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  • Who will run ‘El Mencho’s’ cartel? It could be a man born in California

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    GUADALAJARA — The notorious drug kingpin was sick, his kidneys failing.

    To ensure smooth management of his multibillion-dollar cartel while he underwent dialysis, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho,” delegated day-to-day control to several top lieutenants.

    Each managed a separate region, had his own group of hit men and developed his own fearsome reputation.

    Mexican soldiers killed Oseguera on Sunday in a raid on his remote mountain hideout. Immediately, his appointed commanders ordered a nationwide campaign of terror: cartel fighters carried out arson attacks and blocked roads across more than a dozen states and ambushed security officers, killing 25 members of the National Guard.

    A bus burned by cartel operatives after the killing of the kingpin known as “El Mencho.”

    (Armando Solis / Associated Press)

    The fires are now out, but key questions remain.

    What will happen to the Jalisco New Generation cartel and its fragile coalition of ruthless leaders?

    Will they agree to share power? Or elevate a single man as head honcho?

    Many Mexicans fear a troubling third scenario: a bloody power struggle that fragments the cartel, opening new fronts of conflict in an already volatile criminal landscape.

    Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho," sits with his arms around a boy and a girl.

    A photograph of Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, center, known as “El Mencho,” provided by federal prosecutors.

    (U.S. District Court)

    “What comes next will not resemble a clean succession,” Ghaleb Krame Hilal, a former security advisor in the state of Tamaulipas, wrote in the online magazine Small Wars Journal. “It will be a struggle over who holds the center of gravity inside the organization, and that result is not preordained.”

    The scenario is complicated because Oseguera’s only son, Rubén Oseguera González, known as “El Menchito,” is serving a life sentence on drug charges in the United States.

    Juan Carlos Valencia González

    Juan Carlos Valencia González, seen in a wanted photo released by the U.S. Department of State in 2021. He is one of the possible successors to “El Mencho” as the leader of the Jalisco New Generation cartel.

    (U.S. Department of State)

    That leaves Oseguera’s cadre of regional commanders as the most likely inheritors of his drug empire.

    Perhaps the most powerful among them is Oseguera’s stepson, Juan Carlos Valencia González, known as 03. Other monikers includ El Pelon, El JP and Tricky Tres.

    Valencia, 41, is the commander of the paramilitary Grupo Elite and belongs to a clan that runs the cartel’s money-laundering operation.

    His mother, Rosalinda González Valencia, was arrested in Guadalajara in November 2021 and accused by Mexican authorities of being a “financial operator” for the Jalisco cartel. His biological father was the co-founder of the now-defunct Milenio cartel, where Oseguera got his start.

    Valencia was born in the Orange County city of Santa Ana, one of many sons and daughters of high-ranking cartel figures born in the United Sates in recent decades. After Valencia’s father went to prison, Oseguera married his mother.

    The U.S. State Department is offering up to a $5-million reward for information leading to Valencia’s arrest.

    A group of armed Jalisco New Generation cartel fighters

    A group of Jalisco New Generation cartel fighters.

    (Juan José Estrada Serafín / For The Times)

    Here are the other contenders:

    Ricardo Ruiz, alias RR, is known for producing slick cartel propaganda, including a viral social media video that showed dozens of cartel fighters dressed in fatigues alongside a column of armored vehicles and homemade tanks. “We are Mencho’s men!” they shout while firing automatic weapons into the sky.

    Authorities blamed Ruiz for the death of Valeria Márquez, a 23-year-old model and beauty influencer shot to death last year while broadcasting live on TikTok.

    Audias Flores Silva, a leader widely known as “El Jardinero,” controls methamphetamine factories in Jalisco and Zacatecas states, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration. He has a fleet of airplanes and tractor trailers used to traffic drugs from Central America into the United States, U.S. officials say.

    Flores is believed to have engineered the Jalisco cartel’s recent alliance with a faction of the warring Sinaloa cartel, which is led by two sons of imprisoned drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán.

    And then there is 29-year-old Abraham Jesús Ambriz Cano, alias “El Yogurth.” Ambriz has built a small army of foreign mercenaries, mostly former soldiers from Colombia who have experience in bomb-making and counterinsurgency tactics. Some of those combatants say they were lured to Mexico under false pretenses and forced to fight.

    Together the men help lead one of the most power and feared cartels in history — a criminal enterprise that traffics tons of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and fentanyl to the United States but which also profits from extortion, fuel theft, illegal mining and logging and timeshare fraud inside Mexico.

    Armed police guard avocado fields.

    The avocado fields in the Mexican state of Michoacán, where the Jalisco New Generation cartel and other criminal groups tax producers and have their own crops.

    (Gary Coronado/Los Angeles Times)

    Security analysts say the group’s horizontal, franchise-like structure allowed it to engineer a rapid response to Oseguera’s killing — and will allow it to do business as usual in the coming months.

    Many believe the remaining leaders of the cartel will try to work together — for now.

    “At the moment they perceive a huge common enemy: the government of Mexico,” said David Saucedo, who advises local and state governments on security policy.

    But, Saucedo cautioned, “it’s possible that the cartel will fracture at some point as conflicts arise over control of profits, trafficking routes and contact with political officials.” Personal conflicts and the encroachment of rival cartels could also provoke problems, he added.

    The inner workings of cartels are intentionally opaque to the outside world.

    To understand shifts inside the gangs, analysts and officials track social media communiques, changes to drug flows and outbreaks of violence. Many keep close watch on narco corridos, or drug ballads, which chronicle cartel politics.

    Saucedo noted that multiple songs recently have described Flores as Oseguera’s successor. Another song venerates Valencia (“He was born in Orange County, where the sun burns differently,” it begins.)

    It’s unclear if any of the current leaders would possess the gravitas of Oseguera, who wielded unquestioned authority even as his health deteriorated and he was forced to live on the run. That is in part because of his unflinching willingness to violently punish anyone who threatened or crossed him.

    He was blamed for the 2020 assassination attempt of Omar García Harfuch, then the police chief of Mexico City and now the top public security official under President Claudia Sheinbaum. During a previous government effort to capture Oseguera, in 2015, cartel fighters used rocket-propelled grenades to shoot down an army helicopter, killing nine soldiers.

    Last year, at a ranch near Guadalajara apparently used to train Jalisco recruits, activists discovered the remains of hundreds of missing people.

    Born to farmers in Michoacán state, Oseguera immigrated illegally the United States in his teens. He was first arrested at age 19 in San Francisco for selling methamphetamine. His stature grew as he rose from small-time hoodlum to myth-shrouded kingpin of a seemingly invincible cartel that operates in most Mexican states and in countries across South America, Asia and Europe.

    Recent Mexican history is riddled with the tales of once-powerful syndicates — gangs in Guadalajara, Tijuana and Ciudad Juárez, among them — that ruptured, were gobbled up by other mobs or petered out as the big guys were captured or killed. Colombia’s storied Medellin cartel was another mob that withered after Pablo Escobar met his demise in 1993.

    Linthicum reported in New York, Hamilton in Guadalajara and McDonnell in Mexico City.

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    Kate Linthicum, Keegan Hamilton, Patrick J. McDonnell

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  • This isn’t a real image of Puerto Vallarta on fire

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    The Mexican military killed Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes, Mexico’s most wanted cartel boss, during an operation aided by U.S. intelligence information in Tapalpa, a town within the Mexican state of Jalisco.  

    Violence spread after Oseguera Cervantes’ Feb. 22 killing, with suspected gang members torching buses and businesses while clashing with the authorities in multiple Mexican cities, including Puerto Vallarta in Jalisco. 

    Images of Puerto Vallarta in flames have been widely reported, but one photo shared online is not real. 

    A Feb. 22 TikTok post said it shows an image of Puerto Vallarta with scattered buildings on fire.

    “This is not a scene from a movie, this is the city of Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco in Mexico. Look at all these fires going around the city,” says the man in the TikTok video. “Well, what’s happening is they’re saying that they took down the leader of El Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación, AKA El Mencho… and all his people are going around all the city and just burning cars, shooting random people, fighting against the police.”

    Instagram and X users also shared the same image with English and Spanish captions claiming to show the unrest in Puerto Vallarta.

    (Screenshot of the Instagram post.)

    But that was generated with artificial intelligence. 

    The image shows the logo of Gemini, Google’s AI chatbot, at the bottom right corner. 

    PolitiFact uploaded the image to Gemini and it confirmed the image was generated using its generative AI program. 

    Visual inconsistencies signal the image is fake. Some of the cars on the streets are indistinguishable, while others look on top of each other. Some of the buildings look distorted and the smoke and the fire have unusual patterns. For example, the fire is bright orange and it sits on top of the buildings without consuming the structure, and the smoke seems to be going up in the same direction without being disrupted by the wind. 

    (Screenshot of AI-generated image highlighting with red circles visual inconsistencies. At the bottom right is the Google Gemini logo.)

    This image doesn’t show Puerto Vallarta after the killing of Oseguera Cervantes. We rate this claim False. 

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  • Mexican army kills ‘El Mencho,’ Mexico’s most-wanted drug kingpin

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    MEXICO CITY — Mexican authorities have killed one of the world’s most wanted drug-traffickers, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho,” founder and leader of the notorious Jalisco New Generation cartel, which controls drug trafficking, extortion, fuel theft and other rackets throughout Mexico.

    The Mexican Defense Ministry confirmed the death, saying Oseguera was wounded during a Sunday morning operation in the town of Tapalpa, Jalisco state. Oseguera died while being transported via air with other cartel associates to Mexico City for treatment, the military said.

    Oseguera’s death is the most significant take-down of a Mexican drug capo since the capture of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, then head of the Sinaloa cartel, who is serving a life sentence in a U.S. prison.

    In the past, the capture or death of a cartel leader has led to violence, as factions compete for control. On Sunday, chaos erupted across western Mexico.

    A family sheltering in place in the state of Jalisco — who asked not to be identified because of safety concerns — said cartel members were pulling people out of vehicles in the street and setting them on fire. Cars, trucks and buses going up in flames and emitting plumes of dark smoke were visible on roads in Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta, according to footage circulating on social media, as well as in the states of Nayarit and Michoacán.

    The governor of Jalisco reported roadblocks and other disturbances throughout the western state and advised people to stay home. Flights were suspended at the airport in Guadalajara, the capital of Jalisco.

    Authorities also reported blocked roads in other areas of Mexico where the cartel held sway. Criminal groups in Mexico often use roadblocks to protest enforcement actions.

    The reported death of Oseguera is a major achievement for the government of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, who has been under intense pressure from the Trump administration to crack down on U.S.-bound drug trafficking. In the last year, Mexico has dispatched scores of cartel suspects to the United States to face justice.

    U.S. authorities had offered a $15-million reward for information leading to the arrest or conviction of Oseguera.

    It was not immediately clear what role, if any, U.S. authorities had in the operation to take down Oseguera. Sheinbaum has pledged “cooperation and coordination” with U.S. officials, but has rejected any direct U.S. role on the ground in anti-cartel operations.

    Oseguera is said to have begun his career as a small-time heroin dealer in San Francisco.

    One of the world’s most wanted criminals, rumors about El Mencho’s death and capture have circulated in the past and turned out to be false. But in recent years, authorities have seemingly closed in, capturing several high-ranking associates and close family members.

