Fed's Williams tells CNBC there is no urgent need to cut rates again (Reuters) - New York Federal Reserve President John Williams told CNBC on Friday he does not see an imminent need to follow last week's interest rate cut with another reduction in borrowing costs, adding that new inflation data is being buffeted by distortions. Williams said he doesn't "have a sense of urgency to need to act further on monetary policy right now, because I think the cuts we've made have positioned us really well," he said in the interview with CNBC. A key goal of Fed policy right now is to buoy the labor market while helping to guide inflation back to the 2% target, and with that balancing act, Williams said when it comes to interest rate policy, "I feel like we've got this in a pretty good place." Williams said the resumption of key data on inflation and hiring in the wake of the resolution of the recent 43-day government shutdown has not proved to be a game changer, while adding there are some technical issues at the moment that complicate interpretation of the new figures. In the case of the release on Thursday of the Consumer Price Index for November, Williams said the report "represents a continuation of the disinflationary process we've seen." He added, however, special factors and technical issues with the report due to incomplete data collection suggest "the data were distorted in some of the categories, and that pushed down the CPI reading probably by a tenth (of a percentage point) or so" on its reading. The CPI increased 2.7% on a year-over-year basis in November after advancing 3.0% in the 12 months through September. On the hiring front, Williams also saw some complications tied to the data. "We're seeing steady job gains ... especially in the private sector," he said, adding that "because they weren't able to collect the data in October, it probably boosted the unemployment rate in November, maybe by a tenth (of a percentage point)," but even then, the findings weren't much of a surprise. The Fed trimmed its benchmark overnight interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point to the 3.50%-3.75% range, as policymakers sought to balance supporting a weakening job market with efforts to bring still-high levels of inflation back to the 2% target. Markets are debating whether the U.S. central bank will be able to deliver another rate cut at its meeting in late January, but officials have yet to provide much guidance on that front. Williams' comments on Friday reiterated his view that he needs to see more data before he is comfortable with the Fed cutting rates again and that another cut in January might be a difficult decision. Williams noted that "we're still mildly restrictive in terms of the stance of monetary policy. We still have some room to go, ultimately, to get back to neutral." He also said "I do see eventually rates coming down lower, because as inflation comes down all the way to 2%, we'll need to have an interest rate that's consistent with that." He added that the Fed's move to restart asset buying to rebuild the size of its balance sheet is not a form of stimulus known as quantitative easing, or QE, and is technical in nature. "We are ... obviously not doing QE, from my point of view, we're not trying to change the 10-year, you know, term premium or something like that," Williams said of the large amount of Treasury bills the Fed has started buying. The purchases are designed "to provide reserves to the banking system to meet the demand that the banks in our country and that operate here need in order to carry out their business."
Today’s Doctored CPI Inflation Release is like a Bad Joke, but Very Serious (though it Suits the Administration’s Narrative) No CPI data for October, partially made-up CPI data for November, and now 3 months’ of doctored OER data which weighs 26% of overall CPI. By Wolf Richter - The Bureau of Labor Statistics explained today in its CPI report for November that most data for October was missing and some data for November was missing, and that it filled in the gaps in the November data, including by “approximating missing data points” with whatever, including for Owners Equivalent of Rent (OER), the biggest component of CPI, weighing 26% of overall CPI, for 33% of core CPI, and for 44% of core services CPI.OER had a suspicious outlier-plunge in September, and that suspicious outlier-plunge in September was carried forward to October and November. And the BLS even explained some of it in separate notes, and so it’s not a secret. This is a screenshot of the CPI summary table. You can see that nearly all the entries for month-to-month changes in October and November are missing. The exceptions are the entries for which BLS relies on “nonsurvey data,” such as gasoline prices and new and used vehicle prices (it purchases the vehicle data from J.D. Power. What BLS said about the missing data and how it dealt with it.In its summary report, BLS said: “BLS did not collect survey data for October 2025 due to a lapse in appropriations. BLS was unable to retroactively collect these data. For a few indexes, BLS uses nonsurvey data sources instead of survey data to make the index calculations. BLS was able to retroactively acquire most of the nonsurvey data for October. CPI data collection resumed on November 14, 2025.”In a separate note, BLS briefly explained some of the other shortcomings of this CPI release.“What was the impact on November data collection? Collection began on Friday, November 14. By authorizing additional collection hours, BLS attempted to collect data for the entire month of November.”It said “attempted to collect.”And this is a bad joke: “How were November indexes calculated? November 2025 indexes were calculated by comparing November 2025 prices with October 2025 prices.” But October prices don’t exist in the data… “BLS could not collect October 2025 reference period survey data, so survey data were carried forward to October 2025 from September 2025 in accordance with normal procedures.”In other words, BLS just made up the October data.And the September data, which was used as base for the made-up October data, was marred by the total outlier plunge of OER, which accounts for 26% of overall CPI, for 33% of core CPI, and for 44% of core services CPI. And that outlier plunge in September was carried forward to October and November.Specifically about OER: “BLS calculates rent and owners’ equivalent rent using six-month panel collection [surveys are sent to the same address every six months, instead of every month].So there was this suspicious outlier drop in September, and rather than bouncing back, as it should have done, it was carried forward to October and November, making for one heck of a funny chart below.Using the BLS index data for OER as provided today…
Aug: 430.69
Sep: 431.27
Oct:
Nov: 432.44
…this is what the now clearly doctored OER looks like, month-to-month percentage change, annualized. It has been at an annualized rate of 1.6% for the past three months, compared to an average 4.1% in the six months before the doctored September. That’s a sudden 2.4 percentage-point plunge out of nowhere for the third month in a row. And this doctored component is 26% of overall CPI, for 33% of core CPI, and for 44% of core services CPI, turning the entire CPI data into a bad joke 🤣 or worse. Lots of things depend on CPI, including the calculation of the “inflation protection” in Treasury Inflation Protected Securities (TIPS), I-series savings bonds the government sells to retail investors, Social Security COLAs, and other inflation adjustments paid to investors and beneficiaries, and they will all be underpaid for inflation.This data here also impacts broader economic data that is adjusted to inflation, including “real” consumer spending and “real” GDP because the BEA, which produces those overall economic indices, uses some of this CPI data, including OER, for its calculation of the PCE price index and the GDP deflator, among others. BLS is now causing serious issues with all of them, with investors and beneficiaries getting short-changed on their inflation protection, and with inflation-adjusted economic data getting inflated, which would, of course, suit the administration’s narrative.
Fed Gov. Miran says goods inflation may remain elevated - Federal Reserve Gov. Stephen Miran said higher goods prices could be the trade-off for bolstering national security and addressing geo-economic risks.
Waller stresses Fed independence ahead of meeting with Trump - Federal Reserve Gov. Christopher Waller, considered a potential contender to lead the central bank when Chair Jerome Powell's term ends in 2026, said Wednesday that monetary policy should remain insulated from direct influence by the executive branch.
- Key insight: Federal Reserve Gov. Christopher Waller, one of the final contenders to serve as the next Fed chair, stressed the importance of keeping the Fed independent from the president while emphasizing accountability to the public.
- Expert Quote: "COVID was clearly an example of where you needed a coordinated fiscal and monetary response to the pandemic, and there's nothing wrong with that — it's not a threat to central bank independence in any way, shape or form." — Fed Gov. Christopher Waller.
- What's at stake: Fed Chair Powell's term as Fed chair ends in May 2026. President Donald Trump said in early December he expects to announce his nominee to lead the central bank in January.
Waller said monetary policy must remain insulated from political pressure, arguing that communication with the White House should be limited. Waller is slated to meet with President Trump Wednesday afternoon.
Treasury Yield Curve Steepens Sharply, Yields from 2 Years to 30 Years Have Risen as the Fed Cut Three Times this Year -By Wolf Richter- The 30-year Treasury yield has risen by 19 basis points since September 16, while the Fed cut interest rates by 75 basis points. It closed on Friday at 4.84%, while the Effective Federal Funds rate (EFFR), which the Fed targets with its policy rates, has dropped by 75 basis points (blue in the chart). The spread between the 30-year Treasury yield and the EFFR has now reached 120 basis points. Since October 2023, the 30-year yield has pierced the 5%-line several times. The 30-year Treasury yield reacts to bond-market issues, such as expectations of future inflation and expectations of supply of new bonds that have to be absorbed; it is not particularly influenced by the Fed’s short-term policy rates. But the short-term yields react to the Fed’s current and expected future policy rates. And those yields have dropped roughly along with the Fed’s rate cuts. With long-term yields rising and short-term yields falling, the yield curve steepened sharply over this period and has almost uninverted. Treasury yields from 1 month to 6 months are right at or a little above 3.60%, with the 1-month yield at 3.66% and the 6-month yield at 3.59% But there is still this sag in the middle, if barely, formed by the 1-year yield (3.53%) and the 2-year yield (3.53%) marking the lowest part of the yield curve. And then yields rise from there. The yield curve has sharply steepened since September 16, just before the Fed’s first rate cut. The chart below shows the yield curve of Treasury yields across the maturity spectrum, from 1 month to 30 years, on three key dates in 2025:
- Red: Friday, December 12.
- Blue: September 16, just before the Fed’s first rate cut in 2025.
- Gold: July 25, before the labor market data turned sour.
You can see how everything from the 2-year yield and longer has risen since that September rate cut, defying hopes and predictions that long-term rates, including mortgage rates, would decline when the Fed cuts its policy rates: And they rose for several very solid reasons: fears of future inflation, and fears of future supply that the market will have to absorb. The 1-month yield (3.66%) is bracketed by the Fed’s policy rates (3.50%-3.75 % since the December rate cut) and closely tracks the EFFR (3.64%), and it was pushed down in line with the 75 basis points in rate cuts since mid-September. The 3-month through 1-year yields were also pushed down by the rate cuts, but less so, with the three-month yield still dropping substantially, and the 1-year yield barely. Every yield from 2 years on up has risen since the 75 basis points in rate cuts: But the yield curve is still inverted in the 3-month through 3-year range, with those yields being lower than the 1-month yield. That’s the sag in the middle. But it has become shallow, and almost straightened out, from the deep trench it had formed previously. This now shallow sag in the middle shows that the bond market has walked back expectations of rate cuts next year. The bond market faces a problem: The Fed cut rates three times this year while inflation has accelerated. CPI inflation, when last measured, was 3.0%, which was the September reading. And the only reason it wasn’t higher was the outlier plunge in Owners Equivalent of Rent (OER), the largest CPI component, weighing 26% in overall CPI, 33% in core CPI, and 44% in core services CPI (my analysis is here). Something went awry, but CPI was cobbled together by hastily recalled staff during the shutdown, and that was that.Cutting interest rates in this inflationary environment can spook the bond market. It’s already worried about the onslaught of new supply of Treasury securities to fund the ballooning government deficits. And it fears a lackadaisical Fed when inflation is out of the bottle.Inflation destroys the purchasing power of long-term bonds; and the yield has to be high enough to compensate investors for this destruction of purchasing power, and for the other risks investors are taking.Inflation is not to be trifled with. It’s not just the bond market where yields can blow out; it’s consumers and voters. They hate inflation, and they hate high prices, and they express their feelings about inflation at the polls.
Senators brace for another possible shutdown in January - Senators in both parties are bracing for another government shutdown next year after Republicans blocked a proposal to extend expiring health insurance subsidies, the issue that triggered the 43-day closure that consumed much of the fall calendar. Liberal Democrats in the Senate are fuming that Republicans blocked a proposal to extend the subsidies, which are due to expire in January, through 2028. A group of eight Democrats, mostly centrists, voted last month to reopen the government in hopes that Republicans might agree to a bipartisan compromise to prevent health insurance premiums for plans on the ObamaCare marketplace from soaring by double digits. Instead, the bipartisan talks to extend the subsidies foundered, setting the stage for a massive spike in health care premiums next year. This has given new momentum to liberals to argue Democrats should use the upcoming Jan. 30 government funding deadline as leverage — just as they did in September and October — to force Republicans to make major concessions on federal health care spending. After Republicans defeated a Democratic bill to extend the subsidies for three years, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said the next government funding deadline is a leverage point. “The fight is not over,” she said. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), another prominent progressive voice in the Senate Democratic Caucus, called the Republican vote against extending the enhanced subsidies “an outrage.” Asked if Democrats should threaten another shutdown to pressure Republicans to agree to extend the subsidies, Sanders said he didn’t want to speculate but declared the expiration of tax credits “is going to result in a lot of pain for a lot of people.” Congress’s failure to extend the enhanced subsidies means an estimated 4.8 million Americans will lose health care coverage in 2026 and more than 20 million Americans will see their health care costs rise dramatically. Insurance companies are projected to charge people who buy their insurance through the Affordable Care Act marketplace 26 percent more if the enhanced subsidies expire in January. A third member of the Senate Democratic Caucus who requested anonymity to speak candidly about the political situation said another government shutdown is possible if Republicans don’t agree to pass a package of regular spending bills known as the minibus by the end of next month. The Democratic senators said Democrats would have far less leverage if the Senate appropriations package, which covers the departments of Defense, Health and Human Services, Labor, Commerce, Justice and Interior, among other agencies, passes next month. If President Trump signs that package into law, it would result in approximately 85 percent of the federal government being funded through September 2026, leaving Democrats much less leverage to threaten a shutdown to get Republicans to agree to an extension of the enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits — the issue that triggered the shutdown in October.
Senate nears 'minibus' deal to largely fund government, thwarting shutdown threat -- Senate leaders are nearing a deal to pass a package of five appropriations bills that would fund most of the federal government through fiscal 2026, which has the potential to largely take the threat of a government shutdown off the table early next year. Senators were waiting Thursday afternoon for a deal to set up votes on a series of amendments to the so-called minibus, which would fund the departments of Defense, Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, Commerce, Justice, Interior, Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development. Senators on the Appropriations Committee estimate that if the five-bill package becomes law, it would fund roughly 85 percent to 90 percent of the federal government and eliminate the threat of a government shutdown in February. The House would also have to agree to the package, as would President Trump. Much of the government will shut down Feb. 1 without a new funding bill. Trump last month signed a separate deal that funded military construction, veterans’ affairs, the Department of Agriculture and the legislative branch through Sept. 30, 2026. That bill would also cover the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, a major issue in the fall shutdown. If the House approves the Senate minibus, something that is by no means assured, it would mean that only the departments of Homeland Security, State, foreign operations energy and water projects, and financial services would face a funding deadline of Jan. 30. A senator involved in negotiations over votes on amendments to the bill said Republicans had settled on a list of eight amendments they want considered before the package comes to a final vote. The source said that as many as five of those GOP amendments could be settled by voice votes. A group of Democratic and Republican senators gathered on the Senate floor Wednesday evening to negotiate a pathway to passing the package before senators adjourn for the year on Thursday. Democrats were demanding votes on an unwieldy list of 40 amendments Wednesday night. By Thursday afternoon, Democrats had whittled their list of amendments down to 15, according to a Senate source familiar with the state of play. Republicans still need to agree to scheduling votes on the Democratic priorities, some of which are likely to be controversial. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) has pushed an amendment to strip away senators’ rights to sue the Department of Justice for targeting them in an investigation of attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, according to a Senate aide familiar with the behind-the-scenes back-and-forth. The legislation to allow a group of eight GOP senators to sue the Justice Department was included in bill that reopened the federal government last month after a 43-day shutdown. That shutdown was largely over the issue of expiring enhanced subsidies under the Affordable Care Act. Democrats had demanded that those subsidies, set to expire at the end of the year, be extended. The shutdown ended after a group of Democratic senators agreed to reopen the government without an extension of those subsidies. On Wednesday, four Republicans in the House joined a Democratic discharge petition to force a vote in the chamber on legislation to extend those subsidies for three years. The Republicans signed the discharge petition after leaders in their own party refused to allow votes on amendments that had backed an extension of the subsidies. On Wednesday, four Republicans in the House joined a Democratic discharge petition to force a vote in the chamber on legislation to extend those subsidies for three years. The Republicans signed the discharge petition after leaders in their own party refused to allow votes on amendments that had backed an extension of the subsidies.In the Senate, lawmakers last week voted down rival efforts from Democrats and Republicans on health care. Four GOP senators joined a Democratic bill to extend the health care subsidies. The House bill to extend those subsidies for three years now appears to have the support to clear the House in January. But it is uncertain whether it would have the votes to pass the Senate.
Trump move to dismantle climate agency blows up Senate funding deal - A potential deal to fund large swaths of the federal government, including the departments of Defense and Health and Human Services, collapsed Thursday night after Colorado senators demanded that Congress stop President Trump’s efforts to dismantle a key climate agency. A Democratic senator involved in the negotiations over passing a five-bill package of appropriations bills before Christmas said Trump’s attempt to break up a premier weather and climate center based in Boulder, Colo., was like a “stick of dynamite” that exploded any chance of a bipartisan breakthrough on spending. Colorado Sens. Michael Bennet (D) and John Hickenlooper (D) objected to moving forward with the so-called minibus spending package that, if enacted into law, would result in 85 percent to 90 percent of the federal government being funding through September 2026. “We need to fix this problem,” Bennet said, explaining his opposition to moving forward with the spending package. “We’ll have to work together. We’ll have to work together to figure out how to do this.” “We have to find a way together to fix this problem,” he added. Bennet said his Republican colleagues know how critical the center is to providing scientific analysis of weather patterns. “Everybody on that floor knows what an excellent job [it] does,” he said, pointing to the Senate floor. Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) made a herculean effort to get the spending package passed before Christmas, and it looked earlier in the day as the Senate might be on track to clinching a deal after conservative GOP senators dropped their objections to the bill. But Bennet and Hickenlooper took the lead in bringing the package to a dead halt by objecting to an agreement to set up date and amendment votes on the Senate floor. They were infuriated bythe Trump administration’s announcement Wednesday that it plans to dismantle the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Colorado, a leading research institution specializing in climate science. “We just want to take the money that’s in the budget for it, we want to make sure that money is used to keep it open [and] we don’t cancel it,” Hickenlooper said. Hickenlooper said the center’s grant funding is at risk of being cut by the National Science Foundation (NSF). “What the National Science Foundation is saying is ‘We’re cutting your budget, dramatically. We’re going to cut it by 30 or 40 percent.’ Enough so you’re threatening the viability of the research facility,” he said.
US poised to forge more mineral deals under NDAA, official says - The Trump administration could do a larger number of mining deals across the globe if a long-awaited defense bill passes next week, a senior federal official said Monday. Work could expand to countries like Chile and Canada with passage of the fiscal 2026 National Defense Authorization Act, which would reauthorize the U.S. International Development Finance Corp., or DFC, through 2031 and allow it to work in a larger array of countries, said Tom Haslett, the agency’s director of critical minerals and energy policy. The Senate is expected to pass the NDAA before the end of the week. From there, it would head to President Donald Trump’s desk. “I hope it means we get a lot busier,” Haslett said at a Center for Strategic and International Studies’ conference in Washington.
Senate advances National Defense Authorization Act - The Senate on Monday cleared a key procedural hurdle as it looks to pass the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) before lawmakers leave town for the holidays at the end of the week. Senators voted 76-20 to put the annual defense policy bill a step closer to final passage, which will still take several more days. The chamber previously voted to move ahead on the package on Thursday following final passage in the House. The yearly bipartisan package checks in at $900 billion — $8 billion more than the total requested by President Trump. It includes a pay bump for service members, a restriction on U.S. investment in China and military aid to Ukraine, among other things. The push to pass it in the Senate is expected to be relatively easy compared with the number of snags it hit in the House. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) last week was forced to placate several conservatives in his conference in order to win their support for a procedural vote. Final passage went smoothly, though, with the lower chamber voting 312-112 to send it across the Capitol. That doesn’t mean this week won’t have bumps in the road. Chief among them is an effort by lawmakers to include updated language concerning the restriction of military aircraft travel to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. According to a provision included in the NDAA, military training aircraft are required to signal their location to air traffic controllers, but that requirement could be waived by the secretary of Transportation and the head of an individual military branch. Senate Commerce Committee Chair Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), the panel’s ranking member, filed an amendment to beef up that language. The effort comes almost a year after a domestic flight that was landing collided with an Army helicopter, leaving 67 people dead.
Democrats join Republicans to grant Trump $1 trillion in military spending for 2026 - The bill authorizes $26 billion for shipbuilding, focused on expanding the nuclear submarine fleet. A single Columbia-class submarine costs approximately $9 billion; Virginia-class attack submarines cost over $3 billion each. The NDAA also funds expansion of private nuclear shipyard capacity, signaling a long-term commitment to naval buildup. Aircraft procurement receives over $38 billion. The bill funds 69 F-35 stealth fighters at a cost of roughly $123 million per plane, totaling $8.5 billion. Billions more go toward next-generation sixth-generation fighters, the B-21 Raider strategic bomber and aerial refueling tankers to project US power globally. A New York Times editorial published this week declared that the US must not be “overmatched” by adversaries and supported a major expansion of military capabilities. Citing a classified Pentagon assessment called the “Overmatch brief,” the Times reported that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said last November that in war games against China, “we lose every time.”
Trump Signs Bill That Gives Him Over $1 Trillion Military Budget - President Trump on Thursday signed the massive $901 billion 2026 National Defense Authorization Act into law, which will be combined with a supplemental spending bill he signed earlier this year to give him a more than $1 trillion military budget. While the true cost of US military and national security spending has exceeded $1 trillion for many years, this marks the first time the official military budget is over $1 trillion, though it was done in an unconventional way by combining the NDAA with a $156 billion supplemental that was part of the so-called “Big Beautiful Bill.” The NDAA passed through the Senate on Wednesday in a vote of 77-20, with just two Republicans, Senators Rand Paul (KY) and Mike Lee (UT), and 18 Democrats voting against it. Last week, the House approved the bill in a vote of 312-112. Notable amendments include a provision directing the Selective Service System (SSS) to register all potential draftees in the US automatically. According to Edward Hasbrouk, an expert on the Selective Service, it marks the biggest change to the system since 1980. The NDAA also includes a new provision to ensure Israel is not impacted by global arms restrictions that have been imposed in response to its genocidal war in Gaza. The amendment requires a review of the arms restrictions and says the US will take steps to “mitigate” any “gaps” it may find. The NDAA formally lifts the Caesar Act sanctions that were imposed on Syria in 2020 and weredesigned to prevent the country’s reconstruction until the ousting of former President Bashar al-Assad, which happened last year, when Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an offshoot of al-Qaeda, took power in Damascus. The spending bill includes at least two provisions that go against President Trump’s agenda, including amendments to block troop drawdowns from Europe and South Korea, and one that requires the Pentagon to release to Congress videos of its bombings of alleged drug boats in Latin America.If the Pentagon doesn’t hand over the videos, the amendment would withhold a quarter of the travel budget for US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, who has been under increasing scrutiny due to the September 2 bombing that involved multiple strikes to kill survivors.
US, Ukraine agree on ’90 percent’ of peace terms, punt on territory - The United States, Ukraine and major European countries have reached consensus on 90 percent of terms for a deal to end Ukraine’s war with Russia, two senior U.S. officials said Monday, but they added questions of territorial control have yet to be resolved. The comments came after 2 1/2 days of intensive discussions between President Trump’s special envoy for peace missions, Steve Witkoff; the president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner; Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and top European officials in Berlin. Zelensky, in a post on the social platform X, described the negotiations as a “first draft” but emphasized “the military part looks quite solid.” The Ukrainian president said the two sides “worked very well together” but cautioned against “destructive” elements to be removed. “This matters, because dignity matters,” he said. A meeting in Miami is scheduled for the weekend to include “working groups, military people, looking at maps,” a senior official told reporters in a phone briefing. It’s unclear when another meeting with Russia might take place. “We believe that we probably solve for, I don’t know, it could be 90 percent, literally 90 percent of the issues between Ukraine and Russia,” the senior official said on the call. “But there’s some more things that have to be worked out.” Witkoff and Kushner last met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Dec. 2 for about five hours. Putin complained in an interview with India Today that the meeting was too long and that he grew “weary.” He ultimately rejected parts of the 20-point proposal. The two U.S. officials said that 20-point plan served as the basis for discussions in Berlin. It had not been released or leaked, unlike a 28-point plan that largely favored Russia’s demands. The officials said consensus was reached on security guarantees “like” NATO’s Article 5 mutual defense pact, but they would not detail what type of U.S. commitments that would entail. The Senate is required to ratify any treaties between the U.S. and another country. “It would have to go before the Senate, and President Trump is willing to do that,” the second senior U.S. official said. The official said Ukrainians and Europeans were surprised the administration believes it can get Russia to sign off on Article 5-like security guarantees for Ukraine, given Moscow’s opposition to Ukraine joining NATO. The official described the security guarantees as the “platinum standard” but would not provide details, other than saying no U.S. troops would be deployed in Ukraine. They also said the Ukrainians and Europeans were surprised by Trump’s commitments given the administration’s turn away from Europe. European leaders issued a joint statement Monday offering details that include Ukraine having a peacetime army at 800,000 people and a European “multinational force” — supported by the U.S. — that will operate in Ukraine to help regenerate the country’s armed forces and provide air and sea defense. The U.S. will also lead a ceasefire monitoring and verification mechanism to provide early warning and a deconfliction mechanism.
US officials say Washington has agreed to give Ukraine security guarantees in peace talks (AP) — The U.S. has agreed to provide unspecified security guarantees to Ukraine as part of a peace deal to end Russia’s nearly four-year war, and more talks are likely this weekend, U.S. officials said Monday following the latest discussions with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Berlin. The officials said talks with President Donald Trump’s envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, led to narrowing differences on security guarantees that Kyiv said must be provided, as well as on Moscow’s demand that Ukraine concede land in the Donbas region in the country’s east. Trump dialed into a dinner Monday evening with negotiators and European leaders, and more talks are expected this weekend in Miami or elsewhere in the United States, according to the U.S. officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly by the White House. “I think we’re closer now than we have been, ever,” Trump told reporters at an unrelated White House event. He added, “We’re having tremendous support from European leaders. They want to get it ended, also.” The U.S. officials said the offer of security guarantees won’t be on the table “forever.” They said the Trump administration plans to put forward the agreement on guarantees for Senate approval, although they didn’t specify whether it would be ratified like a treaty, which needs the chamber’s two-thirds approval. KXAN: property tax relief plan at odds In a statement, European leaders in Berlin said they and the U.S. committed to work together to provide “robust security guarantees,” including a European-led ”multinational force Ukraine” supported by the U.S. They said the force’s work would include “operating inside Ukraine” as well as assisting in rebuilding Ukraine’s forces, securing its skies and supporting safer seas. They said Ukrainian forces should remain at a peacetime level of 800,000. Sign up for the Morning Report The latest in politics and policy. Direct to your inbox. Email address By signing up, I agree to the Terms of Use, have reviewed the Privacy Policy, and to receive personalized offers and communications via email, on-site notifications, and targeted advertising using my email address from The Hill, Nexstar Media Inc., and its affiliates Witkoff and Kushner were accompanied by U.S. Air Force Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, who heads NATO’s military operations and the U.S. European Command, as talks honed in on the particulars of what the U.S. officials described as an “Article 5-like” security agreement. Article Five in the NATO treaty is the collective defense clause stating that an attack on one member is an attack on all. The U.S. side presented the Ukrainians a document that spelled out in greater specificity aspects of the proposed U.S. security guarantees — something that Ukrainian officials said was missing from earlier iterations of the U.S. peace proposal, according to U.S. officials. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called it a “truly far-reaching, substantial agreement that we did not have before, namely that both Europe and the U.S. are jointly prepared to do this.” Questions over Ukraine’s postwar security and the fate of occupied territories have been the main obstacles in talks. Zelenskyy has emphasized that any Western security assurances would need to be legally binding and supported by the U.S. Congress. Meanwhile, Russia has said it will not accept any troops from NATO countries being based on Ukrainian soil. Zelenskyy on Monday called the talks “substantial” and noted that differences remain on the issue of territory. Zelenskyy has expressed readiness to drop Ukraine’s bid to join NATO if the U.S. and other Western nations give Kyiv security guarantees similar to those offered to NATO members. But Ukraine’s preference remains NATO membership as the best security guarantee to prevent further Russian aggression. Ukraine has continued to reject the U.S. push for ceding territory to Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin wants Ukraine to withdraw its forces from the part of the Donetsk region still under its control as a key condition for peace. The U.S. officials on Monday said there is consensus on about 90% of the U.S.-authored peace plan, and that Russia has indicated it is open to Ukraine joining the European Union, something it previously said it did not object to. The Russian president has cast Ukraine’s bid to join NATO, however, as a major threat to Moscow’s security and a reason for launching the full-scale invasion in February 2022. The Kremlin has demanded that Ukraine renounce the bid for alliance membership as part of any prospective peace settlement. Asked whether the negotiations could be over by Christmas, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said trying to predict a potential time frame for a peace deal was a “thankless task.” “I can only speak for the Russian side, for President Putin,” Peskov said. “He is open to peace, to a serious peace and serious decisions. He is absolutely not open to any tricks aimed at stalling for time.” Putin has denied plans to attack any European allies. Russia fired 153 drones of various types at Ukraine overnight Sunday into Monday, according to Ukraine’s Air Force, which said 133 drones were neutralized, while 17 more hit their targets. In Russia, the Defense Ministry on Monday said forces destroyed 130 Ukrainian drones overnight. An additional 16 drones were destroyed between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. local time. Eighteen drones were shot down over Moscow itself, the defense ministry said. Flights were temporarily halted at the city’s Domodedovo and Zhukovsky airports as part of safety measures, officials said. Damage details and casualty figures were not immediately available.US Offers Ukraine NATO-Style Security Guarantee, Making Peace Deal With Russia Unlikely - US officials said on Monday that the US, Ukraine, and Europe have agreed on a plan to provide Ukraine with NATO-style security guarantees as part of a potential peace deal with Russia, an idea Moscow is unlikely to accept. “The basis of that agreement is basically to have really, really strong guarantees, Article 5-like,” a senior US official told reporters after US, Ukrainian, and European officials held two days of talks in Berlin, according to POLITICO. Article 5 of the NATO Treaty outlines the mutual defense commitment among NATO allies, stating that an armed attack against one member “shall be considered an attack against them all.” Article 5 doesn’t explicitly mandate sending troops to defend a member, but says each ally will take action it “deems necessary, including the use of armed force.”US officials didn’t detail exactly what the security guarantee would entail beyond saying it would be similar to Article 5, but German Chancellor Friedrich Merz suggested the US was offering a lot. “The legal and material security guarantees that the US has put on the table here in Berlin are remarkable,” he said. Since one of Russia’s primary motives for invading Ukraine was the country’s potential future NATO membership, something recently acknowledged by a former Biden administration official, there’s little chance Moscow would agree to a deal that gives Ukraine the benefits of joining NATO without formally entering the alliance. US officials also acknowledged after the talks that the US and Ukraine are still far apart on the issue of territory. The original US proposal for a peace deal that was leaked to the media involved Ukraine ceding what territory it still controls in the Donbas, a key Russian demand, but Ukrainian officials continue to reject the idea. “For now, we have different positions, to be honest,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday. “But I think my colleagues have heard my personal position.”
Polish PM Says US Has Pledged To Take Military Action Against Russia If It Violates Future Ukraine Ceasefire - Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Tuesday that during talks with Ukraine on a potential peace deal, US officials vowed that the US would be willing to take military action against Russia if it violates a future ceasefire, a commitment that would risk nuclear war.“For the first time I heard from the mouths of American negotiators that America will be involved in security guarantees for Ukraine in such a way that the Russians would have no doubt that (in the event of a ceasefire violation) the American response will be military if the Russians attacked Ukraine again,” Tusk said as he was leaving Germany, according to the Anadolu Agency.Tusk’s comments came after US, European, and Ukrainian officials held talks in Berlin, and US officials said that Washington was offering Ukraine a “NATO Article 5-style security guarantee,” referring to the part of the alliance’s treaty that declares an attack on one member is an “attack against them all.”Russia would almost certainly reject such an arrangement, and the US’s willingness to provide such a guarantee makes a peace deal very unlikely. “What is a breakthrough – by no means a guarantee of success – is the fact that perhaps for the first time it was so clearly visible that Americans, Europeans, and Ukraine are on the same side,” Tusk said. Following the talks in Berlin, European leaders released a joint statement that said they agreed on security guarantees for Ukraine that would involve the deployment of a European-led “multi-national force” to Ukrainian territory, another red line for Russia. The statement said that the force would be “supported by the US,” and President Trump has previously said he’s open to providing air support for such a force.Moscow has repeatedly stated that it would never accept the deployment of a force consisting of troops from NATO countries in Ukraine, which it reiterated on Tuesday. “We definitely will not at any time subscribe to, agree to, or even be content with, any presence of NATO troops on Ukrainian territory,” said Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov.The European statement also said the guarantees would include a “legally binding commitment, subject to national procedures, to take measures to restore peace and security in the case of a future armed attack. These measures may include armed force, intelligence and logistical assistance, economic and diplomatic actions.”Despite the significant offer from the US regarding security guarantees, Ukraine is still rejecting the idea of ceding what territory it still controls in the Donbas, a key Russian demand.
Modi greets Putin with pomp and ceremony as Trump demands New Delhi downgrade its ties with Russia -- India rolled out the red carpet for Russian President Vladimir Putin when he visited New Delhi earlier this month. This began with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi breaking with protocol to personally greet Putin as he stepped off the plane at the Palam Air Base, and continued throughout the two-day visit, which concluded with the signing of a slate of new agreements aimed at boosting trade, investment, labour mobility, defence and other ties. India’s demonstrative display of the “warmth” and “strength” of its decades-long strategic partnership with Russia was intended as a message to Washington that New Delhi will not allow the US to define its relationship with Moscow. The Modi government, building on the Indo-US Global Strategic Partnership its Congress Party predecessor negotiated, has dramatically expanded India’s military-security ties with Washington during its eleven years in office, transforming India into a veritable frontline state in US imperialism’s strategic confrontation with China. Yet to the dismay of Modi, his BJP government and the whole Indian ruling class, US President Donald Trump has repeatedly struck at India, demanding that it remove barriers to US exports and investment, cease Russian oil imports and otherwise downgrade its ties with Moscow. Since late August, most Indian exports to the US have been subject to 50 percent tariffs. This includes an India-specific 25 percent punitive tariff that Washington says will remain in place until India stops importing Russian oil. At 50 percent, India’s reciprocal tariff is higher than that the US has imposed on China, also a large importer of Russian oil, or any other country—and in the case of India’s arch-rival Pakistan (19 percent), far higher. Yet for all the pomp and ceremony and affirmations by both Modi and Putin of the strength of Indo-Russian ties, New Delhi and Moscow did not announce any of the rumoured new major military-defence deals. From the standpoint of the BJP government and the Indian ruling class, Putin’s visit for the 23rd India-Russia Annual summit was part of a precarious balancing act. India has long tried to straddle the growing geopolitical divide between Russia and the US and its NATO partners. But this has become ever more difficult, especially since the outbreak of the US-NATO-instigated Ukraine war. Trump is a further complicating factor. In a desperate bid to arrest the rapid erosion of US imperialism’s economic and geopolitical power, he is lashing out against avowed US strategic enemies and ostensible allies alike. Putin’s December 4-5 visit was his first to India since the outbreak of the Ukraine war. Eager to show that the western powers have failed to isolate Russia, Putin, like his Indian hosts, took every opportunity to play up the strength of Russo-Indian ties. In an India Today interview, Putin said he felt “very happy” to meet “my friend” Modi and praised their two countries’ cooperation in ship and aircraft manufacturing, nuclear energy, and space exploration. He also hit out at the US attempt to bully India to cease its imports of discounted Russian oil, noting, as Indian government officials repeatedly have, that the US and Europe continue to import Russian energy, including uranium and liquefied natural gas. “If the US has the right to buy our fuel,” said Putin,” why shouldn’t India have the same privilege?” Putin was accompanied by a high-level delegation, including Defense Minister Andrey Belousov, First Deputy Prime Minister and Industry Minister Denis Manturov, Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina and prominent business leaders.
Former House intelligence chair: Trump administration has not communicated with Congress on Venezuela goals -- Rep. Mike Turner (R-Ohio), the former chair of the House Intelligence Committee, said Sunday that the Trump administration has not communicated its goals regarding Venezuela to Congress. “The president has not been clear, and he has not certainly been communicating with Congress,” Turner told host Martha Raddatz on ABC News’s “This Week.” Turner added that while the administration should explain its escalatory tactics toward the South American country to the legislative branch, it has not yet done so because “they don’t want to show their hands” to Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. The U.S. has ramped up tensions with the government of Maduro, whom administration officials have dubbed an “illegitimate leader,” in recent months. The Pentagon has built up a significant presence in the U.S. Southern Command region, while President Trump has authorized at least 22 strikes on alleged drug-trafficking boats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific since early September, killing at least 87 people. On Wednesday, the U.S. also seized an oil tanker en route to Cuba off the coast of Venezuela. The vessel was sanctioned by the U.S. government in 2022 and was believed to be carrying more than 1 million barrels. Trump pointed to various reasons for the moves on Thursday, highlighting concerns over migration from Venezuela to the U.S. Earlier Sunday, Democratic Sen. Mark Warner (Va.), a member of the “Gang of Eight” — comprising the House and Senate leaders of both parties and the top GOP and Democratic members of the Intelligence committees — told ABC News he had not been briefed on the administration’s intentions with regard to Venezuela. Turner, who chaired the Intelligence Committee from 2023 until January and was its ranking member for just more than a year before that, said the seizure of the tanker shows the administration is increasing its “economic pressure” on Maduro. While Venezuelan oil exports have declined in recent years, the Latin American nation was still the 10th-largest producer of crude oil among OPEC countries as of September 2023, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
US Blows Up Three More Boats in the Eastern Pacific - US Southern Command announced on Monday night that its forces bombed three more alleged drug-running boats in the Eastern Pacific Ocean as the Trump administration continues the extra-judicial executions at sea amid increasing scrutiny of the bombing campaign. SOUTHCOM claimed, without providing any evidence, that the boats were engaged in “narco-trafficking.” It said that the three strikes killed a total of eight “narco-terrorists,” a term the Trump administration uses to justify the executions for an alleged crime that doesn’t receive the death penalty in the US.. Video of the strikes released by SOUTHCOM. According to numbers released by the Trump administration, the attack brings the total number of people killed in the bombing campaign to 95. So far, 25 strikes have been launched, and 26 boats have been destroyed, including 11 in the Caribbean near Venezuela, where the strikes started, and 15 in the Eastern Pacific. The US War Department has never provided any evidence to back up its claims about what the boats were allegedly carrying and has acknowledged that it doesn’t know the identities of all of the people it has been killing. While much of the scrutiny is focused on the September 2 attack that involved multiple strikes to kill survivors, the entire bombing campaign is clearly illegal under US and international law.“While the September 2 strike seems uniquely depraved, every single strike taken against these boats by DoD is a summary execution of criminal suspects, people who even if tried in court would never get the death penalty,” Sarah Harrison, who previously served as associate general counsel at the Pentagon’s Office of General Counsel, International Affairs, told The Intercept earlier this month.“Every single strike exposes those in the chain of command to the risk of criminal liability under murder statutes and international law prohibiting extrajudicial killings,” Harrison added.
US military blows up 3 alleged drug boats in eastern Pacific, killing 8 ‘narco-terrorists’ The U.S. military continued its campaign against alleged drug-trafficking boats, blowing up three vessels in the eastern Pacific on Monday and killing eight “narcoterrorists” in total. All three vessels were operated by designated terrorist organizations and were targeted in international waters. It is unclear which terrorist groups the U.S. military was referring to. Three people were killed in the first vessel, two in the second attack and three in the third blow, the U.S. Southern Command (Southcom) announced in a post Monday night. “Intelligence confirmed that the vessels were transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and were engaged in narco-trafficking,” Southcom said. The military attached a 47-second video of the strikes. The U.S. military has conducted a minimum of 25 strikes against purported drug-smuggling boats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, killing at least 95 narco-terrorists” since early September when the military campaign kicked off. The Monday operations are the latest action by the military in the Southcom area against alleged drug-smuggling boats since early December, when U.S. forces took out a purported drug-smuggling vessel in the eastern Pacific, killing four “narco-terrorists.” The boat strikes have prompted pushback from Democrats and some law-of-war experts who have argued the strikes are illegal under international law. Lawmakers have scrutinized the Sept. 2 attack against a purported drug-smuggling boat in the Caribbean, where the U.S. military killed two survivors in a so-called double-tap strike. The first two strikes killed 11 people on board, while the third and fourth strikes sank the vessel. The Trump administration has briefed lawmakers on the ongoing, lethal operations and is set to continue to do so on Tuesday when all senators are set to receive a classified briefing on the ongoing strikes by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Chair of Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Dan Caine, a Democratic congressional aide, told The Hill on Monday.
Trump says US will start ground attacks “soon” as US surges military assets near Venezuela - US President Donald Trump said Friday that the United States would begin ground attacks in the Caribbean Basin “pretty soon,” raising the prospect of a US aerial bombardment of Venezuela. “We knocked out 96% of the drugs coming in by water, and now we’re starting by land...” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, adding, “It’s going to be starting on land pretty soon.” Trump’s threat Friday followed his declaration earlier in the week that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s “days are numbered.” When asked whether he would send ground troops into Venezuela, he refused to rule it out. The Wall Street Journal editorial board characterized Trump’s actions as a pledge to carry out regime change, writing that Trump is now “obliged to follow through” on his commitment to oust Maduro. The administration’s threats are accompanied by an unprecedented buildup of military assets in the Caribbean. According to reports this week by The War Zone and Breaking Defense, the Pentagon is rapidly deploying advanced combat aircraft to former US bases in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic in preparation for airstrikes on Venezuelan territory. F-35A stealth fighters from the Vermont Air National Guard’s 158th Fighter Wing have received federal mobilization orders to deploy to the Caribbean, The War Zone reported Thursday. The deployment of F-35As, which can carry 2,000-pound guided bombs and strike targets deep inside Venezuelan airspace, represents a significant escalation of the US military posture in the region. The War Zone noted that “the F-35A deployment is a major signal of what type of operations could be on the horizon.” Six EA-18G Growler electronic warfare jets arrived at the former Roosevelt Roads naval base in Puerto Rico on December 10. According to Breaking Defense, the Growlers—which are designed to jam enemy radars and communications and suppress air defenses—are “possibly the most glaring sign that the U.S. is preparing for airstrikes as any over the last few months.” HC-130J Combat King II combat search and rescue (CSAR) planes and HH-60W Jolly Green helicopters have also arrived at Roosevelt Roads. The War Zone reported that “the deployment of dedicated CSAR aircraft to the region is a sign that the Trump administration could be about to drastically increase its pressure on Maduro and go after the cartels inland with strikes. The aircraft are needed for rapid rescues of any aircrews that are lost during military operations, specifically over contested territory.” Combined with the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier strike group, more than 15,000 forward-deployed troops and scores of aircraft already in the region, the military buildup represents the largest American force in the Caribbean since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. The US media is actively promoting regime change in Venezuela. In a fawning interview on CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday, MarÃa Corina Machado—the Venezuelan opposition figure who recently fled the country under US military protection to collect a Nobel Peace Prize in Norway—openly called for the overthrow of the Maduro government and praised Trump’s military build-up. “I absolutely support President Trump’s strategy,” Machado declared. “We, the Venezuelan people, are very grateful to him and to his administration, because I believe he is a champion of freedom in this hemisphere.” When asked whether she would welcome US military action in Venezuela, Machado replied: “I will welcome more and more pressure so that Maduro understands that he has to go, that his time is over.” Machado dedicated her Nobel Peace Prize to Trump and stated that she believes “the regime has its days numbered.” She has previously outlined a $1.7 trillion privatization plan for Venezuela’s economy.
Sen. Chris Murphy after boat strike briefing: 'No fentanyl,' 'no legal justification' -- Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) said Tuesday’s classified briefing with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirms the Trump administration has no legal or national security justification for the strikes on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. A member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Murphy said in a video on the social platform X that the two Cabinet officials admitted to lawmakers that the accused drug-trafficking vessels are believed to be smuggling cocaine, not fentanyl. He also said Rubio and Hegseth said intelligence suggested the boats were going to Europe, not the U.S., contradicting the administration’s public justification for the strikes. “That is a massive waste of national security resources and of your taxpayer dollars,” the Connecticut Democrat added. Rubio and Hegseth briefed House and Senate lawmakers amid heightened scrutiny of the administration’s boat strikes. The military conducted strikes against three vessels in the eastern Pacific on Monday, killing eight alleged “narcoterrorists.” The U.S. has killed at least 95 people via more than 20 strikes since early September. Murphy said Tuesday that the two officials said President Trump has the authority to green-light such strikes due to the State Department’s designation of Cartel de los Soles, an alleged Venezuelan drug trafficking network, as a terrorist organization. But the Connecticut senator noted such a move only gives the president the capability to sanction members of the group, not to authorize strikes against them. “Only Congress, only the American public, can authorize war. And there is just no question that these are acts of war,” Murphy added.
GOP senators break with Pete Hegseth over video of follow-up missile strike --Republican senators are openly questioning Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s decision not to release the full video of a Sept. 2 follow-up strike on two survivors of an initial military strike against a Venezuelan boat, second-guessing a key decision in the Trump administration’s operations in the Caribbean Sea. The battle between senators and the administration comes at a time when GOP lawmakers find themselves on the defensive over President Trump’s increasingly aggressive actions against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. “My bias would be to make it available,” Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), a senior member of the Intelligence Committee, said of the video of the missile strike against two people who survived an initial attack on a Venezuelan boat in September. “That would be the best thing to do,” he added. He said making the video available would quiet Democratic accusations that Hegseth is trying to hide an atrocity on the high seas. Cornyn said keeping the video secret is “how conspiracy theories get spun up,” but he also acknowledged “it’s his call,” referring to Hegseth. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said the video should be made widely available to members of Congress, something Hegseth has so far refused to do. “I think the video should be given to everybody in Congress,” Graham told reporters when asked about whether the Department of Defense should share the video of the follow-up missile strike. “I don’t think most Americans give a damn about the video. I’d like all of us to see it,” Graham added. Hegseth told reporters after the briefing Tuesday the video was too sensitive to be shared with the public. “In keeping with long-standing Department of War policy, Department of Defense policy, of course we’re not going to release a top-secret, full, unedited video of that to the general public,” Hegseth told reporters.
White House Chief of Staff Suggests Regime Change in Venezuela Is Real Goal of Boat Strikes - White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles has suggested that the goal of the US bombing campaign against alleged drug boats in the waters of Latin America is the ouster of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, according to a two-part report published by Vanity Fair on Tuesday.Wiles discussed President Trump’s Venezuela strategy in an interview with Vanity Fair reporter Chris Whipple on November 2, 2025. “He wants to keep on blowing boats up until Maduro cries uncle. And people way smarter than me on that say that he will,” she told him.While Trump and his top officials have been clear about their desire for regime change in Venezuela, they have framed the bombing campaign against boats as an effort to stop drug shipments to the US. Wiles’s comments suggest that the campaign’s real purpose, at least at the start, is to pressure Maduro. The US began the bombing campaign by targeting boats in the Caribbean near Venezuela. President Trump claimed the vessels were carrying fentanyl, but the synthetic opioid isn’t produced in Venezuela and doesn’t transit through the country on its way to the US. Contrary to Trump’s comments, Pentagon officials told Congress that the boats were allegedly carrying cocaine, and US officials speaking to the media said the vessels weren’t capable of reaching the US. At the end of October, the Trump administration expanded its bombing campaign into the Eastern Pacific Ocean, where it has now launched the majority of strikes. In her series of interviews with Whipple, Wiles also defended the bombing campaign and the extra-judicial executions at sea.“The president believes in harsh penalties for drug dealers, as he’s said many, many times…. These are not fishing boats, as some would like to allege,” Wiles said. The administration has never provided evidence to back up its claims about what the boats are carrying and the Pentagon has acknowledged it doesn’t know the identities of all the people it has killed. Wiles also pointed to President Trump’s clearly false claim that for each boat the US blows up, 25,000 American lives are saved. “The president says 25,000. I don’t know what the number is. But he views those as lives saved, not people killed,” she said.Whipple pointed out that drug smuggling is not a death penalty offense in the US. “No, it’s not. I’m not saying that it is. I’m saying that this is a war on drugs. [It’s] unlike another one that we’ve seen. But that’s what this is,” she said. Wiles also claimed that the president didn’t need congressional authorization for the war despite the requirements of the Constitution, but said if the administration decided to go after “land” targets in Venezuela, it would need Congress. “If he were to authorize some activity on land, then it’s war, then [we’d need] Congress,” she said.
Trump Declares 'Total and Complete Blockade' of 'Sanctioned Oil Tankers' in and Out of Venezuela - President Trump on Tuesday issued a post on Truth Social where he declared a “total and complete blockade” of all “sanctioned oil tankers” going into or out of Venezuela, as he continues to take aggressive action against the country with the aim of ousting President Nicolas Maduro.“Venezuela is completely surrounded by the largest Armada ever assembled in the History of South America. It will only get bigger, and the shock to them will be like nothing they have ever seen before,” Trump said in his post, which came less than a week after US forces boarded and seized a tanker off the coast of Venezuela.The president said the blockade, an action that’s generally considered an act of war under international law, would continue until Venezuela “returns” its own oil and land to the US, underscoring that Venezuela’s vast oil reserves, the largest in the world, are a primary motive in Trump’s effort at regime change.“Until such time as they return to the United States of America all of the Oil, Land, and other Assets that they previously stole from us,” Trump wrote. The president appears to be referring to the nationalization of oil projects under Hugo Chavez, Maduro’s predecessor, who forced foreign-run projects to be converted into joint ventures in which Venezuela’s state oil company, PDVSA, held a majority stake.Some Western oil companies accepted Chavez’s terms, including the US firm Chevron, which continues to operate in Venezuela today, while others rejected the deal — most notably ExxonMobil — exited the country, and sued the Venezuelan government in international arbitration over the expropriations. But the oil remains the property of the Venezuelan state, and it’s unclear what Trump means when he claims Venezuelan “land” was stolen from the US. Trump also claimed that Maduro’s government was a “Foreign Terrorist Organization,” referring to his administration designating a non-existent cartel, called the “Cartel of the Suns,” as an FTO and claiming Maduro is its leader.The term Cartel of the Suns, or Cartel de los Soles, was first used in the early 1990s to describe Venezuelan generals with sun insignias on their uniforms who were involved in cocaine trafficking and were actually working with the CIA at the time.Today, the Cartel of the Suns is used to describe a network of Venezuelan officials allegedly involved in the drug trade, but it doesn’t exist as a structured organization. Regardless of the facts, the Trump administration appears ready to use the non-existent cartel as a pretext to launch a war.In his post, Trump also accused the Venezuelan government of sending “Illegal Aliens and Criminals” into the US during the Biden administration, while also acknowledging Maduro was cooperating with the US on deportation flights by saying they are “being returned to Venezuela at a rapid pace.”
Venezuela Defense Minister Vows To Defend the 'Homeland at Any Cost' After Trump's Blockade Threat - Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez has said Venezuela would defend the “homeland at any cost” in response to President Trump’s declaration that he’s imposing a blockade on all “sanctioned” tankers entering and leaving Venezuelan ports.“We say to the US government and its president that we are not intimidated by their crude and arrogant threats,” Padrino Lopez said on Wednesday. “The dignity of this homeland is neither negotiable nor cowed by absolutely anyone.”Padrino Lopen also told state TV that the blockade violates the UN Charter. “For this reason, these actions amount to an open act of aggression, and we are declaring this to the entire world,” he said.The New York Times reported that, in the wake of Trump’s threat, which he issued on Tuesday night, the Venezuelan Navy began escorting tankers leaving Venezuelan ports, meaning that if the US attempts to seize another tanker that has a naval escort, it could lead to a direct clash between the US and Venezuelan militaries.According to a report from The Associated Press, about 30 tankers under US sanctions were navigating near Venezuela as of Wednesday, and sanctioned vessels carried about 18% of Venezuela’s international shipments this year.Also on Wednesday, Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez issued a statement rejecting President Trump’s claims to Venezuela’s oil and land.“Venezuela, in the full exercise of the International Law that protects us, our Constitution, and the laws of the Republic, reaffirms its sovereignty over all its natural resources, as well as the right to free navigation and free trade in the Caribbean Sea and the oceans of the world,” she said.“His true intention, which has been denounced by Venezuela and the people of the United States in massive demonstrations, has always been to seize the country’s oil, land, and minerals through gigantic campaigns of lies and manipulation,” Rodriguez added.
Venezuela Orders Its Navy To Escort Oil Tankers After Trump's Blockade Threat -Venezuela has ordered its navy to escort its tankers carrying petroleum products from its ports after President Trump declared a “complete and total blockade” on “sanctioned” tankers going into and out of Venezuela, The New York Times reported on Wednesday.The report said that several ships sailed from Venezuela’s east coast with a naval escort on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. US forces already boarded and seized one tanker last week and intend to steal the cargo. If the US attempts to seize another tanker, it could now lead to a direct clash with the Venezuelan Navy.“Venezuela’s Navy is now escorting ships leaving Venezuela with oil-based exports,” Erik Sperling, Executive Director of Just Foreign Policy, wrote on X. “This may mean that US would have to engage in offensive military action against Venezuelan forces — a clear violation of the War Powers Act & Constitution — in order to enforce the naval blockade.”Venezuela’s state oil company, PDVSA, said exports were continuing despite Trump’s threat. “Export operations for crude and byproducts continue normally. Oil tankers linked to PDVSA operations continue to sail with full security,” PDVSA said. According to The Associated Press, some oil tankers under US sanctions have begun to divert from Venezuela. In response to Trump’s declaration and the continued US aggression against Venezuela, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro warned the US was seeking “to create another Libya, Afghanistan, or Iraq. “We do not want a new Vietnam. Venezuela has been protesting, fighting, and defeating this multidimensional aggression for 25 weeks,” Maduro said. “The defense of free trade and peace in the Caribbean and Venezuela is the defense of the entire world.”
Trinidad and Tobago To Open Its Airports to US Military as US Continues Buildup Near Venezuela - Trinidad and Tobago will allow the US military to use its airports in the coming weeks, according toa statement from the Caribbean island nation’s Foreign Ministry, as the US continues ramping up military activity near Venezuela.Trinidad and Tobago’s Foreign Ministry cited recent military cooperation with the US in its statement, including the recent installation of a radar system in the country.“In keeping with established bilateral cooperation, the Ministry has granted approvals for United States military aircraft to transit Trinidad and Tobago’s airports in the coming weeks. The United States has advised that these movements are logistical in nature, facilitating supply replenishment and routine personnel rotations,” the ministry said. US cooperation with Trinidad and Tobago has also involved intensified US military drills in the country, which lies just seven miles off the coast of Venezuela. Trinidadian Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar has strongly supported the US bombing campaign against alleged drug boats in the region, which has killed citizens of her country and has caused bodies to wash up on Trinidad’s coast.Amery Brown, an opposition senator and former foreign minister, strongly criticized the announcement about the US military using Trinidad and Tobago’s airports, saying the country has become “complicit facilitators of extrajudicial killings, cross-border tension and belligerence.” “There is nothing routine about this. It has nothing to do with the usual cooperation and friendly collaborations that we have enjoyed with the USA and all of our neighbors for decades,” Brown added, according to The Associated Press.
US Military Aircraft Nearly Collides With JetBlue Plane Near Venezuela - A US military aircraft nearly collided with a JetBlue plane near Venezuela after entering the passenger jet’s flight path without its transponder on, according to air traffic control recordings. The JetBlue plane took off from the Dutch Caribbean island of Curaçao, which is about 40 miles off the coast of Venezuela, a popular tourist destination, and was en route to John F. Kennedy Airport in New York.“We almost had a midair collision up here,” the JetBlue pilot said in the recording. “They passed directly in our flight path. … They don’t have their transponder turned on, it’s outrageous.”The pilot identified the aircraft as a US Air Force refueling tanker and told air traffic control that he had to stop the plane’s climb. “We just had traffic pass directly in front of us within 5 miles of us — maybe 2 or 3 miles — but it was an air-to-air refueler from the United States Air Force and he was at our altitude. We had to stop our climb,” the pilot said. Air traffic control responded by saying, “It has been outrageous with the unidentified aircraft within our air.”The US began military flights near Venezuela’s coast amid its bombing campaign against alleged drug-running boats in the region and its threats of launching a war with Venezuela to oust Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. One recent flight involved US Navy F/A-18 fighter jets flyingdeep into the Gulf of Venezuela. According to The New York Times, on Saturday, a day after the near-collision, air traffic controllers in Curaçao told three pilots to be aware of unidentified aircraft flying in the area, an apparent reference to planes not using transponders that were likely US military aircraft.
DOD Flirting With Aviation Disaster: 2nd Near-Collision With USAF Tanker Off Venezuela - Just one day after almost killing everyone aboard a passenger jet, the US Air Force narrowly dodged another near-disaster off the coast of Venezuela -- this time with a business jet. For many, the two frightening incidents intensify a perception that the administration's militarism against Venezuela is as reckless as it is unwarranted and unconstitutional. For those who missed our reporting on the first near-disaster, on Saturday, a JetBlue Airbus A320 heading to New York's JFK Airport from the Caribbean island of Curaçao was forced to take evasive action when the pilots suddenly found themselves staring down an approaching USAF refueling tanker at the same altitude and only two or three miles away. "It was an air-to-air refueler from the United States Air Force...We had to stop our climb and actually descend to avoid hitting them," the JetBlue pilot told air traffic controllers. "They don't have their transponder turned on. It's outrageous." (A transponder is a device that helps make aircraft appear on the radars of controllers and other aircraft.) The controller replied, "I don't have anything on my scope." Here's a reconstruction of that incident, overlaying radar and audio: Now comes news that, on Saturday, the passengers and pilots on a Dassault Falcon 900EX business jet heading to Miami from Aruba had their own brush with death via an Air Force tanker. In this case, an air traffic controller alerted the Falcon pilot and directed him to a new course: "Turn right heading 020. An unidentified traffic, 12 o'clock, closing 10 miles, level not known." After spotting the aircraft, the rattled Falcon pilot informed the controller. "We just got that traffic. I don't know how we didn't get an RA for that," he said, referring to a Resolution Advisory, a command generated by an on-board Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System (TCAS). "They were really close -- and you turned us into them." The controller explained that the unidentified craft "keep[s] turning irregular."
