Prepared for the Office of Public Affairs (OPA)
U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Editorial Note: The DHS Daily Briefing is a collection of news articles related to Department’s mission. The inclusion of particular stories is not intended to reflect their importance, nor is it intended to endorse the political viewpoints or affiliations included in news coverage.

The New York Times [12/4/2025 3:19 AM, Eduardo Medina, Hamed Aleaziz and Shannon Sims, 330K] reports federal Border Patrol agents began dispersing across immigrant enclaves in the New Orleans area on Wednesday, the latest front in the Trump administration’s crackdown. The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that its targets would include violent criminals who were released after being arrested. For weeks, New Orleans, a city led by Democrats in a conservative state, had been nervously bracing for the agents’ arrival. Immigrant advocates had been warning residents to reduce their time outdoors as much as possible, given the outcomes of past operations in Los Angeles, Chicago and Charlotte, N.C. Gregory Bovino, a senior Border Patrol official who was in charge of the operations in the three other cities, confirmed on X that he and his agents had arrived in New Orleans. Some were spotted at Home Depot stores on Wednesday afternoon, while others, including Mr. Bovino himself, fanned into residential neighborhoods and the city’s French Quarter. Mr. Bovino and what he calls his “green team” have been criticized for their aggressive tactics in other cities, where agents were seen flooding grocery store parking lots frequented by Latinos, hanging around Home Depots to pick up undocumented people looking for work, and sometimes roughly detaining American citizens. In announcing the New Orleans operation, the Trump administration said that it was pursuing “the worst of the worst” criminals who were in the country illegally, and included a list of 10 people it said had been released from local jails because of sanctuary city policies. Most of the people detained in past operations, however, have not had criminal histories. In Charlotte, for example, where more than 370 people were arrested, only about 44 had criminal records, according to federal officials. The full scope of the arrested people’s crimes remains unclear. Still, Mr. Bovino, who often engages with his critics and admirers on X, has posted on social media about a handful of the immigrants who he says have serious criminal records. In New Orleans, immigration lawyers have warned clients and the wider immigrant community that the agents have been known to randomly approach people who look Hispanic, regardless of whether they have a criminal record. Data shows that immigrants are less likely to commit crimes than native-born Americans, but some argue that any crime committed by someone in the country illegally could have been prevented by stricter immigration enforcement. Gov. Jeff Landry of Louisiana, a Republican, has welcomed the agents with open arms, telling Fox News last month that he hoped they could start “taking some of these dangerous criminal illegal aliens off of our streets.” Helena Moreno, New Orleans’s Democratic mayor-elect who was born in Mexico, expressed wariness about what might come next. “The reports of due process violations and potential abuses in other cities are concerning,” Ms. Moreno said in a statement before the operation began. “I want our community to be aware and informed of the protections available under law.” As it has in its other deployments around the country, the Homeland Security Department gave its New Orleans operation a nickname: Catahoula Crunch. Critics have derided these seemingly whimsical names as discordant and offensive given the seriousness of the operations and the harshness of the department’s tactics. The Washington Post [12/3/2025 4:20 PM, Molly Hennessy-Fiske and Robert Klemko, 24149K] reports DHS said it was launching “Operation Catahoula Crunch” to target “criminal illegal aliens roaming free thanks to sanctuary policies that force local authorities to ignore U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrest detainers.” The announcement included a list and photos of 10 undocumented immigrants — from Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Jordan and Vietnam — who the agency said had been arrested for a variety of crimes in New Orleans and later released. “The men and women of DHS law enforcement have landed in The Big Easy,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi L. Noem wrote on social media. “Operation Catahoula Crunch will remove the worst of the worst from New Orleans, Louisiana, after the city’s sanctuary politicians have ignored the rule of law.” While DHS has said the operations are targeted at capturing violent criminals, many undocumented immigrants with no record have also been arrested. In Chicago, the agency said, immigration officers arrested more than 4,000 people in “Operation Midway Blitz,” but officials have publicly identified only about 120 of those arrested as having a criminal arrest or conviction, some for major crimes such as murder and others for nonviolent offenses such as illegally crossing the border. Politico [12/3/2025 1:21 PM, Faith Wardwell, 2100K] reports “Sanctuary policies endanger American communities by releasing illegal criminal aliens and forcing DHS law enforcement to risk their lives to remove criminal illegal aliens that should have never been put back on the streets,” Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. The Trump Justice Department in August listed New Orleans as a city with sanctuary policies, which can limit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. “We need more boots on the ground in order to get crime under control, and so we welcome our federal partners,” Landry told Fox News on Monday. “We’ve seen it work in other parts of the state and New Orleans as well, and we’re going to lean in even heavier to make our streets safe.” Democratic Mayor LaToya Cantrell did not immediately respond to a request for comment. FOX News [12/3/2025 11:02 AM, Rachel Wolf Fox, 40621K] reports "Under President Trump and Secretary Noem, we are restoring law and order for the American people," [Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement]. In its announcement, DHS included several examples of illegal immigrants who were released from custody despite their criminal records. Those on the list were arrested for crimes such as aggravated assault with a firearm, domestic abuse, driving under the influence, home invasion and sexual battery, among others. The Washington Examiner [12/3/2025 11:10 AM, David Zimmermann, 1394K] reports "It is asinine that these monsters were released back onto New Orleans streets to COMMIT MORE CRIMES and create more victims." McLaughlin did not specify how many immigration officers or agents would be deployed under Operation Catahoula Crunch. The Wall Street Journal [12/3/2025 3:50 PM, Jack Morphet and Rachel Wolfe, 646K] reports that officers from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Louisiana State Police have vowed to arrest anyone who impedes immigration enforcement, according to the FBI’s New Orleans Special Agent in Charge Jonathan Tapp. Protests against the anticipated crackdown have erupted across New Orleans in recent weeks, alongside activist-led “know your rights” courses intended to teach residents to monitor agents’ moves. Dozens of posts in a New Orleans’s community message board alerted residents to where agents were recently spotted.

