Politics

(NEW YORK) — From the campaign trail to Capitol Hill, a growing number of Democrats have said they believe President Donald Trump has committed impeachable offenses in his first year back in office.

But with their focus on the midterms, fewer elected Democrats are willing to commit to impeaching Trump if they win back control of the House, given likely Republican control of the Senate and potential for backlash from voters. 

Trump has predicted that Democrats will impeach him if they retake the House, and Republicans plan to make that threat a key piece of their midterm messaging.

“They will do anything to stop the Trump agenda,” Rep. Dan Meuser, a Republican from Pennsylvania, said of Democrats. “People, if they don’t want a two-year president, who they voted for pretty overwhelmingly in 2024, can’t allow the House to flip.”

Instead, many Democrats said they are focusing on the cost of living and the state of the economy.

“There’s a lot for me to be concerned about,” said Rep. Eugene Vindman, a Democrat from Virginia.

Vindman is an Army veteran and former national security official who played a role in raising concerns about Trump’s 2019 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the center of his first impeachment.

“The American people are concerned about costs, and meanwhile, the president is pursuing foreign adventures,” Vindman told ABC News.

Impeachment calls have picked up in 2026 amid the U.S. attack on Venezuela and the Justice Department’s investigations into Trump’s perceived opponents. A number of progressive Democrats from liberal districts and candidates in crowded blue-seat primaries have called for the impeachment of Trump and key cabinet officials.

Democrats are also setting their sights on Cabinet officials: More than 80 Democrats have cosponsored Illinois Democrat Rep. Robin Kelly’s articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem following the deployment of federal agents to Minnesota and the killing of a Minneapolis woman by a federal agent. 

Still, Democratic leaders are moving cautiously ahead of the midterms, when they will need to gain at least three seats to win control of Congress.

“If candidates and members of Congress are not relentlessly focusing on people’s everyday lives, they are making a mistake,” former Democratic Rep. Cheri Bustos, who led the House Democrats’ campaign committee, told ABC News.

“There’s so much of what President Trump has done, is doing, will do that can be labeled ‘impeachable offenses,’ but in the end what good is it going to do? Even if the House has the votes, the Senate will not go along with it,” she said.

The House has already rejected two impeachment pushes from Rep. Al Green, a Democrat from Texas. In June, 128 Democrats voted with Republicans to block his charges over the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities without approval from Congress. 

In December, just 23 Democrats voted with Republicans to kill a second effort focused on Trump’s comments about Democrats who posted a social media video urging service members to refuse illegal orders, while another 47 voted present.

In a statement after that vote, House Democratic leaders called impeachment a “sacred constitutional vehicle” requiring a “comprehensive investigative process” that had not taken place.

“None of that serious work has been done, with the Republican majority focused solely on rubber stamping Donald Trump’s extreme agenda,” Reps. Hakeem Jeffries, Pete Aguilar and Katherine Clark said, arguing that voting “present” allowed them to “continue our fight to make life more affordable for everyday Americans.”

Rep. Jamie Raskin, a Maryland Democrat and the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, said there’s “definitely a rising clamor for impeachment.”

“Of course, it requires a majority vote of the House to get there, but we need a structured method of thinking through all the lawlessness and criminality taking place,” Raskin said.

Kat Abughazaleh, a 26-year-old activist who is running for Congress in Illinois, has argued that Democratic leaders need to “grow a f—ing spine,” and do more to challenge the Trump administration.

She has spoken out and protested against ICE activities in Chicago, and has pleaded not guilty to charges that she interfered with law enforcement during a protest outside an ICE facility in Illinois last fall that went viral on social media.

“One of the most critical failures in American politics is how our leaders have instilled this feeling that we shouldn’t fight for the world we want to see, that we shouldn’t take measures towards a future that we want to live in,” she told ABC News.

“Impeachment is just another tool in the accountability machine that’s supposed to work, but it doesn’t,” she said.

