Chicago Mercs Exchange Go All In

 

Money To The Dead

 

Insurrection Instruction

 

Fraudy Fraud

 

SBA Investigating $1.2 Trillion On Payments As Part Of Fraud Probe: Loeffler

Authored by Travis Gilmore and Jen Jekielek via The Epoch Times,

Federal officials are reviewing approximately $1.2 trillion in payouts to root out fraudsters, according to Kelly Loeffler, administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA).

“Federal contracting and the fraud that happens within it in Washington, D.C., around these programs are probably the worst kept secret in Washington,” Loeffler said during an interview with “American Thought Leaders” host Jan Jekielek.

She highlighted patterns of fraud impacting the government, including the widespread abuse of the SBA’s 8(a) business development programs that offer funding for small businesses, including education and child care organizations, revealed in Minnesota

“It’s a huge cost to the American people when these programs are defrauded,” Loeffler said. “So, we have a whole path, we’re cracking down on that.”

An investigation looking back 15 years will include audits—the first in the program’s 45-year history, according to the administrator.

Approximately 7,000 borrowers—representing about $400 million in fraudulent payouts—were suspended in Minnesota last year.

Fraud Spread Nationwide

Officials will next use the investigative framework “to go state by state” and identify illegitimate payouts that were “very much driven during COVID,” she said.

Businesses asked to reduce operations—or shut down entirely, in some instances—were negatively impacted during the pandemic, which Loeffler said necessitated federal intervention.

“It was devastating, and would have been even more devastating had that federal assistance not come out,” she said. “And most small businesses were legitimate and used it for good, kept their employees on the payroll, and made a huge difference locally.”

Others saw the influx of federal benefits as a chance to reap rewards, which, combined with limited oversight, led to widespread abuse of the program, she said.

“There’s a certain group of actors that saw opportunity in disaster and defrauded the government,” Loeffler said. “What we know now is they come back to the trough.”

President Joe Biden’s administration forgave thousands of loans that were flagged as potentially fraudulent, she noted.

“They were not ever further investigated,” Loeffler said. “Those cases were closed; those loans were being forgiven.”

Federal investigators are now reviewing each loan to determine if further action is warranted.

“No more sweeping this under the rug,” Loeffler said. “We’re going to hold people accountable.”

Cross-Agency Cooperation

Fraud affects agencies across the federal government, with administrators from the Departments of Agriculture, Housing and Urban Development, and Health and Human Services, among others, increasing audits and review practices. Leaders are coordinating efforts to better identify problem areas and solutions.

Contracts for social and economic benefit programs funding 4,300 organizations are under scrutiny after improper payouts were discovered, according to the administrator.

“There’s a lot of fraud in those programs,” Loeffler said.

The SBA sent letters to individuals associated with the organizations last year, with responses due back this month. Anyone who fails to provide financial details and other requested information will face penalties.

“We are going to remove them from the program, and we are not going to operate programs that traffic in abuse, waste, and fraud, and we’re not going to traffic in DEI,” Loeffler said, referencing the diversity, equity, and inclusion policies that President Donald Trump has outlawed through executive action.

Investigating Debanking

Officials are also looking into debanking practices—where individuals and businesses are forced out of financial institutions for ideological or political purposes.

“We understand that debanking is a real thing in this country,” Loeffler said, highlighting SBA efforts to investigate the issue, with approximately 5,000 letters sent inquiring for more information.

Trump and Loeffler were among many other individuals who had accounts forcibly closed in recent years, she noted.

“There’s discriminatory actions that are being taken,” Loeffler said. “To use the banking system to be a choke point for disfavored political people is abjectly wrong, and the president is reversing that.”

Supporting Small Businesses

The SBA was founded in 1953 by President Dwight D. Eisenhower to guide small business development by providing access to capital through guarantees to lenders, consulting services, and opportunities to procure government contracts.

Loeffler said the Biden administration deprioritized the agency while overseeing a change in workforce logistics that saw approximately 90 percent of employees working from home.

“Well, particularly in the last four years, the SBA was dormant,” she said. “So sadly, our main street job creators saw a complete absence of the SBA.”

The Skinny

 

Trump Admin Ends Temporary Protection For Somalis In US

Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The Trump administration has decided to end temporary protection for Somali nationals in the United States, officials said on Jan. 13.

