America - The Official Thread

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GranTurNismo
www.al.com

Alabama worker says ICE dragged him from job despite being US citizen: ‘Color of our skin has become a crime’

He said when he tried to record the incident, the agents knocked his phone out of his hand.
www.al.com www.al.com

They half-assedly tossed aside his legal proof of citizenship and couldn't be asked to confirm it was indeed real. That's lazy quota filling at best.

Though it's more likely that they would have known he was a legal citizen before even approaching him. These are turds acting outside of the law because they know they'll never be held accountable. I hate essentialism, but at this point I suspect that 20-30% of any given human population are just naturally inclined to be authoritarians and that number can go up or down a bit with propaganda. ICE agents are a job that just appeals to this pool of them. The "Trump won I do what I want." attitude is 100% rife in these agencies.
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But Venegas says he was born in Florida.
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The cult & its brown shirts don't care. They'll ask, well, was his mother a citizen when he was born, was she was here as a refugee, was she was here under any other legal route, etc.

They'll want any excuse to deport non-whites until Diaper Don & the GOP just go, "We're going to determine citizenship the Family Guy way".
DLJyglKW4AA4i1B.jpg
 
www.cbsnews.com

Police officer who arrested Georgia teen that was detained by ICE resigns from department

The officer whose traffic arrest of a 19-year-old undocumented college student led to her detention by ICE has resigned from the department.
www.cbsnews.com www.cbsnews.com

When you find out that most ICE facilities are run by a private company that had their PAC max out donations for Trumps campaign it makes the cruelty look even worse.

This is the same energy as that Israeli former politician who was ranting about how every baby in Gaza is an enemy.

We need to understand these people are souless monsters with an endless infinite capacity for cruelty. They are not people we can reason with, barter with, or coexist equally with. They need to be contained, medicated, monitored, and barred from holding power and office.
 
GranTurNismo
We need to understand these people are souless monsters with an endless infinite capacity for cruelty. They are not people we can reason with, barter with, or coexist equally with. They need to be contained, medicated, monitored, and barred from holding power and office.
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Who are "these people"? Who are "they"?

ICE isn't the be-all-end-all of the problem the US has with law enforcement, be it ICE agents or average street police. The US has, in my opinion, a problem with "us vs. them". From the small towns where the sheriff is hell bent on fighting crime to protect their township, all the way up to the president, it's "us vs. them".

Police vs. Criminals.
ICE vs. Illegal Immigrants.
Republicans vs. Democrats.
The President vs. Anyone Who Doesn't Bend The Knee.

I have some sympathy for US law enforcement agents, the actual officers that are on the streets, be they police or ICE or anything in between, because they're just doing a job that, thanks to media and a President that wants to use them like a hatchet against any group be doesn't like, face hostility every day. And this is where I think the US fails it's people and officers. Police are dispatched to a scene with the aim of controlling the situation through understanding it, de-escalating and enforcing any applicable laws, but these days the police work in the "ACAB" world, so expect to be faced with opposition at every step, likewise the citizens expect every law enforcement officer to be exactly like that corrupt officer they saw on the news or read about on Reddit. It's a situation that has been escalating and will only continue to escalate, quicker and quicker under a President that is so detached from reality that they believe everyone of tan skin with tattoos is a criminal.

ICE for their part have existed since 2003 and largely gone unnoticed until Trump weaponized them, again making them a hatchet to be used against groups of people he doesn't like and/or understand. ICE officers, like Police officers, work in a world where they perceive everyone as a threat, after all their current deployment is to detain violent criminals and gangsters that, according to Trump and co. should not be in the US. The officers themselves don't know if the person they've been sent to detain is actually an illegal immigrant with ties to a notorious gang, they only know that they've been sent to detain that person and that person may be a threat. It's another situation that can only escalate.

Us vs. Them.
 
Article follows

Summary: European airlines are reducing flights to major US cities like New York, Miami, and Chicago due to a decline in bookings and growing concerns about safety, border restrictions, and political discomfort.

