Trump weighs Insurrection Act in Minnesota; Machado hands over Nobel Peace Prize
Anti-ICE protests are becoming increasingly aggressive, and President Donald Trump is now suggesting a term with serious implications: insurrection.
Plus, the U.S. seizes a so-called ghost fleet tanker in the Caribbean, tightening its grip on Venezuela and its surrounding waters.
And Venezuela’s opposition leader visits Trump with an unusual gift — and a clear hope that it might change where U.S. power lands next.
These stories and more highlight your Unbiased Updates for Friday, January 16, 2026.
Minneapolis protests intensify as Trump floats Insurrection Act
We begin with the latest out of Minneapolis, where President Donald Trump is threatening to invoke the Insurrection Act as protests over immigration enforcement continue to escalate.
Tensions flared again after another federal officer-involved shooting just one week after Renee Good was killed by ICE agents.
This latest shooting was not fatal.
Police deployed tear gas and percussion grenades as protesters gathered outside the Bishop Henry Whipple federal building near Minneapolis. Video shows demonstrators kicking and banging on vehicles entering and leaving the facility.
A CNN reporter on scene says federal agents also used pepper spray after protesters began shaking a security fence.
Trump responded on Thursday by threatening to invoke the Insurrection Act, a rare law that allows a president to deploy the military or federalize the National Guard for domestic law enforcement.
On Truth Social, Trump said he would act 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.”
Meanwhile, the Trump administration is now facing multiple legal challenges over its immigration crackdown in Minnesota.
The American Civil Liberties Union filed a new class-action suit on Thursday, accusing ICE of racial profiling.
In a statement, the ACLU said the administration has “Been clear in its targeting of the Somali and Latino communities.”
US keeps options open on Iran amid Tehran’s body ransom accusations
U.S. officials say all options are still on the table as the Trump administration weighs its next move on Iran’s deadly crackdown on nationwide protests.
The warning comes as the BBC reports Iranian authorities are demanding large sums of money from families to release the bodies of protesters killed during demonstrations.
During an emergency U.N. Security Council meeting on Thursday, U.S. ambassador Mike Waltz said the administration is still trying to de-escalate, but made clear the window is closing.
“Iran says it’s ready for dialogue, but its actions say otherwise,” Waltz said. “President Trump is a man of action, not endless talk like we see at the United Nations. He has made it clear all options are on the table to stop the slaughter.”
The U.N. says protests are continuing but at a smaller scale than last week.
Still, verifying conditions on the ground remains difficult, as a state-ordered internet and communications blackout stays in place.
Meanwhile, the administration announced new sanctions on Thursday targeting five top Iranian officials it blames for what it calls a brutal crackdown on peaceful demonstrators.
“Our message to the Iranian people is clear: your demands are legitimate,” said U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. “You are protesting for a noble cause, and the United States supports you and your efforts to peacefully oppose the regime’s mismanagement and brutality.”
As of Wednesday, rights groups say more than 2,600 people have been killed in the crackdown, with nearly 18,500 arrested since the protests began.
US seizes sixth Venezuelan oil tanker in Caribbean
The United States has seized another Venezuelan oil tanker on the high seas. It’s the sixth such seizure under the Trump administration.
This time, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said the ship was operating in defiance of President Trump’s quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean.
Noem posted a video of the operation on X, showing what DHS described as a pre-dawn boarding that took place without incident.
The vessel, identified as the motor tanker Veronica, is being described by U.S. officials as part of a so-called “ghost fleet” used to evade international sanctions.
The seizure comes as U.S. pressure on Venezuela continues to escalate.
Saturday marks two weeks since U.S. forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in a surprise operation. They were flown to the United States, where they now face drug and weapons charges.
Machado presents Nobel Peace Prize to Trump at White House
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado met with Trump at the White House on Thursday, leaving behind a symbol he’s long coveted.
President Donald J. Trump meets with María Corina Machado of Venezuela in the Oval Office, during which she presented the President with her Nobel Peace Prize in recognition and honor.
pic.twitter.com/v7pYHjVNVO
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) January 16, 2026
The White House released a photo of Machado presenting Trump with a framed plaque featuring her Nobel Peace Prize medal. The president quickly shared the moment on social media.
On Truth Social, Trump called it a “Great honor,” praising Machado as “A wonderful woman” and describing the medal as a gesture of “Mutual respect.”
The White House said the medal was presented “In recognition and honor,” a symbolic gesture, not a transfer of the prize itself.
After the meeting, Machado struck an optimistic tone, telling supporters she could count on Trump. She also headed to Capitol Hill to meet with U.S. senators as she tries to regain influence in Washington and persuade the White House that backing Venezuela’s interim leadership is the wrong call.
But for all the optics, the politics may not have moved. While the meeting was underway, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt made clear that the president’s view of Machado has not changed.
“It was a realistic assessment based on what the president was reading and hearing from his advisors and national security team. And at this moment in time, his opinion on that matter has not changed,” Leavitt said.
Trump continues to work with Venezuela’s interim leader, including acting President Delcy Rodríguez, even as Machado presses for a clear endorsement.
South Korea convicts, sentences ex-president over martial law crisis
South Korea’s former president, who briefly declared martial law in 2024, is now headed to prison after his impeachment and arrest. A South Korean court sentenced Yoon Suk-yeol to five years in prison for charges related to the martial law crisis.
And this may be just the beginning. Yoon faces eight separate trials, including one in which prosecutors accuse him of leading a rebellion.
In Friday’s case, the court found him guilty of resisting authorities’ attempts to detain him. Yoon’s legal team asserts that the prosecutions are politically motivated and that the punishment is excessive.
The former president has argued that he imposed martial law to warn the public about what he called dangerous actions by parliament. His critics say it was a power grab — an effort to cling to office as his presidency unraveled.
The case has drawn international attention.
South Korea is a key U.S. ally. Nearly 30,000 American troops are stationed there, largely as a deterrent against North Korea and Kim Jong-un.
USPS unveils Muhammad Ali forever stamp
The curtain fell in Muhammad Ali’s hometown of Louisville, Kentucky, on Thursday as the U.S. Postal Service unveiled a new stamp honoring the champ, frozen in his fighting prime, gloves up, staring straight into history.
Twenty-two million of these stamps are heading into the world, each carrying a small piece of Ali’s legacy — not just as a boxer, but as a force for compassion.
Ali’s widow, Lonnie, told the crowd that this moment is about more than punches or titles.
“Muhammad spent his life showing up and showing us that true greatness is not measured by who we knock down, but by who we lift up. We all have this power. Muhammad was a champion inside the ring, but his greatest legacy was compassion.”
— Lonnie Ali, widow of Muhammad Ali
Ali once joked that he should be on a postage stamp because it was “the only way I’ll ever get licked.”
Turns out, he was right.
This forever stamp will pass through countless hands and across countless miles — a quiet reminder that courage doesn’t expire and that kindness can still pack a punch.
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Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