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem testifies before the House Committee on Homeland Security in the Cannon House Office Building in Washington on Dec. 11, 2025. Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

“Temporary means temporary,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told The Epoch Times via email.

“Country conditions in Somalia have improved to the point that it no longer meets the law’s requirement for Temporary Protected Status. Further, allowing Somali nationals to remain temporarily in the United States is contrary to our national interests. We are putting Americans first.”

There are 2,471 Somali nationals in the United States under the status, also known as TPS. Another 1,383 are in the country with pending TPS applications.

TPS is authorized by federal law for people from countries with conditions such as civil war that prevent the citizens from returning there safely. TPS for Somalia has been in place since 1991.

The Biden administration in 2024 extended TPS for Somali nationals until March 17, 2026. Department of Homeland Security officials at the time cited “the ongoing armed conflict and extraordinary and temporary conditions.”

“Somalia continues to experience widespread insecurity due to armed conflict involving state and non-state actors,” they wrote.

“The ongoing conflict, as well as other violence, has exposed civilian populations to ill-treatment, abuse, and displacement. Additionally, Somalia recently experienced intense flooding that damaged land and infrastructure, impeded efforts to address food insecurity, and exacerbated disease outbreaks. Significant barriers to the delivery of humanitarian aid persist.”

Noem previously terminated TPS status for nationals of multiple countries.

Federal judges have blocked some of those terminations, finding that they were arbitrary and capricious in violation of federal statute. The administration is appealing those decisions.

The ending of TPS for Somalis is the latest action by the administration in the wake of alleged fraud linked to Somali nationals.

On Jan. 7, for example, officials suspended assistance for the Somali government.

Billions of dollars were “stolen by really bad and deranged people,” President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social on Jan. 13. He was defending how federal officers have been conducting immigration enforcement operations in Minnesota, which hosts a sizeable Somali population.

Paying The Piper

 

Clintons Refuse To Testify About Jeffrey Epstein; Comer To Begin Contempt Proceedings

"President Trump isn't the only one clamming up over Jeffrey Epstein - as Bill and Hillary Clinton are both refusing to testify in front of Congressional investigators over their relationship with the dead sex-trafficking pedophile, escalating a monthslong battle with House Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. James Comer (R-KY). "

"The Clintons were scheduled to testify this week - weeks after the Trump DOJ released volumes of 'Epstein Files' - which were highly redacted, yet featured Bill prominently.

The former US president was scheduled to testify today (Jan. 13), and Hillary scheduled for tomorrow. Hours before the deadline, however, the Clintons made it clear in an 8-page letter that they have no intention of showing up - calling subpoenas issued by Comer "invalid and legally unenforceable," adding that they'll fight Comer as long as it takes. 

"They are obligated under the law to appear and we expect them to do so," and Oversight spokeswoman said last week. "If the Clintons do not appear for their depositions, the House Oversight Committee will initiate contempt of Congress proceedings.""

Which, they're now initiating for Bill (which Hillary to follow). 

Rep. James Comer (R-KY)

"Contempt of Congress is a misdemeanor that can result in a fine of up to $100,000 and up to a year in jail if pursued by the DOJ (so, nothing will happen and the Clintons know it). 

Comer subpoenaed the Clintons seeking information regarding their personal interactions with Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, including documented flights on Epstein's private jet. 

The Clintons said in their letter that they anticipated Mr. Comer would argue that the decision about whether to testify was not theirs to make.

“But we have made it,” they wrote. “Now you have to make yours.”

The Clintons had worked to beef up their legal team before Mr. Comer’s deadline. They brought on Ashley Callen, co-chair of the congressional investigations practice at Jenner & Block, who had previously worked as general counsel for Speaker Mike Johnson and other top Republicans, to interface with G.O.P. members on the House Oversight Committee. Ms. Callen also previously worked as a deputy staff director on the House Oversight Committee under Mr. Comer.

They also sought assistance from Abbe Lowell, the veteran lawyer famous for representing clients in the middle of political scandals. -NYT

Attrition

 

Day 1,419: The Russia-Ukraine Conflict Just Surpassed Soviet War With Nazi Germany

"This week has marked another grim milestone in the nearly four-year long Russia-Ukraine war. The conflict has just entered its 1,419th day - which means it has officially surpassed the entirety of the historic Soviet campaign against invading Nazi Germany, which lasted 1,418 days from June 1941 to May 1945.

