3 Things you need to know

MAGAtrends

Remember when summers used to be a slow time for news? Me either. People might not be paying as close attention, hopefully while getting some much-needed rest and relaxation, but the Trump Regime continues to terrorize us and enact its agenda.

This week, there’s no one dominant thread, but lots of updates on topics I cover regularly. Here’s what you need to know.

ICE Killing Spree

ICE has killed two more people since my newsletter last week. In addition to Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Texas, ICE in Maine gunned down Johan Sebastián Durán in front of his wife and 3-year-old daughter. Another man in Florida was killed by an oncoming truck while being pursued by ICE agents.

ICE didn’t even bother trying to justify Durán’s killing, claiming only that the officer who pulled the trigger (identified by family as having a history of violent behavior) feared for “public safety” as opposed to his or anyone else’s life. And really, why would they? It’s clear that no ICE agents will be investigated, much less fired or charged with crimes. The agency attempted to diffuse things somewhat by claiming they had put a “pause” on traffic stops, but Trump almost immediately countered by demanding on TruthSocial that ICE keep them going.

It’s all so senseless, and as Lisa Needham pointed out in her own piece at Public Notice, so repetitive. She writes, “The nation is suffering through another spasm of shootings by ICE agents. It feels like we’re right back where we were in January, when federal agents went on a lawless, deadly tear in Minnesota. This time, however, the violence is more diffuse, spread out across multiple states. But the aftermath of all of it remains the same: a sick, lurching knowledge that you are under assault from your own government.”

Election Denial Conspiracies

This week, Trump gave a speech in prime time, once again alleging that there was interference in the 2020 election and that he’d actually won. Considering that Trump is doing everything he can, and his regime using every lever of power to undermine the midterms and other upcoming elections, I was surprised at what a nothingburger his speech was. His promised document release didn’t offer any new information outside of what’s already been reported. Even his accusations and conspiracy-mongering felt low-effort and low-key.

If anything, Trump seemed angrier than some TV networks opted not to carry his speech live, than the election he supposedly had been stolen from him in 2020 and has been on an obsessive tear about ever since.

Still, we can’t take Trump’s poor speech performance as an indicator. The Trump Regime doesn’t want elections to be free or fair, and they have this year’s midterms right in their sights. Including his continued whining about how Congress needs to pass the SAVE Act, and his voter suppression bill. The Brennan Center for Justice has an analysis of everything the regime is to undermine elections in the US, and they’re always a good resource for the latest updates.

As a reminder, for all that MAGA concern-trolling about non-citizens supposedly voting illegally, the biggest target of the American Right has long been Black voters. The Voting Rights Act is now effectively dead, and conversations around election protection and MAGA’s intentions need to center on Black voters and what they’ve lost.

Elections in the US are run locally, and no matter where you live, you have the power to influence and protect the process. This week, States at the Core has a training devoted to election protection and what folks can do in their communities. I highly recommend it to all of my readers. You can learn more and RSVP here.

Antifa

As I wrote a couple of weeks ago, the Trump Regime is coming for Antifa, and if you oppose the Regime in any way, you too are considered Antifa.

Two news stories on the antifa as a terrorist front are worth paying attention to this week. First, the Trump Regime might not be able to define what antifa is, but that didn’t stop Secretary Marco Rubio from hosting a convening of foreign ministers from other countries about how it’s supposedly a global threat.

In announcing the Regime’s effort to fight a so-called “ unprecedented global offensive against the transnational threat of Radical Left terrorism” it’s notable that the release doesn’t include the names of any of these groups, just a promise to investigate and destroy these groups. As soon as they figure out who they are, I suppose.

The other news story is an exclusive from Talking Points Memo: Federal Prosecutor Brian W. Lynch, who marched with the protestors at the Janurary 6 insurrection while employed by the DOJ, is now in charge of a Task Force which according to TPM’s reporting is, “central to its [DOJ’s] effort to prosecute alleged left-wing political violence cases, including last month’s indictment of 15 anti-ICE protesters in Minneapolis.” It doesn’t surprise me that an election denier who marched on January 6 (though he claims he did not enter the Capitol Building) is now leading the charge to hunt down and punish so-called antifa members, but it’s certainly worth keeping an eye on.

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ICE killings. Election subversion. A January 6 marcher is now in charge of prosecuting antifa. Just this week.

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ICYMI

• Rapinoe: Anti-Trans Legislation Isn’t About “Protecting Girls”—It’s About Distracting Us From What Matters (Marie Claire)

• The Woman in the Photo Wanted to Be Alone. Instead, She Went Viral. (NOTUS)

• Right-Wing and Right-leaning Online Show Hosts, Including Nick Fuentes, Are Getting Millions of Views Pushing Extremely Racist Rhetoric (Media Matters)

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Coda

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