Morning Joe - U.S. military strikes more alleged drug boats

Episode Date: January 2, 2026

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Today begins a new era. I stand before you, moved by the privilege of taking this sacred oath, humbled by the faith that you have placed in me. I stand alongside over one million New Yorkers who voted for this day nearly two months ago. And I stand just as resolutely alongside those who did not. That is, New York City Mayor Zoran Mamdani yesterday delivering his inaugural address. We'll have much more from that event and take a look at what the new administration could mean for the nation's largest city. Meanwhile, New Year same President Trump. He's promoting another major construction project in Washington, D.C., and making a move to take federal control of the district's three golf courses.

This all comes as his policies are still facing major pushback from his tariffs to the deployment of the National Guard. We will take you through all of that. And in early morning, social media posts by President Trump is raising real questions about possible U.S. action in Iran amid protests in that nation that have now turned deadly. Good morning and welcome to Morning Joe on this Friday, January 2nd. Happy New Year, everyone. I'm John Flamere alongside co-host of The Restis Politics Podcast, the BBC's Caddy K. Caddy, Happy New Year to you as well. We're in for Joe Meekha and Willie, and we have.

Caddy, how are the first two days of 2026 treating you? Well, it's 6 o'clock in the morning, and I'm in the studio at work, so I guess the New Year holiday didn't last quite long enough. Are we allowed to say that? We're back. And there's more news. It's back and we're more news. We are back.

We're grateful to be here, Patty. We're happy to be here, Katie. We're happy to be here at 6 o'clock in the morning. We're here. Haven't yet been replaced by AI. No, no AI yet. No, we are glad to be here. We're certainly glad to everyone watching this morning,

and we do hope everyone had a happy new year. We have actually a lot to get to. It's a busy news day, and we've got a good group to get us started. MS now political analysts and contributing writer to the Atlantic. Eugene Robinson is here, as well as President Emeritus of the Council on Foreign Relations, Richard Haas. So let's dive right in. As the Trump administration continues to ramp up pressure on Venezuela, the South American

country's president, Nicholas Maduro, now says he's open to holding talks with the United States on both drug trafficking and oil. In an interview that was released yesterday, Maduro said this, if they want to seriously discuss an agreement to combat drug trafficking, we're ready. If they want oil, Venezuela is ready for U.S. investment, like with Chevron. Whenever they want it, wherever they want it, and however they want it. The Venezuelan president also commented on what he sees as the administration's goals in his country, remarking, it is clear that they seek to impose themselves through threats, intimidation and force.

And Motorola dodged when asked about the reported ground attack by the U.S. on a Venezuela dock facility, saying that he could, quote, talk about it in a few days. These eyebrow-raising new comments come as the U.S. military continues to strike suspected drugboats in the region without providing any evidence of claims made about the vessels, their passengers, or cargo. On Tuesday, U.S. Southern Command says it launched an attack against a convoy of boats, killing three, but also leaving a number of survivors currently being pursued by the Coast Guard. And then on Wednesday, the U.S. military announced another strike, killing five people, bringing the death total to at least 115 across a series of 35 known attacks.

And, Katty, it does seem a really delicate moment there in this ongoing, pressure campaign against Venezuela, and the boat strikes continue a pace. Well, it does look like 2026 is not going to be the year of isolationism that many had thought it was going to be when they elected Donald Trump. So more activity around the world at the beginning of this year. Because meanwhile, the U.S. government is rebutting claims by the Kremlin that Ukrainian forces targeted Vladimir Putin's residents in a recent attack. The CIA's findings align with Ukrainian officials who quickly,

denied those Russian claims and framed them as a clear attempt to stymie the ongoing talks to end the war. Initially, President Trump seemed to echo President Putin's claims following a lengthy phone call between the two leaders, saying he was, quote, very angry about the purported attack. But since then, Trump posted a link to a New York post-editorial saying the attack never happened and that it was designed to disrupt the push for peace. This was such a weird one right from the beginning, Jonathan, because you had Vladimir Zelensky coming out saying, no, we had no part of this, there's no evidence

