This Week’s Rundown
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Court Allows Regime to Deport Migrants to Third Countries
The Supreme Court on Monday lifted a lower court order that prevented the Trump administration from deporting migrants to countries that are not their places of origin without first giving them the chance to raise fears of torture, persecution or death.
In a dissenting opinion, Sotomayor accused the federal government of "flagrantly unlawful conduct" and called the majority's decision to intervene at this stage in the case "inexcusable."
"The government has made clear in word and deed that it feels itself unconstrained by law, free to deport anyone anywhere without notice or an opportunity to be heard," she wrote, joined by Kagan and Jackson.
As part of Mr. Trump's immigration agenda and plans for mass deportations, his administration has approached nations like Costa Rica, Panama and Rwanda about accepting migrants who are not their citizens.
The administration has also already entered into an arrangement with the government of El Salvador to detain Venezuelan migrants who it claims are gang members, though a "60 Minutes" investigation found most have no apparent criminal records. The migrants have been confined at the notorious Salvadoran prison known as CECOT, often under a 1798 wartime law.
a group of migrants from Laos, Vietnam and the Philippines were being prepared to be deported to Libya and Saudi Arabia, though the deportation flights do not appear to have happened. Murphy then concluded last month that the Trump administration violated his order when it attempted to swiftly deport a group of men with criminal histories to war-torn South Sudan with less than 24 hours notice
Another Blow to Planned Parenthood
The Supreme Court delivered a back-door blow to Planned Parenthood on Thursday, ruling that states may cut off Medicaid reimbursements for the organization's non-abortion medical services.
At issue was a provision of the federal Medicaid law that guarantees Medicaid patients the ability to choose their doctors, or in the words of the statute, they are entitled to "any qualified and willing provider."
South Carolina, however, maintained that it could disqualify Medicaid providers for "any reason that state law allows."
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, writing for the dissenting liberal justices said, the decision "will strip" Medicaid recipients all over the country of "a deeply personal freedom, the ability to decide who treats us at our most vulnerable."
Planned Parenthood's president and CEO, Alexis McGill Johnson, in an interview with NPR, said the decision would have widespread ramifications and would allow seventeen states to strip Planned Parenthood clinics of the ability to provide non-abortion medical services to rural and low income people.
These are undeniably tough days for Planned Parenthood, which also faces the possibility—or likelihood—that the Republican congress will soon cut off all its Medicaid funding in every state in the country.
Court Upholds Texas ID for Porn Law
It was the first time that the court has imposed requirements on adult consumers in order to protect minors from having such access.
Free-speech advocates argued that while the law's goal is to limit minors' access to online sexually explicit content, it is overly vague and imposes significant burdens on adults' access to constitutionally protected expression.
It did that by requiring every user, including adults, to first provide proof, typically via a government-issued identification, that they were at least 18 years old. The statute applies to all websites that contain content that is one-third or more "sexually suggestive" in nature and "harmful to children."
Indiana has a similar law that was in limbo waiting on this case.
Supreme Court Birthright Citizenship Ruling a Neoconfederate Nightmare
With the legal sleight of hand so beloved by the Roberts Court, the ruling doesn’t actually allow Trump to end birthright citizenship. It just makes it incredibly difficult for courts to stop him from ending birthright citizenship. It’s a distinction[...], but one that’s unlikely to make much of a difference if you happen to be born on the Republican side of the tracks. Once you read the fine print, it becomes clear that this decision is a historic, five-alarm catastrophe.
Trump v. CASA takes away the ability of lower-court judges to issue nationwide injunctions. Instead, lower courts are now limited to issuing rulings that apply only to the litigants who happen to be before them in their local court. Injunctions now must be narrowly tailored to give the active litigants only what they personally need, and nothing more.
The decision means that some courts, districts, and states will still defend the concept of birthright citizenship, while others will not. That could mean that whether or not a child born in America on or after June 27, 2025, is considered a citizen of the United States will depend on what state, or even county, that child happens to be born in.
If that setup sounds familiar, it should. It is exactly how this country determined citizenship from June 21, 1788, (when the Constitution was ratified) until July 9, 1868 (when the 14th Amendment was ratified). The idea that citizenship depends on which state recognizes your citizenship has literally been tried before in this country, with Black people and Native Americans having citizenship rights in some states and… not in others. We have already fought over this. It was called the Civil War. We resolved this issue; it’s called the first section of the 14th Amendment.
