Members phkrause Posted June 15, 2025 Author Members Posted June 15, 2025 Trump’s Dangerous Decision to Suppress Anti-ICE Protests With Troops To suppress protests against his deportation agenda, President Donald Trump took an extraordinary action on Saturday by calling up 2,000 National Guard troops to tamp down demonstrations in California. In doing so, he exercised rarely used federal powers, bypassed the authority of the state’s governor, Gavin Newsom, and set the stage for violent confrontation. https://theintercept.com/2025/06/08/trump-national-guard-ice-immigration-protests-los-angeles/? LAPD Won’t Do Immigration Enforcement — But Will Shoot You With Rubber Bullets for Protesting ICE As federal agents abducted at least 118 immigrants throughout Los Angeles County over the weekend, local leaders swatted away suggestions of collaboration on immigration enforcement — and sought to keep the blame squarely on federal authorities. https://theintercept.com/2025/06/10/la-police-ice-raids-protests/? LA Protesters Aren’t Inviting Violent Authoritarianism, They’re Mobilizing to Stop It When President Donald Trump announced on Saturday night that he would send the National Guard to Los Angeles to crush protests, a narrative emerged on social media that demonstrators had somehow given a gift to the authoritarian president by escalating confrontations with U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement. https://theintercept.com/2025/06/09/la-protests-ice-national-guard-trump-adam-schiff/? Trump Deploys Marines to a “Manufactured Crisis,” Defense Official Says Marines are headed to Los Angeles as the Trump administration ratchets up tensions that threaten to turn largely peaceful protests there into a full-blown crisis. It’s a rare and aggressive step to involve active-duty troops in civilian law enforcement activities. https://theintercept.com/2025/06/09/la-ice-protests-national-guard-marines-trump/? Trump Appointee Wanted to Lock Up CIA Leaker for a Decade. The Judge Ignored Him. A federal judge in Virginia sentenced the former CIA employee who leaked Israeli military secrets to three years and one month in prison on Wednesday, rejecting the government’s request for a much harsher term. https://theintercept.com/2025/06/11/cia-leak-asif-rahman-espionage-act-sentencing/? Kristi Noem Told Us She Asked for Soldiers to Arrest Protesters — Then She Backtracked Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Tuesday asked Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to direct U.S. troops to arrest protesters in Los Angeles, before her department promptly reversed course. https://theintercept.com/2025/06/10/la-protests-arrests-dhs-kristi-noem/? Trump Threatened to Cut Musk’s Contracts. Golden Dome Deserves Worse. Elon Musk and his company SpaceX were set to win big from Trump’s planned “Golden Dome” missile defense system. Then Musk went to war with Trump over the Big Beautiful Bill Act, the deficit-expanding centerpiece of the president’s domestic agenda. Musk called it a “disgusting abomination.” https://theintercept.com/2025/06/09/trump-musk-golden-dome-missile-spacex/? Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 15, 2025 Author Members Posted June 15, 2025 “Delay, Interfere, Undermine” In mid-April, President Donald Trump sat down in the Oval Office with President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador to celebrate a new partnership. They had recently negotiated an extraordinary deal in which El Salvador agreed to incarcerate in a maximum security prison hundreds of Venezuelan immigrants that the Trump administration had labeled as violent criminals, though few had been convicted of such crimes. The U.S. also sent back accused members of the notorious Salvadoran gang MS-13 — which both the U.S. and El Salvador have designated as a terrorist organization. https://www.propublica.org/article/bukele-trump-el-salvador-ms13-gang-vulcan-corruption-investigation? The Trump administration said their work was “antithetical to the scientific inquiry.” The National Institutes of Health is responsible for more than 80% of the world’s grant investment in biomedical research. Its funding has sparked countless medical breakthroughs — on cancer, diabetes, strokes — and plays a fundamental role in the development of pharmaceutical drugs. https://projects.propublica.org/nih-cuts-research-lost-trump/ Senators Demand Transparency on Canceled Veterans Affairs Contracts Following a ProPublica investigation into how DOGE had developed an error-prone AI tool to determine which VA contracts should be killed, a trio of lawmakers said the Trump administration continues to “stonewall” their requests for details. https://www.propublica.org/article/doge-ai-veterans-affairs-canceled-contracts-senators-trump? Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 15, 2025 Author Members Posted June 15, 2025 Trump Voter Gets Choked Up After ICE Detains a Third of His Staff A Florida roofing boss backed the president’s tough immigration policies. Then six of his workers were taken away... Vincent Scardina supported Donald Trump’s tough stance on immigration at the ballot box. But that decision came back to bite the roofing boss when ICE detained a third of his workforce. The six men, all from Nicaragua, were pulled over in a work truck on May 27 while heading to a job—and carted off to jail. According to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, deputies helped transport the men to a local detention facility “for deportation.” Scardina, who runs a small roofing business in Florida’s Lower Keys, cannot believe it. “It’s quite a shock. You get to know these guys, you become their friends—not just an employer but a friend,” he told NBC6, visibly emotional. Adding to Scardina’s annoyance, the men had valid work permits and pending asylum applications, according to their attorney Regilucia Smith. “They are legally here,” she said. “Valid work permit, not even close to expired… again, no criminal records—not here, not in Nicaragua.” ICE’s nationwide raids came after White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller told immigration officials in May to target anyone in the country illegally, The Wall Street Journal. A swoop on a Home Depot last Friday in a predominantly Latino neighborhood of Los Angeles sparked widespread anti-ICE demonstrations and outbursts of rioting in the city, prompting President Donald Trump to commandeer the National Guard and deploy Marines against the wishes of local leaders. Scardina says he voted for Trump and still supports many of the former president’s policies, but this isn’t what he signed up for. “Buyer’s remorse? I don’t know, a little bit,” he said. The detained men represented a third of his total staff—devastating in a small labor pool like Key West. “We’re not able... to just replace people as easily as, say, a big city, [with] very limited people to pull from, and then you would have to train them, and that takes sometimes years,” he said. Even more jarring, three of the workers have now been transferred to detention centers in