The Latest: House votes to extend health care subsidies in defiance of GOP leaders

In a remarkable rebuke of Republican leadership, the House passed legislation Thursday, 230-196, that would extend expired health care subsidies for those who get coverage through the Affordable Care Act as renegade GOP lawmakers joined essentially all Democrats in voting for the measure.

Forcing the issue to a vote came about after a handful of Republicans signed what is commonly known as a ''discharge petition'' to unlock debate, bypassing objections from House Speaker Mike Johnson. The bill now goes to the Senate, where pressure is building for a similar bipartisan compromise.

Together, the rare political coalitions are rushing to resolve the standoff over the enhanced tax credits that were put in place during the COVID-19 crisis but expired late last year after no agreement was reached during the government shutdown.

Ahead of voting, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated that the bill, which would provide a three-year extension of the subsidy, would increase the nation's deficit by about $80.6 billion over the decade. At the same time, it would increase the number of people with health insurance by 100,000 this year, 3 million in 2027, 4 million in 2028 and 1.1 million in 2029, the CBO said.

The Latest:

Venezuelan opposition leader may meet with Trump next week

Trump indicated that Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado may be visiting next week and that he may meet with her.

Machado was awarded last year's Nobel Peace Prize, an honor Trump had been hoping to receive.

Venezuela helps vault Rubio to quarterback of Trump's foreign policy team

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is quarterbacking Trump's foreign policy team as it navigates particularly turbulent times, notably in Venezuela and elsewhere in Latin America, longtime core interests of the child of Cuban immigrants and former Florida senator.

As the Trump administration has alarmed much of the world with its stunning military operation that captured former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and its threats to potentially annex Greenland by force, Rubio has emerged as a voice of relative calm.

In public comments and private briefings to lawmakers, he has toned down bombastic remarks from the president and other top officials even as he offers a full-throated defense of Trump's more audacious plans. Still, he had a key role in one of the most assertive actions — Maduro's ouster — after long pursuing leadership changes in Venezuela and Cuba, countries close to him personally and politically.

Trump says he hasn't taken obesity drugs but ‘I probably should'

In a wide-ranging interview with The New York Times, the president was asked if he has taken any of the massively popular GLP-1 weight-loss and diabetes drugs, which he has called ''the fat drug.''

''No, I have not,'' he said. ''I probably should.''

Trump's physical report from April said the president stands at 6' 3'' (190.5 centimeters) and weighed in at 224 pounds (101.6 kilograms), which is 20 pounds (9.1 kilograms) lighter than a 2020 checkup in his first term that showed him bordering on obesity.

House passes bill to extend health care subsidies in defiance of GOP leaders

Forcing the issue to a vote came about after a handful of Republicans signed on to a ''discharge petition'' to unlock debate, bypassing objections from House Speaker Mike Johnson. The bill now goes to the Senate, where pressure is building for a similar bipartisan compromise.

Together, the rare political coalitions are rushing to resolve the standoff over the enhanced tax credits that were put in place during the COVID-19 crisis but expired late last year after no agreement was reached during the government shutdown.

Trump wants the government to buy $200 billion in mortgage bonds to bring down rates

Trump said on social media Thursday that the move would help reduce mortgage rates at a time when Americans are worried about home prices.

Trump and the White House have been trying to show they are responding to voter concerns about affordability ahead of midterm elections in November.

Trump says he must own Greenland in a New York Times interview

Trump said he has to possess the entirety of Greenland instead of just exercising a longstanding treaty that gives the U.S. wide latitude to use the country for military posts, in an interview Wednesday with The New York Times.

''I think that ownership gives you a thing that you can't do with, you're talking about a lease or a treaty. Ownership gives you things and elements that you can't get from just signing a document,'' Trump said.

The U.S. is party to a 1951 treaty that gives it broad rights to set up military bases on the landmass with the consent of Denmark and Greenland.

On Thursday, Vice President JD Vance told reporters that European leaders should ''take the president of the United States seriously'' but framed his desire to own the landmass as a defense issue.

Denmark and Greenland envoys met with White House officials over ‘takeover'

Denmark and Greenland's envoys to Washington have begun a vigorous effort to urge U.S. lawmakers as well as key Trump administration officials to step back from Trump's call for a ''takeover'' of the strategic Arctic island.

