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Reposted by Anil Kalhan

Adam Serwer @adamserwer.bsky.social · 7h

www.wweek.com/culture/2025...

Can you put into words what that purpose is? You and the frog have really become icons of this protest.

There’s been a nice overall whimsy that has shown up. The frog is amazing. We had a bunch of other inflatable people here last night, too. I saw people playing Twister the other day.

What they rely on is fear. So by coming out in an absurdist manner, it speaks to them, to some extent, that we’re actually not that afraid.

It also dismantles their narrative a little bit. When they try to describe this situation as “war-torn,” it becomes much harder to take them seriously when they have to post a video saying [U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security] Kristi Noem is up on the balcony staring over the Antifa Army and it’s, like, eight journalists and five protesters and one of them is in a chicken suit.

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hannah gais @hannahgais.bsky.social · 5h

It always happens to the Andrew Tate fanboys you least expect. www.politico.com/news/2025/10...

Key Trump nominee accused of sexual harassment

Paul Ingrassia has been investigated for allegedly harassing a lower-ranking colleague, according to administration officials. Fearing retaliation, the woman later withdrew a complaint, and Ingrassia ...

www.politico.com

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Reposted by Anil Kalhan

ProPublica @propublica.org · 6h

The Education Department has hired at least 9 people from the America First Policy Institute, co-founded by Secretary Linda McMahon.

The think tank’s listed goals include ending the separation of church and state and “plant[ing] Jesus in every space.”

These Activists Want to Dismantle Public Schools. Now They Run the Education Department.

Under Trump, the Department of Education has been bringing in activists hostile to public schools. It could mean a new era of private and religious schools boosted by tax dollars — and the end of publ...

www.propublica.org

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Reposted by Anil Kalhan

Costa Samaras @costasamaras.com · 5h

We're spending $20B to bail out Argentina, but they cut USAID down to the bone, causing deaths around the world. The entire budget of USAID, the whole agency, was $21B last year. Shameful.

The Washington Post @washingtonpost.com · 7h

The Trump administration confirmed that the U.S. bailed out Argentina.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he had directly bought Argentine pesos in global currency markets in a bid to relieve pressure on the nation’s embattled President Javier Milei, a supporter of President Trump.

The U.S. just bailed out Argentina, Treasury Secretary confirms

The US Treasury has finalized a $20 billion financial rescue of Argentina, including a currency swap arrangement with the country's central bank.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Reposted by Anil Kalhan

Jacob Shamsian @jayshams.bsky.social · 14h

I've been wondering why Dominion Voting Systems suddenly reached settlements with Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell, and One America News.

Turns out, it's been purchased by a Republican-owned election tech firm that insisted on it, per Axios.

www.axios.com/2025/10/09/d...

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James Fallows @jfallows.bsky.social · 6h

Adventures in framing:

Headline presenting this as a real-world question. Rather than as another sign of deepening vortex of narcissistic delusion and detachment from reality.

Headline: Trump Has His Eyes on Nobel Prize. Will He Get It?

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Joseph Cox @josephcox.bsky.social · 1d

If you scroll through the videos, tons are just rips from TikTok, Instagram, etc. It's probably stuff you've already seen. Some are even local and national media reports, like NBC News.

www.404media.co/apple-banned...

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Joseph Cox @josephcox.bsky.social · 1d

This is what the app looks like (it's still on Google's Play Store and its website is still up). The app was for cataloguing abuses by ICE so litigants can find them later. It wasn't for reporting the real-time location of ICE. As admin told me, they'd be long gone

www.404media.co/apple-banned...

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Joseph Cox @josephcox.bsky.social · 1d

New: Apple banned an app that simply archived videos of ICE abuses. Rather than other apps that record ICE official's real-time location, Eyes Up is to "preserve evidence until it can be used in court." Videos from TikTok etc. Every submission manually reviewed

www.404media.co/apple-banned...

Apple Banned an App That Simply Archived Videos of ICE Abuses

Eyes Up's purpose is to "preserve evidence until it can be used in court." But it has been swept up in Apple's crackdown on ICE-spotting apps.

www.404media.co

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Philip Bump @pbump.com · 8h

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James Fallows @jfallows.bsky.social · 8h

A columnist still at WaPo.