Texas and California. The rest remain in local custody, as their lawyer fights to have them released. Scardina isn’t alone. He says other contractors in the area are being hit hard too. “I know of one landscaper that lost nine or 10 of his whole crew he had and he’s just totally out of business all of a sudden, just like that.” Still, his colleague, Virgil Scardina, says they count themselves lucky. “I get to go home and hug my kid,” he said. “These guys don’t. And they don’t deserve that.” ICE did not immediately respond to comment from the Daily Beast. Since returning to office, Trump has made the mass removal of undocumented immigrants one of his top priorities. On the campaign trail, Trump set the target for removals at 15 million—which is 4 million more than the estimated number of undocumented immigrants in the U.S. So far, by the administration’s own count, it is a long way off from that mark. The White House said it had deported about 140,000 people as of the end of April. NBC News reported that ICE deported 17,200 people in April 2025, a 29 percent increase over the figure from a year earlier, 13,300. Compared to the last administration, the average number of people actively being held in immigration detention centers has shot up by about 25 percent, from 40,000 to 50,000, according to Time. https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-voter-gets-choked-up-after-ice-detains-a-third-of-his-staff/? Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 15, 2025 Author Members Posted June 15, 2025 ? Corporate mergers for all. UnitedHealth Group and lawyers at the Trump Justice Department are inching closer toward a settlement in the government’s antitrust suit blocking the insurer from acquiring home health and hospice provider Amedisys, according to The Capitol Forum. The $3.3 billion merger could go forward if UnitedHealth promises to divest from other health systems in areas where its anticompetitive practices severely limit options for patients and doctors. Compared to previous administrations, Trump lawyers have shown more willingness to approve major acquisitions by negotiating and then settling with corporations, as opposed to blocking mergers. Just last week, federal officials approved two Big Tech mergers after negotiating “structural solutions” to mitigate their antitrust concerns. ps:I guess they just didn't give over a lot money to his coffers!!!!! Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 15, 2025 Author Members Posted June 15, 2025 What US adults think about Trump’s military parade, according to a new AP-NORC poll A new survey finds that about 6 in 10 Americans say that Saturday’s military parade to honor the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army is “not a good use” of government money, according to the poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Read More. Trump signs measure blocking California’s ban on new sales of gas-powered cars President Donald Trump signed a resolution on Thursday that blocks California’s first-in-the-nation rule banning the sale of new gas-powered cars by 2035. The state quickly announced it was challenging the move in court. Read More. ? Frustration between the White House and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) boiled over today during closed-door meetings on Capitol Hill, Axios' Stef Kight reports. Paul wants to cut border funding from Trump's "big, beautiful bill." ?President Trump told reporters Thursday he was "amazed" Elon Musk had endorsed him in the first place, given that Trump's long-standing position on electric vehicles would hurt Musk's company. Go deeper. Tense times The Los Angeles ICE raids sparked protests that have spread to other cities across the country, and more than 1,800 “No Kings” demonstrations are planned for Saturday. President Donald Trump is determined not to let that ruin his military parade. Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 15, 2025 Author Members Posted June 15, 2025 ? Trump shaming targets President Trump expressed his mild irritation with Rep. John James (R-Mich.) for leaving a competitive House seat to run for governor. But his real targets might have been Lawler or Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-Mich.). Why it matters: Party leaders are bracing for trench warfare in 2026 and want to keep battle-hardened winners in their current seats to keep the House. "John James. John James," Trump said at the White House today. "You know, he's running for governor, but I'm not sure I'm happy about that, John." "Do we have somebody good to take your seat?" he asked James directly. "Because otherwise we're not letting him run for governor. We can't have [that]." Zoom out: Behind Trump's barbed comments lies widespread GOP frustration with House lawmakers who might be putting personal ambition above the party's interests. Winning open seats isn't just harder for the incumbent party, it's also much more expensive. Zoom in: Atop that list is Huizenga, who hasn't ruled out a Senate bid despite indications the GOP campaign apparatus wants him to stay in the House. For the New York governor's race, White House officials also appear to favor Rep. Elise Stefanik (whose district Trump won by 21%) over Lawler (whose district Trump narrowly lost). And in Texas, the National Republican Senatorial Committee wants donors to give to Sen. John Cornyn and not even think about writing a check to Rep. Wesley Hunt (R-Texas). However, party leaders think they dodged a bullet in Arizona because Rep. Juan Ciscomani ruled out leaving his competitive seat for the governor's race. — Hans Nichols ?? Trump's only trade certainty: Uncertainty The latest U.S. trade deal with China may let the economy take a brief breather, but it's far from being able to relax, Axios' Ben Berkowitz writes. Why it matters: Months of real-time uncertainty are being replaced with longer-term uncertainty, with trade policy living on three-to-six-month cycles that make business planning a nightmare. ?️ The big picture: Tariffs are still in place, prices are still (at least anecdotally) rising, and deal deadlines with dozens of countries still loom over the summer. So-called hard economic data — inflation, jobs — remains strong. But the anecdotes, the real-world commentary from businesses, are getting more negative by the month. Indexes that measure trade policy uncertainty are almost literally off the charts, and surging again after a brief respite last month. Between the lines: The U.S. and China agreed to a trade deal in Geneva in mid-May, which both sides almost immediately ignored. This week's deal in London is supposed to cement actually implementing the May agreement, including faster Chinese approvals of rare earths exports and relaxed U.S. export controls on software and jet parts. ? Reality check: The London deal was barely 12 hours old when The Wall Street Journal reported the Chinese would only approve the rare earths export licenses for six months at a time. For the makers of the hundreds of products with components that require rare earths, six months of certainty is an improvement. But it's also the start of an expensive race to stockpile parts before it all turns over again. Courtenay Brown contributed reporting. Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 15, 2025 Author Members Posted June 15, 2025 Trump administration tells immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela they have to leave The Department of Homeland Security said Thursday that it has begun notifying hundreds of thousands of Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans that their temporary permission to live and work in the United States has been revoked and that they should leave the country. Read more. Why this matters: The termination notices are being sent by email to people who entered the country under the humanitarian parole program for the four countries, officials said. DHS said that the letters informed people that both their temporary legal status and their work permit was revoked “effective immediately.” Donald Trump’s decision to end the parole program for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans was challenged at the courts, but the Supreme Court last month permitted the Trump administration to revoke those temporary legal protections. RELATED COVERAGE ➤ WATCH: Cellphone footage shows California Sen. Alex Padilla's removal from Noem’s LA press conference Appeals court temporarily blocks judge’s ruling to return control of National Guard to California Nationwide protests against immigration raids escalate, leading to arrests and curfews ‘Shocked’ and ‘sickened’ Democrats react with fury to video of Sen. Padilla’s removal Hegseth says the Pentagon has contingency plans to invade Greenland if necessary Israeli strikes on Iran lead to new test of Trump’s ability to deliver on ‘America first’ agenda US-backed Israeli company’s spyware used to target European journalists, Citizen Lab finds WATCH: Allies brace for Trump's unpredictably as he steps back onto global stage for G7 and NATO summits Supreme Court revives lawsuit from Atlanta family whose home was wrongly raided by the FBI GOP tax bill would cost poor Americans $1,600 a year and boost highest earners by $12,000, CBO says House approves Trump’s request to cut funding for NPR, PBS and foreign aid House passes bill to to combat fentanyl trafficking, sending it to Trump’s desk Trump moves to merge wildland firefighting into single force, despite ex-officials warning of chaos Trump administration pulls US out of agreement to help restore salmon in the Columbia River Utah Republican proposes sale of more than 2 million acres of US lands Harvard researcher charged with smuggling frog embryos is being released from federal custody In an unexpected move, Nevada GOP governor vetoes a bill that would have required voters to show a photo ID Illinois officials investigate license-plate data shared with police seeking woman who had abortion Republican enthusiasm for Musk cools after his feud with Trump, a new AP-NORC poll finds ps:Thank you for voting for me, now get the hell out of MY country!!!!!!!!!! Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 15, 2025 Author Members Posted June 15, 2025 Judge blocks Trump’s election executive order, siding with Democrats who called it overreach A federal judge on Friday blocked President Donald Trump’s attempt to overhaul elections in the U.S., siding with a group of Democratic state attorneys general who challenged the effort as unconstitutional. Read More. Trump administration gives personal data of immigrant Medicaid enrollees to deportation officials President Donald Trump's administration has released to deportation officials the personal data for millions of Medicaid enrollees, including their immigration status, according to an internal memo and emails obtained by The Associated Press. Read More. 4 detainees have escaped from an immigration detention center in Newark, New Jersey, officials say Four detainees broke through a wall and managed to escape from a federal immigration detention center in Newark, New Jersey, amid reports of disorder breaking out there, according to Sen. Andy Kim and the Department of Homeland Security. Read More. ? Four people escaped last night from the Delaney Hall immigration detention site in Newark, New Jersey. There were reports of disorder at the facility late yesterday, and it's been a flashpoint for confrontations. Both the Newark mayor and Democratic Rep. LaMonica McIver were arrested while protesting there. Go deeper. ?️ Consumer sentiment rebounded in early June as tariff anxiety subsided — the first improvement in six months. Go deeper. ?️ The director of the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery resigned today, The Washington Post reports (gift link). President Trump said he had fired her two weeks ago, but she had continued to show up for work. Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 16, 2025 Author Members Posted June 16, 2025 US marines detain civilian in first known instance since Trump deployed troops to LA The civilian who was detained identified himself as Marcos Leao, an army veteran, and said he was treated ‘very fairly’ https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/13/marines-los-angeles-protests-trump? Trump scrambles to claim credit for Israel’s Iran attack he publicly opposed Discordant US response as president says he was fully aware of plans for what Marco Rubio called a ‘unilateral action’ https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/13/trump-iran-israel-attacks-response? Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 16, 2025 Author Members Posted June 16, 2025 Eight chaotic days Illustration: Allie Carl/Axios President Trump began the week of his 79th birthday reeling from his explosive public breakup with Elon Musk. He ended it with tanks in the capital, Marines in Los Angeles, a Democratic senator dragged away in handcuffs, thousands of protests planned nationwide, and a new war in the Middle East, Axios' Zachary Basu writes. Why it matters: In a year already brimming with "holy sh*t" moments, the past eight days have brought unprecedented new intensity, stakes and challenges to Trump's presidency. ? Zoom in: America is on edge. Trump became the first president since the Civil Rights Era to federalize the National Guard without a governor's consent — sending troops to L.A. to quash protests sparked by his administration's immigration raids. Democrats, led by California Gov. Gavin Newsom, have accused Trump of blatantly defying the Constitution and pouring gasoline on the fire by deploying 700 Marines on domestic soil. When Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) tried to confront Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem at a press conference Thursday, he was forcibly removed and handcuffed. ? Between the lines: Trump officials want this fight, eager to flex executive power and frame Democrats as defenders of undocumented immigrants and violent agitators. But the backlash is threatening to spiral beyond the White House's control. Millions of people are expected to join "No Kings" protests in nearly 1,800 cities today — the largest single-day demonstrations against Trump since his return to power. Expect an extraordinary split-screen as Trump celebrates not only his birthday, but a massive military parade in Washington that he's dreamed of since his first term. "For those people that want to protest, they're going to be met with very big force," Trump warned this week, dismissing the demonstrators as "people that hate our country." An Iranian missile strike hits Tel Aviv on June 13. Photo: Saeed Qaq/Anadolu via Getty Images Zoom out: With unrest boiling over at home, Israel's unprecedented attack on Iran suddenly threatened to unravel Trump's crowning foreign policy achievement from his first term: "No new wars." Trump had publicly urged Israel not to strike Iran while he actively pursued a nuclear deal with the Iranians, and even assured allies that the U.S. would not participate in the operation. Israel did it anyway — bombing nuclear sites, assassinating top generals and scientists, and sabotaging missile facilities in one of the most sophisticated covert strikes in the history of the Middle East. The intrigue: Trump now claims that the wildly successful operation — which he told Axios used "great American equipment" — could make it easier to reach a nuclear deal with Iran. But his MAGA base is deeply uneasy. Iran has launched retaliatory missile attacks against Israel, which U.S. forces helped intercept. Oil prices have surged, and the threat of Iran targeting U.S. assets in the region remains very real. Opposition to the "forever wars" in Iraq and Afghanistan helped fuel Trump's political rise — and many of his most loyal supporters view any new Middle East entanglement as a betrayal of that legacy. "[D]rop Israel. Let them fight their own wars," MAGA isolationist Tucker Carlson wrote in a post accusing the U.S. of complicity in the attack. "What happens next will define Donald Trump's presidency." The bottom line: The pace of news in the Trump era, both at home and abroad, makes it exceedingly difficult to distinguish the chaotic from the consequential. But the past eight days — from the excommunication of Elon Musk to the start of a dangerous new era in the Middle East — reshaped the presidency in ways that won't easily be undone. Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 16, 2025 Author Members Posted June 16, 2025 ? Steel deal cleared Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel said yesterday they have entered into a security agreement with the U.S. government, as President Trump signed an executive order allowing their proposed partnership to proceed. Why it matters: It's a major hurdle cleared toward the two companies' eventual combination, though the exact structure of the deal still remains mostly unclear, Axios' Ben Berkowitz writes. Catch up quick: "Nippon Steel's 2023 bid for U.S. Steel became ensnared in presidential politics and inflamed tensions between the United States and Japan, a close ally and trading partner," The New York Times reports. "But the Trump administration decided that with sufficient federal government control it was worth giving Nippon Steel the opportunity to invest in a 124-year-old American manufacturer that has declined in recent decades." The intrigue: The agreement with the Trump administration includes a so-called "Golden Share." Trump said earlier this week that the Golden Share gives the U.S. government "total control" of the company. Read on. Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 16, 2025 Author Members Posted June 16, 2025 A Nominal Opposition (Etienne Laurent / AP) View in browser Like knowing the names of lots of federal judges, widespread familiarity with specific theories of authoritarian rule is not generally a hallmark of a healthy society. But as the United States’ vital signs get more dire, Steven Levitsky’s and Lucan A. Way’s concept of “competitive authoritarianism” feels unsettlingly relevant. The idea came to mind again when federal officers manhandled and then handcuffed Senator Alex Padilla, a California Democrat, yesterday as he tried to ask a question of Kristi Noem, the secretary of Homeland Security, at a press conference in Los Angeles. Because it took place at a media event, the incident was recorded clearly on video, and it’s shocking. Nearly as disturbing as the footage is the fact that even though the incident is on tape, the Trump administration attempted to lie baldly about what happened. Officials said Padilla never identified himself as a senator and that security personnel thought he was an attacker; video shows him audibly identifying himself and wearing a U.S. Senate shirt. They said he lunged at Noem; video shows nothing of the sort. (If only Noem’s security detail had been so vigilant when her purse was stolen in April.) The most that can be said is that Padilla’s question disrupted Noem’s spiel at the press conference. According to the senator’s explanation, the Department of Homeland Security had refused to adequately answer questions from his office for weeks, and when he realized that Noem was holding a press conference at the same federal building where he was receiving a briefing, he decided to attend. He was not arrested, and later spoke with Noem. As clips of the moment spread, Democrats erupted in outrage, and so did Republicans—in a sense. House Speaker Mike Johnson called on the Senate to censure Padilla, though for what was unclear. Daring to challenge a Trump-administration official? That’s where competitive authoritarianism comes in. Levitsky explained the idea in an Atlantic essay in February: Whereas traditional authoritarians aim for total control, competitive authoritarians maintain the trappings of democracy, such as an opposition party. They just make it nearly impossible for the opposition to win. “Unlike in a full-scale dictatorship, in competitive-authoritarian regimes, opposition forces are legal and aboveground, and they often seriously vie for power,” he wrote. “Elections may be fiercely contested. But incumbents deploy the machinery of government to punish, harass, co-opt, or sideline their opponents.” One advantage of this model, from the standpoint of power, is that it doesn’t require trashing the Constitution. Instead, the ruler burrows into and subverts existing institutions. The Padilla incident should be understood as more than just an overheated encounter between partisan opponents; it’s part of a pattern of harassment of Democrats. On Tuesday, Representative LaMonica McIver was indicted on three counts of forcibly impeding and interfering with federal law-enforcement officers for an incident last month when she and other Democrats visited an ICE facility in New Jersey. A scrum occurred when officers arrested Newark Mayor Ras Baraka; Alina Habba, the interim U.S. attorney for New Jersey, dropped a charge against him and received a fierce scolding from a judge, but she brought charges against McIver, despite dubious evidence in videos of the event. McIver has said that she will plead not guilty. Late last