Deadline Poet / January 13, 2026

Maduro’s Arrest

Calvin Trillin
(Raul Arboleda / Getty Images)

Trump talks a lot about the flow
Of drugs that this arrest will foil.
The flow concerning him, in truth,
Is not the flow of drugs but oil.

Your support makes stories like this possible

From illegal war on Iran to an inhumane fuel blockade of Cuba, from AI weapons to crypto corruption, this is a time of staggering chaos, cruelty, and violence. 

Unlike other publications that parrot the views of authoritarians, billionaires, and corporations, The Nation publishes stories that hold the powerful to account and center the communities too often denied a voice in the national media—stories like the one you’ve just read.

Each day, our journalism cuts through lies and distortions, contextualizes the developments reshaping politics around the globe, and advances progressive ideas that oxygenate our movements and instigate change in the halls of power. 

This independent journalism is only possible with the support of our readers. If you want to see more urgent coverage like this, please donate to The Nation today.

Calvin Trillin

Calvin Trillin is The Nation’s “deadline poet.”

More from The Nation

Marco Rubio and Ararat Mirzoyan attend a signing ceremony on May 26, 2026, in Yerevan's Zvartnot’s international airport.

Rubio in Yerevan Rubio in Yerevan

A neocon in the land of Nairi.

Pietro A. Shakarian

A Renault SA logo above the automobile plant in Flins, France, on December 20, 2024.

Drones? Europe’s Automakers Are Taking Orders. Drones? Europe’s Automakers Are Taking Orders.

French car company Renault seeks a foothold in rearmament.

Harrison Stetler

Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, left, hold signed documents during an Abraham Accords signing ceremony event on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, DC, on Tuesday, September 15, 2020.

Trump’s Abraham Accords Fantasy Will Only Cause More Suffering Trump’s Abraham Accords Fantasy Will Only Cause More Suffering

Any expansion of the alleged peace agreement would lock the Middle East into endless apartheid, despotism, and militarism.

Jeet Heer

US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping attend a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, on May 14, 2026.

An Alternative View of What’s Next After the Trump-Xi Summit An Alternative View of What’s Next After the Trump-Xi Summit

Hawkish rhetoric from the national security establishment isn’t grappling with the complex challenges posed by China’s rise.

Jake Werner

Children play on American military helicopter wreckage in Mogadishu, Somalia.

Trump’s Killing Spree in Somalia Is Just One Assault in His Global War-Making Trump’s Killing Spree in Somalia Is Just One Assault in His Global War-Making

No American president has ever attacked Somalis with the persistence and at the rate of President Donald Trump.

Nick Turse

“Why Did So Many People Think This War Was a Good Idea?”

“Why Did So Many People Think This War Was a Good Idea?” “Why Did So Many People Think This War Was a Good Idea?”

The story of how millions of Iranians fell for the regime-change fantasy.

Feature / Alex Shams