Good morning, it’s Thursday.

Given all the news that has been occurring lately – is it unusually busy for this time of year, or is it just me? – you might have missed the headline about President Trump expanding travel restrictions to an additional 20 countries and the Palestinian Authority.

The move effectively doubled the number of nations that are impacted by the limits imposed by the Trump administration on who can visit and emigrate to the U.S.

This isn’t terribly surprising, given all we’ve seen from the president on this front to date. But the White House has made clear it would expand restrictions since an Afghan national was arrested and charged after two National Guard members were shot – one fatally – over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.

Every year, millions of people from around the world come to this country (or try to) for a wide variety of reasons. Admittedly, there are some – a minority, to be sure – who intend to do us harm. But the vast majority are seeking their version of the American Dream, seeking safety, sanctuary, work, opportunity, and hope.

We are, as the saying goes, a nation built by immigrants. Or, as the musical Hamilton and its creator, Lin Manuel Miranda, so memorably reminded us, and as has been remixed and borrowed many times over: “Immigrants, we get the job done.”

Today is International Migrants Day, which was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in December 2000. Says the UN: “Mounting evidence indicates that international migration is usually positive both for countries of origin and of destination. Its potential benefits are larger than the potential gains from freer international trade, particularly for developing countries.”

Now seems like a good time to clear up some misconceptions about the difference between “migrants”, “immigrants”, and “emigrants”, and “refugees”, though the differences can be quite subtle and nuanced. Let us try:

  • Immigrants – individuals who move, usually permanently, from one country to another and are likely to go through a set process to do so.
  • Migrants – though there is no internationally accepted legal definition, these are generally people who move from one place to another – sometimes inside a country, sometimes from one country to another – to find work or better living conditions or to pursue educational opportunities.
  • Emigrants – someone who is relocating from one country to another is said to emigrate FROM a place and immigrate TO another.
  • Refugees – unlike migrants, who usually move my choice and can opt to return to their home country if they so desire, refugees are fleeing something – war, famine, persecution, etc. – and often cannot go home without risking life-threatening danger.

Because migrants don’t necessarily go through a formal process when they move, they are often undocumented and not provided with the protections and rights available through the immigration system (such as it is).

There are currently over 281 million international migrants in the world, which accounts for about 3.6% of the world’s population, and they play a key role in economies across the globe, filling labor gaps and often (though this is not a popular opinion for those on the right) accepting jobs that natural-born individuals won’t or can’t do.

There’s a wind advisory in effect from about 7 p.m. tonight through early Saturday morning, with the potential for gusts up to 50 mph. Be on the lookout for unsecured objects blowing around – trash cans, etc. – and don’t be surprised if downed limbs and/or whole trees cause power outages.

I can’t believe I’m writing this, but it’s going to be unseasonably warm, with high temperatures potentially reaching into the low 50s. There will be intervals of clouds and sun throughout the day.

In the headlines…

President Donald Trump gave an 18-minute speech intended to defend his accomplishments in the first year, and argue that the “Golden Age” he promised in his presidential campaign last year was building steam.

In a rare televised primetime address to the nation last night, Trump announced a plan to send more than a million members of the U.S. military $1,776 as a “warrior dividend.

Trump touted his economic record — defending his handling of inflation and tariffs — and accused Democrats of bringing the country to the “brink of ruin,” as his administration deals with widespread voter frustration over the economy.

The US military carried out a lethal strike on a vessel in the eastern Pacific, killing four men, according to defense secretary Pete Hegseth.

“On Dec. 17, at the direction of @SecWar Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization in international waters,” the Southern Command wrote in a post on X.

Nicolás Maduro, the leader of Venezuela, ordered his navy to escort ships carrying petroleum products from port, risking a confrontation with the US on the high seas as he defied Trump’s declaration of a “blockade” aimed at the country’s oil industry.

Most Americans say Trump’s use of presidential power is going too far, according to a new poll. Quinnipiac University found that 54 percent of voters think Trump is going too far with his presidential authority while 37 percent think he is handling it about right.

Trump has installed plaques underneath portraits of presidents at the White House, using them to insult and make unfounded claims about some of his predecessors including Joe Biden and Barack Obama.

Trump is kicking off America’s monthslong birthday bash celebrating the 250th anniversary of the country’s founding with a new nonpartisan organization dubbed Freedom 250 that will lead the administration’s celebrations.

Republicans in the House have brought forward their Christmas recess a day before the Department of Justice was scheduled to release a tranche of documents related to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The Defense Department said that it would open an administrative investigation into Democratic Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly over his participation in a video with other lawmakers informing military service members of their legal obligation to refuse illegal orders.

The U.S. government admitted liability in an air collision in the skies above the nation’s capital that killed 67 people early this year, opening the door for the families of victims to seek damages for the crash, according to court documents.

Dan Bongino, the No. 2 official at the F.B.I., said that he would step down next month, bringing an end to his brief but tumultuous stint at the bureau, where he was known for his volcanic temper, missteps and hyperactive presence on social media.

Rob Reiner’s son Nick Reiner wore a vacant stare and a blue suicide vest as he appeared in court for the first time yesterday after he was charged with slaughtering his parents inside their Brentwood mansion.

Nick Reiner, facing murder charges in the deaths of his parents, appeared at an arraignment that lasted just minutes before it was rescheduled for January. He has not entered a plea.

Rhode Island authorities admitted that the Brown University gunman “could be anywhere” and that they have “zero” information on a possible motive as fear and criticism mount after five days of searching for the killer.