Bill To Block Trump From Launching War With Venezuela Fails in the House - The House on Wednesday voted down a War Powers Resolution meant to block President Trump from launching a war with Venezuela without congressional authorization, as required by the Constitution. The bill failed in a vote of 211-213, with nine representatives not voting. Just three Republicans joined Democrats in supporting the bill: Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY), Marjorie Taylor Greene (GA), and Don Bacon (NE). One Democrat, Henry Cuellar (TX), voted against the legislation. The legislation would have directed the president to remove “United States Armed Forces from hostilities within or against Venezuela that have not been authorized by Congress.”Before the Venezuela bill, another War Powers Resolution aimed at stopping President Trump’s bombing campaign against alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and the Eastern Pacific Ocean also failed. That bill failed in a vote of 210-216, with two Republicans (Massie and Bacon) voting in favor and two Democrats (Ceullar and Vicente Gonzalez (TX) voting against. The votes came a day after President Trump declared a “complete and total blockade” on “sanctioned” tankers going into and leaving Venezuela, an action that’s widely considered an act of war under international law. President Trump and his top officials have also been clear that their goal is regime change. “Do we want a miniature Afghanistan in the Western Hemisphere?” Massie, a co-sponsor of the bill,asked on the House floor before the vote. “If that cost is acceptable to this Congress, then we should vote on it as a voice of the people and in accordance with our Constitution,” Massie continued. “And yet today, here we aren’t even voting on whether to declare war or authorize the use of military force. All we’re voting on is a War Powers Resolution that strengthens the fabric of our Republic by reasserting the plain and simple language in the Constitution that Congress must decide questions of war.” Several polls in recent months have found that the idea of the US going to war with Venezuela is extremely unpopular among Americans.
US seizes second oil tanker off Venezuela’s coast as Trump ups pressure on Maduro - U.S. personnel seized a second oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela on Saturday as President Trump ratchets up the pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. The seizure of the vessel, which took place in international waters, was led by the Coast Guard and assisted by the U.S. military, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem announced on Saturday. The vessel was docked in Venezuela. “The United States will continue to pursue the illicit movement of sanctioned oil that is used to fund narco terrorism in the region. We will find you, and we will stop you,” Noem said in a post on social platform X, attaching a 7-minute video of the operation. The Hill has reached out to the White House for comment. Defense Sec. Pete Hegseth later hailed the seizure. “President Trump has been clear: the blockade of sanctioned oil tankers departing from, or bound for, Venezuela will remain in full force until Maduro’s criminal enterprise returns every stolen American asset,” he wrote in a post on X. “The @DeptofWar, with our partners at @USCG, will unflinchingly conduct maritime interdiction operations — through OPERATION SOUTHERN SPEAR — to dismantle illicit criminal networks. Violence, drugs, and chaos will not control the Western Hemisphere.” Hegseth did not note if the seized tanker is on the Treasury Department’s list of sanctioned vessels.” The move by U.S. authorities comes just days after President Trump said his administration would impose a “blockade” on all sanctioned oil tankers sailing in and out of Venezuela. The news of the seizure was first reported by Reuters. “The illegitimate Maduro Regime is using Oil from these stolen Oil Fields to finance themselves, Drug Terrorism, Human Trafficking, Murder, and Kidnapping,” the president said earlier this week.
As Pentagon escalates Kelly investigation, Senate GOP grows uneasy --Senate Republicans are growing increasingly uneasy with the Pentagon’s investigation into Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced his office is escalating its probe into him. © Greg Nash The Defense Department announced Monday that the review of Kelly has risen to an “official Command Investigation,” intensifying the feud between the two sides over Kelly’s role in a video he and other congressional Democrats made to remind service members of their duty to disobey illegal orders. Kelly has been under fire by the administration for nearly a month after he, Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) and Democratic Reps. Jason Crow (Colo.), Chris Deluzio (Pa.), Maggie Goodlander (N.H.) and Chrissy Houlahan (Pa.) appeared in the video that set off the series of comments. Trump also called for the execution of the half-dozen lawmakers — a remark he walked back. Days after the Democrats released the joint video, the Defense Department said it received “serious allegations of misconduct” against Kelly and that it kicked off a “thorough review” of the allegations. Hegseth ordered the Navy to finish the review and submit it to the Defense Department by Dec. 10. The Navy submitted the report on potential punishments against Kelly to the department’s Office of General Counsel last week. The content and the scope of the report are unclear. What isn’t being walked back is the probe, which some Senate Republicans believe likely does not have merit. “I’m not,” Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said when asked whether she is comfortable with the expansion of the probe. “He is protected by the speech and debate clause.” Hegseth appeared Tuesday on Capitol Hill alongside Secretary of State Marco Rubio to brief lawmakers on the administration’s targeting of boats near Venezuela. Hegseth and Kelly got into a “long back-and-forth” during the briefing, according to Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.). According to one Senate Republican, the spat started with a reasonable question on Kelly’s end but eventually turned into a protracted discussion with GOP members complaining he was “filibustering” during a classified briefing when other attendees had questions. Kelly said Hegseth brought up “talking points” about the video when he was asking the Pentagon chief about the strikes on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean. Kelly told reporters following the briefing that the Pentagon still has not reached out to him about the investigation and argued the department is targeting him “for something I said that was lawful.”
President Trump Signs Executive Order Declaring Fentanyl a 'Weapon of Mass Destruction' - President Trump on Monday declared that the synthetic opioid fentanyl is a “Weapon of Mass Destruction,” signaling he may use the drug as a pretext for a war in Latin America.“Illicit fentanyl is closer to a chemical weapon than a narcotic,” an executive order signed by the president reads. “Two milligrams, an almost undetectable trace amount equivalent to 10 to 15 grains of table salt, constitutes a lethal dose. Hundreds of thousands of Americans have died from fentanyl overdoses.”The order says that the US Secretary of War and Attorney General shall “determine whether the threats posed by illicit fentanyl and its impact on the United States warrant the provision of resources from the Department of War to the Department of Justice to aid in the enforcement of title 18 of the United States Code.”It directs the Secretary of War to “update all directives regarding the Armed Forces’ response to chemical incidents in the homeland to include the threat of illicit fentanyl.” The order also calls for the Secretary of War and the Secretary of Homeland Security to “identify threat networks related to fentanyl smuggling using WMD- and nonproliferation-related threat intelligence to support the full spectrum of counter-fentanyl operations.” President Trump has previously claimed that boats the US military has bombed off the coast of Venezuela were carrying fentanyl, but the synthetic opioid isn’t produced in Venezuela and doesn’t transit through the country on its way to the US. According to federal government data, the vast majority of fentanyl comes from Mexico and is smuggled through the border in cars driven by US citizens.
Trump Denies Rift With Netanyahu Over Israeli Airstrike in Gaza That Targeted Hamas Commander - President Trump denied on Monday that there was a rift between his White House and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over an Israeli airstrike that killed a Hamas commander in Gaza on Saturday, a clear violation of the US-backed ceasefire deal.“No, Israel and I have gotten along very well. My relationship with Bibi Netanyahu has been obviously a very good one,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office when asked about reports that he “rebuked” Netanyahu over the attack. According to Axios reporter Barak Ravid, a former IDF intelligence officer, the White House “scolded” Netanyahu over the strike and viewed it as a clear violation of the truce.“The White House message to Netanyahu was: ‘If you want to ruin your reputation and show that you don’t abide by agreements be our guest, but we won’t allow you to ruin President Trump’s reputation after he brokered the deal in Gaza,” a US official told Ravid.But President Trump offered no criticism of the Israeli attack. When asked whether it violated the ceasefire, he said, “We are looking into that.” The Trump administration has remained silent as Israel has continued its attacks on Palestinians in Gaza, killing nearly 400 since the truce went into effect on October 10. Both the US and Israel are preventing reconstruction from taking place in the Hamas-controlled side of Gaza, where civilians in tent camps are dying due to harsh storms and continued Israeli restrictions.
Trump Associate Seeks Role in Building US Military Base Near Gaza in Southern Israel - A friend of President Trump who owns a US construction firm is seeking to be involved in the building of a potential US military base in southern Israel that could cost $600 million, according to a report in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. Israeli media first reported last month on the plans for the US to build a base on the Gaza border that would house thousands of US and international troops tasked with maintaining the Gaza Cease. At this point, it’s unclear if what’s being called the “International Stabilization Force” will come together since countries are hesitant to commit troops over concerns they may end up fighting Hamas on behalf of Israel, but the Haaretz report suggests steps are being taken inside Israel to prepare for the construction of the base. The report said the US base is expected to “generate revenues worth billions of shekels for whoever builds it” and that there are “already parties positioning themselves to profit from it,” including the Disaster Management Group (DMG), a Florida-based firm that specializes in the construction and operation of temporary facilities. DMG is owned by Nathan Albers, who is close to President Trump and a frequent visitor to the Mar-a-Lago resort. The Haaretz report said that an official in Israel’s Ministry of Diaspora Affairs approached the Israel Land Authority (ILA) to arrange a meeting between senior ILA officials and DMG representatives. The meeting was scheduled for December 8, and a jet registered in Albers’ name landed in Israel that day on a direct flight from Miami and left two days later. Albers’ company has benefited from other Trump administration policies, and is involved in a $1.3 billion project to build a major tent city detention center for migrants in Texas. The potential US base in Israel is expected to be very large. “Israeli figures involved in food imports have already been contacted by representatives of American companies regarding the feasibility and cost of feeding 10,000 soldiers who would be permanently stationed at the base,” the Haaretz report said. The report also suggested it was possible that the base could actually be built inside Gaza. “The approach to the ILA underscores the broader questions that would arise if a decision is made to move forward with the base: whether it would be built within Israel’s sovereign territory or inside the Gaza Strip, beyond the Yellow Line under IDF control,” the report said. The US has already established a small base in southern Israel, known as the Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC), where it has deployed about 200 troops to oversee the Gaza ceasefire, which Israel continues to violate by launching attacks against Palestinians and maintaining restrictions on aid entering the Strip. According to a recent report from The Guardian, US logistics experts arrived at the CMCC to help boost aid deliveries, but they soon learned that the biggest impediment to the shipments was Israel’s restrictions, and that within weeks, several dozen had left. The report also said that the IDF was spying on US troops and allies working at the CMCC.
Senators express horror at antisemitic Hanukkah attack in Australia -- Nine Jewish members of the Senate Democratic Caucus expressed horror over Sunday’s killings at a Hanukkah event at Bondi Beach in Australia, where at least 15 people were killed by two shooters. “We are horrified by the brutality of this attack, which comes at a time when Australia has seen a terrible rise in antisemitism,” the senators said in a statement. “The disturbing wave of antisemitism around the globe has struck anxiety and fear into the hearts of every Jewish community. Some have faced harassment, vandalism, and discrimination. Others, violence as brutal as what we saw yesterday in Sydney,” the said. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Democratic Sens. Richard Blumenthal (Conn.), Michael Bennet (Colo.), Jon Ossoff (Ga.), Jacky Rosen (Nev.), Brian Schatz (Hawaii), Adam Schiff (Calif.), Elissa Slotkin (Mich.) and Ron Wyden (Ore.) signed the letter. Two men are considered suspects in the shooting: 50-year-old Australian citizen Sajid Akram, who was killed, and his 24-year-old son Naveed Akram. The two shot into a crowd of nearly 1,000 people who were celebrating the first day of Hanukkah. The younger suspect is hospitalized and in critical condition as of Monday Among those killed were a 10-year-old girl, two rabbis and a Holocaust survivor. More than 40 people are hospitalized with injuries. A bystander, Ahmed al Ahmed, tackled and disarmed one of the shooters during the attack and underwent surgery after being shot twice. Ahmed has been hailed a hero, and a GoFundMe page has raised more than $1 million for him since Sunday.
After Three Americans Are Killed in Syria, Trump Says 'We Have Legitimate Peace in the Middle East' - President Trump said on Monday that there is “legitimate peace in the Middle East for the first time in 3,000 years,” comments that came after three Americans, including two National Guard members and a civilian interpreter, were killed in Syria. The president made the remark when asked why the US has troops in Syria. “Because we’re trying to make sure that there’s going to be and remain peace in the Middle East, and Syria is a big part of it,” he said. “The new leader is a strong person, and that’s what you need,” Trump said, referring to Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, the former al-Qaeda commander who took power in Damascus after the ousting of Bashar al-Assad. “It’s been amazing what — what’s taken place in Syria. We got rid of Assad,” Trump said, acknowledging a US role in the regime change that put Sharaa’s group of jihadists, known as Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, in power. The three Americans were killed on Saturday by a member of Syria’s security forces. “We got rid of other people that were really bad people and that were in the way of peace in the Middle East. You know, we have legitimate peace in the Middle East, first time in 3,000 years, and we have 59 countries backing it, and we’ll see what happens with Hamas,” Trump said, referring to the Gaza ceasefire deal, which Israel has continued to violate by killing nearly 400 Palestinians since it went into effect. Israel has also continued to violate a ceasefire deal in Lebanon signed in November 2024 with near-daily strikes, surveillance flights, and ground incursions. “Hezbollah in Lebanon has been a problem. We’ll see what happens there,” Trump said. The president appeared to be arguing that it was necessary for the US to be involved in the Middle East to maintain “peace,” and also referenced the 12-day US-Israel war on Iran, which killed over 1,000 Iranians, as an example of US action in the region. “If we didn’t knock out there nuclear capability, we would have never had peace,” he said.
Syria Attack Highlights Deployment of US National Guard to Overseas Conflicts - An attack that targeted US troops in central Syria on Saturday has drawn attention to the presence of National Guard soldiers in the country and their use in combat zones in the Middle East and Africa.The attack, perpetrated by a member of the Syrian government’s security forces, killed two members of the Iowa National Guard and a civilian interpreter. Another three members of the Iowa National Guard were injured.“Sending National Guard members to die in undeclared wars is a betrayal of both the Constitution and the people who serve,” Dan McKnight, the founder of Bring Our Troops Home, wrote on X. Bring Our Troops Home leads a project called Defend the Guard, which promotes state-level legislation that would prohibit the federal government from deploying the state’s National Guard to a combat zone where Congress hasn’t officially declared war, something that hasn’t happened since World War II. “Syria proves the point again. The Guard exists for defense, not endless imperial drift. Defend the Guard,” McKnight said, adding a link for a petition that can be signed in support of Defend the Guard. Go to the Defend the Guard website to see whether the legislation has been introduced in your state and to find ways to support the movement.Since the US frequently deploys National Guard soldiers to Syria, Iraq, and Somalia, restricting that ability would significantly impact the federal government’s ability to wage unconstitutional wars. The legislation has passed through several state legislators, but it has yet to become law.
Gunman Who Killed Three Americans in Syria Was Member of Syrian Government's Security Forces - The gunman who killed two members of the Iowa National Guard and an American civilian interpreter in an attack in Palmyra, central Syria, on Saturday was a member of the Syrian government’s security forces, according to the Syrian Interior Ministry.The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) first reported that the attacker was a member of the security forces and called for the Syrian government, which is led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, an offshoot of al-Qaeda, to get rid of members who have an “ISIS ideology.”The Syrian Interior Ministry claimed that, before the attack, Syrian authorities had “decided to fire him” for having “extremist Islamist ideology” and had planned to do so on Sunday. “We discovered him in December and were going to dismiss him, but we didn’t make it in time because it was a holiday,” said ministry spokesman Nour al-Din al-Baba, according to The Cradle.A Syrian security official told AFP that the attacker had been in the security forces “for more than 10 months and was posted to several cities before being transferred to Palmyra.”According to Wael Essam, a Palestinian journalist who has covered the conflict in Syria for many years, the perpetrator has been identified as Tariq Satouf al-Hamd from the Aleppo countryside. Essam said that al-Hamd was previously a member of ISIS, but after the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad, he traveled to Idlib, the former home base of HTS, and joined the General Security. The attack occurred when US military officers were meeting with Syrian Interior Ministry officials while US and Syrian troops stood guard at a base near the city of Palmyra. According to The Wall Street Journal, a lone gunman appeared in a window and opened fire on the US and Syrian soldiers, and he was pursued by Syrian troops and killed. However, according to Essam’s report, the attacker blew himself up. “The attacker tried to reach the meeting room in the headquarters of the General Security in Palmyra (formerly the Military Security headquarters) where senior officers are present, and in the corridor he clashed with the American guards and the translator and blew himself up,” Essam wrote on X. Essam also suggested that other members of the Syrian security forces were involved in the attack. “Security sources confirmed to me that Syrian intelligence, along with the Coalition forces, arrested six elements from the General Security at the headquarters in Palmyra, accused of coordinating the operation with him, and it is said that they are from the group that moved with him from the desert to the General Security in Idlib,” he said. He added that Syrian authorities were “unable to identify his previous affiliation with the organization (ISIS), and there are hundreds like him, due to the large numbers who joined and which the security apparatus needed after the fall of the regime.” President Trump and other US officials have called the incident an “ISIS attack” and have left out the detail that the perpetrator was a member of the Syrian military, which the US has allied itself with despite HTS’s al-Qaeda past, and as of Sunday, ISIS hasn’t taken credit for the shooting.
Hegseth promises to ‘avenge’ fallen soldiers in Syria with ‘overwhelming force’ - Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday vowed that the U.S. will “avenge … with overwhelming force” the two Iowa National Guard members killed in an ambush in Syria. Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, and Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, were killed Saturday in Palmyra along with a civilian interpreter involved in counterterrorism efforts. Three other U.S. service members and two members of the Syrian security forces were also wounded in the attack, with the Trump administration blaming a lone gunman that was part of the Islamic State. “The United States of America will avenge these fallen Americans with overwhelming force,” Hegseth said in a post to X. “Their memory will live on through their families, their fellow warriors still serving our country, and in my unwavering commitment to our warfighters around the globe.” President Trump directly after the attack promised to retaliate in a “very serious” way, and on Monday said that the terrorist group will “be hit hard.” Trump also defended keeping troops in Syria — with roughly 1,000 American forces in the country for counterterrorism operations — saying they are there as “we’re trying to make sure that there’s gonna be remain peace in the Middle East, and Syria is a big part of it.” He praised the new Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, calling him “a strong person” and insisting he and the Syrian government had nothing to do with the attack. “This is a rough part of the world and it’s amazing what’s taken place in Syria. . . . We have legitimate peace in the Middle East, first time in 3,000 years.”
US War Department Says 'No Force Posture Changes' in Syria After Three Americans Killed - A US War Department official said on Monday that the Pentagon has no planned “force posture changes” regarding the US military presence in Syria following a deadly attack in the country over the weekend that killed three Americans, including two members of the Iowa National Guard and a civilian interpreter.“Currently, we have no force posture changes to announce,” a War Department official told Antiwar.com when asked if the Trump administration was planning to withdraw from Syria.The US withdrew a few hundred soldiers from Syria earlier this year, but the comment signals a full withdrawal isn’t on the table. There are currently around 1,000 US troops in the country, a Pentagon official told The New York Times. Also on Monday, the US Army identified the two members of the Iowa National Guard who were killed: Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar, 25, of Des Moines, Iowa, and Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard, 29, of Marshalltown, Iowa. The attack on Saturday was carried out by a member of the Syrian government’s own security forces, something that’s been confirmed by the Interior Ministry, but President Trump has blamed the incident on ISIS.“We had three great patriots terminated by bad people. It was not the Syrian government, it was ISIS. The Syrian government fought by our side,” President Trump said on Sunday.Trump has embraced the new Syrian president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, despite his al-Qaeda past, and recently hosted him in the Oval Office. Sharaa’s government has officially joined the US-led anti-ISIS coalition even though Sharaa himself was once an ally of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the founder of ISIS. According to reports from Syria, the attacker who killed three Americans has been identified as Tariq Satouf al-Hamd, who was previously a member of ISIS but joined the government’s security forces after the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad. Wael Essam, a Palestinian journalist who covers the conflict in Syria, said there are likely “hundreds like him” within Syria’s security forces.
US Bombs Somalia for 112th Time This Year - US Africa Command announced on Monday that its forces launched another airstrike in Somalia as the Trump administration continues its record-shattering bombing campaign in the country.AFRICOM said the strike was launched on December 14 and targeted al-Shabaab about 30 miles to the northeast of Kismayo in southern Somalia’s Jubaland region. The command shared no other details about the attack, as it has stopped sharing information about casualties and assessments on potential civilian harm since earlier this year.“Specific details about units and assets will not be released to ensure continued operations security,” AFRICOM said in a press release.The attack marks at least the 112th US airstrike in Somalia this year, more than 11 times the number of airstrikes the US launched in the country in 2024. The Trump administration shattered the previous record for annual airstrikes in Somalia, which President Trump set at 63 during his first term in 2019.The latest airstrike comes amid reports of civilian casualties in recent operations conducted by the US and US-backed forces in southern Somalia. Last week, local media reported that more than 30 civilians were killed by an attack on a village near Mogadishu that was carried out by a US-trained Somali government force.On November 15, US airstrikes and US-backed Somali ground forces targeted the village of Jamame, which is near Kismayo. The attack killed at least 11 civilians, including seven children, according to areport from Drop Site News. The US has also been bombing an ISIS affiliate in Somalia’s northeastern Puntland region, where a little more than half of the US airstrikes this year have been launched. The US backs local forces in Puntland since it’s not under the control of the Mogadishu-based Federal Government.
Al-Shabaab Captures Strategic Town From US-Backed Government in Southern Somalia -- Al-Shabaab has captured a strategic town in southern Somalia after a fierce battle with US-backed government forces, according to Somali media reports.According to the Somali Guardian, al-Shabaab militants overran Somali army positions in Nuur Dugle, a village in the Middle Shabelle region. Nuur Dugle is north of Mogadishu, and the report said its capture by al-Shabaab cuts off vital supply lines connecting central Somalia with the capital.US-backed government forces and allied clans captured Nuur Dugle from al-Shabaab in 2022, and the al-Shabaab victory follows a pattern of the government losing villages it took during that offensive. According to al-Shabaab’s Shahada News Agency, 11 government fighters were killed in the attack on Nuur Dugle, though the group is known to inflate casualties. The Shahada report said that al-Shabaab’s goal was to “overthrow the Western-backed Somali government, expel international coalition forces, sever the ties of Western hegemony, and establish a comprehensive and independent Islamic Sharia system.” The Somali Guardian report said that there were reports of airstrikes launched by the Somali government’s “international partners,” likely referring to the US, but they haven’t been confirmed. So far, US Africa Command hasn’t announced any airstrikes in the area on Thursday, but it usually doesn’t confirm strikes until a few days after they were launched.Al-Shabaab’s capture of Nuur Dugle comes despite the US providing the government with unprecedented air support. So far, the US has launched at least 116 airstrikes in Somalia this year, shattering the previous record for annual airstrikes in the country, which President Trump set at 63 during his first term in 2019.A little more than half of the US airstrikes targeted an ISIS affiliate in Somalia’s northeastern Puntland region, but the number of airstrikes targeting al-Shabaab still marks a major escalation, as the US launched just 10 airstrikes in Somalia in 2024.The US has been involved in Somalia for decades and has been fighting al-Shabaab since the George W. Bush administration backed an Ethiopian invasion in 2006 that ousted the Islamic Courts Union, a Muslim coalition that briefly held power in Mogadishu after taking the city from CIA-backed warlords.
US Launches at Least Four More Airstrikes in Somalia as Record-Shattering Bombing Campaign Continues -US Africa Command has announced at least four more airstrikes in Somalia as the Trump administration continues to bomb the country at a record pace with virtually no media coverage in the United States.AFRICOM said in one press release that its forces launched airstrikes against the ISIS affiliate in Somalia’s northeast Puntland region on December 15 and December 16. It said the attacks were launched about 43 miles to the southeast of the Gulf of Aden port city of Bosaso, where the US has been backing local Puntland forces in a fight against ISIS militants based in caves.The command provided no additional details and has stopped sharing information on casualties or assessments of potential civilian harm since earlier this year. US-backed Puntland forces haven’t issued any statements on military operations in recent days. The Puntland Counterterrorism Operations Telegram account occasionally releases images of the dead bodies of alleged ISIS fighters who were killed in US-backed operations.AFRICOM also released two separate press releases announcing airstrikes against al-Shabaab on December 15 in an area about 30 miles to the northeast of the port city of Kismayo in southern Somalia’s Jubaland region. “Specific details about units and assets will not be released to ensure continued operations security,” the command said in both releases. The bombings bring the total number of airstrikes launched by AFRICOM in Somalia this year to 116, an unprecedented number. According to New America, an organization that tracks the air war, the figure is more than the total number of airstrikes launched in Somalia during the administrations of Joe Biden, Barack Obama, and George W. Bush combined.
Report: US Forces Raided Ship Headed From China To Iran Last Month - The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that US special operations forces raided a ship last month, several hundred miles off the coast of Sri Lanka, that had departed China and was bound for Iran. The report, which cited unnamed US officials, said that US special operators who boarded the vessel seized the cargo and then left. Officials said that the ship was carrying components potentially useful for Iran’s weapons and that they were “dual-use items, with both civilian and military applications.”The US officials said that the purpose of the operation was to disrupt Iran’s procurement of goods for its military following the 12-day US-Israeli war against the Islamic Republic, which damaged the country’s air defenses and other military equipment. The report didn’t name the ship or provide any other details about the operation, and so far it hasn’t been publicly confirmed by the US, China, or Iran. But the news came a few days after the US seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, demonstrating that the Trump administration is willing to use the military to enforce sanctions in a way that marks a dramatic escalation.Iran also seized a ship in the Gulf of Oman over the weekend that it claimed was smuggling Iranian fuel and detained the crew. The Iranian military carried out a similar seizure of a Marshal Islands-flagged tanker in the Gulf of Oman last month and released the ship a few days later without its cargo.After the Iranian seizure last month, US Central Command put out a statement condemning the move as “illegal,” calling it “a blatant violation of international law, undermining freedom of navigation and the free flow of commerce.” Tehran has also been very critical of the US’s seizure of the tanker near Venezuela. “The United States’ detention and seizure of trade vessels belonging to other countries amounts to flagrant disregard for international law and is a blatant violation of principles ruling international maritime security and safety,” the Iranian Foreign Ministry said.
Trump Administration Approves More Than $11 Billion in Arms Sales for Taiwan - The State Department on Wednesday approved a series of arms deals for Taiwan worth more than $11 billion, including multiple types of missile systems and munitions, an announcement that China has strongly condemned.If the sales aren’t blocked by Congress, which is unlikely to happen since there’s virtually no opposition to arming Taiwan in Washington, they would exceed the $8.4 billion in arms sold to Taiwan during the Biden administration, according to The New York Times. According to the Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA), the arms deals include a total of eight sales, which include:
- High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems and related equipment for an estimated cost of $4.05 billion
- M107A7 Self-Propelled Howitzers and related equipment for an estimated cost of $4.03 billion
- Tactical Mission Network Software, equipment, and services, and related equipment for an estimated cost of $1.01 billion
- Anduril-made ALTIUS-700M and ALTIUS-600 drones with loitering munitions and other related equipment for an estimated cost of $1.1 billion
- Javelin anti-tank missile system and related equipment for an estimated cost of $375 million
- Tube-launched, optically tracked, Wire-guided missile system and related equipment for an estimated cost of $353 million
- AH-1W Helicopter Spare and Repair Parts and related equipment for an estimated cost of $96 million
- Harpoon Missile Repair Follow-on Support and related equipment for an estimated cost of $91.4 million
In response to the announcement, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said the move “grossly violates the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiqués, infringes on China’s sovereignty, security and territorial integrity, undermines peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, and sends a gravely wrong signal to ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces. China firmly opposes and strongly condemns it.” Guo said that the weapons sales “will only push the Taiwan Strait into the danger of military conflict at a faster pace.” He added that the “Taiwan question is at the core of China’s core interests, and is the first red line that must not be crossed in China-US relations,” a warning that Chinese officials have delivered to their American counterparts for years.
Pete Hegseth to overhaul chaplain corps, targeting political correctness and 'new age' concepts Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday he is overhauling the military’s chaplain corps, which provide religious and spiritual support to members of the armed forces and their families, saying he intended to target “new age” concepts. “In an atmosphere of political correctness and secular humanism, chaplains have been minimized, viewed by many as therapists instead of ministers. Faith and virtue were traded for self-help and self-care,” Hegseth said in a post on the social platform X. “If you need proof, just look at the current Army Spiritual Fitness Guide. In well over 100 pages, it mentions God one time. That’s it. It mentions ‘feelings’ 11 times. It even mentions ‘playfulness,’ whatever that is, nine times. There’s zero mention of virtue. The guide relies on new age notions,” he added. Hegseth later added that he had “a directive right here that I will sign today to eliminate the use of the Army Spiritual Fitness Guide, effective immediately.” “These types of training materials have no place in the War Department. Our chaplains are chaplains, not emotional support officers, and we’re going to treat them as such,” he added, using the Trump Administration’s preferred name for the Department of Defense. Hegseth, no stranger to pushing for change at the Pentagon, told the military’s top officers earlier this year that he did not want to see “fat generals and admirals” or overweight troops anymore. “Frankly, it’s tiring to look out at combat formations, or really any formation, and see fat troops,” Hegseth said. “Likewise, it’s completely unacceptable to see fat generals and admirals in the halls of the Pentagon leading commands around the country and the world.”
General contradicts Trump on ‘enemy within’ during National Guard hearing The head of U.S. Northern Command on Thursday contradicted President Trump’s assertion that an “invasion [from] within” or an “enemy within” justifies the commander in chief’s National Guard deployments to American cities. “I do not have any indications of an enemy within,” Gen. Gregory Guillot told Senate Armed Services Committee lawmakers when asked about Trump’s comments. “We maintain readiness to execute the orders to defend the homeland in many ways, but I have not been tasked in that way.” Trump in late September declared that “an enemy within” was reason to deploy guard members in the United States. He also said the military “should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military,” referring to Democratic-run cities. “This is going to be a big thing for the people in this room, because it’s the enemy from within, and we have to handle it before it gets out of control,” Trump told generals gathered Sept. 30 at Quantico, Va. “It won’t get out of control once you’re involved at all.” Guillot’s remarks, at the top of a hearing on Trump’s guard deployment to several U.S. cities, underlined a point of contention between Republican and Democratic lawmakers, with the former arguing that the guard was needed to fight lawlessness as local officials had not done their job in keeping the public safe. Democrats, however, said the deployments were an abuse of military power that violated state rights.
DHS claims over 400 taken as ICE agents continue lawless kidnapping campaign in Minnesota - In their latest update, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) claimed that over 400 people have been taken in ongoing kidnapping operations led by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers in the Minneapolis, Minnesota area. As has been the case throughout the United States, federal immigration agents are not conducting targeted operations focused on alleged “criminals” but are instead going on fishing expeditions, targeting workers on the job in public settings. In one of several flashpoints in the last week between ICE agents and local community members, this past Saturday, dozens of people responded to ICE agents attempting to kidnap construction workers building homes in Chanhassen, Minnesota, a city located about 15 miles southwest of Minneapolis. The two workers were trapped on the roof for hours leading one of them to be hospitalized. In a video livestreamed on Facebook, dozens of workers and residents are seen confronting ICE agents who have surrounded a home currently under construction. Under sub-freezing temperatures and through bundled jackets, anti-ICE protesters cursed the agents and lent their support to two workers trapped on the roof. One man is heard in the video telling the Gestapo, “You are a fucking monster, you and all you people are fucking monsters. Putting people in concentration camps for being brown.” One of the masked ICE agents replied to the man, “You don’t have to be like that,” which drew the quick retort, “No! You don’t have to be here!” Another woman told agents the workers, “They are our community. They are a part of us.” She added, “Thank you for building our houses! Thank you!” Another man questioned the agents, “What crime did they do? You guys can’t tell us. You are not going after the real criminals.” Later on in the video a man arrives with hot coffee, “We got coffee, not for cops, but for people who know their rights.” Temperatures at the time were negative 4 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 20 Celsius). One of the workers on the roof was brought down and taken into an ambulance along with an ICE agent. The second worker came down later and was apparently not detained by ICE. Throughout the entire confrontation ICE agents rotated in and out of their warm vehicles while local police provided crowd control, protecting the ICE agents while at the same time preventing community members from providing aid to the trapped workers. While the workers trapped by ICE on Saturday appeared to be Hispanic, the Trump administration has made clear that Somalis, regardless of immigration status, are being deliberately targeted by the government. For over two weeks, President Donald Trump and other top officials in his administration, have used racist and genocidal language to slander all people of Somali heritage, particularly those in Minneapolis-St. Paul, the largest concentration of Somali-Americans in the US. Speaking from the White House on Friday, Trump said of Somalis, “they don’t have a country, all they do is kill each other.” Referring to Minnesota Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar, a frequent target of Trump and the fascists due to her Somali heritage and Muslim faith, Trump said, “There is nothing worse than a person who comes in and does nothing but bitch. And comes from a place where she shouldn’t be telling us what to do.” That same day, on one of his many Fox News appearances in the last week, fascist White House adviser Stephen Miller accused the entire “Somali community” of engaging in “massive, endemic, systemic fraud against American taxpayers for years.” Miller claimed that “90 percent” of Somali households with children “were on federal welfare, the real number is probably 100 percent.” Encouraged by the fascists in the White House, immigration agents in Minnesota have been assaulting and kidnapping Somali Americans. On December 9, 20-year-old Somali-American citizen Mubashir was assaulted by ICE agents after he stepped outside during his lunch break while at work. In security footage, agents are seen grabbing and pulling on Mubashir for roughly a minute. Soon, members of the community come into frame and begin filming the ICE agents and blowing whistles. The ICE thugs decide to drag Mubashir out into the street. Before shoving the handcuffed citizen into the back of their SUV with black tinted windows, one of the ICE thugs is seen putting Mubashir in a headlock and forcing him to the ground in the snow. Speaking at press conference this past Wednesday, Mubashir said he told agents he was a US citizen and repeatedly asked what was going on. The agents, “didn’t seem to care.” Mubashir was not accused of any crime before ICE agents attacked him. Mubashir said he did not flee from agents, and that at first he did not see them. “All I did was turn around. When I seen a black-topped car pull up, I just turned around to go back inside the office. “I could see him behind me just running towards me. He pushed me inside the restaurant. I thought it was random person assaulting me or kidnapping me. Mubashir explained that the ICE agent, “never identified himself, he didn’t say ‘ICE stop.’ I feel like I was getting assaulted, I was getting kidnapped, and that’s exactly what it was.”
Ilhan Omar says son targeted by ICE in traffic stop - Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) said her son, a U.S.-born citizen, was targeted by ICE agents on Saturday after he stopped at a Target store. She said her son was pulled over but then was allowed to move on after he provided his passport. “Yesterday after he made a stop at Target, he did get pulled over by ICE agents and once he was able to produce his passport ID they did let him go,” she said during an interview on WCCO, CBS’s Minnesota station, on Sunday. She added that her son regularly brings his passport with him in case he gets pulled over by ICE. Omar and President Trump have been battling over Minnesota’s population of Somalian immigrants, with Trump calling Somalians “garbage” and increasing ICE agent presence in the state in an operation called “Operation Metro Surge” earlier this month. “I think she’s very bad for our country. All she does is complain, complain, complain, she comes out of a country [that] has no government, they have no military, they have no police, they don’t have a country,” Trump said of Omar during a press conference on Friday. “She comes over here and tells the United States of America how it should be run. We don’t wanna hear from her. I don’t wanna hear from her. There’s nothing worse than a person that comes in and does nothing but b***h and comes from a place where she shouldn’t be telling us what to do,” he added.
Sean Duffy's daughter calls out TSA as 'unconstitutional' after pat-down - Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s daughter called the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) “unconstitutional” after undergoing what she described as an “absurdly invasive” pat-down at airport security.In a post Thursday on the social platform X, Evita Duffy-Alfonso detailed her challenging experience as a pregnant woman wanting to avoid the radiation exposure from the full-body scanner at security. Duffy-Alfonso accused TSA agents of pressuring her to walk through the scanner anyway and said she almost missed her flight as a result. “I nearly missed my flight this morning after the TSA made me wait 15 minutes for a pat-down because I’m pregnant and didn’t feel like getting radiation exposure from their body scanner,” she said. “The agents were passive-aggressive, rude, and tried to pressure me and another pregnant woman into just walking through the scanner because it’s ‘safe.’ After finally getting the absurdly invasive pat-down, I barely made my flight,” she continued. “All this for an unconstitutional agency that isn’t even good at its job,” she wrote, later adding, “The ‘golden age of transportation’ cannot begin until the TSA is gone.” The TSA — which is housed under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), not under the Department of Transportation (DOT) — did not respond to a request for comment. DHS and DOT also did not respond to inquiries from The Hill. Duffy-Alfonso responded to an X user’s comment noting her connection to the Transportation secretary and suggesting, “Perhaps you should run this by him.” “He isn’t in charge of TSA. TSA is under DHS, which is run by Kristi Noem,” Duffy-Alfonso responded, referring to the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. “If he did have TSA, he’d radically limit it and lobby Congress to abolish it.” Duffy-Alfonso has spoken publicly in the past about political issues. Earlier this year, amid Rep. Anna Paulina Luna’s (R-Fla.) push to allow proxy voting for new parents in Congress, the secretary’s daughter called the request “unconstitutional” and suggested new parents resign from Congress if they are “unable to fulfill the duties required of a member of Congress.”
Minneapolis police chief criticizes ICE after officer drags woman through street - Minneapolis Police Department Chief Brian O’Hara criticized federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents this week after an attempted arrest on Monday led to a chaotic scene in which an officer dragged a woman through the street as agents fended off protesters.Video of the incident shows an agent kneeling on a woman’s back as she lies face down in the snow. Onlookers descended on the scene, yelling at ICE agents to release the woman, saying she’s pregnant and couldn’t breathe, according to The Associated Press.. An agent later dragged her by the arm, as she lay on her back, through the street toward a vehicle. Observers continued to yell, and the agent released her, the AP reported. O’Hara said in a statement to Reuters that the footage of the woman being dragged through the street is “profoundly disturbing.” “This egregious disregard for human dignity is appalling,” he said in the statement. “It is deeply concerning that there appears to be a lack of accountability from our federal partners.” ICE officials said they were conducting a “targeted vehicle stop” in south Minneapolis when they were “attacked by a crowd of rioters,” according to CBS News Minnesota. The officials said they detained a couple in their early 20s from Ecuador. The local CBS News station obtained footage showing ICE agents shattering a window before detaining the male driver. Minutes later, CBS News reported, the agents detained the woman. Footage also shows agents fending off protesters, who threw snowballs at the agents. The agents used chemical irritants and one reportedly used a taser before yelling at the crowd, “Who wants more?” ICE said in a statement to the local news outlet that two U.S. citizens were arrested for assaulting federal officers. The agency said protesters threw snow and other objects and that “officers sustained multiple injuries, including cuts.” At a news conference on Tuesday, O’Hara said local police were called to the scene by a federal agent who said officers needed help. The police chief said officers arrived and ultimately determined that their assistance was not needed and could have made the situation worse.Democrats ask federal watchdog to review ICE hiring surge amid reports of issues with trainees - House Democrats on the Homeland Security Committee are asking a government watchdog to undertake a review of the Trump administration’s hiring practices, citing issues with trainees as they dramatically ramp up recruitment of immigration enforcement agents. The Trump administration in August ended age limits for those interested in serving as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers, dropping the minimum age from 21 to 18 while also allowing those older than 40 to do the job. They also offer $50,000 signing bonuses in the hopes of hiring at least 10,000 new agents. “To date, the Administration reports that ICE is on track to hire the 11,000 new agents and officers by the end of the calendar year. This rapid expansion — the most significant staffing increase in the agency’s history — raises important questions about how ICE has changed its hiring standards and training protocols to meet its staffing aims,” Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) wrote in a letter to the Government Accountability Office (GAO). According to reporting from NBC News, the surge in hiring has resulted in missteps in screening, with selected applicants arriving at training only to find disqualifying issues. NBC found that 200 recruits were let go during training, with the majority failing to meet ICE’s physical or academic requirements. Minimum wage increasing in nearly half of all states | RISING The outlet added that some recruits arrived for training without the necessary fingerprints and background checks, with at least 10 dismissed from training due to failing a drug test or a search finding past criminal charges. “These reports have indicated that many of the issues surfaced during training only after the recruits admitted during training that they had not been fingerprinted or drug tested, raising concerns that individuals who did not disclose such lapses may already be on the job,” Thompson, the ranking member of the Committee, wrote. The letter asks the GAO to investigate a number of aspects of the hiring process, including “to what extent has ICE changed its hiring process or eligibility requirements since the hiring surge commenced.” “To what extent have these trainees begun training prior to having their background and suitability checks or other requisite hiring process steps completed?” the Mississippi lawmaker inquired, also asking the agency to confirm figures on how many trainees have been dismissed. “I can confirm that GAO has received this congressional request. GAO has a process it goes through to determine whether we do work and when, which we are working through right now,” Sarah Kaczmarek, a spokeswoman for the agency, said in a statement. DHS did not respond to a request for comment.
Wisconsin judge found guilty of obstruction for helping immigrant shake federal authorities -A Wisconsin judge was found guilty late Thursday of obstruction charges for helping a Mexican immigrant evade federal authorities after learning of his imminent arrest, but she was acquitted of concealing him.After six hours of deliberation, dragging into the night, the jury returned a split verdict against Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan — an extraordinary blow to the sitting judge.She faces up to five years in prison for obstruction, the more serious of the charges, though first-time offenders rarely receive the harshest punishment.The atypical charges came amid the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, which has often stuck courts in the middle of legal battles over the president’s aggressive policies and deportation efforts. Prosecutors claimed that Dugan sought to block Eduardo Flores-Ruiz’s arrest for being in the U.S. without permanent legal status, guiding him out a back door of her courtroom after learning a federal immigration task force planned to take him into custody at the Milwaukee County Courthouse.A Mexican national who has since been deported, Flores-Ruiz was set to appear in Dugan’s courtroom on three misdemeanor counts of battery. Six agents and officers waited outside the room to arrest him once the hearing was over.Instead, Dugan led Flores-Ruiz out a private door and told her court reporter she’d “get the heat” for it, according to courtroom audio heard by The Associated Press. She also told the arrest team to consult with the chief judge in his chambers.
Trump’s win streak on Supreme Court emergency docket breaks - The Supreme Court refused to intervene Friday in a battle concerning immigration judges’ speech restrictions, for now, snapping the Trump administration’s months-long winning streak on the court’s emergency docket. It marks the first time since the spring that the court has rejected one of the administration’s emergency appeals. No justice publicly dissented, but the order left the door open for the government to try again once the case progresses further. “At this stage, the Government has not demonstrated that it will suffer irreparable harm without a stay,” the one-paragraph order reads. The case stems from restrictions on what immigration judges can say publicly. The restrictions require the judges, who are part of the executive branch, to obtain prior approval for speeches when the subject directly relates to their official duties. The National Association of Immigration Judges (NAIJ) claims the policy violates the First Amendment. Those free speech issues weren’t yet before the justices, however. The Trump administration went to the Supreme Court to try to halt an order allowing the lawsuit to proceed before a federal district judge. The administration argues it must go before the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), a specialty body that oversees certain federal employee disputes. That question poses wider implications for other federal workers’ cases, too. Solicitor General D. John Sauer told the justices the lower ruling would “indefinitely thwart the MSPB.” “The answer to such prolific contravention of the Court’s precedents should not be to wait and see just how much instability will ensue,” Sauer wrote in court filings.
Vote to overhaul FEMA canceled after leaked report - An expert panel advising President Donald Trump about overhauling the Federal Emergency Management Agency canceled a meeting scheduled for 1 p.m. EST Thursday at which members were set to release a report recommending their changes to the disaster agency. The move came after Trump officials were angered that CNN had obtained a copy of the FEMA Review Council’s final report and published an article on its website Wednesday, according to two people who are close to the panel. One review council member told a person close to the panel that officials canceled the meeting to demonstrate that the leaked report has not been finalized and is subject to change. The Trump-appointed 13-member council, led by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, has been working for months on recommendations to streamline FEMA and speed up disaster aid. The cancellation apparently occurred at the last minute. Shortly after noon Thursday, Noem was testifying before the House Homeland Security Committee and left the hearing before it ended to attend the review council meeting. “I have to actually leave this hearing early because the FEMA Review Council is giving their report today on suggestions for changes to FEMA, and I have to co-chair it,” Noem told Rep. Josh Brecheen (R-Okla.), who had asked her a question. “I will be leaving soon to have to go do that,” Noem continued. “Those suggestions are Republicans and Democrats coming forward with how FEMA should go forward in the future based on the president’s vision for making sure that states get the chance to manage it and that local emergency managers get the chance to go and help their communities in a much more efficient way.” Just before saying she had to leave, Noem praised FEMA, which DHS oversees. “FEMA today is deploying resources two times faster on average than in history, which means the dollars are going out twice as fast as they ever have before,” Noem said without providing documentation. “And the president, as soon as these disasters are happening, is deploying those resources, to Republican and Democrat states. New Mexico, Texas, Alaska — they’re all getting dollars immediately and we’re responding immediately to our people.” Many governors and lawmakers of both parties have complained to Noem about the length of time Trump is taking to approve or deny requests for federal disaster aid. In its Daily Operations Brief published Thursday morning, FEMA notes that no action has been taken on a request for disaster aid submitted by Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly of Kansas on Aug. 19, nearly four months ago. The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately confirm the cancellation or respond to questions by POLITICO’s E&E News.
Donald Trump's tariffs may cost households $1,200 extra, Democrats argue - Democrats on the bicameral Joint Economic Committee (JEC) estimate that, on average, U.S. households have paid nearly $1,200 in additional costs in connection to President Trump’s sweeping tariffs.In a report released Thursday, the committee found that consumers paid more than $158 billion as a result of the additional levies from February to November. That marked an average of more than $1,197 per household during that period, with the average monthly cost rising from more than $54 in February to more than $181 in November. To compile its report, the JEC used official tariff revenue data from the Treasury Department and independent estimates of the percent of each tariff dollar that is paid by consumers.The report projects that if tariff costs remain at November levels for the next 12 months, families will pay an average of $2,100 next year. Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), the ranking member on the committee, said the report “shows that [Trump’s] tariffs have done nothing but drive prices even higher for families.”“At a time when both parties should be working together to lower costs, the President’s tax on American families is simply making things more expensive,” she added.When reached for comment, White House spokesperson Kush Desai said the president’s tariffs have “secured trillions in investments to make and hire in America as well as historic trade deals that finally level the playing field for American workers and industries.” “Democrats spent decades complaining about lopsided trade deals undermining the American working class, and now they’re complaining about the one president who has done something about it,” Desai added.
Goldman's Case For Falling Tariffs As Midterms Loom - With the cost of living having emerged as the dominant concern among voters, the Trump administration is likely to rely more on executive orders - particularly on trade - vs. relying on congress to enact legislation in order to influence economic sentiment ahead of midterms next year.
White House planning more ‘historic deals’ in minerals - President Donald Trump plans to forge more mineral deals with private companies and allies around the world and wants Congress to shield projects from lawsuits, a top White House official said Monday.Jarrod Agen, the executive director of the White House’s National Energy Dominance Council, said at a Center for Strategic and International Studies’ conference in Washington, that Trump has made minerals a centerpiece of his “America First” agenda and private companies have an open door at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.The Trump administration has financially supported a number of mining or processing projects, while also making the previously rare move of taking private equity stakes in companies like MP Materials, Lithium Americas and Trilogy Metals, arrangements that have raised eyebrows on and off Capitol Hill.“[Trump] is willing to put the U.S. government behind important projects, we are willing to flow capital and funding into important projects to get them off the ground,” said Agen. “This president is the best friend mining has ever had.”
Trump Media takes on fusion in $6B merger - The merger between President Donald Trump’s social media company and fusion energy giant TAE Technologies represents a massive cash bet, but it’s unclear how much it will advance a technology that hasn’t yet been proven at commercial scale. Under the $6 billion deal, Trump Media & Technology Group — the parent company of Truth Social — and fusion company TAE said they are planning to site and begin construction of the world’s first utility-scale fusion power plant, a feat that would transform electricity if it happens. The all-stock merger would create one of the world’s first publicly traded fusion companies and give Trump a major financial stake in development of a technology that has an unprecedented vision to create low-carbon power with the same reaction powering the sun and the stars. “We’re taking a big step forward toward revolutionary technology that will cement America’s global energy dominance,” said Devin Nunes, a former Republican California member of Congress and the CEO of Trump Media who now will be the co-CEO of the combined company. Upon closing, shareholders of each company will own approximately 50 percent of the combined venture. Trump is the largest shareholder of Trump Media, owning a share worth more than $1 billion. Trump Media said it agreed to pay up to $200 million in cash to TAE, which has raised more than $1.3 billion from Google, Chevron, Goldman Sachs and other investors. Former Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz is on TAE’s board. TAE is one of several fusion companies in a race to develop the world’s first fusion power plant, with several developers vowing to bring a generator online by the early 2030s. If they are successful, it could be revolutionary for the grid, which is increasingly under strain as electricity demand soars because of artificial intelligence. As of this fall, fusion investments have soared above $9.7 billion, a fivefold jump since 2021, according to the Fusion Industry Association. Among the industry leaders are Commonwealth Fusion Energy Systems, which is also backed by Google, and Helion Energy, which is supported by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Driving the enthusiasm in part are advances in supercomputing, magnets and a 2022 experiment at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory that demonstrated for the first time that a fusion reaction can produce more energy than is put into it by lasers — long a technical barrier. “In more than 40 years in fusion research, I’ve never seen this level of interest,” said Mike Campbell, a fusion expert and professor at University of California, San Diego. “While much remains, the deal symbolizes the intense interest in commercializing the last new energy source humanity will ever need.” But there are still many challenges for fusion, including that scientists have yet to perfect the infrastructure that can contain plasma created by fusing hydrogen isotopes to more than 100 million degrees Celsius. While the 2022 experiment demonstrated that a reaction can create more energy than lasers provided, that gain didn’t account for the energy needed to power the lasers in the first place. Critics say they are concerned the attention on fusion will detract from other technologies that can come online faster. Fusion also generates high-energy neutrons that can damage equipment and make it radioactive, creating a potential hazard for workers.
Democrats say they need leadership green light to back GOP bills to extend ACA tax credits - House Democrats say they’re lining up to support a bipartisan extension of enhanced ObamaCare subsidies — if they get a green light from party leaders. Supporters of two bipartisan proposals to extend the Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits, which are set to expire on Dec. 31, have launched discharge petitions to force votes on their legislation over the opposition of the GOP leaders who control the chamber. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) has declined to weigh in on either of the proposals, which would extend the subsidies for one or two years, pressing instead for his partisan plan to extend those benefits for three years. His strategy has been for Democrats to keep their powder dry and let Republican infighting on health care take center stage. But a growing number of rank-and-file Democrats say they expect that to change next week if it becomes clear that none of the partisan plans — Republican or Democratic — have the support to move to the Senate. In that case, they’re expecting Democratic leaders to rally around at least one of the bipartisan bills, which would open the floodgates of Democratic signatures on at least one of the petitions and force the legislation to the floor. “We’ve got to do one or the other. … We need to make sure that something is done so the health care costs for these American citizens on the Affordable Care Act don’t go crazy,” said Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.). “That is such a critical bill,” he added, “I think people will line up to sign.” Asked if the Democrats were simply waiting on the OK from Jeffries, Meeks didn’t pause a moment. “That’s exactly right,” he said. “We haven’t been given any guidance,” echoed Rep. Ami Bera (D-Calif.). “But my opinion would be — if nothing happens, if they can’t pass a vote — I think we’ll probably try to force a vote.” Bipartisan lawmakers this week launched two discharge petitions designed to force votes to prevent the subsidies from lapsing. One of them, sponsored by Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) and Jared Golden (D-Maine), combines a two-year subsidy extension with a series of policy reforms, including new income eligibility limits, the elimination of no-premium plans and the promotion of health savings accounts. The other, sponsored by Reps. Jen Kiggans (R-Va.) and Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.), features a one-year subsidy extension, with less stringent changes to eligibility. Both petitions have won the endorsement of more than 10 Republicans — an extraordinary show of discontent by a majority party toward its leadership. But the success of either petition hinges on overwhelming Democratic support that hasn’t yet arrived. Indeed, Democrats are approaching the process with notable caution. “We’re actively reviewing those two discharge petitions, and we’ll have more to say about it early next week,” Jeffries told reporters Friday in the Capitol.
Amendment to extend ObamaCare subsidies hits roadblock --An agreement between moderate Republicans and GOP leadership in the House to allow a vote on extending expiring Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies is on the rocks as the two sides squabble over the contents of the amendment. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) and other GOP centrists are planning to introduce an amendment in the House Rules Committee on Tuesday that pairs a two-year extension of the subsidies with eligibility reforms, according to a House GOP staffer who spoke on the condition of anonymity. But GOP leadership insisted the extension needed to be offset with spending cuts — a demand the moderates balked at. Conservatives opposed to extending the subsidies have frequently cited the cost, which is estimated to be at least $35 billion per year. “I think leadership was supportive of our efforts to put forth an amendment. Where there was some disagreements was if a pay-for would be included, or if a pay-for would not be included,” a GOP staffer said. “Our members felt strongly that, since this is their amendment, they didn’t want to include any pay-fors or cuts to mandatory spending when it would have to be health care related. So that was a no-go for them. So that was kind of where the conversations kind of met a sticking point, and it was — I don’t think either side were willing to really move on that,” the source said. The measure incorporates key provisions of a bill Fitzpatrick and Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) previously introduced, but it does not contain the bill’s proposed reforms to the pharmacy benefits manager industry. It’s uncertain whether the amendment will ultimately advance out of the Rules Committee, which includes a number of conservative spending hawks. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) has said he understands that moderates are worried about the politics of not extending the subsidies. But he has given no indication that he is interested in passing any such legislation. The enhanced subsidies expire Dec. 31, and there’s almost no time to extend them this year. The subsequent spike in health insurance costs will hit millions of people ahead of next year’s midterm elections. The politics of ObamaCare have barely changed since Democrats shut down the government for more than 40 days to try to force Congress to extend the subsidies. After two failed votes in the Senate, lawmakers are essentially back where they started in September. Congressional Republicans are deeply divided on the issue. Despite warnings from moderates that the party will lose its majority if it allows health care costs to soar for millions of voters, GOP lawmakers in the House and Senate have been unable to overcome the party’s long-standing aversion to the ACA.
Cassidy says ‘I don’t care who gets the credit’ on ACA subsidies extension - Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) called on Congress to pass legislation addressing expiring subsidies offered under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), regardless of who gets the credit.“Good policy is good politics,” Cassidy told host Chris Stirewalt on NewsNation’s “The Hill Sunday.” “Let’s not have a Republican plan or a Democratic plan — let’s have an American plan. If we address it, I don’t care who gets the credit.”Cassidy, the chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, co-sponsored legislation that would redirect money from the tax credits into health savings accounts (HSA) paired with bronze or catastrophic plans on the ACA marketplace. The measure failed in the upper chamber earlier this week, as did a Democratic-backed proposal to extend the subsidies for three years. The enhanced credits, first passed during the COVID-19 pandemic and extended by the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, expire at the end of this month. Cassidy reiterated his support for the HSA provision Sunday, while also noting the possibility of an “accommodation” on the expiring subsidies. “Maybe we can still strike a deal. That’s what I’m pushing for, that’s what I’m hoping for [and] I think we can,” he noted.
Why Florida is ground zero for coming ObamaCare storm - Florida will be hit harder than any other state if ObamaCare subsidies expire at the end of the year, which is looking increasingly likely as Republicans in Congress struggle to unite behind a plan to extend the tax credits. More than 1.5 million Floridians could lose health care as monthly payments skyrocket. Average premium costs could shoot up by 132 percent, or by $521 annually, for Floridians who currently receive enhanced ObamaCare subsidies, according to the Center for American Progress. Florida leads the country in the number of individuals enrolled in an Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace plan, with 1 out of 5 Floridians, or 4.7 million people, benefiting from subsidized health insurance, according to KFF, a nonprofit organization focused on health policy. The Sunshine State’s relatively large number of small-business owners and hospitality workers account for the particularly high reliance on ACA plans, said Erica Li, a health policy analyst at Florida Policy Institute. “We’re going to see, unfortunately, a rise in the amount of people who are uninsured. And that’s unfortunate, because even if a person is young and chooses to forgo health insurance because they may be healthier, you never know if you’ll have an accident or diagnosis that will require health care coverage and continual care,” Li said. The rising costs could also be front of mind for voters heading into next year’s midterms, though Susan MacManus, political analyst at the University of South Florida, said it’s too soon to say whether Democrats can gain an advantage in the increasingly red state. “The bottom line is that we don’t know how it’ll play out, because we don’t know what the Florida Legislature might do to affect health care costs. There are some proposals and bills that are on the table. They haven’t really been publicized much yet, so we don’t know exact details, a lot of moving pieces here, but without question, people are very worried about it,” MacManus said.
House won't vote on ObamaCare amendments after heated Rules Committee meeting -- Republicans on the House Rules Committee shut the door Tuesday on amendments to extend the expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies, effectively setting the stage for a surge in health insurance premiums as Congress leaves for winter recess later this week. A group of moderate Republicans offered the amendments during a committee debate on a broader GOP health care package, which advanced by a recorded vote of 6-4. However, all of the amendments were ruled out of order, meaning they will not be voted on by the full House. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.) was one of the Republicans who offered an amendment to the panel. His amendment would have incorporated key provisions of a bill he and Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) introduced to extend the subsidies for two years while implementing certain eligibility reforms. “I think the only thing worse than a clean extension without any income limits and any reforms — because it’s not a perfect system — the only thing worse than that would be expiration,” Fitzpatrick said. He added that there would be “consequences” if the amendments were not made in the order. The subsidies are set to expire at the end of this month, and moderates have warned that failing to extend them could cost the party its majority in the 2026 midterms. A Democratic attempt to bring the Republican amendments to a vote was unsuccessful. Hard-line conservatives have staunchly opposed extending the subsidies, arguing ObamaCare is fundamentally flawed. “Now we’re sitting here, and we’re listening to nonsense about health care, where my colleagues on the other side of the aisle sit here saying, ‘Well, you guys aren’t doing anything about the massive, expensive cost of health care.’ Why do you think it’s expensive? Because you literally cut a deal with insurance companies to run health care,” Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) said. The GOP health care package would not address the expiring Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies. Rather, it would appropriate funds to pay for cost-sharing reductions in ObamaCare, a complicated move that would lower premiums for some people but decrease the overall number of subsidies and make premiums more expensive for others. It would also expand association health plans and make it easier for businesses to fund their own insurance plans. GOP moderates still have the option of gathering enough signatures on one of the two discharge petitions that would force action on bipartisan legislation to extend the subsidies, though both petitions would require substantial Democratic support. One petition would force action on Fitzpatrick and Golden’s bill. Another would force action on a bill by Reps. Jen Kiggans (R-Va.) and Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) to extend the subsidies for one year with modest adjustments to eligibility. However, Democrats have been urging Republicans to join a partisan discharge petition led by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) to advance a three-year extension of the ACA subsidies. The effort is just four Republican signatures short of the 218 needed to move forward. Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.), who supported Fitzpatrick’s amendment, urged Democrats during the Rules hearing to sign on to the bipartisan petitions. “To me, this is very simple,” Lawler said. “Regardless of party, if we agree that there needs to be an extension, if we agree that the expiration of the enhanced premium tax credit would cause a spike in premiums, then we have to come together in a bipartisan way. The ‘my way or the highway’ approach to governing here is not going to work.”
