/2025 7:48 PM, Charlie Savage, 135475K] reports In justifying his administration’s boat strikes and its mounting pressure campaign on Venezuela, President Trump has regularly relied on assertions that distort the circumstances, carry contradictions and twist language. Mr. Trump says an “armed conflict” makes the killings of people on the vessels lawful, but law-of-war experts say standards for a war to exist are not met. The administration acts like a Venezuelan slang term for soldiers corrupted by drug money, “Cartel de los Soles,” is an actual cartel. It has recast drugs as a “weapon” and trafficking them as “terrorism.” The core argument for using armed force? Overdoses caused by fentanyl coming from Mexico. The target of the strikes? Boats suspected of carrying cocaine from South America. A Venezuelan president’s alleged involvement in drug trafficking? Intolerable. A former president of Honduras convicted in a U.S. court for doing the exact same thing? Pardoned by Mr. Trump. Mr. Trump has a long record of making false or misleading statements. But the sheer density of them in his administration’s boat attacks and Venezuela pressure campaign has been exceptional. The pattern traces back to February, when, on Mr. Trump’s orders, Secretary of State Marco Rubio designated eight Latin American drug cartels and criminal groups as “terrorist organizations,” including Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan prison gang. Since then, the Trump team has insisted on calling such groups and their suspected members “narco-terrorists.” As a matter of plain English, terrorists are zealots who use violence to advance some ideological or religious cause. Drug cartels are unscrupulous businesses seeking profits by supplying an illicit product, despite a ban.

Breitbart [12/18/2025 2:20 PM, Staff, 2416K] reports that he leaders of Brazil and Mexico on Thursday offered to step in to try and avert the risk of war between the United States and Venezuela. The Latin American heavyweights are looking on in dismay as Washington ramps up military and economic pressure on Nicholas Maduro’s government, raising fears of a direct effort to unseat the Venezuelan leader. The United Nations Security Council will meet next Tuesday at the request of Caracas — backed by China and Russia — which urged an urgent meeting over the "ongoing US aggression." President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said he was "very worried" about the mounting crisis on Brazil’s doorstep. The 80-year-old leftist said he had told US President Donald Trump that "things wouldn’t be resolved by shooting, that it was better to sit down around a table to find a solution." He said he had offered Brazil’s help to both leaders to "avoid an armed conflict here in Latin America." Lula spoke to Trump by phone earlier in December and the Brazilian leader said he may reach out to Trump again before Christmas to reinforce this offer, "so that we can have a diplomatic agreement and not a fratricidal war.” "I am at the disposal of both Venezuela and the US to contribute to a peaceful solution on our continent." Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum also offered to act as a go-between in talks between Washington and Caracas to find "a peaceful solution so that there is no US intervention." Russia meanwhile said it was in constant contact with close ally Maduro and called for a "de-escalation."

Breitbart [12/18/2025 12:21 PM, Staff, 2416K] reports that Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said Thursday he was willing to mediate between the United States and Venezuela to "avoid armed conflict." Lula, one of Latin America’s most influential leaders, told reporters that Brazil was "very worried" about the mounting crisis between Venezuela and the United States. The 80-year-old leftist said he had told US President Donald Trump that "things wouldn’t be resolved by shooting, that it was better to sit down around a table to find a solution." He said he had offered Brazil’s help to both leaders to "avoid an armed conflict here in Latin America" and may speak to Trump again before Christmas to reinforce this offer "so that we can have a diplomatic agreement and not a fratricidal war.” "I am at the disposal of both Venezuela and the US to contribute to a peaceful solution on our continent." Trump’s administration accuses Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro of leading a drug trafficking cartel. Washington has carried out deadly strikes on alleged drug-trafficking boats, seized an oil tanker and slapped sanctions on Maduro’s relatives. Trump has also overseen a major military deployment off the coast of Venezuela, and this week declared a blockade of "sanctioned oil vessels" to and from Caracas. Maduro claims the US seeks regime change instead of its stated goal of stopping drug trafficking. Lula said he was concerned about what was behind the US campaign.

Washington Examiner [12/18/2025 1:26 PM, Brady Knox, 1394K] reports that the Russian government warned the United States against military action against Venezuela, saying such a move would constitute a “fatal mistake.” As Moscow continues to engage with Washington to bring an end to the war in Ukraine, the Russian Foreign Ministry sent its ally in Caracas a strong showing of support with a recent statement that warned that any intervention by the U.S. could have “unpredictable consequences for the entire western hemisphere.” "We hope that the Trump administration, which is characterised by a rational and pragmatic approach, will not make a fatal mistake," it added, expressing "solidarity" with the Venezuelan people and support for President Nicolás Maduro’s policy "aimed at the defence of the country’s interests." Moscow and Caracas enjoy a fairly close relationship, having recently ratified the Russia-Venezuela Strategic Partnership Treaty and providing mutual sanctions relief. However, Russia’s options for assisting its ally if President Donald Trump decides to take military action are limited — its military is focused on the war in Ukraine, and it has few means of projecting power into the Western Hemisphere in even the best of circumstances. Analysts have noted that the flailing Maduro regime, with little legitimacy and an imploding economy, ranks at the bottom of Russia and China’s priorities. "There is no reason today for either Russia or China to go all-in defending Venezuela, given their other problems, such as Russia and its war in Ukraine, and China trying to coexist internationally with President Trump," Fernando Reyes Matta, director of the Centre for China Studies at Andrés Bello University in Chile, told the BBC last week.

Washington Post [12/18/2025 9:48 AM, Ellen Nakashima, 24149K] reports President Donald Trump’s homeland security adviser, Stephen Miller, and other senior officials were looking for a fight. In the first months of the administration, Miller, the architect of Trump’s anti-immigration and border policies, and his team discussed starting a new war on drugs by striking cartels and alleged traffickers in Mexico, according to one current and two former U.S. officials. Reducing the power of cartels, an idea that dated back to the first Trump administration, would ease the flow of migrants and narcotics, creating early political wins. But as the administration surged thousands of U.S. troops to the southern border, increased U.S. surveillance flights and boosted intelligence sharing with its neighbor, Mexican military operations across the border curbed cartel action, the people said. That left Miller and his team looking for another target. “When you hope and wait for something to develop that doesn’t, you start looking at countries south of Mexico,” said the current official, who, like nine others interviewed for this story, spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the matter’s sensitivity. The campaign that emerged in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean is unprecedented in its use of lethal force by the U.S. military against alleged drug smuggling groups. These operations, which began Sept. 2, have evolved to embrace the Trump team’s long-running ambition to oust Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, whom the president has accused of overseeing “narco-terrorists” assaulting the United States.

Breitbart [12/18/2025 1:42 PM, Frances Martel, 2416K] reports that the American Embassy in Quito confirmed the arrival of U.S. forces to the port city of Manta, where the Ecuadorian military maintains air force units in facilities where U.S. forces were formerly stationed — prior to the country banning permanent foreign military bases. The news arrives shortly after Department of Homeland Security (DHS) chief Kristi Noem visited the Manta air force base alongside Noboa in November and follows months of Noboa publicly asking President Donald Trump for reinforcements to help the country fight its increasingly powerful drug trafficking gangs. Trump has prioritized Latin America in his foreign policy during his second term in office, approving "Operation Southern Spear," a military mission in the Caribbean Sea intended to destroy and otherwise neutralize drug-shipping vessels operating illegally in the area. A presence in Manta would expand these operations into the Pacific Ocean, located strategically on the coast across from the country’s Galápagos Islands. Noboa offered few details on Wednesday regarding the operation, stating only that it would help limit the scope of illicit drug trafficking. "With the backing of the United States, we activated a temporary operation alongside the Ecuadorian Air Force in Manta, as part of a bilateral, long-term security strategy," the president announced. "This operation will allow the identification and disarticulation of drug trafficking routes and to subdue those who believed they could take over the country."

AP [12/18/2025 7:09 AM, Abby Sewell, 31753K] reports the head of the U.N. refugee agency in Lebanon said Thursday that the move by the United States to lift sweeping sanctions on Syria could encourage more refugees to return to their country. The U.S. Senate voted Wednesday to permanently remove the so-called Caesar Act sanctions after the administration of President Donald Trump previously temporarily lifted the penalties by executive order. The vote came as part of the passage of the country’s annual defense spending bill. Trump is expected to sign off on the final repeal Thursday. An estimated 400,000 Syrian refugees have returned from Lebanon since the ouster of former Syrian President Bashar Assad in December 2024 following a nearly 14-year civil war, UNHCR Lebanon Representative Karolina Lindholm Billing said, with around 1 million remaining in the country. Of those, about 636,000 are officially registered with the refugee agency. The U.N refugee agency reports that altogether more than 1 million refugees and nearly 2 million internally displaced Syrians have returned to their homes since Assad’s fall. Refugees returning from neighboring countries are eligible for cash payments of $600 per family upon their return, but with many coming back to destroyed houses and no work opportunities, the cash does not go far. Without jobs and reconstruction, many may leave again. The aid provided so far by international organizations to help Syrians begin to rebuild has been on a "relatively small scale compared to the immense needs," Billing said, but the lifting of U.S. sanctions could "make a big difference." The World Bank estimates it will cost $216 billion to rebuild the homes and infrastructure damaged and destroyed in Syria’s civil war.

FOX News [12/18/2025 2:23 PM, Julia Bonavita, 40621K] reports that federal authorities in New York have unsealed an indictment charging the alleged leader of the transnational Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua with a slew of violent crimes as he remains at the helm of the notorious criminal organization. Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, also known as "Niño Guerrero," "El Cejón" and "El Innombrable," is facing multiple federal charges, including participating in a racketeering conspiracy, conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists, cocaine importation conspiracy and using and carrying firearms, machine guns and destructive devices in furtherance of drug trafficking, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of New York. Guerrero Flores allegedly heads Tren De Aragua, a transnational gang that has been designated a foreign terrorist organization and remains at large. On Wednesday, federal prosecutors unsealed an indictment against Guerrero Flores alleging that, for over a decade, the criminal mastermind directed gang members to commit countless violent crimes — including murders, extortion, kidnappings and sex trafficking — throughout the United States, South America and Central America. "As alleged, Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores has been the mastermind of Tren de Aragua’s evolution from a Venezuelan prison gang into a transnational terrorist organization that committed countless acts of violence, extortion, and drug trafficking all over North America, South America, and Europe," said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton. The AP [12/18/2025 1:02 PM, Staff, 13945K] reports Guerrero Flores remains at large, and the State Department is offering rewards of up to $5 million for his arrest, the release said. Clayton said the gang is responsible for countless acts of violence, extortion and drug trafficking in North America, South America and Europe. He said the charges against Guerrero Flores are added to charges already brought in New York against over 30 members or associates of Tren de Aragua. Louis D’Ambrosio, head of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Special Operations Division, said Guerrero Flores laundered money through cryptocurrency, trafficked drugs by the ton and sold weapons of war while operating Tren de Aragua like a multinational crime syndicate from prison.

Reported similarly:
New York Times [12/18/2025 5:02 PM, Benjamin Weiser and Alan Feuer, 135475K]
CBS News [12/18/2025 4:45 PM, Cara Tabachnick, 39474K]
FOX News [12/18/2025 4:38 PM, Greg Wehner, 40621K]

NewsMax [12/18/2025 3:45 PM, Jim Mishler, 4109K] reports the Department of Justice announced the unsealing of multiple federal indictments charging more than 70 people linked to Tren de Aragua, a designated foreign terrorist organization, in connection with violent and financial crimes across the United States and abroad. The indictments span five U.S. attorneys’ offices in Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York, and Texas. The charges include murder, robbery, extortion, kidnapping, money laundering, and controlled substance trafficking. Prosecutors said the cases are part of an enforcement campaign that has resulted in more than 260 Tren de Aragua members being federally indicted since Jan. 20, 2025. While charges were filed in multiple states, Nebraska emerged as the central focus of the latest enforcement action, accounting for the largest share of newly unsealed indictments.

Houston Chronicle [12/18/2025 6:30 PM, John Wayne Ferguson, 2983K] reports a federal grand jury in Houston this week returned terrorism-related charges against four men who the Department of Justice says are the leaders of the Tren de Aragua, the Venezuelan-born prison gang that federal authorities say has expanded into a transnational criminal organization operating in the United States. Yohan Jose Romero, 48; Juan Gabriel Rivas Nunez, 44; Giovanni Vicente Mosquera Serrano, 37; and Jose Enrique Martinez Flores, 24, were charged with conspiring to provide and providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization. Tren de Aragua has never been blamed for a large-scale terrorist attack. But the Trump administration this year said the group’s pattern of violent crime in the U.S. meets the legal definition of terrorism, and designated it in the same class as the Islamic State group Boko Haram and dozens of other foreign groups. The 12-page indictment describes Romero as a founder of the gang, and Mosquera Serrano as the manager of the group’s operations in the Western Hemisphere. Nunez allegedly directed gang activity in Venezuela, while Martinez Flores was described as an overseer of the gang’s drug trafficking through Colombia. The men are accused of helping Tren de Aragua expand its influence in the United States. Among other things, the indictment accuses the men of smuggling cocaine and gold into Texas from Venezuela to enrich themselves and the gang. Prosecutors also reference the gang forming "violent cells" and taking over neighborhoods and apartment complexes, but do not name specific instances of those things happening in the Houston area. The Department of Justice alleged that the men arranged to collect fees from lower-level gang members working in their areas of control, and would threaten, beat or murder people who didn’t comply.

CNN [12/18/2025 6:00 AM, Priscilla Alvarez and Pete Muntean, 18595K] reports the Department of Homeland Security’s newest airplane has a very familiar, very Trumpian look. Photos captured over the weekend at Reagan National Airport outside Washington, DC, show the department’s newly acquired Boeing 737 adorned with a design akin to President Donald Trump’s proposed paint scheme for a new Air Force One — a deep red stripe down the middle of the aircraft, a dark blue underbelly and an American flag painted on the tail. Both use colors similar to Trump’s private 757, known as "Trump Force One." Beyond just reflecting Trump’s taste, the planes may have another connection. Open-source flight tracking records compiled by ADS-B Exchange show that before arriving in the DC area, the new DHS plane made stops in Ardmore, Oklahoma and Lake Charles, Louisiana. Landlocked Aviation, the same company involved in repainting Trump Force One, has an office in Lake Charles. Asked for comment by CNN, Landlocked Aviation would not confirm it was involved in repainting the plane. CNN also reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for additional details. "This new plane will serve dual missions— both as ICE deportation flights and for cabinet level travel. This plane flies at 40% cheaper than what the military aircraft flies for ICE deportation flights — saving the American taxpayer hundreds of millions of dollars," said Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin in a statement.

FOX News [12/18/2025 2:36 PM, Preston Mizell, 40621K] reports that the mother of a 20-year-old girl tragically murdered by an illegal migrant blasted Rep. Jasmine Crockett for calling her daughter a "random dead person" after the House of Representatives voted 225 to 201 on Tuesday afternoon to pass the Kayla Hamilton Act in her daughter’s name. Tammy Nobles, Hamilton’s mother, told Fox News Digital that she believes the Biden administration’s lax immigration policies were responsible for the murder of her daughter, and pushed back on the rhetoric of Crockett’s comments that her daughter’s was being used as a GOP talking point. "I’m so over the Democrat officials stating that the Republican Party is using Kayla’s story as a political stunt," Nobles told Fox News Digital. "Everything regarding Kayla and the Kayla Hamilton Act was what her mom wanted. I made it very clear in the beginning that I wanted a law in her name." "All that the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Health and Human Services had to do was make one phone call to El Salvador," Nobles added. "They would have known that Walter Javier Martinez was an MS-13 gang member, and that he had a criminal record of illicit gang activity."

New York Times [12/18/2025 5:27 PM, Peter Eavis, 135475K] reports that the Trump administration’s effort to reduce the number of accidents involving large trucks has taken aim at deficient truck driving schools and tightened a rule requiring that drivers are proficient in English. But a major part of its trucking crackdown — a new emergency rule that prohibits certain classes of immigrants from obtaining truck driver’s licenses — has drawn fierce criticism and legal challenges. The moves are in line with the administration’s continued efforts to remove certain foreigners from the United States and bar others from entering. The immigrants targeted by the new regulation are those in the United States as asylum seekers, refugees and recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. Previous policies allowed such immigrants to obtain a so-called non-domiciled commercial driver’s license if they were authorized to work in the United States. The administration, citing recent fatal accidents, says these classes of immigrants can be dangerous drivers. Just like Americans, the immigrants have to go to truck driving schools and pass tests to obtain a license. And critics of the rule say the administration has not produced data showing that immigrant drivers are less safe. “It doesn’t look believable to anyone in the industry when you accuse them of being unsafe,” said Al Bagiro, chief insurance officer at Cogo Insurance, a truck insurer, referring to the targeted drivers. Other opponents of the new policy, which was stayed by a federal appeals court last month, say it discriminates against immigrants.