More than $1.5 million has been raised – including a maximum of $99,999 from American billionaire Bill Ackman – for the heroic bystander who wrestled the gun from one of the terrorists during Sunday’s horrific mass shooting at Australia’s Bondi Beach.

Gov. Kathy Hochul announced that she will sign into law an amended version of the Medical Aid in Dying Act, legislation that sets up a process by which terminally ill New Yorkers will be able to end their lives with the assistance of willing care providers.

In a Times Union op-ed, Hochul, is is a practicing Catholic and said she struggled with whether to sign the bill, wrote: “In the true spirit of this country, government has a responsibility to protect, not interfere, with an individual’s deeply personal decisions.”

Hochul, who watched her mother die from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, cast the measure in unusually personal terms, saying she had felt “the pain of seeing someone you love suffer and feeling powerless to stop it.”

“The governor has shown us her deep compassion and love for New Yorkers,” said state Assemblymember Amy Paulin, a Democrat from Scarsdale who cosponsored the bill.

In a statement, the New York State Catholic Conference called the bill “egregious” and said it signaled the state’s “abandonment of its most vulnerable citizens.” The church opposes assisted suicide and euthanasia, which the Vatican has called “intrinsically evil.”

A report from Community Service Society of New York, a nonprofit that advocates for economic opportunity, shows just how fragile many New Yorkers’ finances were in September and October. 

One in four people reported having no emergency savings at all, and among low-income households, more than half lacked even a minimal buffer from deeper hardship. 

The City Council will introduce a bill today to create a new New York City agency that would deploy mental health teams to respond to 911 calls — advancing a key part of Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s agenda.

Mamdani made two senior-level appointments to his incoming administration, more than a month after naming his first deputy mayor and chief of staff.

Mamdani announced that Jahmila Edwards will be the head of the Mayor’s Office of Intergovernmental Relations and will serve as his liaison to city and state government as he attempts to build support around his aggressive agenda.

Mamdani will appeal a Queens judge’s ruling ordering the city to rip out the new protected bike lane on 31st Street in Astoria.

Mamdani launched and online platform called “The Mayor is Listening“, which allows New Yorkers to share information about their lives, their visions for city government and what they need from his team.

Mamdani  will have to fill a massive $6.5 billion budget gap by next summer, according to a blistering new report from the Independent Budget Office. That’s on top of paying for up to $10 billion in new spending if he implements his freebie-filled agenda.

Mamdani indicated that he will right a historic wrong upon taking office by being sworn in as New York City’s 112th mayor, rather than the 111th.

More than 74,000 people, with an average age of 28, have applied for roles in Mamdani’s new administration – both a measure of enthusiasm for New York City’s incoming mayor and a sign of how tough the job market is for young people in the five boroughs.

With orange beanies, a roast pig and a mayor-elect, the New York premiere of A24’s buzzy Ping-Pong film – “Marty Supreme” – was its own kind of flick.

The City Council is expected to pass a landmark bill today that would lift the caps on permits and licenses. By 2031, there would be nearly 17,000 permits available for food vendors, nearly 1,300 of them for veterans and disabled people. 

Rodent-obsessed Mayor Eric Adams created a brand new agency to try to keep his war on rats going after he leaves office — in another parting gift to his successor.

Manhattan US Attorney Jay Clayton is throwing resources toward tackling violent street crime in the Big Apple, and he’s already gotten a kudos from President Trump for the office’s crackdown on Washington Square Park.

At least four Brooklyn judges have recused themselves from a legal case involving more than $2 million in allegedly missing investor money and a longtime local Democratic power broker.

The head of the MTA warned that tech giant Meta needs to “get on the stick” about taking down social media videos of subway-surfing daredevils riding on top of trains.

The MTA board approved a $21.3 billion operating budget for 2026 – a plan that leans heavily on a robust economy to keep New York’s transit system afloat.

The NYPD touted a record year for hiring new officers, with more than 4,000 fresh recruits sworn in yesterday, rebutting police union leaders’ claims that an exodus of cops is still plaguing the department.

A 35-year-old man was stabbed on Tuesday near the Chabad Lubavitch World Headquarters in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, in what the police are investigating as a possible hate crime.

In a social media post on Tuesday night, Mayor Adams said that “evil, hateful, antisemitic violence” must end. “We cannot let this hate persist in our city, and we will never back down,” he wrote.

The annual report on chains from the Center for an Urban Future shows  that the number of chain stores in the city dropped by 112 locations, or 1.3%, in 2025, the sixth decline in the last eight years.

For more than three years, tenants of the James Weldon Johnson Houses in East Harlem have lived in a state of terror wrought by a crew of narcotics dealers who transformed their NYCHA development into an open-air drug market, prosecutors alleged.

A Fulton County marijuana processor has filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of New York’s mandatory “seed-to-sale” tracking system that took effect yesterday.

The Capital Region is gradually becoming a hub for microelectronics centered around space applications, according to the Center for Economic Growth.

A Civil War-era structure holding back Burden Lake from the Wynants Kill must be fixed under the terms of a newly fleshed-out settlement agreement. Sand Lake, Rensselaer County, Burden Lake Preservation Corporation are required to follow strict timeline.

The superintendent of the Saugerties Central School District resigned amid an ongoing internal investigation into the district’s handling of a former wrestling coach indicted for rape.

HBO’s “The Gilded Age” is expected to begin filming season four in Troy at some point next spring, Mayor Carmella Mantello announced.

An employee opening the Stewart’s store near Hudson Valley Community College found a dead body early yesterday in one of the North Greenbush store’s bathrooms, a spokesman for the convenience store chain confirmed.

Photo credit: George Fazio.