Today’s Headlines: After two weeks of nationwide protests, Iran looks closer than ever to a regime collapse. The government shut down the internet all weekend, blamed the U.S. and Israel, and threatened retaliation — while Trump publicly backed protesters online, which historically only makes things messier. In the U.S., a 160-year-old synagogue in Jackson, Mississippi was set on fire early Saturday. No one was hurt, a suspect is in custody, and the congregation — which survived a KKK bombing in 1967 — says it will rebuild. Trump also sat down with the New York Times and said the only thing restraining him is “my own morality,” claimed owning Greenland is “psychologically needed for success,” and suggested NATO could be optional. Around the same time, references to his impeachments quietly disappeared from his Smithsonian portrait label. In Minneapolis, tensions escalated after video showed ICE officer Jonathan Ross switching hands to draw his gun before killing Renee Good. Instead of de-escalating, DHS announced hundreds more federal agents, ICE plans to hire 10,000 more officers, and JD Vance promised “door-to-door” deportations, as a Washington Post report detailed ICE’s push to churn out violent arrest videos for social media. Trump also failed to convince oil companies to reinvest in Venezuela, then declared a national emergency anyway to shield $2.5 billion in Venezuelan oil revenue, calling it a U.S. national security issue. Finally, courts blocked Trump from freezing $10 billion in welfare funds to blue states and from cutting NIH research grants, while December jobs numbers showed modest growth — data Trump leaked early on social media because, apparently, impulse control is optional.



Resources/Articles mentioned in this episode:



The Atlantic: Is the Iranian Regime About to Collapse?

Axios: Trump says U.S. is ready to help Iranians get freedom

AP News: Suspect arrested on suspicion of arson after a fire damages a historic Mississippi synagogue

NYT: An Interview With Donald Trump

AP News: Reference to Trump's impeachments is removed from the display of his Smithsonian photo portrait

NBC News: New cellphone video shows victim interacting with ICE officer moments before fatal shooting in Minneapolis

NYT: ‘Hundreds More’ Federal Agents to be Deployed to Minneapolis After ICE Shooting

USA Today: Immigration enforcement ramp-up has only just begun, VP Vance promises

WAPo: Inside ICE’s social media machine creating viral arrest videos

Politico: ‘Uninvestable’: Trump pitch to oil execs yields no promises

Axios: Trump declares national emergency to shield Venezuelan oil cash

Texas Tribune: Texas hands over complete list of registered voters to Trump administration

Politico: Judge blocks Trump’s $10B welfare fund freeze

Seattle Times: Judges block Trump plan to cut research money, including $120M for WA

AP News: Trump brushes off early posting of confidential jobs figures



Morning Announcements is produced by Sami Sage and edited by Grace Hernandez-Johnson


Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices