Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Ben Silverstein ❌👑 @bensilverstein.bsky.social · 2h

Those MIT people are wicked smaht
www.washingtonpost.com/education/20...

MIT rejects Trump administration deal for priority federal funding

MIT is one of the nine schools that were asked to agree to adopt conservative priorities and policies in exchange for funding perks.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Ben Silverstein ❌👑 @bensilverstein.bsky.social · 2h

What's a purer expression of love for America than peacefully exercising your First Amendment rights in defense of our democracy? What's a more 'hate America' statement than labeling nonviolent defenders of democracy 'terrorists?'

Anyways, join us: www.nokings.org?SQF_SOURCE=i...

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 4h

Emmer: "This is about one thing and one thing alone -- to score political points with the terrorist wing of their party, which is set to hold a hate America rally in DC next week."

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Ben Silverstein ❌👑 @bensilverstein.bsky.social · 4h

Welp.

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Ben Silverstein ❌👑 @bensilverstein.bsky.social · 4h

From the Nobel Committee today:

“Democracy depends on people who refuse to stay silent, who dare to step forward despite grave risk, and who remind us that freedom must never be taken for granted, but must always be defended – with words, with courage and with determination.”

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Amanda Katz @katzish.bsky.social · 2d

Horrific reporting from the AP on the Myanmar families watching their kids starve to death from Trump and Musk’s aid cuts apnews.com/article/myan...

Starving children screaming for food as US aid cuts unleash devastation and death across Myanmar

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has repeatedly said “no one has died" because of his government’s decision to gut its foreign aid program.

apnews.com

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Ben Silverstein ❌👑 @bensilverstein.bsky.social · 2d

We're getting Pulitzer-worthy photos of ICE brutality every single day, because ICE brutality is occurring out in the open every single day.

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LOLGOP ❌👑❌ @thefarce.org · 3d

This is a important piece and shitty to have it behind a payway.
archive.ph/DNPUh

Opinion
Six surgeons general: It’s our duty to warn the nation about RFK Jr.
We took an oath to declare dangers when we found them. We’re doing that again today.
October 7, 2025 at 6:00 a.m. EDTToday at 6:00 a.m. EDT

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Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 6d

Running out of ways to communicate they are violating the consntitution

Matt Novak @paleofuture.bsky.social · 6d

Trump calls for ICE and other cops to enforce his executive order banning flag burning, something that’s blatantly unconstitutional given Texas v Johnson (1989), which established flag burning as protected speech.

To ICE, Border Patrol, Law Enforcement, and all U.S. Military: As per my August 25, 2025
Executive Order, please be advised that, from this point forward, anybody burning the American Flag will be subject to one year in prison. You will be immediately arrested. Thank you for your attention to this matter!
5 ReTruths 32 Likes
10/3/25, 4:26 PM

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David Bier @davidjbier.bsky.social · 7d

Holy hell. DHS just openly stated that its agents use “reasonable suspicion” to make ARRESTS. This is blatantly unconstitutional. The Supreme Court is clear that you need probable cause to arrest someone, as opposed to stop them to ask them a question or two. This is huge b/c…

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mtsw @mtsw.bsky.social · 7d

The most powerful enemies of our first amendment rights in our nation's history

Andrew Couts @couts.bsky.social · 7d

NEW: ICE is planning to hire a team of nearly 30 people to surveil social media 24/7, build dossiers on people, and flag them for arrest and deportation. @dell.bsky.social has the scoop: www.wired.com/story/ice-so...

ICE Wants to Build Out a 24/7 Social Media Surveillance Team

Documents show ICE plans to hire dozens of contractors to scan X, Facebook, TikTok, and other platforms to target people for deportation.

www.wired.com

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Ben Silverstein ❌👑 @bensilverstein.bsky.social · 7d

The third largest company in the world capitulating without a fight in a move that assists the most brutal part of the Trump regime. I hope employees rise up over this.

www.yahoo.com/news/article...

Apple removes ICEBlock app after criticism from Trump administration

Apple said Thursday it is removing an app that allows users to share information about sightings of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, which the head of ICE had criticized

www.yahoo.com

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Aaron Reichlin-Melnick @reichlinmelnick.bsky.social · 7d

“Democrats are radical leftists who shut down the government” = non-political message forced on government bureaucrats’ OOO message.

A pride flag = “FIRE HIM NOW FOR POLITICS”

Jon Cooper @joncooper-us.bsky.social · 7d

Kash Patel fired an FBI agent in training for displaying a gay pride flag on his desk while appointed to a field office in California last year. The trainee,who previously worked as an FBI support specialist in Los Angeles, received a letter claiming he had displayed an improper “political” message.