New York Times [12/18/2025 7:45 PM, David W. Chen, 135475K] reports Democratic lawmakers from more than half a dozen states vowed on Thursday to push back next year on President Trump’s mass deportations, using coordinated legislation to complement the litigation already being used by Democratic attorneys general to challenge immigration policies. The effort to protect immigrant gathering places, ban masked agents and combat other federal law enforcement tactics comes as state Democrats, emboldened by successes in the courts and at the ballot box, aim to attack the Trump administration politically on rule-of-law issues, such as violations of constitutional protections. They are also tapping into anxiety in immigrant communities, which has fueled concern among immigrant and nonimmigrant voters alike. “It’s never been more important in our lifetimes that like-minded state legislators, like those here, work together to share ideas and strategies,” said State Senator Mike Weissman of Colorado, who represents Aurora, which Mr. Trump has targeted as a hotbed of Venezuelan gang activity. “States are not just laboratories of democracy, as Justice Louis Brandeis famously said. They are also laboratories where remedies are being developed to protect our country from the disease of authoritarianism that is spreading out from Washington, D.C.” The legislative push augments what a bloc of up to 20 attorneys general have done over the last year through lawsuits on challenging administration policies such as stratospheric H1B visa fees, the withholding of antiterrorism funds and the firing of federal workers. The coordinated effort is reminiscent of what conservative groups such as the American Legislative Exchange Council and the State Policy Network have long done on issues such as promoting Christian values in schools, restricting abortion and limiting diversity initiatives, according to Gaby Goldstein, who founded State Futures, which organizes Democratic lawmakers, and who facilitated Thursday’s event. She wrote in a recent essay that when it comes to drafting model bills that legislatures can use, along with assembling officials and disseminating ideas across the country, “the right has long done it better.” Abigail Jackson, a White House spokeswoman, was unimpressed. “Instead of useless P.R. stunts that cater to Resistance Liberals, these Democrat lawmakers should spend their time supporting policies that will actually benefit their American constituents,” she said. A dozen legislators from seven states joined Thursday’s event: California, Colorado, Illinois, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Individual Democratic states have already moved forward. A smattering of legislatures, for instance, passed legislation this year that banned agreements that delegate some federal immigration powers to state and municipal law enforcement agencies. Several states have proposed banning masked or unidentified law enforcement officers.

FOX 8 New Orleans [12/18/2025 4:13 PM, Staff, 40621K] reports the Department of Homeland Security says it has arrested about 370 people during immigration enforcement operations in the New Orleans area since Dec. 3. According to DHS, the arrests were made as part of Operation Catahoula Crunch, which officials say targets people they describe as criminal illegal aliens in the region. “While sanctuary city politicians have refused to do their job, DHS is making the New Orleans community safer as it continues to arrest illegal alien drug dealers, hit-and-run criminals, and one monster who was convicted for arson and threatening a person with intent to terrorize,” Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. “I hope that sanctuary politicians will say thank you to the men and women who are putting their lives on the line to get these criminals off the streets.” McLaughlin said DHS is enforcing federal law under President Donald Trump’s administration. “Secretary Noem has been very clear: DHS does not pick and choose which laws we enforce and which we don’t,” she said. “No matter when and where, DHS will find, arrest, and deport all criminal illegal aliens.”

AP [12/18/2025 4:15 PM, Sophia Tareen, 31753K] reports a commission formed to document alleged harassment and abuse by federal agents during an immigration crackdown in the Chicago area reviewed the wide use of chemical agents in its first public hearing Thursday. The immigration operation, which started in September, has been marked by aggressive tactics widely denounced by judges, elected leaders and a growing number of residents in the nation’s third-largest city and surrounding suburbs. Formed by Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, the commission is the latest resistance effort by a Democratic-led state to the Trump administration’s federal intervention, which critics say is discriminatory and an overreach of executive power. The meeting came as a Border Patrol commander — who was the face of the Chicago operation before leading similar crackdowns in North Carolina and Louisiana — surprisingly returned to the Chicago area this week. More than 4,000 people have been arrested in the Chicago area crackdown, during which there was a fatal shooting by federal agents. The operation prompted multiple lawsuits and a new law that shields immigrants from arrests near courthouses, hospitals and schools. Other places where there’s been intensified immigration enforcement have also fought back, including California, which launched a portal this month for residents to file complaints against federal agents of alleged misconduct. There are limitations on what the Illinois commission can do, something members acknowledged as they played video clips and heard testimony of well-documented incidents, including an agent pepper spraying a toddler and her father. The commission cannot compel anyone to testify, bring charges or force legislation but they’ll issue a report next year with recommendations. The Department of Homeland Security has defended its approach as appropriate in the face of growing threats to federal officers. The agency has touted efforts to arrest violent criminals, though public records of their first weeks in Chicago show the majority of arrestees didn’t have violent criminal records. In a statement Thursday, the department’s assistant secretary, Tricia McLaughlin, blasted the commission as Pritzker’s way of continuing “to smear law enforcement.”

Daily Wire [12/17/2025 11:00 PM, Leif Le Mahieu, 2494K] reports a new bill from Republican Senator Tom Cotton would protect National Guard troops from "deranged individuals" who attack or spit on them while they are on duty. Cotton’s bill would create a 15-foot buffer zone around any National Guard member performing official duties, his office told The Daily Wire. The intent would be to shield troops from people trying to intimidate, harass, touch, or spit on them. "The brave Arkansans who serve in our National Guard should be protected from deranged individuals. My bill ensures that anyone who attempts to intimidate or harass a Guardsmen will face the full force of the law," Cotton told The Daily Wire. Cotton’s legislation comes as President Donald Trump has deployed National Guard troops to cities across the country from Memphis to Los Angeles to assist in federal operations. The bill, known as the ‘‘National Guard Protective Zone Act," would create a federal misdemeanor for those who enter the protective zone to intimidate, harass, or impede a troop. It would also create a felony for anyone who spits on or throws an object at a National Guard member while on duty. That would be punishable by up to five years in prison. "Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit activity protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States that is conducted outside a posted protective zone," the legislation reads.

Washington Post [12/18/2025 2:43 PM, Jacob Bogage, Noah Robertson, and Riley Beggin, 24149K] reports the Trump administration will repurpose $2.6 billion in military housing assistance to pay $1,776 “warrior dividend” bonuses to service members, according to a senior administration official. In a prime-time address Wednesday night, President Donald Trump announced the Christmastime bonuses “in honor of our nation’s founding in 1776.” “Nobody deserves it more than our military. And I say congratulations to everybody,” Trump said. The president said the money for the bonuses came from revenue from import taxes he’s imposed on trading partners worldwide. That was incorrect, however, and Trump does not have the authority to spend the money from tariffs without authorization from Congress. But lawmakers this summer did approve $2.9 billion to supplement the military’s basic allowance for housing as part of Trump and the GOP’s mammoth tax and immigration law, the One Big Beautiful Bill. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the Pentagon to spend most of that money as a one-time payout on the bonuses, said the senior administration official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. The use of the housing funds to pay the bonuses was reported earlier by Defense One. Roughly 1.45 million service members, including 174,000 reservists, will receive the bonuses, which Hegseth said in a video Thursday would be tax-free. “This warrior dividend serves as yet another example of how the War Department is working to improve the quality of life for our military personnel and their families,” Hegseth said.

Washington Post [12/18/2025 10:40 AM, Rachel Siegel, 24149K] reports President Donald Trump promised Wednesday night that he’d bring down persistently high housing costs, which he said were caused by one group in particular: immigrants. In a rapid-fire prime-time address to the nation, Trump said a “major factor” in driving up housing costs was the “colossal border invasion” during the Biden years. He said the previous administration and its allies in Congress “brought in millions and millions of migrants and gave them taxpayer-funded housing” while costs for others soared. “For the first time in 50 years, we are now seeing reverse migration as migrants go back home, leaving more housing and more jobs for Americans,” he said, referring to the departure of foreign-born people through deportation or other means. Trump’s administration is putting action behind his rhetoric, too, linking its policies designed to make homes more affordable to its restrictionist broader immigration agenda. The Department of Housing and Urban Development says immigrants drove all rental price growth in places such as California and New York. Vice President JD Vance, who said during last year’s presidential campaign that immigrants were harming the housing market, recently said tens of millions of undocumented immigrants were “taking houses” that were supposed to go to American citizens. Bill Pulte, head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, wrote on X that “no more illegal aliens = prioritizing affordable housing units for American citizens.”

ABC News [12/18/2025 5:53 PM, Luke Barr, 30493K] reports when President Donald Trump designated fentanyl as a "Weapon of Mass Destruction," it gave the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) more tools to combat the drug in the U.S., according to the man who is leading the agency. The executive order signed by the president this week gives "instruction to the Attorney General, to the State Department, to the Department of War, to all work together to combat this poison that is coming to our country," Cole said. Mexican drug cartels, he said, "never sleep," and defending people from fentanyl is a matter of national security. The executive order signed by the president allows for more resources to be thrown at countering the flow of fentanyl. Cole calls the Mexican drug cartels "designated terrorists," echoing the administration’s phrasing about the cartels.

The AP [12/18/2025 4:24 PM, Lindsay Whitehurst and Bill Barrow, 31753K] reports that President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday that could reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug and open new avenues for medical research, a major shift in federal drug policy that inches closer to what many states have done. The switch would move marijuana away from its current classification as a Schedule I drug, alongside heroin and LSD. Cannabis would instead be a Schedule III substance, like ketamine and some anabolic steroids. Reclassification by the Drug Enforcement Administration would not make it legal for recreational use by adults nationwide, but it could change how the drug is regulated and reduce a hefty tax burden on the cannabis industry. The Republican president said he had received a deluge of phone calls supporting the move and its potential to help patients. "We have people begging for me to do this. People that are in great pain," he said. Similarly, the Justice Department under Trump’s Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden, proposed reclassifying marijuana to a Schedule III substance. Unlike Biden, Trump did not have open encouragement from across his party for the move. Some Republicans have spoken out in opposition to any changes and urged Trump to maintain current standards. FOX News [12/18/2025 2:05 PM, Diana Stancy, 40621K] reports "This reclassification order will make it far easier to conduct marijuana-related medical research, allowing us to study benefits, potential dangers, and future treatments," Trump said in the Oval Office on Thursday. "It’s going to have a tremendously positive impact.” Trump signaled he would sign the executive order Monday, when he told reporters that he was eyeing a reclassification of the drug. "We are considering that. A lot of people want to see it, the reclassification, because it leads to tremendous amounts of research that can’t be done unless you reclassify," Trump said in the Oval Office, "So we are looking at that very strongly."

Reported similarly:
New York Times [12/18/2025 3:37 PM, Luke Broadwater and Ashley Southall, 135475K]
Washington Post [12/18/2025 1:57 PM, Dan Diamond, David Ovalle, and Jacob Bogage, 24149K]
Axios [12/18/2025 2:08 PM, Avery Lotz and Jason Lalljee, 12972K]
NBC News [12/18/2025 4:09 PM, Dareh Gregorian, Julie Tsirkin, and Sarah Dean, 34509K]

AP [12/18/2025 9:39 PM, Staff, 31753K] reports two Los Angeles-area 15-year-old gang members pleaded guilty Thursday to murder and attempted murder charges, admitting they were acting as hired hitmen for Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel, officials said.During two attempts to kill the cartel’s target, they wounded two people and killed one, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Each gang member expected to be paid approximately $50,000, prosecutors said. According to their plea agreements, the two teenagers are members of the Mexican Mafia-affiliated Westside Wilmas gang from the greater Los Angeles area. On March 27, 2024, they drove from their homes in Wilmington to find their target at a Chili’s restaurant in Chula Vista, a suburb of San Diego. When the target was leaving the restaurant with his family, they shot at him in the parking lot and struck his legs, prosecutors said. They also attempted unsuccessfully to hit him with their car when their firearm jammed and they fled the scene. Later that night, the two teenagers showed up at the intended victim’s home joined by an older accomplice. After the two shot indiscriminately at the people in the apartment, hitting one of them in the hand, arm and face, one of the people shot and killed the teenagers’ accomplice in self-defense, prosecutors said. The two teenagers pleaded guilty in federal court to two attempted murder charges and the murder of their accomplice, which prosecutors called a “provocative-act murder,” meaning their actions were responsible for their accomplice’s death. They were charged with attempted murder in aid of racketeering and murder in aid of racketeering — which can carry a punishment of life in prison or the death penalty — because their actions were to promote the Westside Wilmas gang, which also engages in drug trafficking, weapons distribution and more, prosecutors said. They admitted they were tapped to kill the target because they were under the age of 16 at the time, which made them ineligible to be prosecuted as adults in California under a law passed in 2018. “The disgraceful tactic of cartels, street gangs, and the Mexican Mafia using underage children for murderous acts to evade enhanced punishments will not be tolerated,” said Mark Dargis, special agent in charge of the FBI San Diego Field Office.

NewsMax [12/18/2025 2:12 PM, Mark Vargas, 4109K] reports Democrats in Washington are rushing to defend the very criminals smuggling deadly narcotics into the United States – offering sympathy to cartel operatives even as fentanyl continues killing more than 100,000 Americans every year. Since September 2025, U.S. military forces have carried out a series of precision strikes on cartel-operated smuggling vessels in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific. The campaign – launched after the Trump administration formally designated the major cartels as narcoterrorism organizations – has destroyed at least 20 vessels, including a narco-submarine, and eliminated more than 80 individuals tied to cartel trafficking routes. Each vessel carried enough narcotics or precursor chemicals to kill thousands. Yet several Democratic lawmakers are now publicly defending the smugglers. Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., went as far as to claim, "There is no such thing as a narco-terrorist.” Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., referring to cartel smugglers targeted in a recent strike, described them as "two helpless men." Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., dismissed cartel operations entirely, saying of the narcotics traffickers, "It’s the way they make money.” And perhaps most shocking, Washington Rep. Adam Smith insisted that narco-terrorists are "not a direct threat to the lives" of the American people. These statements stand in stark contrast to the real-world devastation cartels inflict on American families. Fentanyl – smuggled almost entirely by cartel networks – remains the number-one cause of death for Americans ages 18-45. Tell that to the parents in Illinois, Ohio, or Kentucky who buried teenagers last month after taking a single counterfeit pill laced with fentanyl.

NewsMax [12/18/2025 11:59 AM, Jim Morley, 4109K] reports the Department of Homeland Security highlighted what it has labeled the "worst of the worst" of recent Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrests in a Christmas-themed press release, urging the public to view featured cases on its "Worst of the Worst" portal. In an email shared exclusively with Newsmax, a DHS spokesperson said, "As families complete last-minute Christmas preparations, they can feel a bit more holiday cheer knowing ICE is working around the clock to get the worst of the worst illegal aliens OUT of our communities." The department said the featured arrests included individuals with convictions ranging from murder and armed robbery to statutory rape and aggravated sexual assault of a child. DHS listed examples from multiple jurisdictions, including a Laotian national in Philadelphia with convictions that included murder and armed robbery; a Dominican national in Boston convicted of statutory rape and indecent assault and battery on a child under 14; a Mexican national in Texas convicted of aggravated sexual assault of a child; and a Dominican national in Puerto Rico convicted of homicide and assault, among other offenses. The department has recently promoted the wow.dhs.gov database as a searchable, public-facing tool meant to show arrests and criminal histories tied to ICE enforcement operations.

Daily Signal [12/18/2025 1:26 PM, Virginia Allen, 549K] reports the Department of Homeland Security’s “Worst of the Worst” website is growing. DHS has added the names, photos, and criminal backgrounds of an additional 5,000 illegal aliens to the searchable platform, bringing the number of listed criminals to 15,000. “This new update represents just a small sample of the total number of arrests we’ve made—70% of [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] arrests are of criminal illegal aliens that have been charged or convicted of a crime in the United States,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said. The website is searchable by state and city, providing Americans with the knowledge of “which dangerous criminal illegal aliens the Trump administration has removed from their communities,” McLaughlin said. DHS first rolled out the new website in early December and announced plans to continue adding the identities of arrested criminal illegal aliens to the website over time. The platform does not include every arrest Immigration and Customs Enforcement has made but aims to inform the American people of the “worst of the worst” criminals now in custody or deported. The criminal histories of those listed on the website include terrorism, rape, homicide, assault, kidnapping, and robbery. New additions to the website include Mexican national Oscar Chan, who was arrested in Reno, Nevada, and has multiple criminal convictions, including kidnapping, sexual assault, and rape with a weapon.