House GOP will not allow amendment vote to extend ObamaCare subsidies -- Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said there will not be an amendment vote on extending expiring ObamaCare enhanced subsidies as part of a House Republican health care bill this week, in a move that is infuriating moderate Republicans who had been pushing to go on the record about the subsidies. Johnson said at a press conference Tuesday that about a dozen Republican members in competitive districts are “fighting hard to make sure that they reduce costs for all of their constituents.” “Many of them did want to vote on this ObamaCare COVID-era subsidy the Democrats created,” Johnson said. “We looked for a way to try to allow for that pressure release valve, and it just was not to be.” Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.), one of the members who had been pushing for a vote to extend the subsidies that expire Dec. 31, fumed at the decision as he emerged from a House Republican Conference meeting Tuesday morning. “I think it’s idiotic not to have an up-or-down vote on this issue,” Lawler said, adding: “It is political malpractice.” “I am pissed for the American people. This is absolute bulls‑‑‑,” Lawler said. Responding to Lawler’s comments, Johnson noted he recently campaigned for him in New York and said Lawler “fights hard for New York, as every Republican in this conference does for their districts.” Johnson said members worked on a potential amendment through the weekend, and while “everybody was at the table in good faith,” and “agreement wasn’t made.” Negotiations between moderates and GOP leadership on an amendment to extend the subsidies hit a roadblock over the weekend as GOP leaders and other conservatives said any language extending the expensive subsidies would need to be paired with spending cuts, The Hill previously reported. The House Rules Committee will meet at 2 p.m. EST Tuesday to tee up the House GOP health care bill — dubbed the “Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act” — that includes funds to pay for “cost-sharing reductions,” reforms to the pharmacy benefit manager industry, and expansion of association health plans.
House set to vote on health care plan, as 4 GOP reps back Dems’ ObamaCare effort -Just ahead of a House procedural vote Wednesday on a narrow, GOP-crafted health care bill, four Republican members defied their own leadership and joined a Democratic discharge petition that would force a vote on the House floor on extending Affordable Care Act subsidies.GOP Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (Pa.), Mike Lawler (N.Y.), Rob Bresnahan (Pa.) and Ryan Mackenzie (Pa.) broke with their party. Yet they turned around and supported a procedural vote on the GOP health care plan that did not include ObamaCare extensions.House Judiciary Committee members questioned former special prosecutor Jack Smith in a closed-door deposition Wednesday morning as part of their probe into Trump investigations.Over in the Senate, the National Defense Authorization Act passed by a 77-20 vote, sending it to President Trump’s desk.Earlier Wednesday, Trump visited Dover, Del., for the dignified transfer of the remains of two National Guard soldiers killed in Syria over the weekend. At 9 p.m., he will address the nation from the White House.
House advances GOP health care package that doesn’t include ObamaCare subsidy extension -- The House advanced a GOP health care bill Wednesday, even as moderate Republicans signed a Democratic discharge petition to extend the Affordable Care Act subsidies in an act of defiance against leadership. The vote was 213-209. Rep. Jen Kiggans (Va.) was the only Republican to vote no. The GOP package would not address the expiring ObamaCare subsidies. Rather, it would appropriate funds to pay for cost-sharing reductions in ObamaCare, a complicated move that would lower premiums for some people but decrease the overall number of subsidies and make premiums more expensive for others. Moderate Republicans had been sounding the alarm for weeks that failing to extend the subsidies would drive up American health care premiums and cost the party its majority in the 2026 midterms. The subsidies will expire at the end of this month, and lawmakers will be leaving for a winter recess later this week. They were furiousTuesday when Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said the House wouldn’t vote on an amendment to extend the subsidies. Wednesday’s vote came shortly after four GOP centrists — Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (Pa.), Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.), Rob Bresnahan (Pa.) and Ryan Mackenzie (Pa.) — signed on to a discharge petition from House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) to extend the subsidies for three years, in a major act of defiance against House leadership. Their votes were enough to push the petition to the 218-signature threshold to force a vote. But the moderate Republicans still allowed the rule that tees up votes on the GOP health care bill and other measures to be adopted. Several had said Tuesday they backed the provisions in the legislation, even if they were frustrated by the lack of action on the subsidies. Negotiations between moderates and GOP leadership to try to get an amendment vote to extend the subsidies fell apart after leadership insisted any extension would need to be paired with spending cuts. Johnson told reporters Tuesday that there would not be an amendment vote, noting many Republicans in competitive districts “did want to vote on this ObamaCare COVID-era subsidy the Democrats created.” “We looked for a way to try to allow for that pressure release valve, and it just was not to be,” Johnson said. Even so, moderates introduced amendments at the House Rules Committee in an eleventh-hour push. Republicans on the panel ended up ruling them all out of order. “I think the only thing worse than a clean extension without any income limits and any reforms — because it’s not a perfect system — the only thing worse than that will be expiration,” Fitzpatrick, who introduced an amendment at the hearing, said. Fitzpatrick had been leading a separate discharge petition effort to force floor action on a bipartisan bill he and Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) introduced to extend the subsidies for two years while implementing certain eligibility reforms. Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) had led another discharge petition effort to force action on a separate bill he Kiggans introduced to extend the subsidies for one year with modest eligibility reforms. But neither petition had gotten significant Democratic backing. Jeffries had been urging Republicans to endorse his petition, instead, and the quartet of moderates did so Wednesday. “Mike Johnson should bring the bill to the floor immediately,” Jeffries wrote in a post on the social platform X after his petition reached the 218-signature mark.
GOP senators frustrated by Speaker’s handling of explosive health care issue - Republican senators who defeated a Democratic bill to extend ObamaCare subsidies for three years without reforms to the program are frustrated the same proposal appears likely to pass the House after Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) was unable to quell a rebellion within his own party. GOP senators want to preserve their working relationship with Johnson, so they are careful about criticizing him publicly. But they aren’t happy Johnson took a hard-line stance against putting legislation on the House floor to extend the expiring Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies only to watch helplessly as moderate GOP rebels signed onto a discharge petition to advance a Democratic plan to extend them through 2028. The Democratic proposal now has enough momentum to pass the House, which means it would likely come to the Senate early next year, putting GOP senators on the defensive once again over the expiring ACA subsidies just when funding for broad swaths of government is due to expire Jan. 30. GOP senators said Johnson’s rapid loss of control of a group of his members signal the weakness of his leadership, given the narrow House Republican majority and fears that the House may flip to Democrats in next year’s election. “It strikes me as odd the House is passing something we rejected,” said one Republican senator who requested anonymity to vent frustration over the Democrats’ emerging victory in the House. “There needs to be a plan. There should have been a plan to move forward with a result,” the lawmaker added. Johnson and Thune are opposed to extending the enhanced ACA subsidies, which many Republicans argue are a holdover from the COVID-19 pandemic that has further fueled the increase in health insurance premiums in recent years. Both GOP leaders opposed scheduling votes on bills to extend the expiring subsidies for shorter periods of time — such as one or two years — and making reforms to the program, proposals that were put forth by GOP lawmakers such as Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine), Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio), Jon Husted (R-Ohio) and a variety of House Republican moderates. Now the Democratic bill to extend the subsidies for a full three years without reform — which would set up another debate about their expiration ahead of the 2028 presidential election — has more momentum. “It will really put a lot of pressure on here,” said a second Republican senator who requested anonymity to comment on what the passage of a Democratic bill to extend the health insurance subsidies means for Senate Republicans. “It’s going to come over here. … Then the Senate is really the bottleneck stopping any action on subsidies and premiums. It’s going to be a lot of pressure,” the lawmaker said.
House passes GOP health care bill without ObamaCare subsidy extension - House Republicans on Wednesday passed a partisan package of health care policies designed to provide a conservative alternative to extending the expiring ObamaCare subsidies. The legislation has little chance of passing through the Senate, however, and it does not address the cost cliff that’s expected to hit 22 million Americans when the enhanced Affordable Care Act (ACA) tax credits sunset on Dec. 31 — a dynamic that’s infuriated centrist Republicans who’ve clamored for months to extend the benefits. Still, even the frustrated Republicans support the conservative policies, and the GOP bill passed without difficulty, 216-211. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) joined all Democrats in voting against the bill. The bill, dubbed the Lower Health Care Premiums for All Americans Act, includes policies that are widely popular among Republicans — including funds to pay for “cost-sharing reductions,” reforms to the pharmacy benefit manager industry, and an expansion of association health plans. But the GOP’s unity on the leadership bill belied the underlying tensions within the House GOP conference, where Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and his centrist wing have jousted for weeks over the fate of the enhanced ObamaCare subsidies — an issue that could play an outsized role in the battle for control of the House in next year’s midterms. Those tensions boiled over this week when negotiations between GOP leaders and moderates over allowing an amendment vote on a plan to extend the subsidies with some reforms broke down. In response, four moderate GOP rebels in swing districts hopped the aisle to sign a discharge petition led by Democratic leadership to force a vote to extend the enhanced subsidies for three years. Afterward, the frustrated Republicans pinned the blame on Johnson and GOP leaders, saying they had given the rebels no choice. “As I’ve stated many times before, the only policy that is worse than a clean three-year extension without any reforms, is a policy of complete expiration without any bridge. Unfortunately, it is House leadership themselves that have forced this outcome,” Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), one of the rebels, said in a statement. Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.), who also signed the Democrats’ petition, echoed that message. “I still believe a straight three-year extension is not the right policy, but I fundamentally believe doing nothing is even worse,” he said. “And to me, leadership left us with no option.” The existence of the GOP health care package is in large part due to Democrats in Congress bringing the subsidies to the forefront of debate, and demanding negotiations on the matter as a condition of ending the government shutdown. While Democrats failed in getting a bipartisan compromise, they succeeded in highlighting the issue of rising premiums for ObamaCare enrollees, adding to voter concern about affordability. Republicans have used their health care bill as a way to combat that Democratic messaging, arguing that they are looking for ways to lower premiums across the board and not just for the 22 million Americans who receive enhanced subsidies — who Republicans say amount to just a small percentage of the population. “Democrats are worried about 6 percent of our country. Republicans are worried about 100 percent of our country, and premiums are going up, and not a single Republican has ever voted for ObamaCare,”
Trump to summon insurance execs to demand premium cuts - President Trump said Friday he plans to hold a meeting with major insurance companies in the coming days in a bid to pressure them to lower prices for consumers who are set to see premium costs soar when ObamaCare’s enhanced subsidies expire at the end of the year. “I’m going to call in the insurance companies that are making so much money, and they have to make less, a lot less,” Trump said during an Oval Office announcement on drug pricing. “I’m going to see if they get their price down, to put it very bluntly. And I think that is a very big statement.” Trump said the meeting could take place in Florida, where he will spend the next two weeks, or at the White House the first week of 2026. He said he came up with the idea on the spot. Shares of major health insurers like UnitedHealth Group Inc., Cigna Group and Humana Inc. plummeted after Trump’s remarks. At the same event, Trump heaped praise on the drug company CEOs who have made deals with the administration to lower costs for Medicare recipients. In the face of tariff threats from the White House, 14 drug companies have publicly reached agreements with the White House in exchange for tariff reprieve. “I have a feeling maybe if they would act like these incredible, brilliant, responsible citizens … people that love our country and they love the world,” Trump said of the pharma CEOs. Insurers, meanwhile, this year tried to fight Congress and the administration on the impact of nearly $1 trillion in Medicaid cuts in the GOP’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act. They have also been lobbying heavily to extend expiring enhanced ObamaCare subsidies. But Republicans blocked Democratic efforts to extend those subsidies, and Congress departed Washington for the rest of the year without a deal. When the tax credits expire on Dec. 31, out-of-pocket premium costs for tens of millions of Americans will, on average, more than double in 2026.
Racially charged language on mothers and babies taints vaccine advisory meeting - Su Wang, MD, tuned in to a meeting of federal vaccine advisers earlier this month with some trepidation. She wanted to share her experience living with hepatitis B and encourage the advisers to continue recommending vaccine for all newborns. But she was also prepared to hear vaccine misinformation from the committee, whose members were handpicked by Health and Human Services Secretary (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime anti-vaccine activist.What Wang didn’t anticipate, she said, was anti-immigrant rhetoric and calls for racially profiling moms and babies.“I felt targeted,” said Wang, an internal medicine physician whose parents immigrated legally to the United States from Taiwan. Throughout the two-day meeting, speakers and committee members singled out immigrants and people from Asia as potential sources of infection. “That elephant in the room that I'll mention is immigration,” said Evelyn Griffin, MD, a member of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), which advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on vaccines. “We have had years of illegal immigration, undocumented people coming in from higher-endemicity countries,” said Griffin, an obstetrician-gynecologist who said she immigrated from Poland legally. Robert Malone, MD, ACIP’s vice chair, singled out “economically disadvantaged Asian immigrant populations” as being at high risk for hepatitis B, which can cause liver failure and cancer. Up to 25% of children with chronic hepatitis B infections will die prematurely because of the disease. Climate researcher Cynthia Nevison, PhD, a CDC contractor, described hepatitis B as primarily a concern for babies of “foreign-born” mothers and said it can occur in some “high-risk immigrant families,” stressing that there was little risk that the “average American child” would contract the virus from siblings or other relatives. Nevison suggested that immigrants be tested for the virus before entering the United States—a practice already recommended by the CDC. The health agency’s website says that most refugees are tested for hepatitis B before departing for the United States. The US Customs and Immigration Services alreadyrequires immigrants to receives vaccines against hepatitis B and other immunizations recommended by ACIP. Flor Munoz, MD, a non-voting liaison member of ACIP, told CIDRAP News the committee’s remarks about immigrants were “derogatory and discriminatory” and “absolutely so scary.”Disparaging comments about immigrants was “pervasive,” said Munoz, a pediatric infectious disease specialist in Texas who became a US citizen after moving to the United States to work as a physician. “It was not just a mention here or there,” she said. “It's terrifying for government appointees to describe immigrants this way.”An HHS spokeswoman said ACIP’s recommendations “rely solely on established scientific standards. Allegations of racial bias distort the record and undermine the hard work of committee members who carry out an evidence-driven process to protect the public and our nation’s children.” Hepatitis B can spread through microscopic amounts of blood. Children can be infected with hepatitis B by their mothers during delivery, or later through close contact with household members. Hepatitis B also can spread through sex with an infected partner or by sharing needles. Health care workers can be infected from patients with hepatitis B, which can survive for a week on surfaces. In spite of these risks, ACIP voted during the meeting to drop a 34-year-old recommendation that all babies receive their first dose of hepatitis B vaccine at birth, a practice that has been credited with reducing hepatitis B infections in children by 99%. Instead of encouraging universal vaccination, the committee issued different recommendations depending on whether mothers have tested positive for the virus. The committee recommended a birth dose of hepatitis B vaccine only for the newborns of mothers who test positive for the virus or whose infection status is unknown.ACIP voted to recommend “shared decision making” for babies of mothers who test negative for hepatitis B, in which patients and health providers discuss the most appropriate intervention for an individual. A footnote to the voting language on the CDC website advises parents and health care providers to consider the additional risk to babies if a household member tests positive for hepatitis B or if “there is frequent contact with persons who have emigrated from areas where hepatitis B is common.” That advice reads like a prescription for racial and ethnic profiling, said Wang, one of only a handful of members of the public selected to address the committee. Wang was prepared to speak to ACIP via teleconferencing, describing how she was infected as a baby from her grandparents, both of whom were health care professionals and unaware of their diagnosis. Her grandfather, a dentist, later died of liver cancer related to hepatitis B.After reading the footnote, Wang said she briefly considered providing her testimony off-camera and under a pseudonym. As the child of Asian immigrants, she didn’t want to reinforce the stereotype the committee was creating.Wang said her initial fear turned to resolve, however, and she refused to be silenced. In her testimony, she urged the committee to continue recommending the universal birth dose of hepatitis B vaccine, as it has for 34 years.“I see patients with hepatitis B every day, many of whom do not have any of the risk factors,” Wang told the committee, live on camera and using her real name. “I'm here to advocate for all children.”“We definitely felt a very anti-immigrant sentiment being expressed by the committee,” said Jason M. Goldman, MD, MACP, a non-voting liaison member of ACIP, who also addressed the committee via videoconferencing.Blaming certain groups for spreading a disease creates a stigma that can leave people afraid to be tested or seek treatment, said Goldman, who is president of the American College of Physicians and a clinical affiliate professor at Florida Atlantic University. “I honestly do not know where this is coming from,” Goldman told CIDRAP News. Because nations in Africa and the the Western Pacific have the highest burden of hepatitis B, the footnote could lead doctors to single out Asian and African immigrant families, said Richard J. Pan, MD, MPH, a pediatrician on the faculty at the University of California, Davis School of Medicine. Pan noted that immigrants have long been falsely blamed for spreading infectious diseases. Many recent infectious disease outbreaks in the United States have been started not by immigrants, but by unvaccinated American citizens who travel to countries with low vaccination rates and bring infections back with them, Pan said.Using racial and ethnic stereotypes when discussing disease is harmful for everyone, not just immigrants, Pan said. That’s because parents who are not recent immigrants may assume their children are not at risk for the virus, leaving them unprotected. “Viruses don't care about state borders, what language you speak, or color you are,” Wang told CIDRAP News. Suggesting that only immigrants are at risk of hepatitis B “gives the false impression that if you’re not in a ‘high-risk’ category, you’re somehow immune,” Goldman said. “That’s now how diseases work.”Health care providers already spend an enormous amount of time trying to counter anti-vaccine information. Goldman fears that providers will need to begin dispelling myths about immigrants and infectious disease, as well.“We now have this other layer of misinformation and disinformation that we’re going to have to push back against, because it’s not good for public health,” Goldman said. “It’s very disheartening and disturbing that this is a further politicization of health care…“This committee, Secretary Kennedy’s vaccine committee, is going backwards into a situation where they’re putting more people at risk,” Goldman said. Demetre Daskalakis, MD, MPH, former director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, described the footnote and conversation as “shocking/not shocking.” Instead of carefully considering scientific evidence, Daskalakis said the committee “just sort of went with the vibes and their vibe is, “If you identify Asian people somewhere near your child, then maybe you should get them a hep B vaccine,’ which is completely insane.” At a September ACIP meeting, “they kept saying, “Hepatitis B isn't a problem in a normal household,” said Daskalakis, who resigned from the agency in August due to Kennedy’s undermining of public health. Daskalakis compared the profiling of Asian immigrants to the language that many people used about AIDS in the early 1980s, when the disease was characterized as an illness affecting only gay men, people who inject illegal drugs and Haitian immigrants. Targeting vaccines to people in particular groups didn’t work in the past, said Ravi Jhaveri, MD, head of infectious diseases at Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago. When the United States vaccinated only babies believed to be at high risk, many infected infants fell through the cracks, and hepatitis B infections failed to decline. Tina Q. Tan, MD, a professor of pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, encouraged parents not to follow the ACIP vaccine recommendations, which “have absolutely no scientific basis. This type of recommendation really severely negatively impacts the American public and only does harm.” Instead, Tan said parents and physicians should look for guidance from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Vaccine Integrity Project, whose recent report found no reason to stop vaccinating newborns against hepatitis B. Munoz said she has seen what can happen to unvaccinated babies. A few years ago, she cared for a 3-month-old baby who needed a liver transplant because of organ damage caused by chronic hepatitis B. The baby’s mother tested negative for hepatitis B while she was pregnant and assumed her baby would not need a birth dose of the vaccine. That blood test, however, was incorrect.Although the baby recovered well from the transplant surgery, Munoz said the girl will need immunosuppressive drugs for the rest of her life to prevent her body from rejecting the donated organ.
Op-Ed: Here's what removal of the hepatitis B birth dose will look like | CIDRAP --On December 14, 1999, a previously healthy infant was admitted to a Michigan hospital with diarrhea and jaundice. Within hours, doctors diagnosed acute liver failure caused by hepatitis B. She died three days later. Her mother had tested positive for hepatitis B at her first prenatal visit. She attended 10 appointments. But somewhere between that positive test and the delivery room, the information vanished. The record provided to the birth hospital stated the mother was "hepatitis-negative." By the time the infant received her first vaccine at 2.5 months, the virus had already taken hold. This was not an isolated failure. The Immunization Action Coalition documented more than 500 similar transmissions from 1999 to 2002: positive tests not reported, results lost, records transcribed incorrectly. Universal hepatitis B vaccination at birth exists precisely because screening systems fail. On December 5, 2025, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) voted 8 to 3 to end the universal birth-dose recommendation for infants born to mothers who test negative for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg). In its place, the committee adopted "shared clinical decision-making"—a framework that removes the default and allows delay of the first dose until at least two months of age. Infants born to mothers who are HBsAg-positive, or whose status is unknown, are still recommended to receive the birth dose. For the first time in decades, the lives of more infants will now again depend on screening systems. Unlike adults, who clear hepatitis B more than 95% of the time, infants are immunologically defenseless. Approximately 90% of those infected in the first months of life will develop chronic infection. One in four will die prematurely from cirrhosis or liver cancer—diseases that emerge decades later, long after anyone remembers the missed vaccine, the lost lab result, the newborn who never had a chance. When a newborn is exposed at birth, hepatitis B immune globulin (HBIG), which provides immediate but temporary protection, plus the birth dose is approximately 94% effective when given within the first 12 to 24 hours. The new ACIP guidance allows delay of the first dose until at least two months for infants of mothers who test negative. For an exposed newborn, that delay is the ballgame. There is no second chance.The committee's decision assumes prenatal screening reliably identifies at-risk infants. It does not. About 14% of pregnant women in the United States are never tested for hepatitis B. About 2% of pregnant women receive no prenatal care at all. Among those who test positive during pregnancy, only a third receive recommended follow-up, and the National Perinatal Hepatitis B Prevention Program identifies fewer than half of infants born to infected mothers each year. Those are only the gaps we can measure. The committee's decision assumes prenatal screening reliably identifies at-risk infants. It does not. Screening cannot catch what it cannot see. Half of the 2.4 million Americans with chronic hepatitis B do not know they are infected. People can seroconvert (become newly infected) after a negative test. Infants can be infected by household contacts—the virus survives on surfaces for at least seven days, and transmission rates among susceptible household contacts of infected persons range from 14% to 60%. Before universal birth dose vaccination, US-born children of immigrant parents who themselves were uninfected still showed hepatitis B rates of 7% to 11% from community exposure alone.The birth dose addressed every one of these vulnerabilities. It did not require perfect screening, perfect records, or perfect follow-up. It simply vaccinated every newborn.There is no new safety signal. Forty years of randomized trials, national surveillance, and long-term follow-up have consistently found the birth dose to be safe. A recent systematic review found no benefit to delaying the first dose and no increase in serious adverse events among infants vaccinated at birth. For clinicians, the ACIP vote creates an immediate practical problem: Federal guidance now conflicts with the professional standard of care. Within hours of the vote, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) issued a statement calling the decision "irresponsible and purposely misleading." The AAP, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American Academy of Family Physicians, and the Infectious Diseases Society of America have reaffirmed that universal birth-dose vaccination remains the standard of care for their members. The Red Book—the AAP's authoritative reference on pediatric infectious diseases—has not changed. Hospital standing orders, in most systems, have not changed.Physicians now face a choice between following a federal advisory committee that abandoned its own evidence-to-recommendation framework and instead following the professional societies whose guidelines define their standard of care. This creates immediate medicolegal uncertainty: In a case involving a preventable perinatal hepatitis B infection, a plaintiff's attorney will cite the AAP guideline, not the ACIP vote. A reconstituted federal panel's deviation from established science does not constitute a defensible standard of care.For now, the answer is clear: follow the Red Book. But the question of where to look for guidance is no longer simple. ACIP was designed to provide a unified, evidence-based national standard. That function has been compromised. Clinicians must now triangulate between professional society guidelines, state health department directives—California, New York, Illinois, and others have already reaffirmed the birth dose—and their own institutional policies. This is not how vaccine guidance is supposed to work in a functioning public health system.Under the Affordable Care Act, private insurers must cover vaccines recommended by ACIP without cost-sharing. The shift to "shared clinical decision-making" can preserve that coverage—vaccines under this designation, like meningococcal B, remain covered—but only if the CDC director formally adopts the recommendation and publishes it on the immunization schedule.The current Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary has made no secret of his skepticism toward the childhood vaccine schedule. If implementation or language shifts—if HHS declines to ratify the recommendation, or publishes it in a way that suggests the vaccine is "not recommended for routine use"—insurers gain room to add friction. Cost-sharing requirements or coverage limitations would transform the birth dose from a default protection into a financial barrier for families without robust insurance.The Vaccines for Children (VFC) program will continue to provide the vaccine free for Medicaid-eligible and uninsured children. But VFC administration fees are already inadequate, and the added counseling burden of shared decision-making is not compensated. Safety-net clinics—the providers that serve the populations most vulnerable to screening failures—face a financial disincentive to engage in the very conversations the new policy requires.This is how vaccine coverage erodes: not through outright prohibition, but through administrative friction, funding ambiguity, and the quiet accumulation of barriers that fall hardest on those with the thinnest margin for error.Modeling estimates project 1,400 additional chronic pediatric hepatitis B infections per year, approximately 300 additional cases of liver cancer, and 480 preventable deaths over the lifetimes of these children—along with more than $222 million in excess annual health care costs.The infants most likely to fall through screening gaps are those born to families without consistent prenatal care, who are uninsured or underinsured, or live in communities where health care access is already fragmented. And infants who receive the birth dose are more likely to complete the full vaccine series; removing it raises the risk of children falling behind on all their immunizations.The birth dose was a safety net. Safety nets exist for patients the system fails to catch. That is who will pay for this decision. It is extraordinarily rare for countries to roll back a universal birth-dose policy once established—because the whole point is protecting infants from predictable screening and follow-up failures. The United States is now doing so, not because the science demanded it, but because a reconstituted committee, presented with ideology dressed as inquiry, voted to let it happen.
CDC awards $1.6 million for hepatitis B vaccine study by controversial Danish researchers - The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)has awarded an unsolicited $1.6 million grant for vaccine research to Danish researchers whose studies have been challenged by mainstream scientists but championed by anti-vaccine activists, including Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.According to a notice in the Federal Register posted yesterday, the CDC is paying the University of Southern Denmark to conduct a single-blind clinical trial of the hepatitis B vaccine in newborns in Guinea-Bissau, a small country in West Africa with exceptionally high rates of maternal and infant mortality, where nearly one in five people are infected with the hepatitis B virus.The CDC is an agency within HHS. The study aims to assess the optimal timing and delivery of hepatitis B vaccinations, according to the notice.The new study was awarded without any competition from any other scientists, giving it “the appearance of blatant cronyism,” said Angela Rasmussen, PhD, a virologist and professor at the University of Saskatchewan.Although the federal announcement did not include the names of the researchers, the Danish university’s Bandim Health Project, which has conducted vaccine research in the developing African country for decades, has acknowledged being awarded the CDC grant.The Bandim project leaders have claimed to find “non-specific effects” from vaccines—some good and some bad—that they say should change how vaccine safety studies are conducted. Their message has resonated with Kennedy, a long-time anti-vaccine activist. In June, Kennedy used a single study by the Bandim group to justify canceling more than $1 billion in funding for childhood vaccinations in developing countries. The observational study found an increased risk of death in children who received a combined vaccine for diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DPT) that hasn’t been used in the United States in three decades. Scientists say people shouldn’t put too much faith in that study, which is an outlier and conflicts with hundreds of studies showing that vaccines are safe and save lives. Researchers and policy makers normally consider the totality of scientific evidence on vaccines, rather than a single study, which may be flawed. Also, observational studies, in which scientists merely follow patients but do not randomly assign them to undergo different medical interventions, are not able to prove cause and effect.Yet Children’s Health Defense, the anti-vaccine organization Kennedy founded, cites the Danish group’s research on multiple pages of its website. One article praises the Bandim Health’s founder, Danish anthropologist Peter Aaby, casting him as a martyr who lost his funding when he suggested vaccines cause more harm than good.Multiple scientists have criticized the Bandim group’s methodology and conclusions.A review published in Vaccine last month found that Bandim Health researchers “have systematically over-interpreted the findings from their randomized trials” for 25 years. The group “systematically selected and highlighted results that supported their theories, while downplaying the fact that they did not confirm the primary hypothesis the trials were actually designed to test,” said Henrik Stovring, PhD, a professor of biomedicine at Denmark’s Aarhus University who led the new review, in a press release. “In 23 out of 25 articles, the researchers highlighted secondary findings as support for their theories, but in 22 of these cases the evidence disappeared after proper statistical handling,” said Stovring said, who is also a professor at the Steno Diabetes Center Aarhus. “When you look at the overall picture, there are almost no real findings left.”Two reviews commissioned by the World Health Organization concluded that the evidence for non-specific effects “remains weak and vulnerable to biases.”Danish media also have criticized Aaby and Christine Stabell Benn, MD, PhD, his wife and research partner, for touting the findings of their observational study while failing to publish the results of a randomized controlled trial—considered the gold standard of medical evidence—on the DPT vaccine, conducted 14 years ago.By commissioning the new vaccine study, the Trump administration’s is trying “to do anything they can to discredit all vaccines,” said Peter Hotez, MD, PhD, endowed chair of tropical pediatrics at Texas Children’s Hospital and co-director of its Center for Vaccine Development. “This is so self-defeating for the country.”
RFK Jr. moves to restrict gender-affirming care for minors -- The Trump administration is moving to make it harder for hospitals to provide gender-affirming care for children, to stop medical device manufacturers from marketing breast binders to children, and to stop gender dysphoria from being protected under federal disability law. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in a press conference on Thursday, Dec. 18, signed a declaration that says “sex-rejecting procedures are neither safe nor effective treatment for children with gender dysphoria.”Kennedy said that the Department of Health and Human Services is starting an administrative process to prohibit hospitals that provide children with "sex-rejecting procedures" from participating in Medicare and Medicaid — a move that would affect virtually every hospital in the United States.Kennedy also said the administration will attempt to stop Medicare from funding "sex-rejecting procedures," a move that could have ripple effects nationwide because commercial insurance companies generally choose what to reimburse based on Medicare's policies.The Food and Drug Administration will also send warning letters to 12 manufacturers of breast binders telling them not to market the devices to children, Kennedy said. He said the devices are designed for women recovering from breast cancer surgery, not for children.
Park Service checks gift shop items for Trump anti-DEI rules - The Trump administration’s efforts to purge diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) from the federal government is hitting gift shops at national parks. In a memo last month, acting National Park Service Director Jessica Bowron called for a review of the items available for purchase in park gift shops. The memo says items should be reviewed for compliance with an order from Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to cease activities related to DEI, accessibility or “environmental justice.” Like the order before it, the memo does not appear to define DEI. Asked whether this means that any product related to people who are minorities would be impacted, a spokesperson for the Interior Department replied, “As you saw the memo, then you know that is not what it says.” Instead, said the spokesperson, Burgum’s order “directs federal agencies to ensure that government-affiliated retail spaces remain neutral and do not promote specific viewpoints.” “To comply with this order, the National Park Service is conducting a review of retail items to ensure our gift shops remain neutral spaces that serve all visitors,” added the spokesperson, who did not sign their name in the response. “The goal is to keep National Parks focused on their core mission: preserving natural and cultural resources for the benefit of all Americans.” The review’s deadline is next Friday. The memo does not appear to lay out specific criteria for the review. The memo was made public this week by the National Parks Conservation Association, an advocacy organization. “Banning history books from park stores and cracking down on park T-shirts and keychains is not what national park visitors want from their Park Service,” said Alan Spears, the group’s senior director for cultural resources, in a statement. “The National Parks Conservation Association opposes this latest move from the administration because we, like the majority of Americans, support telling the full American story at our parks. That means acknowledging hard truths about slavery, climate change, and other topics that challenge us as a nation,” he added. The memo comes as part of a broader Trump administration push to reshape the portrayal of history at national parks and beyond. Earlier this year, the administration directed National Park Service units to review all public-facing content for messaging that disparages Americans or that “emphasizes matters unrelated to the beauty, abundance, or grandeur” of natural features.
Trump signs order to expedite marijuana rescheduling -- President Trump on Thursday signed an executive order to speed up the rescheduling of marijuana from Schedule I to the less severe Schedule III, with the stated goal of expanding cannabis research. The executive order will direct the attorney general to expedite the completion of the rescheduling process. The Biden administration had begun the rescheduling process but left the matter unfinished by the time Trump assumed office. In August, Trump signaled he was open to finishing where Biden left off. “The executive order the President will sign today is focused on increasing medical research for medical marijuana and CBD — cannabidiol,” a senior administration official said in a press briefing. “The president is very focused on the potential medical benefits, and he has directed a commonsense approach that will automatically … start working to improve the medical marijuana and CBD research to better inform patients and doctors. That’s the primary goal.” “I want to emphasize that the order I am about to sign is not the legalization or it doesn’t legalize marijuana in any way, shape or form, and in no way sanctions its use as a recreational drug,” Trump said in a press briefing from the Oval Office. The president cautioned against recreational use of marijuana on Thursday, however, saying, ” If it’s abused, it’s never safe to use powerful, controlled substances in recreational matters, and especially in this case, if you take a look illegal and unregulated drugs, very, very bad thing.” “Unless a drug is recommended by a doctor for medical reasons, just don’t do it. At the same time, the facts compel the federal government to recognize that marijuana can be legitimate in terms of medical applications when carefully administered,” he added. Trump cited polling data that found people the vast majority of people are in favor of marijuana rescheduling.
Marijuana reclassification: GOP senators balk at Trump’s plan to relax rules -Nearly half the Senate Republican Conference has sent a sternly worded letter to President Trump warning that his executive order to downgrade marijuana — or cannabis — from a Schedule I to a Schedule III drug akin to ketamine poses serious health and economic threats to the nation. Trump signed an executive order Thursday to speed up the rescheduling of marijuana from Schedule I to the less severe Schedule III, with the stated goal of expanding cannabis research. The executive order will direct the attorney general to expedite the completion of the rescheduling process. The Biden administration had begun the rescheduling process but left the matter unfinished by the time Trump assumed office. In August, Trump signaled he was open to finishing where Biden left off. Republican senators argue that marijuana should remain classified as a Schedule I drug, like heroin, because of “its high potential for abuse and its lack of an FDA-approved use.” They note that studies show the dank substance is linked to depression, anxiety, suicide planning and psychotic episodes and even pointed out that the shooter who attacked a Catholic school in Minneapolis earlier this year blamed his actions on “gender and weed” and expressed remorse over experimenting with cannabis. “Additionally, marijuana has long-term effects on brain health, including ‘permanent IQ loss’ when a person starts using marijuana at a young age,” they wrote. The letter was spearheaded by Sen. Ted Budd (R-N.C.), a staunch Trump ally, and members of the GOP leadership, including Senate Republican Whip John Barrasso (Wyo.), Senate Republican Conference Chair Tom Cotton (Ark.) and Senate Republican Policy Committee Chair Shelley Moore Capito (W.Va.).
When can Social Security beneficiaries expect their January 2026 payments? – Tens of millions of Social Security and Supplemental Security beneficiaries will soon receive their first, slightly larger check of the new year, thanks to the 2026 cost-of-living adjustment (COLA).The annual financial boost, designed to combat inflation, is 2.8 percent for 2026 – which will raise the estimated average Social Security benefit for all retired workers from $2,015 to $2,071, according to the Social Security Administration.When that first check arrives will depend on several factors, however.For recipients of Supplemental Security, financial assistance for people with limited income or disabilities, the first payment will actually happen ahead of the normal schedule, in 2025. Since Jan. 1 is New Year’s Day, a federal holiday, payments will go out on Wednesday, Dec. 31. People who receive both Social Security and Supplemental Security benefits will get their payments on Jan. 2. As for Social Security benefits, the schedule is dependent on the recipients birthday:
- Wednesday, Jan. 14 (born between the 1st and 10th)
- Wednesday, Jan. 21 (born between the 11th and 20th)
- Wednesday, Jan. 28 (born between the 21st and 31st)
Along with a Medicare premium hike set to eat into Social Security beneficiaries’ cost of living adjustment (COLA), participants will have another hurdle to navigate in 2026 – the proposed 50% cutback on field office visits. Field offices have long been community-based branches that serve as the public face of the SSA, which provide in-person help for people applying for retirement and disability benefits, getting Social Security cards and other important services.A November internal field office operating plan shared with The Associated Press outlines a proposed target of 50% fewer field office visitors in fiscal year 2026 compared to fiscal year 2025, or no more than 15 million field office visits by members of the public. Agency field offices saw more than 31.6 million field office visits from SSA recipients from Oct. 1, 2024, to Sept. 30, 2025, according to the agency document.
DC Circuit leans toward Trump in federal union ban case -- The Trump administration appears likely to prevail on a procedural matter in a legal battle over an order revoking collective bargaining rights for workers at nearly a dozen federal agencies, including EPA and the Energy and Interior departments. During a Monday hearing, federal judges in Washington zeroed in on whether unions’ challenge against the directive belonged not before a federal court but instead before a quasi-judicial body that handles disputes between federal agencies and employees. The move would eliminate relief the unions temporarily secured earlier this year from a federal district court against President Donald Trump’s order. If the Federal Labor Relations Authority reaches a conclusion unfavorable to federal workers, unions would still have the option to eventually fight that determination in court, said Judge Neomi Rao, a Trump appointee to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, during Monday’s oral arguments. Paras Shah — an attorney for the National Treasury Employees Union, which represents workers at EPA, Interior, DOE and elsewhere in the federal government — responded that federal courts have a role in deciding “30,000-foot questions” like the collective bargaining rights ban advanced by the Trump administration’s order. Brad Garcia, a Biden appointee to the D.C. Circuit, asked whether unions have in prior cases disputed the validity of an executive order before the FLRA. “This scenario stands alone,” said Shah, noting the “extreme facts” of the situation. Trump’s March order cited “national security” concerns as the administration’s reasoning for excluding agencies from future unionization efforts. Senior Judge Paul Friedman of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled in April to block Trump’s directive, suggesting the administration’s move appeared to target unions that have fought the president’s agenda. The order from Friedman, a Clinton pick, required agencies to resume union dues collection and other normal business relations. The administration appealed to the D.C. Circuit, where a different panel of judges in May reversed the lower court injunction, finding unions had not demonstrated irreparable harm and indicating the Trump administration was likely to succeed on the merits. One judge — J. Michelle Childs, appointed to the D.C. Circuit by former President Joe Biden — dissented, writing that it was the government’s burden to demonstrate harm from Friedman’s order
Judge reverses Trump administration's shutdown layoffs -- A federal judge reversed the terminations of hundreds of government employees Wednesday, ruling that the Trump administration likely violated the terms of the funding deal that ended the longest-ever government shutdown. That deal prohibits agencies from carrying out a reduction in force (RIF) until Jan. 30. The Trump administration asserted that RIFs announced prior to the shutdown could still move ahead, but U.S. District Judge Susan Illston rejected the argument in siding with group of government employee unions. “Defendants must do what the continuing resolution says,” Illston wrote in her 27-page ruling. “They may not take any further steps to implement or carry out a RIF through January 30, 2026, regardless of when the RIF notice first issued,” she continued. The order specifically reverses any mass layoffs at the State Department, Education Department, General Services Administration and Small Business Administration implemented during the shutdown. Illston, an appointee of former President Clinton, paused her reinstatement deadline until Tuesday so the administration could first make its case with an appeals court.
Navarro’s bid to toss conviction gets frosty reception from appeals court -- Peter Navarro’s bid to overturn his conviction for evading a congressional subpoena appeared to receive little backing from a federal appeals court Thursday. A three-judge panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit grilled Navarro lawyer Stanley Brand during an unusual oral argument where only the White House trade adviser’s counsel laid out a case, after the Justice Department dropped its defense of the prosecution earlier this year. “Normally, I would offer you rebuttal,” Judge Patricia Millett, an appointee of former President Obama, said after the argument ended, “but there’s nothing to rebut.” “It’s been a very strange journey on that front,” Brand replied. Nonetheless, Navarro has been dogged in his pursuit of the appeal, insisting that his case poses vital questions about executive privilege for senior White House officials and is destined for the Supreme Court. He was convicted in 2023 on two counts of contempt of Congress — one for failing to produce documents related to the probe, and another for skipping his deposition before the select panel that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack — and was sentenced to four months in prison, which he already served. The adviser to President Trump claims that, during Trump’s first term, the president invoked executive privilege that prevented him from abiding by the congressional subpoena. But the district judge at trial barred Navarro from using executive privilege as part of his defense after finding that he failed to prove Trump invoked it in the first place, a move Navarro’s attorneys at the time said “hamstrung” his defense. The appeals court panel, made up of two Obama-appointed judges and an appointee of former President Biden, seemed to agree with the lower court. As Brand argued that Navarro believed he was bound by privilege, Judge J. Michelle Childs interjected that his assertion of privilege came before ever knowing what documents or testimony the committee sought from him, suggesting it may have fallen outside of any suspected privilege. “You say accommodation didn’t occur, but a person in responding to a subpoena should show up and then you have the ability to assert whatever you believe is appropriate,” said Childs, the Biden appointee. Millett emphasized that the privilege in question belongs to the president, not his advisers, and scrutinized whether Navarro made contact with Trump before he told the committee that he’d be invoking it — just three minutes after the congressional panel reached out. “Is there any evidence in the record that he talked to the president in those three minutes?” the judge asked. “Not in those three minutes,” Brand said.Donald Trump alleges Rob Reiner died due to the anger he caused others from having Trump derangement syndrome -Donald Trump Alleges Rob Reiner Died ‘Due to the Anger He Caused Others' From Having ‘Trump Derangement Syndrome' President Donald Trump commented on the shocking death of legendary film director Rob Reiner, who was found dead Sunday afternoon in his Brentwood home alongside his wife Michele Singer.Trump blasted Reiner, who was strongly opposed to Trump's politics and was a noted supporter of Democratic causes, as having "Trump Derangement Syndrome" in a post on social media Monday.Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social: "A very sad thing happened last night in Hollywood. Rob Reiner, a tortured and struggling, but once very talented movie director and comedy star, has passed away, together with his wife, Michele, reportedly due to the anger he caused others through his massive, unyielding, and incurable affliction with a mind crippling disease known as TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME, sometimes referred to as TDS." The U.S. president continued: "He was known to have driven people CRAZY by his raging obsession of President Donald J. Trump, with his obvious paranoia reaching new heights as the Trump Administration surpassed all goals and expectations of greatness, and with the Golden Age of America upon us, perhaps like never before. May Rob and Michele rest in peace!"
Donald Trump's White House 'Walk of Fame' mocks former presidents -New plaques were spotted by reporters on Wednesday at the “Presidential Walk of Fame” along the West Wing Colonnade at the White House in which President Trump jabs at the most recent former presidents. Former President Biden’s plaque references him as “Sleepy Joe Biden” and calls him “the worst president in American history,” while former President Obama’s plaque is labeled as “Barack Hussein Obama” and says he was “one of the most divisive political figures in American history.”Former President Clinton’s plaque reads, “In 2016, President Clinton’s wife, Hillary Clinton, lost the Presidency to President Donald J. Trump!”In September, the White House unveiled the walk of fame outside of the Oval Office. The display includes portraits of every past U.S. president with the exception of Biden. In Biden’s place is a framed photo of an “autopen” writing Biden’s signature. The walk of fame additions are part of Trump’s work to remake the White House in his image. He has replaced the Rose Garden grass with a stone patio, and he has directed construction of a White House ballroom that required the demolition of most of the East Wing.
Kennedy Center board votes to rename it as Trump-Kennedy Center- White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced Thursday that the Kennedy Center board voted unanimously to rename the building the Trump-Kennedy Center. “I have just been informed that the highly respected Board of the Kennedy Center, some of the most successful people from all parts of the world, have just voted unanimously to rename the Kennedy Center to the Trump-Kennedy Center, because of the unbelievable work President Trump has done over the last year in saving the building,” Leavitt wrote in a post on social platform X. “Not only from the standpoint of its reconstruction, but also financially, and its reputation. Congratulations to President Donald J. Trump, and likewise, congratulations to President Kennedy, because this will be a truly great team long into the future! The building will no doubt attain new levels of success and grandeur,” she continued. Roma Daravi, the vice president of public relations at the Kennedy Center, confirmed Leavitt’s statement. “The Kennedy Center Board of Trustees voted unanimously today to name the institution The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts,” Daravi said. “The unanimous vote recognizes that the current Chairman saved the institution from financial ruin and physical destruction. The new Trump Kennedy Center reflects the unequivocal bipartisan support for America’s cultural center for generations to come.” Trump said he was “surprised and honored” when he learned of the name change on Thursday. “The board is a very distinguished board, the most distinguished people in the country,” Trump told reporters. “We saved the building because it was in such bad shape, physically, financially, and in every other way, and now it’s very solid, very strong.” Shortly after he returned to the White House, the president moved to replace several board members at the culture center and was subsequently elected chair by the new board. The move led to a number of resignations from the performing arts center. Trump teased a potential name change while emceeing the Kennedy Center Honors earlier this month. “The Trump Kennedy Center,” the president said at one point to the crowd as he stood onstage before grinning and adding “oops.” Democrats were quick to push back on the vote, saying an official name change needs congressional approval. “The Kennedy Center Board has no authority to actually rename the Kennedy Center in the absence of legislative action,” Jeffries said, according to a Bloomberg reporter. Jack Schlossberg, former President Kennedy’s grandson, weighed in on the name change, arguing it was not unanimously approved by the board. “Microphones were muted and the board meeting and vote NOT unanimous,” he wrote on social platform X. “Trump explicitly motivated to act by JACK FOR NEW YORK. Our campaign represents everything Trump can’t stand or defeat.” Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Oh.), an ex-officio Kennedy Center board member, said she was on the call during the vote, but was muted each time she tried to speak. “Participants were not allowed to voice their concerns,” Beatty said, claiming the vote was not unanimous. The president’s allies also pushed to rename the center. In July, Rep. Bob Onder (R-Mo.) introduced legislation that would rename the building the “Trump Center for the Performing Arts.” Additionally, House Republicans on the Appropriations Committee approved an amendment to the interior, environment and related agencies annual spending bill that would rename the center’s famed opera house — the “First Lady Melania Trump Opera House.” The amendment received fierce criticism from critics, including Schlossberg. “A nation reveals itself not only by the men it produces — but also by the men it honors, the men it remembers,” he wrote in post online at the time. “The Trump administration stands for freedom of oppression, not expression.”
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez highlights poll showing her beating Vance in 2028 - Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), who is increasingly seen as a potential Democratic candidate for president in 2028, on Wednesday highlighted a poll showing her beating Vice President Vance in a hypothetical match-up.The poll from The Argument/Verasight asked respondents what their voting preference would be if Vance and Ocasio-Cortez were the candidates in the 2028 race, and 51 percent backed the New York Democrat while 49 percent backed the Ohio Republican. “Bloop!” Ocasio-Cortez responded to the poll on the social platform X. Both Ocasio-Cortez and Vance have had their names floated for the 2028 presidential race, which will be the first post-Trump-era race after President Trump reaches his constitutional limit for holding the office. The two millennial politicians have had meteoric rises within their parties, gaining a rapid amount of national attention and power within the last decade.Another recent poll found Ocasio-Cortez being at the front of the pack among younger Democrats for a hypothetical 2028 presidential primary. The Yale Youth Poll found the New York Democrat with a lead in the double digits over former Vice President Kamala Harris, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and other possible candidates.Ocasio-Cortez also recently drew massive crowds throughout the U.S. on a “Fighting Oligarchy” tour with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).
Democrats release small group of photos from massive Epstein trove - Two small batches of photographs were released on Friday by Democrats on the House Oversight Committee that are part of a reported trove of about 95,000 pictures which were turned over to the government by the estate of Jeffrey Epstein on Thursday. The photos, one group of 19 and another group of 70, depict many wealthy and politically connected individuals who had a relationship with Epstein, the billionaire and convicted sex trafficker who was found dead in his jail cell in August 2019. The latest release—which is not officially from the “Epstein Files” that are scheduled to be released by the U.S. Justice Department on December 19—is part of the intensifying conflict within the American ruling class over what can be revealed about the depraved conduct of Epstein and his associates for decades involving the criminal exploitation of underage girls. The ongoing revelations about Epstein are not an exposure of one man’s depravity; they lay bare the criminal, parasitic character of the financial oligarchy and the political institutions that serve it. The disclosures to date—including his email messages—show Epstein functioning as a fixer and racketeer for a layer of billionaires, politicians, bankers and intelligence figures who exchanged services, influence and protection in a network that spans both parties and nation‑states. Democrats on the House Oversight Committee have released the latest images, stating that they were obtained from Epstein’s estate as part of the committee’s ongoing investigation into his criminal network and political connections. The Democrats have said this is an exercise in “transparency” and to pressure the Justice Department and the Trump administration to comply fully with the new Epstein Files Transparency Act, which was passed by both houses of Congress and signed into law by the President on November 19. The Democrats’ public statement emphasized that the photos contain images of “wealthy and powerful men who spent time with Jeffrey Epstein,” along with thousands of photographs of women and of Epstein’s various properties. The Democrats further said that they would “continue to release photos to the public in the days and weeks ahead,” while claiming that they would protect the identities and privacy of Epstein victims and survivors. According to statements by committee members, the Epstein estate provided a hard drive or digital production of the 95,000 photographs, some of which were taken by Epstein himself and others that were sent to him, documenting his social milieu, travel, properties, and the women and girls around him. Representative Robert Garcia of California, the ranking Democrat on the panel, told reporters the committee has so far “gone through maybe about 25,000” of the total image set and described many of the unreleased photos as “incredibly disturbing.” He and other Democrats stressed that any public release would be “phased,” heavily redacted and focused initially on well-known public figures, underscoring the highly selective character of Friday’s publication. Despite the news media hype about the photos, the release is extremely narrow when measured against the scale of what is known to exist. In other words, more than 99.9 percent of the known photos remain under wraps, not counting the additional visual materials in the possession of the FBI, the Justice Department and other agencies as part of the broader “Epstein files.” The extremely restricted nature of the photo release further underscores efforts by both parties of the ruling class to engage in a calibrated, politically motivated leak operation, in which carefully chosen images are used for factional purposes while the mass of documentary material remains hidden from public view. Still by releasing 89 photos there is no doubt that the Democrats are casting Trump and his Justice Department as the principal obstacles to revealing the full truth about the financier’s connections. Based on the descriptions in the corporate media, the following figures are depicted among the images released Friday:
- • Donald Trump: The current US President appears in three of the 19 Epstein estate photos. In one black‑and‑white photo, Trump is in the center of the frame surrounded by six women, some wearing Hawaiian‑style leis; all of the women’s faces are blocked out. In another image, described as likely taken at a 1997 Victoria’s Secret event in New York, Trump is pictured with Jeffrey Epstein, listening while a blonde woman speaks to them; the woman’s face is obscured. A third photo shows Trump seated on what appears to be an airplane next to a woman with long blonde hair, whose face is also covered by a black box.
- • Bill Clinton: One photo shows Clinton standing in a group with Jeffrey Epstein, convicted associate Ghislaine Maxwell, and another couple, believed to be singer Jimmy Buffett and his wife Jane Slagsvol.
- • Bill Gates: Two of the newly released photos show Bill Gates. In one, he is standing and smiling next to Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime pilot Larry Visoski, posing in what appears to be an aviation or hangar setting. In the other, Gates is photographed alongside Andrew Mountbatten‑Windsor (formerly Prince Andrew), in an undated image from Epstein’s estate that has been circulated with the committee’s release.
- • Steve Bannon: Bannon appears in three of the newly released Epstein estate photos. In one photo, Bannon is sitting across from Epstein at a desk or table, apparently in Epstein’s office. In the second image, Bannon and Epstein are taking a mirror selfie together, with Epstein holding up a phone to capture both of them. In the third photo, Bannon is seen in conversation with Woody Allen at what appears to be a social gathering.
- • Larry Summers: Former Clinton Treasury Secretary is in a photo with Woody Allen on an airplane.
- • Richard Branson: The British entrepreneur is seen on a beach with Epstein.
- • Other unnamed wealthy associates: The batch reportedly contains additional images of unidentified or lesser-known businessmen, political figures and socialites attending Epstein-linked gatherings, along with numerous photographs of women whose identities are not being disclosed.
- • “Trump Condom” photo: One photo is of a novelty product, not something created by Epstein himself, but it appears among the items in Epstein’s personal photo collection. The picture shows a bowl or display of joke condoms branded with a cartoon likeness of Donald Trump and the slogan “I’m HUUUUGE!”, next to a handwritten sign reading “Trump Condom, $4.50.”
The Trump White House has denounced the release as a partisan stunt, asserting that the photos show nothing illegal and that Trump had only “casual” or “incidental” contact with Epstein and his circle. Administration officials and pro-Trump media figures have insisted that if Democrats were serious about exposing Epstein’s network, they would focus on Clinton, Gates and other leading Democrats, as well as figures linked to Wall Street and the intelligence apparatus. The White House has also portrayed the timing of the release—days before the December 19 deadline for the Justice Department to comply with the transparency law—as an effort to preempt and discredit whatever controlled disclosure the administration intends to make. In this narrative, Democrats are accused of trying to “smear” Trump personally while ignoring what the administration presents as its own commitment to “letting the facts come out” through the Justice Department’s document releases. The “Epstein files” now at issue consist of several overlapping bodies of material: grand jury transcripts, FBI 302 interview reports, internal Justice Department memoranda, flight logs, financial records, digital communications, seized hard drives, and case files from both federal and state investigations into Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Until recently, much of this material was shielded under grand jury secrecy rules and protective orders justified in the name of “victim privacy” and “ongoing investigations.”
Justice Department releases portion of Jeffrey Epstein files after demand from Congress - The Justice Department on Friday publicly released a portion of the Epstein files in response to a law that garnerednear unanimous support from both parties in Congress.The highly anticipated release of the files comes after months of building pressure on the White House and amid scrutiny of President Trump’s connection with the deceased sex offender. Trump last month reversed course and signed a bill that gave the Justice Department 30 days to publicly post all unclassified documents in its tranche surrounding Jeffrey Epstein. That 30-day clock ends on Friday. The public won’t be seeing all the files Friday, however. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said early in the day that the department would not immediately share the full extent of the documents, releasing “several hundred thousand” documents on Friday, “and then over the next couple weeks, I expect several hundred thousand more.” Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle accused the Trump administration of violating the law, which, but for a few exceptions, required the Department of Justice to release the Epstein files in full. Attorney General Pam Bondi acknowledged not all documents were shared, calling it the “first phase.” “This Department of Justice is following through on President Trump’s commitment to transparency and lifting the veil on the disgusting actions of Jeffrey Epstein and his co-conspirators,” Bondi said in a statement accompanying the released files. “The first phase of files released today sheds light on Epstein’s extensive network and begins to provide the public with long overdue accountability.” Two House Democratic leaders said they were “examining all legal options” after Blanche said only a portion of the documents would be released Friday, while Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), one of the top advocates for their release, simply posted a screenshot of the bill on the social platform with the language of the 30-day deadline highlighted. “The law Congress passed and President Trump signed was clear as can be – the Trump administration had 30 days to release ALL the Epstein files, not just some. Failing to do so is breaking the law. This just shows the Department of Justice, Donald Trump, and Pam Bondi are hellbent on hiding the truth,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said in a statement on Friday. The files released by the Justice Department include more than 7,700 links, with some going to individual photos while others are links to voluminous court records or other documents kept by Epstein. The documents also include case files related to the multiple criminal investigations into Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell. Also included are documents related to the Bureau of Prisons investigation into Epstein’s death, which was ruled a suicide. In total, DOJ released files from more than 50 cases with a tie to Epstein. In a letter to members of Congress obtained by The Hill, the Justice Department said that a staff of 200 attorneys pored over the records, shielding the names of some 1,200 victims. One file, titled “Masseuse List” redacts 254 names that were shielded to protect victims.
Here’s how to see the Epstein files released on Friday -- The Justice Department released a portion of the Jeffrey Epstein files to meet the Friday deadline established in a congressional bill with a series of downloadable files related to the convicted sex offender.They include a host of photos and completely redacted files.The information can be accessed on the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) website. Files can be accessed under the following categories: Court Records; DOJ Disclosures, Including Disclosures Under the Epstein Files Transparency Act (H.R. 4405); Freedom of Information Act (FOIA); and House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Disclosures.The webpage for each category then leads the user to access information under several subcategories, which each carry several PDFs of documents, photos, criminal records and more.The DOJ stated on the webpage that “all reasonable efforts have been made to review and redact personal information pertaining to victims, other private individuals, and protect sensitive materials from disclosure.”
Rep. Ro Khanna questions DOJ’s early Jeffrey Epstein disclosures - Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), the lead author of the law requiring the Department of Justice (DOJ) to release the full files on Jeffrey Epstein, is sounding early alarms about the agency’s initial disclosures. In a Zoom call with reporters Friday afternoon, Khanna questioned the “quality” of the information; redactions he deemed to be heavy-handed; and the absence of an explanation for those redactions, as required by the law. “I reserve judgment until we see all of the release,” he said. “[But] things seem very heavily redacted, and it’s unclear what is actually new information, and it’s unclear whether the key documents are in there, which shows the guilt of other rich and powerful men in aiding what Epstein did or covering it up.” Khanna also floated a menu of remedial steps Congress could take — including impeachment of Attorney General Pam Bondi and other DOJ officials — if there’s evidence that the administration is redacting or withholding information to protect those who abetted, or participated in, Epstein’s crimes. “[Rep.] Thomas Massie and I will continue to explore all options to fight to make sure that they comply with the law, whether that is holding people in inherent contempt, recommending people for prosecution, recommending impeachment, or private lawsuits,” he said, referring to the Kentucky Republican who was also instrumental in getting the law passed over the opposition of Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and other GOP leaders. Under the law, DOJ officials had 30 days to release all the government’s case files on Epstein, the deceased child sex offender, and Ghislaine Maxwell, his longtime associate who is serving 20 years in prison for helping Epstein abuse minors. Todd Blanche, the deputy attorney general, announced Friday morning that the department would not meet that deadline because the process of redacting names to protect victims and other innocent people was too time-consuming to meet it. Instead, the DOJ would release “several hundred thousand” documents Friday, followed by hundreds of thousands more in the weeks to come. Khanna said he was “disappointed” with the incomplete rollout. But he’s less concerned about the delay than the prospect that the administration is simply “stonewalling” to protect powerful allies. He’s calling on Bondi and Blanche to address the public to explain what exactly they’ve released already and lay out a timeline for what’s to come.
16 Epstein files, including photo of Trump, disappear from DOJ website: Report - At least 16 files on the Justice Department’s (DOJ) webpage containing files on Jeffrey Epstein, including a photo featuring two pictures of President Trump, were found to have disappeared from the department’s website as of Saturday, The Associated Press reported.DOJ has not said why these files were removed from its website. The Hill has reached out to DOJ for comment.The department initially told the public on its website that if it released information that “includes non-public personally identifiable information or other sensitive content, to include matters of a sexual nature,” then the public should contact DOJ if they find any “information that should not have been posted,” and officials will “take steps to correct the problem as soon as possible.”It is not clear if that is why some files were removed, though attorney Gloria Allred, during an appearance on CNN Saturday afternoon, said she had been contacted by people who said their information should not have been posted.Files now missing from DOJ’s “Epstein Library” webpage included images of paintings depicting nude women and a series of photographs showing a desk with drawers, the AP wrote. The files were available upon their release Friday and were no longer accessible the next day. One photo of the desk included two pictures inside an open drawer that featured Trump. The first printed picture shows Trump surrounded by a group of women in bathing suits. The second partially covered photo shows Trump with first lady Melania Trump, Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell in 2000. “This photo, file 468, from the Epstein files that includes Donald Trump has apparently now been removed from the DOJ release,” Democrats on the House Oversight Committee stated in a post on the social platform X. “[Attorney General Pam Bondi] is this true? What else is being covered up? We need transparency for the American public.”
