Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social · 3h

My favorite is the claim that you don't open comments. I get a few of those every week and I always explain that the comments are, in fact, open. But only for those who can read and follow some fairly simple instructions.

1 1 47

Reposted by Mike Masnick

Andy Craig @andycraig.bsky.social · 4h

Among the more obvious differences, this was about using the Alabama National Guard to enforce federal law *in Alabama*, where the state government was defying court orders.

Note that even in that much more extreme context, Kennedy used the Alabama National Guard, not some other state's.

Matt Novak @paleofuture.bsky.social · 4h

Trump just posted what looks like an old DOJ memo about President Kennedy’s use of the National Guard in Alabama to desegregate schools in 1963.

It’s a gross comparison, given the fact that Trump is basically George Wallace and he wants to use the Guard to invade cities, not advance civil rights.

Trump: U.S. Code. Those provisions authorize the President, when faced with such unlawful obstructions against the authority of the United States as existed in Alabama, to "call into Federal service such of the militia of any State, and use such of the armed forces, as he considers necessary" (10
U.S.C. § 332) and to use
"the militia or the armed forces,
or both, or
• other means" (10 U.S.C. $ 333). The
militia of the United States includes the national guard, meaning the Army National Guard and the Air National Guard of the several states. 10 U.S.C. § 311 and $ 101 (9), (10), (12) .
In furtherance of the President's order the Secretary of Defense immediately called into active military service all of the units and members of the Army National Guard and Air National Guard of the State of Alabama to serve in the active military service of the United States for an indefinite period and until relieved by appropriate orders.
This call was transmitted by the Secretary of the Army, acting by direction of, and under delegation of authority from, the Secretary of Defense.
Copies of the Department
of the Army message (No. D.A. 340638, June 11, 1963) were furnished immediately to the Governor of Alabama and to the commanding officers of the Army National Guard and the Air National Guard of the State of Alabama.
It is apparent that the Alabama National Guard was properly called into federal service pursuant to 10 U.S.C.
§5 332-4, and in accordance with the procedure provided in those sections. Since the call to federal service did not invoke the authority of 10 U.S.C. $ 3500, referred to by Mr. Bowen, the procedure prescribed by that section was
not
used.
I trust that the foregoing information will be of
assistance to you.
Sincerely,
¡enera.
299 ReTruths 819 Likes
10/7/25,

13 140 570

Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social · 4h

I had heard that got postponed due to the House being out of session, thanks to the Speaker trying to avoid getting the votes to release the Epstein files.

6

Reposted by Mike Masnick

Nicholas Grossman @nicholasgrossman.bsky.social · 6h

The First Amendment explicitly guarantees:

-the right of the people peaceably to assemble
-to petition the Government for a redress of grievances
-the free exercise of religion
-freedom of speech

If this priest had also been press, ICE would have violated all five 1A freedoms at once.

Kurt @flglchicago.bsky.social · 8h

Here’s video of the incident

18 410 1.1K

Reposted by Mike Masnick

Melanie D’Arrigo @darrigomelanie.bsky.social · 9h

I feel like this photo of masked, armed men pepper spraying a pastor protecting his community is going to be a defining picture of this moment in America for a long, long time.

1.2K 14K 37K

Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social · 4h

So, yeah, basically, expect both Senators and witnesses to be somewhat misleading about who did what for what reason in tomorrow's hearing. Thankfully for my sanity, I will be on an airplane without internet access (if the plane actually takes off on time).

2 2 100

Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social · 4h

And, as I covered earlier this week, Ted Cruz's whole report is based on him (1) not understanding disinfo research (2) not understanding that monitoring disinfo is not censorship and (3) pretending Biden was President from 2018-2020.

www.techdirt.com/2025/10/06/s...

Senator Cruz Figure Out Who Was President From 2018 To 2020 Challenge; Impossible

I have a simple question for Senator Ted Cruz: Who was president in 2018? How about 2020? I ask because Cruz just released a “bombshell” report claiming that the Biden administration “convert…

www.techdirt.com

2 18 140

Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social · 4h

But ALSO look at the date when that happened. It was 2020. Who was President in 2020? Pretty sure it wasn't Joe Biden.

And while it's possible that the Federalist (a hub of disinfo) was discussed by the Biden admin, there remains no evidence that they coerced intermediaries into acting against them

2 5 67

Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social · 4h

As I noted, Google did the same thing to us at Techdirt just weeks later. But because we're not whiny little babies who have to always make things about political victimization, we just joked about it rather than demand Congress do something! www.techdirt.com/2020/06/29/g...

GOOGLE THREATENS TO DEFUND TECHDIRT? Where Are All The Politicians Complaining?

OH NO. GOOGLE MUST HAVE ANTI-TECHDIRT BIAS! THEY’RE THREATENING TO DEFUND US! Or not. A couple of weeks ago, we received yet another notice from Google that some of the pages on Techdirt viol…

www.techdirt.com

1 8 59

Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social · 4h

Sean likes to claim he was demonetized at the Federalist. Google *did* pull ads from the site for a while... but not because of political pressure. But because... comments on The Federalist (as you might expect given their core audience) violated Google's policies: www.techdirt.com/2020/06/16/n...

No, Google Didn't Demonetize The Federalist & It's Not An Example Of Anti-Conservative Bias

So, earlier today, NBC reported that Google had “banned” two well known websites from its ad platform, namely The Federalist and Zero Hedge. The story was a bit confusing. To be clear, …

www.techdirt.com

1 5 62

Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social · 4h

Tomorrow Sean Davis of the Federalist is going to testify before Congress claiming Biden targeted him and I'm guessing he's going to claim the targeting involved Google "demonetizing" the Federalist. There are many problems with this (read along).

Sean Davis tweet: I’m very much looking forward to testifying before the Senate Commerce Committee hearing on this tomorrow, along with
@AlexBerenson
.

The Biden administration’s censorship-industrial complex, which targeted both Alex and me for destruction, was an illegal and unconstitutional abomination.

10 36 150

Reposted by Mike Masnick

slangsonsports.bsky.social @slangsonsports.bsky.social · 5h

POSTSEASON WHEEEEEEE!!

3 11 110

Reposted by Mike Masnick

John Pfaff @johnpfaff.bsky.social · 6h

Um, ICE just coldly shot an unarmed PRIEST in the head w a pepper ball when he (and everyone around him) clearly posed no threat.

For the crime of … complaining about government policy.

Core 1A speech.

With cameras rolling, they’re sniping priests for sport.

Kurt @flglchicago.bsky.social · 8h

Here’s video of the incident

740 7.5K 13K

Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social · 13h

Lol. "Welcome onboard and sorry for the delay. We were all just called off the standby list and have no idea what happened to your original crew. Enjoy your flight."

23 4 250

Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social · 14h

I've had that happen a few times.

1 13

Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social · 14h

"we can't begin boarding because we're missing two crew members."

Excuse me, what?

34 23 400

Reposted by Mike Masnick

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 16h

Trump: "We call them the water drugs. The drugs that come in through water. They're not coming. There are no boats anymore. Frankly, there are no fishing boats. There are no boats out there period, if you want to know the truth. Does anybody go fishing anymore?"

620 380 1.4K

Reposted by Mike Masnick

John Pfaff @johnpfaff.bsky.social · 15h

New statute of limitations doctrine just dropped.

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 15h

SCHIFF: Was it true when the White House press secretary denied that Homan took the money?

BONDI: I was not in office, I was not confirmed, when that was handled

SCHIFF: Did he take the money?

BONDI: That happened prior to my confirmation

24 180 860

Reposted by Mike Masnick

Sky Marchini @sky.skymarchini.net · 15h

Supreme Court: of course states can regulate, and restrict access to, medical procedures if there’s a compelling public interest

Colorado: (bans conversion therapy for minors)

Supreme Court: no not like that, we only meant abortion

61 1.5K 6.2K

Reposted by Mike Masnick

James Fallows @jfallows.bsky.social · 15h

Draw on your own experience:

Is there any situation you've ever been part of, with you or anyone else in the hot seat, in which a person who does NOT have something to hide, reacts the way Bondi does?

I've been on trial juries that concluded "we can't trust that witness," after evasions like this

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 18h

NOTABLE -- Pam Bondi refuses to answer direct questions about if the FBI has incriminating photos of Trump with half-naked young women, but instead deflects from them by attacking Sen. Whitehouse

100 550 2.3K

Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social · 14h

I'm referring to Bari.

1

Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social · 15h

Nope.

1

Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social · 15h

She had ethics?

2 8

Mike Masnick @mmasnick.bsky.social · 15h

It's amazing how everyone supporting her seems to forget she wasn't cancelled at all. She quit. And almost immediately was able to launch this new publication. How the hell was she cancelled?

Some people criticized shitty takes. That's not being cancelled.

Eli Valley @elivalley.bsky.social · 15h

As one of the countless people *actually* cancelled by Bari Weiss, via her vast favor-trading networks of fellow nepotistic gatekeepers in media and publishing, I think both of these asinine dipshits should go fuck themselves.

Matt Yglesias QT'ing Corey Walker

I didn’t rejoice at her cancellation and got cancelled myself at roughly the same time, but I am sincerely jealous that no regime-aligned billionaire has even fit to curry favor with the Trump administration by giving me a huge sum of money.
https://x.com/mattyglesias/status/1975375120123478491
Quote
Corey Walker
@CoreyWriting
·
16h
The vitriol against Bari Weiss is just thinly-veiled jealousy by people who rejoiced at "cancelling" her in 2020 and are furious she managed to get fabulously wealthy in an infamously brutal and low-paying industry.

33 270 1.5K

Reposted by Mike Masnick

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 15h

SCHIFF: If a video exists of Homan taking $50k in bribe money from the FBI, will you support a request to provide it to the committee?

BONDI: You can talk to Director Patel about that

SCHIFF: I'm talking to you about it

BONDI: Will you apologize to Donald Trump?

260 400 1.5K