Alternet: ‘You just turned your back’: Pro-Trump veterans furious after he cuts critical VA program

NPR reports the Trump administration is now canceling a program designed to help veterans behind on home loans get new, low-interest mortgages. And veterans are furious.

“My social media posts have not been nice to the director of the VA and have not been nice to Trump. And I voted for the guy!” said Jon Henry, who served in Iraq during the first Gulf War.

Last month, the Veterans Administration abruptly killed its VA Servicing Purchase (VASP) safety net program, which has helped more than 33,000 veterans and service members, according to the VA. But this most recent service cancellation is only the latest in a VA mortgage roller-coaster leaving service members confused about what help the federal government actually provides, if any.

https://www.alternet.org/donald-trump-veterans-2672402665

Axios: Trump’s border czar: Immigration raids at farms, hotels to continue

Following a week of immigration whiplash, President Trump’s border czar Tom Homan confirmed Thursday that immigration raids will continue in the agriculture and hospitality industries.

While workers at places like farms, restaurants and hotels will be targeted, people with criminal backgrounds will be a priority for immigration enforcement officials, the border czar said.

Criminals will be a priority? That’s just lip service. All they care about are the numbers.

“We’re going to continue to do worksite enforcement operations, even on farms and hotels, but based on a prioritized basis. Criminals come first,” Homan told reporters.

https://www.axios.com/2025/06/19/trump-immigration-raids-farms-hotels-border-czar

Alternet: ‘Ineffective security theater’: Lawmaker blasts Kristi Noem ahead of Michigan visit

Michigan state senator Mallory McMorrow (D) strongly criticized Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem Thursday ahead of Noem’s visit to Michigan.

“Kristi Noem is headed to Michigan to fearmonger about border security with… Canada,” Mallory said on the social platform X.

“The Trump administration’s mass deportation boondoggle is nothing but security theater that actually make us LESS safe,” she added.

McMorrow continued: “All to the tune of an additional $1 TRILLION in your taxpayer dollars.”

In a video attached to her X post, the Michigan lawmaker said immigrants are being arrested even when they show up to their court hearings and try to follow the legal pathway to immigration. She called Noem’s immigration actions “ineffective security theater.”

McMorrow accused the Trump administration of going after people “who have committed no egregious crimes” “Like an 18-year-old student just three credits away from high school graduation here in Michigan,” she added.

On Wednesday, NBC reported that seven Senate Democrats who supported Noem’s confirmation as DHS secretary in January are now expressing regret and disillusionment with her performance.

https://www.alternet.org/kristi-noem-michigan

Style on Main: Home Depot Preps Staff as ICE Targets Over 30,500 Employees Nationwide

Recent Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids have targeted day laborers who congregate around Home Depot stores across the United States, disrupting a longstanding informal labor market. These raids are part of an intensified immigration enforcement campaign under the Trump administration, which aims to increase deportations beyond violent criminals to undocumented workers broadly.

Home Depot stores have become unique hubs where day laborers and contractors meet despite the company’s official policy against solicitation on its property. This informal system has provided mutual benefits for decades, but the recent ICE actions have created operational challenges and fear among workers and communities. Home Depot is now preparing its employees for potential encounters with ICE agents, emphasizing safety and reporting protocols as the raids unfolded nationwide.

The ICE raids have instilled fear among immigrant workers, many of whom now avoid Home Depot parking lots. This has led to significant drops in day laborer presence and disruptions to local labor markets. Workers staying home out of fear affects business operations and local economies dependent on their labor.

Community backlash has included protests and public outcry following arrests near Home Depot locations, particularly in Latino communities. These enforcement actions have strained relations between immigrant communities, local businesses, and law enforcement, amplifying tensions and uncertainty.

Washington Examiner: ICE sweeping up ‘essential workers’ as raids spread nationwide

Illegal immigrant workers in the agriculture and hospitality industries continue to be targeted for arrest by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement following President Donald Trump’s recent decision not to exempt them from his deportation operation.

On Monday, 84 workers who lack legal immigration status were arrested at a southwest Louisiana racetrack, the agency announced Wednesday.

Fourteen farmworkers who work for Lynn-Ette & Sons in upstate New York’s Orleans County were taken into custody by federal immigration authorities last Friday as the White House mulled over whether to target working immigrants or focus on criminals.

The United Farm Workers union told the Washington Examiner on Wednesday that it has recently identified workers in Georgia, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington who were arrested or deported, going beyond the known arrests in California, New Mexico, and Nebraska reported last week.