Reported similarly:
Federal Newswire [12/19/2025 12:05 AM, Staff]

The Hill [12/18/2025 11:25 AM, Rebecca Beitsch, 12595K] reports that House Democrats on the Homeland Security Committee are asking a government watchdog to undertake a review of the Trump administration’s hiring practices, citing issues with trainees as they dramatically ramp up recruitment of immigration enforcement agents. The Trump administration in August ended age limits for those interested in serving as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers, dropping the minimum age from 21 to 18 while also allowing those older than 40 to do the job. They also offer $50,000 signing bonuses in the hopes of hiring at least 10,000 new agents. "To date, the Administration reports that ICE is on track to hire the 11,000 new agents and officers by the end of the calendar year. This rapid expansion — the most significant staffing increase in the agency’s history — raises important questions about how ICE has changed its hiring standards and training protocols to meet its staffing aims," Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) wrote in a letter to the Government Accountability Office (GAO). According to reporting from NBC News, the surge in hiring has resulted in missteps in screening, with selected applicants arriving at training only to find disqualifying issues. NBC found that 200 recruits were let go during training, with the majority failing to meet ICE’s physical or academic requirements. DHS did not respond to a request for comment.

Bloomberg [12/18/2025 5:42 PM, Fola Akinnibi, Sophie Alexander, Alicia A. Caldwell, and Rachel Adams-Heard, 18207K] reports the Trump administration is moving forward with plans to dramatically expand its immigration detention capacity, potentially using up to two dozen warehouse “mega centers” across the country that could detain 5,000 or more people at the largest sites. It’s the latest effort by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement to rapidly increase its ability to detain immigrants after it received $45 billion from Congress for tens of thousands of new beds across the country. Initial plans included temporary tent structures, like one currently operating at the Fort Bliss Army base in Texas. But the rollout of additional camps has been slow, and existing sites have been plagued by allegations of poor conditions. The warehouse plan appears to already be underway. Last month, a no-bid contract for concept design was awarded to a company with no previous government work. The administration’s push to more than double detention space has gone through multiple iterations, and the design contract doesn’t guarantee this latest shift will take place. ICE issued a $29.9 million contract to Kpb Services LLC on Nov. 28 for “due diligence services and concept design for processing centers and mega centers throughout the United States.” The contract, which fell just below the $30 million threshold requiring the government to justify why it didn’t allow for competition, is part of the broader effort to use existing warehouses for immigration detention, according to two people familiar with the matter. NBC News reported last month that the Trump administration was looking to buy warehouses for immigration detention. It’s unclear how the warehouse facilities would be configured to meet detention standards or how much they would cost.

Univision [12/18/2025 12:17 PM, Staff, 5004K] reports that a federal judge has temporarily prohibited the Trump administration from preventing or delaying unannounced visits by members of Congress seeking to oversee Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities. U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb of the District of Columbia temporarily granted a request from 12 lawmakers who arrived at ICE facilities and were denied entry because, in some cases, they had not provided the seven days’ notice required by a policy implemented in June by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). "The policy regarding oversight visits, which requires members of Congress to give advance notice of such visits, and which DHS uses to detain or house non-citizens (of the United States), and which prohibits members of Congress from conducting oversight visits at certain DHS facilities, including ICE field offices, violates Section 527," the judge wrote in her ruling, which will remain in effect while the case is pending. The changes to how the government allows unannounced visits by lawmakers to ICE facilities are part of the vast apparatus with which Trump seeks to detain and deport immigrants on a large scale. This machinery targets both undocumented immigrants and immigrants whose ongoing immigration processes in the United States have been halted. In addition to wanting to force members of Congress to give advance notice of their visits to ICE facilities, the government attempted to completely prohibit their entry to the agency’s field offices because, supposedly, no immigrants are "detained" there, and therefore these offices should not be covered by Section 527, which grants lawmakers full access to such locations.

Washington Examiner [12/18/2025 12:52 PM, Anna Giaritelli, 1394K] reports that Attorney General Pam Bondi promised "severe consequences" for anyone who assaults federal agents during immigration operations nationwide, but in four Democratic cities with liberal jury pools, over half of the individuals charged with assaulting federal law enforcement have had their charges reduced, according to a new report. Police and court data from Chicago, Los Angeles, Portland, and Washington, all cities where the administration flooded Border Patrol to help ICE, revealed that of 100 people initially charged with assaulting a federal agent, 55 saw charges reduced to a misdemeanor or dismissed, according to the Associated Press. President Donald Trump has repeatedly characterized them as domestic terrorists, though 40% of all charges were misdemeanors. Of those initially charged, 23 of the 100 pleaded guilty, receiving a lesser charge as part of deals with prosecutors, and five of the defendants have gone to trial and been acquitted. Bondi stated in August that the Trump administration would not tolerate harm against federal police, as Border Patrol agents were surged to the frontlines to assist U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement with arresting illegal immigrants in the United States. "If you touch any law enforcement officer, we will come after you," Bondi said. The Justice Department’s failure to secure more aggressive charges against protesters came in part because grand juries in the liberal cities rejected felony indictments, forcing the DOJ to reduce charges in some cases to misdemeanors, which do not require a grand jury.

Daily Signal [12/18/2025 5:04 PM, Virginia Allen, 549K] reports Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are becoming burned out, according to multiple sources. ICE agents are “maxed out,” a senior Trump administration official told The Daily Signal, and yet there is “frustration” within the administration that deportation numbers aren’t higher. “I think it is just an enormous challenge to get 20 million people out of this country,” the official said, referring to an estimation of the number of illegal aliens living in the U.S. The administration has deported over 600,000 illegal aliens since President Donald Trump returned to the White House in January, according to the Department of Homeland Security. An additional 1.9 million have self-deported, but the White House is not satisfied, according to sources familiar with the situation.

Breitbart [12/18/2025 9:59 PM, Staff, 2416K] reports that, after her husband was detained by US immigration authorities in September, Rosa found herself alone with her two children, wondering what would happen should she suffer the same fate as him. "I go out to work less and less, and I’m afraid that I won’t come home to my children," Rosa told AFP. "It’s not easy to explain this to them. My son waits for his dad to come home, and when he doesn’t, he gets sad.” To avoid the possibility of her children being abandoned, the 32-year-old Guatemalan immigrant decided to grant legal guardianship of her kids to an activist, Nora Sandigo, who runs a foundation overseeing the custody of migrant children in Miami. A growing number of undocumented migrants are granting legal guardianship of their children to entrusted allies in the United States. The move gives the adult the power of attorney to sign documents for minors in schools, hospitals and courtrooms even if their parents are detained — without the migrants giving up custody of their children. The trend coincides with President Donald Trump’s crackdown on immigration, with official data published this month showing more than 605,000 undocumented migrants have been deported from the United States since his return to the White House in January. In Florida, host to a large undocumented population, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have increased arrests, detaining immigrants who often work in agriculture, hospitality or construction. Rosa’s husband, for instance, was working at a construction site when he was detained by ICE and transported to a detention facility in Texas, where he remains. The couple hails from the northwest department of Huehuetenango in Guatemala, settling in Florida eight years ago for a chance at a better life. The pair came with a daughter, now 11 years old, and had a son four years ago. The couple now joins hundreds of other families who have entrusted Sandigo with legal guardianship. Born in Nicaragua and now a naturalized US citizen, Sandigo began taking in children from migrant families 15 years ago through her foundation, based in Miami. She is currently the legal guardian of almost 350 minors born in the US and 137 children born outside of the country, and has been the guardian of more than 2,000 kids over the course of her career. She and her two daughters have even lived with some of the children, some for months or years, after their parents were deported. The 60-year-old told AFP she receives calls every day from parents asking her to become their children’s legal guardian — and that number "has grown spectacularly" in recent months. "The new administration’s arrival with a terrifying message of persecution for immigrants, causing great distress for children, has been horrifying," she said.

Federalist [12/18/2025 6:45 AM, Breccan F. Thies, 785K] reports the Trump administration’s focus on immigration enforcement across the country is alleviating the heavy burden of illegals diverting public services, as school systems are reporting significant drops in enrollment after having been overrun with countless migrants, many of who do not speak English. "One of the victims of Biden’s open border polices was America’s students whose schools became overcrowded[;] teachers, aides and resources, including for disabled students, were diverted to the millions of illegal aliens the Biden Administration flooded into our country," Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin told The Federalist. "President Trump is putting our children, their education and their future first. Noting that 2.5 million illegal aliens have already left the United States under the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement and deportation operations, McLaughlin said that "America’s public benefits should go to Americans.” Just as it has done in schools, immigration enforcement has also alleviated the crushing burden that illegal immigration has placed on emergency rooms, as The Federalist reported. "The actions that have been taken to curb the influx of new illegal migrants and the efforts to remove people who are here illegally will help the American students who were most impacted by the mass wave of illegal immigration under the Biden administration," Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) Media Director Ira Mehlman told The Federalist. "We cannot ask schools and teachers to do the impossible and expect a good outcome."

Newsweek [12/18/2025 1:56 PM, Billal Rahman and Dan Gooding, 52220K] reports a group of Democratic lawmakers announced legislation on Thursday aimed at barring local police departments from collaborating with federal immigration authorities to apprehend migrants without legal status. The PROTECT Immigration Act would terminate the federal 287(g) program, repealing its statutory authority and clarifying that state and local law enforcement do not have inherent authority to investigate, detain, or arrest individuals for suspected immigration offenses. Illinois Democratic Representative Mike Quigley is leading the bill. Speaking to Newsweek on Thursday, he explained what had inspired the legislation. "It was what I witnessed in my home city during the Operation Midway Blitz," he said, referring to the DHS operation in Chicago. "You know, I walked with young immigrant kids from a shelter to school, and they talked to me about their lives and how happy they were, and they had no idea that I was walking them with other adults because their parents couldn’t."

FOX News [12/18/2025 12:28 PM, Leo Briceno, 40621K] reports that a Republican lawmaker in the House of Representatives introduced legislation on Thursday to make federal resources for fighting illegal immigration available to local authorities — even as Democrats unveiled their own language that would restrict partnerships between the two. Rep. Pat Harrigan, R-N.C., unveiled the COPS Anti-Organized Crime and Cartel Enforcement Act of 2025, looking to provide new resources to local communities combating cartels and other organized threats. Those new resources would be made available through the Department of Justice’s Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) office. "My bill gives police departments access to federal COPS grant funding specifically to create specialized units that can take on organized crime, with the training, equipment and personnel they need to dismantle these operations," Harrigan said. His bill comes as Democrats led by Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Ill., unveiled the PROTECT Act, a piece of legislation that would forbid federal agencies from deputizing local authorities to carry out immigration-related enforcement. The contrasting pieces of legislation highlight split understandings over the country’s most pressing law enforcement needs and views on how to address them.

FOX News [12/18/2025 11:44 AM, Staff, 40621K] reports that Rep. Mike Quigley, D-Ill., introduces legislation that would stop agencies from deputizing local law enforcement to make immigration-related enforcement decisions. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Axios [12/19/2025 5:02 AM, Russell Contreras, 12972K] reports some U.S. churches are reimagining Nativity scenes — surrounding the Holy Family with ICE agents or separating Jesus from Mary and Joseph — to protest the Trump administration’s intensifying immigration crackdowns. The displays have become one of the most visible acts of Christmas dissent amid ramped-up workplace raids, home arrests and new restrictions on asylum and legal immigration. The provocative Nativity scenes are part of a growing trend of Christian activism on immigration, especially among mainline Protestant churches, Catholic parishes and progressive evangelical groups. Lake Street Church in the Chicago suburb of Evanston, Ill., reimagined its Nativity scene with baby Jesus’s hands zip-tied, Mary in a gas mask and figures dressed in tactical vests labeled "ICE." Vandals later destroyed the scene and decapitated the statue of Mary. In Charlotte, N.C., Mission gathering Church created a Nativity scene depicting masked immigration agents with bulletproof vests and handcuffs near the Holy Family. A vandal also damaged the scene, which was later restored. Urban Village Church in River Forest, Ill., erected a Nativity installation with no Mary, Joseph or baby Jesus, replaced by a sign reading "Due to ICE activity in our community the Holy Family is in hiding." St. Susanna Parish in Dedham, Mass., replaced its traditional Nativity figures with a sign reading "ICE was here." Local Catholic archdiocesan leadership called for the sign’s removal, saying parishioners "have the right to expect ... genuine opportunities for prayer and Catholic worship — not divisive political messaging." Oak Lawn United Methodist Church in Dallas has erected an outdoor Nativity display inside a cage topped with razor wire, featuring a shopping cart and trash barrels. "May this scene call us to make room — in our hearts, in our city, in our policies — for the Christ who comes as an unhoused immigrant child." Rev. Rachel Griffin-Allison said in a statement. "Using a Christmas Nativity display to promote a political message is inappropriate, divisive, disrespectful and arguably sacrilegious," Catholic Action League executive director C. J. Doyle said in a statement. In a statement to Axios, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told those who have used Christmas Nativity scenes to protest immigration enforcement to "get a grip and seek help." "Not only is this ‘nativity’ scene offensive to Christians, but it is also depicting something that NEVER happens. ICE does not zip tie infants or children," she said.

New York Times [12/19/2025 3:00 AM, Santul Nerkar, 153395K] reports the cell was poorly heated, designed to hold only a single person, briefly, and measuring about 6 feet by 6 feet. But Erron Anthony Clarke spent more than two days there, sleeping near an open toilet with eight others, as the temperature outside dropped to 21 degrees. The lights were kept on at all hours. The detention, inside a federal courthouse in Central Islip, N.Y., was the subject of a blistering 24-page opinion on Thursday by Judge Gary R. Brown regarding the treatment of Mr. Clarke, a Jamaican citizen who had applied for permanent residency and was held in the freezing, filthy conditions, unable to shower. “After nearly 35 years of experience with federal law enforcement in this judicial district, encompassing service as a prosecutor and a judge, I have never encountered anything like this,” Judge Brown, who was appointed by President Trump in 2019, wrote. The judge also wrote that Immigration and Customs Enforcement had presented false information about Mr. Clarke’s arrest and had ignored court orders by failing to present him for a hearing and provide photographs of the cell. He questioned why the agency should not be held in contempt. The scathing opinion from Judge Brown was the latest example of the way judges across the country have criticized conditions at federal detention lockups, in some cases releasing people they say have been wrongfully and inhumanely detained. A federal judge in August ordered the Trump administration to fix the squalid holding cells used to house migrants at 26 Federal Plaza in New York City. In November, a judge in Chicago said that an ICE facility subjected migrants to “unnecessarily cruel” conditions and imposed restrictions on the facility. A spokeswoman for the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment, nor did a lawyer for Mr. Clarke, who has now been released.

Washington Examiner [12/18/2025 2:15 PM, Anna Giaritelli, 1394K] reports that an illegal immigrant in Virginia has been arrested on charges of homicide just a day after he was let out of jail on a separate offense by a progressive district attorney whose campaign was funded by George Soros. Steve Descano, prosecutor for Fairfax County, Virginia, dropped all charges against a 23-year-old illegal immigrant from El Salvador with a criminal history, allowing the suspect to go free into the community, only to be picked up by police on a suspected murder charge a day later, local media outlet WJLA reported. The Fairfax County Police Department announced Wednesday afternoon that officers had arrested Marvin Morales-Ortez as the suspect in a fatal shooting that occurred outside a home in Reston earlier in the day. Morales-Ortez had a long list of felony arrests in the county, but was released from jail on Tuesday after Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office dropped the charges for brandishing a firearm and assaulting and injuring someone. Morales-Ortez was charged with assault and battery in 2020; another assault and battery charge in 2023, along with disorderly conduct; petit larceny in 2024; and pointing or brandishing a gun, assaulting, and injuring a victim in September 2025. He was only convicted of the theft. The Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not respond to requests for comment.