Kash Patel fires FBI agent trainee for displaying gay pride flag

The FBI employee was fired on the first day of the government shutdown as President Trump threatened more terminations.

www.msnbc.com

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Carl Quintanilla @carlquintanilla.bsky.social · 8d

“.. no modern American president has positioned his family to make so much money while in the White House. Already, since the early days of his reelection campaign, he’s more than doubled his net worth to about $5.4 billion.”

@bloomberg.com
www.bloomberg.com/features/202...

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southpaw @nycsouthpaw.bsky.social · 8d

I’ve been looking around for the most credulous mid-campaign piece about Trump’s obviously fatuous Project 2025 disavowal, and I think it might be this one from Politico. www.politico.com/news/magazin...

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Ben Silverstein ❌👑 @bensilverstein.bsky.social · 9d

Hey, don’t call the guy who told generals to use American cities for target practice a “fascist.” That’s violent language.

Trump says US cities should be military training grounds - BBC News

The US president warned military leaders of a "war from within", and signals they will be tasked with intervening.

www.bbc.com

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Ben Silverstein ❌👑 @bensilverstein.bsky.social · 9d

I really thought about it today.

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Ben Silverstein ❌👑 @bensilverstein.bsky.social · 9d

I never imagined this job would involve sending so many "Ezra Levin and Ezra Klein are two different people" emails.

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rahaeli @rahaeli.bsky.social · 10d

Hey remember when the CDC dropped 6 of the 8 foodborne illnesses from the nationwide monitoring system in July and one of them was listeria? Mentioning for no particular reason www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...

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Dante Atkins @danteatkins.bsky.social · 13d

This story has everything Trump loves: a girl, a plane, an island, and someone whose last name starts with E

Matt Novak @paleofuture.bsky.social · 13d

Trump says he’s ordering the release of all government records on Amelia Earhart.

Trump: I have been asked by many people about the life and times of Amelia Earhart, such an interesting story, and would I consider declassifying and releasing everything about her, in particular, her last, fatal flight! She was an Aviation Pioneer, the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, and achieved many other Aviation "firsts." She disappeared in the South Pacific while trying to become the first woman to fly around the World.
Amelia made it almost three quarters around the World before she suddenly, and without notice, vanished, never to be seen again. Her disappearance, almost 90 years ago, has captivated millions. I am ordering my Administration to declassify and release all Government Records related to Amelia Earhart, her final trip, and everything else about her.
Thank you for your attention to this matter!
DONALD J. TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED
STATES OF AMERICA
360 ReTruths 1.25k Likes
9/26/25, 1:42 PM

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Adam Serwer @adamserwer.bsky.social · 14d

Do not bow down to these people. Do not allow them to convince you that you must. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/26/b...

Local TV Giant Sinclair Ends Jimmy Kimmel Boycott

www.nytimes.com

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Bathsheba in Blue @bathshebablue.bsky.social · 14d

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Eric Umansky @ericumansky.bsky.social · 14d

NEW from PP:

You know how Krista Noem has been bottlenecking disaster relief?

Turns out, you can get them greenlit —if you‘re a Noem donor!

After donor asked, Noem quickly cleared project.

Then she flew to town and dined at French bistro with the donor.

www.propublica.org/article/kris...

Kristi Noem Fast-Tracked Millions in Disaster Aid to Florida Tourist Attraction After Campaign Donor Intervened

The DHS chief has been widely criticized for slowing down FEMA’s response after natural disasters. Texts and emails obtained by ProPublica point to an effective way to get help faster: have one of Noe...

www.propublica.org

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Ben Silverstein ❌👑 @bensilverstein.bsky.social · 14d

┏┓
┃┃╱╲ in
┃╱╱╲╲ this
╱╱╭╮╲╲house
▔▏┗┛▕▔ we
╱▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔╲
call fascists fascist even
(especially) when they
threaten to behave
fascistically against people who
call them fascists.
╱╱┏┳┓╭╮┏┳┓ ╲╲
▔▏┗┻┛┃┃┗┻┛▕▔

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Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 14d

This is the point of the new EO: it is to make people think twice before they provide their honest evaluation of the Trump regime. You called them fascist? Well, you must be antifa. You call them authoritarian? You are inciting terrorism.

Popehat Agitates And Irritates @kenwhite.bsky.social · 15d

If a government tells you that you can’t call it authoritarian, it’s authoritarian.

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Indivisible ❌👑 @indivisible.org · 14d

As Trump punishes dissenters, defies courts, and ignores the Constitution — all while he and his friends get even richer — the next No Kings Day needs to be our biggest, loudest, and most widespread day of peaceful protest yet: www.nokings.org?SQF_SOURCE=i... #NoKings

Senator Murphy on Twitter: “We aren't on a slippery slope to a constitutional crisis. We are IN the crisis. Time for leaders - political leaders, business leaders, civic leaders - to pick a side: democracy or autocracy?”

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