Tag Archives: Congress

Mediaite: Hakeem Jeffries Promises Kristi Noem Will Be One of the First Dragged Before Congress When Dems Win Majority

Posted on by
Reply

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) promised that Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem can expect to be one of the first officials made to answer for the Trump administration’s treatment of migrants during a recent podcast appearance.

Jeffries told The Bulwark‘s Tim Miller on Monday that judgment day will come after the 2026 elections.

“It’s my expectation that Kristi Noem will be one of the first people hauled up to Congress shortly after the gavels change hands to get a real understanding for the American people as to this conduct that has taken place. The lack of respect for due process, for the rule of law. The unleashing of masked agents on law-abiding immigrant communities, and the disappearing of people in some instances, to other countries without any real evidence that criminal behavior took place,” he said.

Jeffries said he’s all for deporting violent criminals and felons, “but not law-abiding immigrant families, including in some instances, U.S. citizen children who’ve been sent overseas to a place that they’ve never known.”

Jeffries added that “all of this is going to require aggressive oversight activity.”

If Noem’s former grilling by Democratic lawmakers is any indication, both sides are in for a fight.

In the spring, Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-NH) shamed Noem for incorrectly defining a basic tenant of U.S. constitutional protections.

“Habeas corpus is a constitutional right the president has to be able to remove people from this country,” Noem said, causing Hassan to fire back, “Excuse me, that’s incorrect…habeas corpus is the legal principal that requires that the government provide a public reason for detaining and imprisoning people. If not for that protection, the government could simply arrest people, including American citizens, and hold them indefinitely.”

“I also recognize that the president of the United States has the authority under the Constitution to decide if it should be suspended or not,” Noem said of habeas corpus.

“It has never been done without approval of Congress,” Hassan answered back. “Even Abraham Lincoln got retroactive approval from Congress.”

Hakeem Jeffries Promises Kristi Noem Will Be One of the First Dragged Before Congress When Dems Win Majority
Hakeem Jeffries promised that DHS chief Kristi Noem can expect to be one of the first officials made to answer for the treatment of migrants.
Hakeem Jeffries Promises Kristi Noem Will Be One of the First Dragged Before Congress When Dems Win Majority

Politico: ‘We are arresting the mayor right now, per the deputy attorney general’

Posted on by
Reply

An account of bodycam footage, submitted in a recent court filling, provides new detail about a confrontation outside a New Jersey immigration facility.

The federal officer who arrested the mayor of New Jersey’s largest city outside an immigration detention center in May suggested that he was making the arrest at the direction of the Justice Department’s No. 2 official, Todd Blanche, according to law enforcement body camera footage described in a new court filing.

The filing, from Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.), sheds new light on the chaotic scene on May 9 when Democratic lawmakers and Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, attempting to conduct an oversight visit, clashed with immigration agents. Baraka was arrested for trespassing, but that charge was dropped. McIver was later charged with assaulting federal agents; she is seeking to get the case dismissed.

According to McIver’s attorneys, a Department of Homeland Security special agent was on the phone as the events unfolded that day. Citing bodycam footage they obtained in the case, the attorneys wrote that the special agent, after hanging up the call, turned to a group of fellow agents and announced: “We are arresting the mayor right now, per the deputy attorney general of the United States. Anyone that gets in our way, I need you guys to give me a perimeter so I can cuff him.”

POLITICO has not reviewed the bodycam video. Although the footage was submitted as an exhibit in the case, it was not yet publicly available. A spokesperson for the Justice Department did not respond to requests for comment, and a response from the Department of Homeland Security did not address whether Blanche had ordered the agents to make the arrest.

The special agent’s apparent suggestion that he was acting at Blanche’s direction is the latest sign that top Justice Department officials are harnessing the power of law enforcement against Democrats and other perceived enemies of President Donald Trump. Trump’s DOJ has opened investigations into various figures Trump disdains, including Jack Smith, James Comey, former Homeland Security aides who criticized him and many others.

Federal law enforcement officials have also detained New York City Comptroller Brad Lander and handcuffed California Sen. Alex Padilla.

For months, Democrats have wondered if agents at the Newark immigration detention center had been instructed by a superior to arrest Baraka. Witness accounts and other video footage taken that day showed the mayor had been allowed inside a gated area by a guard, stood there peacefully for the better part of an hour and left the gated area when federal agents threatened him with arrest. That day, Rep. Rob Menendez (D-N.J.) told POLITICO that he’d witnessed an agent inside the gated area talking on the phone with someone who told the agent to arrest Baraka, who by the time of the call was outside the gate. McIver gave a similar account in a press conference at the time.

