NPR News Now - NPR News: 01-06-2026 4AM EST

Episode Date: January 6, 2026

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Live from NPR News. In Washington, I'm Shea Stevens. U.S. military action in Venezuela pushed U.S. stock sharply higher on Monday, although the market was relatively subdued. Details from NPR, Scott Horsley. The U.S. military's capture of Venezuela's president and his wife over the weekend had little effect on global oil prices. Venezuela has large oil reserves, but its oil output has dropped sharply after years of neglect. While President Trump wants U.S. oil companies to revitalize the Venezuelan industry, the cost and time commitment necessary would be sizable.

Retail gasoline prices in the U.S. continue to fall. AAA says the average price of regular gas is now $2.81 a gallon. That's down about a penny from a week ago, and about 25 cents less than this time last year. Scott Horsley and P.R. News, Washington. Trump administration officials say the U.S. will run Venezuela until he completes an orderly transition of power. White House Deputy Chief of Staff, Stephen Miller, says the U.S. is in de facto control, although he says Venezuela is cooperating with the U.S. A U.S. man on flights from the Eastern Caribbean ended at midnight Sunday, but thousands of American travelers remain stranded. U.S. carriers are added flights to accommodate Americans who couldn't get flights home during the U.S. operation to capture Nicholas Maduro.

Delta Airlines says it's already added 20. 600 seats through extra flights and that it is working to accommodate all customers by today. Conservative activists have harassed Somali-American-owned daycare centers in Ohio following allegations of fraud in Minnesota. But WOSU's George Shilcock reports that one new daycare center that hasn't opened yet was forced to call police and boosts its security. Ohio Governor Mike DeWine says the state regularly audits child care centers and that these daycares are required to have a security plan to prevent adults from just walking in.

That's what happened to 161 child care. Director Hamda Muhammad says she had to call police twice on intruders alleging fraud. A person hacked the center's voicemail greeting, which now says hateful things about Muslims. I do know every community has problems and like there is bad people in every community, but you don't have to target a whole community for this. With the way daycare's work, we get audited. We have unannounced inspections. 161 child care now has no trespassing signs and cameras, not how Muhammad says she pictured her first day in business.

For NPR news, I'm George Shilcock in Columbus. It was five years ago today that a mob stormed the U.S. Capitol to prevent the certification of Joe Biden's 2020 election victory. Five people died as a result of their injuries from the attack. Roughly 1,500 people charged in the riot received partial or full pardons after President Trump returned to office last year. A plaque honoring police who defended the Capitol has never been unveiled. This is NPR. Medical professionals across the U.S. are reporting a surge in flu cases over the holidays, mostly from a new strain of the virus called H3N2.

Around 45 states are reporting high flu activity during the Christmas holiday season. That's up from 30 states before the holiday. The CDC data was released as the Trump administration announced it would no longer recommend and flu shots and other vaccines for children of all ages. The operator of a Philadelphia nursing home and a utility are facing allegations of negligence, following a deadly explosion at the home two weeks ago. NPR's Giles Snyder reports on what is believed to be the first lawsuit over the blast. The lawsuit has been filed in Philadelphia Common Police Courts on behalf of four survivors of the explosion,

two workers at the home, a resident and a contractor. The lawsuit claims that a suspected gas leak had been festering for days and that the defendants were aware of it but failed to evacuate the building and fix it. Authorities have said a utility crew was responding to reports of a gas odor when the explosion happened. The blast and partial collapse of the building killed a resident and a nursing home worker and injured 20 other people. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating. Trial Snyder, NPR News. A Texas jury has seated, has been seated in the trial of of a former police officer who was part of the law enforcement response to the school shooting in Eubaldi in 2022.

Adrian Gonzalez is charged with failing to protect children during the attack after authorities waited over an hour to confront the gunman. This is NPR News.