ICE commits more torture at ‘Alligator Auschwitz’—Watchdog

September 11, 2026

Trump’s scandal-plagued second regime produced yet another to toss on the pile: on September 11th, DHS‘s inspector general released a report detailing latest abuses by ICE goons on migrants. Laura Strickler, Justin Goldman and Julia Ainsley report for NBC News:

Some immigrants detained at Florida’s now-shuttered ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ were confined in outdoor cages only slightly larger than telephone booths for more than an hour at a time, according to a new report by the Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general.

The watchdog report marks the first time a government agency has confirmed the existence of cramped cages at the South Florida Detention Facility. Amnesty International found in a report published in December, based on interviews with detainees and a tour of the facility, that the cages were used to punish detainees and amounted to torture, sparking a congressional probe.
Laura Strickler, Justin Goldman and Julia Ainsley for NBC News

In standard-Orwellian fashion, ICE staff referred to the phone-booth-sized cages as “calming areas.”

DHS IG inspectors visited the facility in January as part of its Congressional mandate to inspect detention facilities. The inspector general’s report found the ‘small metal enclosures’ were roughly 4-by-4, or 16 square feet, and facility staff members described them as ‘calming areas’ for ‘detainees to de-escalate and have time alone.’
Laura Strickler, Justin Goldman and Julia Ainsley for NBC News

The findings were released by DHS IG Joseph Cuffari, which is notable because he was cited for misconduct in office during Secret Service‘s texts scandal post-January 6th.

The findings are a rare instance when a federal inspector general has publicly criticized the Trump administration. Since he returned to office in 2025, Trump has fired at least 18 inspectors general… Homeland Security’s inspector general, Joseph Cuffari, is one of the few Cabinet-level inspectors general who wasn’t fired in the purge.
Laura Strickler, Justin Goldman and Julia Ainsley for NBC News

Sacking more than a dozen IGs but keeping Cuffari, loyal foot soldier at DHS, should’ve set off far more alarm bells. (The firings themselves were illegal, according to Washington Post.) Then again, mainstream media largely sat on thumbs for months after Amnesty International published their scathing report about abuse at Alligator Auschwitz last December, linked below, which is itself a separate scandal (see my footnote for more). Independent reporters like Spencer Ackerman gave us the coverage that was severely lacking elsewhere.

Early days in Trump’s second regime, our TrumpFile founder documented whistleblower testimony from Reddit/Twitter warning that Office of Personnel Management was being gutted to clear the way for abuses. Later, in August 2025, another whistleblower noted abuses inside Alligator Auschwitz, including holding cells that she referred to as “oversized kennels.” And in separate reporting from Miami Herald, ICE simply “lost track of” more than 1,000 migrants they detained.

AUTHOR FOOTNOTE

I would call this “another huge embarrassment for Don Trump and Ron DeSantis” but the totality of their miserable lives revolves around rake-stepping and then denying anything illegal or wrong ever happened. (Then going on Fixed Noise for a live-hit of course.)

The point of legacy media’s “sins of omission” is that it’s a willful operation, a choice, which ultimately remains invisible because there’s no content or context to scrutinize. Shareholder-based big conglomerates are averse to controversy (in addition to offending Donald) so, conveniently, they’re just not willing to risk even a $10 drop in value by reporting the truth.

And that’s why Amnesty International’s report was largely skipped over by corporate media. But plenty of indie journos covered it.

Imagine being made to spend 11 days inside a coffin. Imagine being made to spend more than a day inside a box barely two feet large in any direction. Imagine having to curl up, unable to extend any of your extremities, in the claustrophobic conditions of such a box, for more than a cumulative day. You can see pictures Abu Zubaydah drew of himself in the small box. Now imagine this being done to someone you love. I say all this because the following description appears in an Amnesty International report released Friday into the conditions of confinement for migrants at Alligator Alcatraz:
Spencer Ackerman, Forever Wars

Could it be that the details of Amnesty’s report were so jarring, so gut-wrenching and evil, that they simply didn’t want to touch it?

We need a New Deal for journalism, one that demands ALL news outlets act according to a common set of principles and standards. These atrocities were committed in America’s name; ABC/Disney, CBS/Skydance, NBC/Comcast are American companies second. They answer to shareholders first. And that’s why news in the modern era cannot, and must not, be subject to the profit motive.