It’s fashionable to say that the court’s ruling is not really about birthright citizenship, because the legal question focused on the power to issue nationwide injunctions. But that sanewashing of the court’s opinion does not survive its first contact with reality. By taking away the ability of courts to enter nationwide injunctions in this case, the court is giving Trump carte blanche to violate the constitutional definition of citizenship in any district where a friendly Trump judge will allow him to. And, in practice, this ruling will extend to every other single issue where Trump has been stopped thanks to a nationwide injunction. Right on cue, Trump signaled today that he intends to move ahead with a slew of agenda items “that have been wrongly enjoined on a nationwide basis,” including policies targeting trans children, refugees, immigrants, and, yes, birthright citizenship.
To get to the point where she can return us to the state-by-state determination of citizenship practiced during the enslaver period of this country, Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who wrote the majority opinion for the Republicans, argues that nationwide injunctions should never be a thing. Her principal reasoning for this is… the High Court of Chancery in England, which existed at the time of the adoption of the Constitution.
Many of the legal fights brought against Trump over these first few months of his fascist reign are now moot and will have to be relitigated.
Israel/Iran Ongoing Situation
Trump Drops F-Bomb as countries flirt with deadline
Earlier on Tuesday, both Iran and Israel signaled that the air war between the two nations had concluded, at least for now, after Trump scolded them for violating a ceasefire he announced at 0500 GMT.
Trump: "Israel, as soon as we made the deal, they came out and they dropped a load of bombs, the likes of which I've never seen before. The biggest load that we've seen. I'm not happy with Israel. When I say okay now you have twelve hours, you don't go out in the first hour and just drop everything you've got on them ... I'm not happy with Iran either. But I'm really unhappy if Israel is going out this morning… We basically have two countries that have been fighting so long and so hard that they don't know what the fuck they're doing."
DIA: US Strikes Did Not Destroy Iranian Nuclear Facilities
May have only set nuclear program back “a few months”
Enriched uranium stocks were not eliminated, likely moved before strikes occurred
Trump rails against own intelligence community and media in response
CIA now says nuclear program was “severely damaged” in recent airstrikes and that several key sites were “destroyed”
DNI Tulsi Gabbard offers similar assessment
Where’s Congress in All This?
Bipartisan pushback on constitutionality of US involvement
Dem Khanna, Rep Massie invoke War Powers Act
Speaker Johnson asserts War Powers Act itself is unconstitutional
The US Senate rejected a Democrat-pushed resolution Friday that aimed to rein in President Donald Trump’s ability to use military action against Iran without congressional approval.
Trump attends NATO meeting at The Hague
NATO chief Mark Rutte (NED) kisses Trump’s ass, calls him “daddy”
“Europe is going to pay in a BIG way, as they should, and it will be your win,” he Truthed at the president.
“You will achieve something NO American president in decades could get done.”
“Of course, the summit result is largely pre-ordained, after rounds of pre-negotiations to ensure the leaders had to only rubber-stamp declarations.”
“Slimmed down, the schedule featured a single session for leaders; experts have suggested this was for Trump, who earlier this month skipped the ending of the G7 summit, missing a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.”
“Ukraine’s war with Russia – by far the most pressing issue on NATO’s agenda – was also excised from the summit’s final declaration, the first time it has been missing since Russian President Vladimir Putin’s full invasion of Ukraine in 2022”
“Even the crown jewel of the gathering, the promise to spend 5% of gross domestic product on defense (split into core defense requirements and 1.5% on defense-related spending by 2035), was a Trump-branded product.”
Bezos Wedding Draws Protest, Criticism
Regional governor Luca Zaia estimates the festivities to cost $23-$34 million.
Venice locals revolt against billionaire takeover of town center
“The wedding on Saturday was originally planned to take place in the centre of Venice at the Scuola Grande della Misericordia, a 16th-century meeting hall surrounded by canals, raising the spectacle of notable guests including Oprah, the Kardashians and Ivanka Trump arriving on public waterways via open-air taxi.”
A group called No Space for Bezos lightly threatened to disrupt the guests’ arrival with inflatable alligators
Everyone Hates Elon, a different [..] group that unfurled a huge banner in the Piazza San Marco bearing the legend, “If you can rent Venice for your wedding then you can pay more tax.”
Bezos changed venues to a less accessible hall outside the centre, a renovated maritime area on the outer edge of Venice. The vast 14th-century complex in the eastern Castello district, known for hosting the Venice Biennale art fair, is surrounded by water and impossible to reach by land when connecting bridges are raised.
Around the Corn
Ongoing Scandal in Indianapolis Government
Last Week: Dem Crista Carlino becomes 3rd Democrat, 4th councilor overall to call for Hogsett’s resignation. Also calls for Osili and VP Ali Brown to step down from leadership, alluding to their collusion in limiting the scope of the investigation.