Reported similarly:
Free Beacon [12/18/2025 12:10 PM, Staff, 411K]

Axios [12/18/2025 4:32 PM, Andrew King, 12972K] reports Columbus city leaders say ICE activity has increased locally without their permission or cooperation. The Trump administration continues to increase ICE presence in cities across the country as the agency attempts to meet its goal of deporting millions. Recent social media reports of ICE presence prompted Columbus leaders to confirm and address those reports at a Thursday news conference. Mayor Andrew Ginther reaffirmed the stance taken since his 2017 executive order barring the use of city resources to enforce federal immigration policy. Police Chief Elaine Bryant confirmed "there are more agents," but said CPD is uncertain how many are here. Ginther said the city believes residents have been detained, but doesn’t know how many or where detainees may be taken.

Chicago Tribune [12/18/2025 3:49 PM, Gloria Casas, 4829K] reports Kane County prosecutors are investigating complaints against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents resulting from a Dec. 6 operation in Elgin in which people were allegedly pepper-sprayed and assaulted, State’s Attorney Jamie Mosser confirmed Thursday. Elgin police received more than 50 calls that day, with 11 police reports generated because of a crash involving ICE agents and a man they were trying to take into custody and during a barricade situation in which the man held agents at bay while inside a Maple Lane apartment, officials said. No arrests were made because of the incident other then for the man being taken into custody by federal agents following the barricade incident.

Immigration advocates and residents have questioned Elgin police officers’ actions that day, alleging that no one helped protestors when ICE agents allegedly interacted physically with people and threw chemical irritants at the crowd. They’ve also viewed police body camera video and social media accounts in an effort to determine what happened and if crimes occurred. The department’s preliminary findings to ICE charges that bystanders threw bottles and rocks at agents was that there was no evidence so far to support the claims, according to a statement issued by police last week. On Thursday, the chief said the city plans to hold a town hall meeting about ICE enforcement efforts in Elgin.

FOX News [12/18/2025 9:54 PM, Landon Mion, 40621K] reports Minneapolis’ police chief condemned Immigration and Customs Enforcement after an agent was seen dragging an allegedly pregnant woman through the street and kneeling on her back during an attempted arrest earlier this week. Video on Monday in a Minneapolis neighborhood showed people yelling at ICE agents to release the woman, saying she was pregnant and could not breathe. An agent was captured on video kneeling on the woman’s back before later dragging her through the snow by one arm on her back toward a vehicle. "Let her go! Let her go!" witnesses yelled as the agent dragged the woman at an intersection. The woman was eventually released from the agent’s grasp. Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said at a news conference on Tuesday that local police were called to the scene by a federal agent who claimed officers needed help. But when police arrived, there was no violence against federal officers, O’Hara said, adding that other law enforcement agencies may have been using "questionable methods.” "Once it was determined that the scene was safe and there was no violence occurring, our officers disengaged from the scene," O’Hara said. "We have been training our officers for the last five years very, very intensely on de-escalation," he continued. "But unfortunately, that is not, that is often not what we are seeing from other agencies in the city.” O’Hara also said in a statement to Reuters that the footage of the woman dragged through the street is "profoundly disturbing.” "This egregious disregard for human dignity is appalling," he said. "It is deeply concerning that there appears to be a lack of accountability from our federal partners.” Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin purported that federal agents were targeting a vehicle when protesters "threw rocks, chunks of ice, assaulted officers and used pepper spray." She said two people were charged with assaulting federal officers and remain in custody and that the agents sustained injuries, including cuts. McLaughlin further alleged that agents attempted to arrest the woman in the video because she "rushed an ICE vehicle and attempted to vandalize it" but that they abandoned the arrest after being swarmed by protesters.

Reported similarly:
The Hill [12/18/2025 5:35 PM, Sarah Fortinsky, 12595K]

FOX News [12/18/2025 9:00 PM, Lindsay Kornick, 40621K] reports members of the Trump administration called out Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara after he invoked the Nativity story to criticize immigration raids. During a press conference with Mayor Jacob Frey Tuesday, O’Hara lamented the "very, very difficult time" communities are experiencing because of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers operating in the area. He likened the scenario to Mary and Joseph traveling to Bethlehem before the first Christmas. "It’s especially personal to me, having been raised a Catholic, to be in a Christian church this morning as we are approaching Christmas," O’Hara said. "And I cannot help but think of what is happening in our city today and how that echoes with how outsiders have been treated for thousands of years. How Mary and Joseph themselves were considered outsiders and forced to stay in a barn. "That’s what we’re getting ready to commemorate as Christians around the world while all of this fear is happening in our town," he added. The comment was widely criticized by conservatives online, including members of the Trump administration. "In major cities across the country police chiefs use the phrase ‘our community’ to refer to illegals and foreign trespassers," White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller commented. "How abhorrent and humiliating this Minneapolis Police Chief refuses to do his job and has allowed these pedophiles and rapists terrorize Minneapolis and hurt the very people he swore an oath to protect," Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin wrote. She also listed the names and rap sheets of four criminal illegal immigrants arrested over the last few days in Minneapolis. "@GovTimWalz and @MayorFrey owe @ICEGov a big thank you," she added. In a comment to Fox News Digital, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson condemned O’Hara’s speech as "unconscionable.” "It’s unconscionable that anyone would compare criminal illegal aliens to the Son of God," Jackson said. "Law enforcement officials should enforce the law, not allow dangerous criminal illegal aliens to terrorize American communities while making absurd comparisons.”

CBS News [12/18/2025 2:39 PM, Julia Falcon, 39474K] reports that three people were arrested this week in connection to a human trafficking investigation, according to Timothy Good, the district attorney of Johnson and Somervell counties. On Dec. 16, search warrants were executed at multiple locations in Johnson County in relation to human trafficking, including two locations in Cleburne and one location in Burleson. Good didn’t say where exactly the searches took place. Officials arrested two men – Consepsion Manriquez and Charles Eugine Evans. Both were charged with continuous trafficking of persons and racketeering and are being held on a $1,350,000 bond. One woman was arrested – Jie Deng. She was charged with continuous trafficking of persons and is being held on a $850,000 bond. Also seized during the searches were two handguns, $3,330 in cash, evidence of sex trafficking and numerous electronic and data storage devices. Good said the investigation revealed established criminal ties to other locations in Texas, the U.S. and internationally. He said the investigation is ongoing and more arrests and search warrants are likely. The Johnson County Sheriff’s Office, Johnson County District Attorney’s Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Texas Department of Public Safety and the Burleson Police Department assisted in the investigation.

HS Today [12/18/2025 6:15 AM, Staff, 38K] reports the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has announced that Diego Barron-Esquivel, a criminal illegal alien from Mexico, has been sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for violently assaulting and strangling an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer in February in Wichita, Kansas. On February 28, 2025, two ICE officers were conducting a targeted enforcement operation to arrest Barron-Esquivel, a violent criminal illegal alien who had been consistently harassing his former spouse. His extensive, violent criminal history includes arrests for multiple counts of domestic battery, multiple counts of violation of protection order, criminal damage to property, aggravated robbery, felony theft, transporting an open container, criminal restraint, possession of drug paraphernalia, and improper use of an automobile. Barron-Esquivel resisted arrest. He violently punched one of the officers in the face and head, escalating to strangling the officer with his own badge cord. The officer almost passed out before he successfully broke the badge cord. Barron-Esquivel fled arrest but was later successfully apprehended by local law enforcement. “This barbaric criminal illegal alien, with a rap sheet a mile long, violently punched one our officers in the face and head and then began strangling the officer with his own badge cord. Our officers are facing a 1150% increase in violence against them as they arrest the worst of the worst,” said Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin. “He now faces 20 years in federal prison. Secretary Noem has been clear: if you lay a hand on law enforcement, you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.” Barron-Esquivel pleaded guilty to one count of forcible assault of a federal officer on December 3, 2025, and was sentenced to 20 years in prison, the maximum penalty allowed under the statute.

AP [12/18/2025 6:48 PM, Heather Hollingsworth and Joshua Goodman, 30493K] reports a Kansas tribe said it has walked away from a nearly $30 million federal contract to come up with preliminary designs for immigrant detention centers after facing a wave of online criticism. The Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation ‘s announcement Wednesday night came just over a week after the economic development leaders who brokered the deal with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement were fired. With some Native Americans swept up and detained in recent ICE raids, the deal was derided online as "disgusting" and "cruel." Many in Indian Country also questioned how a tribe whose own ancestors were uprooted two centuries ago from the Great Lakes region and corralled on a reservation south of Topeka could participate in the Trump administration’s mass deportation efforts. Tribal Chairman Joseph "Zeke" Rupnick nodded to the historic issues last week in a video address that called reservations "the government’s first attempts at detention centers." In an update Wednesday, he announced that he was "happy to share that our Nation has successfully exited all third-party related interests affiliated with ICE.” The Prairie Band Potawatomi has a range of businesses that provide health care management staffing, general contracting and even interior design. And Rupnick said in his latest address that tribal officials plan to meet in January about how to ensure "economic interests do not come into conflict with our values in the future.” A tribal offshoot hired by ICE — KPB Services LLC — was established in April in Holton, Kansas, by Ernest C. Woodward Jr., a former naval officer who markets himself as a "go-to" adviser for tribes and affiliated companies seeking to land federal contracts. The Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation said in 2017 that Woodward’s firm advised it on its acquisition of another government contractor, Mill Creek LLC, which specializes in outfitting federal buildings and the military with office furniture and medical equipment. A spokesperson for the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation said the tribe divested from KPB. While that company still has the contract, "Prairie Band no longer has a stake," the spokesperson said. The spokesperson said Woodward is no longer with the tribe’s limited liability corporation, but she declined to say whether he was terminated. The ICE contract initially was awarded in October for $19 million for unspecified "due diligence and concept designs" for processing centers and detention centers throughout the U.S., according to a one-sentence description of the work on the federal government’s real-time contracting database. It was modified a month later to increase the payout ceiling to $29.9 million.

Los Angeles Times [12/18/2025 6:00 AM, Itzel Luna, 14862K] reports Babblejit "Bubbly" Kaur and her husband, Amarjit Singh, celebrated their 41st wedding anniversary in Long Beach in late November. The pair cradled a mint-frosted cake in their hands and beamed as their daughter, Joti, snapped pictures. The couple endured a lot in those years, more than 30 of which have been spent in the U.S., after they fled religious persecution in India. They arrived in 1994 with three young children and little money, facing a daunting asylum process. But the couple found their niche, operating a beloved Indian restaurant for decades, and saw their children through college. This year had already been tough for the family. Singh was diagnosed with cancer and Kaur was laid off from her cashier job at Rite Aid, where she’d worked for decades, after the company closed in October. But the biggest hurdle for the family would come only days after the couple’s anniversary, on Dec. 1, when Kaur was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement during a routine fingerprinting appointment and eventually taken to the Adelanto ICE Processing Center. Joti Kaur, the couple’s youngest daughter, collapsed at work when she heard the news. Kaur had an approved green card, but the government had not yet released it, said Harman Singh, her eldest son. The family’s lawyer filed a habeas corpus complaint early last week requesting the court review the legality of Kaur’s detention.

The Daily Caller [12/18/2025 12:30 PM, Jason Hopkins, 835K] reports the Trump administration plans to dramatically escalate its crackdown on naturalized Americans who obtained citizenship through fraudulent means. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) field offices have been asked to supply the Office of Immigration Litigation with 100-200 denaturalization cases per month throughout the 2026 fiscal year, according to internal guidance first obtained by the New York Times. A spokesman for the agency confirmed the plans to the Daily Caller News Foundation, arguing that a large-scale crackdown is needed following the Biden years. "It’s no secret that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ war on fraud includes prioritizing those who’ve unlawfully obtained U.S. citizenship — especially under the previous administration," Matthew Tragesser said in a statement provided to the DCNF. "We will pursue denaturalization proceedings for those individuals lying or misrepresenting themselves during the naturalization process.” "We look forward to continuing to work with the Department of Justice to restore integrity to America’s immigration system," Tragesser continued. The Washington Examiner [12/18/2025 12:25 PM, Emily Hallas, 1394K] reports U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services field offices received guidance on Tuesday requesting that they target 100 to 200 denaturalization cases per month in fiscal 2026, according to the New York Times. That number is up from around 120 such cases in total that have been investigated over the past eight years, according to the Department of Justice. USCIS is targeting individuals who have fraudulently become naturalized citizens. The agency told the Washington Examiner that "it’s no secret" its "war on fraud includes prioritizing those who’ve unlawfully obtained U.S. citizenship—especially under the previous administration.” "We will pursue denaturalization proceedings for those individuals lying or misrepresenting themselves during the naturalization process. We look forward to continuing to work with the Department of Justice to restore integrity to America’s immigration system," DOJ spokesman Matthew Tragesser said.

Reported similarly:
Breitbart [12/18/2025 10:55 AM, John Binder, 2416K]
Blaze [12/18/2025 2:35 PM, Carlos Garcia, 1442K]
NewsMax [12/18/2025 3:05 PM, Staff, 4109K]

Daily Wire [12/18/2025 6:57 AM, Jennie Taer, 2494K] reports that the Trump administration will begin efforts to denaturalize certain foreign-born individuals with United States citizenship over fraud concerns — marking a massive expansion of the federal government’s immigration crackdown. Personnel at United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) were issued new guidance on Tuesday to "supply Office of Immigration Litigation with 100-200 denaturalization cases per month," according to The New York Times. "It’s no secret that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ war on fraud includes prioritizing those who’ve unlawfully obtained U.S. citizenship — especially under the previous administration," USCIS spokesman Matthew Tragesser said in a statement. "We will pursue denaturalization proceedings for those individuals lying or misrepresenting themselves during the naturalization process. We look forward to continuing to work with the Department of Justice to restore integrity to America’s immigration system," he said. Since 2017, more than 120 such cases have been filed, according to The New York Times, citing Department of Justice data.

Chicago Tribune [12/18/2025 12:28 PM, Steve Sadin, 4829K] reports that during the past year, the number of immigrants who are legal residents of the U.S. seeking citizenship has increased, in part because of fear in the community sparked by the immigration enforcement policies of President Donald Trump’s administration, local officials say. Dulce Ortiz, the executive director of Mano a Mano Family Services and a Waukegan Township trustee, said she has seen an increase in people seeking citizenship since just before Trump’s election in November. Martha Hernandez, the program manager for HACES’ New Americans Initiative, said she has also seen an increase this year. She believes it stems from fear arising from the enforcement actions of the Trump administration. “People are afraid of being deported (even) with their permanent status,” Hernandez said. “A lot of people who are permanent residents want citizenship because only citizenship works to keep you from getting deported.” Nearly 600 Lake County residents have taken their oath to become U.S. citizens since the first of the year, in part to gain the rights and protections of citizenship as opposed to legal permanent residents of the country. Maria Elana Jonas, the executive director of HACES, said the first step toward citizenship is becoming a legal permanent resident of the country, also known as having a Green Card. It allows a person to live and work in the country permanently.

Telemundo [12/18/2025 12:18 AM, Staff, 2218K] reports the New York Times obtained access to documents that were sent to USCIS offices requesting that each month they refer between 100 and 200 immigrant cases to the Department of Justice to open denaturalization proceedings. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Daily Caller [12/18/2025 8:00 PM, Jason Hopkins, 835K] reports American workers struggling to find employment in the tech industry are ripping Democrats for protecting the massive flow of cheap, foreign labor into the country. A coalition of Democrat-led states announced a lawsuit earlier in December to block the Trump administration’s $100,000 fee on new H-1B visas, claiming that U.S. employers are in need of the "highly skilled" labor provided by the H-1B visa system. American tech workers — many of whom are unable to find employment or have left the industry entirely out of frustration — say the lawsuit is the latest sign that the Democrat Party is no longer representative of the everyday working man. "This is liberal states itching to ‘stand up to Trump,’ married by convenience to the Indian lobby and Big Business," John, a cybersecurity professional in the Seattle area who has struggled to land a job for a year, told the the Daily Caller News Foundation about the lawsuit. John said Democrat claims about labor shortages in higher education are "crap" and that American citizens could "easily" be hired for these positions. Like all five of the current and former tech workers who spoke to the DCNF, John wished to only go by his first name out of fear of reprisal from potential employers. A coalition of Democratic attorneys general from 20 different states filed a lawsuit on Dec. 12 challenging President Donald Trump’s executive order establishing a $100,000 price tag on all new H-1B visas. Filed in federal district court in Boston by Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell and other liberal prosecutors, the lawsuit alleges the fee to be outside its congressionally authorized bounds. The Democratic attorneys general — who argued the fee places too hard a burden on elite universities in need of foreign labor — also appeared to sidestep concerns that these visas take jobs away from Americans, noting in at least one press release that employers must certify that the employment of a foreign worker would not negatively affect the wages of a similarly employed American worker. "That’s total bullshit," Kevin Lynn, the founder of U.S. Tech Workers, an advocacy group for American tech employees displaced by foreign labor, told the DCNF. Lynn argued that federal regulators aren’t remotely capable of ensuring that Americans aren’t hung out to dry by foreign workers. "So imagine you’re at the Department of Labor and you get over a quarter million [Labor Condition Applications], and at the same time, according to the statute, you have only seven days to view that application," the tech worker advocate stated. "All they have time to do is make sure the Is are dotted and the Ts are crossed, so there is no time to effectively evaluate the application.” "This definitely tells you the Democratic Party is not the party of labor," he stated, noting that many of the uber wealthy congressional districts heavily favored Vice President Kamala Harris in the last presidential election. "It’s obvious that the wealthy donor class are represented now by the Democratic Party, and also a lot of Republicans.”

