Eric Baker
@ebaker.bsky.social
Typically chill, occasionally furious. Not the fictional Governor of Pennsylvania from the early 2000's portrayed by Ed O'Neil. KC born and raised. Coffee black, please. Posts my own.
In 2018, Mirsy Alva López arrived at the US-Mexico border with her 3-year-old son Ederson. Then border patrol agents ripped him from her arms and took him away. [1]
Separated at the Border, Torn Apart Again
Years after being split up and reunited, a family gets caught in Trump’s immigration dragnet.
motherjones.com
When the SCOTUS justices hear oral arguments over Trump’s effort to rewrite the Constitution and limit birthright citizenship in Trump v. Barbara tomorrow, they'll be considering arguments pushed by a handful of controversial legal scholars. @pemalevy.bsky.social and I unpacked their theories here:
The nonsense case against birthright citizenship
Meet the conservative legal minds telling the Supreme Court to side with Trump.
motherjones.com
"What the government’s really trying to do here is muddy the waters enough so that we won’t notice that it is rewriting the clear text of the Constitution itself." I talked to Cody Wofsy, ACLU lawyer in the SCOTUS birthright citizenship case, about Trump's push to upend the 14th Amendment.
The case that could upend who gets to be an American is back at the Supreme Court
A long-settled Constitutional right faces a familiar legal assault.
motherjones.com
“It’s not at all surprising that this is happening with these ICE [removal] officers being sent out to basically treat people terribly,” a one-time deputy chief counsel with the agency told me, anticipating more escalation of violence. My latest for @motherjones.com:
Former members of ICE say recent violence is "by design"
"What has changed is there has been an encouragement from the top to be much more aggressive in enforcement."
motherjones.com
Biased-take, but @isabelaalhadeff.bsky.social is among the absolute best immigration journalists of 2025, no question. In a time when we *especially* need to record history as it is, not how the government tries to sell it, principled, professional journalism like Isabela’s is paramount.
Isabela Dias@isabelaalhadeff.bsky.social · 7mo agoThis year felt like a decade. I wanted to highlight some of the immigration reporting I've done over the past 12 months: In January, I wrote about the big money fueling the right's plot to end birthright citizenship.
This year felt like a decade. I wanted to highlight some of the immigration reporting I've done over the past 12 months: In January, I wrote about the big money fueling the right's plot to end birthright citizenship.
The big-money right-wing push to upend the Constitution—and kill birthright citizenship
“We’re in totally uncharted territory.”
motherjones.com
Much of the current immigration policymaking—if this rampant clampdown and unleashing of brutalizing force can be called that—seems to be now distilled to a simple modus operandi: we do it because we can. My reflection on a year of hell for immigrants and the Trump administration's casual cruelty:
A year of hell for immigrants
In the first Trump administration, cruelty was the point. Now, it is the norm.
motherjones.com
The hepatitis B vaccine had been recommended for all newborns since 1991. From 1990-2019, acute hepatitis B infections reported among children and teens fell 99 percent. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/16/w...
Apoorva Mandavilli@apoorvanyt.bsky.social · 8mo agoBreaking: After contentious debates and three failed attempts at a vote, a federal vaccine committee decided on Friday to end the decades-long recommendation that all newborns be immunized at birth against hepatitis B. www.nytimes.com/2025/12/05/h...
After 20 years in the Navy, Buzz Grambo thought he'd spend his retirement playing video games and watching baseball. Instead, he patrols the streets of Baltimore to protect his neighbors from ICE. He even upgraded his scooter to a Segway that reaches 26 mph to keep up with the agents. My latest:
Meet the veteran who chases ICE on a scooter
Clifford “Buzz” Grambo patrols the streets of Baltimore to keep his neighbors safe—and make federal agents uncomfortable.
motherjones.com
“I want their morale as low as possible because a team with low morale is ineffective.” Meet the veteran who chases ICE on a scooter
Meet the veteran who chases ICE on a scooter
Clifford “Buzz” Grambo patrols the streets of Baltimore to keep his neighbors safe—and make federal agents uncomfortable.
motherjones.com
Beatings. Sexual assault. Psychological abuse. These are some of the horrors endured by the more than 250 men the US sent to El Salvador on flimsy evidence of gang membership, according to a new comprehensive report.
Trump sent men to torture in El Salvador, report confirms
Human Rights Watch found that Venezuelans shipped to El Salvador by the United States were beaten almost every day.
motherjones.com
"The bitterness is still there. The anger about what happened to him is still there.” After four months, more than 200 men sent to El Salvador have been released from CECOT and returned to Venezuela. @nlanard.bsky.social and I spoke with family members and friends waiting to be reunited with them.
"We were kidnapped"
On Friday, more than 200 Venezuelans disappeared to a megaprison in El Salvador returned home. The horror stories are already emerging.
motherjones.com
"When you look at rural communities, it is not uncommon that if that AmeriCorps member wasn’t there, the service that they are taking on wouldn’t be happening at all." washingtonmonthly.com/2025/07/07/h...
