One of the central components of President Trump's megabill, which became law on July 4, is a massive increase in funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Many of us have wondered about the formation of Trump's and Steven Miller's ICE. It is as bad as we oculd have imagined: chaotically put together, and irrationally implemented. So this mess is Trump's design of a personal police force. Please, continue to investigate these details.
A corrupt government will have a corrupt police force (ICE). Homeland Security admitted that J6 insurrectionists have been hired by ICE. Obviously, there are no qualifications, no background checks, and, definitely, no training! Trained LE would not need to throw people on the pavement with 5 men pressing their weight on him/her and pepper spraying in the face, when the individual is a civilian surprised by these faux LE wearing casual clothes, wearing a backwards cap. To believe they are legitimate is asinine.
Let's just call them the Gestapo. Also important to know is that it doesn't matter that you have a great constitution and governmental setup if there's a police force that makes you afraid to exercise your rights. I noticed this first in the Soviet Union.
Make no mistake, this recruitment is meant to clearly draw the lines between "us" and "them". The end game for this administration is to have an armed and rabid militia to use when peaceful protesters turn out in large numbers. It's part of the 2025 Project-the "bloodless" conservative take over.
Along with the ongoing construction of a series of new "internment camps" like Alligator Alcatraz, it makes me fear that after they finish up with the immigrants, that Democrats--or anyone else who challenges them--that MAGA will start to find reasons to disappear us.
That would be a possibility too. Every dictator seems to lack the ability to maintain boundaries over the long term. In addition, as things deteriorate, Trump will need to find more scapegoats and distractions.
Trump or no Trump, I haven't exactly been the most ardent American patriot, but seeing Uncle Sam being used to try to recruit people to join ICE really rubs me the wrong way.
That is the point in this story and those posters: they want the worst kind of people, like January sixers who still think their behavior at the Capitol was patriotic. And, if they get to write the history, it will be.
I would love to see investigative journalists go under cover as new ICE hires across the country. Basically being there on the frontlines to gather material for their reporting. We need to know from the inside what is really happening and this would let it be
Part of a follow-up post you might want to consider is how long it will take to undo the damage. Assuming the next Administration(s) rolls back the power and authority of ICE and the other related changes to law enforcement what will we do with the agents/officers? Fire them, retrain them, "reprogram" them? I think the public needs to fully and rationally understand the long-term consequences of these current actions. Not just that the policy is bad, but all the work and investments that will be required to fix the damage. This is why we have the common and well-known adage that "It is easier to break something than it is to fix."
" I think the public needs to fully and rationally understand the long-term consequences of these current actions." Very true, Jim. However, about half of American voters can't be bothered with "long-term" consequences if the media bubble they live in doesn't give that part of the story any air time. The media literacy of the MAGA crowd is close to zero.
Maybe. Exactly why it is incumbent that Substack providers do. It appears that, as more folks migrate to independent news sources like Substack, providers could try to give a comprehensive view. Something needed but mainstream media doesn't provide.
We can only hope the enough of the MAGA crowd discovers legit sources but I fear that Substack writers lack the heft to reach beyond their media literate readers. But, I’m a pessimist.
ICE will get exactly the people they want - ugly thugs who have been rejected by multiple law enforcement agencies, dishonorably discharged from the military and spent their teens and twenties in and out of jail. Who else would engage in the kinds of terrorist, criminal tactics that we see every day from these masked kidnappers?
Do they really want to meet that 3000 per day quota? Or is the number one priority to sow fear and division among the working class? Meeting the quota would do even more damage to the economy.
"It is an elitist vision of government that trusts no one, not the people, not the Congress, and not the Cabinet. It is a vision of a government operated by persons convinced they have a monopoly on truth." - Senator Daniel Inou
Our police on all levels have a shitty job. Their everyday routine is to encounter people on possibly their worst day ever. It takes a lot of fortitude and, yes, emotional intelligence, to deal with we the people. We have very delicate lives filled with drama and trauma. Now, take every "client" of ICE, that is, majority brown skinned, Spanish-speaking individuals, so fearful for their freedom and their families and paranoid about going to work or school, or even to the grocery store. We have an underground crowd of frightened people being hunted by ICE agents who drag their knuckles when they walk. It bodes badly for all law enforcement. And to your point that we don't have enough potential cops anyway. well, step back and think: why do people want to spend their lives inside the mess that is other people's lives? And have to write a report about it? Who likes that job? Sadists?