Breitbart [12/18/2025 7:49 AM, Nick Gilbertson, 2416K] reports the State Department said South Africa will face "severe consequences" if it does not hold accountable its own authorities who detained United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officers, whose identities were later exposed on Wednesday. Principal Deputy State Department Spokesman Tommy Pigott provided a statement to Breitbart News on Wednesday night condemning the South African government’s detention of the two officers, who were aiding Afrikaners in their official duties. "The U.S. condemns in the strongest terms the South African government’s recent detention of U.S. officials performing their duties to provide humanitarian support to Afrikaners," Pigott said. "Furthermore, the public release of our U.S. officials’ passport information is an unacceptable form of harassment." The USCIS officials were detained as part of a raid by the South African government, in which it arrested Kenyans who the South African government viewed as illegally aiding in processing U.S. refugee applications of Afrikaners. At least one of the USCIS officers’ passports was publicly exposed after the raid and detention via a post that was later deleted, and as Breitbart News noted, seven Kenyans were arrested and are set to be deported.

Breitbart [12/18/2025 11:14 PM, Staff, 2416K] reports U.S. Customs and Border Protection said Thursday it has trained a record number of new recruits, and in new ways to deter undocumented migrants from crossing the border. The new recruits, many who are Latino, Spanish-speaking and from border towns, will be trained at the agency’s academy in Artesia, N.M, according to CNN. They will be taught more assertive tactics than previous recruits, and the training will include vehicle chases. Better weapons technology is also being newly introduced to the training curriculum, which CBP leaders say is the result of a broader agency makeover by President Donald Trump, an agenda item he announced at the start of his second term. Changes at the agency come amid Trump’s pledge to deport undocumented migrants, and as Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions have been increased in large, predominantly Democrat-led U.S. cities, despite pushback from local and state policing agencies who say they don’t need the help from ICE or the National Guard, whose soldiers have also been deployed. CBP said the training is being paid for by funding in the federal budget bill. They said the money will allow the agency to hire an additional 3,000 Border Patrol agents, adding to the 19,000 currently deployed nationwide. There are currently 1,100 trainees enrolled at the CBP academy, the highest number since 2009. Only 500 were enrolled in 2024, according to agency data. The agency reported it will have roughly 1,500 trainees by the middle of next year, CNN reported.

Breitbart [12/18/2025 11:35 AM, Nick Gilbertson, 2416K] reports that CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott outlined the agency’s goal of onboarding and retaining "top talent." "CBP is committed to recruiting and retaining top talent for our critical mission," Scott said in a press release obtained by Breitbart News. "By offering competitive incentives, we are investing in skilled professionals who will help secure America’s borders and advance national security." Recruits will be eligible to earn up to $60,000 in incentives, including a $10,000 incentive upon finishing the academy, per the release. If deployed to a remote location, they are eligible for another $10,000 incentive, which also factors toward the potential $60,000 total. "New CBP officers in hard-to-fill and most difficult-to-fill locations are eligible for up to $60,000 in incentives," the release notes. "Retention incentives of up to $60,000 will be available for experienced supervisors and officers eligible to retire in certain locations." Up to $50,000 in incentives will be made available to current CBP agents as well. "New Air and Marine agents are eligible for signing bonuses of up to $10,000 after completing the academy," the release adds. "New and current Air and Marine agents are eligible for retention incentives up to 25% of their salary, based on position, experience, and location.” The One Big Beautiful Bill, which President Donald Trump signed into law on July 4, makes these recruitment and retention efforts possible.

FOX News [12/18/2025 5:00 AM, Alec Schemmel, 40621K] reports the Trump administration announced it had awarded five new contracts to help continue building a high-tech "Smart Wall" along the southern U.S.-Mexico border in Texas and Arizona, bringing the total spent on constructing the border barrier to $8 billion. In total, when completed, the border wall is expected to include 1,418 miles of new "Primary Smart Wall," 536 miles of a "Waterborne Barrier System," and 708 miles of "Secondary Border Wall." Approximately 536 miles of the U.S.-Mexico border without barrier will be covered by detection technology "due to unfavorable terrain or remoteness of location," U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) notes. Meanwhile, CBP is also deploying roughly 549 miles of technology in locations with previously constructed barriers, according to the agency. "Securing our border is key to protecting our country, keeping our communities safe, and making sure our immigration system works the way it should. A border wall with the right technology – a Smart Wall – is an important tool to stop illegal activity and to help agents do their job, which is critical in keeping America safe," said CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott.In addition to the new contracts, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem issued nine new waivers to fast-track construction efforts in several sectors. These waivers were published in the Federal Register in October, November and this month.

Axios [12/18/2025 1:54 PM, Monica Eng, 12972K] reports that last week, News Nation reported that U.S Border Patrol agents led by Gregory Bovino would halt random immigration sweeps on sidewalks and businesses like Home Depot, and switch to targeted enforcement against "individuals who have committed heinous crimes." The news outlet cited Department of Homeland Security sources. Reality check: CBP agents appear to have done the opposite multiple times this week in Chicago, where DHS officials tell Axios they arrested 35 people on Tuesday alone. Some of the operations happened on the street, in various Home Depot parking lots and even on a Teamsters picket line, according to local photos, reporting and statements from local rapid response members. One person arrested was bicycling and another was selling tamales, according to local community advocates. Bovino says they arrested 16 people at an O’Hare ride-share lot on Wednesday. What they’re saying: "After two days of escalation, this week’s operation has been more of the same from Bovino and his minions," Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights spokesperson Brandon Lee tells Axios. "They continue to stop people on the street, at gas stations and in parking lots. This points to continued racial profiling, more separated families, and more abductions of our neighbors. As we’ve seen the last couple of days and throughout the year, Illinois residents will continue to look out for one another and keep each other." The other side: DHS officials did not respond to repeated Axios requests for comment on the reported policy shift.

Chicago Tribune [12/18/2025 6:38 PM, Rebecca Johnson, 4829K] reports that, after Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino and scores of his federal agents left Chicago last month, and immigration enforcement wound down, Matt DeMateo said daily life slowly but surely returned to normal. Congregants started to fill church pews again on the Southwest Side and kids returned to school, said the CEO of the nonprofit New Life Centers of Chicagoland. But in the back of his mind, he waited and wondered if they would return. Those fears were realized this week, DeMateo said. He and his team were in the middle of a food giveaway, when community group messages activated with reports that Bovino was back. On Wednesday, DeMateo said, he was driving down 26th Street when federal agents sprayed pepper bullets at a nearby car. “I was about 20 feet behind the agent with my windows down listening and some of that chemical pepper spray went into the van,” he said, adding that he started coughing and couldn’t breathe well for a couple of minutes. DeMateo testified Thursday morning at the first public meeting of the Illinois Accountability Commission, which Gov. JB Pritzker launched in October to track and scrutinize federal immigration agents’ actions in Chicago. About 100 residents and community leaders gathered at the Arturo Velasquez Institute in the Lower West Side neighborhood primarily to discuss agents’ use of chemical crowd-control weapons. The commission, headed by former federal Judge Rubén Castillo, was launched via executive order after weeks of alleged misconduct during President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, called Operation Midway Blitz. Pritzker said it would collect evidence and recommend steps to hold the federal government accountable, with a status report outlining the findings expected in January. Castillo said Thursday that “nothing is off of the table” as far as recommendations the commission can make to the state, including legislation. Many of the federal agents’ actions “dishonors” true members of law enforcement, he added. However, the eight-member commission is restricted by the state’s limited authority. It has no subpoena power and no direct law enforcement authority. There also was no apparent way for members of the public who experienced or witnessed excessive force to directly report allegations, the Tribune reported a month ago, although the commission said Thursday that it would open an online portal next month. This week, Bovino and at least 100 Border Patrol agents, according to sources, returned to Chicago for a show of force after many had left for operations in other states. They made several arrests, but spent much of their time goading angry residents and protesters who confronted them in streets and in car caravans. DeMateo said the exposure to pepper spray this week reactivated a lot of memories from another confrontation last month in Little Village. On Nov. 8, he was eating breakfast at Nuevo Leon Restaurant when he got text messages about federal immigration activity.

New York Post [12/18/2025 8:18 AM, Samuel Chamberlain, 42219K] reports high-profile Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino went nose-to-nose Wednesday with the progressive mayor of the Chicago suburb of Evanston after federal authorities detained at least ten people suspected of being in the US illegally. Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss confronted Bovino in front of journalists and pro-immigrant activist after agents arrested a man at a gas station in the city, which is home to Northwestern University. "The abuse has not been acceptable. The racism has not been acceptable. The violence has not been acceptable," said Biss, a former Illinois gubernatorial candidate who is running for Congress in a competitive Democratic primary next year. "Yeah, that’s why we’re here. That’s why we’re in your community, to hear what you need us to do when we are dealing with a violent situation or something like this, where there should be no violence committed by those who shouldn’t be here in your community," Bovino responded, according to video of the conversation shot by Fox 32 political editor Paris Schutz. "I’m unaware of that happening," Biss responded, prompting Bovino to fire back: "Well, that’s probably the problem. Maybe you should get aware." Biss later ripped Bovino to the Chicago Sun-Times as a "condescending, sarcastic liar" and claimed his agents’ operation was "all a show."

Chicago Tribune [12/18/2025 6:00 AM, Jason Meisner, 4829K] reports the federal prosecutor who had been heading up a high-profile case alleging a Chicago gang member solicited the murder of Border Patrol chief Gregory Bovino is leaving the U.S. attorney’s office just weeks ahead of a scheduled trial. Bradley Tucker, who joined the U.S. attorney’s office in June 2022 and had been assigned to the Narcotics and Money Laundering Section, would be the latest in a string of federal prosecutors to depart in recent months. His final day is scheduled to be in early January, said Joseph Fitzpatrick, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office. It’s not clear why Tucker is leaving. But news of his departure comes a little over a month before he had been scheduled to lead the prosecution of Juan Espinoza Martinez, whose arrest on murder-for-hire charges at the height of Operation Midway Blitz made national headlines amid daily clashes between agents and protesters. The timing is unusual, particularly given the sensitivity of the Espinoza Martinez case. For more than two months, Bovino and other immigration enforcement leaders have repeatedly held the charges up as an example of the alleged violence toward immigration officials in Chicago and around the country. Sources also said that Tucker, who came to the office from Chicago law firm Sidley Austin LLP, is leaving before having landed a new position elsewhere, which is an atypical move. Espinoza Martinez is scheduled to go on trial Jan. 20. With a deadline looming last week for pretrial filings, two other prosecutors filed appearances in the case for the first time, including Jason Yonan, who was recently named first assistant U.S. attorney, reporting directly to U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros. Tucker could not be reached for comment about the situation. Espinoza Martinez’s lawyer, Jonathan Bedi, declined to comment.

NewsNation [12/18/2025 5:15 PM, Jeff Arnold, 8017K] reports Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson accused Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino of lying about assistance that Bovino said was provided to federal immigration agents by Chicago and suburban police officers Wednesday. Johnson told reporters Thursday that Chicago cops did not violate the city’s Welcoming City ordinance or the Illinois Trust Act, both of which prohibit officers from cooperating with federal immigration enforcement efforts. Bovino returned to Chicago this week, along with 200 federal agents, to conduct ongoing immigration enforcement operations. Bovino wrote on social media Wednesday that he wanted to thank both the Chicago and Evanston police departments for "preventing violent mobs" from assaulting federal immigration officers. Asked about Bovino’s claims Thursday, Johnson denied that Chicago police officers violated the city ordinance and the state’s Trust Act. Bovino told reporters Wednesday that this week may mark the first time local law enforcement officers have assisted Border Patrol agents.

Univision Chicago WGBO [12/18/2025 9:46 AM, Staff, 5004K] reports that Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino returned to Chicago on Tuesday, December 16, where he was seen at various locations throughout the city accompanied by a film crew during a series of federal operations. A Univision team witnessed an operation conducted at the intersection of 32nd and Ridgeway streets. At the scene, uniformed officers, including Bovino, walked down an alley and entered a property, where they handcuffed and arrested a man. Dozens of neighborhood residents confronted the officers, demanding that they leave the area. In response to the complaints, Bovino replied: "We’ve arrested quite a few criminals here, so we’ll continue with the operation," Bovino commented. While multiple operations were underway in the Chicago area, a video captured by citizens circulated on social media. The images show Bovino leaving a Thorntons store on Harlem Avenue, apparently carrying two packages of salami, heading towards Jackson Street. In the parking lot, Bovino and another officer were filmed playing rock-paper-scissors, while car horns honked and people shouted. The game lasted three rounds. At the end of the video, Bovino smiles after winning and, raising his hands, responds to someone shouting insults at him with the phrase: "Merry Christmas." The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) later clarified that one of the people arrested threw a rock at an official agency vehicle. According to the DHS, the individual is a man from Mexico who is in the country without legal status and has a criminal record that includes domestic violence, aggravated assault, and robbery.

Chicago Tribune [12/18/2025 6:07 PM, Gregory Royal Pratt, Alice Yin and Talia Soglin, 4829K] reports when Border Patrol Cmdr. Gregory Bovino and a throng of masked federal agents returned to Chicago in a flash on Tuesday, residents across the city — armed with whistles, smartphone cameras and chat networks on encrypted texting channels — were just as quick to greet them. Sources told the Tribune that Bovino had once again left the city on Thursday. It’s unclear whether his agents would remain behind or how many. Indeed, his apparent departure was followed by a noticeable decrease in immigration enforcement activity Thursday. But this week’s immigration enforcement surge showed Bovino can “pop in with intensity at any point in time,” Gardner said, illustrating why the activists remained focused even after his first departure. Though the Border Patrol’s activities this week appeared to have detained fewer immigrants than previous rounds, the operation still left behind significant controversy and pain. On Wednesday, agents once again swept up ride-share drivers near O’Hare International Airport, arresting 15 people, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Bovino bragged about the arrests in a post on X Wednesday, and another post that evening vowed agents would return to O’Hare “soon.” About 90 people have been detained in O’Hare parking lot raids since Oct. 10.

Univision [12/18/2025 6:21 PM, Staff, 5004K] reports a group of protesters gathered on 26th Street on Wednesday, December 17, in the Little Village neighborhood, an area predominantly inhabited by the Hispanic community, to denounce what they consider an improper collaboration between local authorities and immigration agents. The central claim is that the local police allegedly cooperated with federal immigration authorities , purportedly violating the ordinance that declares Chicago a sanctuary city. Through social media, Border Patrol Chief Greg Bovino publicly thanked area police departments for their support during immigration operations. “I would like to thank both the Chicago Police Department and the Evanston Police Department, who provided assistance in preventing violent mobs from attacking our law enforcement officers while we were conducting Title 8 immigration enforcement operations in the area. Both departments cleared the way so we could continue our law enforcement actions without hindrance,” he stated on the social media platform X. These statements sparked outrage among residents and activists, who claim to have witnessed acts of direct collaboration between local police and immigration agents. “We saw our own District 10 commander attend Immigration when they were attacking the community. They wanted to arrest an 11-year-old girl, and people were protecting her, and he was attacking the people,” denounced Baltazar, a local activist. For their part, some residents reaffirmed their commitment to community resistance. “Here we are, we’re not leaving. We came with our whole family and we’re here for all of them. The city should honor us, not terrorize us,” said Alicia Saucedo, a resident of Little Village. District 25 Councilman Byron Sigcho noted that this would be the second time that behavior has been recorded that, according to him, violates the municipal law that prohibits collaboration with ICE. “This is the second time we’ve seen misconduct and violations of our municipal law. We’re going to demand accountability from the superintendent. He has publicly stated that he makes the decisions and commands the Police Department, but those who are accountable are the public servants elected by the community. We’re going to demand an explanation for his actions,” Sigcho stated. Univision contacted the Chicago Police Department and inquired about these allegations; however, no official response has been received so far. Meanwhile, the Border Patrol chief was recently seen in New Orleans. However, residents of Little Village say they remain uneasy and fearful, wondering how long it will be before Bovino returns to Chicago.

