Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
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Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
@chrisottolnp.bsky.social
Professional journalist. Deputy Opinion Editor at LNP | LancasterOnline. Covering Lancaster and York counties in Pennsylvania.
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Starter pack for Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, journalists on Blue Sky. Subscribe to @lancasteronline.bsky.social and support necessary local journalism. We are the ones covering local governments and school boards and making sure they operate transparently. bsky.app/starter-pack...
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
In 2014, the New York Times said about a Black boy murdered by a cop with his hands up, "Michael Brown, 18, due to be buried on Monday, was no angel".

PLEASE do not whitewash the past to emphasize how bad the present is.
If we erase the past and Black lives, we have already lost. Stop it.
January 14, 2026 at 8:56 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
The First Amendment protects journalists who receive and report information of public concern even if the source broke the law. Raiding a reporter’s home is an extraordinary step that raises serious press-freedom concerns.

www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
January 14, 2026 at 9:37 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
It used to be that victims of murders in the U.S. would be smeared by InfoWars and Gateway Pundit as a way to fetishize guns and violence for ad dollars and supplement sales, with the added benefit of cozying up to far-right politicians. Now that work is done by CBS News.
January 14, 2026 at 8:14 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
An invasion of Greenland will be a test of American character. If Greenlanders begin to die defending their homeland and US troops start dying in the process, will Americans ‘rally around the flag’ or will they say this exercise is insanity and the troops must come home?
January 13, 2026 at 8:24 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
NEW and WOW: Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, and Canada are sending troops to Greenland amid continued threats from U.S. President Donald Trump to annex the territory, multiple outlets reported. www.newsweek.com/greenland-ge...
Germany, other NATO allies sending troops to Greenland amid Trump threats
Trump said Wednesday anything less than U.S. control of Greenland would be "unacceptable" in a warning to NATO allies about Arctic security.
www.newsweek.com
January 14, 2026 at 7:59 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
Danish Foreign Minster Lars Løkke Rasmussen speaks after WH meeting: "For us, ideas that would not respect the territorial of the Kingdom of Denmark and the right of self-determination of the Greenlandic people are of course totally unacceptable. We therefore still have a fundamental disagreement."
January 14, 2026 at 7:02 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
Stephen Miller on Fox insisting that ICE agents, now heavily recruited from Jan 6 rioters, have a license to kill anyone they like.
Miller:  "To all ICE officers: You have federal immunity in the conduct of your duties, and anybody who lays a hand on you or tries to stop you or tries to obstruct you is committing a felony."
January 14, 2026 at 2:22 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
🚨BREAKING: Any candidate for federal office may challenge election laws governing their election, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a 7-2 decision Wednesday, potentially triggering a deluge of litigation over the counting and certifying of results. www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...
Supreme Court opens election litigation floodgates, says any candidate can challenge voting laws
Read more here.
www.democracydocket.com
January 14, 2026 at 4:50 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
BREAKING: Dan Ceisler, the new sheriff of Pennsylvania's Bucks County, just announced he has terminated his county's 287(g) contract with ICE.

Ceisler defeated GOP sheriff who'd joined the ICE program in November, & ran on quitting it; we reported then:
Voters Ousted This Pennsylvania Sheriff After He Signed Up to Collaborate With ICE - Bolts
A populous, swing county replaced its GOP sheriff on Tuesday after months of controversy over his joining ICE’s 287(g) program. The Democratic winner promises he’ll end the contract.
boltsmag.org
January 14, 2026 at 5:07 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
This is us. Today.
This is Minneapolis elementary school pick up:

The alert also recommends: "Bring your whistle & wear your hat. If you have a respirator or goggles bring them in a small backpack. We don't want to show up looking alarming for the kids but chemical weapons are being used widely in the area."

2/2
January 14, 2026 at 4:54 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
"Inuit advocacy groups, as well as Greenlanders who live in Canada, are emphatically opposed to American designs on their homeland." www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
'No such thing as a better colonizer': Inuit emphatically reject U.S. takeover of Greenland | CBC News
Inuit advocacy groups, as well as Greenlanders who live in Canada, are emphatically opposed to American designs on their homeland. And, they say, they're tired of being used as geopolitical chess piec...
www.cbc.ca
January 14, 2026 at 4:49 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
This is not the language of the government of a free country.
January 14, 2026 at 1:16 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
A massive escalation in the Trump administration's effort to dismantle institutions that check its power.
Breaking WaPo:

The FBI executed a search warrant this morning at a Post reporter's home as part of an investigation into a government contractor accused of illegally retaining classified materials.