Last point: feels notable that media omissions often track with Republican politicians’ denials. DeSantis—himself mired in scandal surrounding Hope Florida funds diversion—boasted about Alligator Auschwitz’s “successes” and openly admitted he hadn’t read the inspector general’s report. Ron and his cronies were responsible for running the concentration camp on behalf of Donny’s mafia (itself a murky arrangement rife for corruption), and now they are pointing to each other while denying everything.

This is the type of “accountability diffusion” that Republicans often use. And media of course is very often along for the ride.

SOURCES

NBC News
Amnesty International report (PDF)
r/Fednews on Reddit
Forever Wars
Washington Post (Archived)

Trump DOJ attempts to extort states out of data on illegal immigrants

September 2, 2026

On September 2, the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Office of Legal Counsel revised an opinion made in 1998, now suggesting that states are obligated to report on illegal immigrants living there to the Department of Homeland Security, if they still wish to receive federal aid to low-income families via the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and Supplemental Security Income programs.

This new burden is placed upon the whole state government, not just its agencies administering the federal aid.

It is very likely this measure will be challenged in court by several states. As Congress allocated the assistance money, the DOJ’s claim to be able to stymie its release to the states is questionable.

Source

NBC

Army Secretary Dan Driscoll resigns after warning White House, Hegseth fully consolidates control over Pentagon

August 31, 2026

On August 31, Army Secretary Dan Driscoll announced his resignation from his role, offering no formal reason for doing so. His resignation is effective in the following days.

Before his resignation, Driscoll attended a meeting with the Trump administration. He warned about the damage that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was doing to the military. Driscoll was an ally of former Army Chief of Staff Randy George, who was fired by Hegseth for no known reason. As Driscoll and George supported modernization efforts, especially as they pertained to drone warfare, the former was concerned that Hegseth was throttling progress toward modernization. Driscoll also expressed concerns with Hegseth stalling promotions.

During his tenure, Driscoll, a friend of Vice President JD Vance, had a rivalry with Hegseth. Hegseth “was suspicious and paranoid” over Driscoll’s stature in the Defense Department. Driscoll additionally had bipartisan support, with sixteen Senate Democrats backing him. This resignation comes after a several terminations and resignations in Hegseth’s Pentagon; now that his chief rival is gone, Hegseth has consolidated control over the Defense Department. Hegseth favors Sean Parnell, the sycophantic chief Pentagon spokesperson, to succeed Driscoll.

Sources

USPS whistleblower warns of ‘catastrophic failure’ for elections if Trump’s demands are met

August 30, 2026

Yet another whistleblower has come forward, late in August with only weeks until 2026 Midterm elections, to warn of abject chaos if Trump’s latest Executive Order to disrupt USPS operations is enforced. Represented by nonprofit advocacy group Whistleblower Aid, the unnamed federal official transmitted an account of their warnings to ranking member Richard Blumenthal on a Senate subcommittee—who then wrote to USPS postmaster general David Steiner demanding answers.

Per Steve Inskeep and Majd Al-Waheidi reporting for NPR:

The U.S. Postal Service has been building a new system to carry out Trump’s push to restrict mail-in voting, including an online portal for states to submit voter information before absentee ballots go into the mail. An anonymous federal official says the system was rushed and could keep ballots from reaching eligible voters on time.

As part of the ongoing legal fight over Trump’s mail-voting order, a federal judge has temporarily blocked USPS from requiring states to use the portal in order to send out their mail-in ballots for the midterm election. The Postal Service is appealing that ruling.
Steve Inskeep and Majd Al-Waheidi for NPR

ProPublica‘s reporting does a better job enumerating risks of Trump’s latest petulant foot-stamping, which actually dates back to an earlier executive order in March (also challenged in court).

(Writer’s note: attacks on mailed ballots dates even further back to 2020 and Louis DeJoy; more on that in my Author Footnote.)

Per Jen Fifield:

In a March executive order, Trump [demanded that] the Postal Service create the new rules, including requiring states to give USPS a list of all voters eligible to receive a ballot in the mail and requiring USPS to use those lists to determine which ballots get sent to voters. USPS officials were tasked with crafting the details of how the new system would work, including the creation of a new portal for states to upload their voters’ information and the back-end software that would allow mail delivery sites and local post offices to track, and potentially block, ballots entering into the mail on their way to voters.

Voting rights organizations, state officials and Democratic political groups filed lawsuits challenging the new rules, and a federal court has temporarily blocked the requirements for states.