Denmark's ambassador, Jesper Møller Sørensen, and Jacob Isbosethsen, Greenland's chief representative to Washington, met on Thursday with White House National Security Council officials to discuss a renewed push by Trump to acquire Greenland, perhaps by military force, according to Danish government officials who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment about the meeting.

▶ Read more about the meeting

The Senate has agreed to display a plaque honoring the police who defended the Capitol during the attack on Jan. 6, 2021, rebuffing House Speaker Mike Johnson who has said the commemorative memorial does not comply with the law.

Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina led the effort, announcing on this week's fifth anniversary of the Capitol siege that he would ask colleagues to have it installed. On Thursday, Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley of Oregon joined the effort. No other senators objected.

A replica plaque commemorating the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot stands outside the office of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Congress had approved the plaque three years ago, but it has never been officially hung — although replicas have proliferated in the halls in the lawmakers' nearby offices. Johnson, a Republican who led efforts to object to the 2020 election results ahead of the riot, has said the plaque as constructed does not comply with the law.

Police had sued to place the plaque as required, but Trump's Justice Department is trying to dismiss the lawsuit.

White House says it wasn't economical to save the East Wing during ballroom construction

The White House said it was not feasible to save the East Wing as they shared details of Trump's planned ballroom at Thursday's meeting of the National Capital Planning Commission.

Josh Fisher, director of the White House Office of Administration, listed off a variety of concerns, including a structurally unstable colonnade, water leakage and mold contamination, in explaining why it was more economical to tear down the East Wing to make room for the $400 million ballroom than to renovate it.

''Because of this and other factors,'' Fisher said, ''the cost analysis proved that demolition and reconstruction provided the lowest total cost ownership and most effective long-term strategy.''

Friends and relatives of Argentine detainees in Venezuela await word of releases

María Alexandra Gómez is the Venezuelan girlfriend of Nahuel Agustin Gallo, a non-commissioned officer and Argentine citizen who entered Venezuela from Colombia over a year ago to visit in-laws and never returned.

His continued detention has escalated already high tensions between the two countries. Venezuelan prosecutors say Gallo is being held on allegations of terrorism — something his family strongly rejects.

''We're confident that news will be given to us today, and if not today, please God let it be as soon as possible, because we've fought so hard for such a long time to be in this moment, in which Venezuela's prisons are opening up,'' Gómez, 33, told The Associated Press, clutching their 2-year-old son Victor and wearing a T-shirt that called for his release.

Families rush to Venezuelan prisons hoping their loved ones are among those freed

Venezuela will release a ''significant number'' of Venezuelan and foreigners imprisoned in the country, the head of Venezuela's national assembly said Thursday.

Durán said he bought a plane ticket as soon as he heard rumors that authorities might free some prisoners.

''I don't have words to express the emotion I'm feeling,'' he said. ''We're feeling a lot of hope ... We're just waiting now.''

Despite the anticipation, fear persists in parts of the South American country as residents brace for what comes next.

''Of course everyone here is very scared,'' Durán said, ''but what more could they (the government) do to us that they haven't done already?''

Vance says he's running a meeting on Venezuela ‘every other day'

At a briefing on Thursday, Vance said he's been running a meeting among top White House officials ''every other day...to talk about next steps, to try to ensure that Venezuela is stable.''

Vance said that so far he's ''been very involved, and I'll keep on doing that.'' He also said that his role on Venezuela will be ''whatever the president asks me to do.''

Vance says European allies should take Greenland's security ‘more seriously'

The vice president told reporters that his administration is asking European allies to take Greenland's security ''more seriously,'' or else ''the United States is going to have to do something about it.''

Trump has expressed repeated interest in acquiring Greenland and the White House has not ruled out a military intervention. Greenland is a self-governing territory of Denmark and thus part of the NATO military alliance.

Vance scolds the media for coverage of Minneapolis ICE shooting

Vice President JD Vance takes questions from reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Appearing in the White House briefing room, the vice president's voice rose as he decried what he called the ''corporate media'' for its coverage of a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer fatally shooting a motorist during an operation in Minneapolis.

''This was an attack on law and order. This was an attack on the American people,'' said Vance, who maintained it has not been portrayed that way by many journalists.

''The way that the media, by and large, has reported this story has been an absolute disgrace,'' he added. ''And it puts our law enforcement officers at risk every single day.''