Red Army forces eventually drove Nazi troops back from the Volga River all the way to Berlin, before seizing the German capital. But in today's war, the 1,419th day is just another in a long one in a tragic and grinding war of attrition, where it is believed each side has lost literally hundreds of thousands.

Source: Cover art from The History of Russia Ukraine War: How Putin & Zelensky reached this stage

Russia definitely has the upper hand and momentum on the battlefield, but it's been a slow and deadly slog, with The Times of London reporting Monday that despite prolonged combat, Russian advances in the Donetsk region amount to roughly 30 miles from their original positions.

Ukraine's armed forces have in large part been propped up by many billions in weapons, training, and funds poured in by NATO and Western backers of Zelensky.

A recent study by the BBC's Russian service and Mediazona - both largely anti-Putin outfits, found that at least 160,000 Russian soldiers have been killed, but the true figure may be significantly higher. It could also be lower, as Western sources have incentive to exaggerate for propaganda purposes (just as Russia would have incentive to underestimate).

At the same time, most international reports and war monitors say Ukraine's casualties could be many times that figure. On both sides, a whole generation of young men is being wiped out.

Efforts to achieve peace by the Trump administration have so far failed, but at least the lines of communications are still open between Washington and Moscow. 

All Together Now

 

Going Full Spartacus: Democrats Hold Chest-Thumping Press Conferences To Fuel Anti-ICE Rage

Authored by Jonathan Turley,

“Say her name.” From Portland to Philadelphia, the mantra is being used by politicians to fuel the anger over the shooting of Renee Good in Minneapolis. While many of us have noted that the shooting appears to fall within the guidelines set by the Supreme Court for the justified use of lethal force, there is an effort to make Good the personification of a “resistance movement.”

Across the country, Democrats are holding “I am Spartacus” moments like a low-budget casting call for B-grade actors, chest-thumping demands for everything from the defunding of ICE to the arrest of law enforcement officers. Sen Cory Booker (D., N.J.) was widely ridiculed for his own such moment years ago. However, he found that while most people found his self-aggrandizement cringeworthy, many longed for such demonstrations.

From Portland to Philadelphia, Democratic leaders are engaging in performative press conferences to try to outdo each other in declaring the shooting of Renee Good “murder” or declaring a “war” with the federal government over the enforcement of immigration policies.

The tone was set almost immediately after the shooting by Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, who not only declared the officer a murderer but called claims of self-defense “bllsh*t” and told ICE, “get the f–k out” of the city.

When many of us denounced his conduct, he mocked his critics by apologizing if his profanity “offended their Disney princess ears.”

Frey seemed to trigger a race to the bottom. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and others rushed to the nearest camera to condemn the officer and fuel the rage.  Democratic politicians seemed to struggle to find ways to up the ante with new levels of profanity or escalated threats. Rep. Dan Goldman (D., NY) is facing a serious challenge from a Mamdani-endorsed socialist in the primary and has fought to out-rage the competition.

Goldman not only called for the arrest of the officer but also moved to strip all ICE officers of immunity. Goldman is, of course, protected by immunity as a member of Congress and, as an heir to the Levi-Strauss fortune, can afford any litigation. However, he wants to strip protections for law enforcement officers who put their lives on the line every day. It seems that no price is too great to secure Goldman a third term.

In Portland, Mayor Keith Wilson and Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, expressed outrage over ICE being in the city after a shooting. It did not seem to matter that the wounded were two suspected Tren de Aragua gang associates who were shot after allegedly trying to run over ICE officers.

Portland Police Chief Bob Day finally confirmed that Luis David Nico Moncada and Yorlenys Betzabeth Zambrano-Contreras are Venezuelan criminal illegal aliens with ties to TdA. He admitted that the Portland Police Department hesitated to disclose the suspected gang connection because it did not want to be accused of “historic injustice of victim blaming” by law

Send Help

 

Noem: DHS Sending "Hundreds More" Federal Agents To Minneapolis

Authored by Jack Phillips via The Epoch Times,

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in an interview on Jan. 11 that “hundreds more” federal officers will be sent to Minneapolis on Jan. 11 and Jan. 12 to carry out immigration-related operations in the city.