<SNIP>

Election clerks raised similar concerns directly to USPS officials just days before the final rule was issued, at a mid-August National Association of Election Officials conference in Kansas City, Missouri, ProPublica has learned. There, an example was given of Maricopa County, Arizona, which often sends out more than 2 million ballots at a time in its initial mailing. USPS officials confirmed it was possible that one ballot with a bad barcode or wrong voter information within the more than 2 million ballots could delay the entire mailing, according to two people who attended the related committee meeting.
Jen Fifield, ProPublica

Like they do in any crisis of their making (from ICE abductions to occupation of blue cities and everything in between) Trump’s associates are lying to media about their actions. The spokesperson told ProPublica: “Regardless of political party or perspective, we share a common goal: ensuring that Americans can have confidence that their election mail will be handled securely and delivered reliably.”

This particular facet of the Right’s kinetic, clumsy sabotage of USPS operations dates back to 2020 and then-postmaster Louis DeJoy, who lied repeatedly under oath about his “activities” overseeing Postal Service operations. DeJoy famously removed Blue Boxes and had sorting machines destroyed, in addition to cutting overtime pay for USPS workers during the COVID pandemic. Last December, an official rule change from USPS allowed a later postmark than when Postal Service took possession, which would greatly impact ballots.

AUTHOR FOOTNOTE

Orwellian gaslighting from Donny’s Regime 2 is a feature, not a bug, of corrupt authoritarianism. Media bears a ton of responsibility here, running official statements from likes of DHS, FBI and ICE like they have any tether to reality (it’s an epidemic of lie-washing). In 2026, the lies and gaslighting are on steroids with the benefit of system tests and dry runs: Lou DeJoy is essentially the poster child for Republicans who lie repeatedly under oath and suffer absolutely no consequences.

example: DHS doesn't just lie here—it cribs donny's favorite lil' talking point about a shutdown he caused. storied-newsroom @houstonchronicle.com built an entire update around that inane gaslighting. without any disclaimers.this is an epidemic.🧢 @radleybalko.bsky.social bsky.app/profile/kiss…
— Will Pollock ➡️ turn 🔔 on (@willpollock.com) 2026-07-10T21:02:34.597Z

Should also be noted that U.S. media never adequately investigated DeJoy’s malfeasance. Lou swung a ton of money to Trump & RNC when the Postmaster job came open it barely blipped the news cycle. DeJoy also had documented self-dealing after he got the gig, to say nothing of his alleged election fraud in North Carolina prior to getting the “mob nod” for USPS postmaster.

In any event, the best way to understand Donny’s latest EO-based tantrum is to understand from which Dry Run it was born. I did a ton of reporting on DeJoy’s putting USPS through a woodchipper (linked some of my pieces below), including how then-chairwoman Carolyn Maloney demanded DeJoy come testify about his shenanigans.

To my surprise, DeJoy turned up and got put through the wringer because Maloney received whistleblower evidence that was not in the document dump DeJoy provided to her committee. From reporter Igor Derysh writing for Salon (published by TruthOut):

Maloney threatened to subpoena DeJoy during the hearing after grilling him over an internal assessment of USPS performance that showed a significant slowdown after DeJoy took over the agency. Maloney questioned why the committee learned about the assessment from a whistleblower when the panel had asked the USPS to turn over documents related to the agency’s performance.

The point here is pretty simple: most of the discussion surrounding Donny’s destruction op in corporate media centers around the “tick-tock” of what’s happening today—without mentioning that DeJoy’s unprosecuted crimes against the Postal Service laid the foundation for what Donald is doing today.

Whistleblowers then and now are risking their lives (and their families’ well-being) to warn the American people the fix is in.

This is a sweeping conspiracy to weaken, render inept and ultimately destroy America’s favorite institution. A number of lawyers are fighting this action in federal courts, with a lot of success, but judges are only ruling for democracy because brave folks are standing up against tyranny. And it’s up to us to hear them and act accordingly.

SOURCES

Central Florida Public Media
ProPublica
CrankyYank
CrankyYank: North Carolina Election Fraud
TruthOut

Trump admin agrees to shady oil deal with Venezuelan dictator Delcy Rodríguez and international criminal

August 28, 2026

On August 28, Trump announced the conclusion of an oil deal with Venezuelan dictator Delcy Rodríguez, who succeeded the former dictator of the country, Nicolás Maduro, after he was secured by American forces. According to Rodríguez, the arrangement includes “the development of 17 fields with a proven potential of 65 billion barrels.”