    Oseguera oversaw a military-like buildup of his cartel, which pioneered the use of armored vehicles, land mines, drones and other military hardware. Among other attacks, the Jalisco gang was blamed for the 2015 downing of a Mexican military helicopter, which resulted in the the death of nine Mexican law enforcement officials. The helicopter — reportedly hit with U.S.-made .50-caliber machine-gun rounds — was on a mission to capture the elusive cartel boss.

    His son, Rubén Oseguera González, known as “El Menchito,” was captured and extradited from Mexico in February 2020. He was convicted in 2024 on an array of drug and weapons charges related to his leadership role in the cartel and is now serving a life sentence.

    U.S. Bureau of Prisons records show he is housed at a maximum-security federal prison in Florence, Colo., know as the “Alcatraz of The Rockies,” that also houses the “El Chapo” and other high-profile criminals.

    His daughter, Jessica Johanna Oseguera González, was arrested while visiting one of her brother’s court proceedings and eventually pleaded guilty to violations of the sop-called Kingpin Act related to money laundering. She reportedly spent just over two years in prison before her release in 2022.

    Times staff writers McDonnell, Linthicum and Hamilton reported from Mexico City, New York and San Francisco, respectively. Special correspondent Cecilia Sánchez Vidal in Mexico City contributed to this report.

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    Patrick J. McDonnell, Kate Linthicum, Keegan Hamilton

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  • Democrats’ fear rising that too many candidates in governor’s race could lead to a Republican victory

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    SAN FRANCISCO — Leaders of the California Democratic Party, along with liberal activists and loyal power brokers, are openly expressing fear that their crowded field of candidates running for governor may splinter the vote and open the door to a surprise Republican victory in November.

    Because of those concerns, the Democrats lagging at the bottom of the pack are being urged to drop out of the race to ensure that the party’s political dominance in statewide elections survives the 2026 election.

    “California Democrats are prepared to do what’s required,” state party chairman Rusty Hicks told reporters at the California Democratic Party’s annual convention on Friday. “We are ready and willing and able to do what’s required … to ensure we have a strong candidate coming out of the primary to do what’s required in November.”

    Nine prominent Democrats are running to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom, compared with two top GOP candidates, and could divide the Democratic electorate enough that the two Republicans could receive the most votes in the June primary and advance to the November election. Under California’s “jungle primary” system, the top two vote-getters advance to the general election, regardless of their party affiliation.

    Hicks was deferential to the Democratic candidates who have long served in public office and have compelling personal tales and the experience to take the helm of the state. But he said there is the harsh political reality that a viable candidate needs to raise an enormous amount of money to have a winning campaign in a state of 23.1 million registered voters and some of the most expensive media markets in the nation.

    The party, its allies and the candidates themselves have a “collective commitment to ensuring we do not see a Republican elected [for governor],” Hicks said.

    While Hicks and other party leaders did not publicly name the candidates who ought to leave the race, among the candidates lagging in the polls are state Supt. of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, former state Controller Betty Yee, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and former Assembly Majority Leader Ian Calderon.

    Democratic voters vastly outnumber the number of registered Republicans in the state, and no Republican has been elected to statewide office since 2006.

    But given the sprawling field of gubernatorial candidates, the lack of a clear front-runner and the state’s unique primary system, the race appears up for grabs. According to an average of the most recent opinion polls, conservative commentator Steve Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco — both Republicans — are tied for first place, according to Real Clear Politics. Each received the support of 15.5% of voters. The top Democrat, Rep. Eric Swalwell of Dublin, Calif., was backed by 12.5%.

    In 2012, Republicans finished in first and second place in the race for a San Bernardino County congressional district — despite Democrats having a solid edge in voter registration. The four Democrats running for the seat split the vote, opening the door for a victory by GOP Rep. Gary Miller. Pete Aguilar, one of the Democrats who lost in the primary, went on to win that seat in 2014 and has served in Congress ever since.

    Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) on Friday pushed back at the fears that two Republicans will win the top two gubernatorial spots in June.

    “That’s not going to happen,” she said in an interview after speaking at a young Democrats’ reception. “And everything that you should know about the Democrats this year is we are unified. As I say, our diversity is our strength, our unity is our power. And everybody knows that there’s too much at stake.”

    However, the scenario has prompted a cross section of the typically fractious party to unite behind the belief the field must shrink, whether by candidates’ choice or through pressure.

    Jodi Hicks, the leader of Planned Parenthood’s California operations, said that the organization is laser-focused on congressional races, but having two Republican gubernatorial candidates “would be nothing short of devastating.”

    “We have not weighed in on the governor’s race, but we are paying close attention to whether this comes to play, and whether or not we do decide to weigh in and make sure that doesn’t happen,” she said.

    Newsom and legislative Democrats have tried to buffer the massive federal funding cuts to reproductive care. A November election with two Republicans on the gubernatorial ballot would eliminate a key partner in Sacramento, and could affect turnout in down-ballot congressional and legislative races.

    “A top-two Republican [race] would certainly have dire consequences for the midterm battle and to the governor’s office,” Jodi Hicks said.

    Lorena Gonzalez, the leader of California Federation of Labor Unions, noted that her organization’s endorsement process begins on Tuesday.

    “I think we are going to have some pretty honest discussions with candidates about their individual paths and where they are,” she said. “They’re all great candidates, so many of them are really good folks. But it’s starting to get to be that time.”

    She expects the field to begin to thin in the coming days and weeks.

    The conversation went beyond party leaders, taking place among delegates such as Gregory Hutchins, an academic labor researcher from Riverside.

    “My goal at the convention, it’s not necessarily that the party coalesces around one particular candidate, but more, this is a test to see what candidates have a level of support that they can mount a successful campaign,” said the 29-year-old, who said he hopes to see some candidates drop out after the weekend.

    “Am I concerned long term that [a top-two Republican runoff] could be a thing? Yes and no,” he said “I’m not concerned that we’re not going to solve this problem before the primary, but I do think we need to start getting serious about, ‘We need to solve this problem soon.’”

    Not everyone agreed.

    Tim Paulson, a San Francisco Democrat who supports Yee, called efforts to push people out of the race “preemptive disqualification.”

    “This is nothing but scare tactics to get people out of the race,” he said. “This is still a vibrant primary. Nobody knows who the front-runner is yet.”

    Bob Galemmo, 71, countered that many people did not believe Donald Trump would be elected president in 2016 and fears two Republicans could advance to the general election.

    “You should never say never,” he said. “If we could get down to like four or five [candidates], that would be helpful.”

    The efforts have already begun.

    RL Miller, the chair of the state Democratic Party’s environmental caucus, said Yee ought to drop out.

    Yee, “who is at the bottom of the polls, needs to be taking a good long look at whether she is serving the party or being selfish by staying in the race,” Miller said.

    Yee, a former state party vice chair, pushed back forcefully, saying pressure to drop out of the race “would just be undemocratic.”

    “First of all, I’ve served this party for a long time. I don’t do it out of selfishness, by any means,” she said at a Saturday gathering where she provided breakfast burritos to delegates. “But I’ll just say this — the race is wide open.”

    Yee‘s campaign manager noted that the largest group of voters is still undecided, and the candidate said no one has asked her directly to exit the race, but that someone started a rumor a month or two ago that she was going to drop out and run for insurance commissioner instead.

    “I’m not dropping out, and I don’t think any candidate should go out,” Yee said.

    Calderon said Swalwell had urged him to get out of the race.

    Calderon defended staying in the race to try to reach undecided voters during a gubernatorial forum at the Commonwealth Club on Friday.

    “I stay very consistent in that 1 to 3% range,” he joked. “But my challenge is access to resources and visibility, which is something that could change within a day with the right backing and support.”

    Swalwell and his campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

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    Seema Mehta, Nicole Nixon

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  • Trump heads to Fort Bragg to cheer special forces members who ousted Venezuela’s Maduro

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    President Donald Trump is heading to North Carolina on Friday to celebrate members of the special forces who stormed into Venezuela on the third day of the New Year and whisked away that country’s leader, Nicolás Maduro, to face U.S. smuggling charges.First Lady Melania Trump will also be making the trip to Fort Bragg, one of the largest military bases in the world by population, to spend time with military families.Trump has been hitting the road more frequently to states that could play key roles in November’s midterm congressional elections, including a stop before Christmas in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. The White House has been trying to promote Trump’s economic policies, including attempts to bring down the cost of living at a time when many Americans are becoming increasingly frustrated with Trump’s efforts to improve affordability.The president spoke at Fort Bragg in June at an event meant to recognize the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army. But that celebration was overshadowed by his partisan remarks describing protesters in Los Angeles as “animals” and his defense of deploying the military there.Trump has since deployed the National Guard to places like Washington and Memphis, Tennessee, as well as other federal law enforcement officials involved in his crackdown on immigration. Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, announced Thursday that the administration is ending the operations in Minnesota that led to the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens.This time, Trump’s visit is meant to toast service members involved in his administration’s dramatic ouster of Maduro, an operation he has described as requiring bravery and advanced weapons.His administration has since pushed for broad oversight of the South American country’s oil industry. Next month, he plans to convene a gathering of leaders from a number of Latin American countries in Florida, as the administration spotlights what it sees as concerning Chinese influence in the region.The March 7 gathering can give Trump a chance to further press a new and aggressive foreign policy which the president has proudly dubbed the “Donroe Doctrine,” a reference to 19th-century President James Monroe’s belief that the U.S. should dominate its sphere of influence.

    WASHINGTON —

    President Donald Trump is heading to North Carolina on Friday to celebrate members of the special forces who stormed into Venezuela on the third day of the New Year and whisked away that country’s leader, Nicolás Maduro, to face U.S. smuggling charges.

    First Lady Melania Trump will also be making the trip to Fort Bragg, one of the largest military bases in the world by population, to spend time with military families.

    Trump has been hitting the road more frequently to states that could play key roles in November’s midterm congressional elections, including a stop before Christmas in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. The White House has been trying to promote Trump’s economic policies, including attempts to bring down the cost of living at a time when many Americans are becoming increasingly frustrated with Trump’s efforts to improve affordability.

    The president spoke at Fort Bragg in June at an event meant to recognize the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army. But that celebration was overshadowed by his partisan remarks describing protesters in Los Angeles as “animals” and his defense of deploying the military there.

    Trump has since deployed the National Guard to places like Washington and Memphis, Tennessee, as well as other federal law enforcement officials involved in his crackdown on immigration. Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, announced Thursday that the administration is ending the operations in Minnesota that led to the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens.

    This time, Trump’s visit is meant to toast service members involved in his administration’s dramatic ouster of Maduro, an operation he has described as requiring bravery and advanced weapons.

    His administration has since pushed for broad oversight of the South American country’s oil industry. Next month, he plans to convene a gathering of leaders from a number of Latin American countries in Florida, as the administration spotlights what it sees as concerning Chinese influence in the region.

    The March 7 gathering can give Trump a chance to further press a new and aggressive foreign policy which the president has proudly dubbed the “Donroe Doctrine,” a reference to 19th-century President James Monroe’s belief that the U.S. should dominate its sphere of influence.

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  • After a year of tensions, Colombia’s Petro and Trump make peace

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    President Trump recently called Colombia’s leader, Gustavo Petro, a “sick man who likes making cocaine and selling it to the United States.”

    Petro, meanwhile, has labeled Trump a murderer and compared him to Adolf Hitler.