The description of the bodycam footage submitted in court last week by McIver’s attorneys bolsters that account. Quoting from the footage, her attorneys wrote that the special agent on the phone said of Baraka during the call: “Even though he stepped out, I am going to put him in cuffs.”

Then the agent made the comment about arresting the mayor “per the deputy attorney general.” Moments later, law enforcement officials came out of the gate and arrested Baraka, setting off a scrum involving the mayor and members of Congress. McIver is accused in a three-count indictment of slamming the special agent with her forearm, “forcibly” grabbing him and using her forearms to strike another agent. She has pleaded not guilty.

Less than two weeks later, federal prosecutors dropped a trespassing charge against Baraka. But a federal judge chided the effort to charge him in the first place. Magistrate Judge André M. Espinosa called it an “embarrassing retraction” that “suggests a failure to adequately investigate, to carefully gather facts and to thoughtfully consider the implications of your actions before wielding your immense power.”

Baraka is the progressive mayor of New Jersey’s largest city and at the time of his arrest was seeking the Democratic nomination for governor, an election he has since lost. Separately, he is suing the Trump administration for “malicious prosecution” in a lawsuit that names acting U.S. Attorney Alina Habba and Ricky Patel, a special agent in charge for Homeland Security Investigations’ Newark Division.

According to a comparison of court documents filed in the Baraka and McIver cases, Patel is the special agent overheard on the bodycam footage referring to the deputy attorney general.

McIver tries to harness Trump immunity ruling

The new revelations about the episode came in legal briefs asking to have McIver’s own case thrown out.

As part of that effort, McIver asked the judge overseeing the case, U.S. District Judge Jamel Semper, to rule that lawmakers have the same kind of immunity from prosecutions that the Supreme Court gave Trump.

Her attorneys said McIver’s visit to the detention facility, known as Delaney Hall, was a legislative act she cannot be prosecuted for. They cited the Supreme Court ruling last summer that gave Trump immunity from criminal prosecution for some actions he took during his first presidential term while fighting to subvert the 2020 election.

McIver’s attorneys also argued that she is facing intimidation and that Habba’s office, which is prosecuting the case, is undermining the Constitution’s “Speech or Debate” Clause. That clause grants members of Congress a form of immunity that is mostly impenetrable in investigations relating to the official duties of lawmakers, their aides or other congressional officials.

The Department of Homeland Security said the argument is laughable.

“Suggesting that physically assaulting a federal law enforcement officer is ‘legitimate legislative activity’ covered by legislative immunity makes a joke of all three branches of government at once,” the Homeland Security Department’s assistant secretary, Tricia McLaughlin, said in a statement.

If lawmakers don’t continue to receive such protections, McIver’s legal team warns of dire consequences for the country.

“If these charges are allowed to move forward, they will send a chilling message to Congress on the risk it takes when it scrutinizes the Administration’s activities,” McIver’s defense team wrote. “The Speech or Debate Clause was designed to prevent that kind of message and intimidation.”

Former Sen. Bob Menendez — Rob Menendez’s father — has tried to use the speech or debate clause to shield himself from corruption charges. He is now serving an 11-year prison sentence and appealing the conviction. McIver’s attorneys cited a 3rd Circuit ruling against Menendez in 2016 — who was then facing different corruption charges that were later dropped — as making clear that members of Congress do have immunity for legislative actions but that the allegations against him were for things beyond the scope of that immunity. McIver’s team argued the Menendez case “could not be more different” from hers.

In another legal filing made last week, McIver also sought to dismiss the charges against her based on unconstitutional “selective” and “vindictive” prosecution, noting that the Justice Department walked away from prosecutions of hundreds of defendants from Jan. 6, 2021, despite clear video of many attacking police officers.

‘We are arresting the mayor right now, per the deputy attorney general’
An account of bodycam footage, submitted in a recent court filling, provides new detail about a confrontation outside a New Jersey immigration facility.

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/08/18/newark-mayor-arrest-bodycam-footage-todd-blanche-00513734

Law & Crime: Judge shreds Trump admin for ‘nonsensical’ bid to terminate 28-year policy that protects immigrant children in federal custody

Posted on by
Reply

A federal judge in California has shot down an attempt by the Trump administration to scrub away the government’s 28-year-old Flores Settlement Agreement, which calls for court-mandated oversight on the treatment of immigrant children in federal custody.