FOX News [12/18/2025 1:17 PM, Julia Bonavita, 40621K] reports that officials revealed that an alleged human smuggling operation involving over a dozen individuals has been uncovered inside a Texas home. Authorities with the Texas Department of Public Safety and Laredo Border Patrol conducted an operation at a residential home in Laredo, Texas, on Tuesday, Dec. 17, officials said in a social media post. During the operation, authorities said they uncovered 17 individuals illegally present in the United States. One individual, identified by officials as a "suspected caretaker," was subsequently taken into custody and charged with human smuggling, according to authorities. In a photo shared on Laredo Border Patrol’s social media account, 10 individuals — most with their faces obstructed — can be seen sitting on the kitchen floor inside the home. Authorities did not provide details regarding the identities of the 17 illegal aliens or the alleged caretaker. In a social media post, Laredo Border Patrol celebrated the arrest, writing, "Operation Success!" The sting comes just days after agents uncovered yet another alleged human smuggling operation in the same town. According to U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, two American citizens were arrested for allegedly smuggling four illegal aliens into their Laredo home on Dec. 8.

CBS Colorado [12/18/2025 5:24 PM, Jesse Sarles, 39474K] reports a small wildfire that burned west of Fort Collins in Northern Colorado Thursday was caused by downed power lines. That’s according to the Poudre Fire Authority, which said Xcel Energy, the provider of power in the area, will be conducting an investigation. The Dixon Fire started at approximately 10 a.m. close to the 4400 block of Laporte Avenue. Poudre Fire Authority said it burned approximately 2.5 acres before firefighters were able to get it under control. Winds were gusting at speeds of 40 mph early Thursday morning in that area, First Alert Chief Meteorologist Dave Aguilera said. CBS Colorado’s news helicopter flew over the burn area in the afternoon and several downed power poles could be seen right next to and in the zone of the fire, with power lines touching or close to the ground. Several utility crews could also be seen there. The fire didn’t damage any buildings and no one was hurt.

CNN [12/18/2025 6:00 AM, David Culver and Rachel Clarke, 18595K] reports in the desert of New Mexico, under wide open skies, the US Border Patrol is bulking up. A record number of recruits, many Latino, Spanish-speaking, and from border towns they know well, are heading to the agency’s training academy, where more assertive tactics, including vehicle pursuit training, have been added back into the curriculum. Better weapons technology is also being introduced as part of a surge that Border Patrol leaders say reflects a broader reset under President Donald Trump’s second term. After months of requests, CNN was granted rare access inside the Border Patrol Academy in Artesia, New Mexico, as a series of operational and training changes were coming into force, reflecting new priorities that academy officials said they had long wanted. The changes also come at a time when Trump is pushing hard on his promise to deport undocumented immigrants, which has seen Border Patrol officers sent to cities away from the border and drawing backlash from immigrant advocates, some state officials and Democrats on Capitol Hill.

Blaze [12/18/2025 4:35 PM, Candace Hathaway, 1442K] reports Border Patrol agents in Southern California arrested 49 illegal aliens who, despite their unlawful status, were in possession of commercial driver’s licenses, Blaze News has exclusively learned. El Centro Sector Border Patrol agents arrested some of those individuals while conducting vehicle stops at immigration checkpoints between November 23 and December 12. Others were apprehended during a two-day interagency operation. While stopping vehicles at checkpoints along Highway 86 and 111, Indio Station agents nabbed 42 illegal aliens who were operating semitrucks. Of these arrested individuals, 30 were from India, while the others were from El Salvador, China, Eritrea, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Russia, Somalia, Turkey, and Ukraine. Customs and Border Patrol reported that 31 of the CDLs were issued by California. The other licenses were issued by Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Maryland, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Washington. Indio Station agents also participated in Operation Highway Sentinel, an enforcement operation held on December 10 and 11, in collaboration with Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. The initiative aimed to enhance the safety of America’s roadways following several recent fatal accidents involving illegal alien truck drivers.

The Hill [12/18/2025 12:30 PM, Sarah Fortinsky, 12595K] reports Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s daughter called the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) “unconstitutional” after undergoing what she described as an “absurdly invasive” pat-down at airport security. In a post Thursday on the social platform X, Evita Duffy-Alfonso detailed her challenging experience as a pregnant woman wanting to avoid the radiation exposure from the full-body scanner at security. Duffy-Alfonso accused TSA agents of pressuring her to walk through the scanner anyway and said she almost missed her flight as a result. “I nearly missed my flight this morning after the TSA made me wait 15 minutes for a pat-down because I’m pregnant and didn’t feel like getting radiation exposure from their body scanner,” she said. “The agents were passive-aggressive, rude, and tried to pressure me and another pregnant woman into just walking through the scanner because it’s ‘safe.’ After finally getting the absurdly invasive pat-down, I barely made my flight,” she continued. “All this for an unconstitutional agency that isn’t even good at its job,” she wrote, later adding, “The ‘golden age of transportation’ cannot begin until the TSA is gone.” The TSA — which is housed under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), not under the Department of Transportation (DOT) — did not respond to a request for comment. DHS and DOT also did not respond to inquiries from The Hill. The Washington Examiner [12/18/2025 11:26 AM, Brady Knox, 1394K] reports that the daughter of the transportation secretary bemoaned that she was "treated like a terrorist" in her country, described modern American air travel as "brought to you by George Orwell," and criticized the taking of biometric data. "The ‘golden age of transportation’ cannot begin until the TSA is gone," she concluded, in an apparent swipe at the Trump administration. When another user pointed out that her father ran the Department of Transportation, Duffy-Alfonso responded that the TSA was under the jurisdiction of the Department of Homeland Security, then appeared to take a swipe at Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. "He isn’t in charge of TSA. TSA is under DHS, which is run by Kristi Noem. If he did have TSA, he’d radically limit it and lobby Congress to abolish it," she said of her father.

Reported similarly:
NewsMax [12/18/2025 6:46 PM, Nicole Weatherholtz, 4109K]

New York Post [12/18/2025 4:13 PM, Ronny Reyes, 42219K] reports the daughter of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy went on a rant on X after nearly missing a flight on Thursday over an "absurdly invasive pat-down," calling on President Trump and Homeland Security Kristi Noem to abolish the TSA. Duffy-Alfonso slammed the TSA as an "unconstitutional agency," claiming it treats travelers like her "like a terrorist" in their own country. Duffy-Alfonso also took aim at the CLEAR program that allows passengers to bypass long waits at the security lines, calling it outrageous that travelers be asked to sign up for a private service to avoid the routine hassle at the TSA checkpoints.

AP [12/18/2025 5:40 PM, Mead Gruver] reports crews were mopping up Thursday but still bracing for more after hurricane-force wind downed power lines and fanned wildfires along the Colorado Front Range and onto the Great Plains. Wind that in places topped 100 mph (160 kph) late Wednesday arrived after Xcel Energy protectively cut off power through much of its eastern Colorado service areas. The goal was to prevent downed lines from starting fires — and power lines were indeed blown down in several areas. By Thursday afternoon, power was about 60% restored to the almost 700 miles (1,100 kilometers) of power lines the utility de-energized. Some 37,000 Xcel customers on the Front Range and into the Rocky Mountains were still without power. Another round of outages was expected Friday, however, with a forecast for even stronger winds over a longer period. While crews worked to restore power to customers already affected, even longer outages were likely Friday, the head of Xcel Energy-Colorado cautioned in a news conference. Winds on Wednesday afternoon and into Thursday fanned wildfires of still-undetermined cause in eastern Colorado, burning at least 14,000 acres (5,700 hectares) in Yuma County, local emergency management officials said in a Facebook post.

Washington Post [12/19/2025 5:01 AM, Ben Noll, 24149K] reports December has been a very dry month across California. But that’s about to change, with three atmospheric rivers forecast to hit the state through Christmas. The pattern that brought an onslaught of destructive atmospheric rivers to the Pacific Northwest in recent days is now shifting south. Rounds of heavy valley rain will hit Northern California through the weekend before moving farther south next week — bringing a risk for flooding, swollen rivers, and rock and landslides. Next week, snow will pile up across the Sierra Nevada, which have experienced significant early season snow shortfalls. Around Christmas Eve, an atmospheric river is forecast to hit Southern California. This comes after areas from near Los Angeles to the Mojave Desert experienced a top-three wettest October to November period on record. Although the rain will be disruptive and possibly hazardous, experts note that it’s not all bad news. “There’s like a zero percent chance at this point, just given the antecedent rainfall, that we could see anything close to the wildfire conditions we saw last January in Southern California,” said Daniel Swain, a climate scientist with the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources. Stronger winds from the storms will also probably also cause an unrelenting fog bank to disperse in California’s Central Valley.

Blaze [12/18/2025 5:30 AM, Carlos Garcia, 1442K] reports a California physical education teacher allegedly sexually assaulted two students before police found child sex abuse material on his phone, according to the Tehachapi Police Department. The parent of a student contacted police after the student said they were inappropriately touched by 43-year-old Timothy Seaman. The victim said the incident had taken place on campus. During an investigation, police found a second alleged victim who had been inappropriately touched at the same campus. On Dec. 10, police executed a search warrant at Seaman’s home and seized several digital devices, including cell phones. Police said the devices were analyzed by the Department of Homeland Security and the United States Secret Service in Bakersfield. Investigators were able to extract alleged evidence of possession and distribution of child pornography from the devices. On Tuesday, police located Seaman in Porterville and arrested him without incident. He was booked at the Lerdo Facility of the Kern County Jail on possession of child pornography and sexual battery of a minor. Tehachapi police are asking for the public’s help in finding other possible victims.

The Hill [12/18/2025 4:36 PM, Ellen Mitchell, 12595K] reports the Coast Guard will remove divisive language from its new workplace harassment policy that downgraded the definition of swastikas and nooses from hate symbols to “potentially divisive,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Thursday. Noem’s announcement, made over social media, comes after the military branch allowed the more lenient language to quietly take effect Monday, even as lawmakers objected. Two senators even placed a hold on the nomination of Adm. Kevin Lunday to serve as head of the Coast Guard after the service failed to label swastikas and nooses as hate symbols. “The pages of superseded and outdated policy will be completely removed from the record,” Noem said, though she did not say whether it will be replaced with new language. The latest announcement comes after weeks of turmoil over the Coast Guard’s workplace harassment policy, with The Washington Post first reporting in November that the service would downgrade the definition of swastikas and nooses. Sens. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) and Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) placed a hold on Lunday’s nomination over the language. The Senate was set to have his confirmation vote this week. Noem on Thursday addressed the congressional hold, saying that “the politicized holdup” of Lunday’s nomination “needs to end.” In a statement to X on Thursday, Rosen said she was pleased to see that the policy now directly refers to stronger language against swastikas and nooses and would be lifting her hold on Lunday’s confirmation. She added, however, that due to worries about the ongoing implementation of the policy, she’ll now be placing a hold on Sean Plankey’s nomination to lead the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), given that he is currently overseeing the Coast Guard in his role at DHS.

Washington Post [12/19/2025 12:52 AM, Tara Copp and Marianne LeVine, 24149K] reports the U.S. Coast Guard on Thursday deleted language from its new workplace harassment policy that had downgraded the definition of swastikas and nooses from overt hate symbols to “potentially divisive,” an abrupt turnaround after the more lenient interpretation of those items was allowed to take effect this week despite objections from Congress. In a message to all Coast Guard personnel, Adm. Kevin Lunday, the service’s top officer, said those revisions had been “completely removed” from the policy manual. The document, a copy of which was reviewed by The Washington Post, now shows a large black bar obscuring the relevant chapter in its table of contents and a message directing readers to a separate manual outlining the Coast Guard’s civil rights policies. Lunday’s message says that a separate directive he issued last month categorically prohibiting swastikas and nooses also “remains in full effect.” The sudden turn of events paved the way for a late-night Senate vote to confirm Lunday as the Coast Guard’s full-time commandant, a significant promotion for the admiral. Two Democratic senators, Tammy Duckworth (Illinois) and Jacky Rosen (Nevada) had put holds on his nomination, citing their disapproval of the new policy’s wording. Both relented after Lunday issued the retraction.

The Washington Examiner [12/18/2025 2:14 PM, Brady Knox, 1394K] reports that Senate Democrats placed the confirmation of the head of the Coast Guard on hold after a dispute regarding the branch’s hate symbol policies. Sens. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Jacky Rosen (D-NV) announced a freeze on acting Coast Guard Commandant Kevin Lunday’s confirmation on Wednesday, the same week the vote on his confirmation was set to be held. They cited Lunday’s handling of the Coast Guard’s hate speech policies, with Rosen accusing him of going back on his word. Confusion broke out last month after the Washington Post reported that the Coast Guard removed swastikas and other extremist symbols from its list of hate symbols and recategorized them as "potentially divisive." After a flurry of criticism, the Coast Guard released a new memorandum clarifying its position, essentially arguing that swastikas and other hate symbols were still banned de facto despite the new change in language. In a lengthy post on X, Rosen said she spoke to Lunday over the phone after the initial controversy, which revolved around changes in language to the Coast Guard’s hate symbol policies. She said that during the call, he "assured me that, in practice, the Coast Guard continued to consider swastikas and nooses hate symbols and nothing less." She approvingly noted his follow-up memorandum clarifying the Coast Guard’s nonacceptance of hate symbols. The AP [12/18/2025 7:35 PM, Susan Haigh, 2416K] reports Noem’s announcement came a day after Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen of Nevada said she was holding up the nomination of Adm. Kevin Lunday for Coast Guard commandant because leadership appeared to have “backtracked” on a commitment that swastikas and nooses are considered hate symbols and prohibited from display. Rosen said Thursday on social media that she was lifting the hold and looked forward to working with Lunday to continue strengthening anti-harassment policy at the Coast Guard. “While I continue to have reservations about the process by which this happened and the confusion created by leadership at the Department of Homeland Security, I am pleased to see that the policy now directly refers to stronger language against swastikas and nooses,” she said. Noem called the delay of Lunday’s nomination a “politicized holdup,” saying it had gone on long enough and he should be confirmed without delay. “He has given nearly 39 years of distinguished service to the Coast Guard, this country, and the American people,” she said. The Coast Guard’s planned policy change calling hate symbols “potentially divisive” emerged publicly last month. It stopped short of banning them, instead saying that commanders could take steps to remove them from public view and that the rule did not apply to private spaces, such as family housing. DHS has said the change “strengthens our ability to report, investigate, and prosecute those who violate longstanding policy.” The Coast Guard said on social media that it “maintains a zero-tolerance policy toward hate symbols, extremist ideology, and any conduct that undermines our core values. We prohibit the display or promotion of hate symbols in any form. Any suggestion otherwise is false.”

CBS Miami [12/18/2025 11:19 AM, Staff, 39474K] reports that Video from the U.S. Coast Guard shows the moments when two boaters were rescued early Wednesday morning after their sailboat’s mast broke on the rough waters off Florida’s Gulf Coast. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Route Fifty [12/18/2025 10:00 AM, David DiMolfetta, 23K] reports the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said it will make 100 internship opportunities available to students participating in a government scholarship program that’s been hampered by federal hiring freezes enacted by the Trump administration. The move announced Wednesday would allow undergraduate and graduate students to enter the cyber defense agency under the CyberCorps: Scholarship for Service Program, a longstanding workforce pipeline used to place top student talent into U.S. cybersecurity positions. The announcement comes after the Office of Personnel Management said last month it would pursue a “mass deferment” of deadlines for CyberCorps students to land qualifying jobs, following reports showing the program has been hobbled by recent federal employment logjams and is leaving many recruits burdened by debt. Scholarship terms stipulate that students must secure a qualifying job approved by OPM within an 18-month window after completing their studies. If they don’t meet that deadline, their scholarship funding converts into a loan, obligating them to repay the full amount they received. Nextgov/FCW has asked OPM about the status of mass deferment deadlines and if other agencies will post CyberCorps job openings. CISA opportunities for participants with both undergraduate and graduate degrees were recently posted on USAJobs. The agency said eligible students have until Feb. 27 of next year to submit application materials.