month, DHS officers handcuffed a staffer for Representative Jerry Nadler, a prominent Democrat—ostensibly because the staffer had objected to officers entering the office, and because DHS was concerned (ironically) for the staff’s safety. Padilla’s detention comes amid protests in California and elsewhere over ICE raids. Noem told Fox News yesterday, “I’m so sick of the politics … This is literally people’s lives.” DHS accused Padilla of “disrespectful political theater.” Given that the department is currently engaged in an elaborate production of its own, featuring draconian raids and unprecedented military deployments, Noem deserves some kind of award for lack of self-awareness. The Trump administration has embarked on a needless, inappropriate, and, according to one federal judge, illegal use of the National Guard. Senator Josh Hawley, a Trump ally, sent a letter earlier this week that seems to be an attempt to intimidate groups involved in the Los Angeles protests. Trump has also threatened further military deployments in other cities. “When citizens must think twice about criticizing or opposing the government because they could credibly face government retribution, they no longer live in a full democracy,” Levitsky, Way, and the political scientist Daniel Ziblatt wrote in The New York Times last month. That may not yet be the case, but the path is too clear and too short for comfort. When Levitsky and Way first developed the concept of competitive authoritarianism, at the start of the century, they were looking at countries such as Slobodan Milošević’s Serbia, Vladimir Putin’s Russia, and Alberto Fujimori’s Peru. The bad news is that a framework developed to describe poor, repressive regimes has now become useful for understanding the United States, as Levitsky wrote in his Atlantic essay. The good news is that more than two decades of study have provided some lessons on how to resist the danger. “Civil society must act collectively,” the political scientists wrote in the Times, identifying a common interest among corporate leaders, law firms, universities, leaders in both parties, and the press. “When organizations work together and commit to a collective defense of democratic principles, they share the costs of defiance. The government cannot attack everyone all at once. When the costs of defiance are shared, they become easier for individuals to bear.” Seen from this point of view, peaceful protests in Los Angeles and elsewhere are an important start (though violence undermines the cause). Although Democratic members of Congress shouldn’t have needed to see one of their colleagues manhandled to get angry, their outrage is appropriate. So is the response of levelheaded Republicans such as Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, who watched a clip of the detention and said, “It’s horrible. It is shocking at every level. It’s not the America I know.” But unless critics of Trump’s power grab can work together and find effective ways of resisting, they’ll be consigning themselves to a permanent existence as nothing more than a nominal opposition—never quite extinguished, but not relevant either. Related: The new authoritarianism Trump’s newest crackdown on dissent Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 16, 2025 Author Members Posted June 16, 2025 House Republican budget bill gives Trump $185 billion to carry out his mass deportation agenda—while doing nothing for workers House Republicans recently passed Trump’s budget reconciliation legislation that massively redistributes income from some of the poorest households to the richest. It is now under consideration in the Senate and Trump is pressuring senators to pass it without major changes. Aside from cutting taxes by trillions for the wealthy, kicking 15 million people off health care, and cutting food aid for the poor, the bill provides an unfathomable amount of additional money to fund Trump’s draconian mass deportation agenda. https://www.epi.org/blog/house-republican-budget-bill-gives-trump-185-billion-to-carry-out-his-mass-deportation-agenda-while-doing-nothing-for-workers-immigration-enforcement-would-have-80-times-more-funding-than-la/? Trump attacks on temporary immigration protections like TPS hurt the economy and strip millions of their workplace rights The Trump administration has waged numerous attacks on workers’ rights during its first 100 days, as outlined in EPI’s recent report. Some of the most damaging actions include targeting millions of migrant workers who have been granted the ability to reside and work in the United States lawfully, and who are currently employed in key industries like construction, hospitality, and food processing. The administration has been ending, canceling, pausing, and declining to renew protections and work permits through programs like Temporary Protected Status (TPS), the Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan, and Venezuelan Parole Program (CHNV), the Uniting for Ukraine Program, and others. And if leaving millions of workers without workplace rights wasn’t enough, they’re also targeting them for deportation—in part because workers with these protections are easier to find given that the government already possesses much of their personal information. Aside from being cruel and irrational, these actions will have negative economic impacts, hurting growth and causing employers to lose valuable employees. https://www.epi.org/blog/trump-attacks-on-temporary-immigration-protections-like-tps-hurt-the-economy-and-strip-millions-of-their-workplace-rights/? Federal Layoffs Increase DC Unemployment and Threaten to Exacerbate Racial Inequity DC may be showing signs of the harms of federal layoffs, with unemployment ticking up to 5.8 percent in April 2025 from 5.3 percent in December 2024, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Given the important role that federal employment has played for Black residents in the District, the layoffs are likely to exacerbate already large racial disparities in employment and earnings. Mitigating the harm of these layoffs to Black and brown communities by fortifying local programs meant to help residents make ends meet needs to be a priority among DC lawmakers. https://www.dcfpi.org/all/federal-layoffs-increase-dc-unemployment-and-threaten-to-exacerbate-racial-inequity/? Whistleblower Lawsuit Exposes Trump’s Secret ICE Plot. The complaint by Gov. Jared Polis’ labor official also accuses the governor of illegally ordering state officials to aid the immigration crackdown. The Trump Era’s Trade-Offs. This week’s deportation raids and plane crash followed the Republican administration’s moves to change the government’s focus. Wall Street To Insurers: Keep Denying Care. UnitedHealth Group’s investors were profiting from its high denial rates. Now, they’re suing to ensure that doesn’t change. War Is Peace, Gas Is Now “Clean Energy.” Secretive dark money groups are pushing states to redefine methane gas, undermining renewable energy initiatives. For Wall Street, Gentrification Is Tax Deferred. A 2017 tax break designed to help struggling communities has become yet another profit scheme for venture capitalists. Trump Just Quietly Teed Up $20 Billion In Starlink Contracts. A new carveout could redirect billions in funding for rural broadband construction to Elon Musk’s satellite company. ? Oh, you wanted a tax cut, too? GOP lawmakers have promised that their shrinkage of social services like Medicaid, Medicare, and SNAP in the big beautiful bill is necessary to pay for tax cuts for the working class — but now those breaks are also on the chopping block. According to Politico, Senate Republicans want to make the budget’s new tax breaks for corporations and the wealthy permanent, and to achieve that they plan to slash about $230 billion in cuts for the middle class that aren’t “as pro-growth,” including Trump’s campaign trail-touted no taxes on tips and overtime. Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 16, 2025 Author Members Posted June 16, 2025 Trump's ICE backtrack Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios For months, Trump administration officials have been adamant about targeting all the millions of immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally, regardless of their work or taxpaying status. But now Trump is making a huge exception: those working at hotels, farms, meatpacking plants and restaurants, Axios' Brittany Gibson, Alex Isenstadt and David Lindsey report. Why it matters: He's bowing to pressure from businesses that have been warning of economic devastation — and is opening the door for potentially millions of workers who are here illegally to stay after all. ? Zoom in: The pressure, particularly from the agriculture and hospitality industries, had been building for months. But it ramped up in recent weeks, after top Trump aide Stephen Miller and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem met with top ICE officials in late May and demanded that immigration agents dramatically boost their arrest goal to 3,000 people a day. That mandate helped drive many of the increasingly aggressive raids by masked, heavily armed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents across the nation. It also helped inspire protests about ICE's tactics — most notably in Los Angeles, where Trump called in the National Guard and Marines over the objection of state and local officials. ? How it happened: Trump's pivot appears to have emerged Wednesday, sources with knowledge of the situation tell Axios. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins called Trump to say farm groups were increasingly concerned that the stepped-up immigration raids would lead many reliable workers to be arrested — or stop showing up for work, out of fear. Their conversation, the sources said, led Trump to post a message on Truth Social on Thursday saying that immigrants in the agriculture and hospitality industries are "very good, long time workers." He hinted at exceptions for such workers here illegally, saying: "Changes are coming." Later Thursday, Tatum King, a senior ICE official, sent an email to agency officials nationwide, telling them to "please hold on all worksite enforcement investigations/operations on agriculture (including aquaculture and meatpacking plants), restaurants, and operating hotels." The email added that "other case types/investigations such as human trafficking, money laundering, drug smuggling into these industries are ok, however we are not pursuing non-criminal collaterals." Screenshot obtained by Axios The intrigue: White House insiders insist this isn't a case of Trump flip-flopping — and that he still supports the hard line on immigration enforcement that Miller and Noem have pushed. But it's clear that the economic calamity that could result from mass deportations of unauthorized workers who do labor-intensive jobs most Americans won't, will lead to some changes in Trump's immigration plan. ? Undocumented workers and those with expired work visas can be difficult to track across sectors of the economy, but some studies have given a glimpse of their presence: The American Immigration Council estimates that unauthorized immigrants make up about 4.6% of the nation's employed labor force — that would amount to more than 7 million people. A recent Department of Agriculture study estimated that about 42% of America's farmworkers were undocumented from 2020 to 2022. Trump previously floated the idea of creating exceptions for workers in crucial industries. In mid-April, he suggested a pathway to citizenship for "great" unauthorized immigrants who play key roles in the economy — a way to live in the U.S. legally if they'd self-deport and have an employer support their return. But that idea wouldn't eliminate the chaos that industries pushing for leniency are trying to avoid. Trump curbs immigration enforcement at farms, meatpacking plants, hotels and restaurants WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration directed immigration officers to pause arrests at farms, restaurants and hotels, after President Donald Trump expressed alarm about the impact of aggressive enforcement, an official said Saturday. https://apnews.com/article/trump-immigration-arrests-pause-hotels-restaurants-farms-aa8f503a8d6d797021a70601e6a1d918? Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 16, 2025 Author Members Posted June 16, 2025 ☢️ Israel urges U.S. to join war Israeli emergency responders conduct search and rescue operations in a Tel Aviv suburb yesterday, following Iranian strikes. Photo: Mostafaf Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images Israel has asked the Trump administration over the past 48 hours to join the war with Iran in order to eliminate its nuclear program, Axios' Barak Ravid reports. Israel lacks the bunker-buster bombs and large bomber aircraft needed to destroy Iran's Fordow uranium enrichment site, which is built into a mountain and deep underground. The U.S. has both — within flying distance of Iran. ? But the Trump administration has so far distanced itself from Israel's operation, and argued that it would be illegitimate for Iran to retaliate by striking U.S. targets. Directly attacking Iran, even if the U.S. involvement is limited to bombing a single site, would pull the U.S. directly into the war. But if Fordow remains operational after the strikes end, Israel will have failed in its goal to "eliminate" Iran's nuclear program. Behind the scenes: An Israeli official claimed to Axios that the U.S. might join the operation, and that President Trump even suggested he'd do so if necessary in a recent conversation with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. A White House official denied that on Friday. A second U.S. official confirmed yesterday that Israel has urged the Trump administration to join the war. But the official said the administration isn't currently considering it. Weekend for the books: New York Times headlines yesterday and today. ?