Ice – National News Roundup

Year 10, Weeks 1-2 (January 25–February 7)

February 10, 2026 Kara HurvitzLeave a comment

Yes, you read that right–we’re now entering our tenth year of this song and dance. Things nobody tells you about your thirties, partial list: That you’ll run a weekly accessible news digest for literally all of them. Adulting, amirite?

Several nouveau and some classic reminders still apply: we may be beginning my tenth year of journalism, but I focus on national news within my areas of expertise–which, at this point, includes (1) health news, (2) queer news, (3) news about law and government, (4) news about descent into authoritarianism, and (5) connections between news stories. At this point, NNR summaries will merely toe-dip into other topics, if that–we are committed to a focused and sustainable format. And, of course, for the law things you read here, I’m offering context that shouldn’t be considered legal advice. Okay, I think that’s about it for the disclaimers. Onward to the news

Chinga La Migra

_{Image unnamed and licensed to the public under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License}

Nightmare in Minneapolis Continues. Though Trump announced that 700 ICE officers were leaving Minneapolis during this cycle, there are still thousands of officers there, and stories out of the city continue. A few outlets picked up a story about a man in ICE custody who presented to a local hospital with eight skull fractures on the front, back, and sides of his skull; the ICU staff were understandably extremely dubious when ICE officials claimed he ran into a wall. Public teachers in the city are also suing ICE to keep them out of schools, as their presence is resulting in student disappearances and forced truancy. And, of course, there was that U.S. Attorney who told a judge her job sucks and wanted to be held in contempt so that she could sleep. (Needless to say, she’s not working in Minneapolis anymore.)
Spotlight on ICE. There were a lot of ICE-related stories I wasn’t able to fit into the last cycle’s roundup, and several of them have since grown extra heads. There has rightfully been a lot of attention paid to children in detention this cycle, as Liam Conejo Ramos puts the issue firmly in the public eye. ProPublica ran a heartbreaking feature on children in Dilley Detention Center, many of whom are being illegally held for months on end; the piece details unsafe food and water, insufficient medical care, and gatekept education that only lasts an hour per day even when children do get in. Another ICE facility in Texas was in the news because of allegations that its officers are physically and sexually assaulting underage detainees. Yet another ICE facility in Texas was in the news for deporting witnesses who saw officers murdering a fellow detainee. And in Portland, Oregon–where ICE allegedly withdrew but locals report they are still there–a judge has restrained them from using tear gas for 14 days, because they keep assaulting tenants in nearby buildings and children at memorial services. Unsurprisingly, there are a lot of Congressional pushes for accountability right now, and no long-term DHS funding bill has been passed despite another deadline coming up on Friday.

From the Department of Health and Human Sacrifice

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There’s still a lot going on at DHHS, and all of it sucks. In the wake of his special, very smart “health plan,” Trump released a drug discount website, which literally just gives people coupons and tells them to go buy medications directly from drug companies. (Fun fact: Most of the drugs involved are also available as generics at a rate lower than the website can provide.) Meanwhile, in a truly unforeseeable turn of events, telling people not to vaccinate their kids has led to a massive measles outbreak in South Carolina–in fact, it has become the biggest outbreak we’ve seen since measles were eliminated in 2000. There is concern that a March for Life rally in DC at the end of January may have been a superspreader event, which has prompted head of CMS Mehmet Oz (God I hate typing that phrase) to tell people to vaccinate. This, however, has still not stopped the administration from going after COVID vaccines.

Spills in Aisle 47

_{‘Toddler Supermarket Tantrum,’ taken with permission from Stockcake.com}

Establishment vs Press. Former CNN anchor and investigative journalist Don Lemon was arrested for covering a protest at a church in Minnesota earlier this month–even though a magistrate threw out the administration’s attempt to issue misdemeanor charges, Bondi got a grand jury to indict him on nebulous felony charges. For context it’s very rare for a magistrate judge to refuse to issue a misdemeanor charge. In this case, it likely happened due to overwhelming evidence that this famous news person was exercising his First Amendment right to do news things about a developing story. (It turns out, when you’re an investigative journalist covering something, you often film the whole thing, and also tell the camera that you’re there covering something.) Folks, I’m sure many of you reading already know this, but I seriously cannot overstress just how unusual and disturbing this story is.
A Gabbard in Georgia. In other unusual and probably illegal news, the FBI conducted a search and seized records from election headquarters in Fulton, Georgia this week, claiming for the zillionth time that there was somehow election fraud even though literally nothing substantiates this claim. That would be bad enough, but Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard was also there during the search because… reasons? Even (perhaps especially) if it’s true that Trump told her to, as she claims, it is both far beyond the Chief of Intelligence’s purview and an egregious abuse of power to have her participate in a domestic investigation like this–which is probably why Democrats Democrats demanded she explain her involvement. Meanwhile, Trump is demanding that Republicans “nationalize” voting and “the federal government should get involved.” Nobody’s really fully sure what that means, but we do know that federal involvement of any type is flagrantly unconstitutional. The running theory is that he’s referring to the SAVE Act, which both doesn’t do that and also is a terrible plan.