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NPR [12/3/2025 6:03 PM, Martin Kaste, 28013K] Audio: HERE
Reuters [12/3/2025 4:03 PM, Ted Hesson, 36480K]
AP [12/3/2025 1:59 PM, Jack Brook and Sara Cline, 31753K]
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CBS News [12/3/2025 2:43 PM, Camilo Montoya-Galvez, 39474K] Video: HERE
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USA Today [12/3/2025 1:50 PM, Christopher Cann, 67103K]
Telemundo [12/3/2025 1:17 PM, Staff, 2218K]
NewsNation [12/3/2025 1:00 PM, Taylor Delandro and Ali Bradley, 8017K]
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Washington Times [12/3/2025 9:18 AM, Stephen Dinan, 852K]
(B) Good Morning America [12/3/2025 8:50 AM, Staff]

New York Times [12/3/2025 9:55 AM, Shannon Sims and Rick Rojas, 153395K] reports over the years, the tire shops and drive-throughs along Williams Boulevard, one of the busiest roadways in Kenner, La., have been joined by taquerias, immigration law offices and Norma’s Sweets Bakery, which adapts a Latin American holiday bread into king cake for Mardi Gras. The new businesses serve residents from Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Mexico, many of whom came to Louisiana to help rebuild after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The strip is one of the most obvious signs of just how much Kenner, a suburb of New Orleans with about 66,000 residents, has changed. But with dozens of federal agents arriving in New Orleans this week, following similar immigration crackdowns in Chicago and Charlotte, N.C., the usual bustle on Williams Boulevard has been replaced by an unsettling quiet. Even before news of the operation broke last month, many in Kenner were on edge. After President Trump took office in January, the local Police Department strengthened its ties with federal law enforcement and pursued an immigration crackdown of its own. In June, the city canceled its annual Hispanic Heritage Festival after a number of sponsors and vendors pulled out. “We all feel targeted,” said AnaMaria Bech, the publisher of Viva NOLA, a local bilingual culture and lifestyle magazine.