for this, but you had the president siding with Vladimir Putin in his analysis saying this happened and the Ukrainians did it. This does not surprise me that we've now had this about turn, but it is an indication of how

every time Donald Trump seems to take Vladimir Putin's word at it at face value. Oh, he's continually deferential to Putin. We have seen that now for the better part of the decade. And it's also hard to know sometimes when he just like repost something and on truth social,

like whether that's really even intentional because he has certainly posted some stuff before that is completely inaccurate. But members of his administration are also echoing this, saying that, look, we're not really sure this happened. Russia continues to insist that it did. So we've got a lot to get to.

But Richard, we also, in your latest piece for Project Syndicate, you're writing about a country and a world out of balance. And you tick through a long list of significant events over the last year, from the government shutdown to persistent high inflation, to mass deportations, and the growing scourge of political violence. Now, headlines from overseas include the release of the hostages from Gaza, America's strained relationship with Europe, and President Trump's push to take over Canada, Greenland, and Panama, just to name a few. Richard, you write in part this, what stood out just as much as Trump's assertion of power was congressional Republicans' unwillingness to provide a check on the president and the

deference shown to him by the Supreme Court. Not since Franklin Delano Roosevelt has any president accumulated such a degree of control. But unlike FDR, who could point to the Great Depression and then World War II as justifications for his actions, Trump inherited no emergency. He simply did things and others acquiesced. Trump's unconstrained presidency is at odds. Trump's unconstrained presidency is at odds with the American political tradition. Central to American government and democracy is the notion of checks and balances that the three branches of the federal government are meant to govern jointly and ensure that no single branch dominates. This has failed utterly. Trump acts and few react. So Richard, we'll dive into it a minute some of the issues here on the

domestic front. But why don't we start with some of the foreign policy? Beginning with With Venezuela, you know, the boat strikes have been gone for months now. We had this report a few days ago. We covered it at length on the show about this now, the strike, one strike on land. We don't know much about it yet, but a strike of dock facility in Venezuela. And now we're hearing Maduro potentially strike a different tone, saying, look, hey, we can talk, we can negotiate, perhaps suggesting that the walls are closing in. No, I actually thought this is very interesting. People say the United States goal is regime change. No, that's a means to an end. The end is the Venezuela gets out of the drug trade, doesn't hemorrhage people, and most of all opens itself to American companies for access to oil. So instead of regime change, Jonathan, what was so interesting about these comments, we may be moving towards policy change. And think about it. This is an administration that's more than prepared to deal with authoritarian governments around the world commercially, China, Russia, and others. So this is not an exception.

So I actually think there's a good chance things will move in this direction, that the pressure has gotten Maduro to think about it. And Marco Rubio may not be happy because he clearly has wider ambitions. But my guess is Donald Trump would take this deal. And I could imagine Chevron or other companies getting heavily involved. They're there in a modest way now. And you wouldn't be shocked. You're sitting down that maybe the United States or the government took 10 or 20 percent of the action there.

But I think it's quite possible. This is a lot simpler, if you will. then regime change is a far more complicated policy to succeed with. And there was never a plan, Richard, for what comes next. Like if Maduro were to go, the U.S. has certainly not, you know, spelled out, you know, what would follow him. So this would seem to be, you're right, Rubio has been pushing for a while now to have Maduro out of power. But this seems like it would be a compromise.

And for Maduro, there have been rumors for weeks now that, like, eyeing around, like, where could he go? But it seems like he's making a decision, or at least try, to make. decision to stay. What would a new Venezuela potentially look like, though, if Maduro does make these changes? I think it would look a lot like the old Venezuela. You'd have an authoritarian regime with private militias and so forth, but you'd have Western companies in there. This would actually help the regime because it would give them greater access to capital. People wouldn't be leaving as much. And again, probably more cooperative on the drug issue. Instead of Maduro having to turn to drugs, whatever, to get money, he could take his piece of the

of the oil sales. So I actually think this is quite possible that we're going to move in this direction. And the administration would count this to some extent as a win. Well, Jane, would that be legitimate then? I mean, if the model is that Donald Trump puts extreme pressure on foreign governments

that he feels are not behaving in a way that serves America's interests and then that government changes its behavior in a way that does serve America's economic interests, I think people would look at that and say, well, maybe this is the model for America going forward and one that works. Maybe it is. Maybe Maduro woke up this morning and found a horsehead in his bet.

