FAST AND GOOD: Maduro Adios? Venezuela Insta-analysis.
January 4, 2026
January 3, 2026
JOHN LUCAS: American Credibility Restored (Again). “The undeniable and unmatched military competence, combined with the maintenance of no-leak operational security, resulted in ZERO U.S. fatalities and ZERO aircraft lost. . . . The contrast between Trump’s decisive action and the empty words, inaction, and incompetence of prior Administrations was inescapable.”
OPEN THREAD: Party on.
TUNE IN AGAIN NEXT WEEK!
Aides Tell Disappointed Trump That Maduro And Mamdani Are Different People https://t.co/LuvOngElMi pic.twitter.com/uGwFCd9axJ
— The Babylon Bee (@TheBabylonBee) January 3, 2026
THERE’S AN EMERGENCY MEME POST, BECAUSE WHO KNOWS WHAT TOMORROW WILL BRING? Emergency, Special Edition Meme Post.
“WE’RE IN JEN RUBIN’S WORLD:”
We’re in Jen Rubin’s world. She famously supported moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem and opposed it the moment Trump did what she wanted. Same with bombing Iran. All these people wanted Maduro gone, they just didn’t want Trump being the one to do it.
— Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) January 3, 2026
I can’t believe what I’m seeing…
Every Leftist on X is crying about Maduro being removed from power…
…and every single Venezuelan is celebrating it like there’s no tomorrow
This has been one of the most eye-opening days.
— Matt Van Swol (@mattvanswol) January 3, 2026
Not much of a trick, really… pic.twitter.com/JdtsMhb771
— Agent Provocateur (@jesterstick4) January 3, 2026
UPDATE:
It must be exhausting being a liberal.
One day you’re defending Somali daycare fraudsters.
The next day you’re defending a narco-terrorist communist dictator.
And it’s all driven by one thing:
their hatred of Donald Trump.— TMK (@TheMagaKing2_0) January 3, 2026
TIM GRAHAM: Who Can’t Handle the Truth? Crabby Clooney Rants Bari Weiss Is ‘Dismantling’ the Bias of CBS News.
[George] Clooney has energetically pushed the leftist myth of CBS News standing up against McCarthyism under Edward R. Murrow, and constantly comparing that hackneyed leftist crusade to the present day, and who cares if the Soviet Union actually infiltrated the country with spies after World War II? Who cares about The Truth again? Not Clooney. He’s naturally pissed at Bari Weiss for daring to move CBS one inch toward the center.
“Bari Weiss is dismantling CBS News as we speak,” Clooney says. “I’m worried about how we inform ourselves and how we’re going to discern reality without a functioning press.”
For her part, Weiss handled Clooney by inviting him in, sending Variety this statement: “Bonjour, Mr. Clooney! Big fan of your work. It sounds like you’d like to learn more about ours. This is an open invitation to visit The CBS Broadcast Center, where I’m spending the holidays working to relaunch the Evening News with my colleagues. Tune in January 5.”
To the Clooneys, a “functioning press” means going Full Jim Acosta all the time. It’s in the pose and in the lunge at The Right-Wing Enemy, not in the facts. Clooney thinks the Glory Days at CBS apparently include Dan Rather’s Fake News about George W. Bush’s National Guard record, not to mention Rather screaming at his father about Iran-Contra. But he let Robert Redford embarrass himself with the Fake News Movie on that front.
Why does George Clooney have such a virulent case of Bari Derangement Syndrome? As they say in Clooney’s newly adopted nation, perhaps it’s a case of cherchez la femme:
Amal Clooney is closely tied to the Muslim Brotherhood and her uncle is an arms dealer who sells weapons to Hezbollah.
No wonder George is trying to destroy the reputation of a brave Jewish woman who speaks against the Radical Islamist Terrorists his wife props up… https://t.co/sZu523XEyO
— The Persian Jewess (@persianjewess) December 30, 2025
ONE DOUBTS THE VENEZUELAN SOLDIERY IS HIGHLY MOTIVATED.
Someone told me once that air forces are not made up of planes and missiles. They are made up of people. Had that stuff been in the hands of the Israeli air force it might have worked.
— wretchardthecat (@wretchardthecat) January 4, 2026
UPDATE: Heh.

LOL, PETE BUTTIGIEG:
— jimtreacher.substack.com (@jtLOL) January 3, 2026
UPDATE: Troll level, near Trumpian.
No more margaritas for you. https://t.co/JLFUN8guQJ
— Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele) January 3, 2026
Heh.
ANOTHER UPDATE: Heh again.
I am thoroughly enjoying seeing the thousands of comments from Venezuelans telling leftists to fuck themselves.
— Crémieux (@cremieuxrecueil) January 3, 2026
INJECTING RANDOM SUBSTANCES INTO YOUR BODY MIGHT HAVE CONSEQUENCES? GO FIGURE. Tattoos Affect Your Immune System in Ways We’re Only Beginning to Understand. “Tattoos are generally considered safe, but growing scientific evidence suggests tattoo inks are not biologically inert. The key question is no longer whether tattoos introduce foreign substances into the body, but how toxic those substances might be and what that means for long-term health.”