U.S. District Judge Dolly Gee issued a 20-page order on Friday, keeping the 1997 agreement in place as Justice Department lawyers “fail to identify any new facts or law” that warrant its termination “at this time,” according to the Barack Obama appointee.

The administration had previously tried terminating the Flores agreement in 2019 at the end of Donald Trump‘s first term, but was unsuccessful then, too. Gee reportedly called a hearing last week on the matter “deja vu” as the government tried propping up similar arguments.

“The court remains unconvinced,” Gee wrote in Friday’s order. “There is nothing new under the sun regarding the facts or the law.”

Under the Flores Settlement Agreement, immigrant children must be held at “state-licensed” facilities — treated properly and humanely — before being released into the custody of family members or guardians “as expeditiously as possible,” per Gee’s order. The settlement is named after Jenny Lisette Flores, a 15-year-old detainee who sparked a class-action lawsuit to be filed in 1985.

The Trump administration recently argued that the Flores agreement was no longer needed because Congress had approved legislation to help deal with the issues the settlement addressed. It also claimed that government agencies had implemented practices and standards to ensure youths were being treated properly.

“The legal basis for the agreement has withered away,” DOJ lawyers argued in a May 22 motion for relief. “Congress enacted legislation protecting UACs [unaccompanied alien children], and the agencies promulgated detailed standards and regulations implementing that legislation and the terms of the FSA,” the lawyers said, blasting the agreement as an “intrusive regime” that has “ossified” federal immigration policy.

“The legal and policy landscape has also changed beyond recognition,” they added.

Gee noted Friday how she had heard this all before.

“These improvements are direct evidence that the FSA is serving its intended purpose, but to suggest that the agreement should be abandoned because some progress has been made is nonsensical,” the judge blasted.

“Incredulously, defendants posit that DHS need not promulgate regulations containing an expeditious release provision because ‘this Court has interpreted [expeditious release] to apply to accompanied children,'” Gee explained. “But ‘the FSA was intended to provide for prompt release of unaccompanied children.’ This is plainly incorrect and ignores the rulings of at least three separate courts.”

Gee concluded her order by saying it was ultimately the Trump administration that “continues to bind itself to the FSA by failing to fulfill its side of the parties’ bargain.”

Lawyers for immigrant children named in the class action complaint that spurred all this have said Trump’s second term has seen similar violations of the Flores agreement that have been alleged in the past.

“In CBP facilities across the country, including in cases documented by class counsel in New York, Maine, Illinois, Ohio, Arizona, Texas, and California, plaintiffs report being held for days and sometimes weeks in restrictive, traumatic conditions,” the lawyers said in a June 17 motion to enforce the FSA. One parent, whose allegations were included in the motion, described how they and their child were held at a facility where “the rooms have hard walls, like cement, and there is a window facing the hall but you cannot go out or see the sun,” per the motion.

“We are never allowed to go out,” the parent said. “The children keep telling us, ‘This is not America.’ They feel imprisoned and confused. They are seeing the sun for the first time in this interview room. They both ran to the window and stared out, and my son asked, ‘Is that America?'”

The plaintiffs’ lawyers accused the Trump administration of wanting to be released from the settlement “not because they have complied with and will continue to observe its fundamental principles, but because they want the flexibility to treat children however they wish,” according to the June motion.

DOJ officials did not respond to Law&Crime’s requests for comment Sunday.

Judge rips Trump admin for ‘nonsensical’ bid to shred care standards for migrant children
The Trump administration has failed to scrub away the government’s 28-year-old Flores Settlement Agreement, which calls for court-mandated oversight on the treatment of immigrant children.
‘Nonsensical’: Judge shreds Trump admin for attempt to ‘incredulously’ terminate 28-year policy that protects immigrant children in federal custody

America Uncovered: What Trump’s Proposal Could Mean for the 14th Amendment

Posted on by
Reply
What Trump’s Proposal Could Mean for the 14th Amendment
Former President Trump reignited the debate over birthright citizenship with a proposal that could challenge the 14th Amendment. This video explains what it means and why it matters.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/what-trump-s-proposal-could-mean-for-the-14th-amendment/vi-AA1HPtzp

Kansas City Star: Trump Suffers Double Legal Blow

Posted on by
Reply

District Judge Jennifer Thurston has ordered the release of Syrian asylum seeker Salam Maklad and barred her rearrest without constitutional safeguards. Advocates have raised concerns that contested grant rules are disrupting essential services, while officials have noted that the cases have tested federal authority.