The agreement lacks transparency, with much unknown about it. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth were involved in the negotiations with Rodríguez. What is also known is that the United States will be able to partner with North American Blue Energy Partners (NABEP), which will have a century-long right to develop the oil fields. The Office of Strategic Capital, under the Department of Defense, “will hold a 35 percent equity stake in its corporate parent.” That corporate parent is likely Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A, Venezuela’s national oil company that has recently been transferring some of its operations to private companies.

The deal gives the United States 55% effective output of the new private company — including an ownership stake and rights to buy oil at cost. The company would be the second largest corporate holder of proven reserves after Saudi Aramco, according to the official.
AP

The Trump administration has elected to work with Alejandro Betancourt, who is under active criminal investigations in several countries. He has been accused in Venezuela and abroad of committing vast acts of corruption. He scammed Venezuelan taxpayers out of $2.9 billion on overpriced power plant modifications, and is being investigated for money laundering in Switzerland, as well as other nations.

This deal, which involves American state ownership of a private company, comes despite Trump’s apparent rejection of socialism, and support for free-market capitalism. Furthermore, the legality of the deal is questionable. As Rodríguez approved of it without the National Assembly, which has been degraded by years of dictatorship, this deal is illegal under Venezuelan law. Rodriguez’s status as head of state is illegitimate itself, as she was not elected. The State Department recognizes this fact, stating that the 2015 National Assembly was the last democratic entity in Venezuela. The deal may further erode Venezuela’s chances of embracing democracy, as the dictatorship becomes legitimized, its coffers filled, and an already extractive industry being solidified. Rodriguez herself utilized the oil industry to consolidate power within the Chavismo regime.

Author’s note

For more information on how this agreement can erode Venezuela’s democracy, I suggest reading Why Nations Fail by Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson. Venezuela’s now-strengthened oil industry will now suppress economic, and therefore political, pluralism.

Sources

Hegseth’s Pentagon purges ‘Stars and Stripes’ editorial staff

August 21, 2026

In a move that can and should be construed as another direct attack on democracy and independent news-gathering, Pete Hegseth‘s Department of Defense moved to fire the top editor, outgoing publisher and a reporter with Stars and Stripes military publication. As Svetlana Shkolnikova and Rose L. Thayer report for that same newspaper, Editor-in-Chief Erik Slavin was terminated for drawing lines in the sand about editorial independence.

The Pentagon on Friday moved to fire the editor-in-chief of Stars and Stripes as well as its retiring publisher and a civilian reporter who covers the Middle East for the news organization. Erik Slavin, the editor-in-chief, said he was being fired for insubordination after stating in an interview last month that censorship of news for service members would constitute a red line in the Pentagon’s efforts to exert control over the newspaper. ‘I stand by the principle that Stars and Stripes must remain editorially independent, as required by law and by the department’s own policies,’ he said in a statement Friday. He said he received a notice of proposed separation and is reviewing it.
Svetlana Shkolnikova & Rose L. Thayer, Stars and Stripes

A recent piece on CBS Sunday Morning featured a number of staff members who were the victims of Hegseth’s purge.

Slavin was named the paper’s top editor in September 2025. He joined Stars and Stripes in 2005 as a reporter in Japan and went on to embed with U.S. forces in Iraq, report in South Korea and oversee news operations in Europe and the Middle East. He said in the feature on CBS Sunday Morning that it was imperative for Stars and Stripes to provide independent news to troops. ‘If we can’t do that, if we were turned into something other than that, if we were public relations,’ he said, then that would be something on which he would be unwilling to compromise.
Svetlana Shkolnikova & Rose L. Thayer, Stars and Stripes

Middle East reporter Lara Korte and publisher Max D. Lederer Jr. were also let go—the latter after announcing his retirement on Tuesday.

As MS.NOW reported, the pressure on Stars and Stripes editorial team had been building for months: in January, job applicants were asked leading questions about their support for Trump’s anti-democratic, autocratic demands.

The firings and unprecedented-pressure campaign to exert editorial control over Stars and Stripes mirrors similar actions taken against Voice of America, spearheaded by disgraced-news anchor Kari Lake. Early on in Trump’s second regime, an executive order commanded the gutting of U.S. Agency for Global Media, Voice of America‘s parent company.