    But on Tuesday, the two leaders made nice — mostly — in a closed-door meeting at the White House that both described as productive.

    Trump described the two-hour conversation, which touched on energy, Venezuela and bilateral efforts to combat drug trafficking, as “fantastic.”

    Petro, in turn, called the confab “very positive” and said it had an “optimistic and constructive tone.”

    He brought Trump Colombian coffee, and First Lady Melania Trump a gown crafted by Indigenous artisans.

    Trump gifted him a framed portrait of the two men shaking hands, scrawled with the words: “I love Colombia.”

    The meeting did not erase the considerable political differences between Trump, who believes the U.S. should dominate the Western Hemisphere, and Petro, a former left-wing guerrilla who opposed the recent U.S. operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

    Yet it did appeared to ease tensions between Colombia and the United States, longtime allies whose relationship soured over the last year amid public clashes between Trump and Petro.

    Relations between the nations grew tense shortly after Trump returned to the White House for a second term.

    Petro refused to receive U.S. military flights of deported migrants, acquiescing only after Trump threatened heavy tariffs on Colombian goods.

    After Petro gave a speech at the United Nations General Assembly slamming U.S. support for Israel and calling on American troops to disobey Trump and “obey the orders of humanity,” the State Department announced it was revoking the visa of Petro and several of his family members.

    In the fall, Trump accused Petro of failing to stop cocaine production — and of being a drug trafficker.

    Washington removed Colombia’s certification that it is doing enough to eliminate cocaine crops and halted aid to the nation, which in 2023 surpassed $740 million. The Colombian government recalled its ambassador to the United States.

    Tensions peaked after the U.S. bombed Caracas and captured Maduro last month.

    Petro said the U.S. had “kidnapped” Maduro and dared Trump to launch a similar strike in Colombia. “Come get me. I’m waiting for you here,” he said.

    Trump did not discard the possibility of a U.S. military operation in Colombia, saying, “It sounds good to me.”

    Relations thawed with a Jan. 7 phone call between the leaders, in which they agreed to meet in person. The U.S. granted Petro a temporary visa so that he could visit the White House.

    Colombian officials said Petro planned to focus on defending his record in deterring drug trafficking, even though cocaine production is rising in Colombia. Acting Justice Minister Andrés Idárraga Franco recently said that Petro’s administration has extradited more criminals to the United States than any of his conservative predecessors, including one accused trafficker who was delivered to U.S. authorities this week.

    Reporters are typically allowed into the Oval Office to ask questions of ahead of meetings between Trump and other heads of state, but they were not on Tuesday.

    Although Trump praised the meeting as productive, he tempered his praise.

    “You know, he and I weren’t exactly the best of friends,” Trump said. “But I wasn’t insulted because I’d never met him. I didn’t know him at all. And we got along very well.”

    Speaking to journalists at the Colombian Embassy in Washington after the meeting, Petro mentioned climate change and criticized the U.S. operation in Venezuela and what he described as the “genocide” in Gaza.

    He said Trump gave him one of his trademark red ball caps. He said he took a pen to change Trump’s slogan, so that it now reads: “Make Americas Great Again.”

    Times staff writer Ana Ceballos in Washington contributed to this report.

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    Kate Linthicum

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  • California Democrats help lead counter-offensive against Trump immigration crackdown

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    California Democrats have assumed leading roles in their party’s counter-offensive to the Trump administration’s massive immigration crackdown — seizing on a growing sense, shared by some Republicans, that the campaign has gotten so out of hand that the political winds have shifted heavily in their favor.

    They stalled Department of Homeland Security funding in the Senate and pushed the impeachment of Secretary Kristi Noem in the House. They strategized against a threatened move by President Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act and challenged administration policies and street tactics in federal court. And they have shown up in Minneapolis to express outrage and demanded Department of Justice records following two fatal shootings of U.S. citizens there.

    The push comes at an extremely tense moment, as Minneapolis and the nation reel from the fatal weekend shooting of Alex Pretti, and served as an impetus for a spending deal reached late Thursday between Senate Democrats and the White House to avert another partial government shutdown. The compromise would allow lawmakers to fund large parts of the federal government while giving them more time to negotiate new restrictions for immigration agents.

    “This is probably one of the few windows on immigration specifically where Democrats find themselves on offense,” said Mike Madrid, a California Republican political consultant. “It is a rare and extraordinary moment.”

    Both of the state’s Democratic senators, Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla, came out in staunch opposition to the latest Homeland Security funding measure in Congress, vowing to block it unless the administration scales back its street operations and reins in masked agents who have killed Americans in multiple shootings, clashed with protestors and provoked communities with aggressive tactics.

    Under the agreement reached Thursday, the Department of Homeland Security will be funded for two weeks — a period of time that in theory will allow lawmakers to negotiate guardrails for the federal agency. The measure still will need to be approved by the House, though it is not clear when they will hold a vote — meaning a short shutdown still could occur even if the Senate deal is accepted.

    Padilla negotiated with the White House to separate the controversial measures in question — to provide $64.4 billion for Homeland Security and $10 billion specifically for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement — from a broader spending package that also funds the Pentagon, the State Department and health, education and transportation agencies.

    Senate Democrats vowed to not give more money to federal immigration agencies, including ICE and Customs and Border Protection, unless Republicans agree to require agents to wear body cameras, take off masks during operations and stop making arrests and searching homes without judicial warrants. All Senate Democrats and seven Senate Republicans blocked passage of the broader spending package earlier Thursday.

    “Anything short of meaningful, enforceable reforms for Trump’s out-of-control ICE and CBP is a non-starter,” Padilla said in a statement after the earlier vote. “We need real oversight, accountability and enforcement for both the agents on the ground and the leaders giving them their orders. I will not vote for anything less.”

    Neither Padilla nor Schiff immediately responded to requests for comment on the deal late Thursday.

    Even if Democrats block Homeland Security funding after the two-week deal expires, immigration operations would not stop. That’s because ICE received $75 billion under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act last year — part of an unprecedented $178 billion provided to Homeland Security through the mega-bill.

    Trump said Thursday he was working “in a very bipartisan way” to reach a compromise on the funding package. “Hopefully we won’t have a shutdown, we are working on that right now,” he said. “I think we are getting close. I don’t think Democrats want to see it either.”

    The administration has eased its tone and admitted mistakes in its immigration enforcement campaign since Pretti’s killing, but hasn’t backed down completely or paused operations in Minneapolis, as critics demanded.

    This week Padilla and Schiff joined other Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee in calling on the Justice Department to open a civil rights investigation into the fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good by immigration agents in Minneapolis. In a letter addressed to Assistant Atty. Gen. for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon, they questioned her office’s decision to forgo an investigation, saying it reflected a trend of “ignoring the enforcement of civil rights laws in favor of carrying out President Trump’s political agenda.”

    Dhillon did not respond to a request for comment. Deputy Atty. Gen. Todd Blanche said there is “currently no basis” for such an investigation.

    Schiff also has been busy preparing his party for any move by Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act, which would give the president broad authority to deploy military troops into American cities. Trump has threatened to take that move, which would mark a dramatic escalation of his immigration campaign.

    A spokesperson confirmed to The Times that Schiff briefed fellow Democrats during a caucus lunch Wednesday on potential strategies for combating such a move.

    “President Trump and his allies have been clear and intentional in laying the groundwork to invoke the Insurrection Act without justification and could exploit the very chaos that he has fueled in places like Minneapolis as the pretext to do so,” Schiff said in a statement. “Whether he does so in connection with immigration enforcement or to intimidate voters during the midterm elections, we must not be caught flat-footed if he takes such an extreme step to deploy troops to police our streets.”

    Meanwhile, Rep. Robert Garcia of Long Beach, the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, announced he will serve as one of three Democrats leading an impeachment inquiry into Noem, whom Democrats have blasted for allowing and excusing violence by agents in Minneapolis and other cities.

    Garcia called the shootings of Good and Pretti “horrific and shocking,” so much so that even some Republicans are acknowledging the “severity of what happened” — creating an opening for Noem’s impeachment.

    “It’s unacceptable what’s happening right now, and Noem is at the top of this agency that’s completely rogue,” he said Thursday. “People are being killed on the streets.”

    Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Fremont) went to Minneapolis this week to talk to residents and protesters about the administration’s presence in their city, which he denounced as unconstitutional and violent.

    California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta has gone after a slew of Trump immigration policies both in California and across the country — including by backing a lawsuit challenging immigration deployments in the Twin Cities, and joining in a letter to U.S. Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi denouncing the administration’s attempts to “exploit the situation in Minnesota” by demanding local leaders turn over state voter data in exchange for federal agents leaving.

    California’s leaders are far from alone in pressing hard for big changes.

    Cardinal Joseph Tobin, the head of the Archdiocese of Newark (N.J.) and a top ally of Pope Leo XIV, sharply criticized immigration enforcement this week, calling ICE a “lawless organization” and backing the interruption of funding to the agency. On Thursday the NAACP and other prominent civil rights organizations sent a letter to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) arguing that ICE should be “fully dissolved” and that Homeland Security funding should be blocked until a slate of “immediate and enforceable restrictions” are placed on its operations.

    Madrid, the Republican consultant, said California’s leaders have a clear reason to push for policies that protect immigrants, given the state is home to 1 in 4 foreign-born Americans and immigration is “tied into the fabric of California.”

    And at a moment when Trump and other administration officials clearly realize “how far out of touch and how damaging” their immigration policies have become politically, he said, California’s leaders have a real opportunity to push their own agenda forward — especially if it includes clear, concrete solutions to end the recent “egregious, extra-constitutional violation of rights” that many Americans find so objectionable.

    However, Madrid warned that Democrats wasted a similar opportunity after the unrest around the killing of George Floyd by calling to “defund the police,” which was politically unpopular, and could fall into a similar pitfall if they push for abolishing ICE.

    “You’ve got a moment here where you can either fix [ICE], or lean into the political moment and say ‘abolish it,’” he said. “The question becomes, can Democrats run offense? Or will they do what they too often have done with this issue, which is snatch defeat from the jaws of victory?”

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    Kevin Rector, Ana Ceballos, Seema Mehta

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  • Why Europe’s far right has split with Trump over Greenland

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    NUUK, Greenland — One year ago, days before Donald Trump reclaimed power, the head of Denmark’s People’s Party took a trip to Mar-a-Lago. Morten Messerschmidt thought he and Trump shared a common view on the perils of European integration. Together, he told local media at the time, they could make the West great again.

    In Europe, just as in the United States, Messerschmidt thought it was “nationale suverænitet” — national sovereignty — that had over centuries given countries large and small the tools to build their culture, traditions and institutions. Those were the values that conservative movements across the European continent are fighting to protect.

    But Messerschmidt now finds himself on the defensive. The far-right politician is suddenly distancing himself from an American president who, off and on over the last year, has made aggressive plays to annex Greenland, targeting Danish borders that have existed for roughly 300 years.

    Trump pulled back from military threats against the island this week. “It’s total access — there’s no end,” he said in an interview on Thursday with Fox Business. Asked whether he still intended on acquiring the island, Trump replied, “It’s possible. Anything is possible.”

    Despite Trump’s fixation on Greenland since his first term, he declined to meet with Messerschmidt at Mar-a-Lago last January. Instead, the Danish politician found himself discussing the matter with Marla Maples, the president’s ex-wife.