You know, it's kind of the godfather method of persuasion. But I think, you know, I think Richard is right. I think this does sound to me like a deal that Donald Trump might take, and it's sort of consistent with what he's doing. But it seems to me that Marco Rubio will probably fight this tooth and nail because my assumption has been that Rubio's real interest, or at least one of his interest in trying to get rid of Maduro, is to stop Venezuela's support of Cuba,

which the government in Cuba without Venezuelan oil, the Cuban economy would be an even worse situation than it is now. Richard, do you think that Rubio would essentially try to torpedo this? And do you agree with me that Cuba is part of his calculation? I agree that Cuba is very much part of Marco Rubio's calculation. He might try to push back against it. If he tried to torpedo it, and this is what President Trump wanted, I think he'd end up torpedoing himself.

Look, Trump has had conversations with Maduro, and my hunch is the deal wasn't good enough. If the deal gets good enough for the United States, I think Trump would be tempted to take a Rubio, couldn't stop this. He hasn't been able, as best I can tell, to significantly influence Ukraine policy. Witkoff and Jarrab Kushner have done the running with that. We've had anything but a tough line there. We'll get to that in a moment. I also think the other side that might be happy with this, funnily enough, is the U.S. military. The U.S. military doesn't want to be told that its mission is regime change because General Kane, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, would say, I don't know how to do that. I know how to break things, kill people. But regime change is a political mission, not a military mission. So I actually think the military would breathe a sigh of relief if the president went for policy change. We will see what happens in the days ahead. It's unclear if a Maduro Trump call will happen and when. But certainly, an interesting moment in that story.

line now. We'll come back to it a little later in the show. Let's now turn, though, to a big story that broke yesterday. The Wall Street Journal has new reporting on President Trump's health, citing people close to him who say he is showing real signs of aging in public and private. The journal notes that President Trump gets little sleep and has recently struggled to keep his eyes open during several televised events in the West Wing. The president denied falling asleep, telling the paper this. I'll just close my eyes. It's very relaxing. to me. Sometimes they'll take a picture of me blinking, blinking, and they'll catch me with the blink. The president also acknowledged that he's been putting makeup on his hand to cover

up bruising, telling the journal he does it after he, quote, gets whacked again by someone. The president admitted to taking a large dose of aspirin daily, despite his own doctors encouraging a lower dose, which he said is contributing to the bruising. He explained that he's been taking it for 25 years and that he's a little superstitious, adding, they say aspirin is good for thinning out the blood, and I don't want thick blood pouring through my heart. I want nice, thin blood pouring through my heart. And despite claiming for months that he took an MRI back in October, Trump and his doctor told the Wall Street Journal it was actually a CT scan, which was done to definitively rule out any cardiovascular issues and that the scan revealed no abnormalities. Let's now bring in

MS now White House reporter, Akela Gardner. Akala, good to see you. You're at the White House every day. We know during the Biden administration, there was speculation about his age, fierce pushback from his aide, saying, no, no, he is up for this job. We're starting to see that now here with this president, who is turning 80 next year. You know, there's been great reporting, despite White House pushback, great reporting about how he has, aides have curtailed his schedule.

It's not nearly as robust as his first term, a lot less travel as well. So talk to us about what is becoming a real story for this White House, the idea that people are starting to openly question the president's age and health. Well, Jonathan, one thing that really came to mind is I know you remember that Wall Street Journal story about Biden's age that got so much pushback from the White House and Democrats at large. And I think what's really different about this story is the fact that the president spoke to the journal.

