💣 Happy New... Wars?
Mehdi on Donald Trump's 2026 battle plans, how Nicolás Maduro's dancing may have cost him his freedom, and an Epstein Files deadline that just came... and went.
On this day, in 1855, King C. Gillette was born in Wisconsin. His invention would transform our daily lives. Thank you, King!
Good morning and a happy new year! Mehdi here, back from a trip to the UK and the Middle East, where everyone I met seemed to want to know how long Donald Trump would let me continue living in the US. Not the greatest of questions to be asked on vacation, if I am honest with you. My answer? It’s my country, he isn’t a king, and I’m not going anywhere. We also have very big plans for Zeteo this year, so I hope you’ve subscribed – and as a paid subscriber, please!
In today’s jam-packed ‘First Draft’ newsletter, the first of the new year, I debunk the myth of “Donald the Dove” and discuss the fallout from his illegal attack on Venezuela; the president spreads a disgusting conspiracy theory about a murdered Democrat; more genocidal rhetoric from an Israeli minister; and goodbye and good riddance to Dan Bongino.
🚨 Don’t miss our LIVE in-person event in DC: Join Mehdi, Swin, Joy Reid, Jim Acosta, Sarah Matthews, Miles Taylor, and another very special political guest for a powerful evening at the Howard Theatre in Washington, DC, to mark one year of Trump, on Tuesday, Jan 20, 2026!
Who Will He Bomb Next?
On New Year’s Eve, at an event at Mar-a-Lago, in a rare hand-holding moment with his wife, President Donald Trump was asked by a reporter if he had a New Year’s resolution.
To which Trump responded: “I have. Peace. Peace on Earth.”
Barely 48 hours later, the self-styled “peace president” authorized an armed attack on Venezuela and the abduction of that country’s president and first lady. It was a flagrant violation of US and international law. Congress wasn’t consulted.
Welcome to 2026. It begins with another new war from a president who once proudly proclaimed he had started “no new wars.” Will this year be any less bloody, destructive, or war-torn than 2025? Because – and you may not know this due to our mainstream media being so broken – our “peace president” bombed seven countries last year.
Seven.