Alligator Alcatraz Was Built on Secrecy, Expansive Emergency Powers, and an Unprecedented State Power Grab
Shadowy deals and unilateral powers created Florida's notorious immigration detention camp.
Immigration
Civil Rights Group Sues ICE for Withholding Records of the Agency's Detention Expansion Plans in Virginia
Lawyers at America's largest civil liberties group say the agency’s lack of transparency violates federal disclosure requirements.
Why a Trump Appointee Ruled That His National Guard Deployment in Portland Was Illegal
U.S. District Judge Karin Immergut concluded that the president's description of "War ravaged Portland" was "simply untethered to the facts."
Trump's Troops Return to a City That Moved On: Dispatch From Portland
Five years after the city’s fiery 2020 protests, Portland is mostly calm. That hasn’t stopped Trump from reviving old battles, fueled by false memories and made-for-TV outrage.
British Minister: 'Just Because You Have a Freedom Doesn't Mean You Have To Use It'
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood is moving to ban protests that annoy the public.
First Circuit Rules Trump's Birthright Citizenship Executive Order is Unconstitutional
This is the second appellate court ruling against the order. So far, every court that has addressed this issue has ruled the same way.
Lawsuit Challenges Trump's $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
The case was filed yesterday by a broad coalition of different groups, including a health care provider, education groups, religious organizations, and labor unions.
Afghan Man Freed After Viral Arrest and Over 100 Days in ICE Custody
“I still believe in America. I do not feel betrayed. I feel hopeful because of how many Americans stood up for me when I was arrested.”
Fifth Circuit Will Rehear Alien Enemies Act Case En Banc
It will review a panel decision holding that Trump could not invoke this sweeping wartime authority by claiming illegal migration and drug smuggling qualify as an "invasion."
After 20 Years as Chief Justice, John Roberts Is Now Friend and Foe to Executive Power
Which version of the chief justice will emerge in the Supreme Court’s newest term?
The Formula for Making Immigration Popular With American Voters
A practical path to lasting freedom and prosperity
ICE Arrested a U.S. Citizen—Twice—During Alabama Construction Site Raids. Now He's Suing.
“I got arrested twice for being a Latino working in construction,” says Leo Garcia Venegas, the lead plaintiff in a new lawsuit filed by the Institute for Justice challenging warrantless ICE raids on construction sites.
Federal Court Rules Speech-Based Deportations of Non-Citizen Students and Academics Violate the First Amendment
The decision is the most thorough in a line of recent court decisions reaching similar results.
The Government Shutdown Won't Stop Trump's Immigration Enforcement Campaign
The Department of Homeland Security will retain 95 percent of its employees if the government shuts down and remain funded in large part by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Oregon Sues Trump Administration Over 'Unlawful' National Guard Federalization
The administration ordered the federalization of 200 Oregon National Guard members for 60 days, citing the same suspect legal authority used to send troops to California earlier this year.
ICE Doesn't Want You To Know Why They Bought a Phone Cracking System
The agency has been expanding its surveillance capabilities without a public explanation.
Immigrants Arrested During Federal Takeover of D.C. Police Are Suing ICE and Other Federal Agencies
Five plaintiffs are arguing that several mass immigration arrests in the nation’s capital were made without probable cause.
Trump Bashed Other Countries for Their Immigrant Crime Rates. Here's Why He Didn't Mention the U.S.
Trump railed against migrant crime abroad but skipped U.S. stats—because immigrants here are locked up far less often than native-born Americans.
DHS Collected DNA from 2,000 U.S. Citizens Without Due Process. It's Now in a Law Enforcement Database.
By expanding federal agents' authority to collect the DNA of immigrant detainees, the government has risked violating Americans’ rights.
One Battle After Another Lets Leftist Radicals Off the Hook
A fascinating, frustrating film that plays to the sympathies of liberal Hollywood. It's sure to win a lot of awards.
California Got This One Right: ICE Agents Shouldn't Be Allowed To Wear Masks
Masked agents are the unmistakable sign of a police state.
Federal Court Rules Trump Can't Deny Federal Disaster Relief Funds to Sanctuary States
Another in a long line of court decisions striking down Trump efforts to attach conditions to federal grants that were not approved by Congress.
