Anthony Macuk

NEW: A huge win for ICE in the 5th Circuit tonight clears the way for the agency to mass detain people facing (and fighting) deportation proceedings. District judges all over the country — including dozens of Trump appointees — had rejected this policy.

www.politico.com/news/2026/02...

if Dulles got renamed after me I'd be out there trying to find the bastards who did it

ICE and CBP’s Face-Recognition App Can’t Actually Verify Who People Are ICE has used Mobile Fortify to identify immigrants and citizens alike over 100,000 times, by one estimate. It wasn't built to work like that—and only got approved after DHS abandoned its own privacy r...

NEW: Records reviewed by WIRED show DHS’s facial recognition app (Mobile Fortify) isn’t designed to actually "verify" identity—despite DHS claims and its agents relying on its matches to support probable cause in the field.

The Murder of The Washington Post Today’s layoffs are the latest attempt to kill what makes the paper special.

"I realized that the Post wasn’t the same paper that had recruited me, and that I didn’t want to work for an owner and publisher who couldn’t articulate a vision and confused contempt for the newsroom with a business plan."
-- Ashley Parker, on why she jumped ship
www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...

A lot of people cannot just start a paid newsletter or become freelancers to sustain their careers. The sports, metro, and international desks did work that requires *team* resources, like legal checks, documents, access to archives, and long-term beat experience.

A staggering statement from former Washington Post editor Marty Baron: "This ranks among the darkest days in the history of one of the world's greatest news organizations."

WASHINGTON (AP) — Washington Post says one-third of its staff across all departments, not just the newsroom, is being laid off.

DHS’s account of two Venezuelans shot by border patrol falls apart in court: ‘A smear campaign’ Immigration officials said agent shot two ‘vicious gang members’ in Portland, but records obtained by the Guardian reveal US prosecutor contradicted claims

After Border Patrol shot two people in Portland, DHS claimed they were "vicious gang members" tied to a past shooting.

But records I obtained reveal a US prosecutor has since directly contradicted DHS, saying, "We're not suggesting he is a gang member." My dive into how DHS' claims have collapsed:

Looks like ODOT just completed an administrative rule change that adds key flexibility to state transit funding so that a big pot of discretionary grant funds can now be used for ongoing operations costs and not just capital improvements.

www.oregon.gov/odot/Get-Inv...

Important: Nora has learned how to use her bed. It has taken about 18 months for her to figure this out

U.S. citizen injured by federal agents in Salem who demanded to see “papers,” union says - Salem Reporter A home care worker and union worker was pulled from her car and injured by federal agents Thursday according to a statement by SEIU 503. To comment on this story, use the form at the end of the…

"As she was on the ground, the agents dumped out her purse, found her U.S. passport and left the scene." www.salemreporter.com/2026/01/31/u...

PORTLAND MAYOR WILSON:

“.. To those who continue to work for ICE: Resign. To those who control this facility: Leave. … you have lost all legitimacy and replaced it with shame.”

@politico.com
www.politico.com/news/2026/02...

This is maybe the most bone-dry Chotiner interview I've seen in a while

As Propublica’s editors note, “the policy of shielding officers' identities, particularly after a public shooting, is a stark departure from standard law enforcement protocols.

“Such secrecy, in our view, deprives the public of the most fundamental tool for accountability.”

Democrat Christian Menefee wins election for US House, narrowing GOP's slim majority Democrat Christian Menefee has won a Texas U.S. House seat in a special election that will narrow Republicans’ already-slim majority.

BREAKING: Democrat Christian Menefee wins special election for Texas U.S. House seat, narrowing GOP's slim majority.

A cloud of tear gas outside the Portland ICE facility. A person in a shark costume emerging from the cloud.

Like many have said, the gassing outside ICE today was really bad, and it impacted a huge group of people. I heard multiple people say they felt like they were going to throw up as they tried to leave the area. (I experienced similar effects.) It followed a peaceful protest led by labor groups.

Thousands of protesters marched to Portland's ICE building Saturday.

Demonstrators were met with large clouds of tear gas, pepper balls and flash-bangs shortly after their arrival.

www.oregonlive.com/politics/202...