“We’re sending more officers today and tomorrow, they’ll arrive, there'll be hundreds more, in order to allow our ICE and our Border Patrol individuals that are working in Minneapolis to do so safely,” Noem told Fox News’s “Sunday Morning Futures.”

DHS recently sent 2,000 federal immigration agents to the city. Noem said the operation is needed to go after illegal immigrant criminals in the Twin Cities area amid allegations of widespread fraud involving federal entitlement benefits.

Protests erupted after a Jan. 7 incident in which an ICE officer fatally shot a protester as she hit him with her car in an apparent attempt to flee.

Local Democrats, including Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, have criticized Noem and ICE for the shooting and suggested that the federal government cease immigration operations in the city. Frey and Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.) said in separate interviews on Jan. 11 that state authorities should be included in the shooting investigation because the federal government has already made clear what it believes happened.

“How can we trust the federal government to do an objective, unbiassed investigation, without prejudice, when at the beginning of that investigation they have already announced exactly what they saw—what they think happened,” Smith said on ABC’s “This Week.”

Frey told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Jan. 11 that local officials should be involved, saying: “Let’s have the investigation in the hands of someone that isn’t biased.”

The Trump administration has defended the officer who shot the protester in her car, saying that he was protecting himself and fellow agents. Video footage of the incident, which occurred in Minneapolis on Jan. 7, shows a woman in an SUV parked across the road and blocking traffic while honking her horn. Another video shows officers telling the woman to get out of the vehicle. She then lurches the vehicle forward, hitting an officer, in an apparent attempt to drive off, and he fires his gun, hitting her.

In response, Noem wrote on Jan. 11 an accompanying post on X that what happened in Minneapolis was a “domestic terror attack” targeting ICE agents and a “direct consequence of sanctuary politicians, like Tim Walz and Jacob Frey, who constantly demonize and vilify our brave officers.” She included video footage of similar comments to CNN.

“Sanctuary politicians are allowing situations around the country to become volatile, they’re not doing their jobs, and they haven’t for years,” Noem said. “In the interest of public safety I would encourage them to grow up.”

Noem and DHS have said that attacks on ICE agents have increased by 1,300 percent, with vehicular attacks increasing by 3,200 percent, on a year-over-year basis. In October 2025, a man armed with a rifle killed two ICE detainees at a federal office in Texas before shooting and killing himself.

The officer involved in the Minneapolis shooting was doxxed by people online and has been receiving death threats, according to White House border czar Tom Homan, who said in a Jan. 10 interview that the threats have extended to his family members.

Anti-ICE demonstrations erupted on Jan. 9 as a demonstration turned into a riot, with people throwing rocks, ice, and other objects at federal officers. Thousands of people marched in Minneapolis on Jan. 10 in response to the shooting.

Truckin

 

DOT Strips California Of $160 Million Over Foreign Truckers

By John Gallagher of FreightWaves

A showdown between the U.S. Department of Transportation and the State of California reached a breaking point on Wednesday after Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration will withhold approximately $160 million in safety program money from the state.

The move follows California’s failure to meet a January 5 deadline to cancel more than 17,000 commercial truck driver’s licenses that Duffy asserts were unlawfully issued by the state to foreign truckers.

The California Department of Motor Vehicles announced in late December that it would delay the cancellation until March 6, but FMCSA did not agree to the extension.

“It’s reckoning day for [Governor] Gavin Newsom and California,” Duffy stated in a press release announcing a final determination letter that was sent to Newsom and the DMV.

“Our demands were simple: follow the rules, revoke the unlawfully-issued licenses to dangerous foreign drivers, and fix the system so this never happens again. Gavin Newsom has failed to do so – putting the needs of illegal immigrants over the safety of the American people.

“While Gavin may not care about protecting you and your family on our roads, the Trump Administration does. We’re pulling this funding to ensure federal tax dollars don’t fund this charade.”

A nationwide audit issued by FMCSA last summer of non-domiciled CDLs – which allow individuals who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents to obtain commercial licenses – uncovered what government officials called a “systemic collapse” in California, where licenses were allegedly issued with expiration dates years beyond a driver’s lawful presence in the U.S.

FMCSA Administrator Derek Barrs emphasized that the agency would not compromise on the removal of these drivers from the road.

