NEW: As he released 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos, Judge Biery warned of vast lawlessness and inhumanity in the Trump administration’s mass deportation efforts. He said courts amounted to “a judicial finger in the dike.”

www.politico.com/news/2026/01...

About a foot in Charlotte!

I was just thinking of WormTongue and Stephen Miller. How about that.

Opinion | The Best Weapon You Have in the Fight Against ICE

Great quote: “the only thing that can eventually stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a camera.”

Americans are not buying Kristi Noem’s lies, thank goodness for those videos:

www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/o...

Federal agents shoot and kill person in Minnesota, officials say Minneapolis officials said they are investigating.

How many more will die until ICE brutality stops? Yet another murder.

www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...

Trump administration orders review of federal funding in more than a dozen Democratic states | CNN Politics The Trump administration has ordered a review of federal funding sent to more than a dozen Democratic-led states, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter.

Undertaking a sweeping investigation of almost all federal funding to 14 states & D.C. – all but one led by a Democrat – is a harmful & shameful escalation of the Admin’s corrupt politicization of basic governance & suggests funding freezes may be coming. www.cnn.com/2026/01/22/p...

This follows a clear pattern. The Admin is already trying to freeze funds for low-income people in 5 Dem-led states, has based disaster relief decisions on a state’s politics, & has threatened states that include localities that won’t agree to partner w/ the admin on immigration.

Preschooler and three other students detained by ICE, school district leader says The detentions of Columbia Heights students come after weeks of heightened concern and enforcement presence near and on Twin Cities school property.

A 5-year-old preschool student was taken with his father by federal immigration agents shortly after arriving home from school, Columbia Heights school leaders said Jan. 21.

Vote centers have made it easier to vote. Cleta Mitchell is coming for them The battle over vote centers is currently playing out in Arizona, where Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) last year vetoed a GOP bill to abolish the use of them.

NEW: "Mitchell and EIN are hoping to change the dynamic of the 2026 midterms by pressuring state and local election officials to only allow voting to take place in small neighborhood precincts, rather than the vote centers." www.democracydocket.com/analysis/vot...

St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her ‘livid’ after ICE wrongly targets family friend, escorts him undressed into cold ChongLy Scott Thao was taken by federal agents from his St. Paul home in the frigid cold only wearing boxers and Crocs.

This is how inept ICE agents are now . They had an address that was two years outdated . Not one week, not one month, 2 years. And did not care to check the name of the person before driving him around and harassing him for hours

www.startribune.com/st-paul-mayo...

America’s barbarians-inside-the-gates turn No ideological code can fully capture Trump’s actions

Interesting analysis in the FT today, which rings true:

www.ft.com/content/dede...

Venezuela latest: Maduro seen in US 'perp walk' video - as Venezuelan VP strikes very different tone to Trump Nicolas Maduro is in the US - in handcuffs - where he said "happy new year" as agents escorted him through a corridor. He could appear in court tomorrow. But was this all legal? What will the reaction...

🗣️ "The US is not interested in freedom or democracy, it is interested in our oil."

Venezuelans gathered in Caracas to express their solidarity with Nicolas Maduro, who was captured by the United States following a series of airstrikes.

Latest updates: trib.al/tP8daTX

Opinion | Trump’s Attack on Venezuela Is Illegal and Unwise

Well stated NYT:

www.nytimes.com/2026/01/03/o...

BREAKING: We just won a court order blocking the Trump-Vance admin's harmful attempt to restrict federal funds for proven solutions to homelessness.

This victory helps to keep hundreds of thousands of veterans, seniors, people with disabilities, and vulnerable families housed and out of the cold.

Authoritarianism is here. Secret police arresting US citizens for speaking out.

Rabbiatu is a nurse who worked during COVID, had been in the U.S. 30 years. A judge ordered that she could not be sent back to Sierra Leone for her safety, for fear of torture (!). So our evil regime sent her to Ghana (in shackles), and Ghana dragged her back to Sierra Leone.

Families struggle to locate loved ones detained in Charlotte Border Patrol operation Family members of people detained in CBP’s recent Charlotte operation say they’re struggling to locate their loved ones, and advocates warn the problem is widespread.

This is what happens when secrecy and cruelty meet incompetence. Pretty much our federal government in a nutshell right now . And families pay the price.

www.wfae.org/race-equity/...

Hey by the way #PatHarrigan - if you are going to talk about CMPD get the name right - they are NOT the Charlotte Metropolitan Police Dept. They are the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department. Are you sure you’re from around here ?

Love wins!

But we need to stay vigilant, as you never know with this court how issues can come back up....
#LoveWins

Maine Question 1 results 2025 Live Maine question 1 election results over requiring photo IDs to vote among other changes.

Maine voters are projected to reject a ballot measure that would have added voter ID requirements and adjusted absentee voting rules, according to the Associated Press.

Mamdani is New York’s First Muslim and South Asian Mayor-Elect Zohran Mamdani’s ascent was powered by a relentless focus on affordability. Along the way, he energized South Asian and Muslim communities that rarely receive sustained attention from politicians.

Zohran Mamdani, whose triumphant campaign was built on progressive ideas and a relentless focus on affordability, will become the city’s youngest mayor in more than a century. Along the way, he energized South Asian and Muslim communities that rarely receive sustained attention from politicians.

Elizabeth neighborhood Pumpkin Wall is up! This is its 21st year- I remember when it first started!

Yup It’s still a man’s world. But that’s changing. Women’s sports will continue to rise. Stay strong.

Nope. Not someone who tried to overthrow democracy in a violent coup and said to hang his vice president and who zip ties children abducted by masked men and throws them in detention centers. Nope. Nope. Nope.

Get ready for a peaceful Oct 18 “No Kings” rally. This will be global. It will be creative . No tyrants. No kings. We want democracy #NoKings

A federal judge on Sunday blocked the Trump administration from deploying hundreds of National Guard troops to Portland, Oregon, even as President Trump turned to the Texas guard in a widening hunt for military forces to send to Democratic cities. Follow live: nyti.ms/3KCr5t4

This Wednesday (Oct. 1) at noon, join us for a "Lunch & Learn" with Tim Heaphy on:

Defending Democracy: Confronting Political Violence in the 21st Century

Register at: catawba-edu.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

18-Year-Old Proves Voter ID Laws Cut Turnout, Wins Science Award Rivka Lipkovitz used advanced statistical methods to study voter ID laws, finding turnout effects by election type—earning her a top Regeneron STS prize.

Love math nerds. Well done Rivka! She’s proven what voting rights advocates have been saying all along :

www.forbes.com/sites/kevina...