@rachelway.bsky.social
Pinned
Changing the rules by which these lawful voters took part in our electoral process after the election to discard their otherwise valid votes in an attempt to alter the outcome of only one race among many on the ballot is directly counter to law, equity, and the Constitution.
Reposted
North Carolina lawmakers have attempted to transfer control or partial control of at least 29 boards, entities or important executive powers in the past decade that had previously been under control of the governor.
By @dougbockclark.bsky.social
By @dougbockclark.bsky.social
Inside the North Carolina GOP’s Decade-Long Push to Seize Power From the State’s Democratic Governors
For almost a decade, North Carolina’s majority-Republican legislature tried six times to strip Democratic governors of control over the board overseeing the swing state’s elections. This year, it fina...
www.propublica.org
December 25, 2025 at 3:00 AM
North Carolina lawmakers have attempted to transfer control or partial control of at least 29 boards, entities or important executive powers in the past decade that had previously been under control of the governor.
By @dougbockclark.bsky.social
By @dougbockclark.bsky.social
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1 - the exec branch can't decline to spend $ Congress appropriated
2- the fed govt can't use federal $ to extort states over policy/political disagreements
3-the fed govt can't use federal $ to impose conditions unrelated to the funding program
4-the fed govt can't use federal $ to coerce states
2- the fed govt can't use federal $ to extort states over policy/political disagreements
3-the fed govt can't use federal $ to impose conditions unrelated to the funding program
4-the fed govt can't use federal $ to coerce states
Sean Duffy on blue states: "What I can do is I can pull their money. That's the leverage I do have ... I guarantee you that the federal taxpayer is not going to fund their roads and bridges and their systems when they are putting illegals on the roads."
December 23, 2025 at 2:32 PM
1 - the exec branch can't decline to spend $ Congress appropriated
2- the fed govt can't use federal $ to extort states over policy/political disagreements
3-the fed govt can't use federal $ to impose conditions unrelated to the funding program
4-the fed govt can't use federal $ to coerce states
2- the fed govt can't use federal $ to extort states over policy/political disagreements
3-the fed govt can't use federal $ to impose conditions unrelated to the funding program
4-the fed govt can't use federal $ to coerce states
Reposted
“These men risked their lives to speak with us. We have a moral and professional obligation to the sources who entrusted us with their
stories. Abandoning them now is a betrayal of the most basic tenet of journalism: giving voice to the voiceless.”
stories. Abandoning them now is a betrayal of the most basic tenet of journalism: giving voice to the voiceless.”
Per NY Times’s Michael Grynbaum on X, this is Sharyn Alfonsi’s email to her “60 Minutes” colleagues in full:
December 22, 2025 at 3:42 AM
“These men risked their lives to speak with us. We have a moral and professional obligation to the sources who entrusted us with their
stories. Abandoning them now is a betrayal of the most basic tenet of journalism: giving voice to the voiceless.”
stories. Abandoning them now is a betrayal of the most basic tenet of journalism: giving voice to the voiceless.”
Reposted
Per NY Times’s Michael Grynbaum on X, this is Sharyn Alfonsi’s email to her “60 Minutes” colleagues in full:
December 22, 2025 at 3:37 AM
Per NY Times’s Michael Grynbaum on X, this is Sharyn Alfonsi’s email to her “60 Minutes” colleagues in full:
Reposted
US seized another tanker carrying Venezuelan oil, this one not already on the sanctions list for Russian oligarchs and Iran.
Panamanian flagged and belongs to a legal, China-based oil trader.
Unclear what US will do with the cargo, but this looks like at least a partial blockade, an act of war.
Panamanian flagged and belongs to a legal, China-based oil trader.
Unclear what US will do with the cargo, but this looks like at least a partial blockade, an act of war.
December 21, 2025 at 12:57 PM
US seized another tanker carrying Venezuelan oil, this one not already on the sanctions list for Russian oligarchs and Iran.
Panamanian flagged and belongs to a legal, China-based oil trader.
Unclear what US will do with the cargo, but this looks like at least a partial blockade, an act of war.
Panamanian flagged and belongs to a legal, China-based oil trader.
Unclear what US will do with the cargo, but this looks like at least a partial blockade, an act of war.
Reposted
The body cam footage from Beker’s arrest has been released.
“Hey, this is Officer Hingiss with the Whitefish Police Department. Just out with a male that only speaks Spanish, wondering if you want to check him?”
flatheadbeacon.com/2025/12/19/c...
“Hey, this is Officer Hingiss with the Whitefish Police Department. Just out with a male that only speaks Spanish, wondering if you want to check him?”
flatheadbeacon.com/2025/12/19/c...
NEW — I wrote about Beker Rengifo, a Montana resident from Venezuela who was taken by ICE on Thursday after a routine traffic stop, and how local law enforcement is working with the feds to ensnare people with legal status.
ICE abducts Montana resident with legal humanitarian status
Beker Rengifo is the latest victim of Trump's reckless and illegal war on migrants.
www.thehandbasket.co
December 21, 2025 at 3:48 AM
The body cam footage from Beker’s arrest has been released.
“Hey, this is Officer Hingiss with the Whitefish Police Department. Just out with a male that only speaks Spanish, wondering if you want to check him?”
flatheadbeacon.com/2025/12/19/c...
“Hey, this is Officer Hingiss with the Whitefish Police Department. Just out with a male that only speaks Spanish, wondering if you want to check him?”
flatheadbeacon.com/2025/12/19/c...
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Clemency boards are always stacked with obviously anti-clemency people like cops and victims rights advocates, but man, this one is especially ridiculous.
New @theintercept.com: Georgia was supposed to kill Stacey Humphreys last night. But his execution was abruptly called off by the clemency board after its newest member was exposed as the DA's victim advocate at Humphreys's trial.
Secretive Georgia Clemency Board Suspends Execution After Its Conflicts of Interest Are Exposed
Stacey Humphreys’s death sentence was rooted in juror misconduct. His fate is in the hands of people directly involved in his trial.
theintercept.com
December 18, 2025 at 4:43 PM
Clemency boards are always stacked with obviously anti-clemency people like cops and victims rights advocates, but man, this one is especially ridiculous.
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On the most recent Serious Trouble I remarked that asking whether someone has standing is increasingly like asking whether an elf can wield an axe in Dungeons & Dragons: it’s an arbitrary fantasy-based question determined by the 6-3 DM, who does whatever amuses him.
Let's figure out who has standing.
December 18, 2025 at 9:51 PM
On the most recent Serious Trouble I remarked that asking whether someone has standing is increasingly like asking whether an elf can wield an axe in Dungeons & Dragons: it’s an arbitrary fantasy-based question determined by the 6-3 DM, who does whatever amuses him.
Reposted
Inject this into my veins.
If you’ve already accepted that the law doesn’t matter, what are we even fighting to protect here?
If you’ve already accepted that the law doesn’t matter, what are we even fighting to protect here?
NB: When I, a professor of law, profess that an act is unlawful, I am not doing it to inform the lawbreaker, but rather to inform you, the reader.
So the question “what, like you think he cares?” is inapposite. The question is whether *you* care. I think you should, which is why I bother.
So the question “what, like you think he cares?” is inapposite. The question is whether *you* care. I think you should, which is why I bother.
December 18, 2025 at 9:08 PM
Inject this into my veins.
If you’ve already accepted that the law doesn’t matter, what are we even fighting to protect here?
If you’ve already accepted that the law doesn’t matter, what are we even fighting to protect here?
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Muting a Black woman to claim the vote was unanimous is so incredibly on the nose
The White House claims the vote to rename the Kennedy Center was “unanimous.” That is false. I was muted on the call and denied the opportunity to speak or register my opposition. That is not consensus. That is censorship.
December 18, 2025 at 10:22 PM
Muting a Black woman to claim the vote was unanimous is so incredibly on the nose
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Wednesday morning, 7 ICE agents in Salisbury, MD, smashed in windows & violently dragged a mother out of her car while she was dropping her daughter off at elementary school.
These abusive tactics are absolutely unacceptable.
www.baltimoresun.com/2025/12/17/s...
These abusive tactics are absolutely unacceptable.
www.baltimoresun.com/2025/12/17/s...
ICE operation near Salisbury school sparks outrage, questions
Witnesses say an apparent ICE raid near a Salisbury elementary school involved smashed car windows and terrified neighbors.
www.baltimoresun.com
December 18, 2025 at 10:30 PM
Wednesday morning, 7 ICE agents in Salisbury, MD, smashed in windows & violently dragged a mother out of her car while she was dropping her daughter off at elementary school.
These abusive tactics are absolutely unacceptable.
www.baltimoresun.com/2025/12/17/s...
These abusive tactics are absolutely unacceptable.
www.baltimoresun.com/2025/12/17/s...
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FOUR new deaths in ICE detention. That puts the total this year at 30 people dead; the highest in ICE's history and worse than even during the COVID years.
It's clear that the system is breaking down. Many of these are preventable deaths.
It's clear that the system is breaking down. Many of these are preventable deaths.
In the 90 minutes since I posted this, I've gotten two more death notifications.
ICE has a responsibility to take care of these people, something they are clearly disregarding. This is beyond horrifying. We must ensure dignity and humanity for detained people in this country.
ICE has a responsibility to take care of these people, something they are clearly disregarding. This is beyond horrifying. We must ensure dignity and humanity for detained people in this country.
Within 15 minutes today, I got two back-to-back notifications of deaths at ICE facilities.
28 people have died in ICE custody since Trump took office. These facilities are overcrowded & are putting their own profits over health and safety. We need oversight & accountability NOW.
28 people have died in ICE custody since Trump took office. These facilities are overcrowded & are putting their own profits over health and safety. We need oversight & accountability NOW.
December 18, 2025 at 7:53 PM
FOUR new deaths in ICE detention. That puts the total this year at 30 people dead; the highest in ICE's history and worse than even during the COVID years.
It's clear that the system is breaking down. Many of these are preventable deaths.
It's clear that the system is breaking down. Many of these are preventable deaths.
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it's so cool that he was able to run for president again and people elected him. just awesome stuff.
NEW: Jack Smith told lawmakers he developed "proof beyond a reasonable doubt” that Trump engaged in a “criminal scheme” to overturn his election loss.
www.nbcnews.com/politics/jus...
www.nbcnews.com/politics/jus...
Jack Smith tells Congress he could prove Trump engaged in a 'criminal scheme' to overturn 2020 election
Smith testified about his investigations into Trump during a closed-door hearing with members of the House Judiciary Committee.
www.nbcnews.com
December 17, 2025 at 5:56 PM
it's so cool that he was able to run for president again and people elected him. just awesome stuff.
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Bovino, the man overseeing mass deportations, publicly declared that we must all have our papers on us, at all times, or we could be stopped, harassed, kidnapped, and detained, as they did with the man in this case, who is a US citizen.
December 13, 2025 at 2:32 PM
Bovino, the man overseeing mass deportations, publicly declared that we must all have our papers on us, at all times, or we could be stopped, harassed, kidnapped, and detained, as they did with the man in this case, who is a US citizen.
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"The jury verdict from 10 years ago contains a scrivener's error insofar as it states that the defendant was not guilty. We are changing that, nunc pro tunc, to guilty."
Yeah, no.
Yeah, no.
It is not! A “scrivener’s error” is for things like fixing typos or very minor non-material errors, not retroactively adding a deportation order that doesn’t current exist!
Is "correcting" a previous order like this a real thing?
December 12, 2025 at 4:26 PM
"The jury verdict from 10 years ago contains a scrivener's error insofar as it states that the defendant was not guilty. We are changing that, nunc pro tunc, to guilty."
Yeah, no.
Yeah, no.
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one thing that doesn’t get enough coverage or comment with regards to this administration is it how much it hates the actually existing united states
Trump Administration Scraps Plan to Mint Quarters Featuring Abolition, Suffrage
The move comes as a controversial $1 Trump coin for the nation’s 250th birthday is also being considered.
www.wsj.com
December 11, 2025 at 9:05 PM
one thing that doesn’t get enough coverage or comment with regards to this administration is it how much it hates the actually existing united states
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It actually happened apnews.com/article/abre...
Kilmar Abrego Garcia freed from federal immigration detention, his attorney's office says
Kilmar Abrego Garcia has been released from an immigration detention center in Pennsylvania following an order from a federal judge issued Thursday, according to his attorney’s office.
apnews.com
December 12, 2025 at 12:04 AM
It actually happened apnews.com/article/abre...
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Their closing message to Indiana: change your maps to artificially benefit the President's political party or 'roads will not be paved' as punishment.
They are openly saying this.
Who would want to live in a country that works like that?
They are openly saying this.
Who would want to live in a country that works like that?
December 11, 2025 at 9:30 PM
Their closing message to Indiana: change your maps to artificially benefit the President's political party or 'roads will not be paved' as punishment.
They are openly saying this.
Who would want to live in a country that works like that?
They are openly saying this.
Who would want to live in a country that works like that?
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This case hasn't gotten enough attention:
27yo Palestinian asylum seeker Mohammed Abushanab has been detained by ICE for 17 months—even though an immigration judge in February granted humanitarian relief from deportation bc he faced likely torture if sent back to the West Bank.
