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Weekly US politics news and updates thread - week of January 26
This thread is posted weekly - please try to post all relevant US political content in here, such as news, updates, opinion articles, etc. Extremely significant events may warrant a separate topic, but almost all should be posted in here.
This is an inherently political thread; please try to avoid antagonistic arguments and bickering matches. Comment threads that devolve into unproductive arguments may be removed so that the overall topic is able to continue.
I’m getting word from other Bostonians that ICE has been spotted around Tufts University and near the Boston Municipal Court.
I’m having a minor panic over this, but I’ll be out there protesting and documenting when I can.
Minnesota has barely 2% of the USA population (6m out of 340m.)
10-15% of all USA ICE agents are located in Minnesota (2-3k out of 22k.)
I know ICE is surging everywhere, but Minnesota is on a whole another level.
None of the reasons given make any sense. Fraud? Sanctuary cities? Lack of visibility into voter records? That is true for most cities. It seems pure capricious vindictiveness targeted at Walz.
I'm just listening to an episode "Cancel Me, Daddy" (recommend the podcast, episode is "How ICE turns protest into a battlefield) with guest NYT writer Jamelle Bouie and they just made the point that it was probably as much about Walz as it was about Trump losing the 2020 election and the George Floyd protests. They say that public opinion turned on Trump after the protests in a way that it hadn't before and in a way that got people activated and engaged politically. Without them, he may have been able to pull off re-election.
Given the right wing claims of lawlessness in Minneapolis it seems likely that Miller and Noem anticipated the "excuse" for the Insurrection Act to come from "riots" and tbh probably hoped an ICE agent got killed because I think they see their peons as expendable.
And that's speculation to an extent, but it seems like they thought they just needed a lever to crack MN, and they thought they had a big enough one, but they cracked the floe they were standing on instead.
It's weird because they have the absolutely horrible connivers like Miller and the (also horrible) dumbasses like Noem on the same team and you never know if the strategy being planned will flop or not because it's bad strategy or because they put a dumbass in charge of it.
It may be speculation, but it makes a lot of sense. There are definitely people who support violent responses. I keep having to explain to people that local police can't arrest ICE or do anything else proactive because the Trump admin would use any action by them as justification to escalate things, and potentially use it as a way to drag down Minnesota politicians too.
That's also why the police are so focused on crowd patrol: so long as no ICE or federal agents get killed, the Trump admin can't easily justify escalating. With the current situation, the Trump administration looks to be solidly in the wrong to a majority of the public. Even other Republicans are calling them out for this. As things stand, there is no justification or good way to spin the murders. If the protests do turn violent though, that can change.
Related: The ABC national news tonight had a soundbite from someone in Minneapolis saying they fear it's being used as a "test case" for similar action in other cities. Hopefully, this test proves to be a failure.
And if it had been other people killed besides Renee Good and Alex Pretti, if it had been immigrants whether Somali or Latino, or brown or Black folks in general, anyone with actual horrible histories... I guarantee more of the muck would have stuck to them. More of the lies would be believed and distract from the actions of DHS being the problem. We have seen how people respond and dismiss their deaths for any number of past wrongs, even fictional ones.
It should not have taken their deaths for people to wake up. It shouldn't have taken the deaths of white US citizens for broader society to care, continually. And credit to Minneapolis because they stepped up before this. And there is always more grief when people can see themselves in a victim... But why can't more people see themselves in the long list of names that did not begin with Rodney King but probably started there for people my age.
My grief feels like a hole large enough to swallow the world, because each time it grows larger until it joins the previous time, which grows anew. They can't stand alone because the walls of the hole fall in as every unnecessary death, and brutality, and cruelty runs in as one deep bitter current of humanity's worst nature, eating away at everything. Until the world falls into it.
Hope is harder to hold to tonight.
Minnesota Proved MAGA Wrong
(Archive.is)
See also here for more discussion
Oooooh, thanks, I missed that!
Be safe, as safe as you can, and work with your community.
Trump Backpedals From Portraying Alex Pretti As a 'Domestic Terrorist' and 'Would-Be Assassin'
He holds no true beliefs other than he should get to touch any woman (or girl) he wants and that Black people are broadly inferior (exceptions made only occasionally and not typically honest. )
Exactly. Trump backpedals from nothing. He is a narcissist who only wants the person in front of him to like him. 99% of the time, it's awful people around him. He just had a phone call with Walz, and so he's doing something Walz asked him to do. But he's not even fully into it, and there is no real action to back up his words (things are "changing", but there is no sign that anything on the ground is actually any better).
They ‘Had Done Everything Right.’ ICE Detained Them Anyway. (Gift)
That picture at the top of the article, with the thug hiding his face behind a scarf with a skull on it…
for the visually inclined
I don't remember if it's Mitchell or Webb that turned out to be a bit of a jackass since, but many of their gags do still remain splendid.
Given the British comedy circuit I wouldn't be shocked if it was both but David Mitchell still shows up on panel shows and it looks like Robert Webb joined the "I'm not transphobic I'm gender critical" team. They both advocated for Scotland to stay in the UK.
Eww, I appreciate the sharing of the disappointing context though, so thanks to both of you.
Yeah idk about David, like I said he's still around. Haven't seen Webb though on the circuit and I watch a decent amount of British panel shows ( but not all by any means)
Alex Vindman, who testified against Trump during his first impeachment, enters Florida Senate race
This is a promising development. Alex Vindman's integrity, clarity, intelligence, policy knowledge, and courage shone out during his Congressional testimony in the hearings for Trump's first impeachment. He's vastly better than the usual run of candidates for Congress from Florida, a genuine public servant.
FYI, your link seems to be broken.
Fixed, thank you!
1 person in critical condition after shooting involving Border Patrol agent in Arizona
If the recent murder of Alex Pretti is any indication, I find DHS statements to have a negative correlation with what actually took place.
Huh, the fact they asked the Sheriff to investigate almost makes me worry they're being honest. But tbh seems like someone wanted to fuck around on the helicopter and probably shot first.
Ilhan Omar sprayed with liquid at Minneapolis town hall - POLITICO
As of posting there's no clarity on what the "foul smelling liquid" was (as described in other articles.) Representative Omar continued her town hall and stated she doesn't give in to threats. Tbh if she gets hurt it's on the administration too for their rhetoric.
She is possibly the other reason for the targeted harassment of Minneapolis.
South Carolina measles outbreak is largest in US since measles was declared eliminated (CNN)
While not particularly being 'surprising' given RFK Jr., I still wanted to post this given the graph in the article. That alone is a huge warning.
How ICE Already Knows Who Minneapolis Protesters Are
Archive link
I mentioned something similar in last week's thread, but Ken Klippenstein has been reporting on this as well. Here's his most recent piece on the topic, which has some additional information. It's also worth keeping in mind as some lawmakers are calling for body cameras on all ICE and CBP officers.
On a completely unrelated note, COVID hasn't fully gone away, so if you find yourself out in a crowded space or large gathering, you might want to mask up to protect yourself and others around you.
Reasons to be hopeful: Blue wave watch: Democrat flips Trump +17 Texas Senate seat in 32-point swing. Also.
Accountability for ICE and CBP
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Erotic Parody 'Melania: Devourer of Men' Sales Surge on Amazon Amid Documentary Flop (404 Media)
‘Spy Sheikh’ Bought Secret Stake in Trump Company