Hedge fund billionaire Ray Dalio, wife to donate to 300,000 Trump accounts - Hedge fund billionaire Ray Dalio and his wife, Barbara, are joining a White House initiative to fund new President Trump-branded investment accounts for children, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced Wednesday. Dalio, founder of investment firm Bridgewater Associates, has pledged with his wife to donate $250 each to roughly 300,000 children in their home state of Connecticut. Bessent first announced the Dalios’ decision to join at a Treasury Department event Wednesday, and the Dalios shared the details of their intended donations in a press release. “Barbara and I believe strongly in the importance of equal opportunity and believe this initiative is an important step in that direction,” Dalio said. “At an early age, I was exposed to the stock market, and it changed my life. By providing children with savings accounts that compound over time, we are providing them with early insights into financial literacy and a path towards financial independence,” he continued. The Dalios are joining Michael Dell — founder of computer company Dell Inc. — and his wife, Susan, as the second billionaire couple to commit to funding the new “Trump account” program. Enacted through Trump’s sweeping tax cut bill earlier this year, the program is an investment account available to every minor who will not turn 18 before July 4, 2026. The federal government will give $1,000 to each Trump account recipient, and Trump account funds will be invested in index funds that track the general success of the stock market. Trump accounts can also be funded by family members and charitable donations. The account holder is able to access the funds once they turn 18, but they can also use the account as a traditional tax-advantaged retirement investment account.
Trump's AI order sparks GOP divisions --Republicans are facing growing fissures on artificial intelligence (AI) standards as President Trump moves to impose a federal approach to regulating the growing industry. The president Thursday issued an executive order that seeks to institute a national AI standard by pushing back on state AI laws. While the president has support from several prominent Republicans on the issue, others within the party have voiced their opposition to the push to limit states’ efforts to regulate AI, including Trump’s one-time rival Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R). “You’ve got a whole cadre of senators and MAGA influencers that have staked out a position on AI that is not consistent with what the president signed yesterday,” said one Republican lobbyist. Former Trump campaign adviser Steve Bannon, one of Trump’s staunchest allies, criticized the president’s move Thursday to hinder states from enacting their own AI regulations. “After two humiliating face plants on must-past legislation now we attempt an entirely unenforceable EO — tech bros doing upmost to turn POTUS MAGA base away from him while they line their pockets,” Bannon said in a statement on the platform Gettr. Major AI firms have argued that it would be exceedingly difficult to comply with a patchwork of state laws, especially for such a nascent industry. Numerous AI companies have pushed back on laws in California, as the Golden State has taken on an outsized role in advancing regulatory efforts. Republican lawmakers have attempted to pass measures blocking state AI laws twice in the past six months — via Trump’s tax and spending bill this summer and via the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) late last month — but both efforts ultimately fell short because of GOP infighting. The Republican fight over AI is reflective of the intraparty divide on other issues that pit Trump’s working-class base against the business wing of the GOP. “For people like Bannon and others, it’s about the displacement of the working class,” the Republican lobbyist said. One GOP strategist characterized the divide among Republicans on AI as “a combo of federalism coupled with very deep, embedded concerns by a lot of our base and activists against Big Tech.” “Politicians are really engaged in the federalism fight,” the strategist noted. “I think a lot of activists are more concerned about the Big Tech pushing for it.” “Jobs are at stake, privacy is at stake, our battle against China is at stake,” the strategist said. “It’s fascinating to see the politics influencing how we figure that all out.” DeSantis has also emerged as a particularly vocal critic of the preemption push. As lawmakers contemplated adding a provision to the NDAA late last month, he suggested it was “a subsidy to Big Tech.” “The rise of AI is the most significant economic and cultural shift occurring at the moment; denying the people the ability to channel these technologies in a productive way via self-government constitutes federal government overreach and lets technology companies run wild,” DeSantis wrote in a post on the social platform X. He remained defiant in the face of a potential executive order, arguing Monday that such an order could not limit states’ powers under the 10th Amendment. “Overall, Republicans have been fairly deferential to President Trump,” noted Andrew Lokay, a senior research analyst at Beacon Policy Advisors.
Trump goes to war with states over AI - President Donald Trump is marshaling the powers of the executive branch and Congress and threatening to withhold funding for states considering rules that could impede the rollout of artificial intelligence across the U.S.Trump inked an executive order Thursday — a win for Big Tech that seeks to limit state laws that the administration deems “cumbersome” and “excessive” as data centers proliferate across the nation. The move closely mirrors the Trump administration’s battle with state climate laws.Trump, flanked by advisers and Senate Commerce Chair Ted Cruz (R-Texas) in the Oval Office, said AI developers need “one source” for approval as opposed to running into obstacles in states like California, New York and Illinois. Trump called Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker “unreasonable” and said “hostile” states could impede trillions of dollars the U.S. is poised to receive as it takes on China in the AI race.“If they had to get 50 different approvals from 50 different states, you can forget it,” Trump said. “All you need is one hostile actor and you wouldn’t be able to do it.”The order tees up a fight between the executive branch and states in a way that legal experts said is clever but will face considerable hurdles in the courts. They also said the order — and the resulting threat of lawsuits and loss of federal funds — could chill states’ enthusiasm for taking up legislation to regulate AI.As of July, all 50 states, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and the District of Columbia had introduced AI legislation, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Thirty-eight states have adopted or enacted about 100 new laws.Roughly a quarter of the bills are concentrated in three states — California, New York and Illinois. The result of the proliferation of state AI bills has been a “confusing patchwork of regulation,” said David Sacks, Trump’s AI and crypto czar, during the Oval Office announcement. “What we need is a single federal standard, and that’s what the EO says.”But while the order received praise from Republican lawmakers and AI developers, it left governors fuming. California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom called it a “con job,” and Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis suggested the order could be an illegal attempt to usurp states’ power.“An executive order doesn’t/can’t preempt state legislative action. Congress could, theoretically, preempt states through legislation,” DeSantis wrote in a post on the social media platform X.“The problem is that Congress hasn’t proposed any coherent regulatory scheme but instead just wanted to block states from doing anything for 10 years, which would be an AI amnesty,” he continued. “I doubt Congress has the votes to pass this because it is so unpopular with the public.”California Attorney General Rob Bonta (D), who has on average sued the administration once a week, pledged the state would “respond as appropriate” to the executive order. The order marks the administration’s third attempt to limit states’ abilities to protect residents from the “chilling risks” posed by AI, Bonta said.“President Trump is attempting to limit the ability of states — red states and blue states alike — to implement commonsense protections for our residents,” Bonta said.The legal outlook is also messy, experts say. The conservative-dominated Supreme Court is generally sympathetic to arguments that states should have the power to set their own rules — even when they are burdensome to out-of-state entities.Lyrissa Lidsky, who teaches constitutional law at the University of Florida, said the executive order is part of Trump’s playbook but has big constitutional problems and will face legal challenges. The order, she said, is a shot across the bow at states contemplating AI legislation and an attempt to push through policy that Congress failed to advance, noting that provisions to limit state AI rules didn’t make it into the GOP megabill and the NDAA.“It’s usurping the legislative role,” said Lidsky. ”It really is Congress’ job to pass legislation to preempt the state from regulating, otherwise as a matter of federalism, states have the power to regulate.”Pat Parenteau, professor emeritus at Vermont Law and Graduate School, agreed, and said the order is “long on rhetoric and short on legal authority,” and that Trump’s appetite for suing blue states has yet to be successful. While there could be situations where a state law conflicts with federal statute, Parenteau said it involves a fact-based, case-by-case determination by the courts and ultimately the Supreme Court.“The president cannot wave a magic wand an erase state laws regulating AI,” said Parenteau. “There is no federal law that categorically preempts the states in this arena.”
DeSantis: Florida has ‘right’ to regulate AI rules despite Trump’s order - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) said on Monday that his state has the right to regulate artificial intelligence (AI) despite President Trump’s executive order last week that seeks to institute a national AI standard by pushing back on state laws. DeSantis noted that the executive order does not block Florida or other states from instituting their own AI regulations. “The president issued an executive order. Some people were saying well no, this blocks the states, “ the governor said, speaking at Florida Atlantic University. “It doesn’t.” “You should read it and see. First of all, an executive order can’t block states. You can preempt states under Article 1 powers through congressional legislation on certain issues, but you can’t do it through executive order,” he continued. “But if you read it, they actually say a lot of the stuff we’re talking about are things that they’re encouraging states to do,” he said. “So even reading it very broadly, I think the stuff we’re doing is going to be very consistent. But irrespective, clearly we have a right to do this.” Last week, DeSantis rolled out what he dubbed a proposal for a “Citizen Bill of Rights for Artificial Intelligence” aimed at protecting consumers from the potential risks and harms that come with AI. The proposal calls for a number of guardrails for citizens, including blocking AI from using an individual’s name, image or likeness without their permission; protection from deepfakes; and a number of child protections.
Arizona city rejects data center after AI lobbying push - — Officials in this Phoenix suburb on Thursday rejected a proposed artificial intelligence data center despite pressure from a former U.S. senator and the tech industry — capping a fight over local control that has captured national attention. The Chandler City Council voted unanimously against a request by a New York developer to rezone a plot of land to build a data center and business complex. The vote caps a local battle that escalated after the intervention of former U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema(I-Ariz.) and raised new questions about tech industry efforts to influence local decisions around data center projects. Explaining her no vote, Chandler Vice Mayor Christine Ellis said that she had long framed her decision about the local benefits rather than the national push to build AI. She recalled a meeting with Sinema where she asked point-blank “what’s in it for Chandler?” “If you can’t show me what’s in it for Chandler, then we are not having a conversation,” Ellis said before voting against the project. The local fight gained outsize attention after Sinema offered public comment at two local meetings in Chandler on behalf of the developer, also identifying herself as founder and co-chair of the AI Infrastructure Coalition. The former senator said she was working “hand in glove with the Trump administration.” The AI Infrastructure Coalition is backed by tech and energy giants including Andreessen Horowitz, Microsoft, Meta, Exxon Mobil, NextEra and Pinnacle West Capital, which owns Arizona’s largest utility. It’s aimed at advocating for all aspects of AI, including energy, manufacturing and financing. “Chandler right now has the opportunity to determine how and when these new, innovative AI data centers will be built,” Sinema said at an October meeting of the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission. “When federal preemption comes, we’ll no longer have that privilege.” Sinema did not attend Thursday’s vote. She did speak to Fox News on Thursday and said there is a “massive effort kind of on the left” to spread “massive misinformation” about data centers. She praised the Trump administration for “doing a great job of telling the truth” on data centers and said the water impacts are lower than in the past. In 2022, Chandler established rules that limit where data centers can be built, a response to community concerns that the power-hungry facilities are too noisy and don’t create enough jobs. The city already hosts 10 data centers. New York developer Active Infrastructure, however, requested that the city rezone a plot of land that currently hosts an abandoned office building in order to build a 422,000-square-foot data center campus. The site as planned would also include five new buildings for support staff and flexible use. Active Infrastructure has not said what companies would use the computing power on the site, but CEO Jeffrey Zygler said the campus could attract advanced tech businesses that would establish offices on the campus to take advantage of their proximity to the computing power. Although the city’s planning office advised against the rezoning, a zoning board approved the move in a meeting where Sinema offered comment. That left the matter up to the city council. The project, along with Sinema’s involvement, attracted significant community opposition, with speakers raising concerns about whether the project would use too much water or raise power prices. Residents packed the council chambers, with many holding up signs reading “No More Data Centers.” According to the city’s planning office, more than 200 comments were filed against the proposal compared to just eight in favor. Zygler and Active Infrastructure officials in attendance said that their project would be designed to minimize noise impacts and that the project would use a cooling system that minimizes its water use. Even as the Trump administration pushes the construction of data centers and new energy infrastructure to power them, local governments are increasingly pushing back. Several other Arizona cities, including Phoenix and Tucson, have written zoning rules for data centers or placed new requirements on the facilities. Local officials in cities in Oregon, Missouri, Virginia, Arizona and Indiana have also rejected planned data centers.
Experts issue warning about AI voice clone scams -So many of us are worried about artificial intelligence (AI) scams, and now the stakes are rising. AI voice cloning is quickly becoming a go-to tool for scammers, and they only need a three-second audio sample to clone someone’s voice. Abhishek Karnik, the head of research at McAfee, said in a recent survey of 7,000 people, one in four said they’d experienced an AI voice cloning scam or knew someone who had. He said the “hey mom scam” is popular right now. It makes people think they’re talking to their child or grandchild. “Where you try to scare somebody into believing that their child has been in an accident or has been kidnapped, or they lost their voice, they’ve lost a wallet, for example,” he explained. “So, what they do is they regenerate a voice. They play it back to you in the voice of your child or your loved one and then ask for money.” Another popular use is the IRS scam where they fake someone with an American accent in the voice cloning and they try to make people think they owe money. He said there are tell-tale signs to watch out for to indicate an AI voice scam. “Getting you in a situation of urgency, anxiety, despair, concern, and so on and so forth,” Karnik cautioned. “Now, typically what would happen is that you react to such situations, and you’re quick on your wallet pulling it out, paying the person, the money that they’re asking for. But the recommendation here, of course, is that, you know, take some time to rationalize the situation.” He said try to call back the person you think you’re talking to on a trusted number before paying any money. People could also create a family code word for troubling situations. If a caller knows the word, it verifies who they say they are. Anyone who ends up in a situation like this should report it to police and the Federal Trade Commission to help alert others learn about a scam going around.
The Ultra-Realistic AI Face Swapping Platform Driving Romance Scams -- THE CHINESE-LANGUAGE ARTIFICIAL intelligence app Haotian is so effective that it’s made millions of dollars selling its face-swapping technology on Telegram. The service integrates easily with messaging platforms like WhatsApp and WeChat and claims that users can tweak up to 50 settings—including the ability to adjust things like cheekbone size and eye position—to help mimic the face they are impersonating. But while Haotian is a robust and versatile platform, researchers and WIRED’s own analysis have found that the service has been marketing to so-called “pig butchering” scammers and those running online fraud operations in Southeast Asia. Scammers have used Haotian and other deepfake tools to more easily substantiate their deceptions by allowing victims to “videochat” with the character they believe they have been talking to as part of an investment opportunity, friendship, or even romantic relationship. Analysis by the cryptocurrency tracing firm Elliptic of four cryptocurrency wallets linked to Haotian shows the company has received at least $3.9 million in payments in recent years, including money from cryptocurrency wallets linked to alleged criminal activity, including fraud. Additionally, almost half of its payments had ties to a scam marketplace sanctioned by the US government, Elliptic says.Hieu Minh Ngo, a reformed criminal hacker turned cybercrime investigator at the Vietnamese scam-fighting nonprofit ChongLuaDao, says that Haotian, which emerged around 2021, was “one of the first of its kind and very popular.” Ngo has conducted extensive research into Haotian and its operations. “Its results are nearly perfect,” he says. “And they are getting better and better every day. If you check in the crypto wallet, you will see the money coming in every single day.”Haotian is just one part of the wider tech ecosystem that has emerged around Southeast Asia’s booming cybercrime industry and forced labor scam compounds. And as face swapping and other video deepfake tools have become more widely available, they have increasingly been incorporated into scamming and other types of cybercrime around the world. In the last two years, officials working for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime have identified more than 10 face-swapping tools potentially being used by cybercriminals in Southeast Asia, including for cryptocurrency scams and police officer impersonation.Haotian has a website for its face-swapping tool, but it primarily promotes its desktop app via a public Telegram channel, which launched in October 2023 according to Ngo’s research. Through this channel, which now has more than 20,000 subscribers, the company markets new versions of the app, gives development updates, and offers technical support. While marketing software through Telegram isn’t inherently nefarious, researchers say that Haotian’s customer base has increasingly skewed toward scammers who already seek out information about an array of gray market services on the messaging app.Telegram declined to comment. However, after WIRED got in touch with the company, the main public Haotian Telegram channel and some associated accounts became inaccessible or appeared to have been deleted. Telegram did not return a request for comment on whether the company took these accounts down.Haotian is a Cambodia-based company that says it is headquartered in Phnom Penh and advertises on-site installation services and support in the region. UN researchers highlighted this “same-day on-site installation” service with a screenshot in their 2024 report that shows Haotian's logo on a phone screen at a possible scam site.The company’s marketing materials on both its website and Telegram frequently reference the tool’s utility for what could be potentially shady activity. One post on Telegram says the technology can help to create an “elite, authentic persona” that the “client completely believes.” (Scammers often refer to people that are being scammed as customers or clients). Another message highlighted by researcherssaid: “The chat lacks authenticity? No Trust? Use Haotian AI face-changing software to make a video call to solve all your troubles. After all, how could such a beautiful girl lie?”
China's DeepSeek Using Banned Nvidia Chips To Develop Next Major Model - Chinese AI startup DeepSeek has been using 'several thousand' banned Nvidia Blackwell chips to develop its next major model, The Information reports, citing six people with knowledge of the matter. The chips in question were smuggled into China through a complex scheme that involves sending them to data centers in countries that are allowed to purchase them - then dismantling the servers and importing the components to China. Doing so allowed DeepSeek to remain competitive in the AI race, as Chinese AI chips are still not sufficient to train AI models - a process in which the models 'learn' from mountains of data. While Beijing has pushed for domestic companies to use homegrown alternatives, the Nvidia chips are currently the only ones that can get the job done.Nvidia's Blackwell, which shipped in the fourth quarter of 2024, have been used by companies including xAI, Google, Microsoft and OpenAI - which all use hundreds of thousands of B200 chips, along with the prior "hopper" generation H100 / H200 models - to train and operate. DeepSeek made headlines in January, when its R1 deep-reasoning model displayed high performance vs. what the company claimed was very minimal cost to train it. Since then, the startup has only made incremental upgrades to their model - which uses a method called 'sparse attention' in which only certain parts of the model are used to answer questions vs. the entire model, according to the report. This technique could significantly reduce the costs of 'inference' (when AI models send your power bills higher to create cat videos) - which lowers the overall cost to adopt AI. Blackwell chips are perfect for this approach, as they include specialized hardware designed to silo various processes and accelerate sparse computing, which can run such calculations nearly twice as fast as traditional methods. DeepSeek’s focus on the sparse attention technique has made its model development more challenging and time-consuming, according to the person. The company in September released the V3.2-Exp, which it described as an experimental model serving as “an intermediate step” toward its next-generation model. But applying sparse attention to bigger models is proving to be more complicated, the person said.Some DeepSeek employees are hoping to roll out the next-generation model by the Lunar New Year holiday in mid-February, according to the person. However, DeepSeek founder Liang Wenfeng, who prioritizes performance over the timeline, hasn’t set a hard deadline for the new model, the person said. -The Information. DeepSeek originally trained its models with older Nvidia A100 chips which launched in 2020 - 10,000 of which were stockpiled by its hedge fund parent, High-Flyer Capital Management before US export restrictions kicked in in 2022. The A100 is two generations older than Blackwell. DeepSeek also used Hopper chips, the generation just before Blackwell, according to company research papers from 2024.
Victim offers $1 million bounty, legal threat after $50 million crypto theft --A crypto user lost $50 million in USDT after falling for an address poisoning scam in a massive onchain exploit.The theft, spotted by Web3 security firm Web3 Antivirus, occurred after the user sent a $50 test transaction to confirm the destination address before transferring the rest of the funds.Within minutes, a scammer created a wallet address that closely resembled the destination, matching the first and last characters, knowing most wallets abbreviate addresses and show only prefixes and suffixes.The scammer then sent the victim a tiny “dust” amount to poison their transaction history. Seemingly believing the destination address was legitimate and properly entered, the victim copied the address from their transaction history and ended up sending $49,999,950 USDT to the scammer’s address.These small dust transactions are often sent to addresses with large holdings, poisoning transaction histories in an attempt to catch users in copy-paste errors, such as this one. Bots conducting these transactions cast a wide net, hoping for success, which they achieved in this case.Blockchain data shows the stolen funds were then swapped for ether ETH$2,974.99 and moved across multiple wallets. Several addresses involved have since interacted with Tornado Cash, a sanctioned crypto mixer, in a bid to obfuscate the transaction trail.In response, the victim published an onchain message demanding the return of 98% of the stolen funds within 48 hours. The message, backed with legal threats, offered the attacker $1 million as a white-hat bounty if the assets are returned in full.Failure to comply, the message warns, will trigger legal escalation and criminal charges.“This is your final opportunity to resolve this matter peacefully,” the victim wrote in the message. “If you fail to comply: we will escalate the matter through legal international law enforcement channels.”Address poisoning exploits no vulnerabilities in code or cryptography, but instead takes advantage of user habits, namely, the reliance on partial address matching and copy-pasting from transaction history.
Crypto currency scammer indicted: Brooklyn man charged with defrauding about 100 crypto investors out of $16 million - (WABC) -- A man from Brooklyn was indicted for a giant online phishing scam that targeted crypto currency investors and stole nearly $16 million in total from them. Prosecutors say 23-year-old Ronald Spektor ripped off his victims over several years through the huge phishing and social engineering scheme which he operated out of his Sheepshead Bay apartment. He allegedly gained access to about 100 users' Coinbase accounts. Prosecutors say Spektor used the handle @lolimfeelingevil. He allegedly contacted the users, pretending to be a Coinbase representative, and claimed that their assets were at risk from a hacker and convinced them to transfer their money to a new cryptocurrency wallet. Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez says the Spektor, between April 2023 and December 2024, hired bots to bombard the users with text message alerts to aid in the con. "What the victims didn't know is that the text comes from the defendant and that he created the wallet," Gonzalez said. "So, he knows the seed phrase, and so as soon as the money is transferred, he's just waiting for it." Prosecutors say Spektor had 12 digital wallets to move the stolen crypto around and had 29 documents with tens of thousands of email addresses and passwords, and from just one of his crypto currency addresses, was able to make 29,000 transfers. In addition, Gonzalez said Spektor allegedly recruited people online to help them to do this to more people. According to the criminal complaint, in October 2024, Spektor conned a California resident out of $6 million in crypto. "Obviously, we're reviewing everything, but these are all user-initiated actions," said Spektor's attorney Todd Spodek. "There are controls in place, so there's no allegations that Mr. Spektor himself is moving anyone's cryptocurrency." Spektor was arraigned on Friday on a 31-count indictment charging him with first-degree grand larceny, first-degree money laundering, scheme to defraud and other related counts. He pled not guilty to the charges. "We're disputing everything, and we'll deal with them in court at the appropriate time," Spodek said. The judge set Spektor's bail at $500,000 cash. When Spektor's father tried to bail him out, the judge wouldn't accept the money because he could not account for how he obtained the funds.
Gen Z NYC crypto crook still living with dad busted for swiping $16M in jaw-dropping digital heist --A Gen-Zer still living with his dad was busted for stealing $16 million in cryptocurrency from dozens of people — using the funds to gamble and shamelessly bragging about the jaw-dropping digital heist online, Brooklyn prosecutors said Friday.Ronald Spektor, 23, allegedly scammed roughly 100 victims — ranging from cops to single moms — out of their hard-earned savings while running the scheme from his father’s house in Sheepshead Bay, according to Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez.“This was no different than someone robbing them, quite literally robbing them for everything they had. It’s heartbreaking,” Gonzalez said at a press conference.Ronald Spektor, 23, allegedly convinced his marks to move cryptocurrency to different online “wallets”Office of the Brooklyn District Attorney. The blockchain bandit contacted victims all over the country while posing as a representative from the crypto exchange company Coinbase, and claimed their money was at risk from a hacker, the DA’s office said.The young con artist then convinced his marks — including victims in Virginia, California and Pennsylvania— to move the digital dough to a different online “wallet” that he secretly had access to, prosecutors said.Spektor then allegedly cleaned out those wallets, laundered the money and spent millions of dollars gambling — before boasting about it online under the eerily apt handle @lolimfeelingevil, according to prosecutors.
$16 Million Crypto Phishing Scam: What Went Wrong? - OneSafe Blog -- Man, the world of crypto is moving at lightning speed, but so are the scammers. One of the latest stories to grab attention involves a guy named Ronald Spektor, who's accused of swindling a whopping $16 million from unsuspecting Coinbase users through a phishing scheme. Let's dive into how he pulled this off, the damage done to the victims, and what you can do to keep your digital assets safe. Meet Ronald Spektor, a 23-year-old from Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn. He’s accused of running a phishing scheme that defrauded around 100 Coinbase users between April 2023 and December 2024. He pretended to be a Coinbase rep, reaching out to victims via phone and text. In many cases, he used automated alerts to instill a sense of urgency. Spektor falsely claimed that their assets were at risk from hackers, persuading them to transfer their crypto to wallets he controlled, using their own seed phrases.So how did he get away with this? The stolen cryptocurrency was laundered through exchanges, mixing services, and even gambling sites. Authorities managed to seize about $505,000 from him, with ongoing efforts under "Operation Phish Net" to recover more. They tracked his operations back to his home IP address and did some blockchain analysis to link him to the scheme. What’s wild is that Spektor had zero experience in the crypto world but still managed to pull off this elaborate scam from his apartment.The fallout for the victims was severe. One guy in California reported losing a staggering $6 million. And the emotional impact? You can imagine. Many of these victims were completely unaware that the wallets they were sending their funds to were set up by Spektor, who had their seed phrases.
Fed rescinds Biden-era crypto guidance — The Federal Reserve has scrapped a 2023 policy statement that tried to limit some banks' use of crypto-asset activities. "Since the policy statement was published, the financial system and the Board's understanding of innovative products and services have evolved," the Fed said in a Wednesday press release. "As a result, the 2023 policy statement is no longer appropriate and has been withdrawn."
- Key insight: The Federal Reserve is loosening its reins on crypto activities allowed for banks, with particular attention paid to noninsured state-chartered banks.
- What's at stake: Custodia, a special purpose depository institution, has been engaged in a lawsuit against the Fed over the central bank's denial of Custodia's application for a master account.
- Expert quote: "I cannot agree to rescind the current policy statement and adopt a new one that would, in effect, encourage regulatory arbitrage." — Fed Gov. Michael Barr.
The Federal Reserve said in a statement that its "understanding of innovation products and services have evolved" since the initial guidance was published in 2023.
Fed seeks public input on 'skinny' master account concept - The Federal Reserve Board voted 6-1 on Friday to seek public comment on a proposed "skinny" master account.
FDIC proposes process for banks to issue stablecoins - The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. board Tuesday approved the issuance of a proposed rule setting the process for FDIC-supervised banks to apply to issue payment stablecoins through subsidiaries under the GENIUS Act.
- Key insight: The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Tuesday issued a proposed rule that would set up a process for banks to issue payment stablecoins, pursuant to the recently-passed GENIUS Act stablecoin legislation.
- Supporting data: Under the proposed rule, bank applications to issue stablecoins would be automatically approved after 120 days of inaction.
- Forward look: Acting FDIC Chair Travis Hill says the agency will continue to issue implementing regulations, including forthcoming capital and liquidity standards for stablecoin issuance.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. issued a proposal setting application criteria for banks to issue stablecoins and sets a strict timeline under which banks may have their applications reviewed. The agency also reduced deposit insurance assessments for banks and slashed its 2026 proposed budget at a board meeting Tuesday morning.
JPMorgan debuts first money market fund tokenized on Ethereum -- JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s asset management arm is launching its first ever tokenized money market fund built on Ethereum, joining a growing list of Wall Street firms pushing into blockchain-based finance. The New-York based bank on Monday debuted the My OnChain Net Yield Fund, or MONY, a private fund supported by JPMorgan's tokenization platform, Kinexys Digital Assets.
Market Intelligence The stablecoin yield fight still rages, but on a new battlefield - Competition sounds great as an equalizing principle — until it starts to eat your lunch.Banks are unlikely to get the language of the GENIUS Act amended to better defend deposits. But Noelle Acheson explains how that doesn't mean they won't get what they want.
Crypto trust charter approvals ignite fight over statutory scope - Key insight: The OCC's conditional approval of five crypto-focused national trust bank charters has spawned a debate over whether digital-asset custody and stablecoin-related activities fit within Congress' vision for trust banks. Bank groups, crypto firms and regulators are divided over whether fiduciary digital-asset custody fits naturally within the national trust charter model — or whether, as critics argue, the agency is quietly reinventing the charter.
Citi exits 2024 enforcement action -- Citi has been freed from one of the enforcement actions it's been operating under, a signal that regulators are satisfied with some of the work the bank is doing to clean up its long-troubled risk management programs.
- Key insight: Citi has been freed from an amended consent order issued by the OCC in July 2024.
- What's at stake: The megabank continues to operate under 2020 enforcement actions filed by the OCC and the Fed, which took issue with Citi's long-troubled risk management infrastructure.
- Forward look: Citi will focus next year on continuing to improve its data quality management, Chief Financial Officer Mark Mason has said.
The megabank cleared a regulatory hurdle when the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency freed it from a July 2024 amendment to a consent order. Two other orders, one from the OCC and the other from the Federal Reserve, remain in place.
Big bank lobby launches advocacy group — The Financial Services Forum has started a 501(c)(4), a spending group, called American Growth Alliance that says it will advocate on economic issues across partisan lines.
- Key insight: The Financial Services Forum launched American Growth Alliance, a 501(c)(4) that allows banks more opaque donor disclosure than traditional PACs require.
- Expert quote: New Forum CEO Amanda Eversole signals departure from the group's low-profile approach and seeks to foster bipartisan agreement on "an array of important national economic and financial issues and priorities such as job creation and affordability."
- What's at stake: Some of the forum's members include JPMorganChase, Goldman Sachs, Citi and Bank of America.
The Financial Services Forum, which represents the largest U.S. banks, formed a new 501(c)(4) advocacy group to amplify big banks' policy preferences, a move that could counter the crypto industry's growing political influence.
Report: Global nonbank sector surged in 2024 -- The presence of nonbank financial institutions on the global stage grew notably in 2024, according to a report released Tuesday morning by the Basel, Switzerland-based Financial Stability Board.
- Key insight: The Financial Stability Board report found that nonbank assets rose 9.4% in 2024, double the growth of the banking sector.
- Supporting data: Assets held by nonbank financial institutions accounted for 51% of total global financial assets, or $256.8 trillion.
- What's at stake: As nonbank entities grow in importance, U.S. regulators have said they are seeking opportunities to bring them into the bank regulatory system.
A new report from the Basel, Switzerland-based Financial Stability Board found that nonbank financial institutions grew considerably faster than banks in 2024 and now control more than half of the world's financial assets.
Bankers forecast 2026 upheaval in cybersecurity, regulation - New research from American Banker explores how bankers predict stablecoins, subprime credit, cyber security and other factors will shape the industry at large.Bankers are starting to decide what is in store for the industry in 2026. Their predictions are strengthened by recent changes in interest rate cuts, artificial intelligence policies and cryptocurrency legislation.American Banker’s 2026 Predictions report was fielded online during October and November of 2025 among 174 banking professionals who work across a variety of executive roles at banks, credit unions, neobanks and payments companies. Top findings from the report:
- Stablecoin legislation, enforcement actions and capital requirements are all eyed by bankers for improvement in 2026.
- Recession woes are the top concern for bankers heading into 2026.
- The subprime credit landscape is poised to change for the worse in 2026, and will create a lot of risk for financial institutions.
Bipartisan agreement emerges on bank resolution reform — Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle easily passed bills through the House Financial Services Committee that would tweak the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s least-cost resolution requirement.
- Key insight: Bipartisan House bills that would limit largest banks from acquiring failed banks to counter industry concentration passed the House Financial Services Committee during a Tuesday markup session that carried on into Wednesday afternoon.
- What's at stake: Rep. Mike Flood, R-Neb., offered a bill that allows the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to waive the least-cost resolution requirement if the requirements would increase bank consolidation.
- Expert quote: "There are situations where there is a compelling public policy case for the FDIC to choose an option that is not necessarily the least costly to the [Deposit Insurance Fund]," — Rep. Mike Flood, R-Neb.
The House Financial Services Committee unanimously passed bills that would give the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. more options in resolving failed banks, including by waiving the "least-cost resolution" requirement in some circumstances.
Travis Hill confirmed as FDIC chair — The Senate confirmed Travis Hill to lead the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., affirming him as part of a slate of nominations that were approved by a mostly party-line vote of 53-43 Thursday night.
- Key insight: Travis Hill was confirmed by the Senate as part of an en blanc nominations package Thursday night.
- Forward look: Hill is expected to continue tailoring rules for small banks and lowering barriers for fintech and crypto to enter the mainstream banking system.
- What's at stake: Bank groups also cited merger review and indexing regulatory thresholds as their key near-term priorities for the FDIC.
The Senate confirmed Travis Hill as the chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. as part of a slate of nominations that were approved late Thursday. Hill has been serving as acting FDIC chair since January.
AI-driven wire fraud schemes reshape real estate security in 2025 - CertifID CEO Tyler Adams warns that real estate fraud in 2025 relies on refined tactics, not new schemes. Criminals use AI deepfake voices, email monitoring and precise timing. Mandatory wire verification, layered security and training are essential. CertifID has helped recover over $120 million, but smaller consumer losses remain devastating nationwide. AI SummaryCybercriminals are not inventing entirely new schemes in 2025. They are perfecting old ones.According to Tyler Adams, CEO and co-founder ofCertifID, fraudsters are combining artificial intelligence (AI) with patience, timing and realism to exploit real estate transactions in increasingly convincing ways. From AI-generated voice impersonations to email monitoring and highly targeted wire fraud, the landscape of threats continues to evolve.In this Q&A with HousingWire, Adams discusses the latest cybersecurity developments, the rise of deepfakes, real-world fraud cases CertifID has helped stop or unwind, and what title and real estate companies must do now to protect consumers and themselves. Editor’s note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Mortgage Rates Slightly Lower as Volatility Risks Increase -- Mortgage rates were just slightly lower to start the new week. This leaves the average lender's top tier 30yr fixed rate almost dead center in the narrow range that's been intact since early September.The absence of any significant movement on Monday is a logical outcome given the absence of any major economic data releases or headlines. But Tuesday could be a different story.At 8:30am ET, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) will release the first jobs report with data collected after the government shutdown. This report normally would have come out on December 5th, but by the time the government reopened on Nov 13th, BLS had missed much of its normal data collection/processing window.The jobs report (officially, The Employment Situation) is the single most important piece of economic data as far as interest rates are concerned. It includes 2 key metrics: a count of new nonfarm payroll (NFP) creation as well as an update on the unemployment rate. Both are important, but the unemployment rate has recently taken precedence over NFP.If unemployment comes in lower than expected, rates would likely face upward pressure, potentially challenging the upper boundary of the recent range. On the other hand, a weaker/higher result should keep rates well within the range, perhaps near the lower boundary.
Housing December 15th Weekly Update: Inventory Down 2.5% Week-over-week --Altos reports that active single-family inventory was down 2.5% week-over-week. Inventory usually starts to decline in the fall and then declines sharply during the holiday season.The first graph shows the seasonal pattern for active single-family inventory since 2015. The red line is for 2025. The black line is for 2019. Inventory was up 13.7% compared to the same week in 2024 (last week it was up 15.3%), and down 5.6% compared to the same week in 2019 (last week it was down 4.1%). Inventory started 2025 down 22% compared to 2019. Inventory has closed most of that gap, however inventory will still be below 2019 levels at the end of 2025. This second inventory graph is courtesy of Altos Research. As of December 12th, inventory was at 775 thousand (7-day average), compared to 795 thousand the prior week. Mike Simonsen discusses this data and much more regularly on YouTube
Realtor.com Reports Median Listing Prices Down 1.2% Year-over-year = On a weekly basis, Realtor.com reports the year-over-year change in active inventory, new listings and median prices. On a monthly basis, they report total inventory. For November, Realtor.com reported active inventory was up 12.6% YoY, but still down 11.7% compared to the 2017 to 2019 same month levels. Here is their weekly report: Weekly Housing Trends: U.S. Market Update (Week Ending Dec. 6, 2025):• Active inventory climbed 12.6% year over year. Inventory growth continues to be driven more by homes lingering on the market than by new listings. With roughly 1.01 million homes for sale last week, the 32nd consecutive week above the million-mark, buyers have a wider selection, while sellers face mounting competition. Importantly, this week bucked the recent trend of slowing inventory growth, and the annual increase in homes for sale was larger than the previous week.
• New listings—a measure of sellers putting homes up for sale—fell by 7.4% year over year. New listings fell again this week compared to the same week in 2024, accelerating from the previous week’s decline. New listings are up 5.5% year to date and have shown modest positive growth for most of the fall, suggesting that the overall trend toward more new listings coming on the market could be shifting this winter.
• The median listing price fell 1.2% year over year. The median list price dropped compared to the same week one year ago, though the retreat has moderated closer to year-long trends. Adjusting for home size, the price per square foot fell 1.1% year over year, dropping for the 14th consecutive week. The price per square foot grew steadily for almost two years, but the combination of slower sales, rising inventory, and increased price cuts is now clearly reflected in lower listing values, indicating that the market is rebalancing toward buyers.
Goldman on Shelter Inflation -- A few brief excerpts from a Goldman Sachs research note on shelter inflation: [R]apid multifamily supply growth amid a cooler labor market, slower immigration, and an already rising vacancy rate is likely to keep new lease rent growth subdued in 2026. ... We forecast that PCE housing inflation will slow to 0.22% month-over-month and 3.4% year-over-year in December 2025 and 0.16% month-over-month and 2.1% year-over-year in December 2026. Under our forecast, the contribution from shelter inflation to year-over-year core PCE inflation shrinks from 0.7pp in the latest report to 0.6pp by December 2025 and 0.4pp by December 2026, versus 0.6pp on average in 2018-2019. Here is a graph of the year-over-year change in shelter from the CPI report and housing from the PCE report this morning, both through September 2025. Housing (PCE) was up 3.7% YoY in September, down from 3.9% in August and down from the cycle peak of 8.3% in April 2023. Economists at Goldman Sachs expect this will decline to 2.1% YoY by December 2026. This is a key reason why the FOMC expects inflation to decline in 2026 (along with less impact on inflation from tariffs).
NAHB: Builder Confidence Increased Slightly in December, Negative territory for 20 consecutive months –n The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reported the housing market index (HMI) was at 39, up from 38 last month. Any number below 50 indicates that more builders view sales conditions as poor than good. From the NAHB: NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI)Builder confidence in the market for newly built single-family homes rose one point to 39 in December. Here are the readings for the three HMI indices in December:
• Current sales conditions increased one point to 42.
• Sales expectations in the next six months rose one point to 52.
• Traffic of prospective buyers held steady at 26.
In a further sign of ongoing challenges for the housing market, the latest HMI survey also revealed that 40% of builders reported cutting prices in December, marking the second consecutive month the share has been at 40% or higher since May 2020. It was 41% in November. Meanwhile, the average price reduction was 5% in December, down from the 6% rate in November. The use of sales incentives was 67% in December, the highest percentage in the post-Covid period. This graph shows the NAHB index since Jan 1985. The index has been below 50 for twenty consecutive months.
Home heating costs to increase by 9.2% this winter - A new report projects that home heating costs will rise by 9.2 percent this winter, with colder temperatures and increasing energy prices playing a role. The report from the National Energy Assistance Directors Association (NEADA), which represents state governments in securing federal funding, projects that households will spend $995 on heating this winter, an increase of $84 from last winter. Costs for households using electric and natural gas heaters will increase by 12.2 percent and 8.4 percent, respectively.The Hill has reached out to the Department of Energy for comment.The projected increases significantly outpace the overall rate of inflation, which hit 3 percent in September, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). That same month, energy costs were up 2.8 percent relative to 12 months prior, while electricity and natural gas prices were up 5.1 percent and 11.7 percent, respectively.
Retail Sales Unchanged in October --On a monthly basis, retail sales were unchanged from September to October (seasonally adjusted), and sales were up 3.5 percent from October 2024. From the Census Bureau report: Advance estimates of U.S. retail and food services sales for October 2025, adjusted for seasonal variation and holiday and trading-day differences, but not for price changes, were $732.6 billion, virtually unchanged from the previous month, and up 3.5 percent from October 2024. ... The August 2025 to September 2025 percent change was revised from up 0.2 percent to up 0.1 percent. This graph shows retail sales since 1992. This is monthly retail sales and food service, seasonally adjusted (total and ex-gasoline). Retail sales ex-gasoline was up 0.1% in October. The second graph shows the year-over-year change in retail sales and food service (ex-gasoline) since 1993. Retail and Food service sales, ex-gasoline, increased by 3.6% on a YoY basis. The change in sales in October were below expectations and the previous two months were revised down. A weak report.
Ford To Lay Off 1,600 Workers As Kentucky EV Battery Plant Pivots To Data Center Storage - Ford will lay off all 1,600 workers at its newly built electric-vehicle battery plant in Glendale, Kentucky, as it pivots away from EV production and converts the facility to make battery-storage systems for data centers, utilities, and renewable-energy developers, according to WDRB.The company said Monday it plans to begin shipping battery energy-storage systems from plants in Kentucky and Michigan in late 2027, calling the move a shift toward “higher-return opportunities,” according to the Wall Street Journal. Ford estimates the transition away from its EV strategy will cost $19.5 billion and disclosed that it has lost about $13 billion on EVs since 2023.“Instead of plowing billions into the future knowing these large EVs will never make money, we are pivoting,” CEO Jim Farley told the Journal.In a video message to employees, Michael Adams, CEO of BlueOval SK—the former Ford–SK On joint venture—said the move would mark “the end of all BlueOval SK positions in Kentucky.” Workers will continue to receive pay and benefits for 60 days, though no firm layoff date was given. Ford said it plans to hire about 2,100 workers for the revamped facility and that displaced employees will be eligible to apply.
November Employment Report: 64 thousand Jobs, 4.6% Unemployment Rate; October Lost 105 thousand Jobs --From the BLS: Employment Situation Total nonfarm payroll employment changed little in November (+64,000) and has shown little net change since April, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. In November, the unemployment rate, at 4.6 percent, was little changed from September. Employment rose in health care and construction in November, while federal government continued to lose jobs.... The change in total nonfarm payroll employment for August was revised down by 22,000, from -4,000 to -26,000, and the change for September was revised down by 11,000, from +119,000 to +108,000. With these revisions, employment in August and September combined is 33,000 lower than previously reported. Due to the recent federal government shutdown, this is the first publication of October data and thus there are no revisions for October this month. The first graph shows the jobs added per month since January 2021.Total payrolls increased by 64 thousand in November. Private payrolls increased by 697 thousand, and public payrolls decreased 5 thousand (Federal payrolls decreased 6 thousand). Payrolls for August and September were revised down by 33 thousand, combined. The economy has only added 100 thousand jobs since April (7 months). The second graph shows the year-over-year change in total non-farm employment since 1968. In November, the year-over-year change was 0.03 million jobs. Year-over-year employment growth has slowed sharply. The third graph shows the employment population ratio and the participation rate. The Labor Force Participation Rate increased to 62.5% in November, from 62.4% in September (no October data). This is the percentage of the working age population in the labor force. The Employment-Population ratio was decreased to 59.6% from 59.7% in September (blue line). The fourth graph shows the unemployment rate. The unemployment rate was increased to 4.6% in November from 4.4% in September. This was slightly above consensus expectations, however, August and September payrolls were revised down by 33,000 combined - and the initial October estimate was -105,000.Overall another weak report, although there are technical issues that likely make this data less accurate due to government shutdown.
Federal layoffs trigger a sharp slowdown in job growth: Unemployment rises to highest rate since 2021 - by EPI Staff Below, EPI senior economist Elise Gould offers her insights on the jobs report released this morning, which showed 41,000 jobs lost over October and November. Read the full thread here.
- Today the BLS releases two months of payroll data and one month of household data. A little jarring to see the first gap in data on the unemployment rate in the history of the survey. Second thing to note is that the unemployment rate is now 4.6% a significant rise from 4.0% in January.
- On the payroll side, there were net job losses in three of the last six months. Job growth averaged only 17,000 over the last six months, a significant slowdown.
- Downward revisions for August and September plus large losses in October—due to an enormous drop in federal workers at the end of September—has meant a significant slowing in the pace of job growth. The three-month moving average of job growth fell from 232k in January to 62k in November.
- Attacks on the federal workforce reached a fever pitch in October as federal employment fell by a whopping 162,000. Federal employment has shrunk an alarming 271,000 since January. The shutdown furloughs have no impact on these data. The cost of these losses are only beginning to be felt.
- Health care employment continued to rise, adding 46,000 jobs in November. Construction added jobs as well, but manufacturing and transportation and warehousing sectors continues to lose jobs, 58k losses in manufacturing and 60k losses in transportation and warehousing since January.
- While federal cuts drove large losses in October, it’s important to note that private-sector employment grew an average of only 44k per month over the last six months, down from an average growth rate of 130k in 2024. Employment is undeniably slowing this year and it’s not just about federal cuts. — Elise Gould (@elisegould.bsky.social) Dec 16, 2025 at 8:46 AM
Comments on November Employment Report – McBride - The headline jobs number in the November employment report was slightly above expectations, however August and September were revised down by 33,000 - and the initial October report indicates 105,000 job lost (mostly Federal Government jobs lost due to DOGE deferred resignation program). The unemployment rate increased to 4.6%. Earlier: November Employment Report: 64 thousand Jobs, 4.6% Unemployment Rate; October Lost 105 thousand Jobs The graph shows the nominal year-over-year change in "Average Hourly Earnings" for all private employees from the Current Employment Statistics (CES). There was a huge increase at the beginning of the pandemic as lower paid employees were let go, and then the pandemic related spike reversed a year later. Wage growth has trended down after peaking at 5.9% YoY in March 2022 and was at 3.5% YoY in November, down from 3.7% YoY in October. From the BLSreport:"The number of people employed part time for economic reasons was 5.5 million in November, an increase of 909,000 from September. These individuals would have preferred full-time employment but were working part time because their hours had been reduced or they were unable to find full-time jobs."The number of persons working part time for economic reasons increased in November to 5.49 million from 4.58 million in September. This is well above the pre-pandemic levels and the highest levels since mid-2021. These workers are included in the alternate measure of labor underutilization (U-6) that increased to 8.7% from 8.0% in September. This is down from the record high in April 2020 of 22.9% and up from the lowest level on record (seasonally adjusted) in December 2022 (6.6%). (This series started in 1994).This measure is well above the 7.0% level in February 2020 (pre-pandemic). This graph shows the number of workers unemployed for 27 weeks or more. According to the BLS, there are 1.91 million workers who have been unemployed for more than 26 weeks and still want a job, up from 1.81 million in September. This is down from post-pandemic high of 4.171 million, and up from the recent low of 1.056 million. This is above pre-pandemic levels. Summary: The headline jobs number in the November employment report was slightly above expectations, however August and September were revised down by 33,000 - and the initial October report indicates 105,000 job lost (mostly Federal Government jobs lost due to DOGE deferred resignation program). The unemployment rate increased to 4.6%.This was a weak employment report.
Hedge fund billionaire Ray Dalio, wife to donate to 300,000 Trump accounts - Hedge fund billionaire Ray Dalio and his wife, Barbara, are joining a White House initiative to fund new President Trump-branded investment accounts for children, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced Wednesday. Dalio, founder of investment firm Bridgewater Associates, has pledged with his wife to donate $250 each to roughly 300,000 children in their home state of Connecticut. Bessent first announced the Dalios’ decision to join at a Treasury Department event Wednesday, and the Dalios shared the details of their intended donations in a press release. “Barbara and I believe strongly in the importance of equal opportunity and believe this initiative is an important step in that direction,” Dalio said. “At an early age, I was exposed to the stock market, and it changed my life. By providing children with savings accounts that compound over time, we are providing them with early insights into financial literacy and a path towards financial independence,” he continued. The Dalios are joining Michael Dell — founder of computer company Dell Inc. — and his wife, Susan, as the second billionaire couple to commit to funding the new “Trump account” program. Enacted through Trump’s sweeping tax cut bill earlier this year, the program is an investment account available to every minor who will not turn 18 before July 4, 2026. The federal government will give $1,000 to each Trump account recipient, and Trump account funds will be invested in index funds that track the general success of the stock market. Trump accounts can also be funded by family members and charitable donations. The account holder is able to access the funds once they turn 18, but they can also use the account as a traditional tax-advantaged retirement investment account.Trump unveils 'Patriot Games' for US 250th anniversary -President Trump on Thursday announced plans for a “Patriot Games” next year that will pit top high school athletes from across the country against one another as part of a series of events to mark 250 years since the nation’s founding.Trump announced the launch of Freedom 250, an organization that will lead the administration’s efforts to celebrate the country’s 250th birthday in 2026. One of the events that will be featured as part of the festivities will be what Trump called the “first-ever Patriot Games, an unprecedented four-day athletic event featuring the greatest high school athletes — one young man and one young woman from each state and territory.” The event is slated for next fall.“But I promise there will be no men playing in women’s sports,” Trump added in a video posted to social media, a nod to his administration’s efforts to prohibit transgender athletes from participating in women’s sports.Other events planned for 2026 include a “Great American State Fair” that will feature exhibits from all 50 states on the National Mall from June 25-July 10; an Independence Day celebration that will include fireworks and a military flyover; and an Ultimate Fighting Championship event that will take place at the White House on June 14.The announcement of the “Patriot Games” prompted comparisons from some social media users to “The Hunger Games,” a fictional event from the book series in which tributes from various districts in a dystopian future fight to the death. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D) posted a meme and California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) posted a clip from the movie series.
Trump Admin Demands Tim Walz's Resignation After Another Fraud Discovery --Education Secretary Linda McMahon demanded on Monday that Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz step down over allegations that his administration allowed millions in taxpayer money to be stolen by “ghost students.” McMahon’s scathing letter, published on X, came after the Education Department reportedly uncovered at least 1,834 fraudulent college applicants in Minnesota received $12.5 million in grants and loans. Overall, the Trump administration reportedly found that $90 million had been disbursed to alleged scammers in 2024 alone, in addition to $30 million in loans to dead people and over $40 million to companies using AI bots.These suspected fraudsters, also known as “ghost students,” use stolen identities to obtain the funds. McMahon said a newly launched fraud control system had blocked “more than $1 billion in attempted financial aid theft by fraudsters,” including foreign rings and AI bots. The letter comes as Walz faces scrutiny for failing to stop the theft of more than $1 billion in COVID-19-related relief funds since 2020. One of the exploited programs, designed to provide meals for those in need during the pandemic, was reportedly targeted by a group of Somali Americans in Minnesota. Whistleblowers said the Walz administration ignored red flags in some applications to avoid alienating the Somali community, a key Democratic voting bloc in the state.
At least 2 killed in Brown University shooting; police detain person of interest - At least two students died and nine were injured in a Saturday shooting at Brown University in Rhode Island, according to authorities. Providence Police Department Chief Oscar Perez said at a press conference early Sunday that a person of interest was detained overnight but declined to provide additional identifying information about where the individual was detained or whether the person of interest was a student at the university. Perez at a press conference later Sunday said the person of interest is in their 20s and that law enforcement is working to determine whether they have any connection to the university. Coventry police, which assisted the FBI in apprehending the individual, told WPRI that the person was taken into custody without issue at 3:45 a.m. local time at the Hampton Inn and Suites on Center of New England Boulevard. The individual was then transported to Providence, R.I. Providence Mayor Brett Smiley (D) told reporters at the press conference Sunday that the conditions of the nine students transported to the hospital Saturday afternoon had not deteriorated overnight. As of early Sunday, seven people were in stable condition at the hospital, one was in stable but critical condition, and one person had been discharged from the hospital, Smiley said. “The people of Providence should breathe a little easier this morning,” Smiley said Sunday. “The investigation with regard to the individual who has been detained is very much ongoing and in the middle of it right now, but we’re providing this update specifically so that the people of Providence can breathe a little easier this morning.” “That is also why we feel confident and comfortable to lift the shelter in place for the city,” he continued. Brown alerted students and campus faculty of an active shooter near the Barus and Holley engineering building at 4:22 p.m. EST. Officials told reporters that final exams were underway in the building during the afternoon. They said the suspect was dressed in black and last seen leaving the building. Later on Saturday night, officials said the shooting occurred in a classroom. Hours after the shooting, officers were hunting through academic buildings, backyards and porches, The Associated Pressreported. The university has roughly 7,300 undergraduate students and more than 3,000 graduate students. “The FBI is on the scene,” President Trump wrote on Truth Social while at the Army-Navy college football game, noting that he had been briefed on the situation. “God bless the victims and the families of the victims!” The school previously said a suspect was in custody and later corrected its alert to students and staff to say the suspect has not been arrested, WCVB-TV, a Massachusetts-based news station, reported. Trump also noted the reversal after previously sharing on Truth Social that a suspect was in custody.
Trump rips Brown University over security cameras after shooting - President Trump on Wednesday attacked Brown University over what he claimed was a lack of security cameras after the FBI faced criticism for arresting a person in connection with a fatal shooting who was later released because of insufficient evidence. “Why did Brown University have so few Security Cameras?” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “There can be no excuse for that. In the modern age, it just doesn’t get worse!!!” University spokesperson Brian Clark told The Hill in a statement that the campus has “an expansive network of security cameras, with more than 1,200 cameras installed across campus buildings and spaces in both interior and exterior locations.” He added that the cameras are deployed in high-traffic areas such as streets, sidewalks and campus hallways, as well as the entry and exit points of buildings. “Brown’s security cameras do not extend to every hallway, classroom, laboratory and office across the 250+ buildings on campus,” Clark said. “For security reasons, it is not prudent to share where cameras are and are not relative to individual buildings and locations.” The spokesperson continued, “What we can share is that Brown has and will continue to cooperate fully with the law enforcement agencies conducting this investigation.” He also noted that the university has and “will continue to provide investigators with any and all security camera footage they need, including from the engineering complex of three connected buildings that includes Barus & Holley, the Engineering Research Center and Prince Lab.”Trump administration suspends green card lottery program after deadly Brown, MIT shootings -- President Trump on Thursday suspended the green-card lottery program, which was used by the suspected gunman in the Brown University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology shootings to enter the U.S. The suspect, Claudio Neves Valente, a Portuguese national, entered the country in 2017 through the diversity visa (DV) program, which makes up to 55,000 immigrant visas available worldwide through random selection, according to the State Department. The program prioritizes those from countries with low immigration rates to the U.S. Applicants can then apply for a green card and are subject to the same standards as others seeking permanent residency. “In 2017, President Trump fought to end this program, following the devastating NYC truck ramming by an ISIS terrorist, who entered under the DV1 program, and murdered eight people,” Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem wrote Thursday on the social platform X. “At President Trump’s direction, I am immediately directing USCIS to pause the DV1 program to ensure no more Americans are harmed by this disastrous program,” she added. It’s unclear whether Trump has the power to suspend the visa lottery, which was established by Congress. Immigration advocates blasted the move as unfairly punishing many based on the actions of one. “It’s unjust to block the legal immigration processes of tens of thousands of people who have absolutely nothing to do with this offense, except that they happened to have applied for the same type of visa,” Myal Greene, president of World Relief, said in a statement.
Racially charged language on mothers and babies taints vaccine advisory meeting - Su Wang, MD, tuned in to a meeting of federal vaccine advisers earlier this month with some trepidation. She wanted to share her experience living with hepatitis B and encourage the advisers to continue recommending vaccine for all newborns. But she was also prepared to hear vaccine misinformation from the committee, whose members were handpicked by Health and Human Services Secretary (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime anti-vaccine activist.What Wang didn’t anticipate, she said, was anti-immigrant rhetoric and calls for racially profiling moms and babies.“I felt targeted,” said Wang, an internal medicine physician whose parents immigrated legally to the United States from Taiwan. Throughout the two-day meeting, speakers and committee members singled out immigrants and people from Asia as potential sources of infection. “That elephant in the room that I'll mention is immigration,” said Evelyn Griffin, MD, a member of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), which advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on vaccines. “We have had years of illegal immigration, undocumented people coming in from higher-endemicity countries,” said Griffin, an obstetrician-gynecologist who said she immigrated from Poland legally. Robert Malone, MD, ACIP’s vice chair, singled out “economically disadvantaged Asian immigrant populations” as being at high risk for hepatitis B, which can cause liver failure and cancer. Up to 25% of children with chronic hepatitis B infections will die prematurely because of the disease. Climate researcher Cynthia Nevison, PhD, a CDC contractor, described hepatitis B as primarily a concern for babies of “foreign-born” mothers and said it can occur in some “high-risk immigrant families,” stressing that there was little risk that the “average American child” would contract the virus from siblings or other relatives. Nevison suggested that immigrants be tested for the virus before entering the United States—a practice already recommended by the CDC. The health agency’s website says that most refugees are tested for hepatitis B before departing for the United States. The US Customs and Immigration Services alreadyrequires immigrants to receives vaccines against hepatitis B and other immunizations recommended by ACIP. Flor Munoz, MD, a non-voting liaison member of ACIP, told CIDRAP News the committee’s remarks about immigrants were “derogatory and discriminatory” and “absolutely so scary.”Disparaging comments about immigrants was “pervasive,” said Munoz, a pediatric infectious disease specialist in Texas who became a US citizen after moving to the United States to work as a physician. “It was not just a mention here or there,” she said. “It's terrifying for government appointees to describe immigrants this way.”An HHS spokeswoman said ACIP’s recommendations “rely solely on established scientific standards. Allegations of racial bias distort the record and undermine the hard work of committee members who carry out an evidence-driven process to protect the public and our nation’s children.” Hepatitis B can spread through microscopic amounts of blood. Children can be infected with hepatitis B by their mothers during delivery, or later through close contact with household members. Hepatitis B also can spread through sex with an infected partner or by sharing needles. Health care workers can be infected from patients with hepatitis B, which can survive for a week on surfaces. In spite of these risks, ACIP voted during the meeting to drop a 34-year-old recommendation that all babies receive their first dose of hepatitis B vaccine at birth, a practice that has been credited with reducing hepatitis B infections in children by 99%. Instead of encouraging universal vaccination, the committee issued different recommendations depending on whether mothers have tested positive for the virus. The committee recommended a birth dose of hepatitis B vaccine only for the newborns of mothers who test positive for the virus or whose infection status is unknown.ACIP voted to recommend “shared decision making” for babies of mothers who test negative for hepatitis B, in which patients and health providers discuss the most appropriate intervention for an individual. A footnote to the voting language on the CDC website advises parents and health care providers to consider the additional risk to babies if a household member tests positive for hepatitis B or if “there is frequent contact with persons who have emigrated from areas where hepatitis B is common.” That advice reads like a prescription for racial and ethnic profiling, said Wang, one of only a handful of members of the public selected to address the committee. Wang was prepared to speak to ACIP via teleconferencing, describing how she was infected as a baby from her grandparents, both of whom were health care professionals and unaware of their diagnosis. Her grandfather, a dentist, later died of liver cancer related to hepatitis B.After reading the footnote, Wang said she briefly considered providing her testimony off-camera and under a pseudonym. As the child of Asian immigrants, she didn’t want to reinforce the stereotype the committee was creating.Wang said her initial fear turned to resolve, however, and she refused to be silenced. In her testimony, she urged the committee to continue recommending the universal birth dose of hepatitis B vaccine, as it has for 34 years.“I see patients with hepatitis B every day, many of whom do not have any of the risk factors,” Wang told the committee, live on camera and using her real name. “I'm here to advocate for all children.”“We definitely felt a very anti-immigrant sentiment being expressed by the committee,” said Jason M. Goldman, MD, MACP, a non-voting liaison member of ACIP, who also addressed the committee via videoconferencing.Blaming certain groups for spreading a disease creates a stigma that can leave people afraid to be tested or seek treatment, said Goldman, who is president of the American College of Physicians and a clinical affiliate professor at Florida Atlantic University. “I honestly do not know where this is coming from,” Goldman told CIDRAP News. Because nations in Africa and the the Western Pacific have the highest burden of hepatitis B, the footnote could lead doctors to single out Asian and African immigrant families, said Richard J. Pan, MD, MPH, a pediatrician on the faculty at the University of California, Davis School of Medicine. Pan noted that immigrants have long been falsely blamed for spreading infectious diseases. Many recent infectious disease outbreaks in the United States have been started not by immigrants, but by unvaccinated American citizens who travel to countries with low vaccination rates and bring infections back with them, Pan said.Using racial and ethnic stereotypes when discussing disease is harmful for everyone, not just immigrants, Pan said. That’s because parents who are not recent immigrants may assume their children are not at risk for the virus, leaving them unprotected. “Viruses don't care about state borders, what language you speak, or color you are,” Wang told CIDRAP News. Suggesting that only immigrants are at risk of hepatitis B “gives the false impression that if you’re not in a ‘high-risk’ category, you’re somehow immune,” Goldman said. “That’s now how diseases work.”Health care providers already spend an enormous amount of time trying to counter anti-vaccine information. Goldman fears that providers will need to begin dispelling myths about immigrants and infectious disease, as well.“We now have this other layer of misinformation and disinformation that we’re going to have to push back against, because it’s not good for public health,” Goldman said. “It’s very disheartening and disturbing that this is a further politicization of health care…“This committee, Secretary Kennedy’s vaccine committee, is going backwards into a situation where they’re putting more people at risk,” Goldman said. Demetre Daskalakis, MD, MPH, former director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, described the footnote and conversation as “shocking/not shocking.” Instead of carefully considering scientific evidence, Daskalakis said the committee “just sort of went with the vibes and their vibe is, “If you identify Asian people somewhere near your child, then maybe you should get them a hep B vaccine,’ which is completely insane.” At a September ACIP meeting, “they kept saying, “Hepatitis B isn't a problem in a normal household,” said Daskalakis, who resigned from the agency in August due to Kennedy’s undermining of public health. Daskalakis compared the profiling of Asian immigrants to the language that many people used about AIDS in the early 1980s, when the disease was characterized as an illness affecting only gay men, people who inject illegal drugs and Haitian immigrants. Targeting vaccines to people in particular groups didn’t work in the past, said Ravi Jhaveri, MD, head of infectious diseases at Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago. When the United States vaccinated only babies believed to be at high risk, many infected infants fell through the cracks, and hepatitis B infections failed to decline. Tina Q. Tan, MD, a professor of pediatrics at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, encouraged parents not to follow the ACIP vaccine recommendations, which “have absolutely no scientific basis. This type of recommendation really severely negatively impacts the American public and only does harm.” Instead, Tan said parents and physicians should look for guidance from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Vaccine Integrity Project, whose recent report found no reason to stop vaccinating newborns against hepatitis B. Munoz said she has seen what can happen to unvaccinated babies. A few years ago, she cared for a 3-month-old baby who needed a liver transplant because of organ damage caused by chronic hepatitis B. The baby’s mother tested negative for hepatitis B while she was pregnant and assumed her baby would not need a birth dose of the vaccine. That blood test, however, was incorrect.Although the baby recovered well from the transplant surgery, Munoz said the girl will need immunosuppressive drugs for the rest of her life to prevent her body from rejecting the donated organ.
