"ICE watchers across the country who watched federal agents shoot people in the streets and fought to drive ICE from their cities are turning their new skills against the next authoritarian threat from the Trump administration: election interference." @jesswash.bsky.social

They Trained to Protect Immigrants From ICE. Now They’re Prepping to Defend the Midterm Elections.

ICE-watchers-turned-poll-watchers are preparing for the worst, as the Trump administration hints at potential strategies to disrupt the midterm elections.

theintercept.com

"They are choosing to target caretakers and parents. And that was the plan all along. Since 2024, Trump, Vance, and the twisted creators of Project 2025 have talked of the plan to go after mothers."

ICE Agents Targeting Moms was Always the Plan

Neighbors are the last line of defense

statesatthecore.substack.com

Ugh. Just awful. Unclear what happened here but the implication I get from the article is that they’d fallen into deep debt and maybe owed money to some very bad people. And once they’d been deported, paying that money back was probably very very hard.

Adam Sawyer@adamjst.bsky.social · 2mo ago

“If immigration hadn't picked up my brother, my sister-in-law would still be alive, and the children wouldn't be going through this sorrow,” he said. “Unfortunately, immigration — the [U.S.] government — doesn't see that. It makes no difference to them.” www.stlpr.org/law-order/20...

On this week's episode, we'll be joined by @zacharyamueller.bsky.social Senior Strategist at States at the Core. We will be broadcasting live at noon Chicago time. Subscribe to the YouTube channel to watch live or catch the recording afterwards. www.youtube.com/@BreakingCul...

"To counteract authoritarianism, we must model a world that looks like the one we want to build collectively... a place where neighbors know each other and come together in the service of others...where we all think about ourselves a whole lot less and about others a whole lot more." Exactly.

Liberal Currents@liberalcurrents.com · 3mo ago

“The better our members knew each other, the more likely they would be to show up to the next event. And the better they knew each other, the less likely they would be to walk away, giving in to despair about the future.” www.liberalcurrents.com/rebuilding-c...

These are not isolated investigations into organizations or individuals, they are maneuvers designed to brand democratic organizing as criminal in a plot to steal the power of working people.

The Authoritarian Movement Expands Its Assault on Americans

FBI raids in Ohio and arrests of activists in Minnesota appear to mark an escalation in criminalizing practical democratic activities – now is the time to expand the movement for democracy.

statesatthecore.substack.com

Angry about the stories you read on this website? Join us for a week of virtual trainings starting June 8th! Smash* Authoritarianism Summer Camp—a virtual, super-practical week of training designed to turn your community defense network into a strategic powerhouse.

Smash* Authoritarianism Summer Camp

With elections looming - now is the perfect time to sharpen your organizing tools

open.substack.com

The tragedy in San Diego, as with others that share its pattern, is likely the result many overlapping factors. But what prevents solutions to address our problem of racist and political violence isn’t its complexity, it is a system of American democracy that is in desperate need of reconstruction.

Reflections on the Tragedy in San Diego: Racist Mass Murders Don't Have to be Inevitable

There is more than mourning in this moment; we don’t have to accept these tragedies as the norm

open.substack.com

From @zacharyamueller.bsky.social: Reflections on the Tragedy in San Diego: Racist Mass Murders Don't Have to be Inevitable open.substack.com/pub/statesat...

Reflections on the Tragedy in San Diego: Racist Mass Murders Don't Have to be Inevitable

There is more than mourning in this moment; we don’t have to accept these tragedies as the norm

open.substack.com

"Look to Tennessee to see this new Redemption in action, as an authoritarian movement again employs a racist strategy to cheapen American citizenship and undermine American democracy."

Tennessee’s Leading Role in a Second Redemption

Tennessee is again playing host to competing movements – one determined to undermine multiracial democracy and another working to make it real.

open.substack.com

ICE has now spent over half a BILLION dollars just on purchasing warehouses around the country to convert into detention camps. If these mega-camps are utilized to the full capacity ICE intends, they'll be the largest prisons in the country, with little real oversight. www.ajc.com/politics/202...

ICE to begin detaining immigrants inside Social Circle warehouse in April

Homeland Security plans to build warehouse detention facilities in other cities being met with opposition.

ajc.com

an organization in the Twin Cities is offering "ICE Watch" training The training provided by States at the Core, or STAC, prepares neighbors to monitor, document, and fight against ICE activity. The organization says it has trained more than 1,000 Minnesotans so far www.mprnews.org/story/2025/1...

Training teaches ICE observers how to document immigration enforcement activities in Minnesota

As Minnesota’s Somali communities deal with the threat from increased ICE enforcement in the state, some citizens have decided to monitor ICE agents. A training program from States at the Core, or STA...

mprnews.org

📣 EXCLUSIVE 📣 Missouri lawmakers rushed to hand Trump the gerrymander he wanted—so voters handed back 300,000 signatures saying “Try again.” www.dailykos.com/stories/2025...

How Missourians rose up against gerrymandering: GOP is 'terrified'

When President Donald Trump pressed Missouri’s GOP to help him rig the 2026 midterm elections, they passed a map that is expected to give the party one more seat in the U.S. House. But everyday ...

dailykos.com

@joesudbay.bsky.social explains that the country now sees how Trump’s promises on tariffs and deportation are hitting communities hard. But community backlash against ICE and CBP is growing across the country and showing the power of grassroots organizing.

From @zacharyamueller.bsky.social: Naming the organizing story of America’s authoritarian nationalist movement open.substack.com/pub/zacharya...