Free Speech Means You Can Criticize Anyone
Plus: Fallout from the Tom Homan bribery probe, U.S. forces strike Venezuelan drug boats, and Trump considers sending troops back to Afghanistan
Courts are Checking Trump More Effectively than Many Think
Legal scholar Steve Vladeck explains how and why.
The $100,000 Visa
Plus: Zohran Mamdani wanted to defund the police in 2022, fourth alleged narcotrafficking boat downed, and more...
Trump's Harmful and Illegal Plan to Gut H-1B Visas by Imposing $100,000 Fees
The plan violates the relevant visa law. If allowed to stand, it would significantly harm productivity and innovation.
Florida's State-Run Immigration Detention Centers Omit Hundreds of Detainees from Federal Tracking
Individuals housed at state-run immigration detention centers frequently don’t show up in the online detainee locator system, making it hard for their family and their lawyer to find them.
Trump Has a Habit of Asserting Broad, Unreviewable Authority
Whether he is waging the drug war, imposing tariffs, deporting alleged gang members, or fighting crime, the president thinks he can do "anything I want to do."
Trump Threatens Another Federal Takeover of D.C. While Planning Memphis Crackdown
Trump’s emergency order in the nation’s capital expired last week, but he has already rolled out a plan to crack down on crime in Memphis.
Florida Applies for Federal Reimbursement for 'Alligator Alcatraz' Costs Despite Court Warning
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis promised that the federal government would reimburse the state for the costs of "Alligator Alcatraz," but doing so would make the detention facility subject to environmental reviews Florida ignored.
Immigration Agents Held a U.S. Citizen—and Veteran—for 3 Days Without Checking His ID
George Retes was denied access to an attorney, wasn’t allowed to make a phone call, was not presented to a judge, and was put in an isolation cell before being released with no charges.
Michael Tracey: Cutting Through the Jeffrey Epstein Fog
Journalist Michael Tracey discusses problems with what he call the "Epstein mythology" on the latest episode of Just Asking Questions.
Over 300 Workers Return to South Korea After Immigration Raid, but Damage to Trade Relations Is Already Done
“As things stand now,” South Korean President Lee Jae Myun said, “our businesses will hesitate to make direct investments in the United States.”
Fourth Circuit Rules Performing Forced Labor as a Cook for a Terrorist Organization Does Not Count as "Material Support" for Terrorism that Precludes a Migrant From Getting Asylum
The 2-1 ruling got the right result, but not entirely for the right reason.
Kavanaugh Flouts the Fourth Amendment and Blesses Trump's Racial Profiling
The justice’s stance on immigration enforcement is undermined by the facts of the case before him.
Hyundai Raid Shows Trump Can't Deport His Way To a Manufacturing Boom
Trump's mass deportation policies are undermining his manufacturing agenda.
Americans Don't Actually Like Trump's Bad Guy Posturing on Immigration and the Military
Shows of force and mass deportations play well to the base, but they’re falling flat with the public.
Supreme Court Issues Dubious "Shadow Docket" Ruling Staying Injunction Against Racial Profiling in Immigration Enforcement
There is no majority opinion, so the reasoning is unclear. But Justice Kavanaugh's concurring opinion undercuts principle that government must abjure racial discrimination.
What Is ICE Doing With This Israeli Spyware Firm?
The Department of Homeland Security restored a $2 million contract with Paragon, maker of the surveillance tool Graphite, despite earlier civil liberties concerns.
My New Boston Globe Article Making Case for Abolishing ICE and Giving the Money to State and Local Police
It builds on an earlier piece in The Hill
Huge Immigration Bust
Plus: Light-rail killing, short-term rental ban ineffective, Perónism strikes back, and more...
Trump's 1 Percent Tax on Money Immigrants Send Home Is a Tax on the Global Poor
Analysts expect the One Big Beautiful Bill Act to reduce the number of remittance payments sent abroad.
Perils of the Pentagon's Plan to Use Military Lawyers to Adjudicate Immigration Cases
The plan is illegal for multiple reasons, is likely to lead to poor decisions, and could undermine military readiness.
Trump Forcibly Returns Russian Dissenters who Fled Putin
It's a new low in US refugee/asylum policy; simultaneouly unjust and counterproductive.
Sen. Eric Schmitt Echoes Bernie Sanders With Attack on Foreign Worker Program
The Republican and the socialist agree: Free trade and H-1B visas are bad news.
