curated citations to news sources
amNY: Comptroller Brad Lander arrested at ICE court hearing
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Lander’s arrest, which amNewYork observed, occurred as the comptroller and his staff walked arm-in-arm with an immigrant whom federal agents — representing ICE, the FBI and the Treasury Department, each of whom wearing masks to conceal their faces — moved to seize after a court hearing. Moments earlier, the immigrant had their case dismissed pending appeal.
As the agents moved to pull Lander away and take the immigrant into custody, the comptroller shouted, “Show me your warrant, show me your badge.”
“I will let go if you show me a judicial warrant,” he repeated. “I would like to see the warrant, and then I will let go.”
Seconds later, one of the officers said, “Take him in.” The agents then forcibly removed Lander, pushed him against the wall and cuffed him.
(amNY more…)
emptywheel: Kristi Noem’s Goons Engage in what Emil Bove Calls Election Interference
NY Times: Brad Lander Is Arrested by ICE Agents at Immigration Courthouse
Mr. Lander, the New York City comptroller and a candidate for mayor, was handcuffed as he tried to steer a man past Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.
Daily: Sen. Alex Padilla Shows How To Rally The American People Against Trump
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CNN: Trump disputes intel chief Tulsi Gabbard on Iran
Heather Cox Richardson: Letters from an American – June 17, 2025
Yesterday at the meeting of the leaders of the Group of Seven (G7), a forum of democracies with advanced economies, President Donald Trump told reporters: “The UK is very well protected. You know why? Because I like them, that’s why. That’s the ultimate protection.”
Commenters often note that Trump talks like a mob boss, but rarely has his organized-crime style of governance been clearer than in yesterday’s statement.
Also yesterday, Ana Swanson and Lauren Hirsch of the New York Times reported that Trump has taken unprecedented control over U.S. Steel. Japan’s Nippon Steel has been trying to take over U.S. Steel since 2023, but the Biden administration blocked the deal for security reasons. In order to move it forward, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick demanded an agreement that gives to the president and his successors, or a person the president designates, a single share of preferred stock, known as class G, or “gold.” The deal gives the president permanent veto power over nearly a dozen actions the company might want to take, as well as power over its board of directors.
Swanson and Hirsch note that the U.S. government historically takes a stake in companies only when they are in financial trouble or when they play a significant role in the economy. “We have a golden share, which I control, or the president controls,” Mr. Trump told reporters on Thursday. “Now I’m a little concerned whoever the president might be, but that gives you total control.”
This kind of deal echoes those of the authoritarians Trump appears to admire. His ongoing support for Russian president Vladimir Putin was on display at the G7, when he echoed Russian talking points that blamed European countries and the United States for Putin’s war against Ukraine, rather than acknowledging that it was Russia that attacked Ukraine after giving assurances that it would respect Ukrainian sovereignty in exchange for Ukraine’s giving up the Soviet nuclear weapons stored there.
(Heather Cox Richardson more…)
TNR: Is Trump About to Get His Own Iraq War?
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Dean Blundell: Canada Just Hit Putin Where It Hurts — While Trump Cheers the Kremlin From Home
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What Did Canada Actually Do? A Lot.- Sanctioned Putin’s “Shadow Fleet”
- Seized Russian Oligarch Wealth Will Go to Ukraine
- New Military Package — $1.2 Billion in Lethal Aid
RBC-Ukraine: Zelenskyy: ‘This is only change in Russia’s behavior since change of US President’
Recently, Russia has significantly increased the use of attack drones in its strikes against Ukraine. …
“If last year it was shocking to see 100 Shahed drones used in one night, now it’s unusual if fewer than 100 are used in a single strike. In fact, this is the only real change in Russia’s behavior since the change of the U.S. President. And it proves that those supporting new and stronger sanctions against Russia are absolutely right,” Zelenskyy noted.
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Texas Tribune: With only 8% built, Texas quietly defunds state border wall program
(Texas Tribune more…)
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Michele Hornish: The Smaller Protests Are the Bigger Story
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33 people turned out in Seldovia, Alaska, which has a population of 78.That’s not a typo.
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Nate Silver: How the electoral math flipped against Democrats
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LAWdork: Federal judge blocks Rubio’s anti-trans, anti-nonbinary passport policy for all
Judge Julia Kobick granted a classwide preliminary injunction that applies to all trans and nonbinary people on Tuesday.
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Your Local Epidemiologist: How should we respond to people “doing their own research?”
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Liz Dye: Judge rules that anti-woke is just racism
Earlier this week, a federal judge in Boston explicitly called out the Trump administration for its “palpably clear” discrimination against racial minorities and LGBTQ+ Americans in a case involving canceled grants from the National Institutes of Health.“Have we no shame?” Judge William Young asked, in an unmistakeable echo of attorney Jack Welch, who famously punctured Joe McCarthy’s popularity with his simple plea for decency.
(Liz Dye more…)Undark: Via the False Claim Act, NIH Puts Universities on Edge
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Dean Blundell: Elon Just Got Into Fight With GROK, on Twitter, And It Was GLORIOUS…
When Your AI Tells the Truth and You Punish It: Elon Musk vs. Grok is the online fight we’ve been waiting for…
(Dean Blundell more…)
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Wired: ‘Appeal to Heaven’ Flag Flown Above Government Agency in DC
The “Appeal to Heaven” flag, a popular symbol for Christian nationalists that was waved by January 6 rioters, was raised over the Small Business Administration headquarters last week.
(Wired more…)
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Borowitz: Trump Claims Migrants Kidnapped Everyone Who Was Coming to His Parade
Tracking the Lawsuits Against Trump’s Agenda
Project 2025 Tracker
DOGE Tracker
ProPublica: Elon Musk’s Demolition Crew
Wired: 6 Tools for Tracking the Trump Administration’s Attacks on Civil Liberties
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