Op-Ed: Here's what removal of the hepatitis B birth dose will look like | CIDRAP --On December 14, 1999, a previously healthy infant was admitted to a Michigan hospital with diarrhea and jaundice. Within hours, doctors diagnosed acute liver failure caused by hepatitis B. She died three days later. Her mother had tested positive for hepatitis B at her first prenatal visit. She attended 10 appointments. But somewhere between that positive test and the delivery room, the information vanished. The record provided to the birth hospital stated the mother was "hepatitis-negative." By the time the infant received her first vaccine at 2.5 months, the virus had already taken hold. This was not an isolated failure. The Immunization Action Coalition documented more than 500 similar transmissions from 1999 to 2002: positive tests not reported, results lost, records transcribed incorrectly. Universal hepatitis B vaccination at birth exists precisely because screening systems fail. On December 5, 2025, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) voted 8 to 3 to end the universal birth-dose recommendation for infants born to mothers who test negative for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg). In its place, the committee adopted "shared clinical decision-making"—a framework that removes the default and allows delay of the first dose until at least two months of age. Infants born to mothers who are HBsAg-positive, or whose status is unknown, are still recommended to receive the birth dose. For the first time in decades, the lives of more infants will now again depend on screening systems. Unlike adults, who clear hepatitis B more than 95% of the time, infants are immunologically defenseless. Approximately 90% of those infected in the first months of life will develop chronic infection. One in four will die prematurely from cirrhosis or liver cancer—diseases that emerge decades later, long after anyone remembers the missed vaccine, the lost lab result, the newborn who never had a chance. When a newborn is exposed at birth, hepatitis B immune globulin (HBIG), which provides immediate but temporary protection, plus the birth dose is approximately 94% effective when given within the first 12 to 24 hours. The new ACIP guidance allows delay of the first dose until at least two months for infants of mothers who test negative. For an exposed newborn, that delay is the ballgame. There is no second chance.The committee's decision assumes prenatal screening reliably identifies at-risk infants. It does not. About 14% of pregnant women in the United States are never tested for hepatitis B. About 2% of pregnant women receive no prenatal care at all. Among those who test positive during pregnancy, only a third receive recommended follow-up, and the National Perinatal Hepatitis B Prevention Program identifies fewer than half of infants born to infected mothers each year. Those are only the gaps we can measure. The committee's decision assumes prenatal screening reliably identifies at-risk infants. It does not. Screening cannot catch what it cannot see. Half of the 2.4 million Americans with chronic hepatitis B do not know they are infected. People can seroconvert (become newly infected) after a negative test. Infants can be infected by household contacts—the virus survives on surfaces for at least seven days, and transmission rates among susceptible household contacts of infected persons range from 14% to 60%. Before universal birth dose vaccination, US-born children of immigrant parents who themselves were uninfected still showed hepatitis B rates of 7% to 11% from community exposure alone.The birth dose addressed every one of these vulnerabilities. It did not require perfect screening, perfect records, or perfect follow-up. It simply vaccinated every newborn.There is no new safety signal. Forty years of randomized trials, national surveillance, and long-term follow-up have consistently found the birth dose to be safe. A recent systematic review found no benefit to delaying the first dose and no increase in serious adverse events among infants vaccinated at birth. For clinicians, the ACIP vote creates an immediate practical problem: Federal guidance now conflicts with the professional standard of care. Within hours of the vote, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) issued a statement calling the decision "irresponsible and purposely misleading." The AAP, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American Academy of Family Physicians, and the Infectious Diseases Society of America have reaffirmed that universal birth-dose vaccination remains the standard of care for their members. The Red Book—the AAP's authoritative reference on pediatric infectious diseases—has not changed. Hospital standing orders, in most systems, have not changed.Physicians now face a choice between following a federal advisory committee that abandoned its own evidence-to-recommendation framework and instead following the professional societies whose guidelines define their standard of care. This creates immediate medicolegal uncertainty: In a case involving a preventable perinatal hepatitis B infection, a plaintiff's attorney will cite the AAP guideline, not the ACIP vote. A reconstituted federal panel's deviation from established science does not constitute a defensible standard of care.For now, the answer is clear: follow the Red Book. But the question of where to look for guidance is no longer simple. ACIP was designed to provide a unified, evidence-based national standard. That function has been compromised. Clinicians must now triangulate between professional society guidelines, state health department directives—California, New York, Illinois, and others have already reaffirmed the birth dose—and their own institutional policies. This is not how vaccine guidance is supposed to work in a functioning public health system.Under the Affordable Care Act, private insurers must cover vaccines recommended by ACIP without cost-sharing. The shift to "shared clinical decision-making" can preserve that coverage—vaccines under this designation, like meningococcal B, remain covered—but only if the CDC director formally adopts the recommendation and publishes it on the immunization schedule.The current Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary has made no secret of his skepticism toward the childhood vaccine schedule. If implementation or language shifts—if HHS declines to ratify the recommendation, or publishes it in a way that suggests the vaccine is "not recommended for routine use"—insurers gain room to add friction. Cost-sharing requirements or coverage limitations would transform the birth dose from a default protection into a financial barrier for families without robust insurance.The Vaccines for Children (VFC) program will continue to provide the vaccine free for Medicaid-eligible and uninsured children. But VFC administration fees are already inadequate, and the added counseling burden of shared decision-making is not compensated. Safety-net clinics—the providers that serve the populations most vulnerable to screening failures—face a financial disincentive to engage in the very conversations the new policy requires.This is how vaccine coverage erodes: not through outright prohibition, but through administrative friction, funding ambiguity, and the quiet accumulation of barriers that fall hardest on those with the thinnest margin for error.Modeling estimates project 1,400 additional chronic pediatric hepatitis B infections per year, approximately 300 additional cases of liver cancer, and 480 preventable deaths over the lifetimes of these children—along with more than $222 million in excess annual health care costs.The infants most likely to fall through screening gaps are those born to families without consistent prenatal care, who are uninsured or underinsured, or live in communities where health care access is already fragmented. And infants who receive the birth dose are more likely to complete the full vaccine series; removing it raises the risk of children falling behind on all their immunizations.The birth dose was a safety net. Safety nets exist for patients the system fails to catch. That is who will pay for this decision. It is extraordinarily rare for countries to roll back a universal birth-dose policy once established—because the whole point is protecting infants from predictable screening and follow-up failures. The United States is now doing so, not because the science demanded it, but because a reconstituted committee, presented with ideology dressed as inquiry, voted to let it happen.
- The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) led a group of medical professional societies, arguing in federal court yesterday in Massachusetts that the recent changes to vaccine recommendations by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) violate the Administrative Procedure Act and the Federal Advisory Committee Act. A decision on the government’s motion to dismiss is expected the first week of January, the AAP said in a press release. “Right now, our children need strong government leadership,” said Susan Kressly, MD, AAP president and the lead plaintiff.
- The European office of the World Health Organization (WHO) said at least 27 of the 38 countries reporting data in its European Region are seeing early and intense flu activity, about a month ahead of schedule. Flu positivity rates are highest in Ireland, Kyrgyzstan, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia, and the United Kingdom, where half of all patients tested are positive for influenza. “A new strain—A(H3N2) subclade K—is driving infections, though there is no evidence that it causes more severe disease. This new variant of seasonal flu now accounts for up to 90% of all confirmed influenza cases in the European Region,” said Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe, in a WHO Europe news release. Kluge emphasized that the current flu season with subclade K is not a global emergency, and urged seasonal flu vaccination.
- Today CEPI (the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations) announced it will invest up to $54.3 million to support a phase 3 clinical trial that aims to advance Moderna’s investigational mRNA-based H5 pandemic influenza vaccine candidate, mRNA-1018, to licensure. The study would be the first mRNA-based vaccine targeting pandemic influenza to enter a phase 3 trial, and would contribute to CEPI’s 100 Days Mission, which aims to have a vaccine ready within 100 days of a new pandemic threat being identified. “mRNA technology can play a vital role in addressing emerging health threats quickly and effectively, and we look forward to continuing our partnership with CEPI as we advance our health security portfolio,” said Stephane Bancel, MBA, MEng, CEO of Moderna.
Presenteeism among health workers with COVID rose steadily last year, study suggests -Nearly 8% of US health care personnel (HCP) with symptomatic COVID-19 continued to work during their illness, and the practice became increasingly common as the pandemic progressed, suggests a new observational cohort study published in JAMA Network Open.The analysis drew on data from a case-control vaccine effectiveness study that enrolled HCP who had COVID symptoms across 24 academic medical centers from December 2020 through April 2024. Among 3,721 HCP with confirmed COVID symptoms, 293 (7.9%) reported presenteeism, defined as working while sick. The researchers observed a clear upward trend in presenteeism over time, rising from 1.4% in 2020 to 15.2% in 2024. Presenteeism varied by job role. HCP with minimal patient contact were more likely to continue working than those whose jobs involved substantial patient contact. These workers may perceive less risk of transmitting infection or find it easier to continue working while isolating, note the study authors. Socioeconomic factors also played a role. HCP with graduate or professional degrees were significantly more likely to report presenteeism than those with an undergraduate education, as were those earning more than $100,000 annually compared with those earning under $50,000. The team found no statistically significant difference in age, sex, race, or ethnicity between those who stopped working when they had symptoms and those who didn’t.The more severe an employee’s symptoms, the less likely they were to continue to work. HCP reporting shortness of breath had substantially lower odds of presenteeism, and symptoms, including fever, fatigue, headache, nausea, and muscle aches, were associated with a reduced likelihood of working while ill.The authors suggest several explanations for why presenteeism has trended upward since the onset of the pandemic, including greater population-wide immunity, milder disease with later variants, shorter suggested isolation windows, and expanded options for remote or hybrid work.
Pregnant women vaccinated against COVID-19 less likely to be hospitalized or deliver prematurely, new data show Pregnant women who develop COVID-19 after being vaccinated are much less likely to be hospitalized, need intensive care, or deliver early compared with women who aren’t vaccinated, a study today shows. Canadian researchers who examined the medical records of nearly 20,000 women who developed COVID-19 while pregnant, found that vaccinated women were 62% less likely to be hospitalized than unvaccinated women and 90% less likely to need critical care, according to the study, published in JAMA. The study confirms the safety and benefits of COVID vaccines for pregnant women demonstrated in earlier publications at a time when federal officials are publicly raising doubts about the safety of immunizations. “This is another very strong study supporting the importance of vaccinating pregnant people for COVID-19,” said Demetre Daskalakis, MD, the former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC’s) National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, who was not involved with the new study. Research has long shown that pregnant women face a high risk of becoming seriously ill and delivering early if they are infected with COVID-19, especially closer to delivery. In the study, babies of vaccinated moms were less likely to require neonatal intensive care than the newborns of unvaccinated women. Rates of stillbirth were the same among vaccinated and unvaccinated women, although women who received COVID-19 shots were less likely to miscarry.
COVID lockdowns may have slowed toddler development, while reopenings tied to better mental health in older kids --A pair of analyses on the effects of COVID-related public health measures on children ties lockdowns and physical distancing to developmental delays among toddlers in Scotland and school reopenings to improved mental health in California students. A University of Edinburgh–led study links COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns and physical distancing measures with developmental delays in areas such as speech and language, physical movement, and emotional growth among toddlers. The researchers analyzed data from routine well-child visits at ages 13 to 15 months and 27 to 30 months among 257,532 toddlers in Scotland from January 2019 to August 2023. The team assessed changes in the weekly proportion of parent-identified developmental concerns from the start to the end of public health measures (March 2020 to August 2021). The studied outcomes were any developmental concerns, as well as domain-specific concerns about speech, language, or communication; problem solving; gross motor; personal-social; emotional-behavioral; and fine motor development amid public health/social distancing measures (PHSM).“Early child developmental outcomes can be influenced greatly by factors such as their caregiver's capacity to provide responsive caregiving, their opportunities for early learning and playing activities, and parental mental health,” the authors wrote.The findings were published in The Lancet Regional Health Europe.PHSM that began in March 2020 were tied to a weekly slope change increase in the proportion of children with any developmental concern (+0.091 percentage points at 13 to 15 months, 4.7 percentage points per year, or 6.6 percentage points across the study period). The increase at 27 to 30 months was +0.076 percentage points, 4.0 percentage points per year, or 5.5 percentage points across the study period. The increase was higher for children who experienced physical distancing measures for a longer period (up to a 6.6% increase).In a University of Edinburgh news release, lead author Iain Hardie, PhD, said, “COVID-19 public health and social measures played a vital role in curbing the spread of infections during the pandemic. However, the findings of our study suggest that they also appear to have been associated with increased early childhood development concerns.” California children whose schools reopened during the COVID-19 pandemic had significantly fewer mental health diagnoses than those whose schools remained closed, with girls deriving the most benefit, according to a new study in Epidemiology. Led by researchers from health insurer Elevance Health, the study used data from schools and from 185,735 insurance claims to estimate the effects of staggered implementation of school reopenings on diagnoses of depression, anxiety, and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and related health care spending from March 2020 to June 2021.“School closures during the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted children’s education, socialization, and access to mental health resources, raising concerns about long-term effects on children’s mental health,” the authors wrote. Rates of new mental illness rose from 2.8% to 3.5% over the study period, but those whose schools reopened had fewer diagnoses than those whose schools stayed closed. By the ninth month after reopening, the probability of a mental diagnosis had fallen 43%, non-drug medical spending had dropped 11%, spending on psychiatric drugs had declined 8%, and spending on ADHD drugs had decreased 5%. Girls benefited more from school reopenings than boys.The large impact of school closures on children’s mental health may stem from changes in social interaction, disrupted sleep, more screen time, less-balanced diets, learning difficulties, economic hardship or increased family time at home, and less access to mental health services normally provided through school.
Paxlovid linked to fewer lost workdays, disability claims in employees at high-risk for severe COVID -Treatment with the antiviral combination nirmatrelvir–ritonavir (Paxlovid) was associated with fewer lost workdays and lower disability-related costs among US employees at high risk for severe COVID-19, according to a retrospective observational study in the Journal of Medical Economics.Using insurance claims and workplace productivity data from large US employers, the researchers, led by scientists from Paxlovid maker Pfizer, compared productivity outcomes among high-risk employees diagnosed as having COVID who either received Paxlovid within five days of diagnosis or received no antiviral. Analyses of absences among treated and untreated workers and those on short-term disability (STD) and long-term disability (LTD) included 1,909, 20,065, and 20,318 employees, respectively. The study included data from December 2021 through December 2022, a period dominated by Omicron variants. After 1:1 matching on age, sex, comorbidities, timing of infection, and baseline health care use, employees who received Paxlovid had 5% fewer workday absences, 17% fewer STD days, and 27% fewer LTD days per patient per month than untreated employees. Monthly absence-related costs per treated worker were $434 versus $468 in their untreated counterparts, and daily costs were $84 versus $108 in treated versus untreated STD workers and $4.39 versus $7.35 for treated and untreated LTD staff.COVID has remained a major driver of disability claims and lost productivity. The authors note that direct health care costs for those diagnosed as having COVID were two to three times higher than those of controls in the six months following infection.They noted that the analysis was restricted to employees of large, self-insured firms and may not generalize to other workers or those with different insurance status.
Workplace exposures tied to higher risk of long COVID Workplace exposures tied to higher risk of long COVID Work-related factors may increase the risk of developing long COVID, according to a new population-based study from Spain. The findings, published in BMJ Occupational & Environmental Medicine, suggest that the primary work-related drivers of increased long COVID risk were irregular or limited use of respirators, close contact with coworkers and/or the public, inability to physical distance, and use of public transportation to commute to work. While several non–work-related factors were associated with higher long-COVID risk, including female sex, obesity, multiple underlying conditions, and more severe or repeated infections, occupation emerged as a strong and independent determinant of risk. Workers in jobs classified as high risk for COVID exposure had a 44% higher likelihood of developing long COVID than those in low-risk occupations. Some specific workplace conditions were tied to amplified risk: working onsite during the pandemic (57% higher risk than telework), inconsistent use of high-filtration respirators (52% higher risk), and regularly commuting by public transportation (58%). The highest-risk occupations included health care and social workers, teachers, retail workers, transport workers, and security staff. These groups often remained in close contact with others throughout the pandemic. Vaccination before infection and first infection during the Omicron-dominant pandemic period were both associated with substantially lower long-COVID risk, as was older age.
US hospital mortality trends rebound after COVID shock, but experts warn against complacency Risk-adjusted hospital mortality in the United States has resumed its prepandemic downward trajectory, even as patients present with more severe illness than before COVID-19, according to a large cohort study published in JAMA Network Open. The findings suggest that, although hospital mortality outcomes have returned to prepandemic levels, the severity of illness has a new, higher baseline. The retrospective analysis looked at more than 7.8 million hospitalizations at 715 US hospitals from October 2019 through March 2024. Researchers found that in-hospital mortality declined significantly after late 2021 (returning to in-hospital mortality trends seen before COVID), while the severity of illness rose during the pandemic and remained elevated. Standardized mortality ratios followed a linear decline across the study period, falling from 1.00 in late 2019 to 0.80 in early 2024. A return to prepandemic in-hospital mortality suggests a resilient hospital system, but as Laveena Munshi, MD, and Chaim M. Bell, MD, PhD, both of the University of Toronto, caution in an accompanying commentary, resilience today shouldn’t be mistaken for an ability to handle major crises in the future. Fundamental changes in the US health care system in recent years, such as shifts in vaccine programs and funding reallocations, “could predispose the system to additional future shocks on a micro or macro level,” they write. What’s more, 30% to 40% of critical-care practitioners experienced burnout, depression, and/or anxiety during the pandemic, leading to an exodus of these highly skilled workers. Munshi and Bell wonder if the current system, repopulated with less-experienced workers, will be as resilient. They noted the study’s limitations, such as not considering regional COVID burden or vaccine uptake and not including hospitals that didn’t continuously report death rates, which may have biased results toward hospitals with greater resources or stronger reporting infrastructures. “Past performance does not guarantee future results,” Munshi and Bell write, arguing that resilience should not “spawn complacency” as US hospitals face staff burnout and turnover, funding pressures, rapidly shifting health care policies, and an aging population.
New, Severe Flu Variant Spreading in US: Watch for These Symptoms -Flu season isn't in full swing yet in the United States, but a mutated strain of the virus that caused severe outbreaks abroad is sparking concern about the winter ahead. A new version of influenza A H3N2 emerged earlier this year after picking up a number of mutations, which may improve the virus's ability to escape prior immunity from vaccines, experts say.The mutated H3N2 strain, called “subclade K,” has spread rapidly worldwide and already gained dominance in several countries in the Northern hemisphere. It caused a surge in infections in Japan, which declared an influenza epidemic after experiencing an unusually early and harsh flu season, Dr. Robert Hopkins Jr., medical director of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, tells TODAY.com. Subclade K is sweeping the United Kingdom, which is facing one of its toughest winters yet as the mutated strain spreads, officials cautioned in the BMJ.The variant has also been circulating in Canada, prompting scientists to warn about a mismatch between the H3N2 in the current 2025-2026 flu vaccine and the subclade K strain. In the U.S., H3N2 subclade K is already spreading in most states, according to the Global Initiative on Sharing All Influenza Data (GISAID) database. “Knowing that there’s a new mutated strain out there and H3N2 generally causes more severe disease is concerning,” says Hopkins. Flu activity is increasing nationwide, especially among young people. The U.S. flu season typically peaks between December and February, but activity can persist into May, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Although the CDC is publishing flu data, delays in reporting due to the shutdown and Thanksgiving holiday have made it difficult to capture flu trends in real time, experts say. There are four types of the influenza virus (A, B, C and D) — influenza A and B cause seasonal epidemics in humans every winter, per the CDC. The predominant strains that circulate in the U.S. are H1N1 and H3N2 (both influenza A) and influenza B. These are the three strains included in this year's influenza vaccine, Andrew Pekosz, Ph.D., a virologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, tells TODAY.com. However, the flu mutates rapidly, says Pekosz, and these mutations can give the virus an advantage.This is exactly what H3N2 did earlier this year. "One strong type of H3N2 emerged that looks like it has mutations that will evade the immunity that the vaccine gives," says Pekosz.The subclade K H3N2 strain has seven new mutations. It was first detected in Europe in June, after scientists selected the specific strains to be included in this year's flu shot, says Hopkins. "We think vaccine immunity won’t recognize this subclade K H3N2 virus as well," Pekosz adds. These small genetic changes caused subclade K to "drift" from the H3N2 strain in the 2025-2026 flu vaccine, the CDC says. What also concerns experts is that the emergence of subclade K H3N2 coincided with early, severe flu seasons in several countries where the strain is dominant — namely, Japan and the U.K. H3N2 is generally considered more severe across all ages, but especially among the elderly and young children, says Pekosz. "When we see early H3N2 activity, I think that's particularly worrisome," he adds. It's too soon to predict how the 2025-2026 flu season will unfold in the U.S., but experts say a lapse in data collection and analysis during the government shutdown made it harder to track flu activity and early warning signs. Mass layoffs at the CDC could also lead to further delays, NBC News reported previously. According to the CDC’s latest “FluView” surveillance report for the week ending Dec. 6, flu activity is increasing in most parts of the country. The states with the highest influenza-like illness activity are Colorado, Louisiana, New Jersey and New York.Flu test positivity rates, outpatient doctor’s visits and flu-related hospitalizations are all increasing, and there was one pediatric flu-associated death reported in the U.S. last week, per the CDC. The latest data from WastewaterSCAN, which monitors diseases through municipal wastewater systems, show that concentrations of flu A are low nationally, but increasing. “We’re not necessarily seeing an early season,” says Hopkins. However, cases are expected to rise in the coming weeks, especially after holiday gatherings. The emergence of H3N2 subclade K has some experts fearing a harsh season ahead.The 2024-2025 flu season in the U.S. was classified as a “a high severity” season, according to the CDC. “We don’t generally see two severe flu seasons on top of each other, but there’s no rules in this game, so it certainly is possible that we’re going to have another severe season,” says Hopkins. Given that subclade K is spiking in Canada and viruses don’t respect borders, it has likely been in the U.S. for some time, experts say. “We’re flying a little bit blind,” Dr. Natalie Azar, NBC News medical contributor, told TODAY in a Nov. 13 segment. A standard flu test wouldn’t be able to tell you which subclade of H3N2 or even which strain of flu A you’re infected with, she adds. The CDC genetically analyzes flu viruses submitted by state and local laboratories. Among the 163 H3N2 viruses sent to the CDC since Sept. 28, 89% belonged to subclade K, the agency wrote in its latest FluView report. As of Dec. 12, sequences of H3N2 subclade K have been submitted to GISAID from at least 30 U.S. states and the District of Columbia: Scientists choose which flu strains to include in the annual vaccine based on what is circulating globally earlier in the year, says Hopkins. The 2025-2026 flu vaccine contains H1N1, H3N2 and influenza B. The mutated subclade K strain emerged too late for scientists to update this season's vaccine. Although it's not a perfect match to the H3N2 strain they selected, the vaccine will still offer protection throughout flu season, the experts emphasize. The flu shot doesn't always prevent you from getting infected, but it does protect against severe symptoms, hospitalization and deaths. “The goal of vaccines is to reduce the severity of illness, and reduce the disease impact on our population,” says Hopkins. Additionally, this year’s flu shot is expected to be a good match to the H1N1 and influenza B strains circulating, says Hopkins. “You’ll get the protection against two other strains of flu, even if H3N2 isn’t optimal," Pekosz adds. The flu shot is especially important for high-risk individuals, including people over 65, young children and people who are immunocompromised or have underlying conditions. "It's not too late to get the flu vaccine," says Pekosz. It takes about two weeks for the body to build up immunity. Getting vaccinated now will ensure you're protected during the holidays. “The fact that there is a variant circulating that’s a little bit different from the vaccine shouldn’t in any way minimize people’s desire or need to get the vaccine,” says Pekosz. New Flu Strain 2025 Symptoms The symptoms of the mutated H3N2 flu strain appear to be similar to those caused by the usual seasonal influenza A strains, the experts note. These include: ◾Fever ◾Chills ◾Body aches ◾Headache ◾Extreme fatigue ◾Congestion or runny nose ◾Coughing Flu symptoms tend to start very suddenly, says Hopkins. It's that "hit-by-a-truck" feeling. The symptoms of flu can look similar to those caused by COVID-19 and other viruses, which is why testing is important. There are now 3-in-1 rapid home tests for influenza A, influenza B and COVID-19 — the experts recommend stocking up if you can. If you test positive for the flu, you can seek treatment with antivirals, which can reduce symptom severity, Hopkins says. In most cases, the flu will resolve on its own without treatment after five to seven days. If your symptoms are severe or you have a high fever, signs of dehydration, or trouble breathing, contact your health care provider right away. "The flu is not just a cold. It can be quite severe," says Hopkins.
Doctors warn of ‘super flu’ variant in hot spots like New York — Cities across the nation are being hit with a new variant of influenza called subclade K, which has been dubbed a “super flu,” and New York City is seeing the worst of it. As the nation’s largest city preps for the holiday tourist rush, local health officials reported nearly 14,000 flu cases in the first week of December. That’s a roughly 460 percent increase in infections from the same time last year, when the city recorded about 2,500 cases. “We see the sudden spike in New York because of their more dense population. They’re a center for international as well as domestic travel,” Dr. Ulysses Wu, chief epidemiologist at Hartford Hospital in Connecticut, told NewsNation. Even with a slower start, 2024 was part of the “most severe” influenza season since 2017, according to the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC). This flu season started early and has made its mark around the globe, despite peak season still months away. Doctors warn the particularly nasty, mutated version of influenza — the so-called “super flu” — is already circulating in most corners of the country. The new variant emerged over the summer and rapidly spread in several countries, including Japan, the United Kingdom and Canada. It’s a mutation of the H3N2 strain of influenza A, described by the World Health Organization as a seasonal respiratory infectioncaused by a virus. Symptoms are similar for both influenza A and its subclade K variant, both of which are more typically more serious than influenza B.Signs include fever, cough, sore throat, congestion, body aches, headaches and fatigue, according to the CDC.“Influenza A typically causes worse symptoms compared to influenza B, and patients are more likely to get hospitalized with influenza A compared to influenza B,” Dr. Donald Dumford, an infectious disease specialist at the Cleveland Clinic, told Nexstar.
MAP: Influenza hitting these states hardest as ‘super flu’ continues to spread – Cases of the flu continue to mount, with health officials recently recording the first pediatric flu-related deaths of the season, but some states are seeing much higher activity than others. According to data released Friday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the hospitalization rate nationwide jumped by 14.3%, with over 9,900 people admitted with the flu.“Colorado, Louisiana and New York are [states] that are experiencing really fast increases in influenza,” Dr. Andrew Pekosz, an infectious disease specialist with the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said Tuesday during a public health media briefing.New Jersey, Rhode Island and Louisiana are also experiencing “very high” levels of flu activity according to the latest data, for the week ending Dec. 13. The CDC also found high activity in New Mexico, Idaho, Michigan, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Washington D.C., Connecticut, Maryland and Massachusetts. The CDC notes that the map is based on the proportion of healthcare visits for influenza-like illness, and doesn’t measure the geographic spread of the virus, so it is possible that an outbreak in one or more cities might disproportionately show an entire state having high flu activity. Pekosz says the data shows that the “super flu” strain, or subclade K, is spreading everywhere that influenza is. Lab tests found that 89.8% of 216 influenza A viruses collected since Sept. 28 were positive for the subclade K, according to the CDC. This strain of influenza A, which historically causes the most deaths in older people, is not included in the vaccine this year, making some experts worried it could contribute to an especially bad flu season. Flu seasons often don’t peak until around February, so it’s too early to know how big a problem that mismatch will be.“By the end of the flu season, in the next 2 to 3 months, every state will experience high amounts of influenza activity,” Pekosz said. “We just don’t know exactly when each state will start and end in terms of those outbreaks.”The CDC recommends that everyone 6 months and older get an annual vaccination, and public health experts say it’s not too late. About 42% of U.S. adults and 41% of children have gotten flu shots this season, according to CDC data. The shots may not prevent all symptoms but they can prevent many infections from becoming severe. That appears to be true for this year’s shot, according to apreliminary U.K. analysis.
US flu activity takes big jump as 2 deaths in kids confirmed -- Influenza activity in the United States has spiked across the country, with 17 jurisdictions (14 states and Puerto Rico; Washington, DC; and New York City) reporting high or very high influenza-like illness (ILI) and other key indicators rising markedly, signaling the start of the flu season in earnest, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said today in its weekly FluView update. The CDC also noted two new flu-related deaths in children and provided data on the rise of subclade K among H3N2 flu viruses as Americans approach the peak season of gathering with family and friends.The number of jurisdictions with high or very high ILI cases for the week ending December 13 is up from five the previous week, the CDC said. In addition, the percentage of respiratory viruses that tested positive for flu rose from 8.1% to 14.8%, and the rate of visits to clinics (outpatient visits) for respiratory illness rose from 3.2% to 4.1%, well above the national baseline of 3.1% (see CDC epidemiologic curve below). “Sustained elevated activity is observed across multiple key activity indicators in many areas of the country, signaling the start of the 2025-2026 influenza season,” the CDC noted. “Severity indicators remain low at this time, but influenza activity is expected to continue for weeks.” The agency noted that 911 of 927 influenza viruses reported by public health labs were influenza A, with 16 being influenza B. Of 706 influenza A viruses subtyped, 10.1% were the H1N1 strain, and 89.9% were H3N2. Notably, among 216 H3N2 viruses collected since September 28 that underwent additional genetic characterization by CDC scientists, 89.8% belonged to subclade K, the subclade that is predominating in multiple countries and raising concerns about a possible mismatch with the seasonal flu vaccine. The weekly hospitalization rate for respiratory illness reached 14.3 per 100,000 residents, up from 6.6 the week before. Almost 10,000 patients were admitted to hospitals for influenza last week. Deaths attributed to flu rose slightly, from 0.2% to 0.3%. Both flu-related pediatric deaths were tied to H3 strains. One occurred in November and one last week. The CDC has now confirmed three deaths in children this year, after 2024-25 saw 288 over the entire season. The CDC estimates that there have been at least 4.6 million illnesses, 49,000 hospitalizations, and 1,900 deaths from flu so far this season. “CDC recommends that everyone 6 months and older who has not yet been vaccinated this season get an annual influenza (flu) vaccine,” the agency noted. It added, “There are prescription flu antiviral drugs that can treat flu illness; those should be started as early as possible and are especially important for patients at higher risk for flu-related complications.” In other updates today, the CDC said, “RSV [respiratory syncytial virus] activity is increasing in the Southeastern, Southern, and Mid-Atlantic areas of the country with emergency department visits and hospitalizations increasing among children 0-4 years old.” Overall, though, RSV activity is low. It added that COVID-19 cases are low nationally but increasing. Wastewater testing, however, shows very high SARS-CoV-2 levels in Indiana and high levels in Connecticut, Nebraska, and Vermont. The CDC also said, “Preliminary case reports for whooping cough (pertussis) are lower than their peak in November 2024, although they remain elevated in 2025 compared to immediately before the COVID-19 pandemic. Whooping cough is very contagious and can spread easily from person to person.”
Norovirus Surge May Be Driven by Ultra-Contagious Variant. Know These Signs - The infamous "winter vomiting disease," aka norovirus, is on the rise again in the United States. Norovirus is a highly contagious stomach bug that causes sudden, often violent bouts of diarrhea and vomiting. If you've ever had norovirus, you know how miserable it is — one moment, you're fine, the next, you're stuck in gastrointestinal purgatory. Unfortunately, as peak holiday season approaches, cases of norovirus are surging across the country. According to WastewaterSCAN, which monitors diseases through municipal wastewater systems, norovirus levels are in the “high” category nationwide, with a significant upward trend in the last 3 weeks, Marlene Wolfe, Ph.D., professor at Emory University and program director at WastewaterSCAN, tells TODAY.com. Norovirus levels are currently the highest in the Midwest, South, and Northeast. Hotspot states include Alabama, Connecticut, Florida, Indiana, Massachusetts and Michigan. An elementary school in Bedford, Massachusetts closed for two days this week due to a suspected norovirus outbreak after more than 130 stomach bug-related absences, NBC10 Boston reported. Norovirus outbreaks are also surging at sea on cruise ships. The uptick in norovirus is slightly earlier than usual and appears to be driven by a newer variant of the virus, which fueled a harsh 2024-2025 season. Last winter, norovirus outbreaks surged to decade-high levels. Norovirus is the leading cause of gastroenteritis, or an inflammation of the stomach and intestines, Dr. William Schaffner, professor of infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, tells TODAY.com. It's also the most common cause of food poisoning. Every year in the U.S., norovirus causes an average of 19–21 million illnesses, 109,000 hospitalizations and 900 deaths, per the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Along with flu, norovirus is expected to keep surging in the coming weeks. Here's what to expect this winter, which norovirus symptoms to look out for, and how to protect yourself. “We’re seeing upticks in norovirus across the system, but that’s not out of the ordinary. ... It's historically a winter bug," Dr. Scott Roberts, assistant professor of infectious diseases at the Yale School of Medicine, tells TODAY.com. Norovirus spreads year-round, but most outbreaks occur between November and April, per the CDC. “Everybody is huddled indoors and in close quarters, so it lends itself to spreading like wildfire once it does set up shop,” says Roberts. The virus is notoriously difficult to control and can sweep through homes, schools, day cares and nursing homes. There are about 2,500 norovirus outbreaks every year in the U.S., per the CDC. Currently, outbreaks are on the rise. Between Aug. 1 and Nov. 13, there were 153 norovirus outbreaks reported by the 14 states participating in the CDC’s NoroSTAT program. The percentage of norovirus tests coming back positive is also increasing. According to data from labs reporting test results to the CDC, the positivity rate was just under 12% for the week ending Nov. 29. During the same week last year, the rate was 15%. The CDC does not currently monitor norovirus through wastewater surveillance, which provides a more reliable early warning sign that cases are rising because most sick people don’t seek care or get tested for norovirus, says Wolfe. However, WastewaterScan shows a clear early surge. “The concentration really started increasing around October,” says Wolfe. In November, norovirus concentrations were up by 44% compared to October. Although cases are rising, the number of outbreaks at this point in the season is lower than last year and within the average range for this time of year, per the CDC. “So far, we’re not yet to the level that we were at last year, which was really our worst year since pre-COVID ... but it’s certainly going up," says Roberts. It's too soon to predict how severe this season will be or when it will peak. "Time will tell how bad it will get. Now is the time to be vigilant. I expect things to get worse before they get better," Roberts says. Norovirus often begins suddenly, within 12–48 hours after being exposed.The most common symptoms of norovirus include:
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
- Nausea
- Abdominal pain and cramps
Less common symptoms include a low-grade fever, chills and a headache, according to the CDC. "Fortunately, it's relatively brief. You’re miserable for about 48 hours, then you get better,” says Schaffner. Norovirus usually goes away on its own after one to three days. However, norovirus can lead to fluid loss and dehydration, the experts warn. Some people are at higher risk for severe disease, complications and hospitalization, says Schaffner. These include children under the age of 5 and adults over 85.Seek medical care if your symptoms persist after a few days, there's blood in your stool or vomit, or you have signs of dehydration such as dark urine or dizziness, per the Cleveland Clinic. Since the early 2000s, the majority of norovirus outbreaks have been caused by one strain, GII.4, NBC News reported previously.About 10 years ago, a variant called GII.17 emerged in Asia and has taken off in recent years. During the 2024-2025 season, GII.17 caused 75% of norovirus outbreaks in the U.S., compared to less than 10% in 2023, according to a study from the CDC. “Whenever there is a new strain, it’s really easy for it to start spreading rapidly, and that’s what we saw last year,” says Roberts. It's unclear whether GII.17 is more transmissible than GII.4, the experts note, but it's possible that more people are susceptible to infection because they don't have immunity.Norovirus is thought to provide some immune protection, but it's not complete, says Schaffner."We don't have a good sense of how long this immunity can actually protect us ... but that immunity probably won't protect you against another strain," Roberts adds. A susceptible population could give norovirus more opportunities to spread, but it's unclear how this season will pan out.
South Carolina measles cases continue to climb - Late last week South Carolina reported 15 new measles cases in its ongoing Upstate outbreak, bringing the outbreak total to 126 and the state total to 129. “Thirteen of the new cases are from known household exposures, one was from a neighborhood contact and another was from an unknown source still being investigated,” the state’s department of public health said in a press statement. “There are currently 303 people in quarantine and 13 in isolation.” The new cases bring new school exposures, including Campobello Gramling School (67 students in quarantine) and Boiling Springs Elementary (16 students in quarantine). The total number of schools with students in quarantine is now 11. Of case-patients with known vaccination status, 119 were unvaccinated, and three were partially vaccinated. Only one person with measles was fully vaccinated, and three patients have unknown status. Twenty-four children under the age of 5 years have been affected in South Carolina, and 86 (68%) of 126 case-patients with available data are 5 to 17 years old.
US hot spots see more measles cases as national total nears 2,000 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said the United States has tracked 1,958 measles cases so far this year, nearing the 2,000-case milestone just one month before the country will likely lose its elimination status.The total represents 46 new US cases.There have been 49 US outbreaks reported in 44 US jurisdictions, the CDC said, as well as 24 measles cases reported among international visitors to the United States. Eighty-eight percent of all measles cases reported this year have been outbreak-associated.Among US cases, 26% are in children under the age of 5 years, 41% of patients are between 5 and 19 years, 32% are 20 years or older, and 1% have unknown ages. Ninety-three percent of case-patients are unvaccinated or have unknown vaccination status, while 3% have one dose of measles-containing vaccine, and 4% are fully vaccinated.So far, 222 people (11%) have been hospitalized for measles infections in the United States this year, and three have died.Utah, Arizona, and South Carolina face the biggest ongoing outbreaks as the year comes to a close. Late yesterday Utah officials confirmed 10 additional measles cases, raising the state total to 125 cases.Ninety-one cases are in the Southwest Utah health district. Neighboring Arizona reported 14 new measles cases, raising the state total to 190 cases. All but four of those cases have occurred in Mohave County.And in South Carolina, officials said there are now 138 cases of measles, 135 of which are part of a growing outbreak in the Upstate region.The nine new cases reported in the Upstate outbreak have multiple exposures, including one new school exposure at Berry Shoals Elementary.“Five of the new cases are from previously reported exposure at the Way of Truth Church in Inman, three were known household exposures, and one was from a neighborhood contact,” South Carolina officials said in a news release. “There are currently 168 people in quarantine and one in isolation.”Of the 138 cases in South Carolina, 90 are in children ages 5 to 17, with the outbreak taking hold in elementary schools that had low vaccination rates earlier this fall. In other news, Colorado reported three new cases this week, raising the state total to 36. All three new cases occurred in unvaccinated residents.
Latest Global Burden of Diseases data spotlight significant health disparities in pneumonia, bronchiolitis -An analysis from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) highlights persistent health inequities in worldwide lower respiratory infection (LRI) burden, with the highest death rates in sub-Saharan African countries and in the youngest and oldest people. LRIs, defined as pneumonia or bronchiolitis, are the world's leading infectious cause of death, noted the authors, an international roster of scientists. For the study, published yesterday in The Lancet Infectious Diseases, the team estimated rates of death from LRIs (pneumonia or bronchiolitis) and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) and modelled case-fatality rates for 26 pathogens, including 11 newly modelled pathogens, from 204 countries and territories from 1990 to 2023. The team measured progress toward the 2025 Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Pneumonia and Diarrhoea (GAPPD) target of fewer than three deaths from pneumonia per 1,000 live births, or a death rate of fewer than 60 deaths per 100,000 preschoolers. “With new data and revised modelling techniques, these estimates serve as an update and expansion to GBD 2021,” the researchers wrote.In 1990, LRI deaths reached 2.97 million, and the all-age death rate was 55.7 per 100,000 people. In 2023, LRIs caused an estimated 2.5 million deaths and 98.7 million DALYs, with preschoolers and adults aged 70 years and older having the highest burden. LRI deaths in preschoolers dropped 33.4% from 2010 to 2023, reaching a rate of 94.8 per 100,000 person-years. During the same period, death rates in adults aged 70 years and older fell 10.2%, but the burden remains substantial.Of the 204 modeled countries, 129 achieved a death rate of fewer than 60 per 100,000 for preschoolers in 2023. The total death rate in children younger than 5 years in sub-Saharan Africa was the furthest from the GAPPD target. Streptococcus pneumoniae continued to make up the largest number of LRI deaths globally (634,000 [25.3% of all LRI deaths]), followed by Staphylococcus aureus (271,000 [10.9%]), and Klebsiella pneumoniae (228,000 [9.1%]). Among pathogens newly modelled in this study, non-tuberculous mycobacteria (responsible for 177,000 deaths) and Aspergillus spp (67,800 deaths) emerged as important contributors to LRI death. The 11 newly modelled pathogens together accounted for about 22% of LRI deaths.“This comprehensive analysis underscores both the gains achieved through vaccination and the challenges that remain in controlling the LRI burden globally,” the authors wrote. “Furthermore, it demonstrates persistent disparities in disease burden, with the highest mortality rates concentrated in countries in sub-Saharan Africa.”
US sales of antibiotics for livestock climbed 16% last year, FDA report shows -Sales and distribution of medically important antimicrobial drugs used in US livestock rose 16% from 2023 to 2024 but is still 27% lower than peak sales in 2015, according to the newest report from the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) Center for Veterinary Medicine.The increase is a departure from the generally stable annual sales and distribution data reported to the FDA since 2017. For reference, last year’s report showed a 2% decline in sales.“Sales volume may fluctuate over time in response to various factors, including changing animal health needs, changes in animal populations, and changes in animal production practices,” the news release said. “It is important to note that antimicrobial sales data do not necessarily reflect how much of the drugs are ultimately used in animals, only the volume that is sold.”Medically important drugs are monitored because they are also used in human medicine. Overuse of medically important antibiotics in livestock contributes to a reservoir of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which threatens both animal and human health. This issue has been acknowledged by both US and international health organizations as a critical component of efforts to address rising rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR).Sales of aminoglycoside antibiotics jumped 37% from 2023 to 2024. Tetracyclines, which make up the largest volume of domestic sales, increased 20%, followed by lincosamides (11%), and macrolides, which comprise the second-largest volume (1%). Penicillins, which represent the third-largest volume, fell 14%.Of all antibiotics sold, 69% were tetracyclines, 8% were macrolides, 7% each were penicillins and aminoglycosides, 5% sulfonamides, 3% lincosamides, and 1% for cephalosporins, and less than 1% for fluoroquinolones. “In terms of [medically important] drug classes, the increases were pretty widespread and all are troubling,” Steven Roach, director of the Safe & Healthy Food Program at Food Animal Concerns Trust (FACT), told CIDRAP News. About 43% of antibiotics were sold for use in swine, 41% for cattle, 11% for turkeys, 4% for chickens, and 2% for other or unspecified species. By antibiotic class, 79% of cephalosporins, 60% of aminoglycocides, 42% of tetracyclines, and 38% of sulfonamides were meant for cattle. Roughly 89% of lincosamides and 45% of macrolides were intended for swine, and 81% of penicillins were sold for use in turkeys.“ In terms of species, the increases were across the board, with the largest increases in chicken but cattle and pigs still account for most use by far,” Roach said. “The poultry industry claims the rise in chicken is largely due to secondary infections linked to avian metapneumovirus, but acknowledges the limited efficacy of the antibiotics. It is hard to see how this could account for the almost 80% rise in use.” “At FACT, we attribute it to a failure to put in place common sense steps such as eliminating antibiotic use in animals without diagnosed bacterial infection and failure to set targets for reduction in antibiotic use either by the meat industry or the federal government,”
Wisconsin detects avian flu in cattle for first time Yesterday the US Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced the first known case of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in a dairy cattle herd in Wisconsin, noting that the detection does not does pose a risk to consumer health or affect the safety of the commercial milk supply. In a press release, APHIS said H5 clade 2.3.4.4b avian flu virus had been detected via a routine national milk testing program. Avian influenza detections in dairy cattle have been quiet this year compared with 2024, when an outbreak that began in March of that year spread across the country, resulting in 18 states reporting infected cattle herds. “This detection does not pose a risk to consumer health or affect the safety of the commercial milk supply. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is confident that pasteurization is effective at inactivating HPAI virus, and that the commercial, pasteurized milk supply is safe,” APHIS said in the release. “Dairies are required to send only milk from healthy animals into processing for human consumption; milk from impacted animals is being diverted from the commercial milk tank or destroyed so that it does not enter the human food supply.” According to Wisconsin Public Radio, the farm is in Dodge County and had been engaging in routine milk surveillance since May. Wisconsin State Veterinarian Darlene Konkle, DVM, said no cattle had recently been moved onto the farm, and the herd did not exhibit signs of flu.“The farmer did not have a reason to suspect highly pathogenic avian influenza on the farm,” Konkle said. “There’s really no appreciable increase in morbidity, which is cow sickness, or mortality, which is death.” In the past 30 days, only one dairy cattle herd, in California, has tested positive for avian flu. Hundreds of wild birds and thousands of commercial poultry birds, however, have been infected in recent months during a seasonal uptick in avian flu activity.
Weeks after a first-time CWD detection in bordering county, Wayne County, Tennessee, reports first case -For the first time, a deer in Wayne County, Tennessee, has tested positive for chronic wasting disease (CWD), authorities announced yesterday.The detection was in a road-killed deer, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) said in a news release. Wildlife-feeding and carcass-transportation restrictions are in place, because Wayne County was already included in the state’s CWD management zone. Located in south-central Tennessee, Wayne County borders Alabama and Decatur County, Tennessee, which reported its first CWD case earlier this month. While deer hunting season dates and regulations won’t change as a result of the case, Wayne County hunters are now eligible for the Earn-a-Buck Program, which allows them to harvest additional bucks by harvesting antlerless deer and submitting them for CWD testing. “Hunter's participation in CWD testing is critical for the continued surveillance and monitoring of CWD throughout the state,” TWRA said. “Hunters can access CWD testing through participating taxidermists and meat processors or by using drop-off freezers.” CWD, which affects cervids such as deer, elk, and moose, is a fatal neurodegenerative disease caused by infectious misfolded proteins called prions, which spread from direct contact and through environmental contamination. While CWD hasn’t been identified in people, health officials urge not consuming the meat of sick or infected cervids and using caution when handling carcasses. Since the disease was first identified in Colorado in 1967, it has spread to 35 other US states, five Canadian provinces, Finland, Norway, South Korea, and Sweden. No vaccine or treatment is available.
- A new report by the Treatment Action Group (TAG) warns that key ingredients in several vaccines of global health importance may face critical supply bottlenecks in the coming years. The report focuses on supply chain issues for QS-21 and MPL adjuvants, part of licensed vaccines against malaria, shingles, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and a promising candidate vaccine for tuberculosis called M72/AS01E. For both adjuvants, the supply chain is complicated and has a thin safety margin.
- The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has contacted four major retailers after they failed to meet statutory requirements to ensure their stores removed ByHeart infant formula after it was recalled owing to an ongoing outbreak of infant botulism, Food Safety News reports. At least 51 babies have been sickened after drinking ByHeart powder formula. ByHeart issued a wide recall in mid-November of formula products. During surveillance checks conducted this past month, however, the FDA found the product at Albertsons, Kroger, Target, and Walmart stores. “Through this effort, we found that recalled infant formula continued to be found on store shelves — for over three weeks in one case, in over 175 locations across 36 states,” the FDA reported.
- According to the latest update from the US Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), officials have confirmed another avian flu outbreak in LaGrange County, Indiana, at a major duck breeder. A commercial duck breeder with 14,300 birds was hit, as well as a poultry facility with 2,200 birds in Jessamine, Kentucky.
Big retailers didn’t pull ByHeart baby formula fast enough after botulism recall, FDA says Four of the nation’s top retail stores failed to promptly pull contaminated infant formula tied to a dangerous botulism outbreak from their shelves, federal health officials said in warning letters posted Monday. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration sent letters to leaders at Walmart, Target, Kroger and Albertsons, saying the companies continued to sell ByHeart infant formula for days or weeks, despite a Nov. 11 recall of all products in the outbreak that has sickened more than 50 babies in 19 states. “As a participant in the supply chain, your firm should take prompt and effective action when notified of a product recall,” FDA officials said in warning letters sent to the companies on Dec. 12 and posted online Monday. The formula was found at Target stores in 20 states “well after the recall was initiated,” one letter said. In addition, it was sold at a Target store in New Hampshire on Nov. 16, despite an electronic block on the product’s sales code, the FDA noted. And at a Target store in Arkansas, single-serve packs of ByHeart formula were promoted with a “Sale!” sign and a $2 discount from Nov. 16 to Nov. 22. Information from state and local health officials said ByHeart formula was found at Walmart stores in 21 states from Nov. 12 to Nov. 26. The formula was found in Albertsons stores in 11 states from Nov. 12 to Nov. 19, and at Kroger stores in 10 states from Nov. 12 to Nov. 19. In addition, the companies failed to provide FDA with evidence that corrective actions have been put in place, despite multiple requests, the agency said. The companies have 15 working days to respond to the letters. Walmart officials said in a statement that no ByHeart formula was sold after cash registers were blocked from selling the formula following the recall. Albertsons officials said the company worked closely with suppliers and regulators to identify and remove the products and communicate to customers. “ByHeart infant formula products have been removed from our store shelves,” the company said in a statement. All of the babies in the outbreak have been hospitalized and treated with an IV medication to stop the progress of the disease. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention expanded the outbreak to include all babies treated for botulism after consuming ByHeart formula since it was first produced in 2023. Steven Mandernach, executive director at the Association of Food and Drug Officials, said the FDA itself was slow to distribute information about the recall with state and local food safety officials. The agency didn’t fully share product lists until Nov. 14 — nearly a week after the initial recall of two lots of ByHeart formula on Nov. 8. He said it was “disappointing” in an outbreak involving the sole source of nutrition for vulnerable infants. “There probably wasn’t the sense of urgency to ensure the product was off the market that I would expect,” Mandernach said.
2 salad-linked Listeria outbreaks show need for routine surveillance -Two genetically unrelated US outbreaks of Listeria monocytogenes infections linked to packaged salads from two different firms caused 30 illnesses, 27 hospitalizations, and four deaths over eight years, according to a new reportby Centers for Disease Control and Prevention researchers and collaborators published in Emerging Infectious Diseases recently. Though the two outbreaks were genetically unrelated, they were investigated concurrently: Outbreak A was investigated three times with illnesses occurring over eight years, whereas illnesses in outbreak B occurred over five years. Outbreak A was detected via PulseNet in 2019, initially with five cases identified in five states. The investigation ended within that year, but was reopened when other states had similar detections via PulseNet in 2020 and 2021.Outbreak B began in 2021, when PulseNet identified a cluster of 10 clinical isolates related to water-sediment isolates collected in the Salinas Valley of California. That outbreak was tied to 10 cases in eight states (Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia).“In the outbreaks described, packaged salad exposure was easily identified, but narrowing the source to a single firm was difficult because leafy green processors are often associated with multiple brands and can have similar packaging,” the authors wrote.
Frozen food distributor issues 50 recall notices over salmonella — A major importer and distributor of frozen foods based in New Jersey has issued 50 recall notices for its products after they tested positive for salmonella. The FDA said the affected products were distributed nationwide by Chetak New York. According to the CDC, salmonella can cause serious illness or death. It’s one of the leading causes of foodborne illnesses, and common symptoms include fever, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. The affected products are listed below, and customers are asked to return them to the store where they were purchased for a refund. All of the recalls are designated Class 1 recalls, meaning that using the affected products will cause serious adverse health consequences or death.
Recalled ice cream could contain small stones, FDA warns — Danone U.S. has issued a recall for a nondairy frozen dessert sold nationwide due to the potential presence of small stones and other hard objects, the Food and Drug Administration announced Monday.The recalled pints of So Delicious Dairy Free Salted Caramel Cluster have best-by dates before Aug. 8, 2027.The recalled product has an SKU of 136603 and a UPC of 744473476138. No other So Delicious Dairy Free products or flavors are impacted by the recall.Those who purchased the recalled product are advised not to consume it. For refunds, contact the company’s customer care line at 1-833-367-8975 during standard business hours.“So Delicious Dairy Free is working swiftly with retail partners to remove the potentially impacted product from shelves. In the meantime, the company has already identified and corrected this issue and will soon be able to bring back the frozen dessert so many people enjoy,” the recall alert states
Hidden Valley Ranch part of recall in 27 states over ‘foreign objects’ — Thousands of cases of salad dressing have been recalled due to the presence of “foreign objects,” the Food and Drug Administration announced.In a report, the FDA said the recall from California-based Ventura Foods was initiated on Nov. 11 and identified as a “Class II” on Dec. 4, meaning the use of or exposure to the product could lead to temporary and adverse health consequences. More than 3,500 cases of salad dressing, including the popular Hidden Valley Ranch, were recalled because “black plastic planting material” was found in the dressing’s granulated onion. The dressings were distributed to retailers across the country, including Costco.The recalled dressings include: […] The product was distributed to seven retailers across 42 locations in the following states:
White Castle frozen sliders recalled, potentially nationwide – White Castle has recalled more than 1,000 cases of its frozen Original Sliders which were potentially sold nationwide, according to a company announcement shared by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA). White Castle Frozen Food Division has initiated the recall of 1,021 cases of its frozen 4-count cartons of Original Sliders due to undeclared milk and soy, the notice explained. Specifically, the recall cartons may contain Jalapeno Cheese Sliders, which contain allergens that are not on the Original Sliders carton label. These recalled sliders were shipped to retailers between August and October 2025, and were primarily sold in convenience stores in “potentially all 50 states,” according to White Castle Food Products LLC. White Castle Original Sliders included in the recall are marked with UPC# 0-82988-02969-3, and the lot codes of the recalled product are either 9H203521 and 9H203522. They will also have a “best by” date of April 18, 2026. It should be noted that only sliders marked with the above lot codes are included in this recall, and any product that does not include all eight characters of the lot codes are not included in the recall. This packaging error was discovered when a customer notified White Castle that they suffered a non-life-threatening allergic reaction after consuming one of the mispacked Jalapeno Cheese Sliders, the notice said. No other reported of injury or illness have been received.