Instead, they are redirecting flights to Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and the Caribbean, where demand is rising.

This shift reflects a broader trend of a 10% decrease in European bookings to the US for summer 2025, attributed to unease with US trade policies and immigration stance.

www.travelandtourworld.com

Europe Freezes US Travel as Lufthansa, British , Air France, KLM and More Slash Routes to Major Cities Including New York, Miami, Los Angeles, and Chicago to Tap Soaring Demand Across Canada, Mexico, Brazil and Caribbean - Travel And Tour World

European airlines are freezing their transatlantic growth and pulling back from major U.S. cities like New York, Miami, Los Angeles, and Chicago as they redirect flights to Canada, Mexico, Brazil and Caribbean, where bookings are rising and demand is outpacing the American market.
www.travelandtourworld.com www.travelandtourworld.com

I think US destinations are about to become cheaper because of this ⬆️ reduced demand, yet more expensive due to higher labor costs (lack of poorly paid immigrant laborers), materials costs (tariffs), energy costs (the attack on solar and wind) etc.

I wonder which trend will win.

I have a friend in Maine who rents out used to rent out their summer house each year to Canadians. Not happening in 2025.
 
Zero2Oblivion
Who are "these people"? Who are "they"?

ICE isn't the be-all-end-all of the problem the US has with law enforcement, be it ICE agents or average street police. The US has, in my opinion, a problem with "us vs. them". From the small towns where the sheriff is hell bent on fighting crime to protect their township, all the way up to the president, it's "us vs. them".

Police vs. Criminals.
ICE vs. Illegal Immigrants.
Republicans vs. Democrats.
The President vs. Anyone Who Doesn't Bend The Knee.

I have some sympathy for US law enforcement agents, the actual officers that are on the streets, be they police or ICE or anything in between, because they're just doing a job that, thanks to media and a President that wants to use them like a hatchet against any group be doesn't like, face hostility every day. And this is where I think the US fails it's people and officers. Police are dispatched to a scene with the aim of controlling the situation through understanding it, de-escalating and enforcing any applicable laws, but these days the police work in the "ACAB" world, so expect to be faced with opposition at every step, likewise the citizens expect every law enforcement officer to be exactly like that corrupt officer they saw on the news or read about on Reddit. It's a situation that has been escalating and will only continue to escalate, quicker and quicker under a President that is so detached from reality that they believe everyone of tan skin with tattoos is a criminal.

ICE for their part have existed since 2003 and largely gone unnoticed until Trump weaponized them, again making them a hatchet to be used against groups of people he doesn't like and/or understand. ICE officers, like Police officers, work in a world where they perceive everyone as a threat, after all their current deployment is to detain violent criminals and gangsters that, according to Trump and co. should not be in the US. The officers themselves don't know if the person they've been sent to detain is actually an illegal immigrant with ties to a notorious gang, they only know that they've been sent to detain that person and that person may be a threat. It's another situation that can only escalate.

Us vs. Them.
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Devolving this into a general "us vs them" dichotomy is downplaying how uniquely dangerous ICE is, as the agency can be unilaterally used for authoritarian ends with much less scrutiny or oversight than the police or law enforcement generally. While they've certainly increased in scope, the widespread due process violations, wrongful detentions, warrantless raids, informal "deportation quotas", and the abuse, retaliation, and even deaths of detainees in ICE custody still took place before Trump.
 
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President Donald Trump on Friday said he is “recommending a straight 50% Tariff on the European Union” after complaining that trade negotiations have stalled.

The steep new import duties would start June 1, Trump wrote on Truth Social.

The EU “has been very difficult to deal with,” Trump wrote of the 27-nation bloc. “Our discussions with them are going nowhere!”

Asked later Friday if he was looking to cut a deal with the EU in the next nine days, Trump said he was not.
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Not 48 hours later, he backed down.
President Donald Trump said Sunday that he agreed to an extension on the 50% tariff deadline on the European Union until July 9.