Ways to Weather This

_{Image unnamed and licensed to the public under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License}

Bad Bunny’s Superbowl Halftime Show. I am genuinely not kidding when I say that Bad Bunny’s Superbowl halftime show will help you push back the abyss for a little while–it was an incredible piece of activism. Yes, his set was entirely in Spanish, but I promise that it’s accessible and moving even if you don’t speak una palabra of the language. (Also, Lady Gaga pops up in the middle to sing some English at you.) It has compassion, it has joy, it even has a couple getting married (for real!) in the middle of it. Seriously, just go watch it. And then look up all of the cultural references that he and his consulting historian managed to squeeze in.

_{‘Discord That’s All Folks’ licensed to the public under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 License}

So that’s what I have for you this cycle, and I’m sorry, there are still no news refunds. For making it through, you deserve this daring dear rescue and a less corrupt government. I’m still figuring out sustainability, and I would love feedback in the National News Roundup ask box, which is there for your constructive comments. Send me questions! Send me feedback! Send me more hours in the day!

Year 9, Weeks 51-52 (January 11-24)

January 27, 2026January 27, 2026 Kara HurvitzLeave a comment

Minneapolis has been on most of our minds this month, for good reason. But the stories coming out of there are so big, that it can be hard to see how they interconnect. We’re going to spend some time looking at how this cycle’s stories link together–not because it makes the stories any easier to stomach, but because it’s important to see the bigger picture.

Several nouveau and some classic reminders still apply: we may be closing out my ninth year of journalism, but I focus on national news within my areas of expertise–which, at this point, includes (1) health news, (2) queer news, (3) news about law and government, (4) news about descent into authoritarianism, and (5) connections between news stories. NNR summaries may still occasionally contain some detailed analysis that’s outside my expertise–I’m a lawyer, not SAMHSA funding!–but we are moving away from this model in general, as we pioneer a more focused and sustainable format. And, of course, for the law things you read here, I’m offering context that shouldn’t be considered legal advice. Okay, I think that’s about it for the disclaimers. Onward to the news!

Nightmares in Minneapolis

‘_{‘RoboKruger’ by Si2productions, released to the public domain by its creator}

Murder Filmed in Broad Daylight. By now, most folks have likely heard about Renee Good, who was shot three times while leaving an ICE encounter in her car, and Alex Pretti, who was shot ten times after trying to help a fellow protester. Both cases are horrifying abuses of power, but it’s also important to note how the federal government is handling the aftermath. Both Good’s and Pretti’s murders were filmed from several angles, and these videos have become widely available–making it easy for Americans to form a clear understanding of events. Despite this, however, the federal government in both instances has issued narrative statements that wildly contradict the video footage, and in both instances there have been issues with federal officials destroying evidence. At least one FBI official resigned in protest because she was being pressured to drop a civil rights investigation into the ICE officer who killed Renee Good. The FBI instead opened an investigation into Good’s widow, because, I don’t know, reasons. (Several U.S. Attorneys resigned over the latter decision as well.) Meanwhile, in correspondence with Governor Walz, Attorney General Pam Bondi straight-up told him to hand over voter rolls if he wanted conditions to improve. And while all this was happening, an autopsy in Texas confirmed witnesses’ reports that a detainee in ICE custody was murdered by guards. It is extremely unlikely that he was the first homicide in custody.
Ongoing ICE Raids. To fully understand the Minneapolis murders, it’s also important to understand the context that Renee Good and Alex Pretti were protesting in the first place. This administration began occupying Minneapolis back in December, but their behavior has escalated badly in that time–and in the wake of Renee Good’s death, things have gotten worse, not better. Reports have come in of ICE kidnapping a five-year-old and using him as bait, harassing and even detaining local Indigenous people, harassing off-duty cops, stopping and dragging citizens out of cars to detain them, shooting people during arrests, and breaking down doors to gain entry to homes they claim they can enter without a warrant. Minnesota is suing the administration, and has already obtained a judicial order protecting peaceful protest–but Trump has responded by threatening to invoke the Insurrection Act and putting 1500 Army troops on standby. Governor Walz has mobilized the National Guard. Today we’re seeing signs that it might deescalate, but it’s still an ugly situation that is only made uglier by a second murder this week.