Wow! Those posters reminded me of the 1959 book and 1997 movie "Starship Troopers", WHICH WAS A PARODY OF FASCISM, NOT AN EMBRACE OF IT. Heinlein would not be proud.
Just as with so many other issues involving the Trump regime, this half-baked chicken casserole of an idea is going to give food poisoning to the entire nation (yes, this is a projection of "poisoning our blood" on their part - THEY are the one's poisoning us).
They don't care. Their wet dream of an all white supremacist America is so strong, that they absolutely do not care how messy it gets (for other people), how much it destroys the economy, nor how much it rips to shreds the Founder's dream of a very different nation.
When it comes to "little Nazi" Stevie Miller, the "Gnome" escaped from hell's garden, and "Eva Braun" Bondi, it becomes increasingly clear that, if we don't take back the future, it will belong to them. Is that what we want?
Many of us have wondered about the formation of Trump's and Steven Miller's ICE. It is as bad as we oculd have imagined: chaotically put together, and irrationally implemented. So this mess is Trump's design of a personal police force. Please, continue to investigate these details.
A corrupt government will have a corrupt police force (ICE). Homeland Security admitted that J6 insurrectionists have been hired by ICE. Obviously, there are no qualifications, no background checks, and, definitely, no training! Trained LE would not need to throw people on the pavement with 5 men pressing their weight on him/her and pepper spraying in the face, when the individual is a civilian surprised by these faux LE wearing casual clothes, wearing a backwards cap. To believe they are legitimate is asinine.
Do you suppose their training was watching Derek Chauvin pressing his knee on George Floyd's neck? [THAT still hurts to think about.]
"Homeland Security admitted that J6 insurrectionists have been hired by ICE"
Do you have a source for this? I can't find one.
The closest I could find was a Snopes denial: Noem didn't tell Congress that Republicans voted for Jan. 6 rioters to work for ICE. https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/noem-jan-6-ice/
Kristi Noem stated that J6 men were in ICE now. Believe this was in response to a question from a reporter. (Think it was within the past week.)
Source please. I cannot find one.
Hmmmm...set unrealistic officer recruiting and arrest goals...what could possibly go wrong?
Let's just call them the Gestapo. Also important to know is that it doesn't matter that you have a great constitution and governmental setup if there's a police force that makes you afraid to exercise your rights. I noticed this first in the Soviet Union.
Make no mistake, this recruitment is meant to clearly draw the lines between "us" and "them". The end game for this administration is to have an armed and rabid militia to use when peaceful protesters turn out in large numbers. It's part of the 2025 Project-the "bloodless" conservative take over.
Along with the ongoing construction of a series of new "internment camps" like Alligator Alcatraz, it makes me fear that after they finish up with the immigrants, that Democrats--or anyone else who challenges them--that MAGA will start to find reasons to disappear us.
That would be a possibility too. Every dictator seems to lack the ability to maintain boundaries over the long term. In addition, as things deteriorate, Trump will need to find more scapegoats and distractions.
Trump or no Trump, I haven't exactly been the most ardent American patriot, but seeing Uncle Sam being used to try to recruit people to join ICE really rubs me the wrong way.
Those posters are disgusting. And targeted to the absolute worst of humanity
That is the point in this story and those posters: they want the worst kind of people, like January sixers who still think their behavior at the Capitol was patriotic. And, if they get to write the history, it will be.
Yes so true :(
I would love to see investigative journalists go under cover as new ICE hires across the country. Basically being there on the frontlines to gather material for their reporting. We need to know from the inside what is really happening and this would let it be
Love that they are fine with cancelling student loans for thugs who want to join ICE. Thought the president couldn’t just payoff student loans?
