Secretary of State Marco Rubio jabbed at his former colleagues on Wednesday, saying that Senate Democrats were going to malign and second-guess President Donald Trump’s actions in Venezuela no matter what. Rubio, flanked by War Secretary Pete Hegseth, responded to a reporter who said that Democrats on Capitol Hill had said the Trump administration was “winging it” with regard to Saturday’s attack on Venezuela and the simultaneous arrest and extradition of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro. WATCH: ? REPORTER: Dems say you’re WINGING Venezuela, you have no plan! SEC. MARCO RUBIO: “Yeah, I know. They’re gonna say that. I used to be a senator too! That’s what you ALWAYS say!” ? “It’s not just speculating what’s gonna happen – IT’S ALREADY HAPPENING.” ? WE LOVE MARCO pic.twitter.com/dFiT7QF9ZK — Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) January 7, 2026 Hegseth appeared to have a good idea of what was coming, and could be seen ducking his head slightly and smiling in the background as the reporter asked the question. “Yeah, I know. They’re gonna say that. I used to be a senator too! That’s what you always say when it’s the other party,” Rubio explained — and then said that the same people accusing him of “winging it” had actually been filled in on exactly what was happening. “The bottom line is we’ve gone into great detail with them about the planning, we’ve described it to them, in fact, it’s not just winging it. It’s not just saying or speculating what’s gonna happen, it’s already happening. Like the oil arrangement that we’ve made with PDVSA (Petróleos de Venezuela, SA) on their sanctioned oil that they can’t move — understand, they are not generating any revenue from their oil right now. They can’t move it unless we allow it to move because we have sanctions, because we’re enforcing those sanctions.” “This is tremendous leverage,” Rubio continued, saying that the way things were playing out would ultimately benefit everyone involved, including both the Venezuelan people and any American interests.

Minneapolis Democratic Mayor Jacob Frey blamed federal agents for the fatal shooting of a woman who interfered with an Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation on Wednesday. Frey held a press conference with other city leaders, including the Minneapolis police chief, shortly after the deadly shooting, which the Department of Homeland Security said was done in self-defense after a “violent” agitator attempted to “run over” an ICE agent. The mayor, however, blamed ICE for the woman’s death and called Homeland Security’s account of the incident “garbage” and “not true.” “There is little I can say that will make this situation better, but I do have a message for our community, for our city, and I have a message for ICE,” Frey said. “To ICE, get the f*ck out of Minneapolis. We do not want you here. Your stated reason for being in this city is to create some kind of safety and you are doing exactly the opposite. People are being hurt. Families are being ripped apart.” “Now, somebody is dead,” he added. “And that’s on you. And it’s also on you to leave. It’s on you to make sure that further damage, further loss of life and injury is not done.” Minnesota Democratic Governor Tim Walz also suggested that the Trump administration is lying about the shooting. “I’ve seen the video. Don’t believe this propaganda machine,” Walz said. “The state will ensure there is a full, fair, and expeditious investigation to ensure accountability and justice.” Video footage of the incident showed the female driver of a vehicle stop in the middle of the street before being approached by multiple federal agents. As the agents move toward the vehicle and attempt to open her car door, the driver hits the gas, and the vehicle appears to clip an agent who was approaching the front of the car. The agent at the front of the car fired at least two shots as the woman appeared to drive toward him. The woman was transported to a local hospital and declared dead shortly after. The DHS called the incident “an act of domestic terrorism.” “An ICE officer, fearing for his life, the lives of his fellow law enforcement and the safety of the public, fired defensive shots. He used his training and saved his own life and that of his fellow officers,” Homeland Security added. “The alleged perpetrator was hit and is deceased. The ICE officers who were hurt are expected to make full recoveries.” The Democratic mayor said that the city would work “toward justice as quickly” as possible and urged Minneapolis residents to “rise to the occasion” and “respond with the best version of self.” “We are better than a bunch of ICE agents being deployed to cities around the country and ripping apart families and communities. We’re better than that,” he said. “So, we are going to meet that hate with love.” Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said that Minneapolis police officers responded to the scene of the shooting and found a woman “with a gunshot wound to the head.” “The preliminary information that we have is that this woman was in her vehicle and blocking the roadway on Portland Avenue, midway between 33rd Street and 34th Street in the city,” O’Hara added. “At some point, a federal law enforcement officer approached her on foot and the vehicle began to drive off. At least two shots were fired. The vehicle then crashed on the side of the roadway.” O’Hara said the FBI and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension had taken over the scene for an investigation into the deadly shooting. President Donald Trump’s deployment of around 2,000 federal agents to Minneapolis sparked outcry from leftist leaders in Minnesota, including Walz and Frey. The Trump administration is targeting Minneapolis in its immigration enforcement operation as the state faces scrutiny over a massive fraud scandal that involves many people from the state’s large population of Somali immigrants.