In addition to Thurston’s decision, U.S. District Judge William Smith has blocked new Justice Department grant conditions related to diversity, equity, inclusion, and transgender rights. Both rulings represent legal blows to the Trump administration, as they directly challenge and overturn key policy actions.

Both rulings, issued this month, limit the administration’s ability to enforce its immigration and social policy priorities. Critics say this highlights judicial checks on executive authority despite Republican control in Congress and the White House.

Thurston wrote, “Respondents are PERMANENTLY ENJOINED AND RESTRAINED from re-arresting or re-detaining Ms. Maklad absent compliance with constitutional protections, which include at a minimum, pre-deprivation notice—describing the change of circumstances necessitating her arrest—and detention, and a timely bond hearing.”

Thurston added, “At any such hearing, the Government SHALL bear the burden of establishing, by clear and convincing evidence, that Ms. Maklad poses a danger to the community or a risk of flight, and Ms. Maklad SHALL be allowed to have her counsel present.”

Thurston ordered Maklad’s release after an ICE check-in triggered her detention, noting she has no criminal history and is not a flight risk. She barred ICE from rearresting Maklad without notice of changed circumstances and a timely bond hearing.

Smith granted preliminary relief to 17 nonprofits challenging updated Office on Violence Against Women grant terms. He found the conditions likely arbitrary under federal law.

Smith wrote, “On the one hand, if the Court does not grant preliminary relief, then the Coalitions will face real and immediate irreparable harm from the challenged conditions, conditions which the Court has already concluded likely violate the APA.”

Smith added, “This could result in the disruption of important and, in some cases, life saving services to victims of sexual assault and domestic violence. On the other hand, if the Court grants preliminary relief, then the Office will simply have to consider grant applications and award funding as it normally does.”

Democracy Forward President Skye Perryman said, “The Justice Department should be exploring what they can be doing to keep people and communities safe, not threatening funding for local and community organizations with proven results.”

Trump Suffers Double Legal Blow

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/trump-suffers-double-legal-blow/ss-AA1KGtBW

Idaho Statesman: Idaho Christian nationalists embrace the immoral if they have power | Opinion

Posted on by
Reply

Women should not be allowed to vote, according to the cult to which Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth belongs:

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth recently shared on X an interview with Moscow Pastor Doug Wilson, a key figure in the Christian nationalist movement who argues that women should be subordinate to men – even to the point that they should not be allowed to vote.

The movement has been emboldened by the re-election of President Donald Trump, and the CNN report Hegseth shared details the ongoing effort among Wilson and his allies to gain political power.

And the episode contains another important lesson: That the essential part of Christian nationalism is right-wing nationalism, while Christianity is a secondary, accidental feature.

The point is to gain power for a reactionary kind of political and cultural view – hence the movement’s constant insistence on the submission of women to men; the sympathy for the Old South, even to the point of defending slavery; constant attacks on gay and transgender people; occasionally downplaying the Holocaust and so on – and Christianity is a pretty cloak to wrap that foul project in.

This explains their consistent embrace of individuals who relentlessly exhibit personal debauchery – so long as they have political power – people like Hegseth and Trump.

To recite the obvious: Trump has been found liable for sexually abusing a woman, has bragged about his ability to sexually assault women at will, faced complaints about leering at teenage contestants in the locker rooms of beauty pageants, has cheated (often ostentatiously) on all three of his wives and faces numerous other credible allegations of sexual misconduct.

Hegseth, Trump’s moral clone, has faced credible allegations of sexual assault and admitted cheating on the mother of his children with five different women. His former sister-in-law has alleged he abused his next wife. His drunken escapades have become notorious.

“I have no respect for any man that belittles, lies, cheats, sleeps around and uses women for his own power and ego,” wrote one of his critics. “You are that man (and have been for years) and as your mother, it pains me and embarrasses me to say that, but it is the sad, sad truth.”

When the idea is that only families, led by a husband, can vote, Hegseth dons the demeanor of a pious Christian and declares, “All of Christ for All of Life.” But the moment his marriage requires him to be faithful, his Bible hits the floor just before his pants.

We are all poor sinners, it’s true. But doesn’t it seem strange that the Kingdom of God would be brought forth by the most degenerate among us? Maybe it’s worth thinking about false prophets and the idea that “you will know them by their fruit.”

The Christian nationalist movement’s embrace of people like this can be understood in much the same way as the massive hoard of pornography found on the outwardly pious Osama bin Laden’s hard drives after his death: It shows that terrorism was his primary commitment, and his religion was a situationally dispensable secondary matter.

