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Trump seizes Russian tanker as impeachment calls grow

The David Pakman Show - January 7, 2026

Jan 7

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The U.S. Coast Guard’s seizure of a Russian-flagged oil tanker near Iceland is a volatile move, with U.S. forces boarding the ship while reported Russian naval assets sat within range. But the more unsettling read is that this may be deliberate theater: a made-for-TV “tough on Putin” moment timed for the 2026 midterms, with a quiet understanding that each strongman gets a sphere of influence and the rest of the world gets the bill.

At the same time, Trump is openly warning Republicans that losing the House in November could mean impeachment, and he framed it as inevitable rather than hypothetical. Democrats and legal voices are increasingly framing the Venezuelan operation as an unauthorized use of force, while Trump tries to turn it into a survival story: keep me protected, keep me in power, keep my legacy intact.

That impeachment talk sits alongside a growing sense that Trump’s public behavior is sliding into something more erratic and unsettling. In a meeting with House Republicans that was supposed to be about 2026 strategy, he veered into bragging about cognitive tests, wandered through old grievances, and performed crowd-pleasing bits. This was supposed to be about midterm strategy, reinforcing the broader concern that he’s visibly unwell and increasingly detached from reality.

Then Trump pushed the boundary further by floating the idea of canceling the 2026 election, doing the classic authoritarian two-step: hint at it, deny you meant it, and blame the media for noticing. It lands even darker given the timing around January 6 and the familiar election denial rhetoric, because repetition is the point: normalize the unthinkable until it sounds like just another “controversial comment.”

Marjorie Taylor Greene, now out of Congress, breaks with Trump over the Venezuela operation and the broader turn toward foreign intervention and corporate-friendly outcomes. She unexpectedly delivers a left-coded critique of regime change as a pathway to exploitation, cheap labor, and elite enrichment, and she also slams gimmicks like a 50-year mortgage as a debt trap dressed up as policy. The political significance is that she is using Trump’s own populist language to argue that “America first” has become whatever serves donors and big industries.

Finally, Nancy Mace adds another flashing warning light from inside MAGA world, admitting she is not confident Republicans can hold the House. Even while praising Trump to stay safe politically, she concedes they have not delivered, and the subtext is clear: if the base is angry, costs are up, and the agenda is stuck, the midterms could turn into a referendum on chaos instead of competence.

On today’s bonus show:

We break down the chaos at CBS News, why Gavin Newsom is suddenly looking like the 2028 frontrunner, and how Pete Hegseth’s moves in the military are raising alarms about religious freedom.

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