AUTHOR FOOTNOTE

To Donald’s personality cult, it’s not propaganda if traditionally independent publications and news outlets are brought to heel by hired hands and allies like Bari Weiss. If they could only step back and view this objectively: they are, quite literally, forcing “anti-woke” nonsense on an outlet they only partially control because hypersensitive fascists cannot handle true things floating in the ether.

Sean Parnell, Pentagon dolt tasked with “overhauling” Stars and Stripes to suit Nazi overlords, is not the most-reliable narrator. Credibly accused of domestic violence himself, Donald probably felt kismet with Mr. Sean, who would theoretically be rather keen to disappear mentions of truthful journalism of any kind. Anyways, the dismissal of ombudsman Jacqueline Smith in April started the ball rolling. (Smith is suing the department to be reinstated on First Amendment grounds.)

Cut to present day and Parnell is still wielding a “cult hatchet” to carve out another pound of flesh on Donald’s revenge tour.

Parnell’s stated goal was “content redirection” for Stars and Stripes, but what went down instead was the removal of nearly its entire leadership chain plus the ombudsman, who could be characterized as a “watchdog” in line with department inspectors general. I know, I know: personality cults are impervious to facts but they are still pesky markers: wide gap between Parnell’s stated “rationale” and the actual outcome (Friday Afternoon Massacre) is the type of contradiction made for history books.

Status‘ Jon Passantino called this op a “truth purge” so it’s 50/50 that America will still have books with actual history in the future.

SOURCES

ABC sues Trump’s FCC for violating first-amendment rights

August 18, 2026

Infringing upon personal, educational, constitutional and corporate rights has become a hallmark of Trump’s second term—with violent assaults on sitting members of congress, violations of private-institutional sovereignty and numerous other attacks. This week in August, a corporation fought back: ABC and its parent company, Disney, sued Brendan Carr‘s FCC for “coercive” and “retaliatory” attacks on the company.

Steve Benen for MaddowBlog:

The conflict between Disney’s ABC and Trump’s Federal Communications Commission has been intensifying for months, leading to questions about whether the network might take the matter to court.

On Tuesday morning, ABC filed a case in federal court in Washington, D.C., accusing the FCC of trying to interfere with the network’s First Amendment rights. From the court filing:

‘Again and again, the Administration has attacked ABC’s speech — the stories its journalists report and the viewpoints its network programs air. Over time, those attacks have escalated into express demands that ABC be stripped of its broadcast licenses because of its speech’

‘Government censorship,’ the suit added, ‘is deeply un-American’
Steve Benen, MaddowBlog

ABC News ‘capitulates’ to Trump, settles defamation suit

As TrumpFile readers will recall, ABC capitulated early to Trump’s ascendant-fascist regime in late 2024 when Disney settled a defamation case that many legal observers said ABC would (and should) win. ABC later “suspended” veteran journalist Terry Moran for posting mild critiques of Trump’s associates—which later led to the network not renewing his contract. Later, CBS and parent company Paramount followed suit, settling a nonsense claim about selective editing on 60 Minutes.

Carr has used mafia language in the past when a Jimmy Kimmel monologue raised the ire of Trump’s regime. And as Benen adds, Carr even launched a “probe” into ABC’s flagship chat-show “The View” that smacked of government policing language:

Worth noting for context that Carr’s FCC also recently launched an investigation into “The View,” a popular ABC talk show, sparking related accusations of government censorship. Time will tell what becomes of the litigation, but one of the key lessons of the Republican’s second term is that news organizations that fight back against the administration’s abuses have had far more success than those that have tried to appease the White House.
Steve Benen, MaddowBlog

AUTHOR FOOTNOTE

Donald has declared war on so many different institutions, companies and imaginary demons that one needs a Carrie Mathison bulletin board just to track it all. But I believe what we’re seeing now is a turning point, a shift in tides that media companies (hopefully any party illegally threatened by fascists) are not gonna take this crap anymore. The normally chatty Carr’s reaction to Oliver Darcy’s questions is quite telling indeed:

Carr, who usually relishes in providing Status with colorful comments trolling legacy media companies, did not respond to my text messages about the lawsuit on Tuesday. But an unnamed spokesperson for the FCC suggested in a statement that its probe into Disney is merely about ‘claims that Disney engaged in illegal D.E.I. discrimination.’ Of course, that claim is absurd—and there is a long trail of comments and actions from Carr himself indicating that the FCC’s campaign against Disney is really about its news programming and commentary critical of Trump.
Oliver Darcy, Status.News

When a propaganda operation known to lie about everything gets an unnamed grunt to provide comment to an outlet to which they normally boast, it’s a sure sign they know the crusade is nonsense. And it reminds me of the mishegas around Donald’s plan to rehash 2020 “Stop the Steal” grievances in a “primetime” “address,” which, for the first time in Regime 2, did not get all networks to clear schedules.

