American imperialism:
On the U.S. raid on Venezuela to oust Nicolás Maduro, the Venezuelan president:
Stephen Miller, Donald Trump’s deputy chief of staff for policy and homeland security advisor, told CNN’s Jake Tapper on Monday January 5, 2026:
“We live in a world in which you can talk all you want about international niceties and everything else, but we live in a world—in the real world, Jake—that is governed by strength, that is governed by force, that is governed by power. These are the iron laws of the world that have existed since the beginning of time.”
The “Donroe Doctrine” is a more aggressive Trumpian take on the 1823 Monroe Doctrine, a foreign policy approach focused on unilateral U.S. dominance in the Western Hemisphere. How far does this administration intend to force this new doctrine?
DOE now department of nuclear weapons and Venezuelan oil: The Trump administration engaged the Department of Energy (DOE) and Secretary Chris Wright to oversee the seizure and marketing of Venezuelan oil following the capture of Nicolás Maduro. The U.S. intends to control Venezuelan oil, aiming to sell 30–50 million barrels of accumulated, sanctioned crude to the American people.
Greenland:
Trump describes Greenland as an “absolute necessity” for national security and the defense of the Arctic.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said that the president believes Greenland is “essential for the Golden Dome missile shield.” https://www.wcvb.com/article/greenland-trump-explainer/70097863
U.S. Department of State and the Department of the Interior under the Trump administration have released several memos regarding Arctic security that highlight:
- Oil & Gas: The U.S. Geological Survey estimates Greenland holds approximately 17.5 billion barrels of oil and 148 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.
- Mineral Security: A 2024-2025 policy brief from the Trump transition team noted that Greenland is “the final frontier for American mineral independence.”
Denmark subsidizes Greenland minimally $600 million each year. The largest ramification here is that Denmark is one of our closest NATO allies, and one member attacking and invading the other could mean the death of the NATO alliance itself.
Budget
Trump proposes massive increase in 2027 defense spending to $1.5 trillion to build ‘Dream Military’
Trump on Wednesday proposed setting military spending at $1.5 trillion in 2027, citing “troubled and dangerous times.”
The 2026 military budget is set at $901 billion.
Trump on Wednesday also threatened to cut off Pentagon purchases from Raytheon, one of the biggest U.S. defense contractors, if the company did not end the practice of stock buybacks and invest more profits into building out its weapons manufacturing capacity.
Congress: Democrats increasingly have a good chance of talking over the House in mid-term elections (if so, Trump says he expects to be impeached https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/trump-predicts-impeachment-if-republicans-lose-2026-midterms-rcna252604). With the resignation of Marjorie Taylor Green and death of Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R.-CA), there are now 218 Republicans vs 213 Democrats in the House. A number of Republican members are running for state offices and will be regularly absent.
Nuclear weapons budget: The government is running on a Continuing Resolution (CR) until the end of January and it’s possible to have another shutdown. The annual Defense Authorization Act legislative process is beginning soon and then appropriations. Both give funding increases to nuclear weapons programs, delivery systems and Trump’s “Golden Dome.”
Cost overruns in nearly all things remains the rule. Golden Dome could cost up to $4 trillion, be destabilizing and never be 100% effective. Putin has already taking steps to circumvent it and China may well be doing the same, particularly with hypersonic delivery systems. The arms race continues, likely to be accelerated by artificial intelligence as well.
Surplus plutonium: The Trump Administration has a crazy idea to give surplus weapons-grade plutonium to commercial entities for use in nuclear energy reactors.
Years ago DOE had a Surplus Plutonium Disposition PEIS and Record of Decision approving shipping pits from Pantex to LANL, PF-4 reducing the pits to plutonium oxide, shipping that to the Savannah River Site for dilution with a classified material called stardust, and then shipping it all back across the country to WIPP. There is no indication of any further NEPA work.
Plutonium pit production: The program is so troubled that DOE conducted a “special assessment” scheduled for completion mid-December. It is still not publicly available. Sen. Warren and Rep Garamendi demanded its release on January 9. https://www.warren.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/warren-garamendi-press-energy-secretary-on-mismanagement-and-taxpayer-waste-in-plutonium-pit-production-program
STAY TUNED for upcoming public workshops we will host with Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR), Tri-Valley CAREs (TVC) and the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS)!
*Projected costs of NNSA’s plutonium pit production program is now thought to exceed the entire cost of the Manhattan Project, which had to produce plutonium and design and build a pit from scratch.
Accelerating Arms Race
| Nuclear Notebook: The changing nuclear landscape in Europe |
| Since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 and invaded Ukraine in 2022, the rhetoric, prominence, operations, and infrastructures of nuclear weapons in Europe have changed considerably and, in many cases, increased. This trend is in sharp contrast with the two decades prior that—despite modernization programs—were dominated by efforts to reduce the numbers and role of nuclear weapons… In this Nuclear Notebook, we provide an overview with examples of how the nuclear postures in Europe are evolving, especially the infrastructures and operations. |