The Middle Squeeze

Naming the organizing story of America’s authoritarian nationalist movement

open.substack.com

The years long coordinated effort to mainstream the “invasion” lie wasn’t incidental nor campaign hyperbole it was intentional. Built for this moment, the invasion lie becomes the public justification for authoritarian mobilization, eroding the functioning of democratic society.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 12mo ago

Trump to generals: "America is under invasion from within. We're under invasion from within. No different than a foreign enemy, but more difficult in any ways because they don't wear uniforms. At least when they're wearing a uniform you can take them out."

"Three down arrows" is being widely interpreted as an antifa logo. But the full description of the inscription is "up right down down down," and the other inscription, "Hey fascist, catch!" both come from the game Helldivers 2. Online culture is such a morass of symbols/meanings. Watch your step.

have any Latino or immigration groups pushed this idea on the hill yet? They could also be pushing for Dems to claw back the $170 billion Stephen Miller got in GOP ugly bill to finance kidnapping, profiling and concentration camps - it's clear people hate what they're seeing. Make it an issue

Will Stancil@whstancil.bsky.social · last yr.

Democrats can demand a rollback of the Supreme Court ICE racial profiling case. It’s a trivial legislative fix. It poses virtually no political risk for them. It protects 68 million people from open government persecution. It protects basic constitutional values. No government funding without this.

Yesterday, Charlie Kirk posted what amounts to an AI summary of the white nationalist novel “The Camp of the Saints” - a fan favorite of Steve Bannon & Stephen Miller - that pushes the replacement theory lie that has inspired multiple mass murders. This is their movement, it’s what they believe.

you and your @newdems.bsky.social colleagues focus on that 2024 border bill like it's the magic bullet. But, we're dealing with mass deportations now how can your plan not even mention ICE or the $50 billion Stephen Miller just got to build concentration camps? what's your plan for that?

Rep. Gabe Vasquez@repgabevasquez.bsky.social · last yr.

Dems have long needed a stronger, bolder plan on immigration reform and border security. That changes today. I’m leading our party forward toward new commonsense immigration solutions that promote safety, American values, and economic growth. www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

The language of “cockroaches” is nothing other than explicit racism. What is happening here is what happened in Charlottesville in 2017, a racist march with replacement theory chants. Just this time it is coordinated from the White House not just with the stamp of approval afterwards.

The propagandists running the @DHSgov account are deliberately pushing thinly-veiled neo-Nazi material through the official communications channels of the U.S. government. Their goal is stirring outrage (to which they will express fake outrage) and signaling to their followers where they're going.

hannah gais@hannahgais.bsky.social · last yr.

DHS is recruiting using a not-so-subtle reference to a 1978 book from white nationalist William Gayley Simpson, Which Way Western Man? Simpson's book was released under an imprint associated with the National Alliance, founded by Turner Diaries author William Luther Pierce.

Joe Kent’s record is clear: ❌ Smears human rights advocates ❌ Labels protesters as terrorists ❌ Pushes deportations w/out due process The Senate must reject his nomination to lead the National Counterterrorism Center. Voters already rejected him twice. Your senators should do the same. (⬇️ LINKS ⬇️)

Good Skews with Matt Hildreth: How Public Opinion Is Turning Against Trump’s Immigration Agenda with @zacharyamueller.bsky.social weeklyskews.substack.com/p/good-skews...

Good Skews: How Public Opinion Is Turning Against Trump’s Immigration Agenda with Zachary Mueller

Why the Far Right’s Billion-Dollar Deportation Agenda Is Losing Ground with the American Public

weeklyskews.substack.com

I think I've figured out the game that Dems bashing "The Groups" are playing. It creates a way for them to adopt cautious, risk-averse, extremely-poll-tested positions while simultaneously posing as daring and courageous. A clever move. It gets NYT to quote you! www.offmessage.net/p/the-wrong-...

Lots of Dems, their consultants and savvy pundits have not caught up with the public. They are stuck in their 2024 CW Stephen Miller has forced a reckoning and the overwhelming majorly reject it That Dems should lean in seems like a no-brainer but that hill group-think can be impenetrable

Catherine Rampell@crampell.bsky.social · last yr.

Gallup has new polling on immigration. Topline findings: -Americans hate Trump's immigration policy (35% approve, 62% disapprove) -Share who say immigration is a "good thing" for the country just hit an all-time high (79%) news.gallup.com/poll/692522/...

In a speech to the far-right Claremont Institute, VP JD Vance tried to push a dramatically reduced vision of American citizenship. This, combined with the vast new resources for ICE, is a 5-alarm moment. JD Vance: Some Americans Are More American Than Others talkingpointsmemo.com/news/jd-vanc...

JD Vance: Some Americans Are More American Than Others

The day after President Trump signed a bill that throws unprecedented amounts...

talkingpointsmemo.com

"All told, fentanyl border adjustments provide an exit strategy away from counterproductive tariffs; an off-ramp from the failure of militant supply-side counternarcotics policy; and a much-needed complement to evidence-based interventions designed to address the demand for illegal drugs."

Tariffs can’t defeat the fentanyl problem in the US

Forget tariffs. Another tool of economic statecraft is far better suited to the problem of illegally manufactured fentanyl.

statnews.com

There is a case to be made against tariffs imposed in the name of fentanyl... ...that is also a case against the counterproductive drug war. To do better, we must do differently. New from me:

Tariffs can’t defeat the fentanyl problem in the US

Forget tariffs. Another tool of economic statecraft is far better suited to the problem of illegally manufactured fentanyl.

statnews.com

I have 3 comments & a conclusion about this lengthy NYTimes piece - but to be clear it less about the piece itself then the ‘debate’ about immigration between anyone left of Stephen Miller. 🧵👇

Can Democrats Find Their Way on Immigration?

nytimes.com