valerie szybala

We need to talk about Russell Vought – But Properly Why certain mainstream outlets insist on sanitizing Vought as a devout “small government” conservative – and what actually animates his war against pluralistic democracy

Sunday reading:

I wrote about the aggrieved extremist who is currently firing thousands of federal workers and ravaging state capacity based on conspiratorial nonsense - and about mainstream media’s infuriating tendency to sanitize Russell Vought and the regime he serves.

This week’s piece:

Operation 100 lbs of blue and yellow chalk! A recording from Benjamin Wittes's live video

I gotta say, having the United States Secret Service enforce against me a supposed municipal DC ordinance against hopscotch on DC sidewalks was not on my bingo card for today: www.dogshirtdaily.com/p/operation-...

Kilmar Abrego Garcia describes ‘severe beatings’ and ‘psychological torture’ in Salvadoran prison Abrego submitted a harrowing and detailed account of abuse after the Trump administration illegally deported him.

Politico - Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was illegaly deported by the Trump administration, details his mistreatment in a Salvadoran prison, claiming he suffered "severe beatings," sleep deprivation, malnutrition and other forms of torture at the hands of his jailers.

The right is shaping public perception of these protests just like it shaped public perception of the BLM protests, because it dominates the information ecosystem. The narratives it has spent years crafting & spreading are shaping how current events are interpreted.

The Big Takeover: The secret plans to give Trump command of America’s police For months, a Project 2025 subgroup drafted plans to place domestic law enforcement under Trump's thumb. We have their files.

SCOOP!

We have secret Project 2025 documents laying out plans to drastically restructure domestic law enforcement -- from the feds on down -- under Trump's command. It's ostensibly about deporting immigrants. It could be used for more.

At @phoenixnewtimes.com, from Beau Hodai:

In other words, he promised repeatedly during the campaign he had a secret plan to end the war in 24 hours and he was just bullshitting everyone because he doesn’t have the first clue what to do, he gave away all negotiating leverage months ago, and his special envoy is a dope.

🚨According to litigators, ICE just put a dozen men on a flight (which may have already taken off) to SOUTH SUDAN, a country on the brink of civil war, in direct defiance of a court order requiring ICE to give people an opportunity to raise objections before being sent to a country not their own.

FBI Director Kash Patel @FBIDirectorKash Just NOW, the FBI arrested Judge Hannah Dugan out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin on charges of obstruction — after evidence of Judge Dugan obstructing an immigration arrest operation last week. We believe Judge Dugan intentionally misdirected federal agents away from the subject to be arrested in her courthouse, Eduardo Flores Ruiz, allowing the subject — an illegal alien — to evade arrest. Thankfully our agents chased down the perp on foot and he’s been in custody since, but the Judge’s obstruction created increased danger to the public. We will have more to share soon. Excellent work @FBIMilwaukee .

The FBI just arrested a sitting judge.

🧵 We got a pretty nasty load of bad news yesterday on the future of Social Security. It's not hyperbole to say we've passed the point of no return on Trump/DOGE's efforts to kill the agency...

Carney: The system of global trade anchored on the United States.. is over. Our old relationship of steadily deepening integration with the United States is over. The 80 year period when the United States embraced the mantle of economic leadership… is over.

Three prominent Yale professors depart for Canadian university, citing Trump fears History department power couple Timothy Snyder and Marci Shore and philosophy professor Jason Stanley will begin teaching at the University of Toronto’s renowned Munk School in fall 2025.

America is experiencing brain drain, a phenomenon we used to benefit from.

yaledailynews.com/blog/2025/03...

A picture of Vladimir Putin holding his phone

“Wait guys, P. Hegseth is typing…”

Wow. Judge Howell is worried that if she orders DOGE to leave the USIP building it could turn into an “armed standoff” over unwillingness to vacate, and points out law enforcement has shown willingness to help DOGE. Asks if we’ll need foreign mediators to come in.