️ Back in Washington, a group of pro-Israel members of Congress urged Trump to ensure "zero enrichment, zero pathway to a nuclear weapon" in negotiations with Iran, Axios' Andrew Solender has learned. The letter is led by Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.), a staunchly pro-Israel centrist Democrat, and signed by seven other House Democrats, plus GOP Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.). They asked the president to add "crushing diplomatic pressure ... to Israel's military pressure" by working with European countries to impose "Snapback" sanctions on Iran for being out of compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal. Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 16, 2025 Author Members Posted June 16, 2025 ⚡ National split screen President Trump and guests watch as members of the U.S. Army parade down Constitution Avenue in D.C. yesterday. Photo: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images President Trump hosted the country's largest military parade in decades in D.C. yesterday evening. It marked 250 years of the U.S. Army — and coincided with Trump's 79th birthday. "Every other country celebrates their victories. It's about time America did, too," Trump said in remarks at the end of the parade. The president also received a commemorative flag as the crowd sang "Happy Birthday." A robot dog in the Army parade. Photo: Kent Nishimura/Bloomberg via Getty Images More than 6,000 soldiers and 128 Army tanks processed down Constitution Avenue, AP reports. Early in the evening, the Army's Golden Knights parachute team descended from overcast skies toward the reviewing stand. Robot dogs joined the parade too. People gathered at Ocean Beach in San Francisco to protest yesterday. Photo: Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images In stark counter-programming, protesters across the U.S. took to the streets in demonstrations against the Trump administration. More than 5 million people took part in "No Kings" rallies in over 2,100 cities and towns across the country, organizers tell Axios' April Rubin and Rebecca Falconer. Arndrea Waters King (third from left) and Martin Luther King III (fourth from left) march in the "No Kings" protest in Philadelphia yesterday. Photo: Yuki Iwamura/AP While most rallies were peaceful, there were reports of clashes between police and protesters during a Los Angeles "No Kings" rally, where days-long fiery demonstrations against ICE raids have been taking place. Authorities said one person was critically injured in Salt Lake City after gunshots were fired, and a man in Culpeper, Va., was arrested for allegedly intentionally driving an SUV through a crowd. There were no immediate reports of injuries. More photos from the parade ... More from the protests. ps:Personally it was trumps birthday and the 250th birthday of the U.S. Army just happen to be on the same day!!!!! Not the other way around!! Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 16, 2025 Author Members Posted June 16, 2025 Military parade rolls through DC as ‘No Kings’ protesters across US decry Trump The grand military parade that President Donald Trump had been wanting for years barreled down Constitution Avenue on Saturday with tanks, troops and a 21-gun salute, playing out against a counterpoint of protests around the country by those who decried the U.S. leader as a dictator and would-be king. Hours before the parade started, demonstrators turned out around the nation to sound off against the Republican president. They criticized Trump for using the military to respond to people protesting his deportation efforts and for the muscular military show in the U.S. capital. Read more. Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 16, 2025 Author Members Posted June 16, 2025 ? Trump targets Dem cities Via Truth Social President Trump ordered ICE to "expand efforts to detain and deport" undocumented immigrants in Democratic-run cities, Axios' Rebecca Falconer writes. Why it matters: Trump's order comes as California's Democratic leaders challenge him in the courts over his deployment of the state National Guard and Marines to ICE protests in Los Angeles. Trump wrote on Truth Social that he's ordering ICE officers to "do all in their power to achieve the very important goal of delivering the single largest Mass Deportation Program in History." To achieve this, Trump said: "We must expand efforts to detain and deport Illegal Aliens in America's largest Cities, such as Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York, where Millions upon Millions of Illegal Aliens reside." Keep reading. Go deeper: A State Department cable says the Trump administration is considering adding 36 countries to the travel ban announced early this month. Among them are 25 African nations — including significant U.S. partners, Egypt and Djibouti, plus countries in the Caribbean, Central Asia and several Pacific Island nations. (Washington Post gift link) Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 16, 2025 Author Members Posted June 16, 2025 ? ICE's cash crisis Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios President Trump's immigration crackdown is burning through cash so quickly that the agency charged with arresting, detaining and removing unauthorized immigrants could run out of money next month, Axios' Brittany Gibson writes. Why it matters: ICE is already $1 billion over budget by one estimate, with more than three months left in the fiscal year. Lawmakers say ICE's parent agency, the Department of Homeland Security, is at risk of violating U.S. law if it continues to spend at its current pace. That's added urgency to calls for Congress to pass Trump's "Big Beautiful Bill," which could direct an extra $75 billion or so to ICE over the next five years. Zoom in: ICE's funding crisis is being fueled by Trump's team demanding that agents arrest 3,000 immigrants a day — an unprecedented pace ICE is still trying to reach. ? The intrigue: If Trump's big bill isn't passed soon, he could use his authority to declare a national emergency to redirect money to ICE from elsewhere in the government — similar to what he did in 2020 to divert nearly $4 billion in Pentagon funds to his border wall project. Keep reading. Go deeper: Trump administration gives personal data of immigrant Medicaid enrollees to deportation officials. (AP) Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 17, 2025 Author Members Posted June 17, 2025 Trump directs ICE to expand deportations in Democratic-run cities President Donald Trump on Sunday directed federal immigration officials to prioritize deportations from Democratic-run cities, a move that comes after large protests erupted in Los Angeles and other major cities against the Trump administration’s immigration policies. Read more. Why this matters: Trump’s declaration comes after weeks of increased enforcement, and after Stephen Miller, White House deputy chief of staff and main architect of Trump’s immigration policies, said ICE officers would target at least 3,000 arrests a day, up from about 650 a day during the first five months of Trump’s second term. The Trump administration has also directed immigration officers to pause arrests at