Rebecca Shi, CEO for the American Business Immigration Coalition, said ICE raids are being reported “across red, blue, and purple states alike.”

“We’ve heard growing concern from our members across multiple sectors,” Shi said in a statement to the Washington Examiner. “What we’re seeing is a pattern of sudden, chaotic raids that don’t appear to be narrowly focused on dangerous individuals. Instead, they’re sweeping up essential workers who are doing critical jobs and contributing to their communities.”

CNN: DHS issues new guidance for lawmakers visiting ICE facilities after tense confrontations

After a spate of tense encounters involving lawmakers at Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities, the Department of Homeland Security is asking members of Congress to provide 72 hours of notice before visiting detention centers, according to new guidance.

Under the annual appropriations act, lawmakers are allowed to enter any DHS facilities “used to detain or otherwise house aliens” to inspect them as part of their oversight duties. The act outlines that they are not required “to provide prior notice of the intent to enter a facility.”

The agency’s new memo also seeks to differentiate ICE field offices from detention facilities, noting that “ICE Field Offices are not detention facilities” and therefore do not fall under the appropriations act provision.  

Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, the top Democrat on the Homeland Security Committee, called the move “unprecedented” and an “affront to the Constitution and Federal law.”

https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/19/politics/dhs-ice-visits-congress-lawmakers

Miami Herald: Blue State Faces DOJ Lawsuit After Defying ICE

President Donald Trump has prioritized immigration enforcement by aiming to empower Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The Department of Justice (DOJ) has sued New York over the Protect Our Courts Act, which restricts federal immigration actions near courthouses, highlighting efforts to address laws that may enable dangerous criminals to avoid law enforcement.

The Protect Our Courts Act prohibits ICE from making civil arrests at courthouses. The Trump administration claimed the law and state orders have violated the Supremacy Clause and obstructed federal enforcement.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/blue-state-faces-doj-lawsuit-after-defying-ice/ss-AA1H632t

Alternet: ‘Embarrassing boondoggle’: Trump’s ‘big beautiful wall’ is now on life support in Texas

Long before President Donald Trump pushed the One Big, Beautiful Bill Act of 2025, he called for a “big, beautiful wall” on the U.S./Mexico border. And of the four U.S. states that shared a border with Mexico, GOP-leaning Texas had the loudest and most vocal support for the wall.

But MSNBC’s Ja’han Jones, in his June 19 column, stresses that Trump’s “big, beautiful wall” now seems to be on life support in the Lone Star State.

“Texas appears to have quietly stopped funding its plans to construct its own border wall with Mexico, which could mark the end of an embarrassing boondoggle designed to bolster one of President Donald Trump’s early campaign slogans,” Jones explains. “For years, conservatives have framed the idea of a border wall as essential to immigration enforcement, despite a chorus of critics denouncing it as costly and ineffective. And Texas Republicans’ decision to defund the project seems like a tacit acknowledgment of that reality.”

https://www.alternet.org/trump-border-wall-texas-msnbc

MSNBC: Maddow Blog | Eager for influence, Trump rejects evidence, claims his support is at ‘an all-time high’

When American presidents are struggling with their public support, they have plenty of credible choices. They can say they’re focused on governing, not polls. They can say they expect to see a turnaround in the near future. They can say that the only polls that matter are election results. They can even argue that they care more about being right than being popular.

What they should not do is make stuff up.

And yet, there was Donald Trump on Tuesday, arguing by way of his social media platform that his approval rating has reached “an all-time high.” The next morning, at a White House event, the Republican echoed the line, claiming that his approval rating is now “the highest it’s ever been.”

It’s really not.

Reminds me of Muammar “My People Love Me” Gaddafi’s last words!

https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/eager-influence-trump-rejects-evidence-claims-support-time-high-rcna213952

Alternet: Karoline [Bimbo #1] Leavitt ‘rushes to soothe’ Trump as he rages over new polling

President Donald Trump exploded over a new Fox News poll showing him upside down on approval. The poll — likely to connect with Fox-viewing Trump — reported 46 percent overall approval for his job performance as president and 54 percent disapproving.

Trump blasted the survey on Truth Social: “They are always wrong and anegative. It’s why MAGA HATES FoxNews … . This has gone on for years, but they never change the incompetent polling company that does their work.”

Aww … poor crybaby narcissist!

https://www.alternet.org/news-politics/donald-trump-polling-fox-news