Sunday, February 08, 2026
What Senate Dems Want Before Funding DHS
Senate Democrats are refusing to fund DHS through September unless some changes are made about how ICE is doing deportations. Here are the changes they want (from The Washington Post):
Tighter rules on warrants
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has advised agents that they can enter homes to make arrests without a warrant from a judge, outraging Democrats, who say such arrests are unconstitutional. Democrats are seeking to bar federal immigration agents from entering private property without a judicial warrant. They also want agents to verify that people are not U.S. citizens before detaining them.
Bar agents from wearing masks and military-style uniforms
Democrats also want to bar federal immigration agents from wearing face masks. The idea is more controversial than requiring judicial warrants to enter homes but is broadly popular, with 55 percent of Americans in favor and 33 percent opposed, according to the Economist/YouGov poll.
Require agents to wear identification and body cameras
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L. Noem announced Monday that agents would start wearing body cameras immediately in Minnesota, with plans to do the same across the country. But Democrats want legislation requiring agents to wear cameras, along with identification that includes their agency, ID number and last name.
Restrict where and how agents can operate
Democrats want to bar agents from operating near medical facilities, schools, child care facilities, churches, polling places and courts, among other places. They also want to stop agents from “conducting stops, questioning and searches based on an individual’s presence at certain locations, their job, their spoken language and accent or their race and ethnicity,” according to the letter.
Coordinate on investigations
Democrats are seeking provisions to make sure states and local jurisdictions can investigate and prosecute potential crimes committed by agents and excessive use of force. They also want to mandate that states and localities consent to “large-scale operations outside of targeted immigration enforcement.”
New rules on using force and detention
Democrats are pushing to force DHS to adopt “a reasonable use of force policy, expand training and require certification” of its agents.
Fire Noem and remove agents from Minnesota
Democrats did not demand that Trump fire Noem — who has come under criticism from Democrats as well as Republicans — and end the surge of agents in Minnesota. But they wrote that both moves would “show good faith.”
has advised agents that they can enter homes to make arrests without a warrant from a judge, outraging Democrats, who say such arrests are unconstitutional. Democrats are seeking to bar federal immigration agents from entering private property without a judicial warrant. They also want agents to verify that people are not U.S. citizens before detaining themBar agents from wearing masks and military-style uniforms
Saturday, February 07, 2026
New Poll Shows Americans Think ICE Has Gone Too Far
The charts above are from the NPR / PBS News / Marist Poll -- done between January 27th and 30th of a nationwide sample of 1,462 adults, with a 3 point margin of error.
CBS Poll Shows Americans Still Very Unhappy With The Economy
The charts above are from the CBS News / YouGov Poll -- done between February 3rd and 5th of a nationwide sample of 2,425 adults, with a 2.4 point margin of error.
Trump Could Change Policies To Please Voters - But He'd Rather Cheat
The following is part of a post by Dan Rather and his staff:
Donald Trump knows his party will probably lose one, if not both, houses of Congress in November. He could do something politically rational to help his cause, such as removing the remaining 2,300 ICE agents from the streets of Minneapolis, or lifting tariffs, or restoring Obamacare subsidies to lower health insurance costs.
Since his is very much a “me” not a “we” presidency, none of that will happen. Making the lives of the American people better doesn’t seem to be in his wheelhouse. . . .
Trump has known for some time that Republican prospects for the midterms are bleak. He also knows his unceasing and erroneous refrain that American elections are rigged and hordes of undocumented immigrants vote illegally are tired, old lies.
In July, he demanded that Texas undergo an unorthodox, mid-decade redistricting that could net five Republican House seats in November. California countered with a redistricting plan of its own, which was upheld by the Supreme Court on Wednesday, only adding to the president’s alarm. He has tried to strong-arm a number of other states into partisan gerrymandering, with less success.
So, if he can’t gain enough seats by redrawing congressional maps and disenfranchising millions of people, how about trashing the Constitution? On Monday, Trump told Dan Bongino, current podcaster and former FBI deputy director, “We should take over the voting, the voting in at least many, 15 places. The Republicans ought to nationalize the voting.” . . .
If federalizing the election process won’t work, Steve Bannon, one of Trump’s most trusted advisers, has another plan. He is setting the stage for chaos and intimidation on Election Day. On Tuesday, he announced, “We’re going to have ICE surround the polls come November. We’ll never again allow an election to be stolen.”
Trump has also toyed with the idea of calling off the midterms, which he can’t do legally. But he can use ICE to block and deter voters. And he could use the Department of Justice to seize ballots and take over vote counting. He has also threatened to decertify voting machines. None of these moves would be justified, but lack of justification has never stopped him.
Last week, the FBI seized Fulton County, Georgia’s 2020 election ballots. Fulton County includes Atlanta. In 2020, Trump lost Georgia, even after two recounts. He then tried to lean on the Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to overturn the election. So why seize these documents now?
Since nothing can or should be done about the 2020 results, the only reason for this unprecedented action now is to set the stage for 2026.
The DOJ has demanded unredacted voter files from all 50 states. Twenty-three states and the District of Columbia have not complied. No surprise, Trump & Co. are suing them.
Like most of their suits, it isn’t going well. On January 15, a U.S. district court found that the Justice Department’s demands for states’ voter data violated federal privacy laws.
Voter files are a critical weapon for voter suppression and election subversion. They can be used to purge voters. As we know, the DOJ doesn’t need a valid reason to do such a thing. . . .
Anyone who really cares about the country should be paying close attention. November’s midterm elections are shaping up to be a fight not just at the ballot box, but for democracy itself.
Friday, February 06, 2026
New Poll Shows Voters Unhappy With Trump, Noem, And ICE
The charts above reflect the results of the Quinnipiac University Poll -- done between January 29th and February 2nd of a nationwide sample of 1,191 registered voters, with a 3.6 point margin of error.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)