Spain's government said Thursday that five Spanish citizens were released in Venezuela. It said they would be traveling back to Spain with the help of the Spanish embassy in Caracas, but did not specify when.

The announcement came shortly after Venezuela said it was releasing a ''significant number'' of citizens and foreigners from its prisons.

Vance says a new prosecutor will focus on abuse of government assistance programs

Vance says a new assistant attorney general will prosecute the abuse of government assistance programs in response to growing attention to fraud in child care programs in Minnesota.

He said the prosecutor will focus primarily on Minnesota but will have a nationwide ambit.

''This is the person who's going to make sure we stop defrauding the American people,'' Vance said in the White House briefing room.

South Carolina National Guard is sued over deployment to DC

A lawsuit filed Thursday asks the state Supreme Court to rule Gov. Henry McMaster's decision to send South Carolina National Guard troops to Washington last year ''unlawful.''

South Carolina initially sent 200 National Guard troops last year, as the Trump administration employed forces amid a federal crackdown on crime and homelessness in the capital city. Those forces returned, and in November McMaster said another 300 would be rotated back in.

Plaintiffs including the South Carolina Public Interest Foundation also ask the court to prevent South Carolina's adjutant general from further implementing the new troop rotation.

Bernice King says Trump's Venezuela policy is a ‘terrible precedent'

Bernice King, Martin Luther Luther King Jr.'s daughter who leads the King Center for Nonviolent Social Change, said Trump's move to depose Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela is ''deeply troubling'' and ''a terrible precedent to set.''

King said she doesn't ''understand why we take it upon ourselves to go into other nations'' given U.S. problems, and she lamented Trump saying his aim is to control more oil.

''Everything that seems to be expressed around this is about the resources that exist there,'' King said, rather than about Maduro's authoritarianism and Venezuelans' lives. ''It wasn't even about … what kind of leader he was.''

King speaks often about her father's ''three evils of society'' -- racism, excessive materialism and militarism. As she watches current U.S. policy, King said, ''These are days where I miss my father's voice and leadership. Because we've gotten so far off as a nation.''

A lawsuit filed Thursday asks the state Supreme Court to rule Gov. Henry McMaster's decision to send South Carolina National Guard troops to Washington last year ''unlawful.''

South Carolina initially sent 200 National Guard troops last year, as the Trump administration employed forces amid a federal crackdown on crime and homelessness in the capital city. Those forces returned, and in November McMaster said another 300 would be rotated back in.

Plaintiffs including the South Carolina Public Interest Foundation also ask the court to prevent South Carolina's adjutant general from further implementing the new troop rotation.

McMaster spokesperson Brandon Charochak told AP that South Carolina governors had ''unambiguous authority'' to deploy the Guard ''to save and protect American lives, defend the homeland, and assist in enforcing the rule of law.''

Trump calls out 5 Republicans for war powers vote

Trump said ''Susan Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Rand Paul, Josh Hawley, and Todd Young should never be elected to office again'' and called their vote ''stupidity'' in a post to Truth Social on Thursday.

Trump went on to argue that the War Powers Resolution, a Vietnam-era law that is aimed at limiting a President's power to commit troops to conflict without Congressional approval, was unconstitutional.

Senators meet with Danish ambassador about Greenland

A key Republican senator overseeing the military met with Denmark's ambassador Thursday morning and pushed back on Trump's idea that Greenland could be purchased.

Denmark is unwilling to negotiate over selling Greenland, said Sen. Roger Wicker. ''That's their prerogative and their right.''

''Greenland is not for sale,'' Isbosethsen told reporters.

Wicker added that he hoped an agreement could be reached that would strengthen the U.S. relationship with Denmark, a NATO ally.

Sen. Rand Paul says Venezuela makes war-powers debate more urgent

One of the five Republicans who voted to advance the war powers resolution, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky said the issue was no longer ''hypothetical'' for some lawmakers after the intervention in Venezuela.

''It's interesting to see that more people, at least on my side, now are interested in who has the war prerogative, who has the prerogative to initiate or declare war,'' he told reporters after the vote.

''But on the other hand,'' he said, ''to me, the worry, it isn't always just about the immediate president. It's about who the next president is and the next president and that if you can accuse someone of a crime anywhere in the world and then remove them without a vote of Congress, what it might lead to.''

