The briefing for Friday, January 2.

Enhanced tax credits that helped reduce health insurance costs for most Affordable Care Act enrollees expired January 1st, sending premiums skyrocketing for over 20 million Americans. The subsidies, first introduced during COVID-19 in 2021 and extended by Democrats, allowed some lower-income enrollees to receive coverage with no premiums while capping costs at 8.5% of income for higher earners.

According to KFF analysis, subsidized enrollees are seeing average premium increases of 114% in 2026. Some families face even steeper hikes - Texas mother Adrienne Martin's monthly premium jumped from $630 to $2,400, forcing her family to go uninsured despite her husband's need for a $70,000-per-month IV medication. California mother Maddie Bannister's costs increased from $124 to $908 monthly for her family of four.

Despite a 43-day government shutdown over the issue, Congress failed to extend the subsidies before expiration. The Urban Institute projects 4.8 million Americans will drop coverage in 2026 due to higher costs. A House vote expected in January could revive the subsidies, but success remains uncertain as the change affects self-employed workers, small business owners, farmers and others who don't receive employer-based insurance.

The FBI revealed that Shamsud-Din Jabbar, who killed 14 people in a truck attack on New Orleans' Bourbon Street, visited the city twice before the New Year's Day assault and used Meta smart glasses to record surveillance video. On October 31st, Jabbar rode through the French Quarter on a bicycle while wearing the glasses, recording footage as "he plotted this hideous attack," according to FBI Special Agent Lyonel Myrthil.

Federal investigators also disclosed that Jabbar traveled to Cairo in summer 2023 and then to Ontario, Canada, shortly afterward, though the connection to his attack remains unclear. The 42-year-old former U.S. Army soldier, who authorities believe was inspired by ISIS, legally purchased a semiautomatic rifle on November 19th from an individual in Arlington, Texas. He also placed explosive devices in the French Quarter around 2 a.m. before the attack.

The revelations come as New Orleans prepares for heightened security during upcoming major events, including the first Mardi Gras parade Monday evening and the Super Bowl on February 9th. The city's protective bollards on Bourbon Street had been removed due to mechanical failures caused by Mardi Gras debris, and officials remain uncertain whether new installations could stop similar vehicle attacks.

The U.S. military struck two boats it alleged were carrying drugs on Wednesday, killing five people and continuing the Trump administration's expanding "war on drugs" in international waters. The latest attacks bring the total to more than 30 vessel strikes since September, with over 115 people killed according to U.S. Southern Command announcements.

Wednesday's strike followed Tuesday's attack on "three narco-trafficking vessels travelling as a convoy" that killed at least three people, with eight survivors reportedly being searched for by the Coast Guard. The Trump administration has classified these operations as a "non-international armed conflict" with alleged traffickers, though legal experts question whether the strikes comply with laws governing such conflicts.

The military operations began off Venezuela's Caribbean coast and expanded to the eastern Pacific. U.S. forces have provided no evidence that targeted boats actually carried drugs, instead citing intelligence that vessels were "transiting along known narco-trafficking routes." Some lawmakers have expressed concern about "double-tap" strikes, including a September incident where survivors clinging to a boat hull were killed in a follow-up attack.

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said Thursday he is open to negotiating agreements with the United States on drug trafficking and oil investment, following weeks of escalating U.S. pressure on his government. In a state television interview, Maduro said Venezuela is "ready" for talks "wherever they want and whenever they want" and noted that "if they want oil, Venezuela is ready for U.S. investment, like with Chevron."

The overture comes after a CIA-led drone strike last week targeted a Venezuelan docking facility believed used by drug cartels, marking the first known direct U.S. operation on Venezuelan soil since boat strikes began in September. When asked about the attack, Maduro evaded the question, saying he could "talk about it in a few days." The U.S. has also seized multiple sanctioned oil tankers and maintained a massive military deployment in the Caribbean since August.

Maduro accused the U.S. of seeking to "impose themselves through threats, intimidation and force" to achieve regime change and access Venezuela's vast oil reserves - the world's largest proven reserves. The Trump administration has justified its escalating pressure campaign as necessary to combat drug trafficking and has charged Maduro with narco-terrorism, while Venezuelan officials deny involvement in drug smuggling operations.

President Trump and a top Iranian security official exchanged dueling threats Friday as widening economic protests across Iran have killed at least seven people, further escalating U.S.-Iran tensions months after American forces bombed Iranian nuclear sites in June. Trump warned on Truth Social that if Iran "violently kills peaceful protesters," the U.S. "will come to their rescue," adding "We are locked and loaded and ready to go."

Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, responded on X by alleging without evidence that Israel and the U.S. were stoking the demonstrations. "Trump should know that intervention by the U.S. in the domestic problem corresponds to chaos in the entire region and the destruction of the U.S. interests," Larijani wrote, warning Americans to "take care of their own soldiers."

The exchange highlights rising tensions following Trump's June strikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities, which prompted Iran to attack Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar in retaliation. Larijani's reference to U.S. soldiers likely points to America's extensive military presence across the Middle East, where Iranian-backed groups have previously targeted American forces during periods of heightened conflict between the two nations.

A Fulton County judge dismissed racketeering charges against 61 defendants accused of conspiring to halt construction of Atlanta's police training facility, ruling that Attorney General Chris Carr lacked authority to pursue the case under Georgia's RICO law without Governor Brian Kemp's permission. The decision tosses what experts call the largest criminal racketeering case ever filed against protesters in U.S. history.

The defendants faced allegations ranging from throwing Molotov cocktails at police to providing food to protesters, with each potentially facing 20 years in prison on racketeering charges alone. Five also faced domestic terrorism and arson charges related to a 2023 incident when masked activists burned a police car and threw rocks at an Atlanta Police Foundation building. Judge Kevin Farmer indicated the domestic terrorism charges could likely stand.

The controversy intensified in January 2023 when state troopers killed 26-year-old activist "Tortuguita" during a forest sweep, with authorities claiming the activist fired first from inside a tent. The family has filed a lawsuit alleging excessive force. Critics called Carr's prosecution politically motivated as he runs for governor, while supporters viewed it as necessary to combat "out-of-state radicals" threatening public safety during the $115 million project's construction.