From the Department of Health and Human Sacrifice

_{Image unnamed and in the public domain}

Poison Potpourri. There were a lot of toxic odds and ends out of DHHS in the last couple of weeks as well. First Trump announced his “health plan,” which is less a health plan and more six buzzwords in a trench coat. We finalized our withdrawal from the World Health Organization, apparently sticking them with a large bill in the process. The CDC both froze and unfroze about $2B in funding for SAMHSA. And the CDC was also in the news because a high-up official opined that losing measles elimination status was “the cost of doing business,” which is definitely a phrase you want to hear come out of a public health official’s mouth.

Spills in Aisle 47

_{‘Toddler Supermarket Tantrum,’ taken with permission from Stockcake.com}

Manifest Fuckery (again, still). In “somehow I am still typing this” news, the fetid orange doubled down again on taking over Greenland during this cycle. After talks with the Danish Foreign Minister got him nowhere, he threatened to impose tariffs in an attempt to get his way. Neither the European Union nor international stock markets were amused by this development. Then just to cap everything off, he told Norway’s Prime Minister that he was doing all of this because he didn’t win a Nobel peace prize.
Targeting Political ‘Enemies’ (Minneapolis Edition). We’ve already discussed this administration’s horrifying occupation of Minneapolis above, but one aspect that doesn’t get as much air time is their ‘investigation’ targeting Tim Walz, the current governor of Minnesota, and Joseph Frey, the current mayor of Minneapolis–which then escalated to a grand jury for several other MN officials. They join a long list of political figures who are being threatened via federal investigation; the list also includes several Congresspeople, Federal reserve chair Jerome Powell, and New York Attorney General Leticia James.

Ways to Weather This

_{Image unnamed and licensed to the public under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License}

5 Calls and Zoom Calls. In the wake of the state terror above, it’s hard to know how to respond. If you, like me, process this type of news through action, one obvious and relatively easy thing we can do is call our Congress people with specific legislative asks. 5 calls has several scripts about taking away ICE’s bloated budget, impeaching Kristi Noem, and investigating both Minneapolis murders. If you have a bit more time, you can also learn how to respond and protect community in dangerous situations with ICE through online trainings. You can also print and distribute Know Your Rights cards, or learn how to be a hotline verifier.

So that’s what I have for you this cycle, and I’m sorry, there are still no news refunds. For making it through, you deserve this beaver eating cabbage and a less corrupt government. I’m still figuring out sustainability, and I would love feedback in the National News Roundup ask box, which is there for your constructive comments. Send me questions! Send me feedback! Send me responses to Out: The Community Survey!

Whose Safety? An Early Analysis of the “Enhanced Public Safety” Executive Order

January 26, 2017October 21, 2019 Kara HurvitzLeave a comment

(This is the second installment of a series of articles unpacking the many executive orders issued in Donald Trump’s first week of office. Click here to read the first installment, on the Border Security Executive Order. Though I am not an immigration specialist, I am a legal generalist working with indigent populations professionally full-time. This article is not intended to form an attorney-client relationship or constitute legal advice, though it is my hope that it will help people understand what is going on.)

Either I love my country or I hate myself, because here I am drafting another essay at 9:45 PM. (Or both. Possibly both.) At any rate, it’s an oft-quoted maxim that the more innocuous a law’s title is, the more insidious the actual contents are— and the Executive Order on Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States is no exception to this rule.

There’s some familiar language from the other executive order:

The creation of 10,000 ICE officer positions, despite the general hiring freeze in place for all federal positions. This one sounds an awful lot like the 5,000 border patrol jobs created in the other executive order from today.
The Secretary of Homeland Security may deputize any and all state and local police infrastructure of the United States as Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers. I think the language of this provision is literally exactly the same, though I suppose I can’t fault the administration for recycling it.
Much like we’re repealing “catch and release,” we’re also repealing the Priority Enforcement Program. The order reinstates the Secure Communities program, which was in place from 2008–2014, and is generally much more aggressive about sending people into ICE custody when they are charged with crimes. Given that the program arrested 3,600 American citizens, I can’t say I’m excited about the change, but nor can I say it’s all that surprising.

Some of the provisions, however, are very different:

In general, there is a lot more rhetoric involved, especially in the initial sections. I personally don’t believe these sections are rooted in fact or otherwise worth repeating — there’s little substance to be gleaned, except perhaps for the insight they show into the administration itself. I suppose it might be worth reviewing the Purpose section if you want to get good and angry about something. I’m noting some general fact-checking below, both to educate and to help myself feel better about the world.
Unlike the previous executive order, which at least presumed illegal entry into the country, this executive order contemplates immigrants who have engaged in no illegal activity. In addition to the general provisions about criminal conviction, Section 5 also discusses a variety of other categories of immigrant — almost all of which are very vague and have obvious problems with enforcement. If nothing else, it’s not clear how the factual findings necessary to determine someone belongs to one of these categories would even be made, and it seems to largely be left to the officer’s discretion. Here’s the full list:

(b) Have been charged with any criminal offense, where such charge has not been resolved;

(c) Have committed acts that constitute a chargeable criminal offense;

(d) Have engaged in fraud or willful misrepresentation in connection with any official matter or application before a governmental agency;

(e) Have abused any program related to receipt of public benefits;

(f) Are subject to a final order of removal, but who have not complied with their legal obligation to depart the United States; or

(g) In the judgment of an immigration officer, otherwise pose a risk to public safety or national security.