Raskin, who would lead impeachment proceedings in a Democratic House, said he would be “moving very quickly” in the next two months on “announcing a systematic way of thinking” about the various actions of the Trump administration that Democrats find objectionable, and potentially worth investigating.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(WASHINGTON) — The Pentagon was expected to send additional military assets to the Middle East in coming days, according to several people familiar with the discussions, including possibly the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group.

Such a move is considered a typical precaution at times of heightened tensions because of the 30,000 troops stationed throughout the region in countries like Qatar, Jordan, Syria and Iraq.

The added firepower would serve as a deterrent to attacks by adversaries against U.S. bases. But it also would give President Donald Trump additional options to strike Iran later if he chooses.

Examples of assets that could be surged include an aircraft carrier strike group accompanied by cruisers and missile destroyers, as well as Air Force fighter squadrons and land-based air missile defense systems.

Discussions of the additional military assets come as Trump threatened to attack Iran’s government because of violent clashes with protesters. Officials in Tehran responded by threatening to strike back at U.S. bases if he followed through.

According to one person familiar with the discussions this week, Trump was told that a military strike against Iran could be extraordinarily dangerous and potentially risk the lives of U.S. service members in the region, particularly if the government in Tehran felt it was on the brink of collapse. NBC News was first to report this detail.

On Wednesday, Trump told reporters he opted against strikes for now because the U.S. had been told “on good authority” that the killing of protestors in Iran had stopped. Trump also said Friday that 800 planned executions in Iran had been halted, a claim that could not be immediately verified.

In an interview with Fox News on Wednesday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi denied Tehran had any plans to execute protesters.

Several sources said there had been long-running concerns among U.S. officials that the military didn’t have the right mix of assets in place to protect against a potential massive retaliatory strike from Iran, given that Trump had surged much of the military’s force to the Caribbean to support the capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro.

There is currently no aircraft carrier in the Middle East, although officials say there are six Navy ships, including three missile destroyers. The Pentagon declined to comment.

If the Lincoln is deployed to the Middle East from the South China Sea, it’s expected to take longer than a week to arrive. The USS Lincoln was spotted earlier this week on satellite sailing away from the Philippines.

ABC News’ Chris Looft contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(WASHINGTON) — Friday marks a key procedural deadline for how Democrats will figure out which states will hold the first presidential nominating contests of 2028, amid broader debates within the party over diversity and voter representation, and which states will show which candidates are viable for the long haul. 

The Democratic National Committee set a Friday afternoon deadline for state parties to apply to have their 2028 presidential nominating contests be held in the period before Super Tuesday, the first Tuesday in March during a presidential calendar year where the most primaries are held.

The order of the primaries and caucuses matters because the early contests help indicate which candidates have momentum and are striking a chord with voters, and often narrow the candidate field ahead of Super Tuesday.

The debate about the order is also about diversity and voter representation in the Democratic Party. Some Democrats have argued that states with larger Black and minority populations should be prioritized, to reflect the diversity of the country, while others say the party should prioritize traditional “early states,” such as New Hampshire, to spur turnout and buzz, even though their populations may be less diverse. 

Traditionally, Iowa has held first-in-the nation caucuses and New Hampshire has first-in-the-nation primaries. But in 2024, a reshuffled DNC primary calendar pushed the states from the first two slots on the party’s official calendar and officially put South Carolina first.

While Iowa Democrats found a compromise with the DNC by switching their in-person caucus to an entirely mail-in voting process, New Hampshire’s primaries were kept in January, causing conflict between the state and national party. 

Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart, in a statement to ABC News, said that the party is applying to hold its caucuses before Super Tuesday, and said Democrats need to keep Iowa toward the front of the line in order to stay competitive with Republicans.

“No matter what the Rules and Bylaws Committee decides, Republican presidential candidates will be in Iowa,” Hart wrote. “It was a mistake for the DNC to cut us out of the calendar, letting Republicans’ attacks go unanswered in Iowa while millions of dollars in advertising, organizing and the worldwide media flooded our state.”