He is trying to control the narrative. You saw him denying that he's been falling asleep during White House meetings. He also denied that he's, you know, struggling to hear something that I hadn't heard before that was reported in this story. So he is trying to get ahead of any criticism here. But I think the real question that's different for Biden versus Trump is Biden was running for reelection. Trump says that he's not, although there's still speculation that potentially he could try to run for a third term. But the White House is certainly, and President Trump himself, is certainly willing to push back on these claims.

And I think that's what we saw in this Wall Street Journal interview. And Eugene, I mean, it is, I think there are a lot of Democrats saying, hey, it's about time. People have started talking about Trump's health after four years of being bombarded with questions about Biden's. And these questions about Trump, certainly fair. And look, you know, it's also mysterious. He's taking more aspirin than his doctors recommend. Wait, was it an MRI scan or something else? You know, what was it for?

He still didn't really say, so the doctor said it was to rule out some heart things. You know, but I think, you know, take it wherever you want here. But I do think it adds to this perception that was already growing, that Trump just seems a little less larger than life suddenly than even he did a few months ago. He does. I mean, first of all, if he's blinking in those meetings, in those occasions where he seems to fall asleep, those are the longest blinks in history, right? Those are blinks that last a long, long time.

So that's not really credible. There was lots of interesting stuff in that article, though. Akela, there is a passage in which someone reported seeing Trump eat, and Trump at a meal at a single sitting ate apparently a McDonald's quarter-pounder with cheese and a Big Mac and a fillet of fish, which is like three dinners. Is that the way this president dines and with that quantity? And should that perhaps be alarming? He's going to be 80 years old later this year.

It doesn't seem he's really taken care of himself. Well, anyone who has traveled with this president, particularly on the campaign trail, knows that often on the plane that they served McDonald's, they served other fast foods. So this is certainly something that's part of the president's diet. The story also talked about how the president doesn't sleep very much. And as someone who closely follows his true social account, I can confirm that. He's up at all hours of the night and the morning.

But again, the president has really talked about his good genetics. He's just largely pushing back and he's sort of talked about how this has been his lifestyle for many years. The story also touched on the fact that he does an exercise. very much other than golf, which we know he does pretty much every weekend. But again, the president in this story denying that these are anything of major concern. Yeah, well, so interesting is that he gave the interview at all, I think. Okay, we are going to switch gears. Nikola, we're heading into the midterms, but you are already taking a look at how 2026 actually sets the stage for 28. It is never too soon to talk about the next election.

In your new piece released earlier this morning, you spotlight the likely contenders in the next presidential race and how their performances this year could impact their chances. You write in part for would-be candidates in both parties, 2026 will serve as a crucial test of their political appeal, their ability to raise money and their skill at navigating their respective parties, anxieties and ambitions. As the year starts, they're locked in a covert courting period, staying coy about their interest in national office, even as they methodically build support. So let's look, Keena, a little bit at the Democrats and how they handle this 2026 year,

because they want to get out there. But as you're suggesting in your piece, I love the way you've written that. They also don't want to make it too obvious that they're getting out there. They've got to handle this fairly subtly. I mean, just saying, right, well, I'm running for 2028 because several of them already have offices that they're meant to be focused on. Exactly. The way that I'm looking at this year is this is the last full calendar year that we're likely going to see

before Democrats or Republicans announced that they're running for president come 2027. And for some Democrats, this year is really make or break. Look at Pennsylvania governor Josh Shapiro or J.B. Pritzker and Illinois, or you have Maryland governor, Wes Moore. All of those folks are running for re-election this year. They need to win those races if they want to be in the presidential conversation because losing, frankly, doesn't look good for a bid. But then you also have other folks that are going to be looking to increase their names.

ID. You already have Gavin Newsom who is really starting to shoot to the top of polling. AOC was really on the campaign trail with Bernie Sanders this year. So for a lot of folks, they're reintroducing themselves or introducing themselves to a lot of voters for the first time. And for Shapiro and Newsom, that's going to look like a memoir that's coming out next month. And you also have Harris, who's continuing to promote her book about her 2024 campaign. And that is going to see her travel all over the country, including to four battleground states and South Carolina, which we know was the first in the nation primary in 2024 for Democrats. All right.

