curated citations to news sources
Heather Cox Richardson: Letters from an American – August 21, 2025
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Last night, just before midnight, Trump cheered on the Texas Republicans and called for Florida, Indiana, and other states to do the same thing. He also called for Republicans in the state legislatures to “STOP MAIL-IN VOTING” and “go to PAPER BALLOTS before it is too late.” “If we do these TWO things,” he wrote, “we will pick up 100 more seats, and the CROOKED game of politics is over. God Bless America!!!”
The president of the United States is openly admitting that his party cannot win a free and fair election.
Instead of appealing to voters with popular policies, he is calling for rigging our elections so that his party cannot lose. This appears to have been the plan all along. In July 2024, Trump told an audience of evangelical Christians that if they voted for him in November, “in four years, you don’t have to vote again. We’ll have it fixed so good, you’re not gonna have to vote.”
(Heather Cox Richardson more…)
Thom Hartmann: The Authoritarian’s Secret Weapon: They Never, Ever Leave Voluntarily
Every gerrymander, purge, and press attack tightens the screw — until the system is locked and the tyrant holds the only key…
Jay Kuo: The Redistricting Wars
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Root Nation: Missile Strike on Mukachevo: Russia Destroys U.S.-Owned Flex Plant
(Root Nation more…)
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emptywheel: Quantum Leaps: The So-Called Whistleblower That Got NSA’s Top Mathematician Fired
Tulsi Gabbard has a so-called whistleblower (SCWB) on whose claims she has built wild conspiracy theories that conflict even with what Kash Patel and John Ratcliffe have said after reviewing the same documents. The SCWB’s claims about … well, a bunch of things, are so flimsy I thought I could just ignore them.Sadly, I can’t.
Tulsi just used the claims to fire a top NSA mathematician, Vinh Nguyen, over the objections of the Acting Director of NSA.
The acting director of the National Security Agency tried to protect one of his top scientists from losing his security clearance as Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, prepared to announce the move this week, according to officials briefed on the matter.
The effort failed. Ms. Gabbard, on orders from President Trump, fired the scientist, who was a leading government expert on artificial intelligence, cryptology and advanced mathematics.
SCWB also seems to harbor a grievance against Shelby Pierson based on his own conspiratorial misunderstanding. Pierson warned against Russian interference in 2020, and had since moved back to lead the analytical team at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. She was ousted along with Nguyen.
So this whistleblower complaint appears to have led to the ouster of two senior intelligence officials.
And his claims are riddled with problems.
(emptywheel more…)
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Texas Observer: A Venezuelan Was Detained as a “Documented” Gang Member by ICE, Which Refused to Provide Proof
The Venezuelan immigrant, who has no criminal record, previously worked for a multinational corporation that sells snacks, food, and soft drinks.
Jesús Escalona Mújicas, a 48-year-old Venezuelan asylum-seeker, says he was en route to work at a construction site on the morning of April 9 when a group of immigration agents and state and federal police officers stopped his car in a rural area near Bryan—an event that led to him being arrested, publicly accused of membership in a transnational prison gang, and deported.
(Texas Observer more…)Mark O’Connor: A Professional Utah Symphony violinist rounded up
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Allison Gill: Trump is Recruiting for ICE at DoD and VA
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First, as a Veteran, I receive emails from the VA about any number of things. In this week’s email, I got a recruitment notice to join ICE, accompanied by a video. I didn’t think much of this as I don’t usually watch what this administration sends me, but this week I actually went to my VA clinic for the first time in two years for my in-person physical.While there, I first noticed all the LGBTQ+ support signs had been removed. But then, after I checked in and put my headphones in so I wouldn’t have to listen to the usual Fox News garbage they have on the TVs, I noticed that they were playing the ICE recruitment video IN THE WAITING ROOM. You can watch the 3 minute video here, but some of the details include the $50K signing bonus, the $60K student loan forgiveness, and the most concerning part – that they’ve expedited the hiring process by cutting it down to 2.5 weeks. That tells me they’re skipping the background check part of the hiring process, or somehow simply waiving it.
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Next, multiple sources within the civil service at the Department of Defense (DoD) shared with me an email they received, with a link to USAJobs to be detailed – at their same rate of pay – to ICE.
(Allison Gill more…)NY Times: F.B.I. Plans to Lower Recruiting Standards, Alarming Agents
The plan appears to be part of a broader effort to shift the agency’s focus from tracking national security threats to fighting crime.
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Fox35: Pulse Memorial crosswalk painted over by state overnight, Orlando mayor says
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Christina Pagel: Grand Designs: the loss of American freedom
Exactly seven months into Trump’s second term, we have reached 1000 authoritarian actions. Here I lay out the enormity of what has happened.
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Jay Kuo: Sadopopulism and the Fascist MAGA Ethos
Trump’s policy is to inflict pain, even upon his own voters. But why does this work, and what will stop it?
…In a functioning democracy, elected politicians actually try to help their constituents, even if they disagree about how best to do so. But in today’s political climate, we now have one party that actively seeks to harm its own voters, along with everyone else.
You might think that would be a dead loser as policy options go. But it turns out, “sadopopulism”—a term first coined by University of Toronto fascism scholar Professor Timothy Snyder—can be a terrifying but winning strategy if it isn’t addressed head-on and stopped in its tracks.
…Trump and his ilk are often described as “populists,” but this misses a crucial distinction. Populists at least pretend to have the best interests and the future of their voters in mind. They actually do want to make things better for them, even if they manipulate the populace’s emotions and grievances to serve their own political ends.
But Trump’s brand of populism adds an important and dangerous twist. He is also sadistic, meaning he actually seeks to add to the total amount of pain of the nation, including what his own voters are feeling.
Why would he do that? According to Prof. Snyder, who published a concise 12-minute talk on sadopopulism as part of a series on fascism, it is to create a limited resource of pain and fear. From there, Trump can dole it out, inflicting that pain and fear upon others, all while making those who experience less of it feel better about themselves.
If you teach people that life is full of pain and grievance, Snyder argues, then at least Trump’s voters have the consolation that they are not suffering as badly as immigrants, minorities and queer people. And that, it turns out, is a powerful motivator.
(Jay Kuo more…)
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Above the Law: Trump Declares Victory As Court Slashes $465M Penalty, Leaves Fraud Label Intact
Most people don’t consider being called a fraud a ‘win,’ but to each their own.
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Dan Rather: Trump Can’t Handle the Truth
Sycophants replace reporters in his White House
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James Eagle: You’re worth $25 a month to Meta
(James Eagle more…)
Grand Wizard of History Trump revises the Smithsonian exhibit on Slavery
White House: President Trump Is Right About the Smithsonian
Timeline: Tracking the Trump Justice Department’s Anti-Voting Shift
Tracking the Lawsuits Against Trump’s Agenda
Tracking the Lawsuits Against Trump’s Agenda
Trump Pardons Database
Project 2025 Tracker
DOGE Tracker
ProPublica: Elon Musk’s Demolition Crew
Wired: 6 Tools for Tracking the Trump Administration’s Attacks on Civil Liberties