NPR News Now - NPR News: 01-06-2026 8PM EST

Episode Date: January 7, 2026

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Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Rylan Barton. President Trump says Venezuela will be turning over between 30 and 50 million barrels of oil after the U.S. military action there and capture of the country's president, Nicolas Maduro. In a social media post, Trump said the oil will be sold at its market price and, quote, that money will be controlled by me. He said the arrangement had been coordinated with interim authorities in Venezuela, though he did not specify who. Though President Trump is celebrating the military raid in Venezuela, NPR's Amar Eliasson reports he's less interested in talking about what happens next there. Trump says the U.S. will run Venezuela, but it's not clear exactly what that means. His Secretary of State has ruled out an Iraq-style occupation, and the U.S. seems content to leave the rest of Maduro's government in place, with no plan for Democratic elections anytime soon. The president sounds confident his voters will stick with him, despite his breaking a campaign promise not to get involved in foreign military.

ventures. He told NBC News, quote, MAGA loves it. Maga loves what I'm doing. Maga loves everything I do. Maga is me. Maga loves everything I do, unquote. He told Republican House members that this year they should run on private health insurance accounts, lower gas prices, and a ban on transgender athletes. But he didn't mention Venezuela. Mara Liason, NPR News, the White House. Five years after the January 6th attack on Congress, some Americans who were convicted for their roles, marked the day by marching again to the Capitol. NPR's Odette Youssef reports. Although they were pardoned by President Trump, many of the rioters still hold grievances tied to conspiracy theories about what happened that day. The White House echoed some of

those narratives on its website, including unsubstantiated claims of widespread election fraud in 2020. Shannon Hiller is with the Bridging Divides Initiative at Princeton University. What I worry about the attack on January 6th is that we're actually diverging in this country further. that sets us back in where we ultimately need to be, which is at least agreeing on some of the facts of that day so that we can agree on the way forward from there. Hiller says BDI surveys show that the chilling effect and violence from this disunity has penetrated into local communities. Odette Yousaf and PR News.

Ukraine's allies have agreed to provide defense guarantees to help end Russia's invasion. European and NATO leaders, including the U.S., say they will provide equipment, training and military support. Ukrainian President Volodemir Zelensky says the war still needs to come to an end. We really have good steps forward. Yes, 90%, but we are each day a little bit closer. It's still not enough to have a peace

because enough when the war will finish, will end in Ukraine. We still have losses. So it's still not enough. Russia has not commented on the talks. Stocks rose on Wall Street today. The S&P 500 added 60. tenths of a percent. This is NPR. The Trump administration is planning to deploy up to 2,000 federal

agents to the Minneapolis area. This move targets alleged fraud involving Somali residents. Officials describe it as one of the largest single city mobilizations by the Department of Homeland Security ever. Homeland Security Secretary Christy Noem was seen participating in an arrest over the weekend. The parents of a man charged with vandalizing, Vice President J.D. Vance's Cincinnati home says the incident stems from their son's mental illness. Nick Swartzel at Member Station WVXU has more. William DeFore is accused of running on DeVance's property and smashing three windows with a hammer. He was arraigned today on multiple federal charges, which could carry a 40-year prison sentence.

After the hearing, his mother, Catherine DeFore said her son is a gifted writer and musician who has struggled with profound mental health issues. Mental illness is a terrible thing. It is a struggle which can take over the life of a beautiful person and the people who love and support them. Unfortunately, for our child, it is taken over his life in a way that we could never have imagined. DeFore had been in court-ordered mental health treatment since 2024 for a previous vandalism incident. He will be back in federal court Friday for a detention hearing. For NPR News, I'm Nick Swartzel in Cincinnati.

The Noquasi Mound in Franklin, North Carolina is close to being returned to the eastern band of Cherokee Indians. A city council voted unanimously to return the land yesterday. The Earth and Mound is part of a Cherokee mother town and has been privately owned since the 1940s. This is NPR News from Washington.