“Federal regulations are clear: states must correct safety deficiencies on a schedule mutually agreed upon by the agency, and California failed to meet its commitment,” Barrs stated. “We will not accept a corrective plan that knowingly leaves thousands of drivers holding noncompliant licenses behind the wheel of 80,000-pound trucks in open defiance of federal safety regulations.”

The $160 million penalty marks the first year of potential sanctions. Under federal law, if California continues to defy the FMCSA’s Final Determination, the amount withheld could double in the second year.

“We strongly disagree with the federal government’s decision to withhold vital transportation funding from California – their action jeopardizes public safety because these funds are critical for maintaining and improving the roadways we all rely on every day,” California DMV Public Affairs Deputy Director Eva Spiegel told FreightWaves in an email statement.

“The DMV is fully compliant with state and federal regulations and had engaged in positive conversations with FMCSA and DMV about extending the January 5 cancellation date to allow additional time for FMCSA to review the department’s commercial driver’s license program.”

The crackdown is expected to further tighten capacity in a West Coast freight market already grappling with shifts in regulatory policy. FreightWaves has previously reported on the potential for capacity crunches as thousands of drivers – many of whom have been integral to spot market operations – are forced out of service.

Todd Spencer, president of the Owner Operator Independent Drivers Association, said the crackdown on non-domiciled CDLs is overdue. “The days of exploiting cheap labor on the basis of false ‘driver shortage’ claims are over,” Spencer said in a press statement in response to DOT’s latest announcement.

“For too long, loopholes in this program have allowed unqualified drivers onto our highways, putting professional truckers and the motoring public at risk.”

Something Big Is Happening

 

AOC Joins Top Dems In Abrupt Pivot Against 'Antisemitism'

A synchronized burst of pro-Israel social media messaging from the Democratic Party's most ardent foot soldiers is raising eyebrows, as even their most progressive members are taking on 'antisemitism'.

For example, here's AOC - a vocal critic of Israel, slamming Hamas supporters protesting in a Jewish neighborhood as a "disgusting and antisemitic thing to do."

Other notables include NY AG Letitia James, NY Gov. Kathy Hochul, NY Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, and others.

"Guys, something is happening," X user Clandestine wrote in a post, accompanied by screenshots of some of the highest-ranking Democratic lawmakers from the land making the pivot from pro-Islam to pro-Judaism and anti-Hamas. As Clandestine noted, "They are getting in front of something."

"All the pro-Islam Democrats are all the sudden, in unison, posting pro-Judaism and anti-Hamas posts, after their followers have been screaming "free Palestine" all day every day for years," they continued.

"My first thought was that they know some form of terrorist attack or riots in the Jewish community are coming, and they are trying to disassociate before the violence. Or maybe it's just polling related. Or maybe related to Iran. I have no idea. But they are up to something," they wrote in a separate post.

Another X user by the handle Saggezza Eterna pointed out, "The synchronized messaging from the Democrat hierarchy signals abject panic. They realize their alignment with the mob has become a political suicide pact for 2026. They are desperately sanitizing their record. However, attacking Tucker Carlson constitutes a massive strategic error. You are validating the establishment's attempt to purge the only effective anti-war voice on our side. Do not let them manipulate you into fratricide. Focus your fire. The enemy is the machine portrayed in those screenshots. Tucker is the one dismantling it."

Tim Walz' Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan Retaliated Against Whistleblowers

 

Minneapolis Mafia Madness

 

MN Lawmakers Say Fraud Whistleblowers Were Threatened With Retaliation

"Officials within the administration of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz actively enabled at least some of the state’s estimated $9 billion in social services fraud by suppressing fraud reports, retaliating against whistleblowers and changing protocols to mask criminal behavior according to Republican lawmakers who testified before Congress this week. "

The representatives also asserted that whistleblowers (and potential whistleblowers) have been threatened with retaliation from MN Democrats who would make sure whistleblowers lost their jobs, their homes, they’d be blacklisted from new jobs and their "children would be tracked". 

State Reps. Walter Hudson, Marion Rarick, and Kristin Robbins are members of their legislature’s committee on fraud prevention, which has been investigating some of the same instances of fraud that have captured the national spotlight in the past month.