FOX Business [12/3/2025 8:30 PM, Staff, 10085K] reports DHS assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin discusses an illegal immigrant accused of hitting a child in a hit-and-run, sanctuary city policies and more on ‘The Evening Edit.’ [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Daily Caller [12/3/2025 11:17 PM, Jason Hopkins, 835K] reports federal law enforcement officials on Wednesday arrested yet another Afghan evacuee for allegedly supporting a terrorist group. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents apprehended Jaan Shah Safi in Waynesboro, Va., on suspicion of providing support to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria-Khorasan (ISIS-K), according to the Department of Homeland Security. Safi’s arrest makes him the third Afghan national originally brought into the U.S. by a Biden-era evacuation program to be taken into custody in a week. "Today, our heroic ICE officers arrested Jaan Shah Safi, a terrorist who provided material support to ISIS-K," Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a public statement. "The Biden administration brought this terrorist into the U.S. under the disastrous Operation Allies Welcome program.” "This terrorist was arrested miles from our nation’s capital where our brave National Guard heroes, Sarah Beckstrom and Andrew Wolfe, were shot just days ago by another unvetted Afghan terrorist brought into our country," Noem said. Safi entered the U.S. on Sep. 8, 2021 in Philadelphia, Pa., under Operation Allies Welcome, according to DHS. He applied for Temporary Protected Status (TPS), which would’ve largely protected him from deportation, but his application was ultimately terminated when Noem scrapped TPS for Afghan nationals earlier this year. In addition to allegedly providing support to ISIS-K, Safi is also accused of providing weapons to his father, who serves as a commander of an Afghan militia group, according to DHS. On Nov. 26, Rahmanullah Lakanwal allegedly opened fire at two National Guard troops in Washington, D.C., ultimately killing West Virginia Army National Guard Specialist Sarah Beckstrom and leaving Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe in critical condition. One day prior to the D.C. shooting, Mohammad Dawood Alokozay was arrested by the FBI and local authorities for allegedly making bomb threats in Fort Worth, Texas. Like Safi, Lakanwal and Alokozay were paroled into the U.S. via Operation Allies Welcome, according to federal officials. In total, the Biden administration admitted nearly 190,000 Afghan nationals into the U.S. during its chaotic military withdrawal from Afghanistan, many of whom the Trump administration says were not properly vetted. "The Biden administration created one of the worst national security crises in American history," Noem said Wednesday. "Biden let into our country nearly 190,000 unvetted Afghan aliens — only determining who they were and their intentions when they were already on American soil.” "President Trump has been working every day since January 20 to clean up this unmitigated national security crisis," Noem said. Since the National Guard shooting, the Trump administration has dramatically restricted asylum applications for all foreign nationals and completely halted immigration processes for individuals hailing from 19 countries deemed "high-risk." Trump in late November also expressed support for ending immigration from Third World countries.

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Daily Wire [12/3/2025 4:48 PM, Tim Pearce, 2494K]
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New York Post [12/3/2025 4:14 PM, Chris Nesi, 42219K] reports the Trump administration has opened a new front in its immigration crackdown, targeting illegal Somali immigrants in Minneapolis with a push of more than 100 ICE agents. Immigration agents are targeting as many as 500 Somalis in the country illegally in the city, which is home to the US’ largest population from the war-torn East African nation, estimated at over 80,000, according to several reports. The operation follows the stunning revelation that scammers in the Somali migrant community have engaged in massive fraud — costing Minnesota taxpayers some $1 billion — which happened right under the nose of Gov. Tim Walz, according to the state’s Department of Human Services. The Department of Homeland Security insisted the operation was not targeting specific communities with its latest raids, which as of Tuesday expanded to include a stepped-up presence of ICE agents in New Orleans. "Every day, ICE enforces the laws of the nation across the country. What makes someone a target of ICE is not their race or ethnicity, but the fact that they are in the country illegally. We do not discuss future or potential operations," Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement Wednesday as the operation reportedly got underway.