Banned Russian Channel RT Secretly Pays Video Bloggers Who Promote Kremlin Narratives The bloggers rack up millions of views, promote Russia as a haven for conservatives, glorify the war in Ukraine — and never disclose any ties to the Russian government. The money tells a different sto...

NEW: Russian state-controlled channel RT has largely vanished from Western screens due to sanctions. But iStories found that RT is paying influencers who push pro-Russian narratives, deny Russian war crimes, and strive to make Westerners love — and move to — Russia www.occrp.org/en/investiga...

“Not only are NRO’s budgets and head counts classified, but the prospect of Musk’s tech team meddling in sensitive personnel information is setting off alarms for some in the intelligence community.”

DOJ leadership has put all Public Integrity Section lawyers into a room with 1 hour to decide who will dismiss Adams indictment or else all will be fired. Sending them strength to stand by their oath, which is to support the Constitution, not the president’s political agenda. 🇺🇸

Danielle Sassoon’s letter is badass. So nice to see a little integrity.

How Hungary's Orbán uses control of the media to escape scrutiny and keep the public in the dark | The Associated Press BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — In the months leading up to elections for the European Parliament, Hungarians were warned that casting a ballot against Prime

A glimpse into America’s future:

How Hungary’s Orbán uses control of the media to escape scrutiny and keep the public in the dark

www.ap.org/news-highlig...

The fact that this FCC investigation into a radio station's coverage of ICE is getting little domestic coverage, but the UK @the-independent.com wrote about it with "hallmarks of government censorship" in the title says so much about the state of American media www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...

The NSA's "Big Delete" Today, the National Security Agency (NSA) is planning a "Big Delete" of websites and internal network content that contain any of 27 banned words, including "privilege," "bias," and "inclusion." The "...

Popular Information - NSA today planning a "Big Delete" of websites and internal network content that contain any of 27 banned words, including "privilege," "bias," and "inclusion,” which is creating unintended consequences.
open.substack.com/pub/populari...

Slowing down from real time investigative work but one of my sources confirmed this @wired.com's report yesterday: "BFS is treating Marko's resignation as a cybersecurity breach. The cyber teams are working overtime to analyze the forensic artifacts Marko left behind and determine what he saw/did."

Private security blocks senator Markey from the EPA

Senator Markey and colleagues are denied angry into the EPA Headquarters

We were just denied entrance into the EPA after asking to meet with a DOGE representative. More to come.

Elon Musk and SpaceX Face Federal Reviews After Violations of Security Reporting Rules Federal agencies have opened at least three reviews into whether the company and its leader complied with disclosure protocols intended to protect state secrets, people with knowledge of the matter sa...

Just a reminder that Elon Musk was a threat to national security before he had the power to directly hack into federal networks.

Re-upping this December reporting from @kirstengrind.bsky.social @ericlipton.nytimes.com @sheeraf.bsky.social @nytimes.com

www.nytimes.com/2024/12/17/t...

Red states create their own DOGE efforts to cut state government • Stateline Red states are echoing President Donald Trump’s quest to slash the size and cost of the federal government with their own initiatives aimed at making government smaller and more efficient.

Pushed on by ALEC, GOP leaders in states like TX, KS, IA, MO, NH, NC, OK, and WI are creating their own DOGE-like bodies. stateline.org/2025/02/04/r...

5 Calls Spend 5 minutes. Make 5 calls. Make your voice heard.

Call the US government today, flood the lines and apply maximum pressure.
Demand they do their jobs, arrest Musk, and impeach Trump.

5 minutes, 5 calls, repeat. #3E

DOJ Says Trump Administration Doesn’t Have to Follow Court Order Halting Funding Freeze Read more here.

They never give up. Neither can we.

"The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) argued Monday that a federal court order blocking President Donald Trump’s federal funding freeze doesn’t halt the administration’s efforts." www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...

No checks, no breaks...

Putin could not have imagined Musk in his wildest dreams. Musk is tearing down all the things that make America strong.