Some state party leaders have said their states being early in the calendar will help candidates show if they can stick it out throughout 2028.

New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Raymond Buckley said the case his party is making to the DNC is that New Hampshire is a prime state for 2028 candidates to build up support and to show their viability. He said its small size allows for easy campaigning in a purple state, “which is exactly what you need in the November general election.”

New Hampshire also has a state law requiring it to hold the nation’s first presidential primaries, which is what led in large part to the disarray in 2024 between the state party and the DNC. But Buckley said that it’s not a factor right now.

“It’s not about the tradition, it’s not about the law; it’s really about our involvement, and we just think that we have an unmatched record of being able to give the opportunity for candidates to talk to voters one-on-one,” Buckley said.

Buckley said New Hampshire’s population of union members, as well as the large percentage of students of color in the public school systems of the state’s two largest cities make it a great state for candidates to test the waters.

But the South Carolina Democratic Party said it wants to stay first in the calendar. 

Party Executive Director Jay Parmley told ABC News that the state is making its case to the DNC to remain in the early window because it’s compact and allows unknown candidates to compete. Also, Parmley said the state does not have a major population center, so candidates need to fan out across it. 

Regarding the debates surrounding diverse primary states, Parmley pointed to how the state has a “diverse electorate,” and highlighted its Black community. Around 1 in 4 registered voters in South Carolina are Black, according to data from the South Carolina Election Commission.

“Our Black electorate — it legitimizes and rewards the role of Black voters and as the backbone and soul, if you will, of the Democratic Party.”

Nevada’s Democratic Party also confirmed it’s submitting a bid to go early, arguing that galvanizing the state’s minority and working-class populations is critical for the Democrats. 

In a draft of their application, the state party wrote, “The Democratic Party is facing a critical moment where we must be strategic in our efforts to earn back Latino support, craft an economic message that resonates across the country, begin the work to reach working-class voters, and turn out diverse communities. We cannot afford to have overwhelmingly college-educated, white, or less competitive states kick off the process of selecting our party’s nominee.”

Michigan is also submitting a bid to be among the early states similar to how it was in 2024, the state’s party confirmed to ABC News — arguing in part that Michigan is the most important and diverse of the battleground states.

“For Democrats to have the strongest presidential candidate, the early nominating states should closely mirror Democratic voters nationwide and be representative of America,” Michigan Democratic Party Chair Curtis Hertel said in a statement to ABC News.

Illinois’, North Carolina’s and Georgia’s state Democratic parties also confirmed to ABC News that they are submitting bids. As Georgia’s state’s presidential primaries are usually held after Super Tuesday, they’d have to work with the Republican-dominated state legislature to move up the date.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump on Friday said he is considering imposing tariffs on countries that don’t support his efforts to acquire Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory.

“I may put a tariff on countries if they don’t go along with Greenland, because we need Greenland for national security,” Trump said at an unrelated event on rural health care at the White House.

His comments leave many questions about what it would mean with recent U.S. trade agreements struck with European allies, particularly those with the United Kingdom and European Union.

Trump’s tariff threat comes after European nations have voiced objections to Trump’s repeated messaging about taking over Greenland, either by buying the island territory or by using military force.

In a show of support for Greenland, French President Emmanuel Macron said Thursday that a group of French troops were on the ground there to take part in military exercises with Danish forces and those from other NATO countries, including Germany, Norway, and Sweden.

Macron’s announcement came a day after top officials from Greenland and Denmark, following meeting with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the White House, said “fundamental disagreements” remained with the Trump administration on the issue.

“It’s clear that the president has this wish of conquering over Greenland,” Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen told reporters after the meeting. Rasmussen called that outcome “totally unacceptable.”

Meanwhile, a bipartisan group of House members and senators on Friday touted “constructive” conversations with members of Denmark’s parliament during a delegation trip to Copenhagen.