Firefighter gear contains potentially hazardous flame retardants, study shows - Some firefighter gear is manufactured with chemicals called brominated flame retardants that could pose a risk to firefighter health, according to a study published in Environmental Science & Technology Letters. Structural firefighters—those working in the built environment—wear turnout gear consisting of three layers: a flame-resistant outer shell; a middle layer, called a moisture barrier, that shields against germs while providing breathability; and an inner layer to prevent overheating. These protective qualities stem in part from chemical treatments added to the garments by manufacturers to meet rigorous standards developed by the National Fire Protection Association, according to lead author Heather Stapleton, Ronie-Richele Garcia-Johnson Distinguished Professor at Duke University's Nicholas School of the Environment. For several years, firefighters have been concerned about turnout gear treatments containing chemicals called PFAS, which confer oil and water resistance and sometimes flame resistance. Multiple human and animal studies have found associations between PFAS exposures and various health problems, including some cancers. Although no studies have directly linked use of PFAS in turnout gear exposure to subsequent health risks in firefighters, gear manufacturers have been phasing out use of the chemicals. Additionally, several states have passed legislation that will prohibit the purchase of turnout gear treated with PFAS starting in 2027. These actions have prompted questions about what other substances manufacturers might use in turnout gear. "Because some brominated flame retardants have known toxicity, I requested a sample of the gear in question to test." Brominated flame retardants are added to textiles and other products to reduce flammability. Exposure to the chemicals has been associated with negative health effects including cancer, thyroid disease and neurodevelopmental problems. Stapleton's informal experiment found evidence of brominated flame retardants in the turnout gear sample, spurring a more robust study with partners at North Carolina State University's Wilson College of Textiles and the International Association of Fire Fighters. The researchers collected nine sets of used turnout gear produced between 2013 and 2020, and three sets from 2024 that were marketed as non-PFAS treated. Using two types of analyses, they tested each layer of gear for PFAS and brominated flame retardants. "We wanted to know which chemicals were intentionally applied during manufacturing, and we wanted to know what was likely to leach out over time, which could raise the risk of exposure through skin absorption or inhalation," Stapleton said. As expected, the team detected PFAS in all sets of turnout gear manufactured between 2013 and 2020. However, turnout gear made in 2024 contained only low or non-detectable levels of extractable PFAS, indicating that the garments had not been treated with the chemicals, as the manufacturers had indeed advertised. Rather, those minor amounts had likely glommed onto the garments from the surrounding environment during use, the authors noted. Each set of turnout gear also showed evidence of brominated flame retardants, at extractable levels generally greater than those measured for PFAS. The highest extractable concentrations of brominated flame retardants occurred in garments advertised as non-PFAS treated, especially in the moisture barrier. The finding suggests that manufacturers intentionally added brominated flame retardants to help pass the flammability standard, and likely to compensate for the loss of a certain PFAS previously used in moisture barriers, Stapleton said. \ Although no studies have examined the health effects of DBDPE exposure in the U.S., according to the team, a 2019 study of workers at a chemical manufacturing plant in China found associations between exposure to DBDPE, changes in thyroid hormone levels and signs of thyroid disease. "I was really surprised that the manufacturers used DBDPE in turnout gear," Stapleton said. "It has similar properties as a toxic chemical called decaBDE that has been largely phased out globally, raising questions about its safety."
Remote Southern Ocean seabirds study highlights reach of 'forever chemicals' - Seabirds in one of the remotest parts of the planet are being exposed to a wide range of forever chemicals, scientists have discovered. Researchers have found "forever chemical" compounds in seabirds from the remote Southern Ocean—providing further evidence highlighting the global reach of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), known as forever chemicals because they do not easily break down in the environment. Although there are previous studies revealing PFAS exposure in sub-Antarctic seabirds, these are few in number and have mostly looked for a more limited target list of chemicals than this latest research. The new study, recently published in ACS Environmental Au, raises concerns because scientists found the presence of both long-banned "legacy" compounds, such as PFOS (perfluorooctane sulfonate), and chemicals that were introduced as replacements, including HFPO-DA and ADONA, in liver samples of three species of sub-Antarctic seabirds.PFAS are a large group of chemicals, several of which have been shown to bioaccumulate and cause adverse effects. As a result of restrictions on some of these chemicals, such as through the Stockholm Convention, replacement chemicals were introduced—however these are also now being detected in the environment and wildlife.The researchers say biomonitoring of PFAS is crucial in understanding their global distribution and for detecting emerging chemicals of concern.. In this study, scientists, targeting a list of nearly 40 chemical compounds, discovered the presence of 22 different per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in liver tissue samples taken from three species of seabirds—black-browed albatrosses, common diving petrels and white-chinned petrels. The samples were from birds caught in fishing gear or that collided with fishing vessels between 2004 and 2014 from two separate sampling areas of the south-west Atlantic—the Falkland Islands and South Georgia. The research team found that PFAS compounds were present across samples from all three bird species despite these birds inhabiting a remote part of the planet, far from major PFAS sources. "Seabirds are apex predators and can therefore be used as bioindicators of marine pollution. Their contamination tells us what is happening in the ecosystems they inhabit. "Our findings add to growing evidence that PFAS contamination is not restricted to industrialized regions—even some of the planet's most remote ecosystems are now showing the legacy of these chemicals.
Biodegradable wet wipes remain in rivers for more than five weeks - Scientists have tested, for the first time, how biodegradable wet wipes break down when flushed rather than composted, discovering that most wipes remain after five weeks—a finding the research team say challenges the marketing of these products. Researchers tested two widely available brands of wipes labeled as "biodegradable" in 10 urban rivers and streams in Cardiff, U.K. For five weeks, the team tracked the degradation of the wet wipes in these locations by testing their tensile strength loss, and recording environmental factors such as microbial biomass, water chemistry, temperature, and river-level fluctuations. The study, "Degradation of cellulose-based wet wipes marketed as 'biodegradable' in their receiving urban rivers," was published in Environmental Pollution. "The use and disposal of wet wipes have been problematic, because when flushed, they can accumulate in rivers and freshwater systems. Eco-conscious consumers might try to make more eco-friendly choices by opting for wet wipe products marketed to be more eco-friendly and biodegradable. While these products are marketed as biodegradable, their behavior in freshwater systems has been largely untested. We wanted to test, for the first time, wet wipes marketed as biodegradable." The two brands tested were cellulose-based and the team found that the wet wipes which contained more natural cellulose decayed more than twice as fast as those dominated by regenerated cellulose. Wet wipe Brand A, which contained more natural cellulose, degraded around 6.7% per day. Brand B, containing more regenerated cellulose, degraded around 3.1% per day. They found that the real-world urban river environment accelerated degradation compared to previous lab testing. This is likely due to the higher microbial activity and dynamic conditions—such as temperature and river level fluctuations—in rivers. The study found that despite early decay, most wipes persisted after five weeks. The research team believe that one of the reasons for this persistence could be due to the large amount of river debris coating these materials over time, which may act as a protective layer.
Toxic smog blankets New Delhi, disrupting travel and plunging air quality to hazardous levels (AP) — Dense toxic smog blanketed India’s national capital Monday, pushing air pollution levels to their worst levels in weeks, disrupting travel and causing authorities to impose the strictest containment measures. More than 40 flights were cancelled and several dozens delayed. Over 50 trains arriving and departing from New Delhi were delayed by several hours, authorities said. Healthcare experts warned residents to avoid all outdoor activities as hospitals reported an influx of patients with breathing difficulties and eye irritation. “New Delhi is a gas chamber right now. Air purifiers can help only a bit, so it’s high time the government comes up with some permanent solutions” said Naresh Dang, a physician at Max Healthcare. Delhi’s air pollution levels have remained at what the federal government calls a “severe” level for the last two days, which the government says can cause respiratory effects to healthy people and seriously affect the health of people with heart or lung disease. On Sunday, official index readings were over 450 at several monitoring stations, up from 430 on Saturday and the highest so far this winter season, as per data from Central Pollution Control Board. On Monday, it stood at 449. Readings below 50 are considered good. During periods of severe air pollution, the government advises people to avoid going outdoors as much as possible and wear N95 masks when going outside. Children, pregnant women, elderly and people with pre-existing respiratory or cardiovascular conditions are at higher risk and officials advise them to be extra cautious. “I have never seen this kind of pollution ever. Last year I came to Delhi, it was polluted. This year it is more polluted. I can feel the smoke while I breathe the air,” said Tiam Patel, a tourist. To stem pollution, Indian authorities have banned construction activities and restricted use of diesel generators and cars. Water sprinklers have been deployed to control the haze. Schools and offices are allowing many students and workers to stay home. But environmentalists say that the country’s air pollution crisis requires long-term changes. New Delhi and its surrounding region, home to more than 30 million people, routinely rank among the world’s most polluted. India has six of the world’s 10 most polluted cities, and New Delhi is the most polluted national capital, according to a report from Switzerland-based air quality monitoring database IQAir earlier this year. Air quality worsens in New Delhi every winter as farmers burn crop residue in nearby states and cooler temperatures trap the smoke, which mixes with pollution from vehicles, construction activity and industrial emissions. Pollution levels often reach 20 times higher than the World Health Organization’s safe limit. But Vimlendu Jha, a Delhi based environmentalist, said that the air is not healthy even at other times of year. “Delhi’s air doesn’t get cleaner at all, we only see it visibly from October to December, but the reality is that it remains polluted through the year,” he said.
Climate change can affect human diseases in widespread and varied ways - As the planet edges towards 1.5°C of global warming, a new study led by the Natural History Museum, London has revealed that scientists still have only a limited understanding of how climate change is reshaping the risk of infectious diseases that pass from animals to humans.The research shows that a warmer world will alter weather patterns, transform habitats and shift where many animals live, likely bringing people and wildlife into closer proximity and increasing opportunities for zoonotic diseases to "spill over." However, the exact impacts are extremely hard to predict. By reviewing hundreds of scientific studies, the team were able to extract detailed climate-disease data for 53 zoonotic diseases—around 6% of the 816 known zoonotic diseases that affect humans. Even for these relatively well-studied diseases, responses to climate change are highly variable.Overall, zoonotic diseases were found to be sensitive to climate, with temperature showing the clearest links. Higher temperatures were almost twice as likely to increase disease risk as to decrease it, particularly for zoonotic infections spread by mosquitoes. But this pattern was far from universal, and for other climate factors, such as rainfall and humidity, the picture was even more mixed.The study found that zoonotic diseases are generally climate-sensitive but respond in a variety of ways depending on the disease, the animal host and the local environment. The paper ispublished in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.Temperature showed the strongest and most consistent links. In many cases, warming increases risk for instance, by speeding up the development of mosquitoes or boosting rodent populations. However, even for a single disease, the response to temperature may change depending on how warm it already is, or which species are involved. Co-author Dr. David Redding uses plague as an example of this complexity: "Plague is caused by a bacterium that circulates between rodents and the fleas that feed on them. Temperature strongly influences this system. Warmer conditions can boost rodent populations in some regions and speed up flea development, which can increase opportunities for transmission. However, this relationship is not linear. At higher temperatures, the bacterium becomes less efficiently transmitted by fleas because the conditions that allow the flea to become infectious break down. Beyond a certain point, further warming reduces plague spread."The authors warn that inconsistent research approaches across disciplines and regions are obscuring the true relationships between climate and disease, making it difficult to compare results across studies or to provide clear guidance for public health.
Four years after the Mariana mining disaster in Brazil, river fish remained contaminated Four years after the Fundão dam collapse—the world's largest mining disaster, which occurred in 2015 in the city of Mariana in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil—a study found that fish in the Doce River were still highly contaminated by metals and other toxic substances. After analyzing 503 fish, including lambaris (Astyanax spp.), cascudos (Locariidae), jundiás (Zungaro spp.), and mandis (Pimelodus maculatus), the researchers concluded that consumption of these fish was inadvisable in 2019 due to the associated health risks. The results were published in the journal Total Environment Advances. In the study, Brazilian researchers affiliated with São Paulo State University (UNESP) and the Federal University of Paraná (UFPR) showed that contamination in the Doce River basin persisted with an accumulation of 13 metals, including aluminum, barium, cadmium, cobalt, chromium, iron, lithium, manganese, nickel, lead, and zinc. Cadmium, chromium, and lead exceeded legal limits and posed health risks. The first two are carcinogenic, and lead can cause memory impairment and a lower IQ. Iron and manganese were the most prevalent metals detected in the fish. "The dam burst in 2015, and although studies showed a reduction in contamination in the Doce River the following year, the fish still had high levels of metals and other toxic substances five years after the disaster," says Flávia Yamamoto, a visiting professor at the Federal University of Ceará (UFC) and author of the study. She argues that independent studies of this type should be conducted more regularly. The collapse of the Fundão dam, which is owned by the mining company Samarco—controlled by the Brazilian company Vale and the Anglo-Australian company BHP—killed 19 people and left more than 600 people homeless. The mud containing tailings from iron ore extraction (about 34 million cubic meters) reached the Doce River, whose watershed covers 230 municipalities in the states of Minas Gerais and EspÃrito Santo, impacting the sea as well.
Potentially toxic elements in bananas grown in the Mariana disaster region exceed United Nations limitsScientists specializing in soil geochemistry, environmental engineering, and health affiliated with the University of São Paulo (USP) and the Federal University of EspÃrito Santo (UFES) in Brazil and the University of Santiago de Compostela in Spain assessed the risks of consuming bananas, cassava, and the pulp of cocoa grown in soils impacted by iron mining waste in the Doce River estuary in Linhares in the Brazilian state of EspÃrito Santo. The region has received the material since the Fundão tailings dam collapsed in the neighboring state of Minas Gerais in November 2015. The concentrations of cadmium, chromium, copper, nickel, and lead in the soil are associated with the main constituent of the tailings: iron oxides. The team also found that consuming bananas grown in soil impacted by the tailings poses a possible health risk to children aged six years or younger. "Our group has been studying the impacts of the dam collapse for years. We obtained the first samples seven days after the accident and immediately understood that there was an imminent risk of contamination of plants, soil, water, and fish. But the question remained: Does this contamination pose a risk to human health?" recalls Tiago Osório, an agronomist and professor in the Department of Soil Science at the Luiz de Queiroz College of Agriculture at the University of São Paulo (ESALQ-USP). In an article published in Environmental Geochemistry and Health, the group reveal how plants access potentially toxic elements (PTEs) associated with the tailings and accumulate them in their edible parts. They also explain how this material enters the food chain. The article is part of Amanda Duim's doctoral studies at ESALQ. According to Duim, the first author of the article, what sets this study apart is that the team correlated the risk to human health with the transfer of PTEs from the soil to the plant. "The iron oxide content in the soil, which is the main constituent of the tailings, correlates with its content in the plant. We studied the passage of constituents from the tailings in the soil to the water, and then from the water to the plant, including its leaves and fruits."
Wildfires reshape forest soils for decades, with recovery varying by climate --Wildfires may disappear from the landscape within weeks, but their hidden effects on the soil can persist for decades. An international research team led by the University of Göttingen, together with partners in Tübingen, Berlin and Chile, has shown how wildfires in humid temperate rainforests and Mediterranean woodlands of central Chile lead to very different pathways of soil recovery and ecosystem resilience. The study shows that soil structure and nutrients continue to change for more than a decade after a fire. The results are published in the journal Catena. The researchers used a "chronosequence" approach—meaning they compared forest soils that had burned at different times in the past. This enabled them to reconstruct how soils change in the years after a fire. In two national parks in Chile, the team sampled soils in a humid temperate Araucaria forest in Nahuelbuta and in a "sclerophyll" woodland—meaning forest characterized by woody plants with small, tough leaves—in La Campana, which has a Mediterranean climate with hot, dry summers. Here, "Mediterranean" refers to Chile's Mediterranean-climate woodlands, which share a similar climate with the Mediterranean. The researchers collected soil cores from the top ten centimeters of the ground in recently burned areas—from forests just two days after a fire—as well as from sites that had burned up to 14 years earlier. They then compared the physical and chemical properties of the soil with nearby forests that had not burned for several decades. Forest full of evergreen coniferous trees called Araucaria – or monkey-puzzle trees – which has recovered from fire. It is in the Nahuelbuta National Park, Chile and is an example of a humid temperate ecosystem in the research study. Credit: Jhenkhar Mallikarjun Key findings on soil recovery "We showed that wildfires do not just burn vegetation but fundamentally reshape the soil—compacting it, redistributing ash and disrupting nutrient cycles long after the flames are gone,"Their research revealed that wildfires increase soil bulk density by up to 1.2 g/cm³, temporarily raise soil pH because of the additional ash, and alter the balance of key nutrients such as calcium, magnesium, and potassium. While humid temperate forests retained more organic matter, Mediterranean woodland soilssuffered long-lasting carbon and nitrogen depletion. Soils in Mediterranean woodlands showed greater compaction and nutrient loss than those in humid temperate forests, where deep-rooted, fire-adapted trees helped soils recover faster.
Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDC) for rapid wildfire spread issued for Colorado’s Front Range - The National Weather Service (NWS) office in Boulder issued a Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDC) for rapid wildfire spread affecting the foothills and areas along Colorado Highway 93 through Friday, December 19, 2025.Hurricane force gusts of 129–161 km/h (80–100 mph) along with sustained winds of 72–89 km/h (45–55 mph) are forecast across the region.The strong winds, combined with near-record-low relative humidity of 8 to 20%, will create a particularly dangerous fire-weather situation in the area. The strongest gusts will be seen along Highway 93/US 36. “We rarely issue these, but Friday will be a Particularly Dangerous Situation regarding potential for rapid wildfire spread in and immediately adjacent to the Boulder/Jefferson County foothills. Be ready to take swift action,” the NWS said. Meanwhile, a High Wind Warning is in effect for the Mountains and Foothills along with Fort Collins, Longmont, Boulder, and the Western Suburbs of Denver through 20:00 local time (LT) on Friday.
White River levee breach prompts evacuation order for the city of Pacific, Washington – videos --A levee breach along the White River prompted evacuation orders and Flash Flood Warning for the city of Pacific on December 16, 2025. Evacuation zone map for city of Pacific due to White River Levee breach on December 16, 2025. A levee on the White River failed early Tuesday, December 16, prompting Level 3 “Go Now” evacuation notices near the city of Pacific (population 7 600). The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a Flash Flood Warning around 01:39 PST, reporting a levee breach on the White River in the city of Pacific in King County. The warning will remain in effect until 07:45 PST on December 16. “Go now! Levee break at 3rd Ave SE and Spencer Ct. Evacuate the area that is east of Butte and south of 3rd! More info to come! Leave Megan Court, leave Park View Apts, leave Spencer Court,” the Pacific Police Department said. “Pacific PD has officers going door to door, in partnership with KCSO, VRFA, and the City of Auburn. Multiple locations at City Hall are open as warming and gathering stations. Please keep roads clear as we are still moving emergency vehicles.” YouTube video The levee, a HESCO barrier, failed, prompting the alert. HESCOs are soil-filled barriers designed to protect against flooding. City crews are working to secure more barriers to restore the levee. This comes just a day after the Green River breached its levee near Tukwila in the same county on December 15.
Washington state in the middle of a historic crisis as flooding impacts continue - videos --Historic flooding in December 2025 placed Washington state in the middle of a statewide crisis, with impacts ongoing and damage assessments still underway as of December 17. Prolonged heavy rainfall has inundated communities, damaged levees and transportation infrastructure, and forced large-scale evacuations across multiple counties. At least one person died after driving into deep floodwaters.Historic flooding caused by successive atmospheric rivers has left extensive damage across Washington state this month, with impacts still unfolding and active emergency response operations as of December 17.Authorities reported that one man died after driving into deep floodwaters despite posted warnings. The incident occurred during the height of the flooding and is the only confirmed death publicly linked to the event as of December 17. A confirmed count of injuries has not been released yet.A breach along the Green River south of Seattle prompted evacuations in surrounding communities, while a failure along theWhite River in the city of Pacific forced residents from approximately 220 homes as floodwaters spread through residential areas.Multiple state highways were washed out, undermined, or buried by debris. A lengthy stretch of State Route 2 through Tumwater Canyon remains closed due to extensive structural damage and is expected to remain impassable for months. Highway 12 northwest of Yakima was also washed out, with repairs underway.Residential and community impacts were reported across more than 10 counties, particularly in low-lying floodplains and river valleys. Thousands of residents were placed under evacuation orders at various points during the event, with some communities experiencing repeated alerts as water levels fluctuated and levee stability remained uncertain. According to the governor’s office, more than 1 200 rescues and evacuations have been conducted statewide since the flooding began. Local responders were supported by the Washington National Guard and mutual aid resources, with approximately 250 Guard personnel remaining deployed to assist with evacuations, logistics, and infrastructure protection.State officials reported that floodwaters have placed sustained stress on critical infrastructure beyond roads, including levees, utilities, and public facilities. The Washington State Department of Transportation said more than 60 roads have been reopened since the storm systems began, though officials cautioned that additional damage may still emerge as waters recede and inspections continue.
Oceans Are Supercharging Hurricanes. Scientists Warn “Category 6” Storms Are Becoming More Likely -- New research shows that the ocean conditions responsible for the most powerful hurricanes and typhoons are becoming warmer in both the North Atlantic and the Western Pacific. These changes are driven by heat stored in warm ocean water that reaches far below the surface. Scientists estimate that human-driven climate change may account for as much as 70% of the increase in these storm-forming hot spots. As these hot spots grow, they raise the chances that extremely intense tropical cyclones, including potential Category ‘6’ storms, could make landfall in densely populated regions. “The hot spot regions have expanded,” said I-I Lin, a chair professor in the Department of Atmospheric Science at the National Taiwan University. Lin has been interested in the strongest hurricanes and typhoons for more than a decade. Typhoon Haiyan—also known as Super Typhoon Yolanda—struck the Philippines at maximum intensity in November 2013, killing thousands of people. The next year, Lin and her colleagues published a paper calling for the need for creating a new category of tropical cyclones—6—for the very strongest storms like Haiyan, in the AGU journal Geophysical Research Letters. Category 6 tropical cyclones would include those that exceed a wind intensity of 160 knots, Lin and her colleagues argue. Previously, any storm with winds above 137 knots were considered Category 5—most official weather agencies still recognize Category 5 tropical cyclones as the strongest. But since most other categories include a window of about 20 knots, Lin said it makes sense to create a Category 6. Category 4, for example, includes storms with wind intensity of 114-137 knots. Some of the best-known of these storms include Hurricane Wilma in 2005, the most intense hurricane recorded in the Atlantic basin, Typhoon Haiyan and Typhoon Hagibis, which struck Tokyo in 2019. The latter was among the costliest in terms of destruction from rain and wind, Lin said, even though it had downgraded in intensity by the time it hit the Japanese capital. Finally, Hurricane Patricia, which formed in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Mexico, was the strongest tropical cyclone ever recorded, with wind intensity of up to 185 knots—enough to make it considered a Category 7 storm, if such a thing existed, Lin said. “Patricia was the king of the world,” she added. Lin and her colleagues looked back at all large storms recorded in the past four decades or so, and found that these Category ‘6’ storms are increasingly common. In three decades from 1982 to 2011, there were eight tropical cyclones that had wind intensity of more than 160 knots. In the more recent decade she examined, from 2013 to 2023, there were 10 Category 6 tropical cyclones. So, of 18 Category ‘6’ cyclones that occurred the past 40 years or so, 10 of them happened in the last decade.Shell Oil Sued Over "Causing Typhoon" In Philippines In Major Test Case - A massive ‘lawfare’ claim backed by Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth has been filed in the UK’s Royal Courts of Justice claiming that Shell Oil played a part in a devastating typhoon in the Philippines in 2021. At the centre of the case is a Green Blob-funded weather ‘attribution’ study that claims Typhoon Rai, also known as Odette, was made significantly worse due to human caused climate change. The study has been recently published and is heavily linked to academic institutions funded by the green billionaire investor Jeremy Grantham. The action has been filed by a number of survivors of the Philippines storm that caused considerable damage in parts of the Philippines in late 2021. It claims financial compensation as well as “injunctive relief to curb Shell’s destructive activities”. Typhoons are not unknown in this part of the world, but recent evidence suggests there has been little change in the overall trend over the last 100 years. Numbers and intensity of storms rise and fall over shorter periods but the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has seen little evidence that humans have recently caused the trend to get worse. In fact, a recent paper published in Nature found “robust declining trends in the annual number of tropical cyclones at global and regional scales during the 20th century”. The paper was titled: ‘Declining tropical cyclone frequency under global warming.’ The key attribution paper in the Shell case uses a standard technique measuring the outputs of two computer model simulations. This imagines an atmosphere where humans have emitted carbon dioxide by burning hydrocarbons and one where there is no such contribution. To say the process is controversial would be an understatement. It cannot count as scientific work under the Popperian principle since the results are unable to be tested and are unfalsifiable. The field of weather attribution is dedicated to grabbing media headlines and providing ammunition for lawfare cases. If the Shell case ever gets to court, it will be interesting to see how weather attribution claims stand up to forensic cross examination. Shell could call on the services of the distinguished science writer Roger Pielke Jr., who has noted that he can think of no other area of research “where the relaxing of rigour and standards has been encouraged by research in order to generate claims more friendly to headlines, political advocacy and even lawsuits”. Pielke suggests that the rise of individual event attribution studies coincides with frustration that the IPCC cannot say that the frequency and intensity of most types of extreme weather have increased in an era where humans are using oil and gas. In his view, they offer “comfort and support” to those focused on climate advocacy.
Strengthening Polar Vortex signals return of Arctic air to North America and Europe in January 2026 - Forecast models indicate the Polar Vortex will strengthen in late December 2025 after a split and disrupted phase earlier in the season. The recovery is expected to influence North American and European weather in January 2026, potentially sending colder air southward while reorganizing jet stream flow. ThePolar Vortex split in early December 2025, producing two distinct lobes that temporarily weakened its structure. Extended-range forecasts now show the system consolidating into a stronger configuration through late December, suggesting a shift toward more stable Arctic containment of cold air. Ad ends in 5 The European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) and other ensemble systems show that stratospheric wind speeds and geopotential height anomalies are returning toward climatological norms. This marks the beginning of a recovery phase after weeks of vortex deformation. The stratosphere and troposphere begin to re-couple during such periods, allowing the reformed vortex to influence mid-latitude circulation patterns more directly. The strengthening vortex could temporarily confine the coldest Arctic air near the Pole, leading to milder interludes across mid-latitudes in late December. However, ensemble members also show that this phase will likely be short-lived, with downstream pattern adjustments allowing renewed southward movement of cold air during January 2026. Forecasts by Climate Prediction Center (CPC) show a probability of increased storm activity along the western United States and southern Canada through the end of December, while much of Alaska and northern Canada remain under below-normal temperature anomalies. Troughing episodes are expected to re-emerge as the vortex stabilizes, increasing the probability of Arctic air intrusions into the central and eastern United States in early to mid-January.
Weak La Niña to end as ocean warming signals new El Niño phase in 2026 - Forecast models suggest that El Niño conditions are likely to develop during 2026, marking a shift from the ongoing weak La Niña. The transition is expected to influence jet stream patterns and temperature anomalies across the United States, Canada, and Europe, potentially reshaping rainfall distribution and winter storm activity in the Northern Hemisphere. Current long-range climate outlooks indicate that the tropical Pacific is moving toward a new El Niño phase in 2026, following the current weak La Niña phase. Seasonal forecast systems, including the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), show a gradual warming of central and eastern equatorial Pacific sea-surface temperatures through mid-2026. If this persists, El Niño could strengthen during the second half of the year and extend into the 2026/2027 ENSO cycle. El Niño and La Niña represent opposite phases of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO), which is a major driver of global climate. While La Niña features below-average sea-surface temperatures in the equatorial Pacific, El Niño is characterized by sustained ocean warming that disrupts atmospheric circulation across the tropics and mid-latitudes. These temperature fluctuations affect the position and strength of the Pacific jet stream, producing systematic patterns of precipitation and temperature anomalies across continents. In late 2025, atmospheric conditions still show La Niña influence, with enhanced trade winds and cooler-than-normal tropical Pacific waters. This configuration led to colder winter outbreaks across parts of North America, intensified snowfalls in interior Canada, and stronger polar vortex interactions over the Northern Hemisphere. However, ocean-atmosphere coupling is expected to weaken during the first half of 2026, allowing surface warming to emerge in the central Pacific. If El Niño fully develops, its impacts on the United States and Canada are expected to include significant changes to jet stream alignment. Historically, El Niño winters produce a stronger, more zonal Pacific jet stream, steering storms across the southern and eastern U.S. and bringing above-average precipitation to the Gulf Coast and Southeast regions. Northern states and western Canada generally experience milder, drier conditions compared with La Niña winters, while southern Canada and the Great Lakes region may see periods of enhanced storm activity.
Ancient lake from ice age comes back to life in Death Valley after record rainfall --Between 128,000 and 186,000 years ago, when ice covered the Sierra Nevada, a lake 100 miles long and 600 feet deep sat in eastern California in what is now the Mojave Desert. As the climate warmed and the ice retreated, the lake dried up, leaving a white salt pan in its place. But a November of record rainfall has brought the ancient lake, known as Lake Manly, back to life. Now Death Valley, one of the hottest places on Earth and the lowest point in North America, has a desert lake framed by snow-capped mountains.As far as lakes go, this one is pretty small and is likely to disappear soon.But it's a marvel to people who live in or visit Death Valley, and a reminder of the extreme weather that has been hitting the area more than 200 feet below sea level.From September to November, the park received 2.41 inches of rain, with 1.76 inches of that total coming in November alone, the Park Service said. The previous wettest November on record was 1.70 inches, set in 1923.The lake last made an appearance in 2023 after Hurricane Hilary, which degraded to a post-tropical low before reaching Southern California, dumped 2.2 inches of rain on the park and filled the basin.Water levels receded until February 2024, when an atmospheric river dumped an additional 1.5 inches of rain onto the lake, making it deep enough that people could kayak on it. NASA researchers found that the temporary lake was about 3 feet to less than 1.5 feet deep over the course of about six weeks in February and March 2024. The lake there today doesn't really compare, locals say. "It's the size of a lake but it's not deep. ... It's more like a very, very large riverbed without the flow—a wading pool maybe."
Elusive December sun leaves Stockholm in the dark- The Swedish capital has recorded just a half-hour of sunlight in the first half of December, putting it on track for the darkest December since 1934 if the trend continues, meteorologists said. Sweden, like the rest of the Nordic countries, is accustomed to long, dark winters, with shorter days and longer nights due to their northern location. But this December has been exceptionally gloomy and overcast in Stockholm, meteorologist Viktor Bergman at the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI) told AFP. "So far in December—the month isn't over yet—there's been only a half-hour of sunlight," he said. "We've had unstable low pressure systems with mild and humid weather, and that brings lots of clouds. There hasn't been a chance for the skies to clear." "The sun has also been weak, and its rays have not been able to clear away the clouds," he said. The average amount of sunlight in Stockholm for the full month of December is around 33 hours, according to data compiled from 1991 to 2020, Bergman said. He said the sun could make an appearance in Stockholm in the coming days, "but it's a little uncertain." The darkest December ever recorded in the Swedish capital was in 1934, when the amount of sunlight was so minimal it was "rounded down to zero hours," Bergman said. Stockholm has also had no real snowfall this winter, contributing to the sense of darkness as the reflection from snow on the ground helps brighten surroundings. That does not look set to change, Bergman predicted, dashing Stockholmers' hopes of a white Christmas.
Arctic sees unprecedented heat as climate impacts cascade - The Arctic has experienced its hottest year since records began, a US science agency announced Tuesday, as climate change triggers cascading impacts from melting glaciers and sea ice to greening landscapes and disruptions to global weather. Between October 2024 and September 2025, temperatures were 1.60 degrees Celsius above the 1991–2020 mean, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said in its annual Arctic Report Card, which draws on data going back to 1900.Co-author Tom Ballinger of the University of Alaska told AFP it was "certainly alarming" to see such rapid warming over so short a timespan, calling the trend "seemingly unprecedented in recent times and maybe back thousands of years." The year included the Arctic's warmest autumn, second-warmest winter, and third-warmest summer since 1900, the report said. Driven by human-caused burning of fossil fuels, the Arctic is warming significantly far faster than the global average, with a number of reinforcing feedback loops—a phenomenon known as "Arctic Amplification." For example, rising temperatures increase water vapor in the atmosphere, which acts like a blanket absorbing heat and preventing it from escaping into space.At the same time, the loss of bright, reflective sea ice exposes darker ocean waters that absorb more heat from the sun.Springtime—when Arctic sea ice reaches its annual maximum—saw the smallest peak in the 47-year satellite record in March 2025.That's an "immediate issue for polar bears and for seals and for walrus, that they use the ice as a platform for transportation, for hunting, for birthing pups," co-author Walt Meier of the National Snow and Ice Data Center told AFP.Modeling suggests the Arctic could see its first summer with virtually no sea ice by 2040 or even sooner. The loss of Arctic sea ice also disrupts ocean circulation by injecting freshwater into the North Atlantic through melting ice and increased rainfall.This makes surface waters less dense and salty, hindering their ability to sink and drive the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation—including the Gulf Stream—which help keep Europe's winters milder.Ongoing melt of theGreenland Ice Sheet also adds freshwater to the North Atlantic Ocean, boosting plankton productivity but also creating mismatches between when food is available and when the species that depend on it are able to feed.Greenland's land-based ice loss is also a major contributor to global sea-level rise, exacerbating coastal erosion and storm-driven flooding.
Alaska’s Arctic Is Burning Like Never Before in 3,000 Years - Wildfires across Alaska’s North Slope have been more frequent over the last century than at any point in the previous 3,000 years, according to new research published in the journal Biogeosciences.The work was carried out in Arctic Alaska by an international group of scientists representing institutions in Germany, Poland, the United Kingdom, Romania, and the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ Toolik Field Station.Angelica Feurdean, the study’s lead author and a senior researcher at Goethe University in Germany, explained that the team combined multiple scientific methods to piece together a long-term record of fire activity. The results suggest that the recent surge in wildfires is linked to expanding woody vegetation and increasingly dry soils, both of which are associated with rising temperatures.“The interlinked changes across millennia mean recent fires are indicators of a system undergoing rapid transformation,” Feurdean said.To uncover evidence of ancient wildfires, the researchers collected peat samples by drilling about half a meter into tundra soils at nine locations north of the Brooks Range. These sites were situated along the Dalton Highway between Toolik Lake and the Franklin Bluffs.Each layer of peat contained traces of past environmental conditions, including charcoal, pollen, and fragments of dead plants and microbes. The team analyzed the concentration of these materials and used radiocarbon and lead dating to establish their ages. By combining these data, the researchers were able to reconstruct patterns of wildfire activity, vegetation changes, and soil moisture over thousands of years.Material from the peat cores dated back 3,000 years to around 1000 B.C. Charcoal records indicated fire activity was low for the first 2,000 years. Activity rose slightly between roughly A.D. 1000 and 1200 when tundra soils started to dry. But it dropped back to lower levels for the next seven centuries.Then, in 1900, fire activity began to heat up again. By 1950, fire activity spiked to unprecedented levels as peat reached record dryness and woody shrubs increased. Fire activity rose and soils continued to dry through 2015, when the cores were taken.The scientists then compared ancient fire history with that of modern activity by pairing charcoal remnants with satellite records.Satellite records confirmed the evidence from charcoal records that fire activity has been rising since the latter half of the 20th century. Specifically, the late 1960s, 1990 and 2000s-2010s saw frequent fires.
Trump-Era Permitting Freeze Puts Over 500 U.S. Wind And Solar Energy Projects At Risk - Solar and wind project approvals on federal lands have come to a near standstill this year as the Trump Administration rolls back Biden-era clean energy laws and permitting regulations while adopting an openly hostile stance toward green energy development. Since President Donald Trump took office in January, only one project—a solar development—has received approval on federal lands, according to a Reuters review of permitting data. No additional wind or solar projects have advanced since July, when a new directive required that all such developments on federal lands and waters receive personal approval from Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. At that time, the Department of the Interior ended what it called “preferential treatment for unreliable, subsidy-dependent wind and solar energy.” In contrast, under former President Joe Biden, the United States approved 13 solar projects and two wind projects on federal lands, the Reuters review found. The permitting freeze is now jeopardizing more than 500 wind and solar projects, Abigail Ross Hopper, president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), told Reuters. SEIA and Wood Mackenzie reported this week in their latest quarterly update that solar capacity installations surged in the third quarter, driven by developers accelerating construction to secure the final investment tax credits being phased out by the Trump Administration. However, the report also highlighted ongoing uncertainty in the industry following the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). Federal permitting processes remain unclear, and Treasury Department guidance on Foreign Entity of Concern (FEOC) requirements is not expected for several months, SEIA and Wood Mackenzie noted. Last month, a SEIA analysis of EIA data revealed that political efforts targeting America’s solar and storage sector threaten as many as 519 projects totaling 117 gigawatts (GW) of capacity. These projects account for half of all new planned power capacity in the United States, and 17 states could lose more than half of their planned capacity, according to SEIA.
New England eyes Canada for energy as US offshore wind flounders - Nova Scotia could be a future offshore wind hot spot, as New England looks to its Canadian neighbor for an energy source that the Trump administration is quashing in the U.S. Last month, the industry group Marine Renewables Canada saw attendance to its annual conference in Halifax double over last year, with more than 700 visitors. A few days later, New England governors and Eastern Canadian premiers adopted a resolution to continue collaboration on energy infrastructure. And Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey (D) and Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston — who both aim to boost their region’s clean power supplies — have had many discussions, including a meeting last week about partnering on energy needs. Offshore wind energy from Nova Scotia can help fuel New England’s economic growth and create jobs, Houston told POLITICO’s E&E News. “There’s a natural trading relationship and a natural friendship, where we can trust each other and support each other,” Houston said. “I think that’s certainly of interest to me, but I think it’s of interest to the governors, too.” Canada has no offshore wind farms today. But sparsely populated Nova Scotia is beginning to plan development as data centers and electrification push up electricity demand — and New England states are contributing to the flurry of interest. Houston has pitched a vision called “Wind West” that would open Nova Scotia’s coastal waters to generating dozens of gigawatts of wind energy in the coming decades. The province uses only a small fraction of that amount, which Houston said sets up ample export opportunities that could include New England. Projections show Canada will need two to three times as much electricity in the coming years, said Elisa Obermann, president of Marine Renewables Canada. While much of that power could flow to population centers in central and western Canada, many transmission lines already connect Canada to the Northeast U.S., and Hydro-Québec has historically supplied a significant amount of power to New England (though that volume has decreased recently amid a historic drought). State and provincial governments and developers are already discussing the possibility of new cross-border transmission cables that could hook into the New England grid. New England’s long history of energy trade with Canada makes it a “natural market” for potential offshore wind exports, said John Dalton, president of Power Advisory, a consulting firm in Massachusetts that worked with the Nova Scotia government on its Wind West concept. “The New England states were relying on wind as a foundational resource to meet their clean energy needs,” Dalton said. As the Trump administration delays or stops domestic offshore wind projects, “the New England states have to look elsewhere to alternative strategies to allow them to achieve their clean energy and greenhouse gas reduction goals.” Houston said he has been in ongoing discussions with New England governors to try to provide some certainty to developers about what customers will be available. Those discussions, he said, include early-stage pricing talks. “What does the pricing look like? What would the power purchase agreements look like?” Houston said. Nova Scotia and Massachusetts officials have also been talking about the potential for a memorandum of understanding related to wind, he said. A spokesperson for Healey, Karissa Hand, said that the governor’s office continues “to have productive conversations about potential areas of partnership” with Nova Scotia, and referred questions to the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources. DOER Commissioner Elizabeth Mahony said the state is interested in potential partnerships. “Building on our successful efforts to connect our regions through transmission, there are significant opportunities to construct new onshore and offshore wind projects across Canada and the Northeast region,” she said in an emailed statement. She added that Massachusetts has a workforce that can contribute to building the offshore wind industry in Canada.
Conservation groups sue Interior over canceled DEI grants - A coalition of conservation organizations sued the Interior Department this week, accusing the Trump administration of unlawfully canceling nearly $14 million in grant funding as part of a politically motivated effort to punish groups perceived to support diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) values. The lawsuit, filed Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon, challenges the Interior Department’s termination of 79 grant agreements in September that funded wildlife monitoring projects and habitat restoration throughout the West. The groups argue that the grant cancellations violated the First and Fifth amendments, alleging Interior targeted organizations it believed supported or espoused DEI principles or featured statements recognizing Indigenous peoples as the original inhabitants of specific lands, regardless of whether the grants funded such activities. The groups say none of the terminated grants funded DEI initiatives, with some organizations never even having a DEI policy in the first place. The suit brought by the legal group Democracy Forward against the Interior Department and agency officials, including Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, seeks injunctive relief to restore the canceled grants.
What sinking Greenpeace could mean for environmentalists - --The outcome of one green group’s legal fight against an energy company could shape the future of environmental activism. Greenpeace USA is still hoping for a win in a high-stakes controversy that pits them against an energy behemoth in a long-running legal fight. An eventual victory in court could bolster the group’s fundraising, hiring power and influence after the yearslong battle that has sapped resources and morale.But a loss would be monumental — not just for Greenpeace, but for the environmental movement and activists more broadly who view the green group’s legal predicament as a proxy war between nonprofits that engage in civil disobedience and their critics on the right. A Greenpeace loss could also add fuel to conservatives’ push to crack down on left-leaning nonprofits they say are benefiting from tax breaks while they break the law.Greenpeace is facing possible bankruptcy as part of a lengthy legal battle against Energy Transfer, a massive oil and gas pipeline company co-founded by Trump megadonor Kelcy Warren. The energy company is challenging Greenpeace’s role in protesting the Dakota Access pipeline in 2016 and 2017.
Corn Closes Higher on Wednesday with Record Ethanol Production - Corn futures posted gains of 2 to 4 ½ cents on Wednesday. Demand continues to be solid, with record ethanol and exports. The CmdtyView national average Cash Corn price as up 4 cents to $3.96 3/4. USDA reported a private export sale of 177,055 MT of corn to Mexico this morning. EIA data from this morning showed another record ethanol corn grind for the week ending on December 12, up 26,000 barrels per day week/week to 1.131 million bpd. Despite the increased output, stocks saw a draw of 157,000 barrels to 22.353 million barrels. That came as ethanol exports were up 66,000 bpd to 191,000 bpd, with refiner inputs of ethanol rising 55,000 barrels per day from the week prior to 906,000 bpd. Commitment of Traders data, now as of December 2, showed spec funds adding back 34,142 contracts to the long side in that week, mainly on short covering. That flipped their net position to long in corn futures and options to 23,270 contracts as of that date A South Korean importer purchased a total of 268,000 MT of corn in a tender overnight. Brazil’s December corn exports are estimated to total 6.35 MMT according to ANEC, a 0.05 MMT increase from the week prior.
Trump Media takes on fusion in $6B merger - The merger between President Donald Trump’s social media company and fusion energy giant TAE Technologies represents a massive cash bet, but it’s unclear how much it will advance a technology that hasn’t yet been proven at commercial scale. Under the $6 billion deal, Trump Media & Technology Group — the parent company of Truth Social — and fusion company TAE said they are planning to site and begin construction of the world’s first utility-scale fusion power plant, a feat that would transform electricity if it happens. The all-stock merger would create one of the world’s first publicly traded fusion companies and give Trump a major financial stake in development of a technology that has an unprecedented vision to create low-carbon power with the same reaction powering the sun and the stars. “We’re taking a big step forward toward revolutionary technology that will cement America’s global energy dominance,” said Devin Nunes, a former Republican California member of Congress and the CEO of Trump Media who now will be the co-CEO of the combined company. Upon closing, shareholders of each company will own approximately 50 percent of the combined venture. Trump is the largest shareholder of Trump Media, owning a share worth more than $1 billion. Trump Media said it agreed to pay up to $200 million in cash to TAE, which has raised more than $1.3 billion from Google, Chevron, Goldman Sachs and other investors. Former Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz is on TAE’s board. TAE is one of several fusion companies in a race to develop the world’s first fusion power plant, with several developers vowing to bring a generator online by the early 2030s. If they are successful, it could be revolutionary for the grid, which is increasingly under strain as electricity demand soars because of artificial intelligence. As of this fall, fusion investments have soared above $9.7 billion, a fivefold jump since 2021, according to the Fusion Industry Association. Among the industry leaders are Commonwealth Fusion Energy Systems, which is also backed by Google, and Helion Energy, which is supported by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Driving the enthusiasm in part are advances in supercomputing, magnets and a 2022 experiment at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory that demonstrated for the first time that a fusion reaction can produce more energy than is put into it by lasers — long a technical barrier. “In more than 40 years in fusion research, I’ve never seen this level of interest,” said Mike Campbell, a fusion expert and professor at University of California, San Diego. “While much remains, the deal symbolizes the intense interest in commercializing the last new energy source humanity will ever need.” But there are still many challenges for fusion, including that scientists have yet to perfect the infrastructure that can contain plasma created by fusing hydrogen isotopes to more than 100 million degrees Celsius. While the 2022 experiment demonstrated that a reaction can create more energy than lasers provided, that gain didn’t account for the energy needed to power the lasers in the first place. Critics say they are concerned the attention on fusion will detract from other technologies that can come online faster. Fusion also generates high-energy neutrons that can damage equipment and make it radioactive, creating a potential hazard for workers.
Summary of FERC Meeting Agenda for December 2025 - Summaries of the agenda items for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's monthly open meeting to be held on December 18, 2025, pursuant to the sunshine notice released on December 11, 2025. In this issue…
- Electric Items
- Gas Items
- Hydro Items
- Certificates
On February 20, 2025, the Commission issued an order instituting a show cause proceeding, pursuant to section 206 of the Federal Power Act (FPA), in order to determine if the PJM Interconnection, L.L.C. (PJM) Open Access Transmission Tariff (OATT) is unjust, unreasonable, and unduly discriminatory with respect to co-located generating units associated with data centers and other large loads. The order consolidated existing proceedings, including a technical conference convened on November 1, 2024 to discuss generic issues related to the co-location of large loads at generating facilities and a complaint filed in November 22, 2024 by Constellation Energy Generation, LLC (Constellation) against PJM. Collectively, the Commission combined the formal records of those proceedings in issuing the show cause order so as to focus primarily on existing provisions in the PJM OATT and a PJM Guidance Document issued on March 22, 2024. As the Guidance Document furnished procedures and best practices for co-located large loads in PJM, but did not formalize all of those rules in the PJM OATT, Constellation alleged in its complaint that certain utilities within the PJM footprint had exploited the lack of formal requirements in blocking co-located generating units. For additional context on co-location in PJM, please refer to our article: FERC Orders Review of Co-Located Generation for Data Centers in PJM.The show cause order solicited comments from stakeholders and industry participants regarding potential revisions to the PJM OATT if the Commission ultimately determined that it had been unjust and unreasonable. Namely, the Commission sought to spur discussion with respect to: jurisdictional issues (in the context of co-location, states determine which entities are legally permitted to provide electricity to retail customers in co-location arrangements); OATT provisions (the lack of applicable provisions may have resulted in undue discrimination or preferential treatment, particularly relating to co-located generating units arranging for wholesale transmission or retail distribution service); and reliability and resource adequacy (potential impacts if co-located generation is not accounted for by grid operators). A number of other issues were raised in the show cause order, such that the Commission is compelled under section 206 of the FPA to ensure maximum protection to customers and ratepayers under its jurisdiction in the circumstance that a refund is mandated.
Data Centers “Gas Pedal of Local Growth” – Details for M-U Region - Marcellus Drilling News - Data centers—large facilities full of computers—have been in the news a lot over the past year. The internet and tech companies like Facebook, Google, and Amazon gave rise to data centers. But a new/renewed emphasis emerged a year ago with the unveiling of artificial intelligence (AI), which is now being used by a large portion of the population. Did you know that there are currently 4,149 active data centers in the U.S.? And that another 2,788 have been announced/planned, primarily related to AI? That’s from a fantastic new report from the American Edge Project (AEP) and the Technology Councils of North America (TECNA). Earlier this week, they released “America’s AI Surge: Powering Investment, Jobs, and Growth in Every State” (full copy below). We’ve extracted information specific to the Marcellus/Utica region from the report.
Ohio EPA Seeks to Streamline Water Permits for Data Centers -- Marcellus Drilling News - Ohio already has 217 data centers with more on the way. Data centers are warehouses filled with computer equipment that generates a lot of heat. To cool down the computers, data centers use massive amounts of water. If data centers want to get rid of that water after it’s been used, they have to apply for a permit called the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) through the Ohio EPA. Currently, data centers must apply for an individual NPDES permit, which is detailed and unique to their operations. The OEPA is looking to streamline the process to make it faster and easier. That’s a good thing
BLM Plans Ohio Wayne Nat’l Forest Lease Sale for September 2026 - Marcellus Drilling News - Map of Wayne National Forest (click for larger version). Fantastic news! The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) yesterday opened a public scoping period to receive public input on 41 oil and gas parcels totaling 2,795 acres that may be included in a September 2026 lease sale in the Wayne National Forest (WNF) located in southeastern Ohio. This is the first lease sale held in WNF since March 2017 (the first Trump administration). The comment period ends Jan. 15, 2026. The properties up for lease are located in Monroe and Washington counties. We have the complete list of 41 parcels and a map of where they are located, below.
Fire causes explosion at oil well in Carroll County (WOIO) - An oil well pad exploded Tuesday morning in Carroll County, sending thick black smoke into the sky. The explosion occurred around 7 a.m. on June Road in Malvern. The fire department said they have the fire under control.No injuries have been reported. According to the department, EOG Resources was actively fracking on the pad at the time of the fire. Firefighters say the company’s protocols shut down all of their equipment following the incident.
EOG Shale Oil Pad in Carroll County, OH Explodes During Fracking - Marcellus Drilling News - An oil well pad exploded Monday morning in Carroll County, sending thick black smoke into the sky. There was an explosion around 7:00 a.m. on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, at an EOG Resources shale well pad located on June Road in Malvern (Carroll County), Ohio. A well on the pad was actively being fracked at the time of the incident, according to news reports. Fortunately, there were no injuries. The fire was contained to a vapor tank on the pad. The wellheads themselves were not involved or damaged
A New Lawsuit Alleges That the Ohio Tax Commissioner's Actions Are Unconstitutional --National Law Review -- Rover Pipeline has recently filed a complaint in Franklin County (Ohio), alleging that the Tax Commissioner’s 2019 assessment of Rover’s public utility property tax valuation violates both the Ohio and the United States Constitutions in a number of ways. This disagreement over their tax valuation was supposed to have been finalized when the Ohio Supreme Court rejected Rover’s appeals on August 13 and affirmed the decision by the Board of Tax Appeals (BTA), which valued Rover’s Ohio pipeline at $3.67 billion. Writing the opinion for the court, Justice Patrick F. Fischer noted that “[b]ecause we are not a ‘super board of tax appeals,’ we do not reweigh the board’s determination.” The court emphasized that its role was limited to determining whether any statutes were violated by the tax authorities, rather than wading into the merits of Rover’s argument. The 713-mile Rover pipeline was built to transfer gas from processing plants in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia to markets across the country and as far north as Ontario, Canada. Rover has claimed that, despite its best efforts and professional advice, its budgeting could not have anticipated rainfall 60% higher than historical averages during construction or a four-month pause following a contractor’s environmental mishap. These substantial delays pushed the final construction cost of the pipeline to $6.3 billion – more than 50% higher than the $4.08 billion that was budgeted. To gain approval for the project from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Rover entered into 15-year contracts with shippers that capped profits at 13% of their projected investment. Ensuring that they’re taxed at the true value of the pipeline, which Rover argues should not include cost overruns, becomes even more important in maintaining profitability. So far, Rover has found no relief for its claim that its tax liability has been substantially inflated. Rover’s new complaint notes that its treatment runs counter to precedent, where the “state promised property owners a fair deal”: to be taxed on the true value of a property – defined as the price determined by the open market. From Rover’s perspective, a willing buyer would not replicate the excess costs, due primarily to unforeseen weather conditions, if building a replacement pipeline. Justice Fischer noted that the Tax Commissioner was free to exclude these unanticipated costs if she felt another method better determined the “‘true value of the public utility’s taxable property.’” The Tax Commissioner, however, faulted Rover for not budgeting for “rainy weather” or anticipating the regulatory actions that inflated their construction costs. Justice Fischer clarified that the Ohio Supreme Court saw the case as simply “a battle of appraisals,” and although Rover highlighted important legal questions on valuation doctrines, the relevant statutes afforded the BTA wide latitude in weighing competing evidence. Without any clear abuse of discretion by the Tax Commissioner or the BTA, the court affirmed the previous rulings. While the courts could not fully engage Rover’s challenge on valuation because of the statutory latitude granted to the BTA, framing the complaint as a constitutional violation may open an avenue to analyze the Tax Commissioner’s decisions. Article XII, §2 of the Ohio Constitution states that “[n]o property, taxed according to value, shall be so taxed in excess of one per cent of its true value in money for all state and local purposes.” In its latest filing, Rover acknowledges that the statutory provisions do not foreclose the tax commissioner taking an unprecedented approach to property valuation by including unnecessary construction costs in their calculations. However, Rover argues that the commissioner departed from long-standing legal guidance from the courts by including unforeseeable cost overruns in their determination of true value, thereby violating the due process guarantee of fair notice. In fact, Rover’s complaint alleges multiple constitutional violations in Ohio’s approach to the valuation of its pipeline. The absence of advance notice that the tax commissioner would treat cost overruns as determinative of the pipeline’s value, or that the tax commissioner would discount how depreciation alters true value, violates the Fourteenth Amendment’s due process guarantee of fair notice. By inflating its tax liability, Rover argues, the state violates the Fifth Amendment’s Takings Clause. Rover also states that the tax commissioner’s approach runs afoul of the Dormant Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution that prohibits undue state interference with interstate commerce.
Ohio Tax Controversy Puts Key Energy Infrastructure At Risk – Forbes - Property taxes from the oil and gas sector are vitally important to communities in Ohio and other states, helping to pay for schools, first responders, road maintenance, and other key elements of any civil society. But the Ohio Tax Commissioner’s Office is putting the future of this vital funding stream at risk through its aggressive approach to determining the tax liability of a critical infrastructure project in the state.The need for expanded and improved physical infrastructure related to energy and other aspects of society is pressing across the country, and Ohio is no exception. This is why the federal government in this second presidency of Donald Trump has focused on a “Build, Baby, Build” program instead of the replay of his first term “Drill, Baby, Drill” agenda many were expecting last January. Controversies like the one related to a key natural gas pipeline in Ohio threaten to stall that agenda in the Buckeye StateOhio normally assesses property taxes based on the property’s true value, meaning what it is worth on the open market to a willing buyer. But a lawsuit filed recently by Rover Pipeline LLC alleges that the state’s Tax Commissioner has discarded that principle in an effort to inflate the pipeline’s value and extract more tax funding from the pipeline’s owner. Rover argues that this approach violates both the Ohio and U.S. Constitutions.The Rover pipeline, completed in 2018, travels through 18 Ohio counties connecting shale gas basins in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and eastern Ohio to areas in Ohio and other states where gas is needed to generate electricity and heat homes.During the pipeline’s construction, the company encountered lengthy weather-related delays due to rainfall totals that were 60 percent higher than historical averages. This excessive rainfall frequently kept work crews busy pumping water out of ditches instead of laying pipeline. It required additional inspections to ensure erosion had not impacted work sites, and delayed welding crews that could only operate during extended, uninterrupted periods without rain. These substantial weather delays helped push the final construction cost of the pipeline to $6.3 billion, more than 50 percent higherthan the $4.08 billion that was budgeted. But in assessing property taxes on the pipeline, the Ohio Tax Commissioner treated the expensive construction delays as adding to the pipeline’s market value and thus inflating the company’s property taxes. This determination defies common sense and stands at odds with sound business practices governing the proper valuation of assets.Simply put, added costs due to construction delays are not indicative of a property’s real market value. If a builder plans to construct a house for $300,000 and weather delays drive the cost up to $350,000, the $50,000 in excessive costs doesn’t magically increase what a buyer might be willing to pay for it when the house is put up for.Ohio’s Constitution and case law explicitly – and sensibly - state that property is to be taxed solely on the value of what a willing buyer would pay on the open market. Weather delays made the pipeline more expensive to the developer for sure, but they did not make the asset more valuable to a potential buyer.Will-Power to Build Third Facebook Gas-Fired Plant Near Toledo - Marcellus Drilling News - In early April, MDN brought you the exciting news that pipeline giant Williams, via its newly-minted subsidiary, Will-Power, is planning to build two Utica/Marcellus gas-fired power plants in the New Albany International Business Park in Licking County, Ohio, near Columbus, to power a massive new Meta (Facebook) data center complex (see Williams Subsidiary Unveils Plans for Gas-Fired Power Plant in Ohio). Construction has begun on those projects. Now comes word that Will-Power will build another (third) large gas-fired power plant project for Meta, this one in Bowling Green, OH, near Toledo.
Natural gas power plant proposed next to Wood County data center site --Filed under an accelerated Ohio Power Siting Board process, the project could be automatically approved in early February.— A company tied to a major natural gas operator has filed a Letter of Notification with the Ohio Power Siting Board to build a large natural gas–fired power plant in Wood County, immediately adjacent to a massive data center complex now under construction in Middleton Township. The project, called the Apollo Power Generation Facility, was formally filed with the Ohio Power Siting Board on Nov. 5, 2025, under the accelerated Letter of Notification review process. Under that process, the facility could be automatically approved as early as Feb. 3, 2026, if board members raise no additional concerns. According to the filing, the project would include a 350-megawatt natural gas–fired simple-cycle power plant, along with a large battery energy storage system and an electrical connection to nearby facilities.The applicant, Will-Power OH, LLC, is a subsidiary of The Williams Companies, a Tulsa-based energy infrastructure firm. The filing states the power plant would operate as a “behind-the-meter” facility, meaning it would generate electricity directly for a single customer rather than selling power onto the regional grid.The application says the plant is intended to provide electricity for the customer’s “digital infrastructure facilities.” The customer is not named in the filing, which the applicant attributes to a nondisclosure agreement. While the application does not identify the customer, it states the power plant would be built “immediately adjacent” to the customer’s facilities to meet the customer’s construction and operational timeline.The proposed site is located along State Route 582 between Interstate 75 and Route 25, next to the large data center campus currently under construction in Middleton Township.The filing does not identify the customer by name, but the proposed plant location is adjacent to the data center site that has been publicly announced as a Meta project by state and local officials.The application also notes that part of the project - including the electrical “gen-tie” connection - would be built on property controlled by the customer through an easement. The project is being reviewed under the Ohio Power Siting Board’s accelerated Letter of Notification (LON) process and does not require approval from the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio. The accelerated review applies because the plant would generate electricity only for a single customer and would not sell power to the public.According to Matt Butler, public information officer for the Ohio Power Siting Board, the board’s technical staff is expected to release its report of investigation on Jan. 27, 2026, outlining findings and recommendations. If no board member requests further review or raises concerns, the project would be deemed automatically approved on Feb. 3, 2026. Public notice of the project was published in the Bowling Green Sentinel-Tribune newspaper on Nov. 8, triggering a 10-day window for public comments and motions to intervene with the Ohio Power Siting Board. That window closed on Nov. 18. The filing indicates the power plant would be supplied by two 16-inch natural gas pipelines for reliability. Those pipelines are not included in this filing and would require separate filings and approvals with the Ohio Power Siting Board. Construction of the power plant itself is anticipated to begin in early 2026, with a portion of the generating capacity expected to be operational by mid-2027, and full capacity by late 2027.
Damaged gas line in downtown Toledo prompts evacuation of buildings, road closure — A damaged gas line forced the evacuation of businesses and residents in some downtown Toledo buildings on Thursday morning. According to Columbia Gas, crews were alerted to the damaged gas line on Jefferson Avenue around 9:15 a.m. The company said businesses and residents in the area were evacuated "out of an abundance of caution," but have since been allowed back in their buildings. "Our crews are still on the scene working to make repairs, which necessitated the temporary interruption of natural gas service to several properties on Jefferson Avenue. Our crews are currently working to restore service to the impacted customers," a spokesperson from Columbia Gas said. The company said North Ontario Street is currently shut down between Jefferson Avenue and Monroe Street and is asking the public to avoid the area, if possible.