Venezuela to release a ‘significant number' of prisoners as gesture to ‘seek peace'

Venezuela will release a ''significant number'' of Venezuelans and foreigners imprisoned in the country, the head of Venezuela's national assembly said Thursday.

Jorge Rodríguez, brother of acting President Delcy Rodríguez, did not specify who would be released or give an exact number.

Despite mass detentions following the tumultuous 2024 election, Venezuela's government maintains it doesn't keep political prisoners.

''Consider this gesture by the Bolivarian government, which is broadly intended to seek peace,'' Rodríguez said in an announcement publicized over TV.

UN chief says US has ‘legal obligation' to fund agencies despite withdrawal

The United Nations pushed back Thursday on the Trump administration's plan to pull out of more than 30 U.N. initiatives, saying Washington remains responsible for its required contributions.

In a statement by his spokesperson, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he regretted Trump's decision Wednesday to withdraw from 31 U.N.-related agencies, including the population agency and the treaty that establishes international climate negotiations.

''As we have consistently underscored, assessed contributions to the United Nations regular budget and peacekeeping budget, as approved by the General Assembly, are a legal obligation under the UN Charter for all Member States, including the United States,'' Stephane Dujarric, the U.N. spokesperson, said.

Senate advances Venezuela war powers resolution

The Senate has advanced a resolution that would limit Trump's ability to conduct further attacks against Venezuela, sounding a note of disapproval for the president's expanding ambitions in the Western Hemisphere.

Democrats and five Republicans voted to advance the war powers resolution on a 52-47 vote tally and ensure a later vote for final passage.

It has virtually no chance of becoming law because Trump would have to sign it if it were to pass the House, but it's still a significant gesture that shows unease among some Republicans after the U.S. military seized Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in a surprise nighttime raid.

Two Republicans flip on Venezuela war powers resolution vote

Two Republicans who previously voted against similar resolutions — Sens. Todd Young of Indiana and Susan Collins of Maine — are now voting for the resolution. It's still not clear what the final vote outcome would be.

A majority vote would set up a later vote on passage for the resolution. It still has virtually no chance of becoming law because Trump would have to sign it, but the vote outcome showed how some Republicans are uneasy with the Trump administration's military action against Venezuela.

Some Republicans insist on congressional approval for war

Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a close Trump ally, said on Air Force One on Sunday that he's comfortable with Trump taking over other countries — including Greenland — without congressional approval. ''The commander in chief is the commander in chief. They can use military force,'' Graham said.

But some others are voicing opposition. Asked whether he'd support putting troops on the ground in Venezuela, Thom Tillis of North Carolina responded: ''Not without congressional authorization.''

Paul said Republicans discussed Trump's plans for Greenland at their Wednesday luncheon and he heard ''zero support'' for taking military action to seize it.

Sen. Tim Kaine: ‘It's time for Congress to assert its control over military action of this kind'

''It's time to get this out of secrecy and put it in the light,'' the Virginia Democrat said after forcing a Thursday Senate vote on a resolution that would limit Trump's ability to strike Venezuela militarily again.

Kaine said a resolution on Greenland would soon be filed, in addition to Cuba, Mexico, Colombia and Nigeria.

Republican leaders have said they had no advance notification of the raid early morning Saturday to seize Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, but they've backed Trump, and mostly expressed satisfaction this week as top administration officials provided classified briefings on the operation.

The world's smaller countries depend on international law, EU official says

''The messages that we hear regarding Greenland are extremely concerning and we have had discussions also among the Europeans,'' Kaja Kallas, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said Thursday during a press conference in Egypt.

''All these statements are not really helping the stability of the world,'' Kallas said. ''The international law is very clear, and we have to stick to it. It is clear that it is the only thing that protects smaller countries and that's why it is in the interest of all of us, and we discussed this today as well, that we uphold the international law on all levels.''

Senate considers limiting Trump's war powers

The Senate is expected to vote on a resolution Thursday that would limit Trump's ability to conduct further attacks against Venezuela, setting up a test for his expanding ambitions in the Western Hemisphere.

Democrats have failed to pass several such resolutions in the months that Trump escalated his campaign against Venezuela. But lawmakers argued that now that Trump has captured Maduro and set his sights to other conquests such as Greenland, the vote presents the Republican-controlled Congress with an opportunity.

