Roving bands of stochastic terrorists who enjoy harming immigrants

I’ve collected a few articles on the nasty guy’s use of the National Guard and military to round up immigrants and in the last few weeks haven’t had time to mention them. On October 10 Lisa Needham of Daily Kos began a post:

The Trump administration is desperate to hide any record of state violence—all the way down to the identities of its federal agents. The Chicago Sun-Times has identified four unmarked cars carrying federal agents—three of which had no license plates and one with only a back plate. Illinois law requires both front and back plates, with no exceptions for law enforcement or, in this case, roving bands of stochastic terrorists who enjoy harming immigrants. But according to Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin, that’s definitely nothing to be worried about.

On October 25 J. David McSwane and Hannah Allam, in an article for ProPublica posted on Kos starts with ICE agents storming through Santa Ana, California. Mayor Valerie Amezcua asked the police chief whether they could do anything to rein in agents, even if to ban masks. The answer: a “resounding no.” Also, complaining to the Department of Homeland Security will accomplish nothing.

Since then, Amezcua, 58, said she has reluctantly accepted the reality: There are virtually no limits on what federal agents can do to achieve President Donald Trump’s goal of mass deportations. Santa Ana has proven to be a template for much larger raids and even more violent arrests in Chicago and elsewhere. “It’s almost like he tries it out in this county and says, ‘It worked there, so now let me send them there,’” Amezcua said.

National security officials have said ICE...

has become an unfettered and unaccountable national police force. The transformation, the officials say, unfolded rapidly and in plain sight. Trump’s DHS appointees swiftly dismantled civil rights guardrails, encouraged agents to wear masks, threatened groups and state governments that stood in their way, and then made so many arrests that the influx overwhelmed lawyers trying to defend immigrants taken out of state or out of the country.

Turning thus unruly force against citizens will happen in time. On Thursday, October 30 Oliver Willis of Kos reported the Pentagon was ordered to prepare over 23,500 NG troops for deployment in American cities. They are to be ready to counter purported civil unrest by the start of the year. These NG troops won’t be doing the usual response to severe weather or terrorist attacks. And troops that normally do such vital work will be shifted to crowd control. These troops are to handle “purported” unrest because the nasty guy has falsely described peaceful protests as the actions of terrorists. He has admitted he intends to use the Insurrection Act to get around the need for Congressional approval. Retired Maj. Gen. Randy Manner has decried these deployments as “un-American” and causing an increasing distrust in the military while dividing the country. The nasty guy justifies his actions based on misleading images on Fox News and on lies about increasing crime, which has been decreasing before he started these deployments. Also on October 30 Needham reported:

According to 404 Media, ICE is using a facial recognition app to identify people, including citizens. Videos show ICE agents stopping random kids on bikes and people in cars and, if they don’t have or refuse to provide identification, they point their little cellphones at them to scan their faces. ... This sounds a lot like ICE now has the power to stop anyone they want for no particular reason and demand they submit to biometric screening to prove they’re a citizen. And if they aren’t, they’re presumably arrested. You’ll note in this grand plan that there’s nothing about the probable cause ICE has to stop people with this high-tech version of “papers, please.” Indeed, it looks a lot like ICE simply profiles people and then subjects them to a search. Because that’s exactly what scanning your face after detaining you is: a search.

Yeah, that violates the Fourth Amendment that says searches are supposed to be based on reasonable suspicion, but in September the Supreme Court permitted racial profiling. The administration is also throwing money at other tech companies that are just as racist as the nasty guy to come up with better surveillance software. Presumably it is to surveil people who might be undocumented, but could be used against all of us. On November 1 Jeremy Lindenfeld, in an article for Capital & Main posted on Kos told the story of Juan Ramón González who has lived in Pasadena, California for 3 decades. He is undocumented, his wife has a Green Card, and his children are citizens. But after watching stories of ICE agents on TV grabbing day laborers he thought they looked like kidnappings. He became afraid to leave the neighborhood, which meant not working. The dread kept him up at night. After a heart attack, he decided the best thing for himself was to self-deport, even though that meant leaving his family. He held a goodbye party with friends and family, and the next day had his daughter drive him across the border. Along the way he was fearful he would be nabbed before he got there. Once in Tijuana he got a flight to the province he left decades ago – a place the nasty guy administration says is too dangerous for Americans due to widespread violence from cartels and gangs. But he no longer fears ICE agents will abduct him. On November 7 Needham reported DHE will no longer use the software that saves text messages in compliance with the Federal Records Act and Freedom of Information Act.

So weird that this issue has cropped up at the agency most inclined to refuse to provide any information at all about what its people are doing. It was probably inevitable that the same bunch that thinks federal agents should run around masked, armed, and with no visible ID would also eschew keeping any records about it.

On November 6 Needham discussed how much the nasty guy administration respects and protects religion, especially conservative Christians. But that appears to be another con job. First bit of evidence: American Catholic Bishops, a rather conservative bunch, are criticizing the administration for refusing to give detained immigrants access to religious services. Even the new American pope said their treatment of immigrants is inhumane. In response, press secretary Karoline Leavitt, who is Catholic and reported to pray with her staff before giving briefings, pushed back against the pope and blamed Biden. Second bit of evidence: At least two pastors in liturgical clothes have been hit with pepper balls while protesting ICE action. On November 3 Emily Singer of Kos reported that the nasty guy hosted a “Great Gatsby” Halloween party at his Mar-a-Lago resort. The party was held hours before he shut down food benefits to more than 40 million low-income Americans. This is yet another tone-deaf action by the nasty guy. It is a gift to Democrats, who can add photos of the party to their photos of the White House bathroom renovation and the demolition of the East Wing. Bill in Portland, Maine, in his Cheers and Jeers column for Kos quoted late night commentary, including this bit from Seth Meyers:

President Trump hosted a Great Gatsby-themed Halloween party at Mar-a-Lago. And, look, there's a lot you can say about this. It's tacky. It's tone-deaf when SNAP benefits are set to expire. But also, let's not ignore there's no way he’s read The Great Gatsby.

In the comments of Tuesday’s pundit roundup for Kos Nick Anderson posted a cartoon about a couple about to check their Affordable Care Act premium increase. He asks, “Ready?” She responds that she is – she has a firm hold on the paddles of a defibrillator. Liberal Jane posted a meme: “English is a language, not a way to measure someone’s intelligence.”