Tuesday: Carlino reportedly booted from Democratic caucus
“Indy Politics was told the caucus vote was overwhelming, with members indicating that Carlino had offered no evidence to support her claims of undue influence on the investigation — nor had she raised those concerns internally with the council before making her statement.”
“We’re also told Carlino was given the opportunity to acknowledge she was wrong and retract her statements, but she refused to do so.”
Wednesday: Carlino Apologizes, Steps Down from Investigative, Other Committees
“In a letter to Indianapolis citizens and her Democratic colleagues, Carlino apologized for publicly calling on the mayor and Council leadership to resign without consulting her caucus, acknowledging that her actions caused division and unintended personal pain.”
“Carlino reaffirmed her commitment to serving District 11 and emphasized that her decisions were motivated by a desire to support survivors of misconduct and improve City processes. Despite stepping back from leadership roles, she says she intends to remain on the Council to continue serving her constituents.”
Thursday: Carlino Stands Ground in Interview with Shabazz
Carlino defended her controversial call for Mayor Joe Hogsett’s resignation and pushed back forcefully on recent personal attacks made by Council Vice President Ali Brown. Carlino said while she expected political disagreement, she didn’t anticipate “character assassination” from her own Democratic caucus colleagues.
The public clash follows Carlino’s decision to call for Mayor Hogsett’s resignation over his administration’s handling of the Thomas Cook sexual harassment scandal. She made her statement during a council committee meeting—an unusual venue, but one she stands by.
“I stand by everything I’ve said,” she insisted. “I believe it was germane to the discussion. It was important that my colleagues understood why I was voting the way I did.”
Carlino also clarified reports that she had been kicked out of the Democratic caucus.
“I was given a 24-hour ultimatum: issue a public apology or the vote to eliminate me from the caucus would stand,” she said. “That was incredibly disheartening, especially considering I was then publicly degraded by the vice president of the caucus the very next day.”
“I didn’t apologize for calling for the mayor’s resignation. I apologized for the process, not the substance.”
Old Boys Club: Braun Appoints Donors to IEDC
IEDC board appointments include campaign donors: Five of the nine new members appointed by Governor Braun to the IEDC board had collectively donated approximately $263,000 to his gubernatorial campaign and an additional $16,650 to his previous U.S. Senate campaign.
Contributing Donors were:
George Thomas of Granger, an entrepreneur and executive with ties to Adorn, Duo-Form, Lakota Trailers, Misty Harbor Pontoons and Viaggio Pontoon Boats.
Gus Olympidis of Valparaiso, who owns Family Express Convenience Stores.
Richard Waterfield of Fort Wayne, the CEO and board chairman of Waterfield Enterprises and Waterfield Asset Management as well as the founder and managing principal of Waterfield Private Equity Funds.
Chris King of Shelbyville, the executive vice president of Runnebohm Construction and a professional engineer who specializes in infrastructure design and construction as well as land entitlement and project execution.
Billie Dragoo of Indianapolis, the founder and CEO of RepuCare, a “workforce solutions provider.”
Also named to the board was Greg Gibson, of Terre Haute, a commercial real estate developer with a background in the hospitality and food service industry as well as trucking, excavation, coal, solid waste landfill development and waste industry advisory services.
Gibson also co-founded Spectacle Entertainment in a bid to bring a casino to Terre Haute. He launched Lucy Luck Gaming after his co-founder faced federal charges in an ongoing investigation in which one former lawmaker has pleaded guilty.
To be fair, appointees also include former Democratic House Speaker and gubernatorial nominee John Gregg and a union guy in David Fagan of Portage.
In contrast to his predecessor, Braun appointees included just one woman and doesn’t appear to have any people of color.
Braun has vowed to reform the quasi-public state agency to increase transparency, especially in the wake of a forensic investigation. Changing the administration of the IEDC was a major topic on the campaign trail.
Waste, Fraud, and Abuse
Braun confirms Indiana spent over $1M on lethal injection drugs over the last year
Gov. Mike Braun confirmed this week that Indiana spent more than $1 million in taxpayer funds to buy four doses of execution drugs – some that were used and others that expired.
Reporting by the Indiana Capital Chronicle previously revealed that at least $900,000 was spent by Holcomb’s administration to purchase pentobarbital. The execution drug was used in December to carry out the death penalty for convicted killer Joseph Corcoran, and again in May for the execution of Benjamin Ritchie.