“I received a call today from Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, requesting an extension on the June 1st deadline on the 50% Tariff with respect to Trade and the European Union,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

“I agreed to the extension — July 9, 2025 — It was my privilege to do so,” he added.
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Blitz24
I wonder how many times his advisors tell him: "this is a bad idea. If you do it we are in trouble."
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Trumps advisors have their mouths too full of 'something ;)' to even begin to suggest he might not be making the best decisions.
... And I would guess any advisor that (gets up off their knees long enough) suggests that Trump has a bad idea would soon be on the unemployment line.


This song plays in my head every time I read or see anything Trump related now ...
 
GranTurNismo
Devolving this into a general "us vs them" dichotomy is downplaying how uniquely dangerous ICE is, as the agency can be unilaterally used for authoritarian ends with much less scrutiny or oversight than the police or law enforcement generally. While they've certainly increased in scope, the widespread due process violations, wrongful detentions, warrantless raids, informal "deportation quotas", and the abuse, retaliation, and even deaths of detainees in ICE custody still took place before Trump.
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Well I'm staying the hell away from the ICE then, it's no telling what kind of cruel sick things they do to innocent people, especially the younger group. Disturbing...
 
Blitz24
I wonder how many times his advisors tell him: "this is a bad idea. If you do it we are in trouble."
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I think it's more a case of, "I can cash in my stock shorts now!"
 
GranTurNismo
"50% tariffs! 1000% Tariffs! -1000% Tariffs! 90 day delay! 25% reciprocal tariffs for your reciprocal tariffs! People are going to be so eager to invest in this stable economy trust me!" ~Some dumbass president
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Maybe he's playing 4D chess by making the US economy so unstable that crypto looks stable in comparison!
 
McLaren

Not 48 hours later, he backed down.

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Trade negotiations have stalled: the EU suggested reciprocal 0% tariffs. I don't think you can go lower than that. I didn't check tbh but as I recall, the US has a trade surplus over the EU if you - correctly - count not just goods but services, as well. But even if there's some trade imbalance in either direction, no tariffs should be good in my book...
 
Tariff Misadventure
Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs were struck down unanimously by a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of International Trade—including one Trump appointee—because he bypassed all established legal pathways for imposing duties and instead invoked the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), a statute never used for tariffs, and which contains no language authorizing them.

Choice of Convenience over Compliance
Rather than follow existing formulas—such as Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, which caps trade-deficit tariffs at 15% for 150 days—Trump opted for the IEEPA solely to avoid procedural hurdles. The court flatly rejected this, noting that “regulate…importation” does not equate to unlimited tariffs.

Predictable Chaos from Greed
A normally well-run administration could have leveraged six different statutes (three requiring formal agency findings, two with rate limits) to reshape trade. Instead, Trump’s greed and haste turned achievable objectives into needless legal battles, creating uncertainty for businesses and consumers alike.

Self-Inflicted Damage
These ill-conceived tariffs not only got tossed out, but they also hurt U.S. manufacturers by taxing their inputs, taxed consumers on irreplaceable imports (e.g., tropical fruit), and risked institutionalizing a system of “legalized bribery” through exemptions—all undone by his own procedural blunders.

Broad Pattern of Failure
Despite Trump’s enormous executive powers and a pliant political environment, his inattentiveness and reckless procedural shortcuts have repeatedly sabotaged even straightforward aspects of his agenda—a pattern of incompetence that, in this case, delivered a rare win for rule-of-law advocates.

In summary, Trump’s tariff episode exemplifies a broader tendency to choose the path of least procedure, only to trip over the very rules he sought to ignore—a consistent hallmark of his administration’s ineptitude.

prospect.org

Fortunately, Trump Has Trouble Achieving His Goals

A federal court has struck down most of his tariffs, mainly because he didn’t follow readily available procedures to impose them.
prospect.org prospect.org
 

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