    “Portraying me as someone who serves a cause other than Denmark, and who would sympathize with threats to our kingdom, is unhealthy,” Messerschmidt wrote on Facebook this weekend. “It is slander.”

    The Danish People’s Party is one of many far-right groups across Europe, which aligned with Trump’s MAGA movement in their fervent opposition to immigration and related issues, suddenly in rebellion against an administration it once thought of as an ideological ally.

    The president’s moves are now compelling them to reconcile their alliance with Trump with a core tenet on the political right, that nationalism is largely defined by people and place over historic stretches of time — or as Trump often said on the campaign trail, “without a border, you don’t have a country.”

    “Donald Trump has violated a fundamental campaign promise — namely, not to interfere in other countries,” Alice Weidel, co-leader of Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany Party, or AfD, said in Berlin. Her colleague added: “It is clear that Wild West methods must be rejected.”

    The rupture could jeopardize the Trump administration’s own stated goals for a future Europe that is more conservative and aligned with the Republican Party — a plan that relied on boosting the very same parties now questioning their ties to the president.

    In its national security strategy, published in November, the White House said it would “cultivate resistance to Europe’s current trajectory within European nations,” hoping to restore “Europe’s civilizational self-confidence and Western identity.”

    And it is not clear whether the president’s decision to walk back his most aggressive threats is enough to contain the diplomatic damage. “The process of getting to this agreement has clearly damaged trust amongst allies,” Rishi Sunak, former prime minister of the United Kingdom and leader of its Conservative Party, told Bloomberg on Thursday.

    Trump’s pressure campaign urging Ukraine to accept borders redrawn by a revanchist Russia had already strained relations between his inner circle and Europe’s far-right movements. But several prominent right-wing leaders say his aggressive posture toward Greenland amounted to a bridge too far.

    On Wednesday in Switzerland, addressing growing concerns over the plan, Trump still left threats lingering in the air, warning European leaders that he would “remember” if they blocked a U.S. takeover.

    “Friends can disagree in private, and that’s fine — that’s part of life, part of politics,” Nigel Farage, leader of the far-right Reform UK party in Britain, told House Speaker Mike Johnson in London earlier this week. “But to have a U.S. president threatening tariffs unless we agree that he can take over Greenland by some means, without it seeming to even get the consent of the people of Greenland — I mean, this is a very hostile act.”

    In France, the head of Marine Le Pen’s far-right party, National Rally, said the United States had presented Europe “with a choice: Accept dependency disguised as partnership or act as sovereign powers capable of defending our interests.”

    With overseas territories across the Pacific, Caribbean and Indian oceans, France has the second-largest maritime exclusive economic zone in the world after the United States. If Trump can seize Greenland by force, what is stopping him, or any other great power, from conquering France’s islands?

    “When a U.S. president threatens a European territory while using trade pressure, it is not dialogue — it is coercion. And our credibility is at stake,” said the party’s young leader, Jordan Bardella.

    “Greenland has become a strategic pivot in a world returning to imperial logic,” he added. “Yielding today would set a dangerous precedent.”

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    Michael Wilner

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  • Venezuela opposition leader Machado says she ‘presented’ her Nobel Peace Prize to Trump

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    WASHINGTON — Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said Thursday that she “presented” her Nobel Peace Prize medal to President Trump during a private meeting at the White House, but he has not changed his view that she does not have the support to lead her country.

    Machado, who won the prize last year for her work to promote democracy in Venezuela, said she presented the 18-carat gold medal to Trump as a “recognition of his unique commitment to our freedom.” It is unclear whether the president, who has been fixated on getting the prize in recent year, accepted it. The Nobel Peace Center has maintained the award cannot be transferred.

    The gesture was made on the day the two leaders met for the first time at the White House. The highly anticipated get-together came as the United States has allowed top deputies of deposed president Nicolás Maduro’s regime to remain in charge as Trump oversees the transition of power.

    White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that Trump went into the meeting without any expectations, other than to have a “frank and positive discussion about what’s taking place in Venezuela.”

    Leavitt added that Trump continues to assert that Machado does not have the “support” or “respect” to lead Venezuela, an assessment he first made on the day of Maduro’s capture to the surprise of many Venezuelans.

    “At this moment in time, his opinion on that matter has not changed,” Leavitt said at a news briefing.

    While Leavitt described Machado as a “remarkable and brave voice for many of the people in Venezuela,” she also said the United States had found an “extremely cooperative” partner in Maduro’s handpicked vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, who is serving as acting president of Venezuela.

    “They have met all of the demands and requests of the United States and the president,” Leavitt said, noting that the Venezuelan government already agreed to release political prisoners and reached a $100-billion deal to rebuild Venezuela’s energy sector.

    As Machado left the White House, the scope of the discussions between her and the president remained unclear. She did not take questions from the reporters, but a few of them were able to capture a moment on video when she was greeted by supporters outside the White House. She told them: “Know that we can count on President Trump for Venezuela’s freedom.”

    She then left to meet with a bipartisan group of U.S. senators on Capitol Hill. It was after this meeting that Machado told reporters she had presented the medal to the president.

    Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) was one of 14 senators who met with Machado. After the meeting Scott said Machado was “very appreciative of the U.S. military” capturing Maduro and was pushing for “free and fair elections and free press.”

    “We have got to continue to understand that Delcy Rodriguez is not the leader, she was never elected as a president, she is still the leader of drug cartels,” Scott said. “We need to make sure we hold her accountable.”

    It appears unlikely that much will change for Machado after meeting with Trump, who largely has sidelined her and Edmundo González Urrutia, the opposition candidate who won the 2024 presidential election that was stolen by Maduro.

    Days after Maduro was captured, Machado told CBS News the people of Venezuela had “already chosen” González Urrutia as the rightful leader of the country and that they were “ready and willing to serve our people, as we have been mandated.”

    Trump, however, has maintained that before elections can take place in Venezuela, the United States needs to “fix” the country.

    Asked if the president was committed to holding elections in Venezuela, Leavitt said Trump hopes to see “elections in Venezuela one day” but did not have a timeline for them yet.

    Trump says he is happy with his administration’s working relationship with Rodríguez. At a White House event Wednesday, Trump called Rodríguez a “terrific person.”

    The praise came after Trump said he had a “very good call” with her that morning that left him feeling hopeful that the United States and Venezuela could have a “spectacular” working relationship.

    Rodriguez, in turn, used her first state of the union address Thursday to promote oil industry reforms that would drawn in foreign investment, which is in line with the Trump administration’s goals. She also criticized the Washington officials and said there was a “stain on our relations” but said she was open to strengthening the relationship.

    “Let us not be afraid of diplomacy,” with the U.S., Rodriguez said in Venezuela.

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    Ana Ceballos

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  • Rubio and Hegseth brief congressional leaders as questions mount over next steps in Venezuela

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    Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other top officials briefed leaders in Congress late Monday on the striking military operation in Venezuela amid mounting concerns that President Donald Trump is embarking on a new era of U.S. expansionism without consultation of lawmakers or a clear vision for running the South American country.Republican leaders entered the closed-door session at the Capitol largely supportive of Trump’s decision to forcibly remove Venezuela’s president Nicolás Maduro from power, but many Democrats emerged with more questions as Trump maintains a fleet of naval vessels off the Venezuelan coast and urges U.S. companies to reinvest in the country’s underperforming oil industry.A war powers resolution that would prohibit U.S. military action in Venezuela without approval from Congress is heading for a vote this week in the Senate.“We don’t expect troops on the ground,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., afterward.He said Venezuela’s new leadership cannot be allowed to engage in narcoterrorism or the trafficking of drugs into the U.S., which sparked Trump’s initial campaign of deadly boat strikes that have killed more than 115 people.“This is not a regime change. This is demand for a change in behavior,” Johnson said. “We don’t expect direct involvement in any other way beyond just coercing the new, the interim government, to get that going.”Johnson added, “We have a way of persuasion — because their oil exports, as you know, have been seized, and I think that will bring the country to a new governance in very short order,” he said.But Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, emerged saying, “There are still many more questions that need to be answered.”“What is the cost? How much is this going to cost the United States of America?” Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said afterward.Lawmakers were kept in the darkThe briefing, which stretched for two hours, came days after the surprise military action that few, if any, of the congressional leaders knew about until after it was underway — a remarkable delay in informing Congress, which has ultimate say over matters of war.Administration officials fielded a range of questions — from further involvement of U.S. troops on the ground to the role of the Venezuelan opposition leadership that appeared to have been sidelined by the Trump administration as the country’s vice president, Maduro ally Delcy Rodriguez, swiftly became the country’s interim president.Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, and Attorney General Pam Bondi, who brought drug trafficking charges against Maduro, all joined the classified session. It was intended for the called “gang of eight” leaders, which includes Intelligence committee leadership as well as the chairmen and ranking lawmakers on the national security committees.Asked afterward if he had any more clarity about who is actually running Venezuela, Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Intelligence Committee, said, “I wish I could tell you yes, but I can’t.”Leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee — Republican chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa and ranking Democrat Sen. Richard Durbin of Illinois — said they should have been included in the classified briefing, arguing they have oversight of the Justice Department under Bondi.Earlier in the day, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer warned that Trump’s action in Venezuela is only the beginning of a dangerous approach to foreign policy as the president publicly signals his interests in Colombia, Cuba and Greenland.“The American people did not sign up for another round of endless wars,” Schumer said.Afterward, Schumer said the briefing, “while extensive and long, posed far more questions than it answered.”Republicans hold mixed views reflective of the deepening schism within Trump’s “Make America Great Again” movement as the president, who vowed to put America first, ventures toward overseas entanglements many lawmakers in both parties want to avoid — particularly after the long wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.No clarity on what comes nextNext steps in the country, and calls for elections in Venezuela, are uncertain.The Trump administration had been in talks with Rodríguez, who took the place of her ally Maduro and offered “to collaborate” with the Trump administration. Meanwhile, Trump has been dismissive of Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, who last month won the Nobel Peace Prize for her struggle to achieve a democratic transition in her nation. Trump has said Machado lacks the “support” or “respect” to run the country.But Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., a staunch Trump ally, said he plans to speak soon with Machado, and called her “very popular if you look at what happened in the last election.”“She eventually, I think, will be the president of Venezuela,” Scott said. “You know, this is going to be a process to get to a democracy. It’s not easy. There’s a lot of bad people still there, so it’s going to take time. They are going to have an election, and I think she will get elected.”Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who has been a leading critic of the Trump campaign of boat strikes against suspected drug smugglers, said there are probably a dozen leaders around the world who the U.S. could say are in violation of an international law or human rights law.“And we have never gone in and plucked them out the country. So it sets a very bad precedent for doing this, and it’s unconstitutional,” Paul told reporters. “There’s no way you can say bombing a capital and removing the president of a foreign country is not an initiation of war.”__Associated Press writer Kevin Freking contributed to this story.

    WASHINGTON —

    Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other top officials briefed leaders in Congress late Monday on the striking military operation in Venezuela amid mounting concerns that President Donald Trump is embarking on a new era of U.S. expansionism without consultation of lawmakers or a clear vision for running the South American country.

    Republican leaders entered the closed-door session at the Capitol largely supportive of Trump’s decision to forcibly remove Venezuela’s president Nicolás Maduro from power, but many Democrats emerged with more questions as Trump maintains a fleet of naval vessels off the Venezuelan coast and urges U.S. companies to reinvest in the country’s underperforming oil industry.