CyberScoop [12/18/2025 6:02 PM, Derek B. Johnson, 122K] reports policymakers and companies are reckoning with increased reports over the past few months showing AI tools being leveraged to conduct cyber attacks on a larger and faster scale. Most notably, Anthropic reported last month that Chinese hackers had jailbroken and tricked its AI model Claude into assisting with a cyberespionage hacking campaign that ultimately targeted more than 30 entities around the world. The Claude-enabled Chinese hacks have underscored existing concerns among AI companies and policymakers that the technology’s development and relevance to offensive cybersecurity may be outpacing the cybersecurity, legal and policy responses being developed to defend against them. At a House Homeland Security hearing this week, Logan Graham, head of Anthropic’s red team, said the Chinese spying campaign demonstrates that worries about AI models being used to supercharge hacking are more than theoretical. “The proof of concept is there and even if U.S. based AI companies can put safeguards against using their models for such attacks, these actors will find other ways to access this technology,” said Graham. Graham and others at Anthropic have estimated that the attackers were able to automate between 80-90% of the attack chain, and in some cases at exponentially faster speeds than human operators. He called for more rapid safety and security testing of models by AI companies and government bodies like the National Institute for Standards and Technology and a prohibition on selling high-performance computer chips to China.

AP [12/18/2025 4:59 PM, Kimberlee Kruesi, Alanna Durkin Richer and Eric Tucker] reports authorities said Thursday that they’re looking into a connection between last weekend’s mass shooting at Brown University and an attack two days later near Boston that killed a professor at another elite school, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. That is according to three people familiar with the matter who were not authorized to discuss an ongoing investigation and spoke on condition of anonymity. Two of the people said investigators had identified a person of interest in the shootings and were actively seeking that individual. The attacker at Brown on Saturday killed two students and wounded nine others in a classroom in the school’s engineering building before getting away. About 50 miles (80 kilometers) north, MIT professor Nuno F.G. Loureiro was gunned down in his home Monday night in the Boston suburb of Brookline. The 47-year-old physicist and fusion scientist died at a hospital the next day. The FBI previously said it knew of no links between the cases. But frustration is mounting in Providence that the person behind the attack managed to get away and that a clear image of their face has yet to emerge.

Breitbart [12/18/2025 12:14 PM, Joshua Klein, 2416K] reports that New York City is witnessing a surge in violent, targeted assaults on Jewish individuals during the Hanukkah holiday, part of a broader pattern of rising antisemitism and heightened holiday‑season security concerns. Within just 24 hours, two Jewish men were attacked in Brooklyn in incidents now under investigation by the NYPD. On Monday night, Orthodox Jewish men returning from a Hanukkah event on the southbound No. 3 train were harassed and threatened with antisemitic slurs. A video shared on social media shows one attacker grabbing a young man by the collar as others shouted threats. On Tuesday, a 35-year-old Jewish man was stabbed in the chest in Crown Heights after a verbal altercation outside a synagogue. Witnesses say the attacker shouted antisemitic remarks before fleeing the scene. The victim was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries. The back-to-back incidents during a major Jewish holiday have left communities on edge and calling for condemnation, while urging resilience. The events in New York come amid global concerns over extremist violence during the holiday season.

Chicago Tribune [12/18/2025 6:06 PM, Jason Meisner, 4829K] reports a man accused of lighting a woman on fire on the CTA Blue Line last month has been indicted on additional federal charges alleging he lit a fire outside City Hall three days earlier. Lawrence Reed, 50, was charged in a two-count indictment made public Thursday with terrorism against a mass transportation system and arson involving a public building. The bare-bones indictment does not provide any details into the City Hall fire. However, Mayor Brandon Johnson told reporters last month that occurred at about 11 p.m. on Nov. 14, when surveillance cameras captured someone igniting a fire outside the building at 121 N. LaSalle St. The person fled the scene and the fire did not spread, the mayor said at the time. Three days later, federal prosecutors say Reed approached a young woman on a Blue Line train as it neared downtown, poured gasoline over her head and set her on fire. The woman suffered third-degree burns and was taken to a nearby hospital, where she was last reported to be in critical condition. Reed has been in custody since his arrest the next day. U.S. Magistrate Judge Laura McNally scheduled an arraignment on the indictment for Friday afternoon.

Washington Examiner [12/18/2025 10:30 AM, Mia Cathell, 1394K] reports that a transgender activist who was allegedly part of a thwarted terrorist plot targeting several locations across Los Angeles asked a federal judge to be sent to a women’s jail pending arraignment in January. Zachary Aaron Page, a biological man and suspected member of the left-wing Turtle Island Liberation Front, requested during her first courtroom appearance in the terrorism case to be held in a female-only facility. Page and three alleged co-conspirators are facing federal conspiracy charges, plus one count each of possessing a destructive device, for their suspected roles in planning a series of coordinated bombings against targets in the Los Angeles area. The case was continued to Friday for a detention hearing, as Page seeks to avoid pretrial detention in a male-designated detention center. Audrey Ilene Carroll, Dante Gaffield, and Tina Lai, alongside Page, are accused of plotting to commit a large-scale terrorist attack in the name of "decolonization." Their organization, the Turtle Island Liberation Front, is a cohort of pro-Palestinian and Native American activists formed against so-called "fascist colonizers." Officials said the operational guide identified five "marks," with more possible "if enough comrades" assembled. Deportation officers and government vehicles belonging to Immigration and Customs Enforcement were named as possible targets.

New York Times [12/18/2025 7:58 PM, Carol Rosenberg, 135475K] reports the case against the men accused of orchestrating the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks briefly sputtered back to business this week, with three of the defendants declining to participate as they seek to reinstate a plea bargain to resolve the case with life sentences. It was the first time in nearly a year that hearings in the case had been convened, with a new judge presiding. Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, who is accused of being the mastermind of the deadly attack, and his co-defendants Walid bin Attash and Mustafa al-Hawsawi and their lawyers sat passively before the judge, Lt. Col. Michael Schrama. To do otherwise, their lawyers said in both court filings and open court, could risk violating a plea agreement they reached in July 2024 with a senior Pentagon official to avert their death penalty trial. This summer, a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia declared the contract void in a 2-to-1 ruling. The men are appealing. “I understand your current position,” said Colonel Schrama, who became the fifth judge to preside in the military commission case. The three men and a fourth defendant, Ammar al-Baluchi, are accused of conspiring in the hijackings that killed nearly 3,000 people on Sept. 11, 2001. Based on the little progress and ongoing appeals, there is little chance a trial could begin before the 25th anniversary of the attacks, or at all in 2026. Guantánamo’s other and longest-running capital case, over the Qaeda bombing of the Navy destroyer Cole, has a start date of June 1. That judge has reserved the one courtroom with a jury box large enough to accommodate a death penalty trial through Dec. 11, 2026. The Sept. 11 case has gone on so long that the latest judge, Colonel Schrama, entered the Air Force after Mr. Mohammed and the others made their first court appearance in a court of law, after years in secret C.I.A. prisons. Colonel Schrama was a student on the campus of Georgetown University when hijackers crashed passenger planes into the Pentagon, about four miles away, as well as the World Trade Center and a field in Pennsylvania. He said he remembered “the day being surreal.” He said he “felt bad for the people associated with the events of the day and for those who lost loved ones.” But he said he could preside in the case with impartiality. The only impact on him of the attack, he said, were “conditions that all people experienced, such as tighter security at the airport or street closures in Washington, D.C.”

The Hill [12/18/2025 6:00 AM, Ellen Mitchell, 12595K] reports the deadly attack in Syria that left three Americans dead has complicated the nascent relationship between the United States and Damascus and sparked speculation over how the Trump administration might respond. President Trump has vowed that the Saturday attack — carried out by a lone Islamic State group gunman that reportedly infiltrated local security forces, killing two Iowa National Guard members and an American interpreter — will be met with "very serious" retaliation. Trump and first lady Melania Trump on Wednesday participated in a dignified transfer ceremony of the remains of Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, and Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. The interpreter was identified on Tuesday as U.S. civilian Ayad Mansoor Sakat of Macomb, Mich. Three other members of the Iowa National Guard were hurt in the attack, but the Pentagon has not identified them. While airstrikes seem a likely response to the attack, it’s unclear if the move will have its intended effect, according to Rosemary Kelanic, the director of the Middle East program at Defense Priorities. "It’s pretty hard to retaliate against a terrorist group that doesn’t exist anymore," she told The Hill. "There’s a lone-wolf gunman who claimed an affiliation with ISIS who carried out this heinous attack, but ISIS as a territorial caliphate has been gone for over five years.”

NPR [12/18/2025 6:09 PM, Staff, 28013K] Audio: HERE reports the terrorist group has been linked to the mass shooting in Australia and a deadly attack in Syria. What do these two attacks reveal about the group’s strength? Host Mary Louise Kelly speaks with Pentagon correspondent Tom Bowman and Middle East correspondent Jane Arraf about how the Islamic State has adapted in a post-caliphate world and what American forces are doing in Syria.

Washington Examiner [12/18/2025 6:00 AM, Mike Brest, 1394K] reports it’s been almost seven years since ISIS lost the last bit of land it held in Syria, yet the two terrorist attacks that occurred on different continents last weekend demonstrate the threat the group continues to pose. Last Saturday, an apparent ISIS fighter ambushed U.S. personnel in Palmyra, Syria, killing two U.S. Iowa National Guardsmen and an American civilian interpreter. One day later, two individuals who are believed to have been trained and radicalized by the Islamic State carried out an anti-semitic attack killing sixteen people and injuring more at a Hanukkah celebration in Australia. The two attacks show that ISIS still poses a threat, both to people in Iraq and Syria, but also all over the world. The threat remains active, especially during the holiday season.

AP [12/18/2025 2:11 PM, Munir Ahmed, 31753K] reports that Pakistani intelligence agents have arrested the spokesman of the local Islamic State affiliate, a militant figure designated a terrorist by the United States in 2021, state-run media reported Thursday. Analysts say the move dealt a blow to the militant group, which has been attempting a comeback in the region. The arrest took place in May, according to Pakistan TV. The report said Sultan Aziz Azzam of the Islamic State Khorasan Province was detained while attempting to cross into Pakistan from neighboring Afghanistan. He was originally from Afghanistan’s eastern Nangarhar province. The Pakistani government has not confirmed the arrest. The country has recently seen a surge in militant attacks, which the authorities mostly blame on the Islamic State group, or rather its local affiliate, and the Pakistani Taliban. The U.S. had been seeking Azzam’s arrest since 2021, when the State Department designated him a terrorist. Analysts say the arrest could significantly undermine the IS affiliate’s propaganda machinery. Syed Muhammad Ali, an Islamabad-based security analyst, told The Associated Press that the arrest coincides with a recent U.N. report recognizing Pakistan’s major gains against the militant group — gains that will force international terror groups such as the IS affiliate to "focus more toward Afghanistan as a haven."

Washington Examiner [12/18/2025 12:25 PM, Brady Knox, 1394K] reports seven people were arrested near Bondi Beach on Thursday over what authorities believe was a second planned terrorist attack, just days after Islamic State group-affiliated gunmen massacred over a dozen Hanukkah celebrants. Australian counterterrorism officers rammed two vehicles en route to Bondi Beach. Police said seven people in total were arrested on the spot over what they believe was a suspected terrorism plot, possibly targeting funeral proceedings or memorials for those killed in the Sunday massacre. The two vehicles were intercepted a few streets apart, with five passengers taken from one and two from the other. Sources familiar with the investigation told the Sydney Morning Herald that a weapon may have been found in one of the cars. The group was reportedly flagged because they were known to authorities. Heavily armed police dressed in camouflage and tactical gear intercepted the two cars. Footage showed the suspects detained with zip ties, with some injured and bleeding. New South Wales police said in a statement that the operation had concluded and the public was safe. "Police have not identified any connection to the current police investigation of the Bondi terror attack," it said, adding that the operation was carried out over "information received that a violent act was possibly being planned."

Washington Post [12/18/2025 7:02 AM, Sammy Westfall, 24149K] reports the father and son accused of committing Sunday’s deadly mass killing in Australia spent weeks in a hotel in the largest city in the southern Philippines last month, the hotel said, as Australian authorities seek to learn how the pair spent the days and weeks leading up to a massacre they say was inspired by the Islamic State. On Thursday, GV Hotel — a budget accommodation in downtown Davao City where two bedrooms go for $15 a night — confirmed that the two alleged gunmen spent most of November there. Hotel staff told local outlet MindaNews, which broke news of their stay, that the pair rarely left their rooms. GV’s Jenelyn Sayson told MindaNews that the “longest that they would be outside would be around an hour.” They would extend a week’s stay at a time and paid in cash, Sayson told the outlet. The sprawling city of almost 2 million people is part of the southern island group of Mindanao, which has a history, albeit a declining one, of conflict and extremism. The details come days after a report by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, citing an anonymous senior counterterrorism official, that alleged that Sajid and Naveed Akram received “military-style training” in the Philippines — a claim that Philippine officials said is baseless and “misleading,” and about which some analysts had expressed skepticism. The mountainous southern Philippines was once a place where Islamic State-aligned militant groups were very active and to which some foreign fighters flocked for training. But over the past eight years, the groups’ presence has severely diminished — so much so that some experts doubt that any have the capacity for such training, which historically took place in remote areas. Australian officials allege the two men were inspired by the Islamic State group and said the extremist group’s flags were found at the scene of the Bondi Beach attack.

Breitbart [12/18/2025 9:59 PM, Staff, 2416K] reports President Donald Trump signed a sweeping defense policy bill into law Thursday that signaled strong bipartisan support for Europe and defied the US leader’s increasingly hostile posture toward NATO and America’s closest allies. The annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), one the few remaining rituals of cross-party cooperation in Congress even as divisions sharpen elsewhere in Washington, sets out the country’s national security and foreign policy priority areas for the coming year, according to lawmakers. White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said Trump signed into law a measure which raises pay for US troops, codifies the country’s "PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH agenda," and "funds the Golden Dome" air and missile defense system backed by Trump. The NDAA, at some $900 billion, also "removes woke priorities" like diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs opposed by many conservatives, and "requires promotions based on merit, not DEI," Kelly added. The Senate easily passed the NDAA measure on Wednesday following the House’s green light last week. The success comes amid unease in European capitals over Trump’s rhetoric, especially after the recent White House national security strategy painted Europe as over-regulated, culturally adrift and insufficiently committed to its own defense. The strategy questioned the continent’s strategic value and openly echoed themes championed by far-right parties, fueling fears of a widening transatlantic rift. By contrast, the NDAA reflects lawmakers’ determination to anchor the United States firmly in Europe. The bill bars US troop levels on the continent from falling below 76,000 for more than 45 days and restricts the removal of major military equipment, effectively tying the administration’s hands on any rapid drawdown. It also boosts resources for frontline NATO states, particularly in the Baltic region, reinforcing the alliance’s northeastern flank. The measure authorizes roughly $8 billion more than the administration requested, a signal of congressional assertiveness on defense priorities. Beyond Europe, the NDAA locks in $400 million in security assistance for Ukraine, aiming to preserve a baseline of support even as broader funding debates grind on, and places new limits on any reduction of the 28,500 US troops stationed in South Korea. As ever, the NDAA drew fire from multiple directions — from conservative critics of Ukraine aid to safety experts warning about aviation provisions rolling back critical air-safety requirements for military aircraft operating in Washington’s restricted airspace. But none came close to derailing a package long seen as must-pass legislation.