The group — which included Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski, Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, Democratic Sen. Chris Coons, Democratic Sen. Peter Welch, Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin, Republican Sen. Thom Tillis, Democratic Rep. Sarah Jacobs, Democratic Rep. Steny Hoyer and others — said the visit was to nurture the relationship between Denmark, Greenland and the United States and to reassure NATO partners that many members of Congress do not support any effort by the United States to acquire Greenland.

“I think it’s important that it be recognized that when it comes to matters of relationships with our friends, with our allies, as we have here in Denmark, as we have in Greenland, that it is — it is not a subject of Republicans versus Democrats. It is a recognition, again, of a strong and continuing relationship over decades,” Murkowski said.

Coons, who led the delegation, said the trip was designed for members of Congress to “listen respectfully” to NATO allies and to return to the United States “share those perspectives so that we can lower the temperature”.

“There’s a lot of rhetoric, but there’s not a lot of reality in the current discussion in Washington,” Coons said.

Aaja Chemnitz Larsen, one of Greenland’s representatives in the Danish parliament, said the group also discussed pressure that people in Greenland feel in light of President Trump’s recent rhetoric.

“We have also talked about the human dimension, the pressure that people are feeling back home in Greenland. I think it was well received, and of course, they understand the concerns that we have in Greenland,” Larsen said. 

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(WASHINGTON) — A set of recent polls have highlighted American voters’ opposition to taking over Greenland — and even greater opposition to taking it over by military force.

A Quinnipiac University poll found 55% of voters opposed to the United States trying to buy Greenland, with majorities of Democratic voters (85%) and independent voters (58%) opposed and a majority of Republican voters in support (67%). Greenland, though, is not for sale — with Danish and Greenlandic officials saying the island can’t be bought. Greenland is a self-governing territory of the Kingdom of Denmark.

Opposition rises to nearly 9 in 10 voters when asked if the U.S. should try to take Greenland by military force, something President Donald Trump has said “is always an option.” Just 9% of U.S. voters say they support the U.S. trying to take Greenland by military force.

In all, 86% of voters, including 95% of Democrats, 94% of independents and 68% of Republicans oppose the U.S. trying to take Greenland by military force.

Notably, few polls find this level of agreement on policy issues — and most Republicans rarely disagree with Trump.

The president is trying to take over the autonomous Danish territory, claiming earlier this week that “we need Greenland” and citing national security as a reason for the acquisition. Now, France and other NATO countries have sent troops for military exercises after representatives from Denmark and Greenland said they had “fundamental disagreements” with the U.S. 

A Reuters/Ipsos poll also found low levels of support for Trump’s push to take over Greenland. Just 17% of Americans said they approved of U.S. efforts to acquire Greenland, including a 40% minority of Republicans. Support was even lower among Democrats (2%) and others (9%).

When asked about taking Greenland using military force in the Reuters/Ipsos poll, just 4% of Americans said it was a good idea, including only 8% of Republicans.

The Reuters/Ipsos poll offered a “don’t know” response to those answering their survey, and large minorities of Americans said they did not have opinions on these issues.

Two-thirds of Americans say they are concerned that the U.S. acquiring the self-governing territory that is part of Denmark could harm NATO and U.S. relations with European countries. That includes about 9 in 10 Democrats, 4 in 10 Republicans and 7 in 10 independents.

The Quinnipiac poll was conducted Jan. 8-12 among 1,133 registered voters and has a margin of error of +/- 3.7 percentage points.

The Reuters/Ipsos poll was conducted Jan. 12-13 among 1,217 U.S. adults and has a margin of error of +/- 2.9 percentage points.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(WASHINGTON) — Sen. Tammy Duckworth is introducing legislation Friday that would put restraints on the current and former political appointees to be nominated as inspectors general. 