In the CNN segment, Wilson argued that working for a theocratic takeover of Idaho government is nothing but tending “our little corner of the vineyard.” Asked if Muslims in Idaho should have to live by Christian law, Wilson responded: “If I went to Saudi Arabia, I would fully expect to live under their God’s rules.”

But Idaho is not Wilson’s little corner of the vinyard.

What the Christian nationalist movement proposes is not a return to Idaho’s older and better days. It is the imposition of a new and fundamentally alien order. The equality of women, even if never perfectly realized, has been deeply threaded through Idaho’s history and tradition from the very beginning.

Unlike in many eastern states, the right of women to vote was not a late development in Idaho’s history. Only six years after Idaho’s 1890 founding, the right of women to vote was enshrined in the state Constitution – with the overwhelming approval of the then-all-male electorate – making ours the fourth state to protect universal suffrage.

That is our heritage.

Two years later, in 1898, Permeal J. French became Idaho’s first female constitutional officer when she was elected state superintendent. After that, Idaho has always had at least one woman in statewide office or Congress, except for a brief period between 2013 and 2014 between the resignation of State Controller Donna Jones and the election of Superintendent Sherri Ybarra.

That is our history.

The point isn’t for America or Idaho to be Saudi Arabia with a different religion. The point is for America and for Idaho to be free.

If Wilson doesn’t like that, maybe he should find another vineyard. Maybe the aforementioned Saudi Arabia, where it’s illegal to be gay, where women can’t vote, where institutions quite like slavery persist, where most of what Wilson and his cohort want for Idaho is already accomplished.

Sure, there may theological differences, but what’s a minor philosophical disagreement between friends, especially when they agree about pretty much everything else?

Idaho Christian nationalists embrace the immoral if they have power | Opinion
The moment Hegseth’s marriage requires him to be faithful, his Bible hits the floor just before his pants. | Opinion

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/idaho-christian-nationalists-embrace-the-immoral-if-they-have-power-opinion/ar-AA1KAseo

Newsweek: Social Security predicted to run out of money sooner due to Trump bill

Posted on by
Reply

A federal actuary has acknowledged that Social Security trusts will begin to become insolvent by 2034, with just 81 percent of beneficiaries estimated to receive their promised benefits.

Chief Actuary Karen Glenn wrote in a letter to Democratic Senator Ron Wyden, a Senate Finance Committee ranking member, on Tuesday: “Because the revenue from income taxation of Social Security benefits is directed to the Social Security and Medicare trust funds, implementation of the OBBBA will have material effects on the financial status of the Social Security trust funds.”

“The ‘One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act’ provides historic tax relief to America’s seniors,” a Social Security Administration (SSA) spokesperson told Newsweek on Thursday. “As Commissioner [Frank] Bisignano has repeatedly emphasized, ensuring the long-term financial health of these trust funds remains a top priority.

“The Social Security Administration is committed to working with Congress and other stakeholders to protect and strengthen these vital programs, ensuring that millions of Americans can continue to rely on Social Security for a secure retirement and support in times of disability—both now and in the future. We remain focused on responsible stewardship and transparent communication.”

Why It Matters

The Social Security system, supporting retirement income for tens of millions of Americans, now faces an earlier-than-expected financial crisis following major United States tax policy changes. The 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act, enacted under President Donald Trump, has shifted the projected date of insolvency, which could impact benefit payouts for about 62 million retirees and dependents.

Policymakers, financial experts and advocacy groups have responded with warnings about the urgent need for legislative action to preserve benefits and the long-term viability of the program that remains a cornerstone of American social policy. Without intervention, automatic cuts could leave Americans with roughly three-quarters of the benefits currently anticipated.

This issue not only affects today’s retirees but also has profound implications for future generations of U.S. workers who depend on the ongoing stability of the Social Security system. The projected financial strain intensifies longstanding debates on tax policy, government spending and entitlement reform.

The SSA reported that roughly 70 million people were receiving Social Security benefits as of June of this year.

What To Know

The SSA revised its timetable for trust fund depletion following the passing of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act on July 4, 2025.

The Office of the Chief Actuary, under the guidance of SSA, reported that cumulative costs to the Social Security’s Old-Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) and Disability Insurance (DI) trust funds (jointly called OASDI) would increase by roughly $168.6 billion over the coming decade due largely to lower income tax rates and new deduction rules, including a temporarily enhanced standard deduction for seniors.

As a result, the actuarial balance further deteriorated to -3.98 percent from -3.82 percent.