This executive order talks about consequences for so-called sanctuary jurisdictions — and both the status of a “sanctuary jurisdiction” and the appropriate sanction are determinations that the federal government gets to make. The Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security, to be more precise. They also have the power to exempt cities from these sanctions, despite finding a city to be a sanctuary jurisdiction, for the purpose of funding more law enforcement. About the only good thing I can say about this provision is that the ACLU has probably already filed a request for injunctive relief from it.
This executive order literally requires the Secretary of Homeland Security to publish weekly reports documenting “criminal acts by aliens” and what jurisdictions are “failing to honor” detainers for those people. Weekly reports. Of all immigrants charged with crimes. For every single jurisdiction in the United States. I hope General Kelly wasn’t planning on sleeping anytime in 2017.
The administration is creating a special Office for Victims of Crimes Committed by Removable Aliens. It’s not clear what this office would actually do, other than issue quarterly reports on what it’s doing — the order just says it has to “ provide proactive, timely, adequate, and professional services to victims of crimes committed by removable aliens and the family members of such victims.” I can’t even imagine what this is going to look like, for reasons I’ll describe below.
The AG and Secretary of Homeland Security also apparently have to create quarterly reports documenting the immigration status of everybody being held pretrial basically anywhere. It includes federal systems, state systems, “local detention centers,” and U.S. Marshall federal pretrial custody. So that’ll be fun to get done with a skeleton staff during a hiring freeze.
The order specifically exempts immigrants being detained from the Privacy Act of 1974, which I’m honestly not even sure they can do. This is another provision that the ACLU has probably already filed a request for injunctive relief about — it’s essentially changing legislative law, which the Supreme Court generally frowns upon. At any rate, this provision needs to exist in order for the order of public weekly reports to be at all legal, because it would otherwise be subject to the Privacy Act. So if this provision tanks, presumably the weekly criminal charge reports and quarterly immigration status reports would go down in flames as well. You know, if they haven’t already been doused in gasoline and napalm by an irate Secretary of Homeland Security who doesn’t have time for this nonsense.

Some general fact-checking of note (in case it’s helpful to you, and before I rupture something):

As I mentioned above, this particular executive order contains a plethora of misinformation and downright propaganda. In the interests of clarification and also not punching nearby walls, I would like to unpack some of it for you:

There is no evidence to suggest that immigrants commit crimes at greater rates than citizens; in fact, all relevant studies show they commit crimes at lower rate due to higher risk exposure. I can personally confirm this through professional experience, but since I would never encourage you to simply take my word for it, here are some articles on the matter.
There is no evidence to suggest that sanctuary practices “destroy the fabric of the Republic” or “have caused immeasurable harm to the American people.” Putting aside the fact that there have been no studies done on this to date, it doesn’t even make intuitive sense — by definition, sanctuary practices are only enacted in circumstances where the local government believes it would be disruptive to their governance and general public safety to comply.
There is no evidence to suggest that people who are out of status represent a greater threat to society than people who are present legally or are citizens. In fact, many people who are out of status in the United States don’t even know they are out of status, because they have failed to comply with confusing regulations and believe they are here legally.
There is no evidence to suggest that complaining witnesses in crimes with immigrant defendants require special protections. Again, immigrant populations don’t even commit crimes at the same rates as citizen populations, likely due to higher risk exposure. And when people who immigrate do commit crimes, there’s very little commonality in the charges, which means there’s also very little commonality in the victim populations. This is like creating an office to study Victims Named Bruce.
It is literally the current structure of immigration law to “exempt classes or categories of removable aliens from potential enforcement” based on circumstance and public safety risk. That is how humanitarian-based special status works. Asylum status, refugee status, SIJ status, humanitarian parole, T visas, and U visas all function as form of exemptions, which means this executive order is literally saying that we cannot faithfully execute immigration laws if we faithfully execute immigration laws.

As several news sources have insinuated, this is likely not the last executive order we’ll see this week on the topic of immigration. I’ll continue to write about executive orders as I am able, though I think two articles is my upper limit for one evening. If you’ll excuse me, I have a date planned with a pocket constitution and a pint of cotton candy ice cream, and I’m told it’s rude to keep either of them waiting.