It is January 2nd. It is now a midterm election year. The storyline. MS Now, White House reporter, Akela Gardner, Akela. Thank you, her new piece. How 2026 sets the stage for 2028 is live right now on MS now. Richard, so in the piece that we mentioned a few minutes ago, the midterms are one of the things you look at. You note correctly that if past is prologue,

this year should be pretty good for the Democrats. The party out of power tends to pick up seats, particularly in the House. I know Democrats right now, they're taking nothing for granted, but they feel pretty good about where things stand as November looms. You know, and one of the reasons why, if they do rest control, even one House of Congress, is they suddenly will have the ability to have subpoena power. They'll be able to investigate. And I've been writing for months now how much that worries President Trump. So if this were to happen, the Democrats were to take control of the House, What does that look like both on our domestic political landscape, but also how it look like to the rest of the world?

Well, domestically, I think the most important thing is what you said, hearings, subpoena power. Essentially, we'd have an opposition that had a little bit of power. Right now we don't. We have an opposition that can hold press conferences. So that would be a significant difference. They could make it more difficult for the White House to pass legislation, but that doesn't really matter that much, Jonathan, since we live in the age of executive orders. politically it probably cuts both ways, because then in 28, we were just talking about it, the Republican candidate could run against the Democrats a little bit if they, quote,

unquote, blocked what President Trump wanted to do. I think to the rest of the world, it would probably be welcomed by most of it, not all of it, by most of it, because it would make us look more democratic, more traditional. They would hope there'd be some checks and balances. Oh, again, they'd be kidding themselves because when it comes to foreign policy, not just this president, but any president has enormous latitude in what he, can do. Congress is really a tertiary player when it comes to foreign policy. So I actually don't think it would make that much difference. And it comes back to where you began. I think it's the power

to subpoena, to hold hearings, to essentially become a powerful critic or someone with real oversight. And I think that's what worries the White House so much. And so many presidents in their second term inherently turn to on foreign policy anyway, this one, especially if he does lose control of the House, and he's been saddled with very low approval ratings, he may definitely need to. We'll be following that. Richard, stick around. Still ahead on morning, Joe. What we're learning today about a deadly fire at a Swiss ski resort as investigators try to piece together would cause the massive blaze. More on that. Plus, New York City officially has a new mayor. We'll hear more of what Zoran Mamdani had to say during his inaugural address before thousands

of Chile New Yorkers yesterday. And as we go to break, a quick look at the travelers' forecast this morning from Acqueweather's Bernie Rayno. Bernie, how's looking out there? Jonathan's not looking bad across the country today. Let's begin with a little bit of rain. Your exclusive ACA weather forecast showing rain Litter Rock Jackson, moving into Nashville and Atlanta by this afternoon. Carolina's you get the rain tonight. Now in the northeast, it's just cold and other than some snow near the lakes that's dry. Boston 29 degrees, New York City, and at 31 if you're doing any traveling. Look at all the green, which means no delay. today. To help you make the best decisions and be more in the know, download the Ackyweather app

today. We end with a little music than a beautiful view. together for one night. I know they never match my sweet. Welcome back. Dozens of people are dead and more than a hundred injured this morning after a massive fire tore through a New Year's Eve celebration at a luxury ski resort town in Switzerland. Officials say the fire began yesterday at a bar in the Swiss Alps town of Cranes. Montana. As of this morning, 40 people have been confirmed dead and 115 more are injured.