If combined with further projections, Social Security reductions for future generations could reach or exceed 30 percent.

Social Security benefits will face an automatic 24 percent cut at the time of insolvency in late 2032, according to an analysis by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB). By 2099, that cut could exceed well over 30 percent.

That 2032 estimate is equivalent to an $18,100 annual benefit cut for a dual-earning couple retiring at the start of 2033, shortly after trust fund insolvency. Simultaneously, those same retirees might experience reduced access to health care due to an 11 percent cut in Medicare Hospital Insurance payments.

Cuts would grow over time as scheduled benefits continue to outpace dedicated revenues, per the nonpartisan CRFB. The same actuarial forecasts warned that Medicare’s trust fund faces a similar timeline, expecting depletion in 2033.

CRFB’s estimates are somewhat larger than those implied by the most recent trustees’ report, due to tax rate cuts and an increase in the senior standard deduction from OBBBA, reducing Social Security’s revenue from the income taxation of benefits, which they say is increasing the required cut by about a percentage point upon insolvency.

“If the expanded senior standard deduction and other temporary measures of OBBBA are made permanent, the benefit cut would grow larger,” CRFB said.

Newsweek reached out to CRFB via email for additional comment.

The revised insolvency projections are also the product of broader demographic changes, including increased retirements among baby boomers, a declining birth rate, and lowered wage-growth expectations.

The latest trustee report in mid-June highlighted that, even apart from recent legislation, taxes collected for Social Security have struggled to keep pace with payouts due to the program’s structure.

What People Are Saying

Social Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano, in a June 18 press release: “To ensure we serve the public and deliver high-quality service to the 185 million people who work and pay payroll taxes for Social Security and the 70 million beneficiaries who will receive benefits during 2025, the financial status of the trust funds remains a top priority for the Trump Administration.

“Congress, along with the Social Security Administration and others committed to eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse, must work together to protect and strengthen the trust funds for the millions of Americans who rely on it—now and in the future— for a secure retirement or in the event of a disability.”

From an analysis by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget on July 24: “Policymakers pledging not to touch Social Security are implicitly endorsing these deep benefit cuts for 62 million retirees in 2032 and beyond. It is time for policymakers to tell the truth about the program’s finances and to pursue trust fund solutions to head off insolvency and improve the program for current and future generations.”

What Happens Next

Congress faces mounting pressure to act before the projected Social Security trust fund depletion in 2034 to avoid automatic benefit cuts. Options under discussion include tax hikes, changes to the benefit formula, or increasing the full retirement age.

Social Security predicted to run out of money sooner due to Trump bill
One organization warns that a dual-earning couple retiring in 2033 could experience a Social Security trust fund cut of $18,100.

https://www.newsweek.com/social-security-retirement-savings-benefits-money-2110258

Washington Post: Trump claims credit for fixing Social Security as it barrels to insolvency

Posted on by
Reply

Many of the president’s claims were misleading and ignored months of turmoil at the embattled agency.

President Donald Trump marked the 90th anniversary of Social Security on Thursday with an Oval Office signing of a proclamation that the safety net was “more resilient than ever before,” thanks to him. He claimed improvements to the program’s customer service. He also misleadingly declared that he had checked off his campaign promise to eliminate taxes on benefits for seniors.

But Social Security is barreling toward insolvency faster than before because of Trump’s tax bill and immigration policies, according to experts. The agency has faced tumult since the U.S. DOGE Service came in with a grand scheme to root out fraud and overhaul the program, causing disruptions and frustrations within the agency.

And despite the repetition of “no tax on Social Security” from Trump and his allies, the law ultimately signed by the president did not eliminate taxes on seniors’ benefits.

The Oval Office event — largely ceremonial — offered the president a chance to repeat his commitments to older Americans on the anniversary of President Franklin D. Roosevelt signing the Social Security Act into law. Trump was joined by Commissioner Frank Bisignano, who has led the agency since May.

“I made a sacred pledge to our seniors that I would always protect Social Security, and under this administration we’re keeping that promise and strengthening Social Security for generations to come,” Trump said.

However, Republicans have not yet provided a solution to put off Social Security’s impending shortfalls.

Natalie Ihrman, a Social Security spokeswoman, said the agency is “committed to working with Congress and other stakeholders to strengthen these vital SSA programs and continue to provide secure retirement and support in times of disability for millions of Americans.”

The trust fund will be insolvent by 2033, the program’s trustees said in June, if Congress doesn’t act. And after the passage of Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill, the chief actuary said the law could hasten Social Security’s insolvency date.