The Inspector General’s Independence Act would bar President Donald Trump and future presidents from nominating political appointees who have served or are serving in their administration from serving as an inspector general. 

“Whether this is acquisitions or our VA or DoD or Commerce or HHS, inspectors general are supposed to be calling balls and strikes and be independent and say, ‘Hey, you can’t do that,'” Duckworth told ABC News. “But if you put a political appointee in that position they are going to lean in favor of who put them there.”

The move comes nearly one year after the administration moved to unilaterally dismiss 17 inspectors general across a number of agencies at the beginning of Trump’s second term. 

Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle pushed back on the administration’s move at the time, raising concerns that the firing of inspectors generals would introduce partisanship into a role that is meant to serve as an independent watchdog. Lawsuits challenging the viability of those firings are going through the courts.

“There have been lawsuits that are in courts right now that say that those firings were illegal,” Duckworth said. “So this piece of legislation in particular will make it very clear that what he did was illegal, and not just leave it to courts to interpret existing law.” 

Duckworth points to the nomination and subsequent Senate confirmation of Cheryl Mason as Veterans Affairs inspector general as one example of why the legislation is critical.

Mason was appointed to fill a vacancy left after the administration fired the previous inspector general. She was serving as a senior adviser to Trump’s Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins at the time she was nominated by the president to serve as the department’s IG.

During her confirmation hearing before the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee in June, a number of Democratic lawmakers, including Duckworth, raised concerns about Mason’s ability to serve as an independent watchdog for the agency she had served in as a political adviser.

Republican Sen. Jerry Moran, the committee chairman, also raised questions about how Mason would ensure her independence, but ultimately voted with all Republicans to confirm her.

Mason at the time vowed to serve as an independent actor, citing her years of experience at VA working at the Board of Veterans’ Appeals before returning as an adviser. Her role as an adviser, she said at the time, was to gather information and convey it in a nonpartisan manner.

“I consider myself to be an impartial, independent aid to the department because that’s my role,” Mason told senators on the panel when questioned about her loyalty to the VA secretary. “I am loyal to the veterans. That’s who I am loyal to.” 

“I work for the president and the secretary,” Mason said in the hearing when pressed by Democrats about her independence. “But also if confirmed will work for this committee.”

Mason was confirmed by the Senate in July by a vote of 53-45. No Democrats voted to confirm her. 

Duckworth’s legislation would have barred Mason from being nominated. Her bill, if passed, would prevent similar politically aligned nominees from serving as IGs.

The legislation is being co-sponsored by Democratic Sens. Dick Durbin, Richard Blumenthal, Adam Schiff, Kirsten Gillibrand and Peter Welch. It does not currently have any Republican co-sponsors.

It’s unclear whether it would have the necessary support to advance through either chamber of Congress, and unlikely that President Trump would sign it into law.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(WASHINGTON) — Three House Democrats said they are under federal investigation for their participation in a November social media video telling military and intelligence service members that they can refuse illegal orders — joining two Senate Democrats who are also facing the wrath of the Trump administration for appearing in the clip.

Democratic Reps. Jason Crow, Maggie Goodlander and Chrissy Houlahan shared on Wednesday that they were being investigated by federal prosecutors after the group of Democrats — who had previously served in the military or in the intelligence community — said in a video posted on social media that U.S. service members have a right to refuse unlawful orders.

Crow said because of the video, President Donald Trump is “using his political cronies in the Department of Justice to continue to threaten and intimidate us.”

“But he’s picked the wrong people,” Crow, a former Army Ranger, continued in a video post on X Wednesday. “We took an oath to the Constitution, a lifetime oath when we joined the military and again as members of Congress. We are not going to back away. Our job, our duty is to make sure that the law is followed. We will not be threatened, we will not be intimidated, we will not be silenced.”

Goodlander, who served as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve, agreed in a social media post Wednesday that “these threats will not deter, distract, intimidate, or silence me.”

