Trump Gains Shiny Object - The Friday AM Quickie 1/16/26
New York's striking nurses have forced hospital systems back to the bargaining table. Congrats! I'm off, Whitney's back Monday. - Corey
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THE BIG NEWS
The Sad Tale of How Donald Trump Got His Nobel Prize
Donald Trump spent much of the first year of his second term in the White House lobbying, openly and desperately, for a Nobel Peace Prize. By gaining the prize, Trump seemingly hoped to prove to himself that he's just as accomplished and deserving as a prior recipient, former President Barack Obama. Yesterday, Trump finally got his wish – not through fair play but by way of his characteristic combo of whining and bullying.
The Nobel committee made the dubious decision last year to award the Peace Prize to a right-wing Venezuelan dissident, María Corina Machado. As Trump ramped up military action and threats against the left-wing government of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, ultimately abducting him to the US in a nighttime military operation, Machado cheered him on, hoping that the Trump would put her in charge of the country. But her reward didn't come; Trump instead extended an olive branch to Maduro's No. 2, Delcy Rodríguez.
White House sources told the Washington Post early this month that Machado's acceptance of the prize was the "ultimate sin" that turned him against her leadership campaign. "If she had turned it down and said, 'I can't accept it because it’s Donald Trump's,' she'd be the president of Venezuela today," the source said.
Of course, Machado can read the papers like everyone else. Last week she went on Fox News and said she was open to giving him her prize, prompting the Nobel committee to release a statement reminding everyone that the prize cannot be gifted away or transferred. Trump responded by going on Fox to say taking Machado's prize would be "a great honor." Subtle!
And that's how we got yesterday's bizarre spectacle, where Machado visited the White House to give Trump her shiny gold medal mounted inside a gilded portrait frame. Here's the official photo, in case you missed it:
"Such a wonderful gesture of mutual respect," Trump wrote on Truth Social afterward. Newt Gingrich, the former GOP House Speaker and author of "Understanding Trump," tells NBC News he expects Trump to display the formerly prestigious award in the Oval Office.
Let's call it what it is: a bribe. And the people of Venezuela, who Trump now claims to rule, were not even afterthoughts in this transaction.
To many, this outcome was foreseeable. "The Nobel Committee has compromised the prize," Norwegian columnist Lena Lindgren tells the New York Times.
The whole episode is a reminder that we deserve better leaders than these pathetic, power-hungry, ego-obsessed aristocrats.
MORE STORIES TO WATCH
The Clampdown: Trump Threatens to Send US Troops to Occupy Minnesota
- Violence, Chaos, and Fear: Minneapolis Residents Warn the World That They're Already Under MAGA Invasion "It feels very much like a Nazi Germany situation to me," says a restaurant owner who has closed her business to protect her immigrant employees, and joined protests outside a federal immigration lockup. "It needs to stop, and people need to know what's going on." via HuffPost, NBC News, the Associated Press, and The American Prospect.
- School Attended By Renee Good's 6-Year-Old Son Has Been Inundated with Threats A newly released Minneapolis Fire Department report says Good suffered four gunshot wounds, not three as widely reported, when ICE agent Jonathan Ross executed her in the street. via Sahan Journal, the New York Times, the Star-Tribune, and HuffPost.
- Federal Appeals Decision Puts New York Palestine Activist Mahmoud Khalil at Risk of Arrest and Deportation Again "The door may have been opened for potential re-detainment down the line, but it has not closed our commitment to Palestine and to justice and accountability," Khalil says. "I will continue to fight, through every legal avenue and with every ounce of determination, until my rights, and the rights of others like me, are fully protected." via the AP and Gothamist.
- Minneapolis Teachers' Unions Are Leading the Resistance to MAGA Occupation Republicans and centrist Democrats, meanwhile, want to make the widespread outrage over federal agents' conduct all about improving "officer training." via The Nation, Politico, and the AP.
Regime Releases Concepts of 'the Great Healthcare Plan'
The bipartisan negotiations to restore and extend Affordable Care Act subsidies has fizzled in the Senate, NBC News reports. Minority Leader Chuck Schumer's direct lobbying of Donald Trump yesterday could not change the fact Republicans simply don't want Americans to have access healthcare without extreme financial coercion somewhere in the equation.