27yo Palestinian asylum seeker Mohammed Abushanab has been detained by ICE for 17 months—even though an immigration judge in February granted humanitarian relief from deportation bc he faced likely torture if sent back to the West Bank.
December 11, 2025 at 8:16 PM
This case hasn't gotten enough attention:
27yo Palestinian asylum seeker Mohammed Abushanab has been detained by ICE for 17 months—even though an immigration judge in February granted humanitarian relief from deportation bc he faced likely torture if sent back to the West Bank.
27yo Palestinian asylum seeker Mohammed Abushanab has been detained by ICE for 17 months—even though an immigration judge in February granted humanitarian relief from deportation bc he faced likely torture if sent back to the West Bank.
Reposted
ICE are thug scum.
ICE detain U.S. citizen for looking Somali—use illegal chokehold to tackle him to ground.
Man repeatedly begs agents to look at his digital passport ID—they refuse.
Drove him 7 miles away before releasing him alone into Minnesota snow storm—told him to "walk home" in freezing weather advisory.
Man repeatedly begs agents to look at his digital passport ID—they refuse.
Drove him 7 miles away before releasing him alone into Minnesota snow storm—told him to "walk home" in freezing weather advisory.
December 11, 2025 at 4:37 AM
ICE are thug scum.
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SZA reacts to the White House using her SNL song for an ICE video:
“White House rage baiting artists for free promo is PEAK DARK ..inhumanity +shock and aw tactics ….Evil n Boring ”
“White House rage baiting artists for free promo is PEAK DARK ..inhumanity +shock and aw tactics ….Evil n Boring ”
December 10, 2025 at 9:48 PM
SZA reacts to the White House using her SNL song for an ICE video:
“White House rage baiting artists for free promo is PEAK DARK ..inhumanity +shock and aw tactics ….Evil n Boring ”
“White House rage baiting artists for free promo is PEAK DARK ..inhumanity +shock and aw tactics ….Evil n Boring ”
Reposted
I'm sorry, on what authority??
And here we go www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
US Seizes Oil Tanker Off the Coast of Venezuela
US forces have intercepted and seized a sanctioned oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, according to people familiar with the matter, a move that marks a serious escalation of tensions between the t...
www.bloomberg.com
December 10, 2025 at 6:54 PM
I'm sorry, on what authority??
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It's been truly remarkable to see the grand jury system actually act as a real line of defense.
Especially since--as I bet most non-lawyers don't know--the only legal person in the GJ room is the prosecutor: no defense, no judge.
There is NO place more favorable to the state. And they keep losing.
Especially since--as I bet most non-lawyers don't know--the only legal person in the GJ room is the prosecutor: no defense, no judge.
There is NO place more favorable to the state. And they keep losing.
JUST IN: Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Snell just confirmed, at the prodding of U.S. Magistrate Judge Keri Holleb Hotaling, that this motion for dismissal followed a "no bill" from a grand jury.
That means the grand jury refused to indict.
That means the grand jury refused to indict.
U.S. prosecutors in Chicago are dropping another case tied to Operation Midway Blitz, "without prejudice."
It's USA v. Nathan Griffin. Below is the motion, followed by excerpts from the complaint.
The feds don't say why they're dropping it, but they had until today to secure an indictment.
It's USA v. Nathan Griffin. Below is the motion, followed by excerpts from the complaint.
The feds don't say why they're dropping it, but they had until today to secure an indictment.
December 10, 2025 at 4:31 PM
It's been truly remarkable to see the grand jury system actually act as a real line of defense.
Especially since--as I bet most non-lawyers don't know--the only legal person in the GJ room is the prosecutor: no defense, no judge.
There is NO place more favorable to the state. And they keep losing.
Especially since--as I bet most non-lawyers don't know--the only legal person in the GJ room is the prosecutor: no defense, no judge.
There is NO place more favorable to the state. And they keep losing.
Reposted
it's stunning that the pentagon asked this question, obviously, but it's also interesting that the lawyers at state were actually listened to
NEW: Pentagon lawyers asked State Dept. if US could send survivors of Trump's boat strikes to a notorious prison in El Salvador. Then Pentagon pushed to have survivors sent anywhere but the US — to prevent any US court cases. Gift link to our @nytimes.com story: www.nytimes.com/2025/12/09/u...
Inside the Pentagon’s Scramble to Deal With Boat Strike Survivors
www.nytimes.com
December 10, 2025 at 3:23 AM
it's stunning that the pentagon asked this question, obviously, but it's also interesting that the lawyers at state were actually listened to