▶ Read more about the Senate's war powers vote

Greenlanders insist on their right to self-determination

Many Greenlanders feel that remarks about their self-governing territory have been disrespectful, Aaja Chemnitz, one of the two Greenlandic politicians in the Danish parliament, told The Associated Press. Trump's claim that Greenland is ''covered with Russian and Chinese ships all over the place'' is not accurate, she added.

''Many also experience that these conversations are being discussed over their heads. We have a firm saying in Greenland, ‘Nothing about Greenland, without Greenland,''' she said. ''Most Greenlanders wish more self-determination including independence'' but also want to ''strengthen cooperation with our partners'' in security and business development as long as it is based on ''mutual respect and recognition of our right to self-determination.''

Russia denounces US threat to prosecute crew of seized tanker as ‘categorically unacceptable'

The Russian Foreign Ministry is calling the U.S. seizure of the Marinera oil tanker under the Russian flag was ''a gross violation of the fundamental principles and norms of international maritime law'' and warns that the incident could incite geopolitical tensions.

''Washington's willingness to generate acute international crisis situations, including in relation to already extremely strained Russian-American relations, which are burdened by disagreements from past years, is a cause for regret and concern,'' the ministry said in a statement Thursday.

U.S. actions lower the ''threshold for the use of force'' on the sea, and it's ''utterly cynical'' for the U.S. to say the seizure is part of an effort to take over Venezuela's oil production, it said. ''We resolutely reject such neo-colonial ambitions.''

French president denounces ‘law of the strongest'

''It's the greatest disorder, the law of the strongest, and everyday people wonder whether Greenland will be invaded, whether Canada will be under the threat of becoming the 51st state (of the United States) or whether Taiwan is to be further circled,'' Macron said.

The French president pointed to an ''increasingly dysfunctional'' world where great powers, including the U.S and China, have ''a real temptation to divide the world amongst themselves.''

Trump cites Jimmy Carter ‘disaster' when talking about Maduro mission

Trump has boasted about the U.S. military operation to capture former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. But the mission did involve a U.S. helicopter being hit by enemy fire.

In a New York Times interview published Thursday, Trump said he was thinking about a ''Jimmy Carter disaster'' as the Venezuela mission played out.

''That destroyed his entire administration,'' Trump told the Times.

Trump used Carter often in the 2024 campaign to mock then-President Joe Biden, saying Carter loved Biden ''because he had a brilliant presidency compared to Biden.''

Danish Defense Minister says talks with the US are a chance for ‘the dialogue that is needed' over Greenland

Troels Lund Poulsen made the remarks to Danish broadcaster DR on Thursday.

''Nothing about Greenland without Greenland. Of course we will be there. We are the ones who requested the meeting,'' Greenland's Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt told DR.

President of the European Council says ‘Greenland belongs to its people'

''Nothing can be decided about Denmark and about Greenland without Denmark, or without Greenland. They have the full solid support and solidarity of the European Union.''

The leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain and the U.K. joined Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen on Tuesday in defending Greenland's sovereignty in the wake of Trump's comments about Greenland, which is part of the NATO military alliance.

Vance says Denmark ‘obviously' had not done a proper job in securing Greenland

In an interview with Fox News, U.S. Vice President JD Vance said Denmark ''obviously'' had not done a proper job in securing Greenland and that Trump ''is willing to go as far as he has to'' to defend American interests in the Arctic.

Vance said the fact that Denmark has been a faithful military ally of the U.S. during World War II and the more recent ''war on terrorism'' did not necessarily mean they were doing enough to secure Greenland today.

''Just because you did something smart 25 years ago doesn't mean you can't do something dumb now,'' Vance said, adding that Trump ''is saying very clearly, ‘You are not doing a good job with respect to Greenland.'''

Trump suggests that US oversight of Venezuela could be lengthy

''Only time will tell,'' Trump told The New York Times, in a newly published interview, when asked how long the administration will demand direct oversight of the South American nation.

Trump did not give a precise timeline for how long he expected the oversight to last, The Times reported. He did say that the Venezuelan government, which is now being led by Delcy Rodriguez following Maduro's weekend arrest by U.S. forces, is being cooperative despite some of its hostile public statements toward the U.S.