Caving to fascists is the beginning, not the end, of capitulation. I sincerely hope this is the start of a new trend. Disney’s modeling courage, finally, is a great way to build momentum into November’s Midterm elections.

SOURCES

MS.NOW
ABC’s court filing (PDF)
Status.News

Trump’s DOJ invades Wyoming with ‘election’ ‘monitors’

August 18, 2026

From what reports suggest was a hastily planned decision, Trump’s DOJ sent what they called “election monitors” to Wyoming—and ended up rattling state Republicans there. According to a report by Maggie Mullen in WyoFile, governor Mark Gordon waited a full week to disclose the event to the public.

As the state canvassing board met Wednesday in Cheyenne to certify the results of Wyoming’s primary elections, Gov. Mark Gordon raised concerns about what he described as ‘aggressive’ and ‘irregular’ conduct by federal officials observing last week’s primary elections. The way the federal observers conducted themselves also prompted concern from Laramie County Clerk Debra Lee.

Two Department of Justice attorneys were dispatched to Laramie County as part of a ‘monitoring initiative,’ according to a department press release published on Aug. 18, Wyoming’s primary election day.

‘This monitoring initiative is aimed at promoting transparency and an open flow of communication between poll observers and election monitors,’ the release stated.
Maggie Mullen for WyoFile

The election “observation” follows DOJ’s early demand for Wyoming voter data, with which secretary of state Chuck Gray apparently complied last year. Governor Gordon’s criticisms of the surprise visit did not sit well with Gray, apparently.

Last week, however, local and state officials were not made aware of federal observers, Gordon said at Wednesday’s meeting, pointing to the Wyoming Office of Homeland Security, the Wyoming Attorney General and the Laramie County Clerk’s Office as being out of the loop.

‘To my knowledge, the U.S. Attorney was unaware of it, and it sounded like the behavior of the observers was a bit aggressive,’ Gordon said at Wednesday’s meeting.

‘It just was irregular, and I have asked the attorney general to start looking into, you know, kind of the nature of the visits and all that sort of stuff,’ Gordon said.

Gray disputed the governor’s assertions: ‘Voters deserve absolute confidence that their ballots are secure and their voices are heard without interference,’ Smith wrote. ‘We are working alongside local officials to ensure every lawful vote is protected.’
Maggie Mullen for WyoFile

Donald Trump’s gambit in Wyoming mirrors past election malfeasance under the guise of “election” “integrity,” dating back to when Mike Pence and Kris Kobach (of “Crosscheck” fame in Kansas) served as chair and vice chair, respectively, of the so-called “presidential advisory committee on election integrity.” Kobach sought sensitive voter data from all 50 states and was reportedly denied.

AUTHOR FOOTNOTE

There you have it folks: the “Dry Run” in question was the aforementioned “election integrity” nonsense during Regime 1 led by notorious-Kansas ratf**ker Kris Kobach. Remember him!?

in 2025, after doing that #DryRun with Kobach, the criminal mobsters are skipping over "hunting for voter fraud" ruse and going directly to kicking folks off the rollswww.brennancenter.org/our-work/ana…
— Will Pollock ➡️ turn 🔔 on (@willpollock.com) 2025-03-28T20:35:14.725Z

Cut to today and what DOJ*’s Civil Rights Division is doing (more on that presently) is precisely the scenario many liberals warned about: Donald’s destruction operation won’t stop just at blue states. This past April, that same division sued Idaho (yes, that Idaho) for “failing to produce voter data as requested.” The press release (linked below) is short on justification (because there is none) and rationale (because folks running propaganda there are almost entirely MAGA dolts).

The press release outlining the “rationale” for invading Wyoming doesn’t even make logical sense. In it, they claim the “monitoring” is aimed at promoting “open flow of communication between poll observers and election monitors.” But those 2 groups run around, not through, Wyoming’s election administrators.