    A war powers resolution that would prohibit U.S. military action in Venezuela without approval from Congress is heading for a vote this week in the Senate.

    “We don’t expect troops on the ground,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., afterward.

    He said Venezuela’s new leadership cannot be allowed to engage in narcoterrorism or the trafficking of drugs into the U.S., which sparked Trump’s initial campaign of deadly boat strikes that have killed more than 115 people.

    “This is not a regime change. This is demand for a change in behavior,” Johnson said. “We don’t expect direct involvement in any other way beyond just coercing the new, the interim government, to get that going.”

    Johnson added, “We have a way of persuasion — because their oil exports, as you know, have been seized, and I think that will bring the country to a new governance in very short order,” he said.

    But Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, emerged saying, “There are still many more questions that need to be answered.”

    “What is the cost? How much is this going to cost the United States of America?” Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said afterward.

    Lawmakers were kept in the dark

    The briefing, which stretched for two hours, came days after the surprise military action that few, if any, of the congressional leaders knew about until after it was underway — a remarkable delay in informing Congress, which has ultimate say over matters of war.

    Administration officials fielded a range of questions — from further involvement of U.S. troops on the ground to the role of the Venezuelan opposition leadership that appeared to have been sidelined by the Trump administration as the country’s vice president, Maduro ally Delcy Rodriguez, swiftly became the country’s interim president.

    Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, and Attorney General Pam Bondi, who brought drug trafficking charges against Maduro, all joined the classified session. It was intended for the called “gang of eight” leaders, which includes Intelligence committee leadership as well as the chairmen and ranking lawmakers on the national security committees.

    Asked afterward if he had any more clarity about who is actually running Venezuela, Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Intelligence Committee, said, “I wish I could tell you yes, but I can’t.”

    Leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee — Republican chairman Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa and ranking Democrat Sen. Richard Durbin of Illinois — said they should have been included in the classified briefing, arguing they have oversight of the Justice Department under Bondi.

    Earlier in the day, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer warned that Trump’s action in Venezuela is only the beginning of a dangerous approach to foreign policy as the president publicly signals his interests in Colombia, Cuba and Greenland.

    “The American people did not sign up for another round of endless wars,” Schumer said.

    Afterward, Schumer said the briefing, “while extensive and long, posed far more questions than it answered.”

    Republicans hold mixed views reflective of the deepening schism within Trump’s “Make America Great Again” movement as the president, who vowed to put America first, ventures toward overseas entanglements many lawmakers in both parties want to avoid — particularly after the long wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

    No clarity on what comes next

    Next steps in the country, and calls for elections in Venezuela, are uncertain.

    The Trump administration had been in talks with Rodríguez, who took the place of her ally Maduro and offered “to collaborate” with the Trump administration. Meanwhile, Trump has been dismissive of Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, who last month won the Nobel Peace Prize for her struggle to achieve a democratic transition in her nation. Trump has said Machado lacks the “support” or “respect” to run the country.

    But Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., a staunch Trump ally, said he plans to speak soon with Machado, and called her “very popular if you look at what happened in the last election.”

    “She eventually, I think, will be the president of Venezuela,” Scott said. “You know, this is going to be a process to get to a democracy. It’s not easy. There’s a lot of bad people still there, so it’s going to take time. They are going to have an election, and I think she will get elected.”

    Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who has been a leading critic of the Trump campaign of boat strikes against suspected drug smugglers, said there are probably a dozen leaders around the world who the U.S. could say are in violation of an international law or human rights law.

    “And we have never gone in and plucked them out the country. So it sets a very bad precedent for doing this, and it’s unconstitutional,” Paul told reporters. “There’s no way you can say bombing a capital and removing the president of a foreign country is not an initiation of war.”

    __

    Associated Press writer Kevin Freking contributed to this story.

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  • Commentary: In Trump’s invasion of Venezuela, Marco Rubio is the biggest sellout of all

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    By invading Venezuela, President Trump just lit America’s eternal exploding cigar.

    For over 175 years — ever since the United States conquered half of Mexico — nearly every president has messed with Latin America while telling the rest of the world to stay the hell out.

    We have helped depose democratically elected leaders and propped up murderous strongmen. Trained death squads and offered bailouts to favored allies. Ran economic blockades and encouraged American companies to treat the region’s riches, and its workers, like a cookie jar.

    From the Mexican American War to the Bay of Pigs invasion, the Panama Canal to NAFTA, we’ve only looked out for ourselves in Latin America even while wrapping our actions in the banner of benevolence.

    It’s rarely ended well for anyone involved — especially us. Many of the leaders we put into power became despots we tolerated until they ran their course, like Panama’s Manuel Noriega. The political upheaval we helped create has led generations of Latin Americans to migrate to el Norte, fundamentally changing our country even as too many Americans think people like my family should have stayed in their ancestral homes.

    So there Trump was at Mar-a-Lago on Saturday, insisting that the capture of Venezuela dictator Nicolás Maduro and his wife by American troops was a military action as brilliant and consequential as D-day. He also announced that the U.S. would “run the country” and practically jiggled out his weird “YMCA” dance at the idea of making money from Venezuelan oil.

    His message to the world: Venezuela is ours until we say so, just like the rest of Latin America. And if allies and enemies alike still didn’t get the hint, Trump announced an updated Monroe Doctrine — the idea that the U.S. can do whatever it wants in the Western Hemisphere — called the “Donroe Doctrine.”

    Because of course he did.

    No one in Washington should be more versed in this terrible history than Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the child of Cubans who fled the island when it was ruled by the U.S.-backed caudillo Fulgencio Batista.

    Rubio grew up in an exile community that saw Batista’s replacement, Fidel Castro, remain in power for decades, despite a U.S. embargo. As one of Florida’s U.S. senators, Rubio represented millions of Latin American immigrants who had fled civil wars sparked by the U.S. in one way or another.

    Yet he’s Trumpworld’s biggest cheerleader for Latin American regime change, helping torpedo the president’s anti-interventionist campaign promise as if it were a narco boat off the South American coast.

    On Saturday, Rubio looked on silently as Trump threatened Colombian President Gustavo Petro to “watch his ass.” When it was Rubio’s turn to take questions from reporters, he said Cuban leaders “should be concerned” and offered a warning to the rest of the world: “Don’t play games with this president in office, because it’s not going to turn out well.”

    In Latin America, few are more reviled than the vendido — the sellout. Betraying one’s country for personal or political gain is an original sin dating back to the tribes who aligned with Spanish conquistadors to take down repressive empires, only to suffer the same sad end themselves. Vendidos have dominated the region’s history and stilted its development, with leaders — Mexico’s Porfirio Diaz, the Somozas of Nicaragua, Rafael Trujillo in the Dominican Republic — more than happy to side with the yanquis at the expense of their own countrymen.

    Rubio belongs to this long, sordid lineup — and in many ways, he’s the worst vendido of them all.

    Then-Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), left, listens during a 2016 president debate with candidate Donald Trump.

    (Wilfredo Lee / Associated Press)

    I still remember the fresh-faced, idealistic guy trying to pass a bipartisan amnesty bill in 2013. Though too right-wing for my taste, he seemed like a Latino politician who could thread the needle between liberals and conservatives, gringos and us.

    It was wonderful to see him call out Trump’s boorishness when the two ran against each other in the 2016 Republican presidential primary. He told CNN’s Jake Tapper, in words that sound more prophetic than ever, “For years to come, there are many people … that are going to be having to explain and justify how they fell into this trap of supporting Donald Trump because this is not going to end well, one way or the other.”

    The thirst for power has a way of corrupting even the most idealistic hearts, alas. Rubio ended up endorsing Trump in 2016, supporting Trump’s claims that the 2020 election was rigged and proclaiming at the 2024 Republican National Convention that Trump “has not just transformed our party, he has inspired a movement.”

    Rubio’s reward for his boot-licking? He sets our foreign policy agenda, which is like putting an arsonist in charge of a fireworks stall.

    I’m sure all of this comes off as leftist babble to the Venezuelan diaspora, many of whom cheered Maduro’s fate from Spain to Mexico, Miami to Los Angeles. Only a deluded pendejo could support what Maduro wrought on Venezuela, which was a prosperous country and a relatively stable U.S. ally for decades as the rest of South America teetered from one crisis to another.

    But for Trump, toppling Maduro was never about the well-being of Venezuelans or bringing democracy to their country; it was about securing a foothold to flex American power and enrich the U.S.

    Meanwhile, his deportation Leviathan has gobbled up tens of thousands of undocumented Venezuelans and canceled the temporary protected status of hundreds of thousands more.

    Back in 2022, when Rubio was still a senator, he advocated for Venezuelans to be eligible for temporary protected status, which is granted to citizens of countries considered too dangerous to return to. At the time, Rubio argued that “failure to do so would result in a very real death sentence for countless Venezuelans who have fled their country.”

    Now? At a May news conference, he maintained that the 240 Venezuelans deported to El Salvador earlier in 2025 “were not migrants, these were criminals,” even though the Deportation Data Project found that only 16% of them had criminal convictions.

    Rubio has long fashioned himself as a modern-day Simón Bolívar, the Venezuelan who led the liberation of South America from Spain and who has been a hero to many Latinos ever since.

    But even Bolívar knew to be skeptical of American hegemony, writing in an 1829 letter that the U.S. “seems destined by Providence to plague [Latin] America with miseries in the name of Freedom.”

    Plague, thy name is Marco Rubio. By pushing Trump to run rampant over Latin America, you’re setting in motion the same old song of U.S. meddling that ties your family and mine. By letting Maduro’s cronies remain in power if they play along with you and Trump, even though they stole an election in 2024, proves you’re as much for the Venezuelan people as, well, Maduro.

    Vendido.