Given how many tatted-up people are walking around, any impacts must be minor, subtle, or long-term.
AT AMAZON, Shop Same Day Delivery. #CommissionEarned
JOURNALISM:
🇺🇸 CATHERINE HERRIDGE: WHY X BECAME THE CENTER OF REAL JOURNALISM
Catherine is laying out something legacy newsrooms still refuse to admit out loud.
Reach is no longer about cable slots or front pages. It’s about access to decision makers, business leaders, and highly engaged… https://t.co/PCV9ok3wFj pic.twitter.com/4iKnqjR3iu
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) January 3, 2026
Guy who thinks he can arrest Benjamin Netanyahu also thinks it’s bad to arrest foreign leaders. https://t.co/gE6YEu0qnC
— daniela (@daniela__127) January 3, 2026
Zohran, the Venezuelans in New York City are there because Maduro made their country unlivable and pushed them out. And most likely they are celebrating right now in NYC's streets.
Go explain to your own Venezuelan constituents why they shouldn't be celebrating instead of… pic.twitter.com/Jv9oPl3F15
— DataRepublican (small r) (@DataRepublican) January 3, 2026
Exit questions about that “briefing:”
By briefed do you mean you logged on to 𝕏 like the rest of us?
— greg (@greg16676935420) January 3, 2026
‘I was briefed.’
What is this?
Are libs going to pretend for the next 4 years that Mamdani is the mini-President head of a shadow government?
He’s a failed rapper whose job it now is to make sure that people don’t get set on fire on the subway, a responsibility already way… https://t.co/9OFCozOw5a
— Coddled Affluent Professional (@feelsdesperate) January 3, 2026
Mamdani is governing in the media capital of America, so he will have a very loud microphone; the Democrats will position him as a shadow president based upon how well things go in Fun City under his regime. But as Noah Rothman wrote shortly before Mamdani’s election, the right will be happy to let him broadcast at full blast as well:
If Zohran Mamdani is elected mayor of New York City, Republicans plan to highlight that fact in their midterm campaigns against Democratic lawmakers nationwide.
That entirely unremarkable observation is the subject of an item in Axios in which the GOP is accused of plotting to “weaponize” New York City Democrats’ voting preferences, which, we should observe, consists entirely of noticing them.
For years, says reporter Kate Santaliz in her scandalized dispatch, the GOP has made former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi into a “bogeywoman.” Her capacity to “rile up the base” was unrivaled. But with her diminished role, “GOP strategists are testing new symbols of the party’s left, and hope Mamdani will fill that void.”
Based upon the past couple of days – and much of 2025, that’s looking like a pretty safe bet.
LAUGHING WOLF LOOKS AT THE BIG POST-MADURO PICTURE: Eclectic Food For Thought.
DISAPPOINTING: Our Yearlong Review Mazda CX-70 Has Left Us. We Are Not Sad. “I’m not going to sugarcoat it: After a year behind the wheel, the Mazda CX-70 wasn’t what I expected at the beginning of its loan. It ended up being one of the worst long-term vehicles I’ve chaperoned during my time at MotorTrend.”
Ouch.
HAHA, YOU DON’T TUG ON MEME-SUPERMAN’S CAPE:
🚨 HOLY CRAP! This might just be the most EPIC Trump post of all time
Trump posted a video of Maduro CHALLENGING 47 to “come get me,” followed up by a screaming Bald Eagle & Thunderstruck blaring in the background during missile fire 🇺🇸🦅
Trump said “challenge accepted” 🤣🔥 pic.twitter.com/3IPKUnGRtM
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) January 3, 2026
PAST PERFORMANCE DOES NOT GUARANTEE FUTURE RESULTS:
Mother fuck. It’s painful how awful the Lincoln Bulwark thing has become.
— Ole Dad (@TheOleDad) January 3, 2026
Besides, I don’t see what people are so upset about.
Look, Maduro got a free helicopter ride AND a landing, so I don’t want to hear any complaints from the rest of the Commies.
— Stephen Green (@VodkaPundit) January 3, 2026
KEEP YOUR NAILS TRIMMED: 360° Rotating Toenail Clippers. #CommissionEarned
AN IDEA SO CRAZY IT ACTUALLY WORKED: Homicides Down Nationwide – Even in Chicago – Demonstrating What Can Happen When Laws are Enforced and Illegals Are Deported.
“IN YER FACE EMPEROR XI!” (VIP) Maduro’s Arrest May Hit China the Worst.
STAY SAFE: Super Bright Headlamp Rechargeable 4000 High Lumens LED Head Lamp. #CommissionEarned
AMERICA’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD:
Democrats Confused Why Venezuelans Cheering Downfall Of Nice, Warm Collectivism https://t.co/YZiARAmnXz pic.twitter.com/pQi6LHBk9t
— The Babylon Bee (@TheBabylonBee) January 3, 2026
Is it safe to say that Trump is more of a McCartney fan? Or does he simply hate Lennon’s solo-era oeuvre?
The straw that broke the camel’s back https://t.co/hUzAOqgRoU
— Siraj Hashmi (@SirajAHashmi) January 3, 2026