The head of a hospital where nearly two dozen burn victims were taken said most of them were between the ages of 16 and 26 years old. Take a look at this video from a witness taken of the fire. You can see people running and hear yelling and calls for help. Some footage that's just some of the exits might have been blocked. Authorities say it is still too early to comment on the exact cause of the blaze or potential security flaws at the venue. They have ruled out terrorism and are focused on identifying the victims, but it's just an unspeakable tragedy there in Switzerland. Let's now bring in Sky News correspondent Rob Harris, who joins us live from Cranz, Montana,

Switzerland, not far from the fire scene. Rob, thank you for joining us. What's the latest you're hearing from authorities this morning and seeing there on the ground? Well, here behind me, so many people are mourning the victims. We're seeing flowers being laid. Soft toys also being brought here. The locals in Kansmandan trying to comprehend this tragedy, one of the darkest days ever for Switzerland.

And behind me there is the bar, the constellation bar where we've seen forensic investigators arriving this morning. The front of the bar is covered by tents. The scene behind there, one of utter horror, the devastation that unfolded around 1.30 in the morning on New Year's Day is something they're trying to discover about why it unfolded. What sparked the inferno that has changed so many lives that has killed more than 40 people? There's a lot of focus on the bottles of champagne and the sparklers on them and whether they set the wooden ceiling alight. And then many asking about

the exit routes from the bar, a potential crowd surge through potentially one, exit and in the hospitals in the area around Kans Montana there are dozens of victims there having their burns injuries being treated and the task of identifying the victims is proving very difficult authorities warning it could take days even weeks for some of those victims to be identified as families come into this country particularly from italy many italians believe to be in that bar on new year's eve also the french authority saying there are French nationals who have been caught up in this tragedy as well. And locals telling us that psychologists are now seeing some of those who witness the scenes of

horrors. They try to comprehend with the devastation and horrific scenes that unfolded here. Sky News correspondent Rob Harris reporting live for us from Switzerland. Rob, thank you. And of course, we will bring you any updates to this story as the morning continues. It's truly a tragedy there. Staying overseas, widening demonstrations over Iran's ailing economy have spread to the country's rural provinces, with reports of at least seven people being killed as security forces clash with protesters. According to the Associated Press, the fatalities occurred in four cities and may mark the start of a heavier-handed response by Iran's theocracy over the demonstrations. MS now has not yet been able to independently verify these deaths.

The protests broke out across Tehran and other cities earlier this week over a number of financial issues, including high inflation and the collapse of the country's currency. Now, Iran's semi-official news agency reported that a number of individuals had been arrested for disrupting public order. Meanwhile, in a 3 a.m. post on social media this morning, President Trump wrote in part this, if Iran shoots and violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue. We are lock and loaded and ready to go.

Richard, again, that's the president. We were speaking earlier about his schedule and up in the middle of the night. This is three in the morning. He's at Palm Beach. That's remarkable words there from the president of the United States. I know have alarmed you. So walk us through. what they may yield?

What's going on in Iran is quite significant. It's not the first time we've seen things like this, but it's on a larger scale. The economy is doing terribly. The currency is basically wallpaper. There are significant protests. But to say we will come to people's aid dangers, one, is this going to encourage people to come out in protest?

And if so, they'll likely to get slaughtered. What, you know, if one comes to mind to me, Jonathan, is Hungary in 1956. We've seen these things. The idea that we're going to use military force? Well, how? What would you do to use military force to protect millions of people if they're out in the streets? This is just empty, dangerous rhetoric. The president should put away his phone.

This is not the way you make foreign policy. But there are serious things, though, he could say. What about the United States saying publicly to Iran? We are prepared to have a normal relationship with you if, and lay out the conditions. You stop using your money to support terrorism or groups like Hamas or Hezbollah. we're prepared to relax sanctions if you start treating your people better. And what this gets at is the Achilles heel of the regime. This is a regime that has mismanaged the country's economy.