How AmeriCorps Kept Young Talent in Rural Communities | Washington Monthly
Trump's cuts to the federal service program eliminated thousands of positions that provided career pathways in small towns across America.
washingtonmonthly.com
Every employee considering returning to government (no judgement, it's important work regardless of administration), should demand a public apology and 3x salary. Make them remember what happens when you fuck with the good people who keep the country afloat. www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
Trump administration races to fix a big mistake: DOGE fired too many people
Across the government, the administration is rehiring federal workers who were forced out or encouraged to resign.
washingtonpost.com
More than 32,000 low-paid AmeriCorps service workers were terminated in a sweeping budget cut last month that gutted the national service program. The April 25 move was one of the biggest government cutbacks since the Trump administration took office, but went largely unnoticed. Here’s why:
A big Trump administration cutback went nearly unnoticed
About 32,000 low-paid AmeriCorps members lost their positions in April, gutting some health clinics, food pantries and other human service organizations.
washingtonpost.com
"Investing in AmeriCorps is an investment in America’s future, empowering communities, strengthening families and revitalizing economies." hechingerreport.org/opinion-canc...
OPINION: Canceling AmeriCorps grants threatens the future of education and workforce pipelines that power our nation’s progress
The recent decision to cancel $400 million in AmeriCorps grants is nothing short of a crisis. The cuts will dismantle disaster recovery efforts, disrupt educational support for vulnerable students and...
hechingerreport.org
Ahead of SCOTUS hearing on Trump's executive order attacking birthright citizenship, here are a few articles I've written that help understand how we got here—and where we could be headed. The conservative effort to undermine birthright citizenship has been a long time in the making:
The plot against birthright citizenship
The incoming Trump administration wants to take away citizenship for the US-born children of undocumented immigrants. Here's how.
motherjones.com
If I’m ever president, I will outlaw any iteration of “Make America _____ Again.” How about some new messaging ideas you hacky losers. You know who you are.
I don't agree with Congressman Bacon on everything (probably most things), but he's spot on. I served in AmeriCorps NCCC in Nebraska and it was among the best experiences of my life. It makes civic, financial, and moral sense to support and defend AmeriCorps. www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...
Opinion | I’m a Midwestern Republican. Gutting AmeriCorps hurts America.
Why destroy a program that enriches America every day — including in financial returns?
washingtonpost.com
“I felt this kind of fear, like something was telling me we weren’t going to Venezuela at all. Because the cops, when they had us here, they kept laughing a lot." @nlanard.bsky.social and I interviewed six Venezuelans who were nearly removed from Bluebonnet—presumably to El Salvador—on April 18.
The men who could be sent to El Salvador next
A Mother Jones investigation based on firsthand accounts from ICE detainees in Texas reveals how Venezuelans were nearly removed from the country under the Alien Enemies Act without a chance to contes...
motherjones.com
“I can’t remember a situation that was this urgent or extraordinary," ACLU's Lee Gelernt told @nlanard.bsky.social and I, "where we were worried that every minute we delayed filing something could mean that our clients would end up permanently in a brutal foreign prison for the rest of their lives.”
The men who could be sent to El Salvador next
A Mother Jones investigation based on firsthand accounts from ICE detainees in Texas reveals how Venezuelans were nearly removed from the country under the Alien Enemies Act without a chance to contes...
motherjones.com
In a powerful piece, our mentor Brett Davidson and late Executive Director Lola Adedokun share why communications must be at the heart of leadership. aspenglobalinnovators.org/stories/comm... ✨ Support the award in Lola’s honor: as.pn/award @aspeninstitute.bsky.social @dorisdukefdn.bsky.social
In Translating Expertise Into Influence, Communication Skills Are Key • Aspen Global Innovators
Given the challenges facing humanity, it is critical that we follow the leadership of local experts, with lived experience. The Aspen Global Innovators Group
aspenglobalinnovators.org
Latest with @nlanard.bsky.social: We spoke with relatives of Omar Cárdenas, one of the Venezuelans at the Bluebonnet detention center in Texas who could be removed under the Alien Enemies Act any day now. "He is not a criminal, as he is being portrayed. He is completely and utterly innocent.”
More Venezuelans face imminent deportation under the Alien Enemies Act
“The Trump administration appears afraid to give people due process."
motherjones.com
On Friday night, the federal government sent Harvard a five-page fusillade of new demands that would reshape the school’s operations, admissions, hiring, faculty and student life. It took less than 72 hours for Harvard to say no.
Why Harvard Decided to Fight Trump
The Trump administration will freeze over $2 billion in federal funds because Harvard refused to comply with a list of demands. Harvard leaders believed saying no was worth the risk.
nytimes.com
"If you don’t see all of this as one of the darkest days in American history, in which the President is openly embracing disappearing people without due process in the name of 'liberty,' you are a part of the problem."
Mike Masnick@masnick.com · last yr.Wrote a thing at how the Bukele/Trump meeting, full of absolute nonsense and bullshit in support of out-and-out fascism and despotism, is yet another dark day in America. www.techdirt.com/2025/04/14/t...
bloomberg: ~90% of deported migrants to el salvador had no criminal record
this is Mohsen Mahdawi, the green card holder who was just arrested by ICE for rendition at his citizenship interview
If the U.S. government is going to take the position that, once removed from the United States, folks can’t be brought back, then it sure seems to me that federal courts should be reflexively and categorically barring *all* removals until they’re 100 percent certain that the removals are lawful.
