Anti-ICE protests spread to the Winter Olympics in Italy, Nancy Guthrie’s family agrees to pay $6 million in ransom, and The Washington Post staff sees a dramatic downsizing and a shakeup at the top.
It’s Monday, February 9, 2026, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. Today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
Anti-ICE Olympics
The 2026 Winter Olympics have kicked off in Milan, and it has already become a stage for anti-ICE demonstrations by protesters and athletes alike. There has been some unrest and performative activism in Italy regarding ICE agents assigned to the Olympic Games. Homeland Security officers are routinely deployed at major international events to support security and protect Americans. But ICE’s presence this year has been met with protests from local left-wing activists. Local officials have been upset, as well. Milan’s mayor referred to ICE as a “militia that kills.” At least one protest in Italy has devolved into violence, with agitators firing fireworks and officers responding in force. Opposition to ICE extended beyond locals and reached the Olympic Village. Team USA renamed its camp from the “ICE House” to the “Winter House” to distance itself from the agency. Several athletes used their platforms to condemn ICE worldwide, including freestyle skiers Hunter Hess and Chris Lillis, and figure skater Amber Glenn. President Donald Trump responded directly to Hess on Truth Social. The president called Hess a “real Loser” who “shouldn’t have tried out for the Team, and it’s too bad he’s on it.”
The Search For Nancy Guthrie: Day 9
The search for Nancy Guthrie enters its ninth day with an active weekend at both the 84-year-old’s home and her daughter’s house nearby. On Sunday afternoon, authorities returned to Guthrie’s home. There were two Pima County sheriff’s deputies searching the grounds, focusing on the backyard. It appeared they were searching a septic tank. On Saturday, law enforcement spent at least three hours at Annie Guthrie’s home, where Nancy ate dinner the night of her disappearance. Officials say they don’t have any suspects or any persons of interest. But Savannah Guthrie released a new video over the weekend. “We received your message, and we understand,” she said in a video released on Saturday night. “We beg you now to return our mother to us, so we can celebrate with her. This is the only way we will have peace.” She added that the family “will pay” a ransom.
WaPo Bloodbath
Former Washington Post employees protested outside the legacy outlet’s headquarters after mass layoffs left them unemployed. Over the weekend, the company saw another high-profile departure – its publisher has now stepped down days after the media company cut roughly 30% of its staff, about 300 employees. The Post announced Saturday that its publisher, Will Lewis, is out. He wrote a short note to staff in which he said all the changes he had helped make were intended to ensure a “sustainable future” for the outlet. He also made a point of praising owner Jeff Bezos, who is being criticized by many of the terminated employees. Bezos has been hammering the same sustainability message, and framing this moment as an “extraordinary opportunity” to fulfill the Post’s “essential journalistic mission.” He said, “Each and every day our readers give us a roadmap to success. The data tells us what is valuable and where to focus.”