In any event, the story media is largely whiffing on is how—under a monarch crowned by SCOTUS as beyond reproach—a division usually working to defend the rights of marginalized Americans is now being wielded as a fascist weapon ahead of Midterms. To my eye, that should be deemed a criminal misuse of agency-division charter and grounds for another impeachment.

if Idaho hasn't already been invaded by DOJ* goons I feel like that's coming in short order. can I ask: is suing for voter rolls appropriate use of the Civil Rights Division?
— Will Pollock ➡️ turn 🔔 on (@willpollock.com) 2026-08-28T20:28:41.912Z

Under Donny, the “Civil” “Rights” “Division” is acting FAR more like a terror cell than anything resembling a minority- or disabled-person-defending arm of U.S. justice. And that should terrify everyone. No matter which state you live in, check your registration frequently and make a plan to vote this November.

SOURCES

Hegseth potentially breaks law by campaigning with Republican (again) during war, floats running for President

August 17, 2026

On August 17, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth campaigned with Representative Zach Nunn for a fundraiser campaign titled, “Operation Top Nunn: Salute to the Troops.” The event was originally to be held sometime in March, but was cancelled due to the deaths of two Iowa service members during the Iran War.

Hegseth very likely violated the Hatch Act, as he made no distinction between his role of Defense Secretary from his support of Nunn. During the event, he promoted his culture war within the Defense Department, decrying diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies. He also promoted Trump’s $1.5 trillion budget for his department.

This is not the first time Hegseth has campaigned with Republican politicians as Defense Secretary. He campaigned with Ed Gallrein against Representative Thomas Massie, a Republican that rejected Trump regarding the Epstein files and Iran War. As stated in the previous file, “Hegseth’s overt preference and support for one candidate over another violates longstanding Defense Department rules and norms regarding political neutrality.”

This overtly political situation occurred within close proximity to a report, which found that Hegseth expressed interest in running for President to his friends and colleagues. His wife, Jennifer, shares this interest. She has been more involved in Pentagon affairs than other Defense Secretary wives.

Sources

Trump scales down exercises with South Korea, praises tyrant Kim Jong Un

August 16, 2026

On August 16, Trump announced that he ordered the Defense Department to diminish the scale of joint exercises with ally Republic of Korea. He justified this measure by labeling North Korea “unthreatening and respectful” over the course of his administration, and by complaining that South Korea did not join his war against Iran.

It is not clear what these smaller exercises, called Ulchi Freedom Shield, will look like.

Trump also praised his relationship with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un.

Trump’s latest rant is filled with falsehoods and irrational thinking. Contrary to his claim about North Korea’s behavior, the communist regime continued its belligerent behavior, firing a ballistic missile toward the sea on August 12. Trump also had no reason to expect South Korea to join him in his war of choice against Iran, as Trump did not confer with allies other than Israel and some of the Gulf monarchies before the initiation of hostilities. Furthermore, North Korea and Iran are close allies; both have cooperates on missile technology, some of which is responsible for the loss in American and allied life.

Sources

Trump crypto firm gets bank charter approval by Trump-picked regulator

August 14, 2026

On August 14, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) approved a bank charter application issued by World Liberty Financial, the Trump family-owned business that allowed the President to blur the line between the personal and the civil, and rake in billions of dollars as a result. World Liberty Financial announced that it made the request on January 7.

The OCC announced that the approval was conditional. While deposit-taking and lending are unlikely to be permitted, it could still manage and hold the assets of clients and “settle payments faster.” It could also directly issue the United States Dollar-backed USD1 stablecoin without having to go through middlemen, while enjoying control over the Dollar assets giving it value. At this point in writing, these two are being handled by BitGo. Conditions include “notifying the regulator of any major business plan changes, maintaining at least $20 million in capital and hiring a qualified employee to serve as the firm’s internal audit manager.”

This decision by the OCC amounts to a significant conflict of interest. The OCC is under the Treasury Department, which is controlled by Secretary Scott Bessent, who was nominated by Trump. Comptroller Jonathan Gould was also appointed by Trump himself. The neutrality and objectivity of the charter approval itself is questionable. Zach Witkoff, son of Trump-appointed “special diplomatic envoy” (this position is not confirmed by Congress), Steve Witkoff, is the CEO of World Liberty Financial, while Robert Witkoff, Steve’s brother, is slated to be a director of World Liberty Trust. Scott Alper, president of the Witkoff family real estate business, has also been a proposed director.

