Trump Must Continue Aid to Sanctuary Cities
This week, US District Judge William Orrick issued an injunction barring the Trump Administration from withholding federal aid from sanctuary cities, saying "over the years cities all across the country have become used to receiving huge portions of their funding from the federal government. Using this dependency to attain their cooperation with the enforcement of federal immigration laws is extortion, pure and simple. I cannot allow it to go forward."
Tony LoPresti, counsel for Santa Clara County, hailed the Judge's action, calling it "a life-saving affirmation of the cities' rights to continue business-as-usual without undue interference from the federal government."
US Attorney General Pam Bondi condemned the Judge's ruling. "It is both irresponsible and illegal," she said. "Federal aid to states and cities has always been contingent upon the recipient meeting requirements attached to the aid. Entering the country without permission is a crime. Further, the persons that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is trying to apprehend and deport have committed crimes in addition to illegal entry."
"Let me give you an example," the AG offered. "In January, ICE issued a detainer request for an illegal alien being held in the Cook County jail in Illinois. Instead of honoring this request, the alien was released. Two weeks later this alien was rearrested and charged with homicide. City officials may imagine that they're championing the rights of the persecuted. The reality is that the failure of these communities to cooperate amounts to aiding and abetting lawbreakers to escape justice. The discontinuation of federal aid is a mild penalty compared to the criminal charges that could be lodged against the officials ordering their law-enforcement personnel to obstruct ICE."
In related news, Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan was presiding over a case in which Eduardo Flores Ruiz was being prosecuted for battery when ICE agents appeared with a warrant to detain him for illegally entering the US. Instead of honoring the warrant, the Judge assisted Flores Ruiz's escape through a side door of the court house.
"Assisting a criminal defendant to flee is not acceptable behavior from a Judge," Bondi commented. "She will now face an obstruction of justice charge." Lawyers for Dugan asserted "the legal experts we consulted all agree that within the confines of a courtroom the judge is the law and cannot be held liable for any action he or she takes there. Further, Judge Dugan regrets her arrest and looks forward to being fully exonerated."
Illegal Aliens to Get Expedited Pardons
In the State of Washington, both the House and Senate have passed HB1131. This bill will give illegal aliens convicted of crimes in the state to get expedited access to pardons and commutations. The legislation was sponsored by Rep. Roger Goodman (D-Kirkland) who pointed out that "our small Clemency and Pardons Board can only handle 30 cases per year. So, the number of prisoners who could get a pardon or commutation is very limited. Inasmuch as prisoners who are in this country illegally are continuously at risk of deportation they are in dire need of release so they can more easily elude Trump's stepped up deportation campaign. This bill will help them."
No Republicans voted for this legislation. Sen. Leonard Christian (R-Spokane Valley) observed "I don't think what our forefathers envisioned was moving one group above another when it comes to justice. Everybody in this state, in this country, deserves equal justice in the same amount of time."
Sen. Bob Hasegawa (D-Seattle) called Republicans "heartless. Here we have folks, who in the judgment of the Board have paid their debt to society. Who haven't broken any laws while in prison. They shouldn't be deported. That would be 'double jeopardy' for the lesser violation of being in the US without proper documents. We need to get these prisoners out on the streets where they'll have a chance to dodge the goons ICE sends after them."
Jennie Pasquarella, legal director of Seattle Clemency Project, praised the legislation, saying "many who are in prison because of victimless crimes such as illegal drugs, theft, and burglary don't deserve to have the added punishment of being deported. Getting them out quickly and quietly may spare them from that."
In other Washington news, Gov. Bob Ferguson (D) signed a law expanding the Covenant Home Ownership Program to make it easier for minorities to buy homes. Under this law, Blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians or other Pacific Islanders, Koreans and Asian Indians who lived in or had a parent, grandparent, or great-grandparent living in Washington before 1968 will be eligible for a grant of up to $120,000 to help them buy a home. Ferguson called the expansion "another step forward toward the full payment of the reparations whites owe to minorities."
More Dems Embrace "Dark Woke" Strategy
Bhavik Lathia, former digital director for the Wisconsin Democratic Party, complains that "there is an extreme imbalance in strategy that allows Republicans to say and do stuff--like cutting government waste, deporting criminal aliens, and cutting taxes--that really grabs voters' attention. Meanwhile, we're stuck on the opposite side of these issues. We need a strategic shift in Democratic messaging. That shift is 'dark woke.'"
Texas Rep. Jasmine Crockett agreed saying "we need a crass and rude attitude that will show voters that we're ready to fight for the soul of America. With this in mind, I'm calling out Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga) for having a bleached-blonde, bad-built, butch body. Let's see her try to convince voters otherwise."
Rep. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill) urged her followers to "harass Republicans everywhere they go. They should not be able to go to church or to go to the neighborhood gas station without our folks asking them 'What the hell are you doing for my Social Security? What the hell are you doing to protect my Medicaid? Why the hell are you not standing up to protect public education in this country?"
Jackson Potter, vice president of the Chicago Teachers Union, applauded Ramirez's remarks, pointing out that "it was Republicans' sexism, racism, and misogyny that forced the re-opening of schools after COVID and endangered the lives of teachers and students alike. We need to discard the Constitution and replace it with a socialist regime that gives everyone economic rights to the wealth earned by others."
"All Negative, All the Time Coverage of Trump"
MSNBC host and former Biden Press Secretary Jen Psaki stridently defended her network's "all negative, all the time coverage of Donald Trump because it's what our viewers want. If we want them to loyally watch us we must be loyal to their values--the foremost of which is hatred for the man."