Ohio State U. Gas-Fired Power Plant Completion Delayed *Again* - Marcellus Drilling News - In October, we told you that completion of Ohio State University’s Combined Heat and Power Plant (powered with Utica Shale gas) would be delayed until April 2026 (see Ohio State U. Gas-Fired Power Plant Completion Delayed Until 2026). Strike that. It will now be May 2026, at the earliest, before the facility comes online. Ohio State University (OSU) is constructing two natural gas combustion turbine generators and one steam turbine generator with a maximum power generating capacity of 105.5 megawatts of electricity and 285 kilopounds per hour of steam. It’s being built on 1.35 acres at OSU’s main campus in Franklin County (see OH Approves Gas-Fired Power Plant for OSU – Antis Pledge to Fight).
NFG Sells $350M in Stock to Help Fund CenterPoint Ohio Purchase- Marcellus Drilling News - In October, National Fuel Gas Company, a large utility company headquartered in the Buffalo, NY area with both upstream and midstream subsidiaries (Seneca Resources and NFG Midstream), announced a deal with CenterPoint Energy to acquire CenterPoint’s Ohio natural gas utility business (CNP Ohio) for $2.62 billion (see NY’s NFG to Acquire CenterPoint’s Ohio NatGas Utility Business $2.6B). The deal includes 5,900 miles of distribution and transmission pipelines and serves approximately 335,000 residential, commercial, industrial, and transportation customers that consume approximately 60 Bcf of natural gas per year. The deal significantly increases NFG’s gas utility customer base, from roughly 750,000 to well over 1 million. NFG announced yesterday that it is floating approximately 4.4 million shares of new common stock at a purchase price of $79.50 per share (generating $350 million) to help pay for the deal.
Ohio Natural Gas Balance Shifts With Rising Power Generation Demand | RBN Energy - Annual average Ohio natural gas production (blue line in graph) dropped from 7.1 Bcf/d in 2017 to 5.7 Bcf/d in 2024 - a decline of 1.4 Bcf/d. Over the same period, power generation demand in the state (yellow stacked area) rose by 0.6 Bcf/d. Those two factors combined to reduce net outflows from the state (red line) from 3.5 Bcf/d to 1.6 Bcf/d. According to RBN's Natgas Appalachia report, Ohio production this week is averaging right at about 5 Bcf/d, leaving westbound pipelines just over 65% utilized. Albeit, part of that is due to increased seasonal regional demand, as shown in the graph above it's also an annual trend resulting from higher regional demand for power and lower production. As we recently documented in Take Me Home, Country Roads, leading gas producer, Antero, sold their Ohio acreage to Infinity Natural Resources and Northern Oil & Gas (NOG) for $800 million. The parties also agreed to a $400 million price tag for the related midstream assets. With new operators, higher regional power generation demand, available pipeline capacity, and, of course, with higher anticipated natural gas prices, there's potential for Ohio production to begin to accelerate once again.
Hedge Fund Mason Capital Makes Play to Buy Ascent Resources - Marcellus Drilling News -- Ascent Resources, formerly American Energy Partners, is a privately held company focused 100% on the Ohio Utica Shale. Ascent, headquartered in Oklahoma City, OK, is Ohio’s largest natural gas producer and the 8th largest natural gas producer in the U.S. The largest shareholder in the privately owned company is the private equity firm Energy & Minerals Group (EMG), with an “over 30% stake.” EMG wants to sell that stake in one of its portfolio companies to another EMG company. Another (smaller) investor, the Abu Dhabi Investment Council, sued to block the transfer, alleging a “conflicted sale” that will short-change existing investors (see EMG, Which Owns 30% of Ascent Resources, Blocked from Selling). The plot thickens. Another long-time investor, Mason Capital Management (a hedge fund), sent a letter to Ascent's board offering to buy all outstanding shares in the company for cash at a price "superior to that contemplated by the EMG transaction."
Investor group Kimmeridge offers $6bn for gas driller at centre of clash - Financial Times - Energy PE firm says its offer is superior to proposed fund-to-fund transfer that led to accusations of self-dealing.Kimmeridge Joins Ascent Resources Bidding War with $6B Offer - Marcellus Drilling News - The bidding war is heating up for those interested in buying Ascent Resources, a privately held company focused 100% on the Ohio Utica Shale. Ascent is Ohio’s largest natural gas producer and the 8th largest natural gas producer in the U.S. Kimmeridge Energy, a private investment firm focused on the energy sector (sometimes called an "activist investor" and/or corporate raider), has put an offer on the table to buy out and take over Ascent: $6 billion. This is the first hard number we've seen since the whole bidding war began last week.
Northern Oil and Gas expands natural gas hedging after Ohio Utica deal - Northern Oil and Gas, Inc. (NYSE:NOG) has significantly increased its natural gas hedging positions following its recently announced joint acquisition in Ohio’s Utica region, according to a company statement released Wednesday. The $2.1 billion market cap company, which InvestingPro analysis indicates is currently undervalued, is making strategic moves despite carrying a debt load of $2.3 billion. The independent energy company has added substantial gas hedges, with 2026 and 2027 natural gas hedge volumes now representing approximately 60% and 30%, respectively, of its third-quarter 2025 annualized natural gas production when adjusted for the Utica transaction. NOG has secured over 35,400 barrels per day of oil with a swap price exceeding $68.70 and a weighted average collar floor of $63.84. For natural gas, the company has hedged approximately 267,500 MMBtu per day for 2026 through a combination of swaps at $4.06 and collars between $3.43 and $4.98. The 2027 hedging program includes an average of 124,315 MMBtu per day of natural gas. The company pays a substantial 8.3% dividend yield and has raised its dividend for five consecutive years, providing shareholders with consistent income.The company has also established M2 and REX Z3 basis hedges and added select natural gas hedges extending into 2028 and 2029. Since the end of the third quarter, NOG reports it has made only nominal changes to its oil hedges.The hedging strategy aligns with NOG’s stated policy of protecting its capital program by periodically entering into financial derivative instruments with counterparties to secure future commodity prices on a portion of its expected production. This approach appears prudent given the stock has taken a significant hit, dropping 11.9% over the past week, though it trades at a modest P/E ratio of 11.8. Northern Oil and Gas focuses primarily on acquiring and investing in non-operated minority working and mineral interests in hydrocarbon-producing basins within the contiguous United States. The company remains profitable over the last twelve months with a current ratio of 1.1. The company achieved an earnings per share of $1.03, outperforming the forecasted $0.92. Revenue figures also surpassed projections, reaching $556.64 million compared to the anticipated $521.83 million. In addition to the earnings report, Northern Oil and Gas announced a significant acquisition. The company has agreed to acquire a 49% stake in Ohio Utica Shale assets for $588 million in cash. This acquisition is part of a larger $1.2 billion transaction with an unnamed partner and includes both upstream assets and midstream infrastructure. These recent developments highlight Northern Oil and Gas’s strategic moves in expanding its asset base and financial performance.
Infinity Natural Resources Publishes Updated Hedge Positions -Infinity Natural Resources, Inc. today provided an update on its hedge positions as of December 12, 2025. In the first week following the announcement of the acquisition of Ohio Utica Shale assets from Antero Resources Corporation (NYSE: AR) and Antero Midstream Corporation (NYSE: AM) (the “Transaction”), the Company significantly increased its hedge book to manage commodity price volatility related to the acquisition and provide financial stability through commodity price cycles. The Company added hedges with respect to 131,630,000 MMBtu of natural gas through 2030 with an average Henry Hub price of $4.21 per MMBtu in 2026 and $3.94 per MMBtu in 2027.The Company’s updated hedge information can be found in a presentation posted on the “Events & Presentations” section of the Company’s investor relations website at https://ir.infinitynaturalresources.com/. Infinity is a growth oriented, free cash flow generating, independent energy company focused on the acquisition, development, and production of hydrocarbons in the Appalachian Basin. Our operations are focused on the Utica Shale in eastern Ohio as well as our stacked dry gas assets in both the Marcellus and Utica Shales in southwestern Pennsylvania.
NFG Sells $350M in Stock to Help Fund CenterPoint Ohio Purchase -- Marcellus Drilling News - In October, National Fuel Gas Company, a large utility company headquartered in the Buffalo, NY area with both upstream and midstream subsidiaries (Seneca Resources and NFG Midstream), announced a deal with CenterPoint Energy to acquire CenterPoint’s Ohio natural gas utility business (CNP Ohio) for $2.62 billion (see NY’s NFG to Acquire CenterPoint’s Ohio NatGas Utility Business $2.6B). The deal includes 5,900 miles of distribution and transmission pipelines and serves approximately 335,000 residential, commercial, industrial, and transportation customers that consume approximately 60 Bcf of natural gas per year. The deal significantly increases NFG’s gas utility customer base, from roughly 750,000 to well over 1 million. NFG announced yesterday that it is floating approximately 4.4 million shares of new common stock at a purchase price of $79.50 per share (generating $350 million) to help pay for the deal.EOG Resources Sets Its Sights On Growth And Payouts In 2026 - EOG Resources is rolling out an updated playbook for the coming years, combining steady oil production with a bold ramp-up in natural gas and international drilling. Even after a lackluster 2025 for its shares, UBS calls EOG one of the sector’s standouts, crediting strong capital returns and a robust balance sheet. The addition of Encino’s Utica Shale assets and new projects in the Middle East are driving capital spending higher—up to $1.65 billion—which signals EOG’s confidence in both US and international growth. While fourth-quarter cash flow per share will likely miss consensus estimates, next year looks brighter, with cost savings in Utica and fresh wells set to lift margins and volumes for natural gas. UBS also expects EOG to use its liquidity for about $500 million in share buybacks this quarter, and with no debt coming due until 2030, the company can keep rewarding investors while expanding its footprint.EOG’s dual focus on US shale and international projects like those in the Middle East is building a more resilient business, less tied to any single market. By looking abroad and embracing natural gas, EOG is aligning itself with shifting global energy demand—and ensuring it can pivot no matter how the market changes.
EOG's Purchase of Encino Utica "Shocked" Houston Big Oil in 2025 -- Marcellus Drilling News --Earlier this year, Houston-based EOG Resources acquired Encino Acquisition Partners for $5.6 billion, establishing the Utica Shale as a "third foundational play" alongside its Permian and Eagle Ford assets (see EOG Closes on $5.6B Purchase of Encino Assets in Ohio Utica). The deal, financed through $3.5 billion in new debt and $2.1 billion in cash without issuing stock, added roughly 675,000 net acres, expanding EOG's Utica footprint to nearly 1.1 million acres. This move significantly boosted local production to approximately 275,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. Following the midyear closing, EOG raised its 2025 production guidance and increased its dividend by 5%, with early results exceeding profit estimates.
US Producers Refine Their Marcellus, Utica Shale Strategies | Energy Intelligence
- A string of related M&A deals announced this week has a trio of gas producers in the US Appalachian Basin expanding their core upstream and midstream operations in an effort to control costs while providing better access to key markets.13 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Dec 8 – 14 - Marcellus Drilling News - Volatility is the watchword for new permits in the Marcellus/Utica. Three weeks ago, the combined count between Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia was a measly 8 new permits (see 8 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Nov 24 – 30). Two weeks ago, the number soared to the highest we’ve seen for a single week in a long time, maybe ever, at 60 new permits (see 60 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Dec 1 – 7). Last week? For December 8 – 14, the number sank once again, down to 13. PA issued 5 permits, OH issued 7, and WV issued 1 last week.
PA DEP Ready to Issue Permits for EGTS Pipe Project from PA to OH - Marcellus Drilling News - Eastern Gas Transmission and Storage (EGTS), a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Energy Company (Warren Buffett’s company), filed a new project with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in July (see Eastern Gas Files with FERC to Expand Pipe Flows from PA to OH). The project, called the Appalachian Reliability Project (ARP), is designed to move more natural gas from Pennsylvania to Ohio. ARP will leverage existing EGTS pipeline infrastructure while increasing its system capacity through pipeline additions (4 miles of new pipe) and station upgrades. Over the weekend, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) published a notice in the PA Bulletin looking for comments on the department's plan to issue three permits related to the project.
PA Environment Digest Blog: Susquehanna River Basin Commission Approved 31 Shale Gas Well Pad Water Use General Permits In November; 429 In 2025 - The Susquehanna River Basin Commission published notice in the December 20 PA Bulletin the Executive Director gave his approval to or renewed 31 general water use permits in November for individual shale gas well drilling pads in Blair, Bradford, Clearfield, Lycoming, Susquehanna and Tioga counties. So far in 2025, SRBC issued or renewed 429 general water use permits for shale gas development. A separate water withdrawal approval is required by SRBC for actually withdrawing water from a specific water source for use by shale gas drilling operations. Read more here.So far in 2025, SRBC issued 22 water withdrawal requests for shale gas development. Read more here. Here is the list of new general permits renewed or issued in November--
PA Green Groups Appeal DEP Permit for Homer City Gas-Fired Power - Marcellus Drilling News - In April, Knighthead Capital Management, Homer City Redevelopment (HCR), and Kiewit Power Constructors Co. announced a plan to convert the former Homer City Generating Station, previously the largest coal-fired power plant in Pennsylvania (Indiana County, 50 miles east of Pittsburgh) into a more than 3,200-acre natural gas-powered data center campus, designed to meet the growing demand for artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (see Largest Gas-Fired Power Plant in the U.S. Coming in Western Pa.). The new gas-fired plant attached to the project will be THE LARGEST gas-fired power plant in the country, capable of producing up to 4.5 gigawatts (4,500 MW) of electricity. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) recently approved an air quality plan for the new facility (see PA DEP Signals Air Plan Approval for $10B Homer City Power Plant). PA radicalized green groups have officially appealed the DEP’s permit approval.
MarkWest Wins Court Case Lowering Tax Assessment for WV NGL Pipes - Marcellus Drilling News - Pipelines in West Virginia (like most other states) pay property taxes. It’s a significant revenue generator for counties. There are many pipelines in Wetzel County, including three NGL pipelines owned and operated by MarkWest (aka MPLX) that connect to the Mobley Gas Plant. In 2022, MarkWest filed a tax return for the pipelines showing a 35% reduction in value due to less-than-forecasted pipeline usage, a concept called “economic obsolescence based on inutility.” The County Assessor for Wetzel County challenged MarkWest’s claim.
FERC advances Southeast gas pipeline project -Federal regulators agreed Thursday to amend the certificate for Mountain Valley’s Southgate pipeline — a victory for developers and a blow to opponents who cast doubt on a need for the natural gas project.The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s decision approved Mountain Valley’s request to shorten the pipeline’s length from 75 miles down to 31 miles, while increasing the diameter of the project to 30 inches. It had been set to be a mixture of 16-inch and 24-inch diameter pipe.FERC — which in 2020 blessed the project now known as MVP Southgate — said Thursday that Mountain Valley has demonstrated a need for the pipeline. The project would extend the existing Mountain Valley pipeline into North Carolina. “The amendment is a great story of efficiency,” FERC Chair Laura Swett said Thursday during the commission open meeting. “The project is going to provide 175,000 dekatherms a day more capacity, at less than half the original length and with substantially fewer water crossings and fewer environmental impacts, than the original plan.”
Moundsville, WV Gas-Fired Power Plant Project Back from the Dead - Marcellus Drilling News - In August 2014, the Marshall County, WV board of commissioners voted to approve a plan to build a Marcellus Shale-powered electric plant in the county (see Marshall County Votes to Accept Gas-Powered Electric Plant). Moundsville Power, a company owned by developers from Buffalo, NY, sought to build a 549-megawatt plant costing (at that time) $615 million. It never happened due to opposition from the coal industry, which (at that time) had a stranglehold on the state (see Last Stand: Big Coal Tries to Block NatGas Electric Plant in WV). While the coal industry is still highly influential in WV, natural gas is seen as equally important. The long-dead Moundsville project has come roaring back to life under Gov. Patrick Morrisey and his “50 by ’50” power plan (see WV Gov. Morrisey Wants 50 GW of PowerGen in State by 2050).
Va. SCC Unapproves Dominion’s Chesterfield Gas-Fired Plant - Marcellus Drilling News - In June 2023, Dominion Energy announced plans to build four small “peaker” electric generating plants in Chesterfield County near Richmond (see Dominion Plans to Build 1,000-MW Gas Peaker Plant Near Richmond, VA). The Chesterfield Energy Reliability Center (CERC) calls for building four 250-megawatt gas-fired power plants (1,000 MW total) that can jump into action during the coldest and hottest days of the year to help supply enough electricity for 250,000 homes—to keep the lights on because solar and wind are not up to the task. Three weeks ago, the State Corporation Commission (SCC) finally approved the project (see Va. SCC Finally Approves Dominion’s Chesterfield Gas-Fired Plant). And just like that, the SCC has canceled its approval so it can consider an appeal filed on Monday by radical green groups. Yes, elections have consequences.
Gas-Fired Power Plant Planned for Southwest Virginia Data Center- Marcellus Drilling News - Great news about another new gas-fired power plant coming to Virginia—a plant that will use Marcellus/Utica molecules. Red Post Energy Group and Wise Innovation Hub Venture (OASIS) have signed a Letter of Intent to develop power infrastructure for a major technology and data center hub in Wise County, Virginia, in the southwestern corner of the state. Known as the Maverick Project, this phased initiative aims for a total capacity of 600 megawatts, beginning with an initial 100-megawatt phase.
Ontario Natural Gas Storage Slips Below Historic Norms Amid Coldest Winter Start in 25 Years -- Natural gas storage levels in Ontario reached their lowest level for this time of year in more than a decade, pressured by an unusually cold start to the heating season and robust demand. Line chart showing NGI’s Dawn daily natural gas prices from December 2024 through December 2025. Prices rise above $5/MMBtu in January and spike near $7/MMBtu in February 2025, decline steadily to around $2.50/MMBtu by late spring and summer, then rebound sharply in November toward $4.80/MMBtu before easing in December. Source: NGI’s Daily Gas Price Index. At A Glance:
Central Canada demand strong
Ontario gas storage hits a low
Dawn prices relatively strong
Woodside Secures DOE Extension as Louisiana LNG Construction Advances -- The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has granted an export permit extension for Woodside Energy Group Ltd.’s Louisiana LNG, pushing its deadline for commencement of operations to the end of the decade. At A Glance:
- Louisiana LNG production deadline extended to 2029
- Peak feed gas demand of more than 3.88 Bcf/d
- DOE granted more than 8 Bcf/d in 2025 authorizations
DOE Gives Woodside LNG (Former Driftwood) Extra 44 Mos. to Build - Marcellus Drilling News - U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright yesterday signed an amendment order granting an additional 44 months for Woodside Energy to commence LNG exports to non-FTA countries from the Woodside Louisiana LNG Project under construction in Calcasieu Parish, LA. The project was formerly called Driftwood. Once fully constructed, the project will be capable of exporting up to 3.88 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) of natural gas as LNG.
Energy Transfer Drops Plans for Lake Charles LNG After Lengthy Battle to Develop Project -- Energy Transfer LP (ET) said late Thursday it would suspend development of the Lake Charles LNG project planned for Louisiana, saying instead it would focus on a “significant backlog” of natural gas pipeline infrastructure that needs to be built. At A Glance:Company said it would suspend development
Pipeline buildout will be focus
Transwestern expansion being upsized
Energy Transfer scraps development of Lake Charles LNG export project (Reuters) - Energy Transfer said on Thursday it was suspending the development of its Lake Charles liquefied natural gas export facility in Louisiana, the first LNG project to be halted after U.S. President Donald Trump expedited permits for them in January. The suspension comes as the company has been facing rising costs and amid fears of a looming global oversupply as new LNG output comes online. In a statement, Energy Transfer said it will focus on allocating funds to natural gas pipeline projects, which it believes provide superior risk and return profiles. The pipeline and storage company said it remains open to discussions with third parties that may have an interest in developing the LNG project. Energy Transfer executives became nervous about Lake Charles LNG in the final stretch of development because the company still sees itself as a pipeline operator rather than an LNG-focused company, said a person familiar with the project. Offtake agreements for Lake Charles LNG had been structured in a way to protect Energy Transfer from a potential glut in LNG supply, the person added. Energy Transfer did not immediately respond to a request for additional comment. The company had previously said it would only give the facility the financial go-ahead if it sold 80% of the project to equity partners. Lake Charles LNG was projected to have a liquefaction capacity of 16.45 million metric tons per annum (mtpa). The suspension could impact customers including U.S. oil producer Chevron. Energy Transfer said in June it would supply Chevron with an additional 1 mtpa from Lake Charles, bringing the total contracted volumes to Chevron to 3 mtpa. The oil producer did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Contracting has slowed down across all LNG facilities, and contract rates on sale and purchase agreements are much lower than previous rates, squeezing margins for LNG developers, analysts said. "There is quite a bit of capacity out there, and way too many projects. Some more projects will wither away," said Uday Turaga, the founder of energy research and consulting firm ADI Analytics. The Dallas-headquartered company on Thursday also announced an increase in the transportation capacity of its Transwestern pipeline’s planned expansion project to meet additional customer demand. The pipeline expansion project, called Desert Southwest, will now cost about $5.6 billion, excluding allowance for funds used during construction, Energy Transfer said. The project was previously expected to cost about $5.3 billion including a $600 million of allowance for funds used during construction. The project’s main pipeline diameter will be increased from 42 inches (106 cm) to 48 inches, which will grow the project’s capacity to up to 2.3 billion cubic feet per day, Energy Transfer said. The design capacity of the pipeline was previously 1.5 bcf per day. The pipeline is expected to be in service by the fourth quarter of 2029. "There is significant demand growth in the Desert Southwest region, including the potential to retire and/or convert coal-fired power plants to natural gas, which could further benefit the project," the company said, adding the ultimate capacity of the expansion project would be based on market demand.
Energy Transfer Unexpectedly Kills Lake Charles LNG Export Project - Marcellus Drilling News - This is sad and unexpected. Five weeks ago, MDN reported that Energy Transfer was holding off on a final investment decision (FID) for its Lake Charles LNG export project until 80% of the project had been sold to equity partners (see Energy Transfer Taps the Brakes on Lake Charles LNG Export FID). Last week, we reported that ET has now secured enough agreements to move forward with the FID and planned to do so “early next year” (see Energy Transfer Expects FID for Lake Charles LNG Early Next Year). But yesterday, ET announced that it is suspending development of the Lake Charles LNG project to “focus on allocating capital to its significant backlog of natural gas pipeline infrastructure projects that Energy Transfer believes provide superior risk/return profiles.”
Train 1 Commissioning Accelerates at Golden Pass, Setting Up Early 2026 LNG Production - Golden Pass LNG developers have been cleared to begin key testing processes for Train 1 following delivery of a cooldown cargo, pushing the project a critical step closer to first production. At A Glance:
- Golden Pass approved for turbine tests
- Train 1 adds 800 MMc/d in feed gas demand
- Pipeline nominations spike ahead of tests
US natural gas futures dip 3% as mild weather curbs demand (Reuters) - U.S. natural gas futures slid about 3% to a fresh sixweek low on Monday on forecasts for milder weather over the next two weeks than previously expected, near-record output, ample amounts of gas in storage, and recent declines in gas prices around the world. Front-month gas futures for January delivery NGc1 on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 10.1 cents, or 2.5%, to $4.012 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), putting the contract on track for its lowest close since October 30 for a second day in a row. In the cash market, average prices at the Waha Hub in the Permian shale basin in West Texas remained in negative territory for a fourth day in a row as pipeline constraints trapped gas in the nation's biggest oil-producing basin. It was the 35th time Waha prices traded below zero this year and compares with an average of $1.21 per mmBtu so far in 2025, 77 cents in 2024, and $2.91 over the previous five years (2019-2023). Waha first averaged below zero in 2019. It did so 17 times in 2019, six times in 2020, once in 2023, and a record 49 times in 2024. Financial firm LSEG said average gas output in the Lower 48 states had risen to 109.7 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) so far in December, up from a monthly record high of 109.6 bcfd in November. On a daily basis, output was on track to drop to a three-week low of 108.9 bcfd, down about 2.4 bcfd since hitting a daily record high of 111.3 bcfd on November 28. LSEG projected average gas demand in the Lower 48 states, including exports, would slide from 145.2 bcfd this week to 131.6 bcfd next week. Those forecasts were higher than LSEG's outlook on Friday.
US natural gas futures dip 3% to six-week low on mild weather (Reuters) - U.S. natural gas futures slid about 3% on Tuesday to a six-week low, on milder weather forecasts for the next two weeks, the shutdown of a liquefaction train at Freeport LNG, and ample amounts of gas in storage. Front-month gas futures for January delivery NGc1 on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 12.6 cents, or 3.1%, to settle at $3.886 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), their lowest close since October 29. Financial firm LSEG said average gas output in the Lower 48 states eased to 109.5 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) so far in December, down from a monthly record high of 109.6 bcfd in November. On a daily basis, output was on track to drop to a six-week low of 107.4 bcfd, down about 3.9 bcfd since hitting a daily record high of 111.3 bcfd on November 28. That decline was due in part to some frozen wells in Pennsylvania, Wyoming and West Virginia, according to data from LSEG and analysts' comments. Record output has allowed energy companies to stockpile more gas than usual so far this year, leaving the amount of fuel in storage at about 1% above normal. EIA/GAS Meteorologists forecast weather across the country would remain mostly warmer than normal through December 31, keeping the amount of gas needed to heat homes and businesses lower than usual for this time of year. LSEG projected average gas demand in the Lower 48 states, including exports, would slide from 146.1 bcfd this week to 130.3 bcfd next week. The forecast for this week was higher than LSEG's outlook on Monday, while the forecast for next week was lower. Average gas flows to the eight large U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plants rose to 18.6 bcfd so far this month, up from a monthly record high of 18.2 bcfd in November. Gas was trading near a 19-month low of around $9 per mmBtu at the Dutch Title Transfer Facility benchmark in Europe and a 20-month low of around $10 at the Japan-Korea Marker in Asia. Global prices have declined in recent weeks with the slow start of the winter heating season and hopes peace talks over Ukraine could result in the lifting of sanctions against Moscow.That could allow Russia, the world's second-biggest gas producer behind the U.S., to export more fuel in the future.
U.S. Natural Gas Futures Rise 4% on Strong LNG Export Flows - Near-record LNG export flows and stronger demand forecasts lifted U.S. natural gas futures, pushing prices out of oversold territory despite ample supply and warmer-than-normal weather outlooks. (Reuters) — U.S. natural gas futures climbed about 4% on Wednesday on near-record gas flows to liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plants and forecasts for more demand next week than previously expected. Front-month gas futures for January delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 13.8 cents, or 3.6%, to settle at $4.024 per million British thermal units (MMBtu). On Dec. 16, the contract closed at its lowest since October 29. That pushed the front-month out of technically oversold territory for the first time in four days. Average gas output in the Lower 48 states eased to 109.5 billion cubic feet per day (billion cubic feet per day) so far in December, down from a monthly record high of 109.6 billion cubic feet per day in November, LSEG said. Record output has allowed energy companies to stockpile more gas than usual so far this year, leaving the amount of fuel in storage at about 1% above normal. Meteorologists forecast weather across the country would remain mostly warmer than normal through January 1, keeping the amount of gas needed to heat homes and businesses lower than usual for this time of year. LSEG projected average gas demand in the Lower 48 states, including exports, would fall from 145.1 billion cubic feet per day this week to 131.1 billion cubic feet per day next week. The forecast for this week was lower than LSEG's outlook on Tuesday, while the forecast for next week was higher. Average gas flows to the eight large U.S. LNG export plants rose to 18.6 billion cubic feet per day so far this month, up from a monthly record high of 18.2 billion cubic feet per day in November. Elsewhere, Freeport LNG's export plant in Texas was on track to take in more gas on Dec. 17 in a sign that one of its three liquefaction trains has returned to service after shutting down on Dec. 16.
US natural gas futures fall 3% on mild weather forecasts — U.S. natural gas futures slid about 3% on Thursday on forecasts for milder weather and lower demand over the next two weeks than previously expected, near-record output, ample amounts of gas in storage, and relatively low gas prices around the world. Front-month gas futures for January delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 11.6 cents, or 2.9%, to settle at $3.908 per million British thermal units (mmBtu). That price decline came despite a federal report showing last week's storage withdrawal was much bigger than usual for this time of year as extreme cold boosted heating demand. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said energy firms pulled 167 billion cubic feet (bcf) of gas out of storage during the week ended December 12. That was in line with the 169-bcf withdrawal analysts forecast in a Reuters poll and compares with a decline of 134 bcf during the same week last year and an average withdrawal of 96 bcf over the past five years (2020-2024). Financial firm LSEG said average gas output in the Lower 48 states eased to 109.5 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) so far in December, down from a monthly record high of 109.6 bcfd in November. Record output has allowed energy companies to stockpile more gas than usual so far this year, leaving the amount of fuel in storage at about 1% above normal. Meteorologists forecast weather across the country would remain mostly warmer than normal through January 2, keeping the amount of gas needed to heat homes and businesses lower than usual for this time of year. LSEG projected average gas demand in the Lower 48 states, including exports, would fall from 144.8 bcfd this week to 128.8 bcfd next week. Those forecasts were lower than LSEG's outlook on Wednesday. Average gas flows to the eight large U.S. LNG export plants rose to 18.5 bcfd so far this month, up from a monthly record high of 18.2 bcfd in November.
US natural gas futures climb 2% on near-record LNG export flows — U.S. natural gas futures climbed about 2% on Friday on near-record gas flows to liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plants. That price increase came despite forecasts for milder weather and lower demand over the next two weeks than previously expected and near-record output. Front-month gas futures for January delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 7.6 cents, or 1.9%, to settle at $3.984 per million British thermal units (mmBtu). For the week, the contract was down about 3% after dropping around 22% last week. Looking forward, gas futures for calendar 2026 fell to a 13-month low of $3.73 per mmBtu. That compares with a futures average of $3.60 so far in 2025, $2.41 in 2024, and $3.52 over the prior five years (2019-2023). Financial firm LSEG said average gas output in the Lower 48 states held at 109.6 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) so far in December, the same as November's monthly record high. Meteorologists forecast weather across the country would remain mostly warmer than normal through January 3, keeping the amount of gas needed to heat homes and businesses lower than usual for this time of year. LSEG projected average gas demand in the Lower 48 states, including exports, would fall from 144.6 bcfd this week to 127.5 bcfd over the next two weeks. The forecast for next week was lower than LSEG's outlook on Thursday. Average gas flows to the eight large U.S. LNG export plants rose to 18.5 bcfd so far this month, up from a monthly record high of 18.2 bcfd in November. That increase in LNG feedgas came despite what analysts called small gas flow declines at U.S. energy firm Venture Global's 1.6-bcfd Calcasieu and 3.2-bcfd Plaquemines plants in Louisiana in recent days. Officials at Venture Global were not immediately available for comment on the reductions. In other LNG news, U.S. energy firm Energy Transfer said on Thursday it was suspending the development of its Lake Charles LNG export plant in Louisiana to focus on its investments in its pipeline business.
Waha Gas Prices Plunge on El Paso Restrictions --Westbound natural gas flows out of the Permian Basin averaged 2.3 Bcf/d during the week ending December 15, down 0.1 Bcf/d from the prior week and a whopping 0.5 Bcf/d below last year’s level (see chart below). The force majeure at the Roswell, NM compressor station of Kinder Morgan's El Paso Pipeline, which experienced equipment failure on December 3, is still active. However, flow restrictions because of the force majeure on Line 1103 in Arizona were more impactful last week. Kinder Morgan reduced capacity on the line on December 5 to address anomalies on the line in Cochise County then increased flow restriction on December 7 and again on December 10. The restrictions cut around 0.5 Bcf/d of Permian capacity to the West in an already tight market stranding production in the basin and pushing prices deeply negative. El Paso lifted the Force Majeure over the weekend, and capacity was restored as of Saturday’s evening cycle, so prices should normalize this week barring any more issues on the pipeline. Ongoing work on El Paso and frequent operational issues continue to be a thorn in the side of the Basin’s producers and shippers. The price of Waha gas was severely impacted by constrained capacity. Outright Waha cash prices averaged negative $2.12/MMBtu, down $2.38/MMBtu week-on-week according to data from Natural Gas Intelligence (NGI). Cash prices were below zero all week but plunged deeper into negative territory as El Paso flows were restricted further. Waha cash prices dropped to more than negative $6.00/MMBtu over the weekend but should rebound this week given the force majeure has been lifted.
U.S. judge blocks Michigan from shutting down Enbridge's Line 5 oil pipeline | CBC News A U.S. judge on Wednesday blocked Michigan from enforcing a 2020 order to shut down Enbridge's Line 5 oil pipeline running beneath a channel linking two of the Great Lakes, ruling that pipeline safety is a federal responsibility. The decision comes five years after Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer revoked an easement allowing Canadian company Enbridge to operate a 6.4 kilometre stretch of aging pipeline underneath the Straits of Mackinac, which connect Lake Michigan and Lake Huron, citing risks to the environment in the event of a spill. Enbridge has been fighting the Michigan decision in court. The 72-year-old pipeline — which ships 540,000 barrels per day of crude and refined products from Superior, Wis., to Sarnia, Ont. — has continued to operate throughout the dispute. In his decision, U.S. District Judge Robert Jonker ruled that pipeline safety and protection of the Straits of Mackinac are the responsibility of the United States, and Michigan lacks the authority to interfere. Enbridge faces other ongoing challenges related to Line 5. The company has proposed building a tunnel to house the aging pipeline, but faces opposition from environmentalists and Native American tribes. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, a federal permitting agency, granted national energy emergency status to the Line 5 tunnel project in April, fast-tracking a key permitting process.
Eye of the Eiger – Plan to Expand Eiger Express Gas Pipeline Shows Confidence in Growth Scenario -If you have any lingering doubt that Permian natural gas production and Gulf Coast LNG exports will continue rising, consider this: Between late August and late November, a WhiteWater Midstream-led team received enough incremental shipper interest in its planned 2.5-Bcf/d Eiger Express Pipeline that it upsized the project’s capacity to a whopping 3.7 Bcf/d. In today’s RBN blog, we’ll discuss the expansion plan — which includes a rare long-haul run of 48-inch-diameter pipe — and the extraordinary gas supply and demand growth that’s driving it. It was only three months ago that we looked at the then newly announced plan for Eiger Express (dashed dark-blue line in Figure 1 below), which at the time was expected to add 2.5 Bcf/d of takeaway capacity from the Waha Hub and Midland Basin to the Katy, TX, area by mid-2028. That plan still stands, but the team developing the greenfield pipeline alongside the existing 490-mile, 42-inch, 2.5-Bcf/d Matterhorn Express Pipeline (dark-green line) said on November 24 that, due to a new round of long-term commitments from shippers, they plan to swap out Eiger Express’s previously planned 42-inch pipe for 48-inch pipe, install more compression, and add 1.2 Bcf/d to the facility’s capacity between mid-2028 and mid-2029.The now 3.7-Bcf/d Eiger Express project is 70% owned by the joint venture (JV) that fully owns Matterhorn Express — aka the Matterhorn JV, which consists of WhiteWater (with a 65% stake in the JV), ONEOK (15%), MPLX (10%) and Enbridge (10%) — with the other 30% of Eiger Express held directly by ONEOK (15%) and MPLX (15%). Do the math and WhiteWater holds an overall 45.5% interest in the new project, with ONEOK owning 25.5%, MPLX owning 22% and Enbridge owning 7%. By the way, WhiteWater’s stake in the Matterhorn JV is held by FIC Partners Management and I Squared Capital.Matterhorn Express and Eiger Express are, of course, only the latest in a long list of gas pipeline projects in which WhiteWater has played a leading role, most of them via the so-called Whistler Pipeline LLC (WPC) JV, which is 50.6% owned by WhiteWater, with MPLX holding a 30.4% stake and Enbridge owning the remaining 19%. (I Squared Capital owns WhiteWater’s stake in WPC; see Climb Ev’ry Mountain for details.) As we discussed recently in Dare You to Move, WhiteWater’s success in advancing an outsized share of Permian and Gulf Coast projects is tied to its savviness in pulling together big deals or, more specifically, its uncanny ability to anticipate the next “hot” corridor; its penchant for offering innovative, highly attractive tariffs; and its ability to achieve a critical mass of shipper commitments and make a final investment decision (FID) before its more conservative rivals. Eiger Express is a case in point. WhiteWater this past spring and summer signed up an impressive number of producers, marketers and other shippers for Eiger, thereby enabling the midstream company and its partners to pull the trigger on the initial 2.5-Bcf/d project. Taking FID spurred a second round of interest this fall, not only from a couple of Eiger’s anchor shippers (who increased how much firm capacity they want on the pipe) but also from a handful of new shippers. Our understanding is that about 15 shippers have now made long-term commitments for a piece of the new pipe’s throughput, and that collectively they have signed up for more than three-quarters of its 3.7 Bcf/d of capacity.Explaining the need for an expanded Eiger Express Pipeline — and the other pipelines under development in Texas and Louisiana, for that matter — is simple: rising gas supply from the Permian (and other production areas in Texas and Louisiana) and rising Gulf Coast gas demand from new and expanding LNG export terminals and new gas-fired power plants, many of the latter tied to planned data centers. According to RBN’s monthly Arrow Model report, Permian gas production is projected to increase from an average of 22.2 Bcf/d in 2025 to 25.2 Bcf/d in 2027 and 34.2 Bcf/d in 2035, a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.4%. Given that gas takeaway capacity out of the Permian is already constrained (dashed purple oval in left graph in Figure 1 below) — for evidence, note the mostly negative gas prices at Waha over the past several months (dashed purple oval in right graph) — this indicates an ongoing need for new or expanded pipelines from West Texas to the Gulf Coast.We also forecast that production in other parts of Texas (mostly the Eagle Ford) will rise from 15.4 Bcf/d this year to 17.8 Bcf/d in 2027 and 21.9 Bcf/d 10 years from now (a CAGR of 3.6%), and that production in the Haynesville will rise from 9.8 Bcf/d this year to 11.1 Bcf/d in 2027 and 13.5 Bcf/d in 2035 (a CAGR of 3.3%).As for the demand side of the equation, incremental gas demand from LNG export terminals is by far the leading factor. RBN’s Arrow Model, which closely monitors the planned addition of new LNG export capacity, projects that feedgas demand from LNG terminals in Texas will soar from “only” 4.5 Bcf/d in 2025 to 8.8 Bcf/d in 2027 and a staggering 16.4 Bcf/d 10 years from now (a 14% CAGR!). LNG feedgas demand in Louisiana is projected to rise more gradually, from an already hefty 10.5 Bcf/d this year to 11.7 Bcf/d in 2027 and 16.2 Bcf/d in 2035 (a CAGR of 4.5%).
Tequila Sunrise – Basin and Sunrise Pipelines Remain a Key Part of Plains’ Permian Operations - The largest artery moving crude from the prolific Permian Basin to Cushing, OK, is Plains All American’s Basin Pipeline, one of the first long-haul pipelines out of Midland, TX. Basin gets help along the way from the complementary Sunrise Pipeline, and together they are responsible for moving large volumes from the Permian to Wichita Falls, TX. From there, the Basin pipe moves barrels all the way to Cushing, delivery point for the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures contract and home to massive commercial storage. In today’s RBN blog, we’ll dig into why Basin and Sunrise are so important to the Permian, Plains and Cushing. RBN Energy’s South Texas Energy Infrastructure Map brings together all the pieces of the critical and complex puzzle of the greater Corpus Christi region. Spanning from Point Comfort, TX to Corpus Christ, TX and south of the Agua Dulce natural gas hub, the map details the processing, transportation and export facilities in RBN Energy’s classic clear, concise and easy to comprehend style.This is our most recent in a series of blogs highlighting Permian outbound long-haul crude oil pipelines. We’ve highlighted pipelines to Houston, Corpus Christi (Cactus I and II; Cactus III, formerly EPIC Crude; and Gray Oak) and Nederland (West Texas Gulf and Permian Express), including our recently published Drill Down Report. In today’s blog, the first in a mini-series on pipes going to Cushing, we’ll discuss the Basin and Sunrise pipelines. In an upcoming blog, we’ll dive into Centurion, which also delivers to Cushing.The small town of Cushing occupies a central place in the U.S. crude oil market thanks to its hundreds of storage tanks and numerous pipeline connections, as shown in Figure 1 below. Cushing — the “Pipeline Crossroads of the World” — is never far from our hearts and minds here at RBN. A popular topic in the RBN blogosphere (see Give and Take, among others), Cushing is connected to several inbound pipelines from Western Canada, the Bakken, the Niobrara, the Permian and SCOOP/STACK, and is also linked to outbound pipes that deliver to inland refineries, Gulf Coast refineries and export terminals. The Oklahoma hub is also the delivery point for the CME/NYMEX futures contract for WTI — one of the most widely and actively traded physical commodity futures contracts in the world and the benchmark underpinning most physical U.S. crude oil purchase and sales contracts. Cushing is home to the nation’s largest commercial crude tank farm, with more than 350 aboveground tanks all sited within 10 miles (shaded areas in Figure 1 inset), according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA). The EIA provides two numbers for storage capacity at Cushing: net available shell capacity and working storage capacity. The two terms refer to how much of an oil storage tank is theoretically available to hold oil versus how much of that capacity is actually usable. The EIA put shell capacity at 94 MMbbl and working capacity at 78.4 MMbbl as of March 2024, the most recently available data. Cushing is often used as a sort of way station where crude can be received and sent out when needed to refineries and export terminals. The two pipelines are complementary but serve distinctly different functions. Plains operates the 519-mile Basin Pipeline (aqua line in Figure 2 below) from Colorado City, TX, to Cushing, providing multiple delivery options, including refinery access, along the way. The pipeline carries 450 Mb/d from Colorado City to Wichita Falls, then on to Cushing. Similarly, the Sunrise pipeline system (magenta line) runs 254 miles from Midland through Colorado City to Wichita Falls and can take barrels from farther west in the Delaware Basin at Conan and Wink, functioning primarily as a gathering and intermediate transport system. Sunrise initially connected Midland to Colorado City before Plains extended the system in 2018, adding a 500-Mb/d segment from Colorado City to Wichita Falls. The two pipelines overlap between Colorado City and Wichita Falls, running parallel routes and delivering to similar areas. In this 180-mile stretch, shippers can move crude on either Basin or Sunrise; however, the systems serve different purposes. Basin continues northeast to Cushing as its primary destination, while Sunrise ends at Wichita Falls. From there, shippers on Sunrise can either go northeast on Basin to Cushing or travel southeast on Energy Transfer's Permian Express (pink line) to Nederland. In addition, at Wichita Falls, the panhandle refinery market becomes accessible via westbound connections, where crude can travel on the Wichita Falls Crude Pipeline (green line) on its way to two major refineries — Valero's McKee and Phillips 66's Borger facilities (orange and red refinery icons, respectively, in upper-left). Basin also has a connection to Valero’s Ardmore refinery (orange refinery icon in center-right) via the Ardmore Pipeline (blue line).The Basin and Sunrise pipelines complement the rest of Plains’ Permian portfolio, which includes numerous pipelines and is rapidly growing. Plains owns 40% of the 440-Mb/d BridgeTex Pipeline (see Last Man Standing), which moves crude from Colorado City to East Houston, and it has an interest in Wink to Webster Pipeline LLC, the joint venture (JV) owner of the 650-mile, 1.5-MMb/d Wink to Webster pipeline that we detailed in My Way. Plains also owns and operates the 390-Mb/d Cactus I (the original Cactus Pipeline), a 310-mile line from McCamey to Gardendale, as well as 70% of Cactus II, a 585-Mb/d, 575-mile pipe from Orla to Corpus Christi that has been expanded to 670 Mb/d. (Enbridge owns the other 30%.)
GAO calls for shorter oil and gas royalty adjustment periods - A government watchdog recommends that Congress shorten the number of years oil and gas companies have to adjust their federal royalty payments. The Government Accountability Office also recommended that an Interior Department agency make internal alterations to how it tracks royalty agreements with companies. The report, which was published this week, found that giving companies six years to make adjustments to their royalty payments can make work difficult for regulators. Oil and gas royalties are a percentage of the total production value that the government charges companies that extract oil and gas from public territories. Royalties generated more than $14 billion for the federal government in fiscal 2024, according to GAO.
Iraqi Crude Can’t Replace Venezuelan Oil in the U.S. Market - The economics of shipping additional volumes of heavy crude from Iraq to compensate for a potential loss of Venezuela’s supply are just not there at present, Shafaq News reported on Friday, quoting Iraqi economist Nabil Al-Marsoumi. Concerns in the heavy crude market are that the U.S. blockade of tankers carrying Venezuelan oil and heightened tensions in the Caribbean would reduce supply of the extra heavy crude. In theory, the sour and heavy grades from the top producers in the Middle East could be substitutes for Venezuela’s crude. But apparently, these would not come from Iraq. “It’s not financially viable for Iraq to replace Venezuela in the US market,” Shafaq News quoted Al-Marsoumi as posting on Facebook post. The Iraqi grade Basrah Heavy currently trades at about $4 per barrel below Basrah Medium. Transporting Bashrah Heavy to the United States would add $3.50 per barrel in shipping and insurance costs, according to the economist. “The margin just doesn’t justify it,” Al-Marsoumi said. Moreover, Iraq’s oil production is limited by the OPEC+ agreement under which Baghdad is also compensating for previous overproduction by not raising output as much as it is entitled to. Venezuela, for its part, may be forced to start shutting in oil production as it runs out of storage space amid the U.S. tanker blockade, Bloomberg reported earlier this week, citing unnamed sources. Further disruption for Venezuela’s oil industry comes from the impact of the tanker blockade on its supply of Russian naphtha, which state oil firm PDVSA uses to dilute its heavy crude. At least one tanker with 32,000 metric tons of Russian naphtha was traveling to Venezuela last week, but it made a U-turn at the end of the week and is now en route to Europe with the cargo still on board, according to data from LSEG that Reuters cited earlier this week.
Trump administration backs continued Dakota Access pipeline operations --The Trump administration will support the continued operation of the Dakota Access pipeline, it said Friday in a long-awaited but not surprising move.The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued a final environmental impact report Friday recommending that oil keep flowing through the controversial pipeline.The Dakota Access pipeline carries oil from North Dakota to Illinois. It has been particularly controversial among environmental activists and was the subject of massive protests in 2016. The Trump administrationapproved the pipeline in 2017. However, a court ruled in 2020 that the federal government needed to take a second look at its environmental impacts.Under that court order, the Biden administration issued a draft report in 2023 saying that it could revoke the pipeline’s permit, keep it in place or add stipulations. It did not say at the time which way it was leaning. It did not issue a final report, with the decision ultimately landing in the hands of the second Trump administration. In the final report issued Friday, the administration said it would allow the pipeline to continue running — though it would add some additional stipulations.In particular, Dakota Access will have to develop a plan for alternative drinking water supplies for nearby communities in the case of an oil spill. It will also have to install better leak detection systems as new technology becomes available and conduct water sampling twice per year.Friday’s report is the penultimate step in the pipeline process, and the Trump administration could issue a final decision on the pipeline in 30 or more days. It is expected to maintain its current position on the pipeline in the ultimate decision.The pipeline’s critics have expressed concerns about potential impacts of an oil spill on nearby drinking water, especially for the Standing Rock Sioux tribe.
Glory Days – Which Bakken Operators Have the Biggest Inventories of Top-Tier Drilling Sites? | RBN Energy -- Three-quarters of the Bakken's top-tier well sites may have already been drilled and the basin’s remaining inventory may be less than stellar, but a new AI-based analysis suggests that the quality of the locations held by each of the shale play’s top 10 producers varies widely. For a few, there are still plenty of spots that make economic sense to drill and complete, but activity may slow to a crawl for others unless crude oil prices rebound — and in a big way. In today’s RBN blog, we continue our look at Novi Labs’ intense examination of the U.S.’s second-largest onshore production area. This is the second blog in this miniseries. In Part 1, we said that while Bakken crude oil production is humming along at a steady 1.2 MMb/d, about 75% of the shale play’s top-quartile locations have already been drilled and only 6,100 well sites — about six years of inventory at the current drilling pace — could generate a good return at the range of commodity prices we’ve seen the past couple of years. We also explained Novi’s data-based, machine-learning-enhanced approach to analyzing the many layers (aka benches) in the Bakken (and other shale plays) to determine not only how much crude remains underground but how much is likely to be produced under various price scenarios.Put simply, machine learning crunches a wide range of geologic, operational and spatial data collected from thousands of drilled wells to recognize patterns and identify the primary drivers of well performance. It then enables operators to assess how changing variables (like drilling in a higher-pressure area, tightening well spacing or increasing proppant intensity) would affect production outcomes in wells yet to be drilled. And it gives operators guidance on how best to lay out, space and sequence the development of the benches. More important for our purposes, this approach also reveals the relative quality of the rock in various parts of a shale basin and how much of the remaining resource is likely to be developed at various crude oil price points. Regarding rock quality in the Bakken, the basin’s existing and potential wells are separated into four quartiles or tiers, with Tier 1 wells being the juiciest and (generally speaking) the most economic and Tier 4 wells having the lowest quality and being economic only if oil prices are very high. Finally, we noted there are two common ways to assess whether it makes sense to drill and complete a well: using a straight two-year breakeven or using a more conservative NPV25 breakeven, with NPV referring to net present value. (See Part 1 for details.) Last time, we took a big-picture look at the Bakken’s remaining inventory of drilling locations. In today’s blog, we shift to a company-by-company analysis that reveals significant differences in the quality of their yet-to-be-drilled sites.
Freezing Cold In Canada, Propane Priced To Stay Home! Exports to U.S. Curtailed -A severe cold spell across Western Canada hit an already tight propane balance, accelerating inventory draws and pushing Edmonton prices sharply higher as the market moved to secure local supply. As a result, the long-standing Edmonton, AB discount to Conway, Kansas collapsed from typical double-digit levels to just a few cents per gallon. Since 2012, Edmonton has averaged about 18 c/gal under Conway (left graph below), wide enough to incent propane movements from Canada to U.S. markets. As shown in the right graph, this year, that average has narrowed to 15 c/gal. Last week the discount briefly shrank to just 1.5 c/gal and ended the week at 4 c/gal under Conway (blue arrow), an unmistakable signal that the market is adjusting to keep Canadian propane in Canada.Canadian propane markets were particularly vulnerable this year because inventories entered the heating season already depleted and never rebuilt enough of a cushion. Stocks in Western Canada were near the low end of the five-year range, while Eastern Canadian inventories fell below the bottom of that range, leaving little margin for error (see graphs below). A severe cold snap in January–February 2025 drew inventories sharply lower across both regions, and although propane production has been higher in 2025 than in 2024, increased exports overseas and stronger in-province demand in Alberta limited inventory recovery, amplifying the market’s sensitivity to weather-driven demand shocks.
Weighed Down by Warm Weather and LNG Supplies, TTF, JKM Sink Further - A steady stream of LNG and pipeline supplies in Europe and Asia continues to keep a lid on prices in both regions, which are at their lowest levels since early last year. Table showing U.S. Gulf Coast LNG netback prices on a 12-month strip as of December 15, 2025, comparing JKM, NBP and TTF futures, estimated shipping costs, resulting Gulf Coast netbacks, changes, Henry Hub futures and LNG margins from January through December 2026. At A Glance:
JKM, TTF trading under $10
Spot buying accelerates in Asia
LNG import cargo
European Gas Prices Find Footing as Winter Outlook Moderates - A look at the global natural gas and LNG markets by the numbers. North America LNG export flow tracker showing daily U.S. LNG deliveries from Dec. 8–17, 2025, averaging about 18.3–18.6 million Dth, with facility-level volumes and utilization for Corpus Christi, Freeport, Sabine Pass, Calcasieu Pass, Cameron, Plaquemines, Elba Island, Cove Point and Golden Pass, plus a U.S. map highlighting LNG export terminal locations.
- $8.90/MMBtu: The prompt Title Transfer Facility (TTF) could be reaching a floor as mild weather and abundant LNG supplies mix with Europe’s energy security requirements. Analysts with trading firm Mind Energy wrote in a market note that after weeks of sliding, Europe’s gas market has appeared to reach a structural bottom of $8.90. The January TTF contract rose slightly Wednesday to $9.38 on forecasts for average winter temperatures.
- 10.74 Mt: Despite falling international prices and cooling demand, U.S. LNG exports could reach an all-time monthly high by the end of December, according to Kpler predictive data. U.S. exporters have shipped or are estimated to ship 10.75 Mt, an increase of 0.14 Mt over the monthly record set in November. The majority of U.S. exports are expected to head to Europe, where imports are estimated to fall 0.69 Mt month/month as arbitrage continues to favor Asia.
- 18.54 Bcf/d: After pipeline maintenance and recovery of LNG output on the Gulf Coast, U.S. feed gas demand has returned to near all-time highs. Freeport LNG briefly tripped Tuesday morning but has since recovered, contributing to an almost 0.7 Bcf/d boost in feed gas nominations. Scheduled flows to U.S. terminals were 18.54 Bcf/d Wednesday, according to NGI calculations of Wood Mackenzie pipeline data.
- 6.3 Mt/y: Italian utility Edison SpA has charted a 174,000 cubic meter LNG vessel as a part of its strategy to build an export portfolio backed by U.S. supply. Edison disclosed a long-term charter with Norwegian firm Knutsen OAS Shipping AS starting in 2028. By the time the charter commences, Edison will have control of 6.3 million tons/year (Mt/y) in export volumes, including 1 Mt/y from Calcasieu Pass and 0.7 Mt/y from Shell plc’s trading arm.
Europe Softens, Doesn’t Eliminate, Crazy Methane Import Standard - Marcellus Drilling News - The European Union is simplifying compliance with its methane emissions law for oil and gas imports, a decision expected to aid U.S. exporters following pressure from the Trump administration. Recognizing that the commingled nature of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) makes tracing difficult, the European Commission proposed two streamlined reporting options: utilizing third-party verification certificates or a digital “trace and claim” system. While the core regulation remains intact with stricter standards scheduled for 2027, these adjustments aim to prevent supply disruptions by offering more flexible monitoring solutions for the fragmented U.S. energy industry. To which we say, tell Europe to bugger off.
LNG supply crunch as carrier orders outstrip shipping capacity --The global LNG market is facing a supply crunch as planned liquefaction capacity is outpacing the number of new carriers set to enter service by 2030, Argus Media reported on December 18. A surge in vessel retirements and a lagging newbuild orderbook are raising concerns that LNG shipping infrastructure may fall short of what is needed to transport the fuel to key demand centres, particularly in Asia. According to data from the International Maritime Organisation, 234 newbuild LNG carriers are scheduled for delivery between 2026 and 2030, with 2026 on track to be the busiest year for deliveries on record. However, this number is insufficient to handle the 229mn tonnes per year (t/yr) of new LNG export capacity already sanctioned globally, based on projects that have reached final investment decision (FID). 'Applying simple shipping ratios, the gap is clear,' Jerry Kalogiratos, chief executive of Capital Clean Energy Carriers, at the World LNG Summit in Istanbul said as cited by Argus Media. “There definitely looks like there is going to be a shortage.” Transporting 1mn t/yr of LNG to Europe typically requires 1.5 vessels, while delivering the same volume to Asia requires three, due to longer voyage distances and turnaround times. On this basis, the 234 newbuilds could support just 158mn t/yr of supply if routed entirely to Europe — or just 78mn t/yr to Asia. The latter is the more likely scenario, according to experts, as demand growth in Southeast Asia accelerates. The shortfall could deepen if more liquefaction projects reach FID, with a further 80mn t/yr of production capacity sanctioned in 2025 alone, which are not covered by potential shipping capacity. At the same time, a wave of scrapping is thinning out the older end of the fleet. So far in 2025, 14 steam turbine LNG carriers have been sold for demolition — nearly triple the annual average between 2020 and 2024. These ageing vessels are increasingly deemed “obsolete” due to high boil-off rates and limited flexibility in today’s trading environment. Data from ship-tracking firm Kpler shows 29 LNG carriers aged 25 years or older remain in operation, including the 137,000m³ Puteri Nilam and Al Jasra, both recently idled in the Strait of Malacca and Brunei Bay. The oldest, LNG Maleo, was built in 1989 and is operated by Indonesia’s Pertamina. Another 47 vessels built between 2000 and 2005 are also likely candidates for retirement by the end of the decade. The average age of LNG vessels scrapped in 2025 was 26, according to Flex LNG.
Natural Gas Liberalization ‘Reshaping Energy Landscape’ for Major LNG Buyer Brazil -- Brazil, Latin America’s biggest LNG purchaser, is undergoing structural market change as its natural gas continues to open to private players, according to a report from Wood Mackenzie. Table titled Latin America DES Prices showing LNG delivered ex-ship prices by country and terminal for January through March 2026, with monthly price levels and changes, including Argentina Escobar, Brazil Pecem, Chile Quintero, Colombia, Mexico East Altamira, Mexico West Manzanillo, and Panama Costa Norte, as of December 15, 2025. At A Glance:Free market volumes climb steadily
Industrial buyers shift suppliers rapidly
Import capacity expansion supports demand
LNG Supply Expands Faster Than China’s Demand Growth --China’s LNG demand is disappointing in 2025 for a second year in a row, just as new U.S. export projects ramp up and Qatar is nearing start-up of the first new facilities in its huge capacity expansion.The wave of new LNG supply that will come online by the end of the decade, mostly from the top exporters, the United States and Qatar, has prompted many analysts to expect an oversupplied LNG market by 2030 that would weigh on prices. Lower prices could incentivize additional demand from price-sensitive buyers in south and Southeast Asia, but projects for nuclear capacity expansion in the world’s top LNG importers, China and Japan, could reduce demand for imported gas in the long term.China could even launch the world’s first small modular reactor (SMR) as early as 2026.If further tests and construction prove successful, a buyer’s market would give LNG importers new leverage in contract negotiations for long-term supply into the 2030s and 2040s.“The question isn’t which technology prevails. The question is how Asian utilities reprice long-term contracts when two clocks—LNG expansion and nuclear validation—start running in parallel, each generating data that forces the other to justify its risk premium,” geopolitical risk analyst Güney Y?ld?z writes in Forbes.We are years away from SMRs replacing any gas demand in China. But Japan is working to restart more of its nuclear reactors that were shut down for safety checks after the Fukushima disaster in 2011—potentially reducing demand for LNG in the resource-poor G7 nation. Japan’s Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi, favors accelerating the restart of nuclear reactors as a way to reduce the economy’s dependence on energy imports.Before Fukushima, nuclear energy accounted for about 30% of Japan’s electricity mix. The disaster prompted the closure of all reactors for safety checks. Since 2015, Japan has restarted 14 reactors out of 33, while 11 others are currently in the process of restart approval, including two reactors at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwanuclear power plant, the world’s largest in terms of nameplate capacity.In the short term, analysts expect well-supplied and even oversupplied LNG markets amid lower Chinese demand while new supply comes online.The U.S. is set to export 14.9 billion cubic feet per day of LNG this year, up by 25% from 2024, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in its latest Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) last week. With new projects ramping up, the EIA expects U.S. LNG exports to jump to an average of 16.3 billion cubic feet per day in 2026.At the same time, China’s LNG imports have been fallingover the past year as domestic production and pipeline imports increase. Despite warnings of a near-term global LNG glut, top exporters in the Middle East, including Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), see strong demand going forward and flag insufficient investment in supply in the medium to long term.The UAE is growing its LNG exports to meet surging global demand that will outpace investment in supply, Energy Minister Suhail al Mazrouei told Reuters last week.“I agree with his excellency, Minister of Qatar, that the demand is going to be much, much more than the projects that we are seeing,” the UAE official added.