Meanwhile, the GOP has released its own long-awaited healthcare plan, such as it is. "The Great Healthcare Plan," as they call it, has no details. The Associated Press calls it an "outline." A former health official in Trump's first term, Chris Meekins, calls it "a retread" of previous GOP positions with "no legislative path forward." Eagan Kemp of Public Citizen says the failed plan shows Republican "disdain for everyday Americans." In the short run, the Senate must extend ACA subsidies, Kemp says. "In the longer term," he adds, "we must finally pass Medicare for All, an actually great healthcare plan, to finally guarantee everyone in the US can get the care they need throughout their lives without financial barriers."
QUICKEST QUICKIES
- At UN Security Council Emergency Meeting, Iran Blames US for Fomenting Unrest; US Says 'All Options Are on the Table' Meanwhile, grieving Iranian families complain that the authorities will not hand over the bodies of deceased protesters unless the families first pay a bribe of up to $7,000. via Al Jazeera, the Associated Press, BBC News, and the New York Times.
- Reagan-Appointed Judge Slams Trump and His Cabinet as Leading 'Authoritarian' 'Unconstitutional Conspiracy' The White House responded by calling US District Judge William Young, who is 85 years old with 40 years on the bench, a "left wing" activist. via the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times.
- Former Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema Sued By Bodyguard's Ex-Wife, Who Alleges Her 'Wanton Conduct' Broke Up Their Marriage "Heather Ammel claimed in her suit that Ms. Sinema sent Mr. [Matthew] Ammel sexually suggestive photographs on Signal, the encrypted messaging app; chose him to accompany her on trips to Napa Valley and to the Sphere, an events venue, in Las Vegas; paid for him to enter psychedelic treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder and other issues; encouraged him to bring drugs on work trips so she could guide him through a psychedelic trip; showered him with gifts and concert tickets; and eventually entered into a sexual relationship with him that caused him to leave his family." via the New York Times.
- One of Elon Musk's Estranged Baby Mommas Sues Him Over His AI 'Creating Nonconsensual, Sexually Explicit Images of Women and Children' Ashley St. Clair is in a custody battle with the Nazi-saluting oligarch over their infant son, Romulus; she claims Musk's Grok AI "digitally dressed her in a bikini decorated with swastikas." via HuffPost, the Guardian, Politico, and the Washington Post.
SOME NUMBER
75 percent
That's the share of Americans that oppose Donald Trump's proposed takeover of Greenland, according to a new CNN poll. Troops from France, Germany, the UK, Norway, and Sweden have established a tripwire force in Greenland to deter a US invasion, but the White House claims Trump doesn't care about the show of European solidarity.
ON THE SHOW TODAY
1/16: Happy Friday! Sam and Emma will be in studio; the guest will be David Dayen, executive editor of The American Prospect and co-host of the Organized Money podcast.
DON'T MISS MR CLIPS
ICE's Violent Terror Campaign Is Worse Than You Thought...
Training can't fix this.
A Closer Look at the Iran Protests
Sam and Emma interview Trita Parsi, co-founder and executive vice president of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft.
PARTING WORDS
"I still believe that this city is the financial capital of the globe, and we're going to see how blockchange [sic] technology can actually improve government... When you look at this coin, our New York City Coin, the money that is generated from this coin, we're going to zero in on 'how do we stop this massive increase of antisemitism across our country and across the globe?' really. And, 'how do we deal with the increase in anti-Americanism?'"
-- Former New York City Mayor Eric Adams, speaking to Fox News on Monday about his new cryptocurrency venture. Immediately after launch, Adams' secret team executed a scam known as a "rug pull" in crypto circles. As the Associated Press reports, "after surging to a nearly $600 million valuation within minutes of its launch, the new coin, dubbed NYC Token, went into free fall, losing nearly 75 percent of its value by that evening. The drop came after an account linked to the token’s creation withdrew $2.5 million worth of coins." Through a spokesperson, Adams denies running away with the money, blaming "market volatility" for the complaints.
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