“It is sad and telling that simply stating a bedrock principle of American law caused the President of the United States to threaten violence against me, and it is downright dangerous that the Justice Department is targeting me for doing my job,” Goodlander said in the post.

Houlahan, an Air Force veteran, said in a post on X Wednesday that the group of Democrats are “being targeted not because we said something untrue, but because we said something President Trump and Secretary Hegseth didn’t want anyone to hear.”

The trio of statements come after Sen. Elissa Slotkin, a Democrat, said earlier this week that she was under federal investigation for her participation in the video.

Slotkin said the investigation inquiry came from U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro, a Trump ally.

A spokesperson for the U.S. attorney’s office said Thursday that they could neither confirm nor deny the existence of an investigation into the other lawmakers.

The basis of the investigation is not clear.

The latest fallout from the video comes after Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly, who also appeared in the video, was censured by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. In a censure letter, Hegseth said that the video “Undermines the Chain of Command; Creates Confusion About Duty; Brings Discredit Upon the Armed Forces; and Is Conduct Unbecoming an Officer.”

The censure will result in a reduction in rank and Kelly’s retirement pay, a process Hegseth said would take 45 days.

Kelly responded by filing a lawsuit against Hegseth, arguing that the censure violated his constitutional rights.

Democrats involved in the video have defended its message as being in line with the Uniform Code of Military Justice and the Constitution.

President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticized the Democrats featured in the video, saying in social media posts in November that they are “traitors” whose actions are “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!”

Asked in November if Trump wants to execute members of Congress, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the president did not — adding that the Democrats in the video are “encouraging [service members] to defy the president’s lawful orders.”

In an interview with ABC News after the censure, Kelly said he still would “absolutely not” change his message to U.S. troops about not following illegal orders.

In his video, Crow similarly said he would not back down from his message.

“I am more emboldened than ever to make sure that I am upholding my duty, and I will not back down,” Crow said.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(MINNEAPOLIS) — President Donald Trump threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act to send in federal troops as protests unfold in Minneapolis against Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations.

“If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT, which many Presidents have done before me, and quickly put an end to the travesty that is taking place in that once great State,” Trump wrote in a social media post.

Democratic officials in Minnesota have decried ICE’s presence after two shootings involving federal law enforcement in the span of a week. Gov. Tim Walz called the ICE operations a “campaign of organized brutality against the people of Minnesota by our own federal government” and encouraged residents to “protest loudly, urgently, but also peacefully.”

Trump previously threatened to invoke the 1807 law, which hasn’t been used in over 30 years, last June amid protests in Los Angeles over the administration’s immigration crackdown and deployment of the National Guard and again in October for Chicago.

What to know about the Insurrection Act
Generally, the use of federal troops on U.S. soil is mostly prohibited. The 1878 Posse Comitatus Act limits the military from being involved in civilian law enforcement unless Congress approves it or under circumstances “expressly authorized by the Constitution.”

One exception is the Insurrection Act, a law signed by President Thomas Jefferson in 1807.

The Insurrection Act states, in part: “Whenever there is an insurrection in any State against its government, the President may, upon the request of its legislature or of its governor if the legislature cannot be convened, call into Federal service such of the militia of the other States, in the number requested by that State, and use such of the armed forces, as he considers necessary to suppress the insurrection.”

Another provision states it can be used “whenever the President considers that unlawful obstructions, combinations, or assemblages, or rebellion against the authority of the United States, make it impracticable to enforce the laws of the United States in any State by the ordinary course of judicial proceedings.”

Some legal experts have warned the law is overly broad and vague, and there have been various calls for it to be reformed to provide greater checks on presidential power.

The Insurrection Act has been invoked in response to 30 crises over its history, according to the Brennan Center for Justice, including by presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy to desegregate schools after the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling in Brown v. Board of Education.

Most of its uses involved federal troops being deployed, though a few situations were resolved after troops were ordered to respond but before they arrived on the scene, the Brennan Center noted.

