curated news excerpts & citations
Intercept: Prison-Style Free Speech Censorship Is Coming for the Rest of Us
The government wants to make it illegal to possess literature it deems dangerous — a familiar tactic to this incarcerated writer.
American prisons have never been much for the First Amendment, and now, the Trump administration is exporting prison-style censorship to the general population. In tactics that are easily recognizable to incarcerated people like me, they’re doing it in the name of “security.”
This includes claiming antiestablishment ideologies and literature must be punished because they pose nebulous risks to those with government-approved political views. It also includes the logical next step: criminalizing efforts to keep authorities from finding out that one holds those ideologies or reads that literature.
Daniel “Des” Sanchez Estrada is set to be tried starting Tuesday on charges of corruptly concealing a document or record and conspiracy to conceal documents. He’s been in custody since July …
In plain language, Sanchez Estrada is facing up to 20 years behind bars for allegedly moving a box of anarchist zines from his parents’ house to another residence in his hometown of Dallas. His indictment came on the heels of Trump’s signing an executive order to classify “Antifa” as a “domestic terrorist organization” and issuing National Security Presidential Memorandum 7 (NSPM-7) on Countering Domestic Terrorism and Organized Political Violence.
(Intercept more…)
Thom Hartmann: Silencing Dissent Without a Single Raid: The Billionaire Capture of America’s News
Jess Piper: Access Denied
Newsweek: Woman Charged After Joining Anti-ICE Teen Group Chat
Boing Boing: Trump pardoned a man convicted of trafficking 400 tons of cocaine, then gave him a ride to the Waldorf Astoria
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Heather Cox Richardson: Letters from an American – February 19, 2026
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Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest is the first arrest of a senior royal since 1647, when supporters of Parliament arrested King Charles I during the English Civil War.
…In South Korea, Seoul Central District Court Judge Jee Kui-youn sentenced former president of South Korea Yoon Suk Yeol to life in prison after he was found guilty of leading an insurrection against the government. …
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Trump has made it clear he wants his new board to replace the United Nations. Twenty-seven countries have said they will participate, but so far none appear to have tossed in the $1 billion that would give them permanent status. …… Trump announced that the U.S. will put $10 billion into the Board of Peace, although since Congress is the only body that can legally appropriate money in our system, it’s unclear how he intends to do this.
The event at the board appeared to be the Trump Show. Representatives from the countries who had accepted Trump’s invitation stood awkwardly on stage waiting for him while his favorite songs blared. Once he arrived, he rambled for an hour and then appeared to fall asleep at points in the meeting as dignitaries spoke.
(Heather Cox Richardson more…)
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Newsweek: Third American Death Linked to ICE Uncovered
Federal agents shot and killed a U.S. citizen in Texas last year, but initial reports did not reveal their involvement, with the details now coming to light through internal U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) records.
(Newsweek more…)Hawaii News Now: Hawaii Island man released from custody five months after ICE arrest
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WSJ: December trade deficit surged, capping turbulent year after tariffs
Fortune: Trump’s tariffs are a ‘dirty tax’ that will make the $38.6 trillion national debt crisis even worse over the long term
Robert Reich: The economic trend that worries me most
I was secretary of labor 30 years ago when the U.S. economy was producing an average of 200,000 new jobs a month.
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Borowitz: Trump Says Andrew’s Arrest Sets Dangerous Precedent of Pedophiles Facing Consequences
Guardian: Gender studies courses are shutting down across the US. The Epstein files reveal why
Crooks & Liars: DoJ Removed Files In Which Trump Was Accused Of Rape, Epstein Data Shows
The missing files contained additional interviews with the woman who said Trump and Epstein raped her when she was 13.
Roger Sollenberger: DOJ Removed Record of Multiple FBI Interviews with Underage Trump Accuser, Epstein Data Shows
The FBI spoke at least four times with a woman who credibly accused Trump of sexually assaulting her when she was a minor, Epstein files show. That document is no longer accessible on the DOJ website.
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NY Times: Why Is Trump Dumping East Wing Rubble in a Public Park?
The East Potomac Golf Links is a municipal course that has been a fixture in Washington for decades. President Trump is turning it into something else.
(NY Times more…)
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Contrarian Calls To Action
- Keep Up the ICE Funding Fight
- Demand ICE Camp Oversight
- Demand Epstein Accountability
- Protect Voting Rights
- Cast Your Ballot
- Learn About AI’s Threat to Democracy
- Sit Out Trump’s State of the Union
- Help Targeted Community Members
- Mark Your Calendars
ICE deaths 2026 – They deserve remembrance and justice.- January 24: Alex Pretti
- January 14: Heber Sanchaz Dominguez
- January 14: Victor Manuel Diaz
- January 9: Parady La
- January 7: Renée Good
- January 6: Luis Beltran Yanez-Cruz
- January 5: Luis Gustavo Nunez Caceres
- January 3: Geraldo Lunas Campos
- December 31, 2025: Keith Porter
NACDL Criminal Case Tracker
Texas Tribune: A Walk for Peace: photos of Fort Worth monks’ journey to Washington
Walk for Peace – Dhammacetiya – The Ancient Sacred Buddhist Scripture Stupas
Margaret Chase Smith: Declaration of Conscience
NPR: January 6, 2021: A visual archive
Accountability Initiative ICE List
GriftMatrix
Trump Action Tracker
Timeline: Tracking the Trump Justice Department’s Anti-Voting Shift
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
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