Braun quotes:
“It was tricky, because if you acquired it, and there was some type of glitch, then you go into the same thing that happened with the Holcomb administration, which bought three (doses) – anticipating more (executions).
“It was a question of when you were going to actually get it and not be stranded with it.”
“You’re dealing with a source of (the execution drugs) that’s very hard to pin down, if it’s going to be available, it’s not like you can get it from several places.”
Why is that, Mike? Companies won’t sell states drugs for the purposes of executing people. They don’t want any part of it.
…and they’re looking to kill another guy.
Indiana taxpayers on the hook for $500K in legal bills defending Rokita
The state paid four law firms a combined $491,508 between 2022 and 2025 to represent Rokita in at least six separate matters before the Indiana Supreme Court Disciplinary Commission — investigations that the Republican describes as politically motivated and retaliatory.
Only two of the investigations resulted in formal disciplinary charges
The ongoing complaint stems from Rokita’s nationally televised comments in June 2022 about Indianapolis OB-GYN Dr. Caitlin Bernard, who oversaw a medication abortion for a 10-year-old rape victim from Ohio that summer.
State Rep Ed Delaney: “We’re paying four law firms close to half a million dollars so that Todd Rokita can keep his law license and stay in office. That’s a campaign expense — not something the public should have to fund.”
Rokita claims political persecution:
The commission said Rokita acted with “a deliberate or reckless disregard for the truth” and has since opposed his request to dismiss the new charges.
But he maintains the taxpayer expense is the result of a politically charged and unaccountable disciplinary process.“These investigations require time away from the job Hoosiers elected me to do,” Rokita said in a written statement.
“Regardless of their false, politically motivated nature, each grievance, investigation and complaint requires time, attention and office resources to combat.”
Continued Gutting of Indiana Public Education at All Levels
State budget cuts impact Indiana School for the Deaf
The school serves 350 deaf and hard-of-hearing children.
The state, facing a budget crisis, slashed the school's funding by 5%. Advocates with the Indiana Association of the Deaf say that amounts to about $3 million.
It has forced 26 layoffs, including teachers and nurses at ISD, plus no more Camp Willard, an annual summer camp for young deaf and hard-of-hearing Hoosiers.
There will be no overnight health care for emergencies for the children who stay in dorms at the school.
Catherine Vest, vice president of the Indiana Association of the Deaf, said the cuts feel targeted, especially since traditional schools largely got spared from cuts in the budget.
"This is not justice. This is not equal access," Vest said. "Both private and public schools got a 2% increase. And we received a 5% cut. Which is not equal. It's not fair."
Vest said lawmakers considered the Indiana School for the Deaf a "state agency" more than a school, which means it got the across-the-board 5% cut.
Braun: "I don't think a 5% cut is devastating on anything when it's in the context that we had to do it mostly across the board. We'll see what happens in August. We'll be watching our own state's cash flow each month, so when it comes to any of them, don't feel hurt by it.
Private School Voucher Scheme Costs Hoosiers Half a Billion Dollars
Indiana’s private school voucher program grew to more than 76,000 students this school year, with the state spending nearly half a billion to subsidize tuition at private, parochial, and nonreligious schools.
The IDOE annual scholarship report shows the program’s growth has slowed to 8.5%, compared to a surge in recent years after eligibility was broadly expanded. The state paid $497.1 million in tuition grants — a 13.2% increase over the previous year.
In the recent legislative session, state lawmakers removed all income requirements starting in July 2026, a change that will increase the cost of the program.
Vouchers were originally created to help low-income students and those in struggling public schools access private education. Today, state GOP leaders say all families should be supported in choosing the school they believe is best for their children — regardless of income.
The “average” student in the program is a White, female elementary student from a metropolitan area household with an annual income of more than $100,000, according to the report.Families earning less than $100,000 now represent just under 53% of participants — down roughly two percentage points from the previous year.
Hundreds of IU degree programs at risk of disappearing
Indiana University could lose hundreds of degree programs as part of compliance with an array of new laws affecting higher education that passed at the 11th hour of the legislative session.
One of the laws requires public colleges and universities to eliminate programs with low numbers of degrees averaged over a three-year period.
The cutoff is 15 graduates for a bachelor’s degree, seven for a master’s and three for a doctorate.
Most of the degrees with low numbers of recipients are in the humanities and languages. Jewish Studies, Classical Studies and multiple language departments could lose their main offerings.
From 2020 to 2022, IU Bloomington conferred more humanities doctorates than any other university in the country, according to data from Carnegie Classifications. It also ranks first for number of languages taught, for now.