Part of a follow-up post you might want to consider is how long it will take to undo the damage. Assuming the next Administration(s) rolls back the power and authority of ICE and the other related changes to law enforcement what will we do with the agents/officers? Fire them, retrain them, "reprogram" them? I think the public needs to fully and rationally understand the long-term consequences of these current actions. Not just that the policy is bad, but all the work and investments that will be required to fix the damage. This is why we have the common and well-known adage that "It is easier to break something than it is to fix."
" I think the public needs to fully and rationally understand the long-term consequences of these current actions." Very true, Jim. However, about half of American voters can't be bothered with "long-term" consequences if the media bubble they live in doesn't give that part of the story any air time. The media literacy of the MAGA crowd is close to zero.
Maybe. Exactly why it is incumbent that Substack providers do. It appears that, as more folks migrate to independent news sources like Substack, providers could try to give a comprehensive view. Something needed but mainstream media doesn't provide.
We can only hope the enough of the MAGA crowd discovers legit sources but I fear that Substack writers lack the heft to reach beyond their media literate readers. But, I’m a pessimist.
ICE will get exactly the people they want - ugly thugs who have been rejected by multiple law enforcement agencies, dishonorably discharged from the military and spent their teens and twenties in and out of jail. Who else would engage in the kinds of terrorist, criminal tactics that we see every day from these masked kidnappers?
Do they really want to meet that 3000 per day quota? Or is the number one priority to sow fear and division among the working class? Meeting the quota would do even more damage to the economy.
"It is an elitist vision of government that trusts no one, not the people, not the Congress, and not the Cabinet. It is a vision of a government operated by persons convinced they have a monopoly on truth." - Senator Daniel Inou
Corruption and excessive force will be allowed.
Our police on all levels have a shitty job. Their everyday routine is to encounter people on possibly their worst day ever. It takes a lot of fortitude and, yes, emotional intelligence, to deal with we the people. We have very delicate lives filled with drama and trauma. Now, take every "client" of ICE, that is, majority brown skinned, Spanish-speaking individuals, so fearful for their freedom and their families and paranoid about going to work or school, or even to the grocery store. We have an underground crowd of frightened people being hunted by ICE agents who drag their knuckles when they walk. It bodes badly for all law enforcement. And to your point that we don't have enough potential cops anyway. well, step back and think: why do people want to spend their lives inside the mess that is other people's lives? And have to write a report about it? Who likes that job? Sadists?
Wow! Those posters reminded me of the 1959 book and 1997 movie "Starship Troopers", WHICH WAS A PARODY OF FASCISM, NOT AN EMBRACE OF IT. Heinlein would not be proud.
Anyone who cares about what they can do, is check if your state or local law enforcement has a 287g agreement with DHS, specifically with ICE.
It's not a large number.
Make it an issue to abandon any agreements.
It won't help the overall effort of this cruel policy, but it's important that your county and state not support their efforts.
It's something anyone can do
Further, push for a law to disallow any 287g agreements.
Some states have laws that disallow cooperation with ICE.
Yes, I assume that even the sparse requirements to join ICE or CBP will be waived in order to fill quotas. It happens with PDs every day.
We are handing over way too much power to all law enforcement agencies.
As always, an original, compelling, and important report on trends that the mainstream is ignoring. The bounty hirings are a disgrace!
Just as with so many other issues involving the Trump regime, this half-baked chicken casserole of an idea is going to give food poisoning to the entire nation (yes, this is a projection of "poisoning our blood" on their part - THEY are the one's poisoning us).
They don't care. Their wet dream of an all white supremacist America is so strong, that they absolutely do not care how messy it gets (for other people), how much it destroys the economy, nor how much it rips to shreds the Founder's dream of a very different nation.
When it comes to "little Nazi" Stevie Miller, the "Gnome" escaped from hell's garden, and "Eva Braun" Bondi, it becomes increasingly clear that, if we don't take back the future, it will belong to them. Is that what we want?