Headline: "Yes, Trump deserves the Nobel Peace Prize."

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Anna Bower @annabower.bsky.social · 8h

Important discovery fight taking shape in Kilmar Abrego Garcia's criminal case.

The question: Can the government assert privilege to avoid handing over documents that may be relevant to a defendant's vindictive prosecution claim?

Abrego's counsel says no.

www.documentcloud.org/documents/26...

www.documentcloud.org

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The Daily Show @thedailyshow.com · 12h

The following is REAL footage from Portland, 2025. Viewer discretion is advised.

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Anil Kalhan @akalhan.bsky.social · 7h

Cc: Trump pocket judges Ryan Nelson and Bridget Bade

The Daily Show @thedailyshow.com · 12h

The following is REAL footage from Portland, 2025. Viewer discretion is advised.

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Reposted by Anil Kalhan

Anil Kalhan @akalhan.bsky.social · 8h

So many judicial chamchas —>

TPM @talkingpointsmemo.com · 14h

9th Circuit Judge Ryan Nelson argued so vehemently Thursday that President Trump has the power to deploy the National Guard into unwilling states on very little pretext that one suspects the arguments were doubling as his Supreme Court audition.
talkingpointsmemo.com/news/9th-cir...

9th Circuit Trump Judges Enthusiastically Support His Ability To Deploy Military Anywhere At Any Time

9th Circuit Judge Ryan Nelson argued so vehemently Thursday that President Trump...

talkingpointsmemo.com

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Reposted by Anil Kalhan

Scott Horton @robertscotthorton.bsky.social · 7h

Spiegel on the criminal complaint against James: The US legal system has become a farce. When lackeys can file charges on the orders of their masters, no one can feel safe anymore. Then arbitrariness prevails. The end of the rule of law and freedom. And that affects everyone

US-Justizministerium klagt prominente Trump-Gegnerin Letitia James an

Die Vorwürfe lauten Bankbetrug und falsche Angaben: Das US-Justizministerium hat Anklage gegen Generalstaatsanwältin Letitia James erhoben. Die Widersacherin von Donald Trump reagierte mit einer Kampf...

www.spiegel.de

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Reposted by Anil Kalhan

Anil Kalhan @akalhan.bsky.social · 8h

Loud Phillies fan neighbors update: *crickets*

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Anil Kalhan @akalhan.bsky.social · 7h

Cc: Trump pocket judges Ryan Nelson and Bridget Bade

The Daily Show @thedailyshow.com · 12h

The following is REAL footage from Portland, 2025. Viewer discretion is advised.

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Reposted by Anil Kalhan

Scott Horton @robertscotthorton.bsky.social · 7h

The MAGA scheme to throw out the votes of Blue States.

Seth Cotlar @sethcotlar.bsky.social · 1d

Two big GOP activists from Oregon were in DC last month for meetings with Trump admin officials. On their podcast they talk about a plan they discussed to nullify the results of Oregon's 2026 federal elections. Pass federal voter ID law, then refuse to seat OR delegation because OR didn't comply.

Ep. 18: September to Remember
October 6 • S1 E18 • 44 min
Also, we proposed a idea how to do a end run on vote by mail. Concept is based on what Trump proposed. When you vote, you check everyone's citizenship as well as voter ID.
In a vote by mail state, you might be able to check citizenship during voter registration. You can send copies of your passport and your birth certificate in.
How in the world are you going to check our voters?
Voter ID, right? Vote by mail. So that creates a problem for Oregon.
But if federal government new requirement is to check both, and if Oregon can comply with the requirements, what would happen to our election result? I'm talking about the entire federal delegation.
For federal elections, we're talking about only federal elections.
COMMON SENSE
Vascluar

Ep. 18: September to Remember
October 6 • S1 E18 • 44 min
So entire federal delegation, congressmen and senators could be challenged, could be unseated because you didn't follow federal requirements to elect them. So I said the trade-off is worth it. You know why?
Democrats control two Senate seats out of six congressional seats. We only control one. They control five.
You talk about trade-off, right?
COMMON SENSE
Sanctuany

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Reposted by Anil Kalhan

jamelle @jamellebouie.net · 7h

practically a requirement for this administration to be a sex pest

Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 7h

"30-year-old conservative lawyer and activist who is Trump’s nominee to lead the Office of Special Counsel, which deals with federal employee whistleblower complaints and discrimination" cancelled his colleague's hotel room so she would be forced to stay with him.
www.politico.com/news/2025/10...

