curated news excerpts & citations
WSJ: Job Gains Cooled in December, Capping Year of Weak Hiring
American employers added jobs at a subdued pace in December, capping a year in which the U.S. labor market lost considerable momentum. Outside of the two most recent recessions, 2025 saw the lowest pace of average monthly job growth since 2003.
The U.S. economy added a seasonally adjusted 50,000 jobs in December, the Labor Department said Friday. That was a slight slowdown from November’s 56,000 gain and undershot economists’ expectations for a 73,000 increase.
WSJ: Slowest Labor Market in Years Leaves Job Seekers Stuck
Job hunts get more desperate, as workers cobble together part-time gigs, raid 401(k)s and get waitlisted by DoorDash
UK Telegraph: US hiring slumps under Trump
Newsweek: Donald Trump gets double blow on US job figures
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Friday’s report also included updates to previous months’ data, with nonfarm payrolls for November being revised down to 56,000—an 8,000 decrease. Additionally, the loss of 105,000 jobs in October was revised to 173,000, meaning employment over the two previous months was 76,000 lower than originally believed.
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Heather Cox Richardson: Letters from an American – January 9, 2026
Beginning in 1943, the War Department published a series of pamphlets for U.S. Army personnel in the European theater of World War II. …
…Fascism, the U.S. government document explained, “is government by the few and for the few. The objective is seizure and control of the economic, political, social, and cultural life of the state.” “The people run democratic governments, but fascist governments run the people.”
“The basic principles of democracy stand in the way of their desires; hence—democracy must go! Anyone who is not a member of their inner gang has to do what he’s told. …
(Heather Cox Richardson more…)
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WSJ: Trump’s Venezuela Oil Play
The regime may be using oil to buy Trump’s support to stay in power.
WSJ: Trump Presses Oil Executives to Invest in Venezuela—but Gets Lukewarm Reception
CNN: ‘It’s uninvestible’: Trump’s Venezuela pitch met with skepticism from oil executives
Bloomberg: Venezuela Has the Most Methane-Intensive Oil in the World
Oil executives weighing a potential investment in Venezuela’s fields may want to check out the view from space. Satellites have detected enormous amounts of methane billowing from the country’s abandoned oil rigs, rusty pipelines and other dilapidated energy infrastructure.
The emissions not only reflect potential lost revenue — they’re also likely to give US oil majors pause about operating in Venezuela. That could leave smaller, less experienced companies and private equity firms to attempt to fulfill US President Donald Trump’s plan to revive the nation’s heavy crude output after capturing President Nicolas Maduro.
(Bloomberg more…)
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Conversation: ICE killing of driver in Minneapolis involved tactics many police departments warn against − but not ICE itself
WSJ: Videos Show How ICE Vehicle Stops Can Escalate to Shootings
Timothy Snyder: Maduro in Minneapolis
Andrew Spellman: Who Gets to Decide Who’s A Domestic Terrorist?
“The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.”
An excerpt from George Orwell’s novel “1984,” this quote is quickly circulating on social media platforms. …
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Mary Geddry: Forty-Seven Seconds
How a leaked ICE video exposes the gap between official narratives and what human eyes can see.
(Mary Geddry more…)NBC News: New cellphone video shows victim interacting with ICE officer moments before fatal shooting in Minneapolis
In the video, Renee Nicole Good can be seen smiling at the officer moments before he opens fire.
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Jennifer Rubin: Undaunted – The House votes to advance extension of ACA subsidies
If Donald Trump thought that launching an endless military operation against Venezuela and using the U.S. military and taxpayer dollars to plunder oil would improve his political standing, he may have miscalculated. Democrats — with the aid of a remarkable 17 Republicans — voted to extend the Affordable Care subsidies for three years. It seems at least some Republicans on the ballot this year seemed to have had second thoughts about taking healthcare away from tens of millions of Americans.
While most pundits have predicted any House measure would die in the Senate, a bipartisan compromise now looks possible, especially given the margin in the House. Politico and other outlets have reported a potential deal for a 2-yr. extension, a requirement for a minimum premium, and finding some way to “finesse” on Hyde Amendment abortion restrictions. If this results in a deal, it would represent a stunning rebuke of Trump and MAGA Republicans who provoked a shutdown by refusing to extend the subsidies.
Credit should go in large part to Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) who kept the focus on healthcare, maintained his nerve during the shutdown, and continued to make the case to voters even after Senate Democrats caved. Had he not done so, the issue would not now be front and center, causing Republicans fits. Jeffries has shown that the minority certainly has cards to play.
(Jennifer Rubin more…)
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Playbill: Washington National Opera to Sever Ties With the Kennedy Center
The company has performed at the Washington, D.C. institution since 1977.
(Playbill more…)
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Borowitz: King Restores British Rule over U.S.
NPR: January 6, 2021: A visual archive
Accountability Initiative ICE List
GriftMatrix
Trump Action Tracker
Timeline: Tracking the Trump Justice Department’s Anti-Voting Shift
Tracking the Lawsuits Against Trump’s Agenda
Trump Pardons Database
Project 2025 Tracker
DOGE Tracker
ProPublica: Elon Musk’s Demolition Crew
Wired: 6 Tools for Tracking the Trump Administration’s Attacks on Civil Liberties
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