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    Gustavo Arellano

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  • Airspace and travel restrictions on much of Caribbean airspace following US strikes on Venezuela

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    Much of Caribbean airspace has been closed as the United States hit Venezuela with a “large-scale strike” early Saturday and said President Nicolás Maduro and his wife were captured and flown out of the country after months of stepped-up pressure by Washington — an extraordinary nighttime operation announced by President Donald Trump on social media hours after the attack. This has caused flight cancellations to and from Caribbean airports. So far, there have been nearly 900 cancellations and over 4,000 delays.The airspace closure impacted thousands of people traveling to or from Caribbean countries, all as a busy holiday travel season winds down.Related video above: See a report on the strikes and capture of Venezuela’s presidentThe legal authority for the strike — and whether Trump consulted Congress beforehand — was not immediately clear. The stunning, lightning-fast American military action, which plucked a nation’s sitting leader from office, echoed the U.S. invasion of Panama that led to the surrender and seizure of its leader, Manuel Antonio Noriega, in 1990 — exactly 36 years ago Saturday. Here’s what the attack on Venezuela means for travel in the region:FAA imposes airspace restriction on Puerto RicoThe Federal Aviation Administration has imposed a temporary airspace restriction on Puerto Rico’s international airport and surrounding regions.An announcement by Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan posted on the social media site X said the restriction was placed because of the “security situation related to military activity” in Venezuela.As a result, most commercial airlines to and from the airport that are operated by U.S. airlines have been suspended or may be canceled.Foreign airlines and military aircraft are not included in this restriction, the statement said. “Passengers are urged to check the status of their flight directly with their airline before heading to the airport.”Delta Airlines announced that it began canceling flights in Caribbean airspace Saturday morning, and announcements from American Airlines and United followed soon after.State Department urges Americans in Venezuela to shelter in placeThe State Department issued a new travel alert early Saturday, warning Americans in Venezuela urging them to “shelter in place” due to the situation.”U.S. Embassy Bogota is aware of reports of explosions in and around Caracas, Venezuela,” it said without elaboration.”The U.S. Embassy in Bogota, Colombia, warns U.S. citizens not to travel to Venezuela. U.S. citizens in Venezuela should shelter in place.” The embassy in Bogota has been shuttered since March 2019 but operates remotely.The view from New EnglandThe cancellations affected many New England travelers, some of whom became stranded in foreign countries.”At first, we didn’t know what was going on because they kept delaying the flight,” said Tricia Maloney. “All the flights but ours were cancelled, and ours kept being delayed and delayed and delayed and it was finally cancelled.”Maloney and her family were scheduled to fly back to Boston on Saturday from vacation in Curacao, which is about 40 miles from Venezuela.Plans quickly changed for them.”Our hotel didn’t have any availability, so everyone was scrambling for hotels,” Maloney said. “So, we’re in a new hotel now for tonight, and we’ll have to figure something out tomorrow.”Others, like the Marchese family from Wilbraham, ran into the opposite problem.They were supposed to vacation in Aruba, but amid ongoing flight restrictions, their plan B is Florida.Two families from New Hampshire are now struggling to make changes.”Everyone is like panicking, we can’t even find flights out here until Friday,” said Casie Woodman of Fremont, New Hampshire.A vacation to Aruba for Casie Woodman, of Fremont, New Hampshire, is taking an unexpected turn after she woke up Saturday to learn of the U.S military actions in Venezuela and the closed airspace in the area. “There’s no flights through any airlines, even just to get in the United States, until Friday,” said Woodman.Woodman says families at the resort are scrambling and older people are concerned about getting their medicine.Manchester’s Gus Emmick and his family thought they’d be spending their vacation in Saint Martin, but now they are at Logan Airport.”Many, many families are just sitting here trying to scramble and figure out what happened and what they are going to do,” said Gus Emmick, of Manchester, New Hampshire.The family is switching gears and looking to head to Florida.”As much as we love New Hampshire, December has been a little rough, so we are looking for warmer weather and hoping we’ll see some,” said Emmick.Aviation expert Tom Kinton said safety is the reason behind the airspace closure.”There were hundreds of aircraft and fixed-wing drones as part of this operation. You want to get that all cleaned up before you let civilian aircraft back into that airspace again,” said Tom Kinton. According to the FAA, the closed airspace is impacting flights in and out of Caribbean destinations like Aruba, Barbados and even Puerto Rico. Delta flights to and from the following airports have been cancelled for the day, according to a spokesperson. They are as follows:Luis Munoz Marin International Airport in Puerto Rico (SJU)Princess Juliana International Airport in Sint Maarten (SXM)Henry E. Rohlsen Airport in Saint Croix (STX)Cyril E. King Airport in St. Thomas (STT)Queen Beatrix International Airport in Aruba (AUA)Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport on St. Kitts, Caribbean Islands (SKB)Curaçao International Airport in Curaçao (CUR)Grantley Adams International Airport in Barbados (BGI)Hewanorra International Airport in St. Lucia (UVF)Bonaire International Airport near Kralendijk in the Caribbean Netherlands (BON)Argyle International Airport in Argyle, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVD)Maurice Bishop International Airport in Grenada (GND)V.C. Bird International Airport in Antigua and Barbuda (ANU)It’s unclear when the Delta flights will resume for these airports. Now, Kinton said the airspace is slated to open at 5 a.m. Sunday. However, it could be that a narrower airspace is opened for the time being or the opening could be delayed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

    Much of Caribbean airspace has been closed as the United States hit Venezuela with a “large-scale strike” early Saturday and said President Nicolás Maduro and his wife were captured and flown out of the country after months of stepped-up pressure by Washington — an extraordinary nighttime operation announced by President Donald Trump on social media hours after the attack.

    This has caused flight cancellations to and from Caribbean airports. So far, there have been nearly 900 cancellations and over 4,000 delays.

    The airspace closure impacted thousands of people traveling to or from Caribbean countries, all as a busy holiday travel season winds down.

    Related video above: See a report on the strikes and capture of Venezuela’s president

    The legal authority for the strike — and whether Trump consulted Congress beforehand — was not immediately clear. The stunning, lightning-fast American military action, which plucked a nation’s sitting leader from office, echoed the U.S. invasion of Panama that led to the surrender and seizure of its leader, Manuel Antonio Noriega, in 1990 — exactly 36 years ago Saturday.

    Here’s what the attack on Venezuela means for travel in the region:

    FAA imposes airspace restriction on Puerto Rico

    The Federal Aviation Administration has imposed a temporary airspace restriction on Puerto Rico’s international airport and surrounding regions.

    An announcement by Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan posted on the social media site X said the restriction was placed because of the “security situation related to military activity” in Venezuela.

    MIGUEL J. RODRIGUEZ CARRILLO

    Passengers wait at Luis Munoz Marin International Airport as all flights are cancelled following U.S. military action in Venezuela, on Jan. 3, 2026, in Carolina, Puerto Rico. 

    As a result, most commercial airlines to and from the airport that are operated by U.S. airlines have been suspended or may be canceled.

    Foreign airlines and military aircraft are not included in this restriction, the statement said. “Passengers are urged to check the status of their flight directly with their airline before heading to the airport.”

    Delta Airlines announced that it began canceling flights in Caribbean airspace Saturday morning, and announcements from American Airlines and United followed soon after.

    State Department urges Americans in Venezuela to shelter in place

    The State Department issued a new travel alert early Saturday, warning Americans in Venezuela urging them to “shelter in place” due to the situation.

    “U.S. Embassy Bogota is aware of reports of explosions in and around Caracas, Venezuela,” it said without elaboration.

    “The U.S. Embassy in Bogota, Colombia, warns U.S. citizens not to travel to Venezuela. U.S. citizens in Venezuela should shelter in place.” The embassy in Bogota has been shuttered since March 2019 but operates remotely.

    The view from New England

    The cancellations affected many New England travelers, some of whom became stranded in foreign countries.

    “At first, we didn’t know what was going on because they kept delaying the flight,” said Tricia Maloney. “All the flights but ours were cancelled, and ours kept being delayed and delayed and delayed and it was finally cancelled.”

    Maloney and her family were scheduled to fly back to Boston on Saturday from vacation in Curacao, which is about 40 miles from Venezuela.

    Plans quickly changed for them.

    “Our hotel didn’t have any availability, so everyone was scrambling for hotels,” Maloney said. “So, we’re in a new hotel now for tonight, and we’ll have to figure something out tomorrow.”

    Others, like the Marchese family from Wilbraham, ran into the opposite problem.

    They were supposed to vacation in Aruba, but amid ongoing flight restrictions, their plan B is Florida.

    Two families from New Hampshire are now struggling to make changes.

    “Everyone is like panicking, we can’t even find flights out here until Friday,” said Casie Woodman of Fremont, New Hampshire.

    A vacation to Aruba for Casie Woodman, of Fremont, New Hampshire, is taking an unexpected turn after she woke up Saturday to learn of the U.S military actions in Venezuela and the closed airspace in the area.

    “There’s no flights through any airlines, even just to get in the United States, until Friday,” said Woodman.

    Woodman says families at the resort are scrambling and older people are concerned about getting their medicine.

    Manchester’s Gus Emmick and his family thought they’d be spending their vacation in Saint Martin, but now they are at Logan Airport.

    “Many, many families are just sitting here trying to scramble and figure out what happened and what they are going to do,” said Gus Emmick, of Manchester, New Hampshire.

    The family is switching gears and looking to head to Florida.

    “As much as we love New Hampshire, December has been a little rough, so we are looking for warmer weather and hoping we’ll see some,” said Emmick.

    Aviation expert Tom Kinton said safety is the reason behind the airspace closure.

    “There were hundreds of aircraft and fixed-wing drones as part of this operation. You want to get that all cleaned up before you let civilian aircraft back into that airspace again,” said Tom Kinton.

    According to the FAA, the closed airspace is impacting flights in and out of Caribbean destinations like Aruba, Barbados and even Puerto Rico.

    Delta flights to and from the following airports have been cancelled for the day, according to a spokesperson. They are as follows:

    • Luis Munoz Marin International Airport in Puerto Rico (SJU)
    • Princess Juliana International Airport in Sint Maarten (SXM)
    • Henry E. Rohlsen Airport in Saint Croix (STX)
    • Cyril E. King Airport in St. Thomas (STT)
    • Queen Beatrix International Airport in Aruba (AUA)
    • Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport on St. Kitts, Caribbean Islands (SKB)
    • Curaçao International Airport in Curaçao (CUR)
    • Grantley Adams International Airport in Barbados (BGI)
    • Hewanorra International Airport in St. Lucia (UVF)
    • Bonaire International Airport near Kralendijk in the Caribbean Netherlands (BON)
    • Argyle International Airport in Argyle, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVD)
    • Maurice Bishop International Airport in Grenada (GND)
    • V.C. Bird International Airport in Antigua and Barbuda (ANU)

    It’s unclear when the Delta flights will resume for these airports.

    Now, Kinton said the airspace is slated to open at 5 a.m. Sunday. However, it could be that a narrower airspace is opened for the time being or the opening could be delayed.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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  • Conspiracy theorist-podcaster joins crowded GOP race for Colorado governor, but will candidacy ‘go nowhere’?

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    A conservative podcaster who’s trumpeted false election conspiracies and called for the execution of political rivals, including Gov. Jared Polis, has formally joined the Republican race to become Colorado’s next governor.

    Joe Oltmann, who filed his candidacy paperwork Monday night, now seeks to participate in an electoral system that he has repeatedly tried to undermine.

    He is the 22nd Republican actively seeking to earn the party’s nomination in June. It’s the largest gubernatorial primary field for a major party in Colorado this century, surpassing the GOP’s previous records set first in 2018, and then again in 2022 — and it comes as the party hopes to break Democrats’ electoral dominance in the state.

    That field will almost certainly narrow in the coming months; four Republicans who’d filed have already dropped out. No more than four are likely to make it onto the ballot — either through the state assembly or by gathering signatures — for the summer primary, said Dick Wadhams, the Colorado GOP’s former chairman.

    The size of the primary field doesn’t really matter, he said, because few candidates will actually end up in front of voters. Eighteen candidates filed ahead of the 2022 race, for instance, but just two were on the primary ballot.

    On the Democratic side, a smaller field of seven active candidates is headlined by Attorney General Phil Weiser and U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet. Polis is term-limited from running again.

    For 2026, Wadhams counted only a half-dozen or so Republican candidates whom he considered “credible,” a qualifier that Wadhams said he used “very, very loosely”: Oltmann, state Sens. Barbara Kirkmeyer and Mark Baisley, state Rep. Scott Bottoms, ministry leader Victor Marx, Teller County Sheriff Jason Mikesell and former Congressman Greg Lopez.

    Wadhams said that other than Kirkmeyer, all of those candidates had either supported election conspiracies or a pardon for Tina Peters, the former Mesa County clerk now serving a nine-year sentence for convictions related to providing unauthorized access to voting equipment.