In late July, Paul Ingrassia, the White House liaison for the Department of Homeland Security, arrived at a Ritz-Carlton in Orlando with a lower-ranking female colleague and others from their department. When the group reached the front desk, the woman learned she didn’t have a hotel room.

Ingrassia then informed her that she would be staying with him, according to five administration officials familiar with the episode. Eventually the woman discovered that Ingrassia had arranged ahead of time to have her hotel room canceled so she would have to stay with him, three of those officials said.

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Anil Kalhan @akalhan.bsky.social · 8h

So many judicial chamchas —>

TPM @talkingpointsmemo.com · 14h

9th Circuit Judge Ryan Nelson argued so vehemently Thursday that President Trump has the power to deploy the National Guard into unwilling states on very little pretext that one suspects the arguments were doubling as his Supreme Court audition.
talkingpointsmemo.com/news/9th-cir...

9th Circuit Trump Judges Enthusiastically Support His Ability To Deploy Military Anywhere At Any Time

9th Circuit Judge Ryan Nelson argued so vehemently Thursday that President Trump...

talkingpointsmemo.com

1 5 21

Reposted by Anil Kalhan

TPM @talkingpointsmemo.com · 14h

9th Circuit Judge Ryan Nelson argued so vehemently Thursday that President Trump has the power to deploy the National Guard into unwilling states on very little pretext that one suspects the arguments were doubling as his Supreme Court audition.
talkingpointsmemo.com/news/9th-cir...

9th Circuit Trump Judges Enthusiastically Support His Ability To Deploy Military Anywhere At Any Time

9th Circuit Judge Ryan Nelson argued so vehemently Thursday that President Trump...

talkingpointsmemo.com

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Anil Kalhan @akalhan.bsky.social · 8h

Loud Phillies fan neighbors update: *crickets*

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Reposted by Anil Kalhan

Zohran Kwame Mamdani @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social · 9h

New Yorkers know Attorney General James for who she is: a champion for justice who fights relentlessly for the people. Donald Trump knows her only as an obstacle to his corruption.

My full statement:

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Popehat Agitates And Irritates @kenwhite.bsky.social · 10h

I’ve never seen anything remotely this petty charged as bank fraud.

Joshua J. Friedman @joshuajfriedman.com · 11h

NEW: Here's the two-count indictment against NY AG Letitia James. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

INDICTMENT
October 2025 Term - at Alexandria, Virginia
THE GRAND JURY CHARGES THAT:
GENERAL ALLEGATIONS
At all times relevant to this Indictment:
1. Letitia A. James ("JAMES) was a resident of Brooklyn, New York, and the borrower on a
Fannie Mae-backed mortgage loan for the property located at 3121 Peronne Avenue,
Norfolk, Virginia.
2. OVM Financial (also known as Old Virginia Mortgage / AnnieMac) was a mortgage lending business located in Virginia Beach, Virginia, engaged in the business of originating and underwriting residential mortgage loans, including those backed by the Federal National Mortgage Association ("Fannie Mae"). OVM Financial qualified as a "financial institution" within the meaning of 18 U.S.C. § 20(10).
3. Fannie Mae was a federally chartered corporation that purchased and guaranteed mortgages,
operating as a government-sponsored enterprise under the oversight of the Federal Housing