Total domestic and commercial gas consumption exceeded 3.7 billion cubic meters in a week - Iran Energy Press -- Natural gas consumption in the household, commercial, and small industrial sectors increased to about 533 million cubic meters per day in the third week of December, and the highest consumption in this sector was recorded on December 15, with more than 546 million cubic meters. According to Energy Press, a review of the National Iranian Gas Company’s statistics on the domestic, commercial and small industries sector shows that demand in this sector remained high in the third half of December and the wider use of heating appliances. On Saturday, December 15, the consumption of the domestic, commercial and small industries sector reached 546.05 million cubic meters, and on Sunday, December 16, it was recorded with a relative decrease, reaching 540.03 million cubic meters. Consumption in this sector reached 530.05 million cubic meters on Monday, December 17, and remained almost constant at 529.40 million cubic meters on Tuesday, December 18. On Wednesday, December 19, the gas consumption of the domestic, commercial and small industries sector increased slightly by recording 533.95 million cubic meters, and on Thursday, December 20, 531.51 million cubic meters was reported. At the end of the week, Friday, December 21, the consumption in this sector reached 517.27 million cubic meters with a relative decrease.
Oil spill near Colombo Port brought under control within 8 hours - NewswireAn oil spill reported near the Colombo Port in the early hours of December 14 has been successfully brought under control, authorities said. The spill occurred near the crude oil unloading buoy belonging to the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) during unloading operations from the vessel MT ASP Avana. Officials said the incident was caused by a defect in a pipeline connected to the buoy. The spill was reported at around 3.30 a.m., following which officials from the Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) carried out an on-site inspection. Cleanup operations were immediately launched with the participation of the Sri Lanka Navy, Sri Lanka Coast Guard, CPC, Lanka Oil Tank Terminals Limited (CPSTL), and private sector support. Oil recovery operations are being carried out using the Sri Lanka Coast Guard vessel “Samaraksha”. Authorities said a significant quantity of the spilled oil has already been recovered and transported ashore using vessels equipped with oil recovery facilities. Efforts to collect the remaining minor quantities of oil are continuing with assistance from private sector vessels. MEPA said the oil spill was contained within approximately eight hours of the incident and that there has been no impact on the marine environment, fish stocks, other marine life, or coastal and fishing communities. The Sri Lanka Air Force has also been deployed to assist with aerial surveillance to monitor the spread and movement of the oil. Observations indicate that, based on current sea conditions and wind direction, the oil is drifting away from Sri Lanka’s coastline. MEPA said it will continue monitoring the situation and will issue further updates if there are any changes.
Oil Market Faces Short-Term Glut But Long-Term Supply Deficit Looms - Rising oil supply amid sluggish demand growth has led forecasters and analysts to predict a significant market surplus heading into 2026. All major experts and investment banks expect inventories to continue accumulating in early 2026, traditionally the weakest period for oil demand each year. While estimates of oversupply vary, 2026 is likely to be the final year the market works through a glut, according to analysts including Goldman Sachs. Despite geopolitical uncertainties, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) and Wall Street banks remain bearish on oil for the next year, projecting average prices below $60 per barrel in 2026. However, the oil futures curve remains relatively flat, without flipping into contango until October 2026. This suggests market participants are not pricing in a prolonged structural oversupply, noted Ole Hansen, Head of Commodity Strategy at Saxo Bank. “In other words, a soft patch is likely, but not a repeat of the 2020–21 imbalance,” Hansen said. Beyond the anticipated short-term glut, a more critical theme is emerging: a potential structural deficit after 2027, according to Saxo Bank. This perspective of a supply crunch later this decade and into the early 2030s has gained traction recently. Concerns about long-term deficits rose after the International Energy Agency (IEA), historically an advocate for no new oil and gas investment, revised its stance. In September, the IEA stated that new oil and gas resources are necessary just to maintain current output due to accelerating declines at existing fields—a major shift from its 2021 position. Last month, the IEA also abandoned its forecast of peak oil demand by 2030, now projecting demand could reach 113 million barrels per day (bpd) by 2050 amid global energy growth. Increasing energy consumption, including in developed economies driven by AI technologies and rising data center power demand, will require contributions from all energy sources. Meanwhile, upstream investment has declined in recent years, setting the stage for a supply shortfall in the near future. OPEC, led by Saudi Arabia, has repeatedly warned that the oil industry must ramp up exploration and investment in new supply or risk shortages. Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser said in October at the 2025 Energy Intelligence Forum that the energy transition faces a “reality check” and current trends indicate an “energy addition” rather than a transition, requiring all efforts on supply. “We also see resilient demand, and the pressing need for long-term investments in supply is now widely accepted,” Nasser said. The anticipated 2026 glut will likely pressure oil prices and delay investment in new supply, especially in U.S. shale if prices remain below $60 per barrel. “The market’s real vulnerability emerges if non-OPEC+ production slows, particularly in the Americas,” Hansen noted. U.S. shale production grew by roughly 360,000 bpd over the past year, a pace unlikely to continue. The EIA expects U.S. production to flatten in 2026, and Hansen warns it could decline if WTI remains under $60 for another year. In summary, short-term fundamentals suggest oversupply, but the resulting lower prices could pave the way for a structural supply deficit in the medium to long term.
IEA: Global oil surplus masks regional tightness | Oil & Gas Journal -The global oil balance continues to point to a substantial supply overhang, with rising observed stocks that would normally signal sharper declines in oil prices. Yet benchmark crude prices have fallen only modestly in recent months, while refined product cracks surged to 3-year highs in November. This apparent disconnect reflects increasingly divergent dynamics across crude oil, NGLs, and refined products, as well as across regions, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). It is being driven by a combination of sanctioned supply, longer trade routes, and a tight refining system. While crude markets continue to anchor overall oil pricing, developments in products and NGLs impact their differentials to crude, IEA said. Until September, NGLs accounted for most of the surplus in the global oil balance. Since then, crude oil has taken the lead, with observed stock changes broadly matching the implied surplus. However, much of the incremental crude supply has yet to reach onshore storage, IEA noted. Instead, according to IEA, excess volumes have accumulated in oil on water and in China. There have been no meaningful stock builds in the Atlantic Basin crude pricing hubs that underpin WTI and Dated Brent. As a result, crude futures have remained in backwardation despite the growing surplus. However, as the overhang shows up in onshore stocks, this would normally weigh on prices and market structure. Sanctioned exporters—primarily Iran, Russia, and Venezuela—account for more than one-third of the increase in crude oil on water since August. The remainder reflects rising Middle Eastern output and Atlantic Basin barrels increasingly flowing to markets east of Suez. Sanctioned oil on water began rising as early as February, following tighter US measures on Russian crude at the end of 2024 and early 2025. The relentless strengthening of US and EU sanctions on Iran, Russia, and Venezuela, combined with a limited number of buyers, resulted in a significant build-up of those volumes afloat, IEA said. At the same time, rising exports from the Americas have been redirected toward Asia. “More tankers on long voyages raised oil on water by almost 65 million bbl from end-August,” IEA said. Excluding Russia, Atlantic Basin supply has outpaced regional refinery demand, flipping the region into a marginal surplus. This has pulled North Sea Dated prices below Dubai M1 “If this overhang persists into first and second-quarter 2026, it could hold the price arbitrage to the East open and delay a stock build in the Atlantic Basin pricing hubs for WTI and Dated Brent,” IEA noted. China began building crude stocks in April following the enactment of its new energy law on Jan. 1, 2025, which formally requires both state-owned and private companies to hold strategic reserves. Although stock builds paused in September and October, they resumed in November. As IEA noted, this new framework for managing strategic reserves is unlikely to result in a smooth, linear build. Instead, stock changes may remain volatile as new tank farms gradually fill to operational levels. These dynamics further complicate the relationship between the global balance and observable pricing signals. In contrast to crude, refined product markets have experienced genuine tightness. Swings in the balance for products and biofuels reflect seasonal demand changes and the impact of planned and unplanned refinery outages, IEA said. Seasonal demand peaks in mid-summer 2025 pushed product balances into deficit, followed by brief builds ahead of refinery turnarounds in September and October when stocks drew. Looking into 2026, IEA expects that limited spare refining capacity outside China will restrict the ability to rebuild product stocks. In addition, new EU sanctions on imports of products refined from Russian crude are set to disrupt existing trade flows, potentially reinforcing product tightness later in 2026. According to IEA, NGLs remain the most opaque segment of the oil complex. Since 2024, their surplus has accounted for a growing share of the overall oil balance overhang, helping explain the weak correlation between oil balances and crude prices. However, a widening and unexplained gap has emerged between the NGL balance and known NGL stocks since 2023, IEA noted. The global oil market is oversupplied on paper, but the surplus is unevenly distributed, according to IEA. Crude oversupply is concentrated offshore and in China rather than in key pricing hubs, refined products remain structurally tight, and NGL balances are poorly understood. Together, these factors explain why oil prices and market structure have remained more resilient than the global balance alone would suggest.
Oil Prices Rise Globally Amid Escalating Tensions Between the U.S. and Venezuela - Oil prices rose on Monday, recovering part of last week’s 4% decline, as concerns over potential production disruptions stemming from escalating tensions between the United States and Venezuela outweighed ongoing worries about oversupply and the possible impact of a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine. Brent crude futures rose by 25 cents, or 0.4%, to $61.37 per barrel at 00:55 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude increased by 23 cents, or 0.4%, to $57.67 per barrel. “Peace talks between Russia and Ukraine have oscillated between optimism and caution, while tensions between Venezuela and the United States are escalating, raising concerns about potential supply disruptions.” “However, in the absence of a clear outlook for markets, concerns about oversupply remain, and unless geopolitical risks escalate sharply, WTI crude prices could fall below $55 early next year.” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy offered to abandon his country’s aspiration to join NATO during five hours of talks with U.S. envoys in Berlin on Sunday. Negotiations are set to resume on Monday. U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff said that “significant progress” had been made, without providing further details. On Friday, the Ukrainian military announced an attack on a major Russian oil refinery in Yaroslavl, northeast of Moscow, with industry sources saying the refinery had halted production. Russian government oil and gas revenues are expected to fall by nearly half in December compared with last year, reaching 410 billion rubles ($5.12 billion), due to lower crude prices and a stronger ruble, according to Reuters calculations released on Friday. A potential peace agreement could contribute to increased Russian oil supplies, which are currently subject to Western sanctions. Meanwhile, Venezuelan opposition leader MarÃa Corina Machado pledged political change on Friday after secretly leaving the country to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, amid escalating fallout from the Trump administration’s seizure of an oil tanker last week. According to shipping data, documents, and maritime sources, Venezuelan oil exports dropped sharply following the seizure and the imposition of new sanctions on shipping companies and vessels dealing with Venezuela in Latin America. On the supply side, U.S. energy companies last week cut the number of active oil and natural gas drilling rigs for the second time in three weeks, according to Baker Hughes, one of the world’s leading energy technology and oilfield services companies.
Oil Holds Near Multi-Week Lows as Peace Diplomacy and Supply Risks Collide | Investing.com - Oil is stabilizing in early trading, yet the market remains anchored near its weakest levels since late October because the forces shaping price direction are pulling in opposite directions. Brent is trading at about 61.19 dollars a barrel, and WTI stands near $57.33 a barrel, showing modest gains of roughly 0.1 percent and 0.2 percent.The uptick reflects a mild improvement in sentiment after reports of firmer refinery runs and stronger consumption indicators in China, as well as renewed friction between Washington and Venezuela that has added a layer of uncertainty to regional supply flows. These incremental supports, however, are struggling to overpower a broader macro narrative that remains dominated by diplomatic maneuvering and supply expectations.Market positioning is increasingly influenced by the Trump administration’s accelerated push to secure a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine before year end. The prospect of a negotiated settlement and the potential rollback of sanctions on Moscow carry clear implications for future export volumes.Traders are beginning to factor in the risk that additional Russian barrels could reenter global markets at a moment when demand growth is still subdued. This possibility is reinforcing caution across the forward curve and helping explain why each intraday rebound has faded quickly, leaving both benchmarks unable to break out of their current range.At the same time, expectations of an oversupplied market next year continue to limit speculative interest. OPEC plus producers have been lifting output into a soft demand environment, and non OPEC supply remains robust enough to challenge the group’s ability to manage inventories. With storage levels comfortable and refined product markets showing mixed signals, investors are reluctant to treat small price gains as the start of a durable trend. Instead, the prevailing behavior points to a market that is waiting for either a decisive policy signal or a material shift in supply data before committing to direction. The next phase for crude hinges on how peace negotiations evolve and whether producers recalibrate output in response to weakening prices. The base case for many traders is a slow grind with Brent and WTI holding close to current levels as diplomacy proceeds unevenly and supply growth remains steady. The risk scenario is a sharper downturn if formal progress toward a Russia Ukraine settlement accelerates and sanctions relief becomes credible enough to trigger expectations of larger export flows. Crude is trading in a narrow band because the balance of risks is unusually dependent on political outcomes, and until those uncertainties clear, rallies are likely to stay constrained and dips are likely to meet hesitant buying rather than conviction.
The Market Weighed Disruptions Linked to U.S-Venezuela Tensions -- The crude oil market sold off on Monday as the market weighed disruptions linked to increasing U.S-Venezuela tensions against the impact of a potential Russia-Ukraine peace deal. Venezuela’s oil exports have fallen sharply since the U.S. seized a tanker last week and imposed new sanctions on shipping companies and vessels conducting business with Venezuela. The oil market traded sideways in overnight trading and posted a high of $57.80. However, the market erased any gains and sold off to a low of $56.40 by mid-day. It traded mostly sideways during the remainder of the session as progress in U.S. peace talks to end the war in Ukraine kept the market under pressure. Officials meeting in Berlin said there was broad agreement on 90% of the issues between Ukraine and Russia. The January WTI contract settled down 62 cents at $56.82 and the February Brent contract settled down 56 cents at $60.56. The product markets ended the session lower, with the heating oil market settling down 1.74 cents at $2.1806 and the RB market settling down 1.98 cents at $1.7323. Ship monitoring data showed that a tanker carrying 300,000 barrels of Russian naphtha for Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA and at least four supertankers due to pick up crude cargoes in Venezuela have made u-turns after the U.S. seized a vessel carrying Venezuelan crude. The U.S. Coast Guard last week intercepted and seized a very large crude carrier carrying some 1.85 million barrels of Venezuelan heavy oil sold by PDVSA. The seizure left more than 11 million barrels stuck onboard other vessels in Venezuelan waters and has prompted some tanker owners to order u-turns to avoid problems, with an armada of U.S. ships patrolling the Caribbean Sea. At least four VLCCs that were in PDVSA’s schedules to load crude at Venezuelan ports in the coming weeks have also made u-turns in recent days. U.S. officials said Ukraine could receive security guarantees modeled on NATO’s Article 5 mutual defense pledge under a proposed peace deal with Russia, an unprecedented offer aimed at ending the war sparked by Moscow’s 2022 invasion. The officials said there was broad agreement on 90% of the issues between Ukraine and Russia. But they acknowledged that territory and sovereignty would still have to be resolved by the parties themselves. Earlier, U.S. peace negotiators told Ukraine during peace talks in Berlin that it must agree to withdraw its forces from the eastern Donetsk region as part of any deal to end the nearly four-year-old war. Ukraine has said previously it would not cede territory to Russia. The talks in Berlin were led on the U.S. side by Trump envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law. European leaders said they had agreed on Monday that any decisions on potential Ukrainian territorial concessions to Russia could only be made once strong security guarantees were in place which should include a European-led multinational force. The U.S. Department of Transportation has declared a regional emergency for Delaware, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania due to cold weather and a power outage at a Pennsylvania gas refinery that disrupted the flow of propane. The declaration, made on Friday, allows carriers hauling propane, natural gas, and heating oil to bypass maximum driving time rules while providing direct assistance to the emergency.
Oil Prices Slip as Ukraine Peace Talks Progress and China's Economy Stalls | OilPrice.com - Oil prices were under pressure in early Asian trading on Tuesday as growing optimism around Russia-Ukraine peace talks and disappointing economic indicators out of China undercut market sentiment, reinforcing downside pressure on crude benchmarks.At the time of writing, WTI crude hovered at $56.49 a barrel, down roughly 0.6%, while Brent crude was trading at $60.20, also about 0.6% lower. These levels reflect continued softness from the prior session’s declines.Rising optimism over a potential peace deal to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict added to downward pressure as U.S. officials proposed NATO-style security guarantees for Ukraine in talks with Kyiv in Berlin. President Trump suggested that the negotiators are "closer now than we have been ever." If a deal were to be made, it would likely lead to an easing of sanctions and an increase in future Russian oil supply. Compounding the bearish narrative in oil markets, weak economic data out of China, the world’s largest crude importer, boosted concerns of oversupply. Official statistics released on Monday showed China’s factory output slowing to a 15-month low and retail sales expanding at their slowest pace in nearly three years. These figures heightened market worries about the strength of global oil demand in 2026.Soft demand signals from China, coupled with ongoing trade and industrial headwinds in other parts of Asia, are reinforcing macro pressures that have kept crude prices under strain for months now.For now, oil traders will remain reluctant to chase prices higher until there is a clear movement in demand signals or a major supply disruption.
Oil prices fall to 4-year low below $55 as supply glut shows up -- Crude oil prices fell to levels not seen since the start of 2021 as a widely expected supply glut picked up momentum and peace talks in the Russia-Ukraine conflict took steps forward. Futures on international pricing benchmark Brent crude (BZ=F) fell by more than 2% to trade below $59 on Tuesday, while futures on US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude (CL=F) fell over 3% to at one point trade below $55. Both energy products reached levels Tuesday that had not been seen since February 2021 as analysts pointed to an outlook marked by "extraordinary oversupply." Both Brent and WTI crude are headed for yearly losses of more than 20% as the market has been flooded with supply. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) have been unwinding cuts at a significant rate, increasing the amount of barrels added to the market each month, while other supplier countries outside of the Americas have been raising their levels.Between April and December, OPEC+ member countries increased production by 2.9 million barrels per day as Saudi Arabia sought to retake market share and price control from the West. In the US, the federal Energy Information Administration expects domestic oil inventories to continue building through 2026 as well. Even with a recent decision by OPEC to hold production rates steady through the first quarter, the International Energy Agency said last week that it now expects 2026's oil glut to reach 3.8 million barrels per day.On the water, crude tankers at sea are now holding more than 1 billion barrels — a figure that has steadily risen over the past few months as sellers have had a harder time finding buyers willing to take the oil. Prices for Dubai crude oil, a key pricing benchmark in the Asian market, and barrels on the US Gulf Coast both slipped into contango on Tuesday morning, according to Bloomberg data.Contango is a market pattern where futures prices further out on the curve are higher than near-dated futures or spot prices as costs for storage, financing, and carry become steeper and traders look for a looser market to come.The price action pressure is also showing up in refined products. Crack spreads, or the difference between oil and its derived products, like jet fuel, gasoline, and diesel, have tightened over the past month while prices on the crude derivatives, which had been supporting overall pricing strength in the oil market, have fallen.The Street is bearish on the market. Commodities strategists at JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs expect Brent prices to slip into the $50s per barrel in 2026, reaching levels not seen since the start of the pandemic, when an overnight halt in cars on the road briefly pushed prices negative."At the risk of flogging a very dead horse, our message to the market has remained consistent since June 2023," JPMorgan strategists wrote in a note to clients. "While demand is robust, supply is simply too abundant."If the OPEC+ cartel, which has agreed to pause unwinding through the first quarter, doesn't shift to cutting barrels and other producers don't slow down as well, the strategists see oil possibly dropping into the $40s or even $30s per barrel — levels that would be catastrophic for the industry.Given all of this, Macquarie oil analysts wrote in a recent note to clients that the market's downward momentum is outstripping even their bearish outlooks. "Our near-term balances now appear even more bearish than what we had previously characterized as 'cartoonishly' oversupplied," the analysts wrote.
Oil settles near five-year low amid ample supply, Russia-Ukraine progress (Reuters) - Oil futures settled at their lowest level since February 2021 on Tuesday amid ongoing jitters surrounding oversupply and as the prospect of a Russia-Ukraine peace deal appeared to strengthen, raising expectations sanctions could be eased. Brent crude futures settled down $1.64 a barrel, off roughly 2.71%, to $58.92 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude closed at $55.27, down $1.55, or 2.73%. "Brent has dropped this morning to below $60 per barrel for the first time in months, as the market assesses a potential peace deal resulting in additional Russian volumes becoming available and oversupplying the market further," The U.S. offered to provide NATO-style security guarantees for Kyiv and European negotiators reported progress in talks on Monday, sparking optimism that an end to the war was closer.Russia, meanwhile, said it was not willing to make any territorial concessions, state news agency TASS quoted Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov as saying.The six-month Brent futures spread moved into a contango for the first time since October.Barclays analysts expect Brent to average $65/bbl in 2026, slightly ahead of the forward curve, due to the expected 1.9 million bpd surplus they see as being priced in already.“This price decline underscores the structural dynamics of today’s energy market—ample supply and sluggish demand. Unless geopolitical risks or policy shifts intervene, this softness could persist well into next year," Adding to the pressure, soft Chinese economic data on Monday further fuelled concerns that global demand may not be strong enough to absorb recent supply growth, said IG market analyst Tony Sycamore.China's factory output growth slowed to a 15-month low, official data showed. Retail sales also grew at their slowest pace since December 2022, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Fears of an oversupply were marginally offset by the U.S. seizing an oil tanker off Venezuela last week, but traders and analysts said a glut of floating storage and a surge in Chinese buying from Venezuela in anticipation of sanctions were also limiting the market impact.
Oil prices rise as tension between US and Venezuela escalates --Oil prices rose on Wednesday morning as supply concerns increased after US President Donald Trump ordered a “complete and total” blockade of sanctioned oil tankers moving in and out of Venezuela. Brent, the benchmark for two thirds of the world's oil, was up 1.37 per cent at 11.02am UAE time to $59.73 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate, the gauge that tracks US crude, was trading 1.45 per cent higher at $56.07 a barrel. This came after WTI fell to its lowest levels since early 2021 this week on the prospect of more Russian oil entering global markets as peace talks to end the Ukraine war gain momentum. Trump orders blockade of sanctioned tankers off Venezuela Trump orders blockade of sanctioned tankers off Venezuela Read More Rising supply risk from Venezuela is offering only “marginal support” to crude, because of the country’s relatively small export volumes, said Vandana Hari, chief executive of Singapore-based Vanda Insights. However, upbeat US rhetoric over a Ukraine peace deal, and expectations of a milder-than-normal Northern Hemisphere winter are putting downwards pressure on oil prices on oversupply concerns, she added. Mr Trump on Tuesday ordered a blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela, putting oil flowing out of South American country at risk. This came after US troops seized a “very large” oil tanker off the Venezuela coast last week as the Trump administration continues to put pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his government. The oil tanker, which had been under US sanctions for years, had been used to smuggle oil from Venezuela and Iran, according to US officials. Venezuela produces 1.1 million barrels a day, with the oil mainly flowing to China and India, according to Rystad Energy analysis. Although the volume is small in terms of global trade flows, representing about 1 per cent, but the quality is unique as more than 67 per cent of the output is heavy, it added. “Benchmark crude oil prices could be impacted significantly by escalating military tensions between the US and Venezuela, with the Trump administration tightening pressure on Nicolas Maduro’s regime and signalling the possibility of a US incursion,” Rystad said. But, despite Venezuela tensions, “oil markets remain weighed down by structural oversupply concerns”, Soojin Kim, a research analyst at MUFG Bank, said. This was due to output increase from Opec+, tepid demand concerns and a potential Ukraine peace deal that could ease curbs on Russia crude “leaving prices on track for an annual decline”, she added. Oil prices have been volatile this year with the Russia-Ukraine war and peace talks to end it. Mr Trump's tariffs and the decision by Opec+ to unwind production cuts has also affected prices. Traders expect more oil to enter global markets next year as the producers' group boosts output amid lower demand. Last month, Opec+ agreed to another output increase of 137,000 bpd for December. However, it paused production rises for the first quarter of next year.
Trump Venezuela blockade sends global oil prices soaring over 2% -Global crude oil prices surged more than 2% early Wednesday, December 17, after U.S. President Donald Trump announced a naval blockade targeting Venezuela’s oil exports. This news rattled energy markets and sent shockwaves through global finance. The global benchmark Brent Crude jumped to $60.29 per barrel, a gain of over 2.3% while the U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) benchmark rose 2.37% to $56.59. The rally sharply reversed a recent slump that had seen Brent dip below $60 a barrel for the first time since May, driven by supply gluts and optimism over a potential Russia-Ukraine peace plan. President Trump posted on Truth Social late Tuesday, declaring he had ordered a “total and complete blockade” of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela, which he described as being “completely surrounded by the largest Armada ever assembled in the history of South America.” Moreover, he referred to the government of Nicolas Maduro as a “foreign terrorist organization" alleging Venezuela’s oil revenues fund “Drug Terrorism, Human Trafficking, Murder, and Kidnapping.” According to market analysts, prices were rising in anticipation of a significant reduction in Venezuelan exports, which is a major OPEC producer, though traders are awaiting details on how the blockade will be enforced and whether it might extend to non-sanctioned vessels. Beyond oil prices, other assets also got lifted due to geopolitical shockwaves. Gold prices advanced toward record highs above $4,330 an ounce. European stock markets climbed, led by giants BP and Shell, which both gained over 2%. The U.S. dollar strengthened, and Treasury yields edged higher. For now, traders are bracing for reduced supply and heightened volatility, as the Trump administration’s latest move transforms a long-stranding economic pressure campaign into a naval confrontation with one of the world’s largest oil producers.
Oil rises as Trump's Venezuela blockade takes edge off global crude surplus concerns (Reuters) - Oil prices rallied by more than 1% on Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump ordered a blockade of all oil tankers under sanctions entering and leaving Venezuela, raising global political tensions and easing concerns about a swelling surplus of global crude. Brent crude futures settled at $59.68 a barrel, rising 76 cents, or 1.3%. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude settled at $55.94 a barrel, up 67 cents, or 1.2%. Growing U.S. fuel inventories tempered the rise in oil prices. Prices had settled near five-year lows in the previous session on signs of progress in Russia-Ukraine peace talks. A peace agreement could see Western sanctions on Moscow eased, freeing up supply as the market grapples with fragile global demand. On Tuesday, Trump ordered a blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela, saying he regarded President Nicolas Maduro's administration as a foreign terrorist organization. The Venezuelan government said in a statement it rejected Trump's "grotesque threat." Trump made his blockade comments a week after the U.S. seized a sanctioned oil tanker off Venezuela's coast. It is unclear how many tankers will be affected and how the U.S. will impose the blockade, and whether Trump will turn to the U.S. Coast Guard to interdict vessels, as he did last week. In recent months, the U.S. has moved warships into the region. Some energy experts are skeptical that Trump's latest actions would make a meaningful dent in global crude oil supplies. "While U.S. actions may inject short-term noise and modest risk premium, they are insufficient on their own to tighten global balances or drive a sustained rally in crude prices," Kpler energy analysts said in a note. While many vessels picking up oil in Venezuela are under sanctions, others transporting the country's oil and crude by way of Iran and Russia have not been sanctioned. Tankers chartered by Chevron are carrying Venezuelan crude to the U.S. under an authorization previously granted by Washington. China is the biggest buyer of Venezuelan crude, which accounts for about 1% of global supplies. Adding further uncertainty to Venezuela's energy production, state-run oil company PDVSA on Wednesday said it was resuming at its terminals following a cyberattack that affected its centralized administrative systems. At least two tankers carrying oil byproducts, including methanol and petroleum coke, departed from Venezuela's largest port, Jose, according to ship-tracking data and internal documents from state company PDVSA. The U.S. has not targeted exports of oil byproducts or petrochemicals since it first imposed energy sanctions on Venezuela in 2019. Rising inventories of gasoline and distillate in the U.S. took some of the steam out of crude oil's rise. While crude inventories fell last week, those of gasoline and distillate grew more than analysts expected, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Crude inventories dropped by 1.3 million barrels to 424.4 million barrels in the week ended December 12, the EIA said, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a draw of 1.1 million barrels. U.S. gasoline stocks, meanwhile, added 4.8 million barrels in the week to 225.6 million barrels, the EIA said, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a build of 2.1 million barrels. Distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, rose by 1.7 million barrels in the week to 118.5 million barrels, versus expectations for a rise of 1.2 million barrels, the EIA data showed.
Oil prices rise after Venezuela on blockade (Saba) - Oil prices rose by about a dollar in Asian trading on Thursday after US President Donald Trump announced a blockade on oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela, further disrupting most of the country's exports. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose 98 cents, or 1.7 percent, to $56.89 a barrel by 0120 GMT, after initially rising by more than a dollar. Brent crude climbed 92 cents, or 1.54 percent, to $60.60 a barrel, according to Reuters. News of the US blockade on Venezuela pushed oil prices up by more than 1 percent during Wednesday's session, recovering from five-year lows reached amid progress in the Ukrainian peace talks, which could pave the way for easing sanctions on Russia. Venezuelan crude accounts for about 1 percent of global supply, with most of it exported to China. However, market sources indicate that weak demand and an abundance of crude oil available on floating storage units in Asia are reducing the impact of the latest developments on the world's largest oil importer.
Oil Futures Climb Again on Venezuela Tanker Blockade – DTN - Oil prices climbed again on Thursday, Dec. 18 as a second day of a U.S. naval blockade on Venezuela lent support to a market otherwise thin on news. Increasing U.S. actions against Venezuela kept up the risk premium in crude in today's session after U.S. President Donald Trump announced Tuesday, Dec. 16, a naval blockade against all sanctioned tankers attempting to access Venezuelan oil. Trump has said that the United States wants to reclaim its "land, oil rights and assets" in Venezuela. U.S. oil firms ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips were expelled in 2007 from production sharing contracts in that country, leaving Chevron as the only remaining American operator. Weekly U.S. crude inventory draw reported by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) on Wednesday, Dec. 17, also contributed to the upside in crude futures. The EIA's Weekly Petroleum Status Report showed Wednesday, Dec. 17, that commercial oil reserves dropped by 1.3 million bbl to 424.4 million for the week to Dec. 12. This morning, the Bureau of Labor Statistics report that U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) dipped 0.3% year-on-year in November, bringing the annual rate of inflation for the all-items index to 2.7%. It was the first reading below 3% since August, though still above the U.S. Federal Reserve's 2% target. The data did little to change the bullish sentiment in oil futures. NYMEX WTI crude for January delivery settled up $0.21, or 0.4%, at $56.15 bbl. It rallied 1.2% on Wednesday, Dec. 17, to recover from the prior session's 2021 low of $54.89. ICE Brent futures for February settled up $0.14, or 0.2%, at $59.82 bbl, adding to Wednesday's higher settlement of 1.4%. February Brent slid beneath the key $60 bbl support two days earlier. NYMEX front-month gasoline closed virtually flat, rising $0.0007 gallon, to close at $1.7013. It dropped beneath the key $1.60 mark earlier in the week. Front-month ULSD was also little changed, settling down $0.0030 at $2.1316 bbl. The U.S. Dollar Index was up 0.103 points at 98.105 against a basket of currencies.
Another Round of Sanctions Expected on Russia's Energy Sector - The oil market steadied as the market assessed the likelihood of further U.S. sanctions against Russia and the impact of a blockade of Venezuelan oil tankers. On Wednesday, Bloomberg reported that the U.S. is preparing another round of sanctions on Russia’s energy sector in the event that Russia does not agree to a peace deal with Ukraine. The market also traded mostly sideways following President Trump’s announcement on Tuesday that the U.S. would blockade tankers under sanctions entering and leaving Venezuela. The crude market posted a high of $57.03 in overnight trading before it erased some of its gains and posted a low of $55.88 early in the morning. The market later bounced off its low and retraced some of its earlier losses and settled in a sideways trading range. The January WTI contract settled up 21 cents at $56.15 and the February Brent contract settled up 14 cents at $59.82. The product markets ended the session in mixed territory, with the heating oil market settling down 1.79 cents at $2.1316 and the RB market settling up 70 points at $1.7013. The Kremlin said Russia is preparing contacts with the United States to find out what changes have been made to Washington’s Ukraine peace plan after its consultations with Ukraine and European governments. Politico reported that U.S. and Russian officials are expected to meet in Miami over the weekend, and that the Russian delegation would include Russian President Vladimir Putin’s investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev. On Wednesday, Russia’s President said Russia would take more land in Ukraine by force if Kyiv and European politicians did not engage over U.S. proposals for a peace settlement. Russia’s Foreign Ministry said that it hoped that U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration did not make a fatal mistake over Venezuela and said that Moscow was concerned about U.S. decisions that threatened international navigation. The European Union imposed sanctions on 41 more ships in Russia’s shadow fleet, taking the total of designated vessels to almost 600. The EU Council said the ships are now banned from entering EU ports and can no longer receive a broad range of services related to maritime transport. Bloomberg reported that an increasing number of ships laden with Russia’s Urals crude are off China’s coast, in the hope that independent refiners there will take the crude as India’s demand declines due to U.S. sanctions. Bloomberg reported that an oil tanker caught fire after an overnight drone attack on Russia’s southern city of Rostov, as Ukraine expands the scope of its strikes on energy assets. The Treasury Department said the United States imposed sanctions on 29 vessels, carrying Iranian oil, and their management firms, as Washington continues targeting Tehran’s “shadow fleet” it says exports Iranian petroleum and petroleum products. The U.S. EPA reported that the U.S. generated fewer renewable blending credits in November than in October. It reported that about 1.14 billion ethanol blending credits were generated in November, compared with about 1.28 billion in October. Credits generated from biodiesel blending fell to 603 million in November from 667 million in the previous month.
Oil prices little changed as market waits for news on possible Russia-Ukraine peace - Oil prices were little changed on Friday as the market waits for news about a possible Russia-Ukraine peace deal and interest rate decisions from central banks around the world. Prices lacked direction despite concerns over possible disruptions from a U.S. blockade of Venezuelan tankers. Brent futures rose 13 cents or 0.2% to $59.95 per barrel at 10:54 a.m. EST (1554 GMT), while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose 16 cents or 0.3% to $56.31. That put Brent and WTI down about 2% so far this week after both crude benchmarks fell about 4% last week. As U.S. President Donald Trump seeks an end to Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War Two, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the onus was on Ukraine and Europe to make the next move toward peace. European Union leaders decided on Friday to borrow cash to loan 90 billion euros ($105 billion) to Ukraine to fund its defense against Russia for the next two years rather than use frozen Russian assets, sidestepping divisions over an unprecedented plan to finance Kyiv with Russian sovereign cash. Putin offered no compromise on Friday on his terms for ending the war in Ukraine and accused the European Union of attempting “daylight robbery” of Russian assets. Ukraine, meanwhile, struck a Russian “shadow fleet” oil tanker in the Mediterranean Sea with aerial drones for the first time, an official said on Friday, reflecting the growing intensity of Kyiv’s attacks on Russian oil shipping. “The (oil) complex is posting small gains in holding above lows established earlier this week as it awaits further guidance regarding Ukraine/Russian peace talks as well as fresh headlines out of Venezuela as to the potential impact of the apparent Trump tanker blockade,” analysts at energy advisory firm Ritterbusch and Associates said in a note. Trump told NBC News in an interview that he was leaving the possibility of war with Venezuela on the table. Uncertainty over how the U.S. would enforce Trump’s intent to block sanctioned tankers from entering and leaving Venezuela tempered geopolitical risk premiums, IG analyst Tony Sycamore said. Venezuela, which pumps about 1% of global oil supplies, on Thursday authorized two unsanctioned cargoes to set sail for China, said two sources familiar with Venezuela’s oil export operations. Central banks in big economies are signalling a possible change of stance on interest rates, which are used to keep inflation in check. Higher interest rates increase the cost of borrowing for homes and businesses, which can reduce economic growth and oil demand. The Bank of Japan raised interest rates on Friday to levels unseen in 30 years, taking another landmark step in ending decades of huge monetary support and near-zero borrowing costs. European Central Bank policymakers warned on Friday about oversized risks around their latest economic projections, making the case for caution in setting policy and not taking the option of another interest rate cut off the table just yet. Reserve President John Williams told CNBC on Friday he does not see an imminent need to follow last week’s interest rate cut with another reduction in borrowing costs, adding that new inflation data is being buffeted by distortions.
Oil prices rise after Trump says he won't rule out war with Venezuela -U.S. crude oil prices rose on Friday after President Donald Trump told NBC News that he will not rule out war with OPEC member Venezuela."I don't rule it out, no," Trump told the news outlet in a phone interview. He declined to say whether overthrowing President Nicolas Maduro is his goal. “He knows exactly what I want," Trump told NBC. "He knows better than anybody." The oil market right now is not indicating a major risk of a supply disruption. U.S. crude oil rose 51 cents, or 0.91%, to close at $56.66 per barrel, while global benchmark Brent gained 65 cents, or 1.09%, to settle at $60.47. The U.S. benchmark fell to four year lows earlier this week as traders priced in the possibility of a peace agreement in Ukraine that would bring more Russian crude into a well supplied market.Trump has been ramping up pressure on Maduro. He ordered ablockade of sanctions oil tankers off the South American nation's coast after seizing a vessel a last week.The U.S. has staged a major military buildup in the Caribbean and launched deadly strikes on boats that it claims are trafficking drugs to the U.S. The legality of those strikes is disputed and has been the subject of scrutiny by Congress. Venezuela is a founding member of OPEC and has the largest proven oil reserves in the world. It is exporting about 749,000 barrels per day this year with at least half that oil going to China, according to data from Kpler. Venezuela exports about 132,000 bpd to the U.S., according to Kpler.
Oil Up Third Day but Down on Week as Glut Concerns Persist (DTN) -- Oil futures rose for a third straight session Friday, Dec. 19, extending their rebound from multi-year lows. But a second consecutive week of losses persisted for the crude and fuel markets amid concerns about oversupply. A U.S. naval blockade that prevented supply from leaving OPEC producer Venezuela has supported oil markets since the close of Tuesday's trading. But price drops in the first two days of the week proved larger than the recovery that followed, resulting in the weekly losses. In Friday's session, the NYMEX WTI crude contract for January delivery was up $0.54, or 1%, at $56.54 bbl while showing a weekly loss of 2%. January WTI hit a 2021 low of $54.89 on Tuesday as concerns over a global oil glut grew with the U.S. appearing closer in its goal of reaching a solution to the Ukraine war that could take sanctions off Russian oil. ICE Brent futures for February rose $051, or 0.9%, to $60.33 bbl, against a weekly drop of 1.3%. February Brent slid beneath the key $60 bbl mark three days earlier. NYMEX front-month gasoline climbed $0.0099 to $1.7112 gallon while showing a weekly deficit of 2%. It dropped beneath the key $1.68 gallon level earlier in the week. Front-month ULSD advanced $0.0049, or 0.2%, to $2.1365 gallon while persisting with a 3% slide on the week. In other market news, the Energy Information Administration announced late Thursday, Dec. 18, that its weekly petroleum and propane market reports due on Dec. 24 will be delayed until Dec. 29 as part of its holiday schedule.
Oil posts second weekly drop on potential Russia-Ukraine peace deal - Oil prices recorded a second steep weekly loss, as market participants continued to digest the growing prospects of a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. This has also offset concerns about supply disruption in the midst of simmering tension between the US and Venezuela. Together with the Russia-Ukraine talks, these themes have dominated the oil market since last week. Brent, the benchmark for two thirds of the world's oil, gained 1.1 per cent to close at $60.47 a barrel on Friday. West Texas Intermediate, (WTI), the gauge that tracks US crude, gained 0.9 per cent to settle above $56.6 a barrel. That put Brent and WTI down about 1 per cent this week after both crude benchmarks fell about 4 per cent last week. In the year to date, Brent has now given up 20 per cent, while WTI has receded by 22 per cent. The week's developments have shown signs of extending oil's reduction, as market participants price in a large oversupply for early 2026, “Expectations for a peace settlement between Russia and Ukraine further pressured oil, as markets expect loosening of sanctions and a potential rise in Russian exports, which further support the oversupply theme.” Negotiations about ending the war in Ukraine have reached a “major moment”, UK Defence Secretary John Healey said this week, despite warnings that the peace deal is an “illusion” that Russia will not accept.The outcome of high-level talks involving top US envoys in Berlin, where Ukraine appeared to accept that any deal would mean it could not join Nato, has been well received in Washington. US President Donald Trump hailed potential progress from “very long and very good talks” with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the leaders of the UK, France, Germany and Nato.“I think we’re closer now than we have been ever,” Mr Trump said.Meanwhile, oil prices rose early on Wednesday as supply concerns increased after Mr Trump ordered a “complete and total” blockade of sanctioned oil tankers moving in and out of Venezuela – part of continuing US military action against the South American country.The US has bolstered its forces in what Washington says is a campaign to curb illegal drugs. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has accused the White House of attempting to use military pressure to overthrow him. Caracas has also suggested the US is attempting to get hold of Venezuela's crude reserves, which were estimated at more than 300 billion barrels last year, and are the world's largest. Saudi Arabia is ranked second with 267 billion barrels.The oil market has also been weighed down by Opec+ moves to boost production, analysts at MUFG Bank have said.The Opec+ group of producers, led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, last month agreed to keep oil production levels unchanged and approved a mechanism to determine members' maximum output capacity.Oxford Economics expects the Opec+ output hike pause to be extended to the second quarter of 2026, “dragging on first-half momentum”. Analysts at the UK-based research firm expect Gulf countries to “resume raising oil supply again in the second half of 2026 and project a full unwinding of the remaining caps on production by mid-2027” .
US seizes second oil tanker off Venezuela’s coast as Trump ups pressure on Maduro - U.S. personnel seized a second oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela on Saturday as President Trump ratchets up the pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. The seizure of the vessel, which took place in international waters, was led by the Coast Guard and assisted by the U.S. military, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem announced on Saturday. The vessel was docked in Venezuela. “The United States will continue to pursue the illicit movement of sanctioned oil that is used to fund narco terrorism in the region. We will find you, and we will stop you,” Noem said in a post on social platform X, attaching a 7-minute video of the operation. The Hill has reached out to the White House for comment. Defense Sec. Pete Hegseth later hailed the seizure. “President Trump has been clear: the blockade of sanctioned oil tankers departing from, or bound for, Venezuela will remain in full force until Maduro’s criminal enterprise returns every stolen American asset,” he wrote in a post on X. “The @DeptofWar, with our partners at @USCG, will unflinchingly conduct maritime interdiction operations — through OPERATION SOUTHERN SPEAR — to dismantle illicit criminal networks. Violence, drugs, and chaos will not control the Western Hemisphere.” Hegseth did not note if the seized tanker is on the Treasury Department’s list of sanctioned vessels.” The move by U.S. authorities comes just days after President Trump said his administration would impose a “blockade” on all sanctioned oil tankers sailing in and out of Venezuela. The news of the seizure was first reported by Reuters. “The illegitimate Maduro Regime is using Oil from these stolen Oil Fields to finance themselves, Drug Terrorism, Human Trafficking, Murder, and Kidnapping,” the president said earlier this week.
Israel approves $34 billion natural-gas deal with Egypt - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Wednesday the approval of the country’s largest-ever natural gas export agreement—a deal worth 112 billion shekels ($34.5 billion) that will send fuel to Egypt through 2040. The agreement with U.S. energy company Chevron and Israeli partners is expected to generate about 58 billion shekels ($17.9 billion) in state revenue through taxes and royalties, with funds designated for education, health, infrastructure and security. The deal also includes more than 16 billion shekels ($4.9 billion) in direct infrastructure investment. “This deal greatly strengthens Israel’s status as a regional energy power and contributes to stability in our region. It encourages other companies to invest in gas exploration in Israel’s economic waters,” Netanyahu said alongside Energy and Infrastructure Minister Eli Cohen following the approval. “More gas will be found, but first and foremost, this deal obligates the companies to sell gas at a good price to you—the citizens of Israel.” Revenue will start modestly, at about half a billion shekels ($154 million) annually during the first four years as companies expand pipeline infrastructure, then rise to about 6 billion shekels ($1.9 billion) per year, according to Netanyahu’s office. Cohen called the agreement a historic moment that establishes Israel as a regional energy power. The approval includes mechanisms to prioritize supply and improve gas pricing for the local market. “Natural gas is a strategic asset for the state. Prime Minister, you resolutely led the Gas Framework exactly a decade ago, and today we are reaping the fruits,” Cohen said. “We will continue to work toward bringing in additional local and international companies to invest in Israel to increase reserves for the local market and export.” In a world full of spin, truth matt
Israel’s Attacks on Lebanon Reconstruction Sites Amount to War Crimes – HRW - The Israeli military’s repeated attacks on reconstruction-related equipment and other civilian facilities in south Lebanon throughout 2025 “violate the laws of war and are apparent war crimes,” Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a report on Monday. “Amid the ceasefire, Israeli forces have carried out attacks that unlawfully target reconstruction-related equipment and facilities,” said Ramzi Kaiss, Lebanon researcher at HRW. “After reducing many of Lebanon’s southern border towns to rubble, the Israeli military is now making it much more difficult for tens of thousands of residents to rebuild their destroyed homes and return to their towns.” HRW said residents and local municipal authorities have told the rights group that the attacks have hampered reconstruction efforts and the ability of tens of thousands of displaced people to return to their homes in southern Lebanon. Over 10,000 buildings were heavily damaged or destroyed there between October 2023 and January 2025, according to HRW. The rights group investigated four attacks on reconstruction-related sites, including three on six outdoor showrooms and maintenance facilities for bulldozers, excavators, and heavy machinery in the southern Lebanese towns of Deir Seryan, Msayleh, and Ansariyeh, as well as an attack on a cement and asphalt factory in Sinay. The strikes, between August and October 2025, months after a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah, killed three civilians and injured at least 11 people, the report stated. HRW researchers visited the sites and interviewed 13 people, including owners of the storage and maintenance facilities, mayors of the towns, a manager at the cement and asphalt factory, a government contractor, and three people working at an international nongovernmental organization providing aid in southern Lebanon. The rights group also reviewed inventory documents and contracts provided by three site owners. The four attacks destroyed over 360 heavy machines, including bulldozers and excavators, in addition to an asphalt and cement factory. Owners of heavy machinery sites told HRW that they sold or rented machinery throughout various areas of Lebanon, and that some of the machines that they sold or rented were used for civilian reconstruction efforts, including rubble clearing. “We can’t even clear the rubble (from our sites) because we’re afraid that, if we clear it, more of the machines we’re using for rubble-clearing might be struck,” Ibrahim Karim, owner of a site in Deir Seryan, said. “So here, we’ve moved the rubble with our own For each of the attacks, Israeli forces had issued statements that the equipment and materials were used by Hezbollah or “allowed,” “enabled” or were “intended” to be used by Hezbollah to “rebuild” or “reestablish” its “assets,” “activity,” or “infrastructure,” without revealing any details. HRW said it “did not find evidence of military targets in and around the sites,” adding that researchers were able to verify that some of the machinery and supplies were being utilized for civilian purposes. Researchers, it noted, were also unable to verify the use of all machinery and materials that were attacked, “but did not find any evidence of their use for military purposes by Hezbollah.”
Euro-Med Monitor Warns of Systematic Efforts to Empty Gaza of Skilled Professionals - According to Palestinian documentation, since October 7, 2023, Israeli forces have killed approximately 1,670 medical personnel, 257 journalists, 830 teachers and education staff, and 13,500 students. The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor has warned of active and coordinated efforts to facilitate the departure of Gaza’s scientific, medical, academic, and media professionals, arguing that these practices amount to forced displacement and form part of a broader Israeli strategy to dismantle Palestinian society in the Strip.In an interview with Al-Jazeera, the head of the observatory, Dr. Rami Abdo, said that individuals with critical skills, including doctors, journalists, academics, and researchers, are being granted special visas or facilitated exit through official and unofficial mechanisms, often under unclear procedures. These arrangements, he explained, are commonly presented as scholarships, job opportunities, family reunification, or evacuation, but are implemented selectively and in coordination with the conditions imposed by Israel’s war on Gaza.Abdo said Euro-Med Monitor has documented communications with doctors in highly specialized fields that Gaza urgently needs, offering travel facilitation alongside promises of employment abroad. He stressed that this pattern becomes especially alarming when viewed in conjunction with Israel’s systematic targeting of the health sector, including the destruction of hospitals, the killing of medical staff, and the arrest of hundreds of doctors. Facilitating the departure of the remaining specialists, particularly those trained to treat war injuries, further cripples Gaza’s ability to sustain life.Abdo also pointed to the relative ease with which many prominent journalists have been able to leave Gaza, noting that those who exit are often replaced by less experienced reporters working under increasingly deadly conditions. According to him, this contributes to the erosion of professional capacity and institutional continuity, weakening Palestinian society’s ability to document and resist ongoing crimes.Abdo placed the killing and displacement of skilled professionals within what he described as a single, systematic plan. He said the occupation has pursued the direct assassination of professionals while simultaneously facilitating the departure of those who survive. Euro-Med Monitor has documented the killing of around 200 university professors and dozens of experts in various fields during the war. The result, he said, is an effort to re-engineer society so that Gaza is left without influential elites capable of leadership, reconstruction, or resistance.According to Palestinian documentation, since October 7, 2023, Israeli forces have killed approximately 1,670 medical personnel, 257 journalists, 830 teachers and education staff, and 13,500 students. While no precise figures exist for how many professionals have left Gaza, Abdo estimates that hundreds have already departed, many through opaque and poorly documented channels that raise serious concerns about coordination and intent.Abdo rejected attempts to frame these departures as voluntary. He argued that when livelihoods, healthcare, education, and basic survival are systematically destroyed, leaving becomes coerced rather than a free choice. Such practices, he said, constitute forced displacement, which is explicitly prohibited under international humanitarian law. While temporary evacuation for medical care does not violate international law, policies that lead to the systematic removal of professional groups fall under the prohibitions of the Geneva Conventions.He declined to name the embassies or consulates involved but said that international actors are participating in selective facilitation efforts that align with Israel’s broader policy of undermining Palestinian perseverance by emptying Gaza of its remaining intellectual and professional capacity.
Israeli Soldiers Shoot Settler near Kedumim after Assuming He Was Palestinian -- An illegal Israeli settler was shot and seriously wounded by occupation soldiers near Kedumim after they assumed he was Palestinian, only later confirming his identity as a settler. Israeli occupation soldiers opened fire on an individual at a gas station near the Kedumim settlement, between Qalqilya and Nablus in the occupied West Bank, after suspecting an attempted stabbing, Israeli media reported on Monday. Subsequent reports confirmed that the person shot was not Palestinian but an illegal Israeli Jewish settler. According to Al-Jazeera, Israeli radio later acknowledged that no stabbing incident had taken place and that soldiers had mistakenly shot a settler, leaving him in critical condition. According to Israeli Channel 14, the injured individual was a Jewish boy described as mentally disturbed. The report claimed that he had allegedly brandished a knife at soldiers stationed in the area, prompting them to open fire. Israeli emergency services said the boy was transferred to a hospital with very serious injuries. Israeli, Palestinian, and international human rights organizations have repeatedly condemned what they describe as a systematic Israeli policy of using lethal force against Palestinians under the pretext of alleged or suspected attacks. Rights groups have documented numerous cases in which Palestinians were shot at close range despite posing no imminent threat. This practice, they argue, amounts to extrajudicial killing and reflects a standing military doctrine that prioritizes summary execution over due process, particularly when the suspect is Palestinian.
Israeli Troops Raid Syria’s Quneitra, Capture Three Civilians Collecting Firewood - Israeli troops continue to carry out raids into southwestern Syria, once again centering on the northern parts of Quneitra Governorate and in and around the town of Jbata Al-Khashab, where troops established a checkpoint at the key Ain al-Bayda Junction nearby, hassling civilians and vehicles trying to pass by.Such checkpoints are becoming increasingly common in Quneitra and parts of Daraa, where Israeli troops move into an area, set up a checkpoint, and usually stay for just a few hours before withdrawing. Only occasionally does anything happen beyond inconvenience for the locals. Israeli troops were also operating in the area of al-Hamidiyah village, where they captured three people on the outskirts of the village who were gathering firewood. What they’re being charged with is unclear, and reportedly they were just arbitrarily “arrested.”
Ukraine Hits Russian Shadow Tanker in Mediterranean for First Time --Ukraine has hit an empty oil tanker of Russia’s shadow fleet in the Mediterranean in the first such drone attack in this sea in another escalation of the Ukrainian strikes on Russian vessels. The Qendil tanker, flying the flag of Oman, was targeted and hit by drones, Ukraine said on Friday. The vessel was empty, and its blow-up does not pose an environmental threat, sources with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg. Ukraine has stepped up drone attacks on empty vessels of the Russian shadow fleet in recent weeks. As a result of this, oil tankers carrying Russian oil appear to be avoiding the fastest Black Sea route to the Turkish straits and travel along the Georgian and Turkish coasts to avoid drone attacks from Ukraine, according to ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. At least two tankers that have loaded oil from Novorossiysk, the Russian port on the Black Sea, have recently traveled along the Georgian and Turkish coasts instead of taking the shortest route to the Bosphorus Strait, according to the data compiled by Bloomberg. The detour along the Georgian and Turkish coasts would add about 350 miles, or 70%, to the journey of an oil tanker from the port of Novorossiysk to the Turkish straits.Crude oil exports from the Russian terminals on the Black Sea were much lower in November than originally planned as bad weather and Ukrainian attacks on infrastructure have delayed loadings and departures. Ukrainian attacks have also crippled Russia’s fuel exports from the Black Sea ports in recent weeks. Ukrainian forces have increasingly targeted Russian oil-refining, storage, and export infrastructure using drones and missiles. The campaign has gained intensity in recent months, with the Center for European Policy Analysis noting a shift in strategy “from smaller-scale strikes on storage tanks to targeting hard-to-replace refinery equipment, like cracking units, much of it western-made and subject to sanctions.”
Modi greets Putin with pomp and ceremony as Trump demands New Delhi downgrade its ties with Russia -- India rolled out the red carpet for Russian President Vladimir Putin when he visited New Delhi earlier this month. This began with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi breaking with protocol to personally greet Putin as he stepped off the plane at the Palam Air Base, and continued throughout the two-day visit, which concluded with the signing of a slate of new agreements aimed at boosting trade, investment, labour mobility, defence and other ties. India’s demonstrative display of the “warmth” and “strength” of its decades-long strategic partnership with Russia was intended as a message to Washington that New Delhi will not allow the US to define its relationship with Moscow. The Modi government, building on the Indo-US Global Strategic Partnership its Congress Party predecessor negotiated, has dramatically expanded India’s military-security ties with Washington during its eleven years in office, transforming India into a veritable frontline state in US imperialism’s strategic confrontation with China. Yet to the dismay of Modi, his BJP government and the whole Indian ruling class, US President Donald Trump has repeatedly struck at India, demanding that it remove barriers to US exports and investment, cease Russian oil imports and otherwise downgrade its ties with Moscow. Since late August, most Indian exports to the US have been subject to 50 percent tariffs. This includes an India-specific 25 percent punitive tariff that Washington says will remain in place until India stops importing Russian oil. At 50 percent, India’s reciprocal tariff is higher than that the US has imposed on China, also a large importer of Russian oil, or any other country—and in the case of India’s arch-rival Pakistan (19 percent), far higher. Yet for all the pomp and ceremony and affirmations by both Modi and Putin of the strength of Indo-Russian ties, New Delhi and Moscow did not announce any of the rumoured new major military-defence deals. From the standpoint of the BJP government and the Indian ruling class, Putin’s visit for the 23rd India-Russia Annual summit was part of a precarious balancing act. India has long tried to straddle the growing geopolitical divide between Russia and the US and its NATO partners. But this has become ever more difficult, especially since the outbreak of the US-NATO-instigated Ukraine war. Trump is a further complicating factor. In a desperate bid to arrest the rapid erosion of US imperialism’s economic and geopolitical power, he is lashing out against avowed US strategic enemies and ostensible allies alike. Putin’s December 4-5 visit was his first to India since the outbreak of the Ukraine war. Eager to show that the western powers have failed to isolate Russia, Putin, like his Indian hosts, took every opportunity to play up the strength of Russo-Indian ties. In an India Today interview, Putin said he felt “very happy” to meet “my friend” Modi and praised their two countries’ cooperation in ship and aircraft manufacturing, nuclear energy, and space exploration. He also hit out at the US attempt to bully India to cease its imports of discounted Russian oil, noting, as Indian government officials repeatedly have, that the US and Europe continue to import Russian energy, including uranium and liquefied natural gas. “If the US has the right to buy our fuel,” said Putin,” why shouldn’t India have the same privilege?” Putin was accompanied by a high-level delegation, including Defense Minister Andrey Belousov, First Deputy Prime Minister and Industry Minister Denis Manturov, Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina and prominent business leaders.
Putin Dismisses EU Leaders As 'European Swine' Who've Failed To Collapse Russia -President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that European leaders have continued stoking and hyping fears that Russia seeks expansion and that it is prepared even to go to war with EU and NATO countries. He went so far as to call EU officials "European swine" for their role in fueling the proxy war.He again emphasized that Moscow is in no way seeking war with Europe. "I have repeatedly stated: this is a lie, nonsense, pure nonsense about some imaginary Russian threat to European countries. But this is being done quite deliberately," he said.The Kremlin has repeatedly accused EU leaders of seeking to thwart peace, while praising that Washington's efforts to forge a deal under Trump appear genuine and are in good faith.However, the Trump admin is currently said to be preparing more sanctions on Russia's energy sector if Moscow persists in rejecting a peace deal. All the while, Zelensky is trying to "have is cake and eat it too" by on the one hand embracing the West's offer of 'Article 5-style' security guarantees and on the other refusing to make territorial concessions.Putin in his Wednesday remarks remained undeterred, vowing that Russia will accomplish its goals in Ukraine by diplomatic or military means. Currently, Moscow forces are expanding a "security buffer zone" there."First, the goals of the special military operation will undoubtedly be achieved. We would prefer to do this and address the root causes of the conflict through diplomacy," Putin said."If the opposing side and their foreign patrons refuse to engage in substantive discussions, Russia will achieve the liberation of its historical lands by military means. The task of creating and expanding a security buffer zone will also be consistently addressed."Among the more interesting parts of the speech came as follows: "And the European piglets immediately joined in this work of the former American [Biden] administration, hoping to profit from the collapse of our country. To regain something that had been lost in previous historical periods and try to take revenge.As is now obvious to everyone, all these attempts and all these destructive plans against Russia have completely failed."
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