It's highly unusual and aggressive for law enforcement to conduct a search on a reporter's home.
FBI executes search warrant at Washington Post reporter’s home
The reporter, Hannah Natanson, covers the federal workforce and has been part of The Post’s most sensitive coverage of the first year of the second Trump administration.
www.washingtonpost.com
January 14, 2026 at 2:06 PM
So surreal to be reading these headlines and summaries.
Denmark has deployed an advance force and military equipment to Greenland, tasked with preparing to receive reinforcements from the rest of the Danish Armed Forces and allied nations in order to engage an anticipated military assault by the United States. www.dr.dk/nyheder/indl...
Kilder til DR: Danmark sender militære forstærkninger til Grønland
En fortrop fra Forsvaret er ankommet til Grønland, erfarer DR.
www.dr.dk
January 14, 2026 at 1:54 PM
State Rep. Smith-Wade-El: “What happens with this patchwork of local laws is that there is a lack of clarity that is hardest on local housing and small scale developers.” lancasteronline.com/news/politic...
Rep. Smith-Wade-El backs 'Golden Girls Law,' other proposals to boost affordable housing statewide
Dorothy, Rose, Blanche and Sophia would have to be more than just friends to co-rent a home in some Pennsylvania townships and boroughs. That’s because some municipalities bar multiple roommates
lancasteronline.com
January 14, 2026 at 1:46 PM
The decision came in the wake of Earl Township farmers’ successful push to get their township supervisors to reject new growth area boundaries that would have added 565 acres of farmland. lancasteronline.com/news/local/l...
Lancaster County planners pause growth boundary expansion
A move to expand Lancaster County’s growth area boundaries is on hold for 60 days due to concerns over farmland preservation and calls for more public input.
lancasteronline.com
January 14, 2026 at 1:44 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
Not the key part of this story, obviously... but they *sold* his phone? WTF?
This is 10th-grader Arnoldo Bazan.

A citizen.

Immigration agents grabbed him and put him in a chokehold.

"We're from the United States bro!' he screamed.

Agents took and sold his phone

And when he finally got home hours later, his shirt was ripped, he neck had angry, red welts, and he sobbed.
January 14, 2026 at 12:21 AM
ICYMI: "U.S. military guidelines on the laws of war prohibit troops from pretending to be civilians while engaging in combat. The practice is legally known as 'perfidy.'" lancasteronline.com/news/world/p...
Plane used in boat strike off Venezuela was painted to look like a civilian aircraft, AP sources say
The plane used by the U.S. military to strike an alleged drug-smuggling boat off Venezuela last fall was painted to look like a civilian aircraft. That appears to be at
lancasteronline.com
January 13, 2026 at 11:38 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
God forbid we think about immunocompromised kids and immunocompromised parents
So, your child woke up feeling sick.

Should they tough it out at school? Or should they stay home and rest? Take our quiz to examine your child’s symptoms.
How to know when kids are too sick for school
Experts offer guidance on when to send sick children to class or keep them home from school.
wapo.st
January 13, 2026 at 9:40 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
New York plans to require data center operators to shoulder more of the cost of powering their energy-hungry facilities, aiming to prevent surging electricity demand from pushing up household utility bills.
New York Tells Data Centers They Must Pay More for Power
New York plans to require data center operators to shoulder more of the cost of powering their energy-hungry facilities, aiming to prevent surging electricity demand from pushing up household utility bills.
bloom.bg
January 13, 2026 at 9:30 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
“.. Federal agents grab a woman to drag her away from her car, days after an ICE agent fatally shot Renee Nicole Good, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.”

@reuters.com
January 13, 2026 at 9:16 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
This is appalling: Top DOJ officials are actively pushing for a criminal investigation into the widow of Renee Good, leading prosecutors to quit en masse, NYT is reporting.

Who in the White House ordered DOJ to do this? That's the next thing to establish.
January 13, 2026 at 6:44 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
Breaking news: Multiple senior federal prosecutors in Washington, D.C., and Minnesota are leaving their jobs amid internal turmoil over the Trump administration's handling of the fatal shooting of Renée Good by an ICE agent.
Top prosecutors in D.C., Minneapolis leave amid turmoil over shooting probe
Prosecutors resigned from the U.S. attorney’s office in Minnesota amid turmoil over an investigation into a shooting by an immigration officer.
wapo.st
January 13, 2026 at 9:09 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
Sanctuary cities/counties in Pennsylvania (according to Center for Immigration Studies):

Allegheny County
Bucks County
Chester County
Delaware County
Lancaster
Lehigh County
Montgomery County
Northampton County
Philadelphia
Washington County
York
Trump: "Starting February 1, we're not making any payments to sanctuary cities or states having sanctuary cities"
January 13, 2026 at 9:08 PM
Reposted by Chris Otto (LNP | LancasterOnline)
The Independence Law Center has also intervened in the current SCOTUS arguments, filing amicus briefs on behalf of 55 PA school board members—weighing in on anti-trans lawsuits in other states.
As the Supreme Court weighs whether states can ban trans students from girls’ & women’s sports, this investigation from @kathrynajoyce.bsky.social shows how those fights are seeded locally—through school boards and a Christian Right legal group, the Independence Law Center.
“Clever as Serpents”: How a Legal Group’s Anti-LGBTQ Policies Took Root in School Districts Across a State
In Pennsylvania, parents are challenging Independence Law Center policies while trying to avoid a legal case that could go to the conservative Supreme Court.
inthesetimes.com
January 13, 2026 at 8:44 PM