Venezuelan tanker, Epstein recordsdata, Absentia removals : NPR

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In the present day’s prime tales

The Trump administration says the U.S. Coast Guard is pursuing an oil tanker linked to Venezuela. This motion is the most recent within the Trump administration’s stress marketing campaign in opposition to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s authorities. The transfer can also be a part of the administration’s effort to implement a blockade in opposition to sanctioned oil tankers touring to and from Venezuela.

President Trump boards Air Drive One as he departs from Rocky Mount Wilson Regional Airport in Elm Metropolis, N.C., after holding a political rally on December 19, 2025.

Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP by way of Getty Pictures

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Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP by way of Getty Pictures

• 🎧 A U.S. official, who was not approved to talk publicly, knowledgeable NPR yesterday that the Coast Guard was in “energetic pursuit of a ship.” The official described the tanker as a darkish fleet vessel that was trying to illegally evade sanctions. Darkish fleet vessels use misleading practices like flying pretend nationwide flags to cover the place they have been and the place they’re going, NPR’s Carrie Kahn tells Up First. Final week, President Trump threatened Venezuela with a complete blockage and stated extra army stress would come until it returns the property, together with oil, that it stole from the U.S. Venezuela denies stealing something and says Trump simply desires the nation’s pure assets and huge oil reserves.

The Justice Division continued its partial launch of recordsdata on convicted intercourse offender Jeffrey Epstein over the weekend, unveiling some beforehand redacted data. Lawmakers criticized the DOJ for lacking its full launch deadline, and a few are threatening to maintain Legal professional Common Pam Bondi in contempt.

• 🎧 The DOJ launched two extra information units, however NPR’s Luke Garrett says that, after an in depth studying of the 119-page doc, there have been no main revelations. The names of co-conspirators remained largely redacted, even though Epstein’s crimes and conspiracy had been described in brutal element. The DOJ deleted over a dozen recordsdata from their unique launch over the weekend. It is because a New York decide requested the company to take heed to victims’ and victims’ rights teams’ considerations over what content material it ought to make out there to the general public.

Hundreds of immigrants with out authorized standing have skipped immigration court docket this yr, and NPR discovered that these absences are driving a surge “in absentia” deportations. This comes as immigration courts face intense stress, because the administration has fired judges, the federal government has deported some folks to international locations they’ve by no means lived in, and extra.

• 🎧 If somebody who’s within the nation illegally misses an order to seem in immigration court docket, the federal government can difficulty in “in absentia” removing order to deport them, in line with NPR’s Ximena Bustillo. Primarily based on early evaluation from January by November, NPR found that just about each U.S. immigration court docket has issued extra of those orders for failure to seem, Bustillo says. Orders spiked round June, coinciding with the time when ICE officers started making arrests contained in the courthouses. Immigrants had been hesitant to go to court docket after studying about these arrests, says Ruby Powers, an immigration legal professional in Texas.

In the present day’s hear

Irma Thomas; Huge Freedia; Tarriona “Tank” Ball

Sean Gardner/Getty Pictures; Nelson Cosey; Josh Brasted/Getty Pictures for Essence

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Sean Gardner/Getty Pictures; Nelson Cosey; Josh Brasted/Getty Pictures for Essence

Whenever you image New Orleans music, Christmas carols are most likely not the primary style that involves thoughts. You seemingly affiliate the Huge Straightforward with brass bands and bounce, however many native musicians have deep roots within the church. This Christmas, NPR community station WWNO’s Rosemary Westwood chatted with a few of town’s favourite stars, from jazz singer John Boutte to bounce queen of New Orleans Huge Freedia about which vacation songs they wish to take heed to round this time. Take heed to snippets of these songs or learn the transcript right here.

Life recommendation

Anxiousness, distraction, and vulnerability can rise through the last-minute frenzy of vacation present purchasing and journey. In a current AARP survey of practically 2,000 U.S. adults, practically 9 out of 10 reported that somebody had focused them or they’d fallen for some sort of rip-off through the vacation season prior to now yr. Frequent schemes embrace pretend transport notifications, stolen packages and pretend donation requests. Amy Nofziger, a fraud specialist with AARP, shares with Life Equipment the highest schemes she’s been seeing this season and recommendations on the best way to defend your self.

• 🎁 Earlier than utilizing a vendor that’s new to you, search their identify plus “rip-off,” “fraud,” and “criticism” to see different clients’ experiences. Use this data as a information.
• 🎁 Keep away from pretend present playing cards by shopping for those which can be near the entrance of the shop and have extra eyes on them. You may as well buy digital present playing cards as a substitute of bodily ones.
• 🎁 If an sudden textual content from UPS or FedEx requests your private data, contact the corporate’s customer support line individually and ensure {that a} package deal is certainly coming your method.

For extra on what vacation scams to pay attention to this season, take heed to this episode of NPR’s Life Equipment. Subscribe to the Life Equipment publication for knowledgeable recommendation on love, cash, relationships and extra.

3 issues to know earlier than you go

John Lowery, a New Carolina state consultant and chairman of the Lumbee Tribe (proper) is comforted by Rob Jacobs, as they be part of with different members of the tribe to have a good time Wednesday on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., after the passage of a invoice granting the tribe federal recognition.

Jacquelyn Martin/AP

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Jacquelyn Martin/AP

1. The U.S. authorities has granted the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina full federal recognition. Its members have sought this historic milestone since 1888.
2. Cartagena, Colombia, a metropolis well-known for its horse-drawn buggies, is set to ban the enduring carriages. The transfer is dividing town over considerations about custom, tourism, and animal welfare.
3. Comic Bowen Yang left Saturday Evening Dwell halfway by his eighth season. He made his last SNL look this weekend in an episode hosted by Depraved star Ariana Grande.

This text was edited by Suzanne Nuyen.