To Start The Week Adamfoxie and NPR News

 

President Trump told reporters on Air Force One yesterday that the U.S. is in charge of Venezuela. This comes two days after U.S. troops seized President Nicolás Maduro and his wife in the country’s capital, Caracas. Federal authorities are expected to bring Maduro into court in the U.S. today. The U.S. has left the Venezuelan government in place for now, expecting it to obey. Here are seven takeaways from Trump’s incursion into Venezuela.   Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images 🎧 It is not clear how the U.S. expects to be in charge of Venezuela, NPR’s Greg Myre tells Up First. There are no longer any U.S. troops in the country following the military operation to seize Maduro early Saturday morning. There is also no U.S. diplomatic presence in the country, because the U.S. embassy there shut down in 2019. If Trump’s plan is to run the place from afar, his administration may have limited influence on what happens inside the country, Myre says. Secretary of State Marco Rubio says the U.S.' goal is to shape policies in the country, citing issues such as stopping drug trafficking.  Venezuela's Supreme Court has confirmed that it has sworn in Venezuela's Vice President, Delcy Rodriguez, as acting president.Yesterday, Rodríguez made a statement addressing Trump, saying people in Venezuela and the region deserve peace and dialogue, not war. She is now offering cooperation with the U.S., which is a change of tone from Saturday, when she called the U.S.' actions "barbaric" and said she still considered Maduro the country’s leader.  🎧 Rodríguez is an insider for Venezuela with an extensive hardline resume, NPR's Carrie Kahn says. Her two main roles have been overseeing the oil industry and the regime's intelligence agency, and she has good relations with the military. But Kahn says that, if Rodriguez appears to be aligning too closely with the U.S. government, it is unclear how those relations will hold up.  Maduro is set to make his first appearance in U.S. federal court today on charges including narco-terrorism conspiracy and cocaine importation conspiracy. Prosecutors charged Maduro with federal crimes in 2020, during Trump’s first term. Maduro denied the accusations at the time. Maduro’s wife, Cilia Flores, also faces federal criminal charges, including conspiracy to import cocaine.  🎧 The Trump administration appears to be relying on a controversial 1989 Justice Department memo written by Bill Barr during his time in the Office of Legal Counsel to justify its operation, NPR’s Carrie Johnson says. The memo paved the way for American law enforcement to arrest suspects in foreign countries, even when those actions violate international law. In court today, it is possible that Maduro will challenge his capture. However, legal scholars note that Supreme Court precedent allows the government to prosecute defendants regardless of how they reached American soil.

Hanna Barczyk for NPR Death is often an uncomfortable topic. But J.S. Park, a hospital interfaith chaplain, says talking about it can help us prepare for the reality that it could happen to any of us at any time. Park, author of As Long As You Need: Permission to Grieve, talks to Life Kit about what dying looks like and what Hollywood gets wrong about a patient's final moments. 💛 When you visit a loved one who has been hospitalized, you might see physical deterioration, even if they've only been there for a short amount of time. They may not be able to maintain their normal hygiene or exercise routine. 💛 Park says it is rare for a person to know they are having a last conversation with someone. He advises families that, as a person is dying, you should tell them everything you always wanted them to know. 💛 Try not to burden someone who is hurting with something we think they're going to need or by asking so many questions. For example, offer to bring over dinner rather than telling them to let you know if they need anything. For more guidance on how to talk about death and dying, listen to this episode of NPR's Life Kit. Subscribe to the Life Kit newsletter for expert advice on love, money, relationships and more. Collage by NPR Trump has tried to bury the truth of what happened on Jan. 6, 2021. NPR built a visual archive of the attack on the Capitol, showing exactly what happened through the lenses of the people who were there. In "Chapter 1: The run-up," we look at how the overlapping crises of 2020 set the stage for violence. Ahead of the 2020 election, the country was grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic and protests following the police murder of George Floyd. During a debate with Joe Biden, Trump refused to condemn far-right violence, sparking a membership surge for the Proud Boys. Trump also frequently claimed that the only way he could lose the election was through cheating. These videos highlight what set the stage for violence on Jan. 6, 2021. To learn more, explore NPR's database of federal criminal cases from Jan. 6. You can also see more of NPR's reporting on the topic, including a short documentary where two officers relive the riot through bodycam footage.