    Oltmann, of Castle Rock, has repeatedly — and falsely — claimed that the 2020 presidential election was not won by Democrat Joe Biden, while calling for the hanging of political opponents. He previously said he wanted to dismember some opponents to send a message, according to the Washington Post, before adding that he was joking.

    In his Dec. 26 announcement video, Oltmann baselessly claimed that Democrats, who have won control of the state amid demographic shifts and anti-Trump sentiment, were in power in Colorado only because of election fraud.

    He said Polis and Secretary of State Jena Griswold, along with 9News anchor Kyle Clark, were part of a “synagogue of Satan.” Polis and Griswold are both Jewish.

    In his announcement, Oltmann painted an apocalyptic picture of the state and said he hoped that three of its elected leaders — Polis, Griswold and Weiser — would all be imprisoned. He pledged to eliminate property taxes, to focus on the “have-nots” and to pardon Peters, whom President Donald Trump has also sought to release by issuing a federal pardon that legal experts say can’t clear Peters of state convictions.

    Oltmann’s decision to join the field is an example of “extreme candidates” from either major party “who file to run but will go nowhere,” predicted Kristi Burton Brown, another former state GOP chair. She now sits on the Colorado State Board of Education.

    She said the size of the Republican primary field was a consequence of Republicans’ difficulties winning statewide races in Colorado. Democrats have won all four constitutional elected offices for two straight election cycles.

    Burton Brown said it “might be a good idea moving forward” to require candidates to do more than just submit paperwork to run for office. That might include a monetary requirement: She said she didn’t support charging candidates significant sums but thought that “requiring some skin in the game” could prevent “unreasonable primaries.”

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    Seth Klamann

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  • Leaders of secretive California religious group accused of murder after members vanish

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    Two leaders of a group described as “cult-like” by authorities in the Inland Empire have been arrested along with a prominent member on suspicion of murder amid multiple investigations into the disappearance of two former members and the death of a 4-year-old boy many years ago.

    Darryl Muzic Martin, 58, who identifies himself as the pastor of His Way Spirit Led Assemblies, and Shelley Bailey “Kat” Martin, 62, who refers to herself as a prophetess and a gifted oracle, have been arrested on suspicion of murder along with member Rudy Moreno, 43, according to Redlands police.

    The leaders of the group have been under investigation in connection with the disappearance of former member Emilio Ghanem in May 2023 after visiting a Redlands Starbucks. Separately, Claremont police are investigating the disappearance of Moreno’s brother, Ruben, who was also a member, while Colton police have been probing the death of 4-year-old Timothy Thomas in 2010, who was in the Martins’ custody when he died after not receiving medical treatment.

    Authorities have yet to explain whom they allege each person killed. But Darryl Martin’s booking records in the Riverside County jail show he was held on allegations of murder, possession of a machine gun, and explosives. His wife was booked in the San Bernardino County jail on suspicion of murder and possession of a machine gun. Moreno was booked on suspicion of second-degree murder, possession of a firearm by a felon, and possession of a machine gun. The arrests occurred Thursday morning.

    On Aug. 6, Redlands police, with help from the FBI, swarmed the current base of His Way Spirit Led Assemblies in Hemet as part of the investigation into the disappearance of Ghanem.

    Emilio Ghanem was reported missing in May 2023.

    (Redlands Police Department)

    Four residents were briefly detained, with two booked on unrelated weapons charges, police said. Several illegal firearms — converted fully automatic rifles, short-barreled rifles and unserialized ghost guns, were recovered.

    Police conducted a similar raid on Aug. 12 at a remote compound connected to the group in the Riverside County town of Anza, where they briefly detained eight people and recovered electronic devices and other digital evidence, according to Redlands Police Department spokesperson Carl Baker.

    Officers at that time also detained the Martins at a motel in Laguna Hills but ultimately released them without seeking any criminal charges.

    But the investigation did not stop.

    Authorities began giving the group a closer look last year, after Ghanem had disappeared and investigators found the truck he’d been driving along with other evidence that led them to believe a homicide may have occurred.

    Ghanem joined His Way Spirit Led Assemblies around 2000 and helped launch a pest control business run by the group, called Fullshield Inc., his sister, Jennifer Ghanem, said.

    For many years, he lived in one of the group’s Colton homes.

    • Share via

    A California religious group that police describe as ‘cult-like’ has landed in the spotlight after a 4-year-old boy died and two members disappeared.

    In April 2023, Ghanem left both the religious group and the company it operated, MaxGuard, behind and moved to Nashville to reunite with his family. Ghanem started his own pest control company, then returned to the Inland Empire to open a satellite office to win back some of his old clients before he disappeared.

    While Redlands police were looking into Ghanem’s disappearance, over the summer Claremont police announced that another missing man, Ruben Moreno, had been affiliated with the group. Moreno was reported missing in 2019.

    As word of the Redlands police investigation spread, Colton police renewed its investigation into the death of 4-year-old Timothy Thomas on Jan. 16, 2010 — after he died within an hour of the 911 call, according to the coroner’s report. He was in the custody of Darryl and Shelley Martin at the time.

    Timothy Thomas

    Authorities are investigating the circumstances surrounding the January 2010 death of Timothy Thomas.

    (Colton Police Department)

    Timothy’s cause of death was ruled to be septic shock due to a ruptured appendix, according to the coroner’s report. Detectives suspect neglect also played a role, according to Colton detectives.

    Police recommended charges against the Martins in 2010, but the San Bernardino County district attorney’s office declined to prosecute.

    Neither the Martins nor their attorney has responded to The Times’ inquiries.

    A beige two-story home surrounded by a security fence

    Timothy Thomas was staying with members of His Way Spirit Led Assemblies in Colton when he suffered a medical emergency, authorities say.

    (Daniel Flesher / LA Times Studios)

    When Timothy died, group members were uncooperative with the investigation and gave conflicting testimony, making it challenging to prosecute the case, authorities said.

    At the time, then-Det. Jack Morenberg, who was investigating, expressed concern over allegations of child abuse and said the home had the appearance of a possible “‘cult-like’ ministry,” according to the coroner’s investigative report.

    As part of the probe, Darryl Martin told police that Timothy’s parents had given him and his wife temporary custody of their three children because their mother had problems and couldn’t provide a stable home, according to the report. One of Timothy’s aunts told police that the Martins would not allow the boy’s mother to see him, or her other children.

    A second aunt felt that Darryl Martin was responsible for Timothy’s death and reported this to Colton police and child protective services in an effort to get the boy’s two remaining siblings removed from the house, according to the report. That aunt said that Martin had instructed Timothy not to vomit and “showed him how to place his hand over his mouth to stop the vomit from coming out,” the report states.

    Since Timothy’s death, several members have parted ways with the group and recently revised their statements to Colton police, saying that their original testimony was made under duress from the group’s leaders, Colton police Sgt. Shawn McFarland told The Times recently.

    In September, Colton police officials said they planned to resubmit the death investigation to prosecutors based on new evidence.

    Because of the statute of limitations, McFarland said, the only charge available to pursue is child homicide or murder.

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    Richard Winton, Clara Harter

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  • Steve Jobs Said This is When Great Bosses Say ‘I,’ Not ‘We’

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    Imagine you’re standing in front of your team. You would never say “my company.” You say, “Our company.” You would never say, “My sales are up 30 percent.” You say, “Our sales are up 30 percent.”

    You’re all in it together — and you definitely want your team to think you’re all in it together — so you always say, “we,” not “I.”

    But not to Steve Jobs. Here’s John Rossman in his book Think Like Amazon:

    Steve Jobs told employees a short story when they were promoted to vice president at Apple. Jobs would tell the VP that if the garbage in his office was not being emptied, Jobs would naturally demand an explanation from the janitor.

    “Well, the lock on the door was changed,” the janitor could reasonably respond. “And I couldn’t get a key.”

    The janitor’s response is reasonable. It’s an understandable excuse. The janitor can’t do his job without a key. As a janitor, he’s allowed to have excuses.

    “When you’re the janitor, reasons matter, “Jobs told his newly minted VPs. “Somewhere between the janitor and the CEO, reasons stop mattering

    “In other words, when the employee becomes a vice president, he or she must vacate all excuses for failure. A vice president is responsible for any mistakes that happen, and it doesn’t matter what you say.”

    Rossman calls embracing that level of responsibility owning your dependencies: taking absolute responsibility for every possible dependency under your purview.

    You need supplies to complete an order, and the shipment from your supplier is delayed? You should have made sure commitments were clear, and put contingencies and redundancies in place. The delayed shipment may be the supplier’s fault, but making sure critical parts are on hand is your responsibility. 

    There’s a quote often credited to Ignatius: “Pray as if God will take care of all; act as if all is up to you.” When you’re in charge, the same premise applies to personal responsibility.

    Many people feel success or failure is caused by external forces, and especially by other people. If they succeed, other people helped them or supported them, other people were “with” them. If they fail, other people let them down, didn’t believe in them, didn’t help them. Other people were “against” them.

    To an extent that is, of course, true. No one ever does anything worthwhile on their own. 

    But great leaders don’t totally rely on others. Great leaders shoot for the best, and plan for the worst. They set clear expectations. They communicate, a lot. They follow up. They mentor and guide and train. They lead and work through others… but they accept final responsibility.

    Why? Because the only thing they know they can control is themselves. They act as if success or failure is totally within their control. If they succeed, they caused it. If they fail, they caused it.

    As Jobs would say, “Reasons stop mattering.” You’re in charge. You’re responsible.

    When things go well, even if you did all the work? Stick to “we” and “our.”

    When things go wrong, say “I” and “my.”

    Because when you’re in charge, it really is up to you.

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Jeff Haden

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  • 5 Toxic People Who Holding You Back at Work

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    It doesn’t matter how nice or well-meaning you are—there’s always going to be that toxic person in your life who wants to vampire the energy right out of you. While toxic people can be anywhere you go, many of them end up in the workplace. According to one study, 80 percent of employees report that their workplace is toxic. 

    You probably already have a good sense of who the toxic people in your life are, but for clarity’s sake, there are five you should seriously consider cutting out of your life now and forever. These toxic people are only standing in the way of your success and well-being. 

    1. The person who never listens to you 

    This isn’t the person who disagrees with you or criticizes you—it is the person who never hears a word you say. You may be excited to hang out with them because they tell such entertaining stories or you just love the conversation, but they never remember the littlest fact about you despite having known you for years. It’s just the way they are and not because they have a problem with you or because you are a bad person. This person just doesn’t care, and that is a problem. 

    2. The person who always brings you down 

    This person could be your neighbor, colleague, or even your friend. They are constantly putting you down, usually just to make themselves feel better. It’s not that they complain all the time, or that they are a negative person in general, though they may well be. The issue is they need you to feel bad about yourself to make themselves feel better. This negative person must be cut out of your life because that kind of person eats away at your self-confidence. 

    3. The person who gets in the way of your taking risks 

    For growth and success, you have to take a few calculated risks every now and then. If you have someone in your life who is constantly trying to stop you from taking the necessary risks to reach success and is always putting the brakes on you trying something new, that person is getting in the way of your growth and, ultimately, your long-term success. 

    4. The person who always tries to defeat you 

    Shared interests are a great reason to keep people in your life. However, there has to be a line drawn between shared passion and constant unhealthy competition. Co-workers should support you, and you should support them. Friendships and work relationships that are all about competition and one-upping are exhausting and unproductive. 