We ought to focus on that. Focus on their economic mismanagement. How we could help the people of Iran economically, if only this regime, would put the Iranian people first. That's a kind of statement we could put in the political mix in Iran, and that might get the regime put pressure on them to reform, help the people, help be helpful to the people, in Iran. But to promise American military intervention, I think, is going to get a lot of people killed. And again, if I were the chairman and the Joint Chiefs of Staff and I heard this, I would

know what in the world to do. There's no way to translate that kind of a post, which is really just words and empty threats with serious policy. So this is, you know, we talked about it before. You actually need a national security council sometimes. You actually need a serious process where the intelligence would weigh in. You'd look at your options. Someone would remind the president of history here, what we've learned in other situations when we saw violent protests in countries like in Eastern Europe in the 50s or 60s. And what have we learned is smart and what have we learned is really dangerous to do. Gene, I read that and it reminded me a little bit of George W. Bush's second inaugural address where he says, we're going to promote

democracy around the world. And if you are a protester in a country that is tyrannical, don't worry the United States is with you. But you knew that George W. Bush had four years of experience in this field. He really believed this. had a National Security Council. It sent alarm bells right around the world, that inaugural address. But it came with some kind of background to it. This just felt like the president, I mean, as Richard said, this is just words. This felt like the president sending off words. America is locked and loaded for the people of Iran. What does it even mean? What does that mean? I mean, there's not going to be a U.S. invasion of Iran for regime change,

right? I mean, that's, you know, talk about a major undertaking. That's not going to happen. And look at Donald Trump's record of being perfectly happy to deal with repressive authoritarian regimes if he feels it's in the U.S. interest and perhaps in his friend's financial interests. But it is an interesting moment in Iran. And I'm wondering just how interesting. But Richard Haas, what is your sense of whether this is an actual threat to the Iranian regime, an internal threat, you know, set aside what Trump might or might not have said? Is the regime in any sort of danger from this? I wouldn't exaggerate it. I hope so, but I wouldn't exaggerate it.

You don't have an organized opposition. What you have is massive protests in lots of places. It's not an organized alternative. the regime also, as you know, has the means and the will to push back. They've got guys with guns and sticks who'll come out and treat people terribly. So I think it's too soon to say Iran is on the edge. But I still think this is an opportunity, if not for regime change, for some significant policy change, both externally and internally in Iran. And President Trump has pointed to the bombing of Iran's nuclear facilities over the summer as a real triumph. And certainly

he's engaging in bellic rhetoric here, setting off alarm bells throughout the region. We will have definitely more on this story later in the morning. Coming up next here on Morning Joe, a new strain of the flu could be making vaccines less effective this season. We're going to talk to a leading health expert about that as cases surge across the country. We'll be right back. Welcome back. President Trump seems to be taking on 2026, like he did 2025, in part by trying to remake the nation's capital. His administration has now abruptly ended the lease agreement for three public golf courses there in Washington, D.C., a move that could allow the president to place his own imprint on the

links. Earlier this week, the Interior Department terminated the 50-year lease agreement with the National Links Trust, the nonprofit that has operated Washington's public golf courses on federal land for the last five years. A spokesperson for the department said the agreement was cancelled after the nonprofit did not implement required capital improvements and failed to meet terms of the lease. Now, the National Links Trust officials said they are fundamentally in disagreement with the administration's characterization and are devastated by the decision. Now, the administration's next steps for the district's golf courses remain unclear, but the move could open the door for Trump and his development team to redesign them. And Cady,

if you don't think that's going to be the outcome here, I've got a bridge to sell you in Brooklyn. Yeah, you can see it happening already, even before we've got there. You can see what's going to be happening here. But that's not the only way he's doing this. After tearing down the east wing of the White House for his proposed ballroom, President Trump is moving ahead with another major construction project in Washington, D.C. In an interview with Politico, Trump said the construction of a triumphal arch is expected to begin some time in the next two months. There have been plans to build it near the Lincoln Monument.

As Politico notes, Trump has framed the project as a patriotic landmark meant to honor American history and military service, though critics have raised questions about cost, aesthetics, and whether the executive branch has the authority to unilaterally move forward. with such a construction. So, Gene, I guess we're looking at Donald Trump golf courses down at Haynes Point, not very far from where we are, which is one of the public golf courses downtown, and this kind of Trump-style triumphal arch. Taking them in order.