This decision also risks exposing the United States to increased foreign influence. World Liberty Financial sold $263 million in equity to a member of the United Arab Emirates royal family.

USD1 has surged in value, undoubtedly because of Trump’s preference for it as President. “It is currently the fourth largest stablecoin by market capitalization, at around $4 billion.” The ethical damage has already been done, with Trump and his family making $1.6 billion, with $526 million of that being made in 2025, by abusing their position of authority.

Sources

Conditions for soldiers aboard USS Lincoln’s Iran deployment deteriorate—Reports

August 12, 2026

Content warning: certain details in this story involve reports about suicidal ideation. Reader discretion advised.

As Trump and Bibi Netanyahu‘s joint attacks on Iran continue with no apparent endpoint, reports emerged in mid August from family members, media and U.S. senators about abysmal conditions aboard USS Abraham Lincoln. Writing for MS.NOW, Priya Sridhar reports that the Lincoln broke a record for most days at sea without stopping in a port.

As the USS Abraham Lincoln completes its 264 day on deployment supporting the war with Iran, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., wrote a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao, demanding answers about conditions aboard the aircraft carrier that were first reported by MS NOW. The carrier beat a modern day record for the most continuous days at sea without a port call in early July, raising concerns from family members about exhaustion and low morale potentially leading to deadly accidents.
Priya Sridhar, MS.NOW

USS Lincoln left San Diego port in late November 2025, according to MS.NOW; subsequent reports of worsening conditions and mental strain documented by families at town halls and media are quite disturbing, even by new benchmarks set by Trump’s second regime.

Family members also expressed to MS NOW and at two subsequent town halls with Navy leaders last week that they are worried about food shortages; a lack of hygienic products, such as deodorant, toothpaste and soap; moldy showers, nonoperational toilets; and laundry facilities that have been broken for weeks.

‘These reports warrant immediate attention, but they also raise a broader question: whether the Navy can sustain the operational tempo now being demanded of its carrier force, particularly as this Administration repeatedly commits U.S. forces to conflicts of its own choosing and increasingly relies on aircraft carriers to sustain those operations,’ Blumenthal wrote in the letter dated Aug. 12.
Priya Sridhar, MS.NOW

USS Lincoln isn’t the only ship carrying apparently stressed-out active military: a joint letter to Hegseth from House Democrats in March warned explicitly that the “condition, operational strain, and crew welfare” aboard the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group was of grave concern. There is no public confirmation that Defense Department ever answered that letter.

Also worth noting that Hegseth fired Navy Secretary John Phelan back in April, with no official explanation given for the dismissal. Phelan himself apparently ascended to that position via corrupt means and his status as Trump megadonor.

The team at TrumpFile is following this story closely. Please reach out to us on secure channels if you can provide any further details.

AUTHOR FOOTNOTE

I talk a lot privately and publicly about “mob layers” of criminality (where crimes and/or felonies are stacked on each other like a layer cake) and this sad, avoidable scandal definitely fits in that paradigm. The Iran war itself is contrary to federal law, as Donny the Emperor is supposed to, ya know, seek congressional approval for acts of war.

Trump and Israel carry out significant strikes against Iran, killing Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei

But Donny and Bibi went ahead and bombed the crap out of Iran anyway—itself an illegal event—which, later, would have an additional layer of nonsense placed on top with extended deployments and reprehensible conditions on battleships. And that’s all in addition to the sweeping coverup of military injuries and fatalities, as well as untold damage Iran caused U.S. bases abroad.

What I’m trying to nail down as of this writing—remember, they are simultaneously covering up Epstein files while also covering up damning details of Iran war—is if any of these sad, horrific reports of sailors “jumping overboard” have produced actual deaths. Denials about soldiers being suicidal from Donald’s mafia notwithstanding (see the Yahoo link below) it’s quite odd to read news reports about desperate soldiers feeling trapped and wanting to jump but not actually following through. I hope for their sake none took their own lives.

SOURCES

MS.NOW
Sen. Blumenthal’s Letter (PDF)
House Democracts’ joint letter from March (PDF)
Yahoo News

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Conditions for soldiers aboard USS Lincoln’s Iran deployment deteriorate—Reports

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