All three of them were invited to testify at the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform’s first of at least two scheduled hearings on the rampant social services fraud that led Walz to withdraw his bid for reelection in 2026.  

Rarick in particular spoke about the pressure and opposition whistleblowers faced. According to Rarick, what was once a group of about 480 disenchanted current and former state Department of Health Services employees has grown to over 1,000 people across multiple state agencies. Those DHS employees started an account on X called "Minnesota Staff Fraud Reporting Commentary", and many have been more than willing to talk with the fraud prevention committee about what they have found and experienced.

“In our face to face meetings with a group of whistleblowers, they revealed that retaliation now includes threats of being fired with cause, which means you do not get unemployment insurance in the state of Minnesota, being blacklisted from all state agencies…and then there was a veiled threat of the use of military intelligence against them,” Rarick said.

The revelations are tied to a program which imported around 100,000 Somali refugees into Minnesota since the 1990s, though the majority (around 54,000) arrived in the US during the Obama Administration from 2009 to 2016.  Around 81% of Somali migrants are on some form of welfare and they are greatly over-represented in government subsidized business startups connect to potential fraud. 

New Soldiers

 

White House Amplifies Shocking Claims Of US Super Soldiers Deployed In Maduro Raid

White House Spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt amplified claims about American special forces super-soliders deployed advanced weaponry during the extraction phase of former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.

Leavitt reposted an alleged account from a Venezuelan security guard at Maduro's compound describing what happened when Delta Force operators descended from helicopters in pitch-black conditions. This account was originally posted on X by California-based political activist Mike Netter, who is seeking to recall left-wing Governor Gavin Newsom.

"On the day of the operation, we didn't hear anything coming. We were on guard, but suddenly all our radar systems shut down without any explanation. The next thing we saw were drones, a lot of drones, flying over our positions. We didn't know how to react," the security guard on Maduro's compound said. This account was considered credible enough for Leavitt to repost.

Here's the full account from the security guard that reads Venezuelan forces were unable to comprehend the modern battlefield, where drones, sonic weapons, and we're sure insane helmet-mounted optics with AI, just made an unlevel playing field, in which the guard said, "Yes, but it was a massacre. We were hundreds, but we had no chance. They were shooting with such precision and speed... it seemed like each soldier was firing 300 rounds per minute. We couldn't do anything."

Full account:

This account from a Venezuelan security guard loyal to Nicolás Maduro is absolutely chilling—and it explains a lot about why the tone across Latin America suddenly changed.

Security Guard: On the day of the operation, we didn't hear anything coming. We were on guard, but suddenly all our radar systems shut down without any explanation. The next thing we saw were drones, a lot of drones, flying over our positions. We didn't know how to react.

Interviewer: So what happened next? How was the main attack?

Security Guard: After those drones appeared, some helicopters arrived, but there were very few. I think barely eight helicopters. From those helicopters, soldiers came down, but a very small number. Maybe twenty men. But those men were technologically very advanced. They didn't look like anything we've fought against before.

Interviewer: And then the battle began?

Security Guard: Yes, but it was a massacre. We were hundreds, but we had no chance. They were shooting with such precision and speed... it seemed like each soldier was firing 300 rounds per minute. We couldn't do anything.

Interviewer: And your own weapons? Didn't they help?

Security Guard: No help at all. Because it wasn't just the weapons. At one point, they launched something—I don't know how to describe it... it was like a very intense sound wave. Suddenly I felt like my head was exploding from the inside. We all started bleeding from the nose. Some were vomiting blood. We fell to the ground, unable to move.

Interviewer: And your comrades? Did they manage to resist?

Security Guard: No, not at all. Those twenty men, without a single casualty, killed hundreds of us. We had no way to compete with their technology, with their weapons. I swear, I've never seen anything like it. We couldn't even stand up after that sonic weapon or whatever it was.

Interviewer: So do you think the rest of the region should think twice before confronting the Americans?

Security Guard: Without a doubt. I'm sending a warning to anyone who thinks they can fight the United States. They have no idea what they're capable of. After what I saw, I never want to be on the other side of that again. They're not to be messed with.

Interviewer: And now that Trump has said Mexico is on the list, do you think the situation will change in Latin America?

Security Guard: Definitely. Everyone is already talking about this. No one wants to go through what we went through. Now everyone thinks twice. What happened here is going to change a lot of things, not just in Venezuela but throughout the region.