The law allows universities to petition the Indiana Commission for Higher Education (ICHE) for exceptions. If it doesn’t give approval, the institution is responsible for eliminating the program and “any costs associated” with it.
To comply with the law while preserving courses and faculty, campus units may propose merging degree programs. Instead of receiving a BA in French, for example, a student might instead get a degree in Modern European Languages.l
One Big Thing
Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani Wins Democratic Primary for NYC Mayor
Still must face incumbent “Independent” Eric Adams and Republican Curtis Sliwa (the Guardian Angels guy)
Donald Trump called him “a 100% Communist Lunatic”, writing on social media: “We’ve had Radical Lefties before, but this is getting a little ridiculous.”
Far-right activist and White House whisperer Laura Loomer posted on X that “there will be another 9/11 in NYC” under Mamdani’s leadership
White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller and architect of mass deportations claiming: “NYC is the clearest warning yet of what happens to a society when it fails to control migration.”
The New York representative Elise Stefanik, Trump’s one-time pick for UN ambassador, sent fundraising emails branding Mamdani a “Hamas terrorist sympathizer”
Donald Trump Jr amplified a post reading, “I’m old enough to remember when New Yorkers endured 9/11 instead of voting for it.”
Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene posted an AI-generated image of the Statue of Liberty draped in a burqa.
Rep. Andy Ogles (R-Tenn.) suggested (on X) New York Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani should be deported and denaturalized ahead of the November election:
“Zohran ‘little muhammad’ Mamdani is an antisemitic, socialist, communist who will destroy the great City of New York. He needs to be DEPORTED. Which is why I am calling for him to be subject to denaturalization proceedings,”
How far will the establishment go to squash Mamdani?
Clinton, Bloomberg, Clyburn, Summers et al lined up behind Cuomo
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul as well as Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries have praised Mamdani since Tuesday but declined to endorse him. And two House Democrats from swing districts in the New York suburbs criticized him
New York Rep. Laura Gillen (D), from Nassau County, called Mamdani the "absolute wrong choice for New York."
Rep. Tom Suozzi (D), also from Nassau County, said he had "serious concerns."
Gillibrand (New York) Goes on Islamophobic Rant Against Mamdani in Radio Interview
Gillibrand said that Mamdani, who is Muslim, is dangerous and supports violence, citing his refusal to condemn the phrase “globalize the intifada” and equating the words “intifada” and “jihad”
Gillibrand said that just the phrase “global intifada” — with “intifada” meaning “uprising” or “rebellion” in Arabic — is “violent and destructive.”
“It doesn’t matter what meaning you have in your brain, it is now how the word is received. When you use a word like intifada, to many Jewish Americans and Jewish New Yorkers, that means you are permissive for violence against Jews,” Gillibrand said. Her statements ignored the many times that Mamdani has denounced antisemitic violence — instead suggesting that Mamdani made an explicit call for violence when he did not.
Gillibrand was referring to recent comments made by Mamdani after he was asked to denounce the phrase “globalize the intifada.” Mamdani, who has been active in the movement for Palestinian rights, said that the phrase speaks to Palestinians’ desire for equal rights. He pointed out that the word has been politicized to incite violence against Palestinians, even though the word “intifada” was used by the Holocaust Museum in its Arabic translation for the Warsaw Uprising.
Third Way fearmongers around socialism
Matt Bennett, co-founder of the centrist Democratic group Third Way, warned that Mamdani’s policies are a political problem for the Democratic Party.
“The fact that Mamdani is young, charismatic, a great communicator — all of those things are to be emulated,” Bennett said. “His ideas are bad. … And his affiliation with the (Democratic Socialists of America) is very dangerous. It’s already being weaponized by the Republicans.”
On X: “Democratic Party Leaders: You have talked for six months about the need to create political excitement to get working class and young people involved in the political process. That’s exactly what Zohran did. Get behind him.”
In another tweet: “People like Mamdani are their worst nightmares,” Sanders said of the GOP. “It’s one thing for the Democrats to be strongly against Donald Trump. It is another thing to give working class people something to vote for — a positive agenda.”
Lessons for Hoosier Democrats?
Politico: All four Muslim Democratic House members are denouncing “racist smears” against Zohran Mamdani from lawmakers in both parties.
“The vile, anti-Muslim and racist smears from our colleagues on both sides of the aisle attacking Zohran Mamdani cannot be met with silence. These hateful, Islamophobic, and racist tropes have become so entrenched and normalized in our politics,” said Reps. Andre Carson of Indiana, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Lateefah Simon of California in a statement.
“The Machine” vs. the upstarts - tying it back to our Hogsett discussion.
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