farms, restaurants and hotels, after Trump expressed alarm about the impact aggressive enforcement is having on those industries, according to a U.S. official familiar with the matter who spoke only on condition of anonymity. RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Protester shot and killed at ‘No Kings’ rally in Utah, police say Photos of anti-Trump ‘No Kings’ demonstrations across the US Photos of military parade marking Army’s 250th anniversary amid anti-Trump protests 2 detainees recaptured after escape from New Jersey immigration detention center, 2 still at large Judge blocks plan to allow immigration agents in New York City jail ICE is using no-bid contracts, boosting big firms, to get more detention beds Federal judge blocks Trump’s firing of Consumer Product Safety Commission members Judge blocks State Department from firing workers while injunction is in effect Appeals court won’t reconsider ruling that Trump must pay E. Jean Carroll $5M in sex abuse case G7 summit opens in Canada with a focus on trade, wars — and not riling Trump Putin and Trump discussed Middle East tensions, Ukraine war in phone call Trump administration offers some details of how it would control US Steel, but union raises concerns North Carolina redistricting trial begins, with racial gerrymandering allegations the focus Lawsuit centers on power struggle over elections in Arizona’s most populous county Minnesota’s election safeguards stopped a voter fraud scheme in its tracks, secretary of state says An Afghan man accused of planning an Election Day attack in the US pleads guilty Democrats squaring off in Virginia primaries say one name a lot: Trump Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 17, 2025 Author Members Posted June 17, 2025 Netanyahu and Trump Are Trying to Have It All With Israel’s attack on Iran, Netanyahu can distract from his many crises at home. Trump can appease both his faux anti-war backers and the hawks. https://theintercept.com/2025/06/14/israel-iran-attack-netanyahu-trump/? Palestinian Activists Came to Speak at California Synagogue — But Face Deportation at the Airport Two Palestinian peace activists from the occupied West Bank were detained upon landing in the San Francisco airport Wednesday and face deportation after immigration officials unexpectedly revoked their visas. https://theintercept.com/2025/06/12/palestine-peace-west-bank-san-francisco/? Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 17, 2025 Author Members Posted June 17, 2025 ? Walmartcoin could be coming to a superstore near you. Thanks to the cryptocurrency industry-backed GENIUS Act, Walmart, Amazon, and even major airlines are considering issuing their own stablecoins, according to reporting from The Wall Street Journal. Described as a “superhighway” for corruption, the bill rolls back federal oversight of stablecoins and permits corporations like Meta and X to issue their own made-up monopoly money with exorbitantly high fees. The Justice Department, meanwhile, is currently suing Apple for alleged antitrust violations that trap iPhone users into using its own tap-to-pay and digital wallet technology. ? Fascism Lite, sponsored by Big Tech. This weekend’s military parade in Washington, D.C., was funded with the help of some of President Donald Trump’s biggest tech industry supporters, including ones with major business before his administration. That includes Jeff Bezos’ Amazon, which is seeking to dethrone Microsoft as the government’s number one software developer; Oracle, an artificial intelligence firm reportedly tapped by the administration to stage a purchase of TikTok; and Palantir, the mass surveillance corporation reportedly compiling a master list of Americans’ data. Meanwhile, a new Defense Department initiative just recruited executives from Palantir, Meta, and OpenAI to join the U.S. Army Reserves as part-time military officers. Together, they’ll form a new “Executive Innovation Corps” dedicated to bringing about a new era of defense technology. ?? A Wall Street loophole lives on. Democrats and even Trump have voiced opposition to the carried interest loophole — a tax arrangement that allows investors, particularly in private equity, to avoid substantial taxes on capital gains (and costing the government billions in lost revenue). Yet, the tax break keeps on kicking, surviving Republicans’ big beautiful bill at the expense of the social safety net. One reason? Research from Accountable.US shows that just 10 financial and real estate trade groups spent $7 million on lobbying in the first quarter of this year and publicly opposed changes to the new tax bill that could have killed the loophole. ? You used to call me on my Trump phone… The Trump Organization announced today it will begin selling its own smartphone and wireless service plans this September. The $499 “T1” phone and $47.45-per-month “47 Plan” offers unlimited talk, data, and text along with roadside assistance and a “telehealth and pharmacy benefit.” Who needs health care when you’ve got Trump Mobile? Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 17, 2025 Author Members Posted June 17, 2025 CHART OF THE DAY Republicans’ entitlements and tax cuts would make the lowest-earning Americans an average of $1,600 poorer and the highest-earning Americans $12,000 richer. (Source: Congressional Budget Office) Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 17, 2025 Author Members Posted June 17, 2025 Wisconsin dairy farmer sues Trump administration claiming discrimination against white farmers A Wisconsin dairy farmer alleged in a federal lawsuit filed Monday that the Trump administration is illegally denying financial assistance to white farmers by continuing programs that favor minorities. Read More. The Trump family's next venture, a mobile phone company The Trump family said it is licensing its name to a new mobile phone service, the latest in a string of ventures that have been announced while Donald Trump is in the White House despite ethical concerns that the U.S. president could mold public policy for personal gain. Read More. Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
Members phkrause Posted June 17, 2025 Author Members Posted June 17, 2025 Trump Sued Over ‘Intimidation’ Campaign Against Law Firms (1) The American Bar Association on Monday sued President Donald Trump, challenging an “intimidation policy” it says the White House is using to try to sideline some of the country’s top law firms. https://news.bloomberglaw.com/business-and-practice/trump-sued-over-intimidation-campaign-against-major-law-firms? Terminated NIH grants must be restored, judge orders A federal judge Monday ordered the National Institutes of Health to restore grants that the agency cut based on gender ideology or diversity, equity and inclusion, calling the terminations illegal. https://www.axios.com/local/boston/2025/06/16/nih-grants-ordered-restored? Quote phkrause When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a wicked man rules, the people groan. Proverbs 29;2
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