In addition, experts have warned that Trump’s efforts to deport undocumented immigrants — who pay into the system but are barred from receiving benefits — will further deplete the program.

Penn Wharton’s budget model has projected that if the government deports 10 percent of undocumented immigrants annually over the next 10 years, Social Security will lose $133 billion in funds over that period of time.

In his comments Thursday, Trump repeated a baseless claim that immigrants were getting benefits and asserted that nearly 275,000 immigrants were removed from the agency’s rolls. The agency did not provide information about the president’s claims that immigrants were getting benefits, but it said, “SSA updated the Social Security records of about 275,000 individuals no longer holding legal status, ensuring people ineligible to receive benefits are not improperly paid.”

Most federal public benefits — such as Social Security — are available only to U.S. citizens and certain categories of legal immigrants.

Trump also praised himself for keeping a campaign promise to eliminate taxes on Social Security.

“I signed One Big Beautiful Bill and allowed no tax on Social Security for our great seniors,” Trump said.

But the law didn’t create an exemption on taxes on Social Security benefits. It added a temporary $6,000 deduction for seniors who earn as much as $75,000 a year, or $12,000 for joint filers earning as much as $150,000.

Ihrman of SSA said the law “provides historic tax relief to America’s seniors.”

The White House Council of Economic Advisers estimates that 88 percent of older adults will not pay taxes on their benefits because of the bill, up from 64 percent under previous law.

Howard Gleckman, senior fellow at the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center, said the council’s estimate relies on the assumption seniors would use their standard deduction to reduce their tax liability on Social Security benefits rather than their total income. The policy center has estimated that about half of recipients will pay at least some income taxes on their benefits.

“What he’s saying is just wrong,” Gleckman said of Trump’s claim.

Trump and Bisignano also touted achievements in customer service, specifically claiming recent reductions in wait times for the 1-800 phone line and at field offices as well as the elimination of scheduled maintenance times for the website.

Bisignano came into the agency in May after the cost-cutting U.S. DOGE Service implemented changes that led to customers complaining of dropped calls, the website repeatedly crashing and thousands of workers leaving the agency.

One of Bisignano’s early efforts to address the overwhelmed phone line was to move field office workers to answer calls.

Advocates have said it is harder to tell what customer service is like since the agency has taken down many of its public-facing performance metrics.

To trumpet the phone performance, the agency has said it reduced the “average speed to answer,” which does not count the time callers wait for a call back, even though the agency rolled out the callback feature last year.

The agency also said it cut wait times at field offices, a statistic repeated by Trump on Thursday.

That is misleading, according Jessica LaPointe, president of Council 220 of the American Federation of Government Employees. After the agency rolled out a new system of assigning appointments to people walking into field offices in December, the time people wait in the lobby of field offices went down because they were no longer getting their issues handled when they showed up.

“Now you wait 20 minutes in the lobby to get to the window and then you’re given an appointment and you are waiting then months to get your business finished, from start to finish,” LaPointe said.

Trump claims credit for fixing Social Security as it barrels to insolvency
Many of the president’s claims were misleading and ignore months of turmoil at the embattled agency.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/08/14/trump-social-security-90th-annniversary

Also here:

Trump claims credit for fixing Social Security as it barrels to insolvency
Many of the president’s claims were misleading and ignore months of turmoil at the embattled agency.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/ar-AA1Ky5eX

Related article:

Social Security predicted to run out of money sooner due to Trump bill

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/news/social-security-predicted-to-run-out-of-money-sooner-due-to-trump-bill/ar-AA1K6mMw

Fox News: Protesters confront officers patrolling DC streets after Trump policing takeover

Posted on by
Reply

The federal takeover of policing in Washington D.C. sparked protests near Union Station Thursday night,with demonstrators calling police and National Guard officers “Nazis.”

“You guys safe over here? You guys safe? Are you guys being murdered?” one protester was heard sarcastically asking officers. Others said they are “betraying” the country and “terrorizing the community.”

“You will never know a moment of peace,” one man said, accusing the officers of being “Nazis.”

“Sad incel car. Sad incel car, look at that,” a woman shouted as a Tesla Cybertruck is stopped.

“Y’all are the reason why our country is going downhill,” a protester shouted at officers during a traffic stop.

President Donald Trump announced the move on Monday, and the National Guard and a variety of federal agencies, including ICE and the FBI, have been patrolling and conducting operations throughout the city. Some arrests have already been made, including dozens of illegal immigrants.