I mean, you know, I do play golf. I'm not, you know, I'm not qualified to be the official morning jail golf correspondent like Richard Haas is. But, you know, Haynes' point, it's interesting. It's not the greatest course in the world. But it is a true public course. And the people of Washington, ordinary folks of Washington, you can wake up one morning and say,

I think I'm going to go play a quick nine. I'm going to play 18. You can go down there. Yeah, the fairways are not in great shape. But it's a beautiful setting, and it's just a wonderful outing. And, you know, what Donald Trump is going to do, that course, I think, will not be an improvement. It'll be prettier, it'll be more lush, it'll be probably designed by some famous golf course designer, but it won't be the same.

It won't feel like Washington's, one of Washington's golf courses, and that's a shame. The triumphal arch is just unspeakable. This is not, we don't do that. This is not the United States of America that I know. we don't, you know, all of a sudden just decide to build a triumphal arch at the entrance to Arlington Cemetery, which is really a contradiction. It's not so much about triumph. It's not about beating our chests. It's a solemn place. It's a sacred place. And I think it's a, it defiles, it will defile that sacred space. Well, some of what's interesting is that, you know, with Donald Trump, sometimes it's just work.

and you have to sort out the signal from the noise. But in this case, it looks like he's actually going to go ahead. I think in both cases, I think he's going to happen. Yeah, I agree with you. Still ahead. We'll dig into President Trump's ever-evolving tariff policies as he calls out more exemptions for imported items, all while making false claims about the success of the taxes so far.

Morning Joe is coming right back. The stars are many for the rebels, the program that stayed together when it could have fallen apart. Land and rolled in, they're going to try to run some trick plays. That's a free ball. Bounding toward the sideline. The game is over. The official signaling of safety on the last play of the game. That doesn't matter.

Ole Miss is on to the college football playoff semifinal. Ole Miss appears to be doing just fine without former coach Lane Kiffin, delighting a lot of people and securing its second postseason victory since his departure. This one, a 39 to 34 thrilling win over third-ranked Georgia in the college football playoff quarterfinals last night at the Sugar Bowl. Rebels quarterback Trinidad Chambliss passed for 362 yards and two TDs before a 47. yard field goal with just six seconds to play, put number six, old miss in front for good.

They will now take on number 10 Miami in a semi-final matchup at the Fiesta Bowl next Thursday after the hurricanes upset second-seated Ohio State 24 to 14 on New Year's Eve. Meanwhile, also yesterday, there was none of this drama for number one Indiana as they thrashed number nine, Alabama, in blowout fashion. Quarterback Fernando Mendoza passed for 192 yards and three touchdowns in his first game since winning the Heisman, as the Hoosiers just routed the Crimson Tide 38 to 3. Indiana will head on to the Peach Bowl for a semifinal rematch next Friday against fifth-seated Oregon, who advanced after a 23-0 shutout of Texas Tech in the Orange Bowl yesterday.

Indiana did play the docks earlier in this year and beat him on the road 30 to 20. Richard Haas, we have to do a wellness check on Joe Scarborough at some point. Tough one for Alabama. But give us a quick takeaway from yesterday's action. Both Indiana and Oregon look just truly impressive, powerful teams. And like you, thrilled with Ole Miss. I wonder how it looks down in LSU land right now for Lane Kiffin. He decamps and team wins without him.

Got to love it. I think a lot of fans who don't really have a dog in this race are rooting for will miss now because of Lane Kiff. And Eugene Robinson, I know you were locked in on these games yesterday. Oregon versus Indiana next week looms as a great one. Yeah. Yeah, that's going to be, that to me sets up the championship. I mean, those are amazing teams. The idea, for me, a Michigan guy, the idea that Indiana is the Big Ten powerhouse right now. And not Ohio State, not Michigan, Indiana is just, it just doesn't, you know, we're is colliding. It just doesn't make sense. But here we are. And they look like, frankly, to me,

the best team in the country. Yeah, we shouldn't lose sight of just how quickly the coach there has turned that program into our powerhouse. Unthinkable.