    5. The person who always wants to hold you back 

    If you can’t change and grow with them, they will do everything they can to hold you back in the past, in both life and business. Cut them loose, as you should spend your present only with people you want to have a future with. Cleaning out your life of these toxic people will make room for the right people. 

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The final deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, December 12, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Peter Economy

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  • 9 Common Behaviors of Bad Bosses, According to the Harris Poll

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    It’s hard not to notice when a toxic coworker comes barreling through the office door. However, that’s the least frequent part of a workplace dynamic. Bad boss behavior is much more common than you might realize. According to a survey conducted by the Harris Poll, 71% of American workers report that they have had at least one toxic boss during their career. Another 31% report that they have a toxic boss right now. 

    When bosses break the rules 

    Despite keeping a confident professional veneer, even high-level leaders are guilty of straying from the line of acceptable workplace behavior from time to time. Due to their positional power, bosses can be more comfortable breaking the rules—a practice undoubtedly frustrating for the employees who report to them. 

    The truth is, bosses should be setting an example, not displaying bad behavior themselves. If you’re a boss, you should be acting as a role model for your employees. But what if you’re not? And if you’re not, how can you be sure?  

    The most common behaviors of bad bosses 

    According to the Harris Poll survey, these are the most common bad boss behaviors. Do you recognize any in yourself? 

    1. Sets unreasonable expectations – 51% 
    2. Gets too involved in the details of an employee’s job when it isn’t necessary – 49% 
    3. Gives unfair preferential treatment to certain team members – 49% 
    4. Gives an impression of being unapproachable – 49% 
    5. Does not give credit to team members when appropriate – 48% 
    6. Takes credit for the ideas of others – 45% 
    7. Engages in unprofessional behavior, e.g., inappropriate language – 45% 
    8. Assigns blame to others to protect themselves – 43% 
    9. Discriminates against employees for specific characteristics – 33% 

    What this means for leaders 

    To the chagrin of workers everywhere, it seems that the individuals in positions of authority are—more often than you might like to think—guilty of not always behaving well themselves. Unfortunately, if you engage in any of these behaviors as a leader, you’re being more than a minor annoyance to your people—you’re chipping away at the trust and respect they have for you. 

    If you’re a leader, this list should serve as a bit of a mirror. Employees notice everything. When you set the standard high for others, you need to practice what you preach. Remember: Just because you see your own boss doing something, it doesn’t mean it’s OK for you to do it too. Your integrity is what will keep people following you in the long run. 

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

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    Peter Economy

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  • To Gain Impact, Leaders Must Forge a New Perspective

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    When it comes to lasting impact, today’s leaders would be wise to remember two pivotal lessons. These lessons have the power to significantly raise their odds of achieving great impact.  

    Vital lessons for leaders

    The first might feel laughable: Remember that the world keeps changing. While seemingly obvious, leaders have an unconscious pattern of downshifting after overcoming change, as if change is a one-and-done thing. Even if unconsciously, they adopt a familiar mantra: “I was tested. I triumphed. Now, it’s safe to relax into a new status quo.” Then, it happens. Change comes once more. Yet, it is different than before and with an ample dose of the unfamiliar.  

    This perpetual cycle is worsened by the tendency of too many leaders to unwisely approach the new challenge in a DIY trial-and-error fashion, fueled by the desire to get quickly back to normal. The pattern is only amplified when change takes form as the volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) kind that now dominates. 

    In such times, leaders quickly forget or conclude that while change may feel new to them, past leaders have often encountered something similar. Checking in with their stories is a powerfully simple way to avoid naively rerunning the learning-to-lead gauntlet.  

    This links to the second lesson leaders shouldn’t forget: One of the most potent sources for leadership insights lies in the nonobvious. What does nonobvious mean? Looking outside your network or sector for insights is one plainspoken form of it. Looking beyond your moment in time can also give perspective and distance that can be hard to come by in the heat of the immediate. Combining the lessons, in times of great change, leaders would be wise to look to the nonobvious sources of leadership lessons past.  

    Allow me to tell you a story that exemplifies both teachings. 

    A lesson in leadership past: Vital to the here and now 

    The story, a true one, is about an archaeologist in Northern Arizona, a leader in her field. Her decades-long work focused on ancient native American tribes, seeking to understand how they lived and thrived in the harshness of the desert southwest. Working deep within the labyrinth of the Grand Canyon, she’d come across previously unknown sites of past habitation, sites even current day elders of these ancient peoples were unaware of.  

    She wanted to share with these tribal leaders what she’d found. More precisely, she wanted to show them the pottery shards and arrowheads, the storage granaries and building foundations. In other words, the things archaeologists use to define how past people succeeded and thrived. So, she took the elders deep into the canyon to show them what she’d discovered. 

    At each site, she brought them straight to the artifacts. Each time she did, however, she caught the elders glancing not down at the items but up—up into the rock walls and side canyons. After this repeated at several sites, she confronted the elders. Why, she asked, were they looking up rather than down into the obvious answers she was placing right in front of them? Kindly, patiently and most of all knowingly, they gently smiled and told her. They were looking for water. The real insights, they were teaching her, came from looking up canyon. 

    The power of looking “up canyon” 

    The lesson was simple. Without the essential source of water, none of the rest would have come to pass. No innovative vessels for carrying or storage, no refined hunting tools suited to the terrain, no places of community, no life—nothing. In the desert, they knew, finding drinkable water isn’t obvious. You have to look deeper than you normally would. Instead, you must look in nonobvious places repeatedly. In other words, you must be in the habit of looking “up canyon,” not just where you are and what you do. Change is always present. 

    The truth is, in the business and busyness of today’s VUCA environment, leaders too rarely look “up canyon.” Instead, they obsess over the obvious at their feet, the well-worn and the familiar. However, there’s always a source to anything important that lies deeper.  

    The power of an “up canyon” view in business

    In a fast-moving modern world, this may seem like a distant story to your day-to-day leadership task. In truth, it’s central. Management guru, Peter Drucker, famously pointed to it as the key to long-term success. He boiled it down to a question he advised leaders to repeatedly ask: “What business are we in?”  

    It may sound like a question to which the answer is self-evident. However, an answer with an “up canyon view” is not. His version of looking “up canyon” was to advise leaders to answer the question not once, but five times over, revealing the most fundamental, powerful and important insight layer by layer. It was the unobvious answer, he knew, that reminds a leader where the power to succeed over the long-term actually comes from. It was the best answer, he believed, to guide them through times of change. 

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

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    Larry Robertson

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  • If You Want a Business That’s Built to Last, Start With Your ‘Why’

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    Is it time for you to find a heroic mission? Do you want to create and lead a business worth fighting for—one that’s built to last? I’m for any entrepreneur, the answer is an emphatic yes! However, while it’s easy to write your business’s mission statement, finding one that will actually move the needle on performance takes some work. Here’s how to figure out the “why” behind your business and why that matters. 

    Start with your ‘why.’ 

    When you’re buried in the day-to-day of running a business, it’s easy to get lost in the weeds. However, to build a remarkable business, you need to work backward. You need to find the unifying emotion that underpins everything you do. 

    Your “why” isn’t your product, your service, or your brand. It’s the higher purpose that gets you up at 5 a.m. when everyone else is still in bed. It’s the thing that will keep you going when the chips are down, when everyone else is ready to throw in the towel. 

    As the leader of your business, finding your “why” means having a direct line of sight to your reason for being. You wake up every day believing that the business you’re building is important and worthwhile. That belief guides how you think, how you act, how you move through the world. 

    Make yourself essential. 

    Here’s a simple test I would like you to consider: If you shut your doors tomorrow, then would anyone really miss you? The answer must be an unequivocal “yes.” 

    To build a business that people miss, you have to deliver something special. You have to offer them something unique, unlike what everyone else is offering. It has to be something that they literally cannot get anywhere else. 

    You don’t need to be different for the sake of being different. You need to be special and become a category of one. Your business must be so good at something and uncommon that your customers don’t just become buyers. Instead, they become raving fans. 

    Before every day begins, ask yourself, “Why do I do what I do?” Don’t just think it. Own it. Anchor yourself in it. Then, make everything else you do roll off that rock-solid foundation. 

    Beyond the job description 

    In a fast-moving world of exponentially increasing complexity, you need to focus on where people will want to work, where they will want to spend their money, and where they will want to put their energy. Your “why” is an answer to the question of what you do and why you do it. It’s powerful because it’s simple. 

    The most remarkable businesses are not necessarily the ones with the largest budgets or the most innovative marketing. The ones that really stand out are built by people who aren’t willing to compromise on their mission. That conviction becomes a magnet that attracts customers who don’t just buy from you—they believe in what you’re building. 

    In a sea of sameness, your “why” is your greatest competitive advantage. 

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

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    Peter Economy

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  • How to Deal With the Inevitable Office Jerk

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    There’s always at least one in every office. The employee who regales everyone with crude jokes. They are full of gratuitous insults or off-color commentary. Research shows that a shocking 80% of employees say their workplace is toxic. 

    You might try to just ignore this co-worker and “be the bigger person.” Perhaps, you avoid them, fake a smile, or use up your own valuable mental resources and actually befriend the bully. What’s easy to forget, however, is that silence is not strategy—it’s permission. 

    Dealing with toxic people

    There’s some good news. Dealing with toxic people in the workplace doesn’t have to be as hard as you might think. Like with the playground bully, sometimes all it takes is to shine some light on their actions. In the workplace, the trick is to select the appropriate person to light up in order to have the greatest leverage. 

    As it happens, I wrote an entire book about dealing with toxic people: Wait, I’m Working With Who?!? However, here are a couple particularly effective tips for dealing with the jerks and toxic people in your office or on the other side of that Zoom call. 

    Indirect intervention 

    Bombarding a difficult person with complaints will only make them defensive and cause them to circle the wagons against you. A more subtle and healthier intervention is the indirect version. It works particularly well when the behavior is annoying the entire group or in a social setting. 

    Let’s say someone from a different department—a friend of one of the members of your team—joins one of your meetings. Then, they start making crass or inappropriate comments. Call them out for their bad behavior right then and there, neutralizing the situation—a.k.a., a direct intervention. Then, take your employee aside after the meeting and explain how that kind of behavior is not tolerated on the team. Ask them to convey that message to their friend from the other department. 

    Why does this work? Simple. The jerk will be more likely to listen and change their behavior when it comes from someone whose opinion they value and want to impress. They might be willing to tell you to get lost, but they’re a lot less likely to do the same to a friend or acquaintance. 

    Escalation 

    If the difficult person is a coworker and the behavior continues even after you tried a calm, direct conversation, it’s time to start going up the chain. Talking to your supervisor in private is not “ratting them out.” Instead, it’s professional escalation. 

    Escalating a problem (one you should document, by the way) to your manager or higher-ups is by far the most effective way to effect change and stamp out bad behavior. By doing so, you’re going directly to the person who has the most vested interest and power to stop it. You’ve already done the hard part by documenting your case. Now you are going through the most effective organizational route to get something done.  

    It’s not the playground anymore. Be an adult. Speak up. 

    The opinions expressed here by Inc.com columnists are their own, not those of Inc.com.

    The early-rate deadline for the 2026 Inc. Regionals Awards is Friday, November 14, at 11:59 p.m. PT. Apply now.

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    Peter Economy

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