"We're being realistic here," she insisted. "MSNBC is not a widely watched network. We have shrunk down to a narrowly circumscribed niche market for the most rabidly anti-Trump ideologues. They don't want balanced coverage. They have no toleration for anything that doesn't feed the flames of their antagonism for the entire MAGA agenda and everyone who supports it."
"One of the delicious ironies of our current position is that Trump's extreme freedom of speech advocacy makes MSNBC invulnerable," Psaki gloated. "There's no way he could get away with trying to censor us like Biden tried to censor media that disagreed with his policies. Trump wouldn't dare send the FBI to suggest that we stop hectoring him and ridiculing his policies. When Democrats regain power--and they will because they have the tools, if not the policies that most voters like--MSNBC will still be around to support them."
In related news, Bill Owens, the producer of CBS News' "60 Minutes" show abruptly quit after his boss Shari Redstone declared "I don't think there's ever a time you have to compromise what it is that you say and do, but freedom of the press involves telling both sides of the story, giving the facts, not giving opinions. I think that's our responsibility as a media company."
Owens explained "I knew right then that my control over the show would be ripped away from me. Going forward there would be no filter to screen out misinformation. Wrong ideas would get equal time against correct ideas. Viewers would be expected to make up their own minds. I just couldn't work under such harsh restrictions over what '60 Minutes' would have to include in its weekly broadcasts."
Dem Agrees to Take IQ Test
During a guest appearance on the Jimmy Kimmel show Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Tx) responded enthusiastically when Kimmel asked "Trump called you low IQ. Would you be willing to take an IQ test publicly head-to-head against the President of the United States?"
"Absolutely!" Crockett responded. "I know all about and totally support the LGBTQIA+ agenda. I doubt Trump knows what any of these letters stand for. While I personally am neither 'intersex' nor 'queer' I applaud those who are for their extraordinary courage to be their real selves in our bigoted world."
"Trump also believes in equality of opportunity and meritocracy," Crockett added. "These are the out-dated and oppressive ideas of white supremacists. He's using these ideas to undermine the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) laws decreed by former President Biden. These laws mandated that considerations other than merit should determine who should be hired to do important and well-paid jobs. DEI ensures that minorities get their fair share of the nation's wealth. I will be glad to publicly debate this issue with Trump anytime and anywhere. So the people can see who is right on this issue."
Biden's Plan for Countering Domestic Terrorism
This week, Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard declassified and released former President Biden's "Strategic Implementation Plan for Countering Domestic Terrorism." To combat this threat, the plan called for censorship, closing people's bank accounts, and gun control. It directed the Department of Justice, the FBI, and the Department of Homeland Security to target incidents of concerning non-criminal behavior. Examples of which included excessive church attendance, criticizing government policies, participating in MAGA rallies, and membership in the National Rifle Association.
Gabbard characterized the plan as "a direct assault on the civil liberties of law-abiding citizens. Resources were diverted from the more serious threat of foreign terrorists and the open borders that allowed the invasion of our country by millions of illegal immigrants--thousands of whom were career criminals and active gang members. Now that the Biden Administration is no longer in a position to carry out this misdirected surveillance district judges are actively attempting to thwart the Trump Administration's efforts to redirect attention toward the real threats our nation faces."
Unsurprisingly, none of the major media saw fit to cover this story. MSNBC's Jen Psaki explained the lack of coverage, saying "first, airing this story is unnecessary because Biden is no longer president. He is in no position to inflict the harm that critics say the plan could wreak on innocent Americans. Second, focusing on the so-called misdeeds of the previous administration would only make Trump seem better by comparison. This would undermine our main objective of consistently portraying him in as negative a light as possible."
In related news, Trump's focus on deporting criminal aliens has led to the arrest of 219 foreign terrorists roaming about the US over the three months since his inauguration. This is an increase of 655% over the 29 arrests made from January 20 to April 20 2024 when Biden was president. Among the 219 terrorists arrested this year was Harpreet Singh, a terrorist wanted by India who entered the US illegally on Jan. 27, 2022.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin complained "the Biden administration not only let a wanted terrorist into our country, but after he was arrested by Border Patrol agents, they released him into the interior of our country. While shocking, it's not surprising given the Biden administration routinely released unvetted terrorists and criminals into American communities."
"Justice" in Minnesota
Dylan Bryan Adams, one of Gov. Tim Walz's staff members, was observed doing $20,000 in damage to six Teslas. Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty says she will not seek criminal charges. "It really wouldn't be fair to Mr. Adams," Moriarty said. "First of all, his boss publicly praised the damage being done to Teslas because they are manufactured by Elon Musk's company. Musk is helping Trump destroy the country. While the Governor didn't expressly order Mr. Adams to join in this form of peaceful protest against a person the Governor hated, Mr. Adams can't be blamed for trying to please his boss."
"Second, Mr. Adams' active career as a public servant entitles him to a bit of leniency," Moriarty suggested. "Third, the fact that he confessed to the crime after being shown the videos of him keying the six cars shows character. At this point, there isn't anything more to be gained by punishing him further. The public humiliation of admitting to committing this crime alone is a lesson he won't soon forget."
In contrast, Moriarty is pressing felony charges against a 19-year-old Robbinsdale woman who allegedly keyed a coworker's Tesla, doing an estimated at $7,000 worth of damage. Moriarty explained "the two cases are starkly different. This woman does not work for Gov. Walz. Her crime seems more personally motivated and petty compared to Mr. Adams' noble political protest. She does not have a career in public service. I have no confidence that public humiliation alone would be a sufficient punishment to deter her from doing something similar in the future. I think some time incarcerated is necessary for her to learn a lesson."