According to a New York Times report that offered more color on "Operation Absolute Resolve," not a single Delta Force operator was killed in action. However, the report did note that "One of the helicopters was hit. Two U.S. officials said that about half a dozen soldiers were injured in the overall operation."

One can only suspect that Delta Force operators might have used Anduril's EagleEye ...

There is no way to independently verify Netter's X post, and it reads like narrative warfare, amplified by the White House, seemingly designed to intimidate Latin American governments under socialist regimes.

The removal of Maduro fits squarely within President Trump's hemispheric defense strategy, the so-called "Donroe Doctrine," aimed at reasserting U.S. dominance across the Western Hemisphere and pushing out Chinese, Russian, and socialist influence.

At a deeper level, Donroe Doctrine appears to go beyond Venezuela, signaling an effort to bind Western Hemisphere economies into a tightly aligned bloc that begins to resemble a superstate. That may well be the long-term project for a future Vance administration.

Eastern States Breaking From National Law

 

Majority Of North Carolina Trucking Licenses Issued To Foreigners Are Illegal: Duffy

Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times,

A review of non-domiciled commercial driver’s licenses (CDLs) granted in North Carolina found that 54 percent were issued illegally, the Department of Transportation (DOT) said in a statement on Jan. 8.

The review was conducted by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and is part of its ongoing nationwide audit of trucking licensing systems, the department said.

DOT warned that if North Carolina does not “fix their serious failures” and revoke licenses issued illegally to foreign nationals, the department will withhold almost $50 million in federal funding.

“North Carolina’s failure to follow the rules isn’t just shameful—it’s dangerous. I’m calling on state leadership to immediately remove these dangerous drivers from our roads and clean up their system,” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said.

According to audit findings, North Carolina illegally issued non-domiciled CDLs to drivers whose lawful presence in the United States had expired, and some of those drivers were found to be ineligible to hold a non-domiciled commercial license.

FMCSA sent a letter to North Carolina Department of Transportation Commissioner Paul Tine and Gov. Josh Stein, outlining audit results and the corrective actions that must be taken to prevent funding from being withheld.

The agency asked North Carolina authorities to “immediately” pause the issuance of non-domiciled CDLs, identify unexpired CDLs that fail to comply with FMCSA regulations, and conduct a comprehensive internal audit to identify errors, practices, quality assurance, and other issues that led to such CDLs being granted.

“The level of noncompliance in North Carolina is egregious,” FMCSA Administrator Derek D. Barrs said. “Under Secretary Duffy, we will not hesitate to hold states accountable and protect the American people.”

The Epoch Times reached out to the North Carolina Department of Transportation and Stein’s office for comment, but did not receive a response by publication time.

North Carolina is one of the latest states the DOT has warned regarding the illegal issuance of CDLs to foreign nationals.

Illegal Drivers in California

After a federal audit found that 17,000 trucking licenses were issued illegally in California, the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles issued cancellation letters to these drivers, Duffy said in November 2025.

The move faced opposition, with the Sikh Coalition, which represents around 20,000 immigrant drivers and business owners in California, filing a lawsuit arguing the move would remove thousands of drivers from roads and disrupt supply chains and services.

“This action was taken as a result of pressure from the federal government; unfortunately, the CA-DMV has thus far failed to provide any recourse or means for drivers to correct these issues,” the Coalition said in a Dec. 23, 2025, statement, referring to the California Department of Motor Vehicles.

“By ejecting these drivers from the workforce without allowing for any sort of solution, the CA-DMV is discriminating against them on the basis of their immigration status.”

On Dec. 30, California announced it would have to delay revoking the 17,000 CDLs.

In a Jan. 7 statement, Duffy announced that FMCSA will withhold roughly $160 million from California for failing to cancel those CDLs by the Jan. 5 deadline.

“Our demands were simple: follow the rules, revoke the unlawfully-issued licenses to dangerous foreign drivers, and fix the system so this never happens again,” Duffy said.

“[Gov.] Gavin Newsom has failed to do so—putting the needs of illegal immigrants over the safety of the American people.”

Meanwhile, in December, Duffy threatened to withhold $24 million in funding from Colorado over “slow walking” the purge of illegally issued truck licenses.