Reuters [12/18/2025 1:49 PM, Staff, 36480K] reports that U.S. President Donald Trump nominated Lt. Gen. Joshua Rudd, the deputy commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, as director of the National Security Agency and head of the U.S. Cyber Command, the Pentagon said Thursday in a statement. A former Special Forces officer from South Carolina, Rudd would be elevated to general. He currently serves as the No. 2 at the U.S. military’s Indo-Pacific Command, which is responsible for U.S. forces in the greater Pacific region. The NSA, which focuses on signals intelligence and cyberespionage, is one of the world’s most powerful surveillance agencies and absorbs gargantuan quantities of data through electronic intercepts and spyware. Cyber Command is the Pentagon’s top cyberwarfare unit and focuses both on hacking and defending military networks against foreign spies and saboteurs. In a "dual hat" arrangement that dates back to 2010 the NSA director also oversees Cyber Command. Rudd did not return messages seeking comment. The NSA referred questions to the White House. Cyber Command did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

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DefenseScoop [12/18/2025 2:05 PM, Drew F. Lawrence, 150K]

AP [12/18/2025 7:36 AM, Stephanie Liechtenstein, 31753K] reports in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump’s suggestion earlier this year that the U.S. would resume nuclear testing, a U.S. government representative defended the stance at a global nuclear arms control meeting and pointed to nuclear provocations from Russia, China and North Korea. U.S. Chargé d’Affaires to the International Organizations in Vienna Howard Solomon made the previously unpublished comments, which were obtained by The Associated Press, at the Preparatory Commission of the Vienna-based Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization on Nov. 10. "As President Trump indicated, the United States will begin testing activities on an equal basis with other nuclear-armed states. This process will begin immediately and proceed in a manner fully consistent with our commitment to transparency and national security," Solomon said. Solomon provided further explanation by noting, "For any who question this decision, context is important. Since 2019, including in this forum, the United States has raised concerns that Russia and China have not adhered to the zero-yield nuclear test moratorium," he said, adding that the concerns "remain valid.”

AP [12/18/2025 12:59 PM, Matthew Lee, 1538K] reports that President Donald Trump’s administration has imposed sanctions on two more International Criminal Court judges over their role in investigating Israeli officials for possible war crimes during Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday that he had designated Judges Gocha Lordkipanidze of Georgia and Erdenebalsuren Damdin of Mongolia for penalties that can include a freezing of assets in U.S. jurisdictions and a ban on travel to the United States. The two are the latest in a series of ICC judges and staffers to have been targeted by the Trump administration for approving or advancing criminal complaints about Israel and the United States, which aren’t members of the court. The Republican administration had previously imposed sanctions on the former ICC chief prosecutor and nine judicial and support staff members, including lawyers and investigators. "The ICC has continued to engage in politicized actions targeting Israel, which set a dangerous precedent for all nations," Rubio said in a statement. "We will not tolerate ICC abuses of power that violate the sovereignty of the United States and Israel and wrongly subject U.S. and Israeli persons to the ICC’s jurisdiction." The Hague-based ICC reacted quickly to the announcement, saying in a statement that it "deplores" the move.

AP [12/18/2025 7:56 PM, Barbara Ortutay, 2416K] reports TikTok has signed a deal to sell its U.S. business to three American investors — Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX — ensuring the popular social video platform can continue operating in the United States. The deal is expected to close on Jan. 22, according to an internal memo seen by The Associated Press. CEO Shou Zi Chew told employees in the memo that ByteDance and TikTok have signed binding agreements with the three investors. Half of the new TikTok U.S. joint venture will be owned by a consortium of investors — among them Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX will each hold a 15% share. Another 30.1% will be held by affiliates of existing ByteDance investors and 19.9% will be retained by the China-based ByteDance, according to the memo. The U.S. venture will have a new, seven-member majority-American board of directors, the memo said. It will also be subject to terms that "protect Americans’ data and U.S. national security.” U.S. user data will be stored locally in a system run by Oracle. TikTok’s algorithm — the secret sauce that powers its addictive video feed — will be retrained on U.S. user data to "ensure the content feed is free from outside manipulation," the memo said. The U.S. venture will also oversee content moderation and policies within the country.

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New York Post [12/18/2025 6:26 PM, David Shepardson, 42219K]
FOX Business [12/18/2025 6:17 PM, Greg Wehner, 10085K]

FOX News [12/18/2025 11:57 AM, Alex Miller, 40621K] reports that Congress may be winding down for the year, but senators are making one last push for the Trump administration to follow the law and release its trove of files and documents related to the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein. Lawmakers last month passed legislation that compels the Department of Justice (DOJ) to release all materials related to Epstein, and the deadline is Friday. Senate Democrats are already prepared to act in case the DOJ doesn’t follow through. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., warned that if the administration withholds documents, or abuses "narrow exemptions to hide the truth," there would be legal and political consequences. "Stop hiding, stop delaying," Schumer said. "Come clean with the American people. And if you don’t, the question will only get louder and louder and louder. Trump, ‘What the hell are you trying to hide?’" Trump signed the bill shortly after it passed unanimously in the Senate — at Schumer’s behest — and it easily glided through the House. Prior to the vote, Trump shifted his position to backing the release of the documents after a firestorm erupted in Congress, particularly the House, for several months after the FBI announced that it "is the determination of the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation that no further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted," of materials related to the late financier after reviewing troves of documents in the DOJ’s possession. The bill requires that the DOJ release all unclassified records related to Epstein, his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell, known associates and entities linked to Epstein and Maxwell, internal DOJ decision-making on the Epstein case, records on destroying or tampering with documents, and all documents on his detention and death.

Bloomberg [12/18/2025 12:03 PM, Zach Williams, 803K] reports that state and local officials would gain legal authority to address threats from drones under the $901 billion defense authorization bill President Donald Trump is scheduled to sign Thursday. The measure (S. 1071), which passed the Senate Wednesday, would ensure public safety at events such as the 2026 World Cup, supporters say. The departments of Justice and Homeland Security as well as tribal governments also would gain counter-drone powers once it becomes law. "Federal law has hindered states’ ability to take action," reads a joint statement from Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D), the... [Editorial note: consult extended commentary at source link]

FOX News [12/18/2025 2:28 PM, Ashley J. DiMella, 40621K] reports that the U.S. Embassy in Mexico has issued a security alert to snowbird tourists, warning of the potential of "violent crime" during the holiday season. "Each year, thousands of U.S. citizens visit Mexico during the winter season," reads the alert, which was sent in late November and continues to resonate. Officials have warned that violent crime can happen anywhere in Mexico — especially in popular tourist destinations. "U.S. citizens should exercise caution in popular winter break spots," the security alert says. "This includes San Carlos, Puerto Peñasco (Rocky Point), Los Cabos and Mazatlan, among others, especially after dark." Drivers are warned of both legal and illegal checkpoints. Illegal checkpoints are set up by criminals to stop rivals or extort money from innocent tourists. "When approaching any checkpoint, cooperate. Avoid any behavior that appears aggressive," the alert reads. "Fleeing can raise suspicion and lead to violence." "Mexican cartels, criminal organizations and terrorist organizations are active in a violent struggle to control trafficking routes," reads the alert. "U.S. citizens should not carry packages across the border for them.” The alert tells tourists to keep their passports and entry permit in a safe place. Tourists are encouraged to contact the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate for assistance.

Bloomberg [12/18/2025 11:08 AM, Alberto Nardelli and Daryna Krasnolutska, 18207K] reports the US and Ukraine’s European allies have put together a plan of security guarantees containing detailed, robust and serious measures to ensure that any peace deal with Russia holds, according to officials familiar with the proposals. An 800,000-strong Ukrainian army would provide the first line of postwar deterrence, with weapons and other support programs continuing from allies to ensure it’s suitably equipped and trained. The US would provide intelligence and monitoring to track any attempts to breach the peace agreement along contact lines and borders, including through potential Russian false-flag operations. Troops from a coalition of European nations would be stationed away from the front lines to bolster confidence, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations. A group of European leaders said in a statement after talks this week that a multinational force could operate inside Ukraine as part of security measures. It’s unclear if Russian President Vladimir Putin will be willing to accept the security measures set out in the US and European plan. He has repeatedly rejected the presence of troops from NATO member states in Ukraine, and the Kremlin has previously demanded stricter limits on the size and capabilities of the Ukrainian armed forces.

CNN [12/18/2025 8:09 AM, Victoria Butenko, Saskya Vandoorne, Katie Polglase, Pallabi Munsi, Tim Lister, Darya Tarasova, 18595K] reports Russian personnel with links to the country’s military and security services have engaged in spying in European waters while working covertly on ships carrying Russian oil, Western and Ukrainian intelligence sources exclusively told CNN. Since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Moscow has built up a so-called shadow fleet of hundreds of tankers. These vessels carry Russia’s oil from its Baltic and Black Sea ports despite Western sanctions, earning the Kremlin hundreds of millions of dollars every year. In recent months, some of these ships – often registered to unrelated countries – have acquired extra crew members shortly before leaving port, according to Ukrainian intelligence. CNN has seen two crew lists for these vessels in which the staff is predominantly non-Russian – but the documents also feature a pair of Russian names, and their Russian passport details, at the bottom of the roster. The addition of Russians with security backgrounds to the crews of the shadow fleet is causing alarm in European capitals as it illustrates how brazen the Kremlin’s tactics have become. Speaking to multiple intelligence sources, CNN has established that several of these men are employed by a secretive Russian company called Moran Security. Some of them are mercenaries, they said, who have previously worked for Russia’s private military contractors, such as the notorious Wagner group.

NewsMax [12/18/2025 10:27 PM, Sam Barron, 4109K] reports the Department of the Treasury has announced it is sanctioning 29 shadow fleet vessels engaged in the covert delivery of hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of Iranian oil and petroleum products. The goal is to stem the flow of the Iranian regime’s revenue used to support terrorism and other illicit activities. Entities sanctioned include a network of companies and vessels operated by a prominent Egyptian businessman, and several companies active in countries including the United Arab Emirates, India, the Marshall Islands, and Panama. "This action further constrains Iran’s ability to export petroleum and petroleum products through obscure and fraudulent mechanisms," the Treasury Department said in a statement. President Donald Trump signed an executive order in February targeting Iran’s petroleum and petrochemical centers, with the goal of restricting the country’s oil revenue. "As President Trump has said repeatedly, the United States will not allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon," said John K. Hurley, Treasury’s undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence. "Treasury will continue to deprive the regime of the petroleum revenue it uses to fund its military and weapons programs," he continued. The Trump administration has sanctioned more than 180 vessels responsible for shipping Iranian petroleum and petroleum products, driving up costs for Iranian oil exporters and reducing the revenue Iran receives for each barrel of oil sold, the Treasury Department said.

Reuters [12/18/2025 9:27 PM, Alexandra Alper, 36480K] reports U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration has launched a review that could result in the first shipments to China of Nvidia’s second-most powerful AI chips, five sources said, making good on his pledge to allow the controversial sales. Trump this month said he would allow sales of Nvidia’s (NVDA.O) H200 chips to China, with the U.S. government collecting a 25% fee, and that the sales would help keep U.S. firms ahead of Chinese chipmakers by cutting demand for Chinese chips. The move drew fire from China hawks across the U.S. political spectrum over concerns the chips would supercharge Beijing’s military and erode the U.S. advantage in artificial intelligence. But questions have remained about how quickly the U.S. might approve such sales and whether Beijing would allow Chinese firms to purchase the Nvidia chips. The U.S. Commerce Department, which oversees export policy, has sent license applications for the chip sales to the State, Energy and Defense Departments for review, the sources said on condition of anonymity because the process is not public. Those agencies have 30 days to weigh in, according to export regulations. One of the sources, an administration official, emphasized the review would be thorough and "not some perfunctory box we are checking.” But under the regulations, the final decision rests with Trump. The start of the inter-agency licensing review has not been reported previously. The Commerce Department and Nvidia did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A White House spokesperson did not comment on the review, but said "the Trump administration is committed to ensuring the dominance of the American tech stack – without compromising on national security.” The Biden administration had imposed a raft of restrictions on advanced AI chip sales to China and countries it feared could become conduits for smuggling into the rival nation, citing national security fears. Trump’s move represents a departure from that policy and a dramatic reversal from his first term, when he drew international attention by cracking down on Chinese access to U.S. technology. Back then, he cited claims that Beijing steals American intellectual property and harnesses commercially obtained technology to bolster its military, which Beijing denies. Exporting large numbers of the chips to China would be "a significant strategic mistake," said Chris McGuire, a former White House National Security Council official under President Joe Biden and senior fellow with the Council on Foreign Relations. McGuire described the chips as "the one thing holding China back in AI.” "I cannot possibly fathom how the departments of Commerce, State, Energy, and Defense could certify that exporting these chips to China is in the U.S. national security interest," he said.

NPR [12/19/2025 5:00 AM, John Ruwitch, 34837K] reports the tech company SiCarrier is hardly a household name. The government-backed Chinese firm makes things most people have probably never heard of, like epitaxy equipment and atomic layer deposition tools used in microchip fabrication. Wonky stuff. But at a chip industry expo in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen this fall, a crowd thronged its display booth, snapping pictures, doing livestreams and marveling at its wares. "Their products are very good — they’re excellent," said Zhang Hengming, who showed up at the SiCarrier booth waving the blue flag of an AI electronics alliance that he chairs. "We support made-in-China products so they can get stronger and reach the world." The U.S. has been using ever-tightening trade restrictions to limit the flow of high-end microchips to China, along with the gear to make them. The goal is to try to keep Beijing behind in artificial intelligence and to prevent China’s military from acquiring the best chips. But this chip "blockade," as some see it, has been a rallying cry in China — even as Trump appears poised to loosen it. Zhang said that overall, the friction with the United States over technology is a good thing for China’s chip industry. "Chinese chips will be able to compete in the world. No problem," he said.

Los Angeles Times [12/18/2025 12:57 PM, Bruce Einhorn and Allyson Versprille, 14862K] reports that President Trump’s administration faces a Tuesday deadline for declaring whether Chinese drone maker DJI Technologies poses a national security threat, a decision with the potential to ground thousands of machines deployed by police and fire departments across the U.S. The president already signed an executive order in June targeting "foreign control or exploitation" of America’s drone supply chain. That came after Congress mandated a review to determine whether DJI deserves inclusion in a federal register of companies believed to endanger national security. If DJI doesn’t get a clean bill of health for Christmas, it could join Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. and ZTE Corp. on that Federal Communications Commission list. The designation would give the Trump administration authority to prevent new domestic sales or even impose a flight ban, affecting public agencies from New York to North Dakota to Nevada. "People do not realize the security issue with these drones, the amount of information that’s being funneled back to China on a daily basis," said Mike Nathe, a North Dakota Republican state representative at the forefront of a nationwide campaign sounding alarms about the made-in-China aircraft.

Wall Street Journal [12/18/2025 10:19 PM, Anvee Bhutani, 646K] reports President Trump signed into law new powers to screen and restrict U.S. investment in Chinese technology firms, marking the most significant effort yet to police how American capital flows into businesses that bolster Beijing’s military and surveillance state. Lawmakers in both parties have grown increasingly concerned that U.S. money and expertise are accelerating China’s advances in cutting-edge technologies. The outbound-investment provisions, part of the annual National Defense Authorization Act, cites entities in China and other countries of concern—including Cuba, North Korea, Venezuela and Russia—that develop “dual-use” technologies with both commercial and military applications. Lawmakers argue that curtailing U.S. investment in those areas is critical to American national-security and foreign-policy interests. “Investments propping up Communist China’s aggression must come to an end,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R., La.) said earlier this month. The NDAA was passed by the House last week and the Senate on Wednesday, both by large bipartisan majorities.

Washington Examiner [12/18/2025 6:00 AM, Timothy Nerozzi, 1394K] reports the Chinese Communist Party has begun playing hardball in negotiations over future control of the Panama Canal as United States intervention in Venezuela threatens to further disrupt Chinese economic interests in South America. China is threatening to block a U.S.-proposed sale of two ports on the Panama Canal controlled by the Hong Kong firm CK Hutchinson to the American firm BlackRock. Having previously demanded Shanghai-based firm Cosco be brought in with an equal stake in the ports, the CCP is now demanding the company be given a majority stake, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. Steve Yates, a senior research fellow on China at the Heritage Foundation and former deputy national security adviser to Vice President Dick Cheney, told the Washington Examiner that he views the situation as an "accidental admission" that confirms accusations that these Hong Kong firms are "fronts for Chinese influence and potential control." "[Chinese officials] say, ‘Oh, no, no — these were just commercial companies out of Hong Kong. It’s not Communist Party-owned and controlled entities, et cetera, et cetera,’" Yates told the Examiner. "But as we start looking at transition away from their ownership to an American and international ownership model — lo and behold, they rear their ugly head and say, ‘Wait a minute, we want to control the interests.’" "So which is it?" he continued. "Are these entities that ultimately you seek controlling influence? Is that controlling influence so that you can disrupt global trade at a time of crisis?"

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