Finance Agency ("FHFA").
4. First Savings Bank was a state-chartered, FDIC-insured financial institution (Certificate
#29961), headquartered in Jeffersonville, Indiana, which acquired mortgage loans through assignment or acquisition. First Savings Bank qualified as a "financial institution" within the meaning of 18 U.S.C. § 20(1).
5. On or about August 17, 2020, JAMES, as sole borrower, purchased the three (3) bedroom,
(1) bathroom property located at 3121 Peronne Avenue, Norfolk, Virginia 23509 (the
"Peronne Property"), for approximately $137,000, financed with a mortgage loan of approximately $109,600 (Loan #4430025978) backed by Fannie Mae.
6. The loan was originated by OVM Financial under a signed Second Home Rider, which required JAMES, as the sole borrower to occupy and use the property as her secondary residence, and prohibited its use as a timesharing or other shared ownership arrangement or agreement that requires her either to rent the property or give any other person any control over the occupancy or use of the property.
7. Despite these representations, the Peronne Property was not occupied or used by JAMES as a secondary residence and was instead used as a rental investment property, renting the property to a family of (3).
8. This misrepresentation allowed JAMES to obtain favorable loan terms not available for investment properties, including a note rate of 3.000% (avoiding a 0.815% higher
comparable investment property rate of 3.815%, resulting in approximately $17,837 in rate savings over the life of the loan), a seller credit of approximately $3,288 (exceeding the seller credit for investment properties by approximately $1,096), for total ill-gotten gains of approximately $18,933 over the life of the loan.
9. JAMES' Universal Property application for homeowners' insurance indicated "owner-

occupied non-seasonal use," further misrepresenting the intended use of the property.
10. JAMES filed Schedule E tax forms), under penalties of perjury, treating the Perrone Property as rental real estate, reporting fair rental days, zero personal use days, thousand(s)
of dollars in rents received, and claiming deductions for expenses relating to the property, further contradicting the second home classification.
11. The loan was acquired by or assigned to First Savings Bank by March 2021, exposing it to risks associated with the misrepresented loan.
12. The acts described herein occurred within the Eastern District of Virginia.
COUNT ONE
(Bank Fraud - 18 U.S.C. § 1344)
13. The allegations in paragraphs 1 through 12 are re-alleged and incorporated herein.
14. From on or about August 7, 2020, through at least January 2024, in the Eastern District of Virginia and elsewhere, the Defendant, LETITIA A. JAMES, did knowingly execute and attempt to execute a scheme and artifice to defraud OVM Financial and First Savings Bank,
financial institutions, and to obtain moneys, funds, and credits owned by and under the custody and control of OVM Financial and First Savings Bank by means of false and fraudulent pretenses, representations, and promises.
15. The scheme involved falsely representing the Peronne Property as a secondary residence to obtain favorable mortgage terms, while using it as an investment property with no intended
or actual personal occupancy or use by her.
(In violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1344).
COUNT TWO
(False Statements to a Financial Institution - 18 U.S.C. § 1014)
16. The allegations in paragraphs 1 through 12 are re-alleged and incorporated herein.

17. From on or about July 28, 2020, through at least August 31, 2020, in the Eastern District of Virginia and elsewhere, the Defendant, LETITIA A. JAMES, did knowingly make and cause to be made false statements and reports for the purpose of influencing the action of OVM Financial, a Fannie Mae-backed lender, upon an application for a loan, in that JAMES represented and affirmed in uniform residential loan applications and related documents that
the Peronne Property would be used as a secondary residence, when in truth and fact, as JAMES then knew, the property was intended and used as an investment property with no intended or actual personal occupancy or use by her.
(In violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1014).
FORFEITURE NOTICE
Pursuant to Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 32.2(a) and Title 18, U.S.C. §
982(a)(2)(A), upon conviction of the offenses in Counts One and Two, the Defendant, Letitia
A. James, shall forfeit to the United States any property constituting, or derived from, proceeds obtained, directly or indirectly, as a result of such violations, including but not limited to a money judgment in the amount of $18,933.
If any of the property described above, as a result of any act or omission of the Defendant: (a) cannot be located upon the exercise of due diligence; (b) has been transferred or sold to, or deposited with, a third party; (c) has been placed beyond the jurisdiction of the court; (d) has been substantially diminished in value; or (e) has been commingled with other property which cannot be divided without difficulty, the United States shall be entitled to a forfeiture of substitute property pursuant to Title 21, U.S.C. § 853(b), as incorporated by Title
18 U.S.C. § 982(b)(1).
(In accordance with Title 18 U.S.C. § 981(a)(1)(C) and 982(a)(1); Title 28, U.S.C. § 2461(c); and Title 21 U.S.C. § 853(p).)

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