Attorney General Pam [“Bimbo #2”] Bondi initially ordered that Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Terry Cole be in charge of the Metropolitan Police Department as an “emergency police commissioner,” although that directive was later changed to ensure Cole worked with Mayor Muriel Bowser. [“Bimbo #2”] Bondi also ordering more compliance between local police and federal immigration authorities.

Democrats have criticized the takeover as an overreach, with members of Congress asking for a resolution to terminate the “crime emergency” that was declared by the Trump administration.

“President Trump’s incursions against D.C. are among the most egregious attacks on D.C. home rule in decades. D.C. residents are Americans, worthy of the same autonomy granted to residents of the states,” Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton, who represents D.C. as a delegate, said in a statement.

“Our local police force, paid for by D.C. residents, should not be subject to federalization, an action that wouldn’t be possible for any other police department in the country. No emergency exists in D.C. that the president did not create himself, and he is not using the D.C. Police for federal purposes, as required by law,” she added.

Meanwhile, the White House blasted the resolution, as the Trump administration said the intention is to lower crime in the capital city.

“But instead of supporting what should be a bipartisan measure to Make DC Safe Again, Democrats are burying their heads in the sand, denying there is a problem, and carrying the torch for dangerous criminals that terrorize DC communities,” White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson told Fox News Digital.

“D.C. residents know the reality on the ground – crime was out of control and President Trump’s actions are making the city safer. The left’s refusal to support widely popular issues with the American public – like stopping violent crime – are why their approval ratings are at historic lows and will continue to tank,” she added. 

The city is suing over the action, arguing that it hinders the ability of the district to self-govern.

“We are suing to block the federal government takeover of D.C. police. By illegally declaring a takeover of MPD, the Administration is abusing its temporary, limited authority under the law. This is the gravest threat to Home Rule DC has ever faced, and we are fighting to stop it,” D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb posted to X on Friday. 

“The federal government’s power over DC is not absolute, and it should not be exercised as such. Section 740 of the Home Rule Act permits the President to request MPD’s services. But it can only be done temporarily, for special emergencies, and solely for federal purposes,” he added.

Protesters confront officers patrolling DC streets after Trump policing takeover

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/protesters-confront-officers-patrolling-dc-streets-after-trump-policing-takeover/ar-AA1KDzdC

Brandenton Herald: ‘Villainized’: ICE Officers Respond to Rise in Threats

Posted on by
Reply

Would somebody please call a Whambulance?

An 830% increase of a very small number is still a fairly small number, especially when these purported incidents are distributed among ICE’s 10,000+ abusive bully boys.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have reported a staggering 830% increase in violence amid the implementation of mass deportation policies under President Donald Trump. Some have spoken up regarding their experiences of violence in hopes of humanizing their work and countering hostility. ICE Officer Kristian Moreno noted that officers have been targeted for simply enforcing the law.

Speaking with Fox News host Lara Trump, Moreno said, “It has been very sad to see how we’re villainized, the names used towards us.” She added, “We got a job to do. We’re just enforcing the law. We’re not making up the law, and it’s sad, but we just keep pushing through it.”

ICE Officer Chris Sandoval noted the risks agents face, such as being photographed and doxxed. He stated that misinformation and negative views have hindered their efforts to protect vulnerable communities.

Sandoval stated, “It’s kind of unfair to where… we’re doing our job, we’re serving the country, but sometimes I see people writing and stuff, and you’re hurting your own community.”

ICE Officer Edgardo Centeno expressed concern about rising hostility toward ICE agents. He noted that working conditions in Los Angeles and New York have become troubling and condemned political rhetoric inciting violence against agents.

Centeno said, “I believe in the First Amendment, and you can express yourself all you want, but when you are enforcing, as a Congress member…[people] to go after us, then you’re crossing that line.”

Centeno added, “We should not be afraid of doing our jobs. I raised my hand to defend the Constitution, and I’ll die for it. That’s who I am, and I know my partners are the same here.”

‘Villainized’: ICE Officers Respond to Rise in Threats
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have reported a staggering 830% increase in violence amid the implementation of mass deportation policies under President Donald Trump. Some have spoken up regarding their experiences of violence in hopes of humanizing their work and countering hostility. ICE Officer Kristian Moreno noted that officers have been targeted for simplyContinue reading ”‘Villainized’: ICE Officers Respond to Rise in…

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/villainized-ice-officers-respond-to-rise-in-threats/ar-AA1KDSBm