Just experienced the most intense tear gassing of my life by federal officers outside the ICE facility in Portland where marchers gathered. There was no fast exit as they indiscriminately threw loads of gas and flash bangs. Children were in the crowd screaming. @oregoncapitalchronicle.com

Just got gassed pretty good at the labor union anti-ICE protest in Portland. Massive march, 5-10k strong. Vibes were very much liberal rather than radical. Lots of kids and older folks.

They gassed the whole crowd as soon as it marched on ICE, in broad daylight.

Anti-ICE protest attracts massive crowd at South Portland facility, feds deploy tear gas Thousands of demonstrators marched on the ICE building, leading federal officers to launch pepper balls and tear gas at them.

Thousands of protestors marched across Portland and enveloped the blocks around the ICE building Saturday.

Protestors were met with large clouds of tear gas, pepper balls and flash bangs.

A big group stopped outside the ICE facility and federal agents dropped several rounds of chemical ammunitions. The crowd leaving the scene was the most chaotic I’ve ever seen it and the gas was the most intense. I don’t know how/why the gassing started.

Among the batch of newly released emails from Jeffrey Epstein: Epstein telling Peter Thiel he would “gladly share…expenses for the Gawker suit.”

This was sent the day after @rmac.bsky.social and @mattdrange.bsky.social reported in Forbes that Thiel was behind the lawsuit that would bankrupt Gawker

Thousands of people filled the streets of downtown Minneapolis in protest of federal immigration enforcement for the second consecutive Friday.

📷️: Aaron Lavinsky

Congestion pricing pros:
-Cheap to implement
-Huge revenue generator
-Basically solves all traffic instantly

Congestion pricing cons:
-People literally will not believe you when you tell them the pros

National Press Club President Mark Schoeff, Jr. today issued the following statement: “The National Press Club is deeply alarmed by the arrest of journalist Don Lemon by federal agents Thursday night in Los Angeles while he was covering the Grammy Awards. Jailing a journalist for doing their job is dangerous — not only for press freedom, but for the public’s right to know. When reporters risk arrest for documenting events of public interest, the result is fewer witnesses, less accountability, and a more uninformed public. Mr. Lemon’s arrest is linked to his reporting during a Dec. 18 protest at a Minnesota church that included speaking to the pastor, members of the church and protestors. Mr. Lemon was simply practicing the core elements of constitutionally protected journalism: documenting the protest and providing context for the actions unfolding before him. He has stated he was not part of the demonstration. A magistrate judge previously declined to sign a criminal complaint related to that reporting, yet Mr. Lemon has remained subject to federal enforcement. The National Press Club is also concerned by reports that other independent journalists may have been detained in connection with this coverage. If confirmed, such actions would signal a troubling pattern of targeting journalists for newsgathering. Journalism is not a crime. Arresting or detaining journalists for covering protests, public events, or government actions represents a grave threat to press freedom and risks chilling reporting nationwide. The world is watching closely, and the implications of this case extend far beyond any one reporter.

The national Press Club released the following statement on the arrest of Don Lemon:

"The world is watching closely, and the implications of this case extend far beyond any one reporter."

👀

What is Nick Shirley? Slop doesn’t need to be AI-generated

The violent occupation of Minneapolis started with a vlog. I've wanted to find a framework to describe Nick Shirley & others like him: "Influencer" is too quaint. "Journalist" is obviously wrong.

I landed on "slopagandist."

Gift link (open in a web browser) www.theverge.com/news/869824/...

An AI Toy Exposed 50,000 Logs of Its Chats With Kids to Anyone With a Gmail Account AI chat toy company Bondu left its web console almost entirely unprotected. Researchers who accessed it found nearly all the conversations children had had with the company's stuffed animals.

The AI-chat-enabled stuffed toy Bondu invites little kids to have intimate conversations with it, like an LLM imaginary friend. It also exposed virtually all their chats on a web interface with no security. Anyone with a Gmail account could log in and read transcripts. www.wired.com/story/an-ai-...

this sounds harsh but video knows what it did