When it was last used in 1992 by President George H.W. Bush to send the National Guard to Los Angeles, it was at the request of then-GOP Gov. Pete Wilson as riots exploded in the city after the acquittal of white police officers charged in the beating of Rodney King.

Invoking the act without coordination with state officials is something that hasn’t been done since President Lyndon B. Johnson in the 1960s to deal with civil unrest.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(WASHINGTON) — The United States seized another tanker in the Caribbean Thursday morning, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced — saying in a social media post that the vessel was “operating in defiance of President Trump’s established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean.”

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced the seizure in an X post along with video of the operation, which she said happened without incident.

“Early this morning, a Coast Guard tactical team conducted a pre-dawn boarding and seizure of Motor Tanker Veronica in the Caribbean,” she said.

“As another sanctioned ghost fleet tanker, Motor Tanker Veronica had previously passed through Venezuelan waters, and was operating in defiance of President Trump’s established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean,” she added.

The U.S. Southern Command said the Marines and sailors from Joint Task Force Southern Spear launched from USS Gerald R. Ford and “apprehended Motor/Tanker Veronica without incident.”

This is the sixth tanker linked to Venezuela boarded by U.S. troops in the last several weeks, following growing escalations between the U.S. and Venezuela.

The tanker’s seizure comes less than two weeks after U.S. military forces captured President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, who are facing federal charges including narcoterrorism conspiracy and conspiracy to import cocaine. Both Maduro and his wife have entered not guilty pleas.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

(MINNEAPOLIS) — President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act to send in the U.S. military as tensions intensify in Minneapolis following a second shooting in a week involving a federal officer amid Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in the city.

“If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT, which many Presidents have done before me, and quickly put an end to the travesty that is taking place in that once great State,” Trump wrote in a social media post.

On Wednesday night, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, both Democrats, needed to be stopped from “terrorism.”

“Minnesota insurrection is a direct result of a FAILED governor and a TERRIBLE mayor encouraging violence against law enforcement. It’s disgusting,” Blanche posted on X. “Walz and Frey — I’m focused on stopping YOU from your terrorism by whatever means necessary. This is not a threat. It’s a promise.”

ABC News has reached out to Walz and Frey’s offices for comment on Blanche’s statement.

The deputy attorney general’s blunt post came after Walz earlier on Wednesday evening had issued a sharp rebuke of the federal government’s law enforcement presence after a federal officer shot a person who they said had fled a traffic stop and then, along with two other people, began attacking the officer.

The shooting came one week after Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother, was fatally shot by an ICE agent. The Department of Homeland Security has said that Good was allegedly attempting to run over law enforcement officers, a claim disputed by local officials.

“It’s a campaign of organized brutality against the people of Minnesota by our own federal government,” Walz said in an address on Wednesday. He urged residents to “protest loudly, urgently, but also peacefully.” 

Frey, who has called on ICE to “get the f— out” of Minneapolis, said on Wednesday “the situation we are seeing in our city is not sustainable.”

Trump previously threatened to invoke the 1807 Insurrection Act last summer when protests were unfolding in Los Angeles over the administration’s immigration crackdown and deployment of the National Guard.

The law, which authorizes the use of the military on U.S. soil for certain purposes, hasn’t been enacted for decades. It was last implemented was in 1992 by President George H.W. Bush during the Los Angeles riots following the murder of Rodney King at the request of the governor. It hasn’t been used without coordination with a governor since the 1960s.

Overall, the Insurrection Act has been used in response to 30 crises over its history, according to the Brennan Center for Justice, including by Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy to desegregate schools after the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling in Brown v. Board of Education.

The Insurrection Act states, in part: “Whenever there is an insurrection in any State against its government, the President may, upon the request of its legislature or of its governor if the legislature cannot be convened, call into Federal service such of the militia of the other States, in the number requested by that State, and use such of the armed forces, as he considers necessary to suppress the insurrection.”

Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.