Warner Bros. Discovery has formally rejected the hostile takeover bid from Paramount amid their merger deal with Netflix, dubbing the proposed terms “inferior” to the Netflix partnership. “Your Board negotiated a merger with Netflix that maximizes value while mitigating downside risks, and we unanimously believe the Netflix merger is in your best interest. We are focused on advancing the Netflix merger to deliver its compelling value to you,” the board wrote in a letter to shareholders Wednesday morning, per Variety. The letter further stated that the Paramount offer “is not more favorable to WBD stockholders than the Netflix Merger and continues to be inadequate,” because of “insufficient value, taking into account price and numerous risks, costs and uncertainties.”  The decision to reject the bid was said to be unanimous. This was the sixth offer made and rejected by Paramount. “The Offer is entirely at [Paramount]’s discretion – [Paramount] can reduce the price, impose new conditions, or walk away entirely at any time prior to its acceptance of tendered shares,” Warner Bros. said of the proposal. Paramount announced their latest bid days after the Netflix deal was announced in December. “We believe our offer will create a stronger Hollywood. It is in the best interests of the creative community, consumers and the movie theater industry,” Paramount Chairman and CEO David Ellison said in a statement at the time, as The Daily Wire previously reported.  “We believe they will benefit from the enhanced competition, higher content spend and theatrical release output, and a greater number of movies in theaters as a result of our proposed transaction.” President Trump remarked on the Netflix deal in December, saying it “could be a problem” from an antitrust standpoint. The president also mentioned being “involved” in reviewing the deal. The proposed merger has had bipartisan pushback from skeptics who warn it could turn into a “nightmare” for consumers and creatives.  Many critics also worry that it could destroy the theater industry, as rumors persist that Netflix will push for a shorter theatrical release window for major films. Per reports, the timing could be shortened to as little as 17 days, drastically reducing the industry standard of a 30 to 45-day delay before movies arrive on streaming services.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s Director of Tenant Protection might need some protection herself after a tough first week on the job left her in tears. On Monday, Cea Weaver caught flak for old social media posts, including one claiming home ownership was a weapon of white supremacy. On Tuesday, she struggled to defend the Mamdani administration’s controversial housing policies in a Spectrum News interview. And on Wednesday, a reporter confronted the housing radical about her mother’s $1.6 million Nashville home. Instead of responding, Weaver reportedly started crying and ran back inside her apartment. The 37-year-old activist has a history of complaining about gentrification, including in her Brooklyn neighborhood — where she is herself a gentrifier. It’s a rough start for Weaver, who is expected to play a major role in Mamdani’s administration. The tenant czar is slated to direct Mamdani’s “Rental Ripoff Hearings,” struggle sessions in which residents of all five boroughs will be able to publicly voice their complaints about their rental experience. “Working New Yorkers will be able to speak about the challenges they face,” from behind a microphone, Mamdani says, “from poor building conditions to hidden fees on rent payments.” The Mamdani administration says it will then identify “common themes” in the complaints to “directly inform policy interventions to take on these ripoff tactics.” Mamdani already gave one tenant the floor at a press conference announcing the “Rental Ripoff” hearings. Josie Wells is a tenant at 85 Clarkson Avenue, a rent-stabilized apartment building in Brooklyn. Wells complained about the “dirty walls that haven’t seen a fresh coat of paint in years, cabinets hanging precariously in kitchens and bathrooms, [and] cracked plaster [that] zig-zags across ceilings and hallways.” 85 Clarkson Avenue is one of the many properties owned by the Pinnacle Group, which filed for bankruptcy in May 2025, and was featured at this press conference. At the press conference, a sign read, “As we rise, Pinnacle will fall.” The sign was displayed by the Union of Pinnacle Tenants, who organized to fight “for a say in the auction process to ensure that repairs are made, our rent stabilization is respected, and our buildings aren’t sold to yet another abusive landlord.” Advisors to Pinnacle Group said that “the bankruptcies were caused by a sharp rise in interest rates, inflation-driven increases in operating expenses, and lower rent collections.” Weaver says the Mamdani administration has gotten involved to ensure the building goes to someone who can pay for upkeep while also complying with rent price caps. “The city intervened in the bankruptcy proceeding in order for the city to take a hard look at the conditions that are in the building as well as a plan that has been put forth by the top bidder, because we want to ensure that whoever is taking on this portfolio is able to comply with both rent stabilization laws as well as housing maintenance code.” As of now, it is unclear if there is a bidder who fits that description.

Derek Hough is all in on his new dad era. He and his wife, Hayley Erbert Hough, welcomed their first child, Everley Capri, on December 29, ending a big 2025 for the couple. Derek announced his daughter’s birth in a sweet Instagram post on January 5. But that apparently wasn’t enough for the Dancing with the Stars icon. He followed up the announcement on his Instagram Stories with a new necklace. Derek Hough wore a horned goat pendant, the symbol for the astrological sign Capricorn. “New chain,” he captioned the photo. Baby Everley is a Huge Blessing for Derek Hough and Hayley Erbert Hough A day before Derek Hough announced the baby’s birth, his wife shared a sweet message of gratitude on Instagram. “It didn’t feel right to post anything about the new year without acknowledging and honoring the last one that changed me. 2025 was a year of transformation. A year of shedding layers, releasing old versions of myself, and making space for all the new. I prepared my heart, body, and soul for one of the greatest changes of my life. I literally created life. Derek and I had the opportunity to go on some incredible bucket list adventures to celebrate the last year of being just the two of us. We cherished all the lasts while quietly making room for the most beautiful firsts to come,’ she wrote.“Thank you, 2025, for the wisdom, the growth, and the love. And most importantly, the reminders to trust that everything will unfold the way it’s supposed to. Cheers to new beginnings and to a new year filled with even more magic.” We’re so happy for Haley and Derek Hough and their new baby girl. May 2026 be a year of love and light for the entire family. This story’s featured image is by Eric McCandless/Disney via Getty Images.

'Deeply regret'

'Regretful comments from years ago do not change what has always been clear'

'Press the Chinese government'

In Andy Borregales' view, bringing Maduro's oppressive rule to an end represents true justice

'Seize private property'