We’re back for 2026 and I guess a slow news week was too much to ask for? This week in OtherWords, our writers get right into the Trump administration’s invasion of Venezuela.
Lindsay Koshgarian points out that the U.S. is spending $1 trillion on the Pentagon while deeply slashing funds for health care, nutrition, and so on. “While Trump said plenty about how the U.S. will now rule over the people of Venezuela,” she writes, “he hasn’t explained why the same tax dollars that paid for this invasion can’t be used to make health care, food, or housing more affordable for people here.”
Meanwhile, Jordan Liz shows how the Trump administration’s alleged rationale for invading the country — to stop the flow of drugs — falls apart under the slightest scrutiny. “If Trump really cared about the drug crisis, he wouldn’t be kidnapping foreign leaders in the dead of night,” Jordan writes. “Instead, his focus would be on improving access to mental health and drug abuse programs in the United States” — not cutting those programs.
Also this week, at around the fifth anniversary of the January 6 insurrection and the first anniversary of Trump’s mass pardon for the insurrectionists, criminologists Paul Becker and Art Jipson highlight the alarming, ongoing criminal tendencies of some of the pardoned rioters. And finally, Peter Montgomery reflects on how a challenging 2025 nonetheless prepared Americans to respond in 2026.
New This Week…
Congress Must Stop This War and Help Working Americans Instead | Lindsay Koshgarian
Health costs are doubling, food prices are rising, and the safety net is shredded. So why are we launching an illegal war to help oil companies?
Public Health Reduces Drug Deaths. Wars Don’t. | Jordan Liz
Invading Venezuela has nothing to do with drugs, but slashing the safety net does.
Trump’s January 6 Pardons Increased Risks to Public Safety | Paul Becker and Art Jipson
A year ago, President Trump pardoned the January 6 insurrectionists. Many have since been arrested for home invasions, death threats, and more.
How 2025 Prepared Us for 2026 | Peter Montgomery
Last year was a rough one for many Americans. How can it prepare us for the year ahead?
In Case You Missed It…
The Clock Is Ticking: Invest in the Planet, Not the Pentagon | Alliyah Lusuegro
At the 10 year anniversary of the Paris Agreement, U.S. climate commitments are being swallowed up by military spending.
Save Our Forests, One Roll at a Time | Brian Rodgers
Want an easy New Year’s resolution? Replace some of your conventional toilet paper with rolls made from recycled paper.
Pop Stars: Keep Denouncing ICE! | Jordan Liz
The Trump administration is picking fights with celebrities opposed to ICE on purpose. It’s still better to speak out.
The Public Pays the Price for Big Tech’s Data Centers | Michi Trota
The relentless push for data centers is raising our power bills and polluting our communities. It doesn’t have to be this way.