Blaze [12/3/2025 3:00 PM, Cooper Williamson, 1442K] reports as deportation operations continue to clean up sanctuary cities across the country, the Department of Homeland Security is focusing on another hub of problematic immigration: the Minneapolis-St. Paul region of Minnesota. The Washington Examiner reported that Tom Homan, the Trump administration’s border czar, hinted at an immigration enforcement surge there as soon as this week. In a Fox News appearance on Tuesday, Homan suggested that plans were already in the works to increase resources in the Twin Cities in particular. "I can tell you, the focus is there. It’s coming, but I don’t want to give a lot. I can’t tell you how many people are on the ground now, and how many people are going to be on the ground. I’ll leave that to the secretary of homeland security, but focus is on those Twin Cities more because of the criminal activities there that’ve been uncovered by DOJ and DHS," Homan said in the interview. Citing an anonymous source familiar with the operations, New York Times reported that the operation will target Somalis with final deportation orders in the Minneapolis-St. Paul region. Roughly 100 ICE agents have been called in for the operation, according to NYT. This surge in law enforcement comes as the federal government expands its investigations into massive COVID-era fraud schemes. Over 75 indictments have already been issued, and Governor Tim Walz has been accused of obstruction in the case. Trump singled out Walz and Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar: The seriously retarded Governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz, does nothing, either through fear, incompetence, or both, while the worst ‘Congressman/woman’ in our Country, Ilhan Omar, always wrapped in her swaddling hijab, and who probably came into the U.S.A. illegally in that you are not allowed to marry your brother, does nothing but hatefully complain about our Country, its Constitution, and how "badly" she is treated. DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin stated, "What makes someone a target of ICE is not their race or ethnicity, but the fact that they are in the country illegally.".

FOX News [12/3/2025 6:07 PM, Charles Creitz, 40621K] reports the Small Business Administration is investigating a network of Somali groups in Minnesota that it says is tied to a massive COVID fraud scandal highlighting alleged systemic failures by Gov. Tim Walz’s team to properly audit public funds. Walz, the 2024 Democratic vice-presidential nominee, has become embroiled in a scandal that has already led to charges against dozens of people – mostly Somali – and prompted allegations from civil servants in his administration who have spoken of retaliation against whistleblowers and institutional negligence. An SBA spokesperson confirmed the probe to Fox News Digital, saying the agency is "investigating all individuals and organizations indicted as part of the $1 billion Minnesota COVID fraud scheme to identify any that may have also fraudulently obtained PPP loans - evaluating their citizenship status, the legitimacy of their nonprofit work, and other requirements for eligibility." A separate report from City Journal, which also broke the Walz story, noted a 2015 study by a House Homeland Security Committee task force found more foreign-fighter terrorism-related travelers came from the Land of 10,000 Lakes than any other state. Of those charged with seeking to join ISIS at the time, the outlet reported that they were "sophisticated users of social-welfare benefits." Minnesota, however, is far from the only state with PPP troubles.

NewsMax [12/3/2025 11:29 AM, Eric Mack, 4109K] reports Immigration and Customs Enforcement has reportedly begun enforcement operations in Minneapolis, with parallel activity also underway in New Orleans — a veritable tale of two cities contrasted in blue and red states. A senior law enforcement official confirmed to NBC News that the ICE operation is underway as Minneapolis Democrat Mayor Jacob Frey and Minnesota Democrat Attorney General Keith Ellison vow to stand in the way of Trump administration deportation forces. The Minneapolis action comes a day after President Donald Trump said Minnesota’s Somalis should "go back to where they came from" if they do not like the laws of the land. Minneapolis is home to one of the largest Somali communities in the United States, as state Democrats have opened their borders to refugees from the war-torn African nation. "We’re going to go the wrong way if we keep taking in garbage into our country," Trump said at Tuesday’s 2½-hour Cabinet meeting open to the media, which aired in its entirety on Newsmax and the free Newsmax2 streaming platform, continuing his rebuke of former Somali national Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., a vitriolic critic of Trump. According to both Frey and Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara, a Democrat appointed by Frey, Minneapolis police will not collaborate with federal agencies in situations involving immigration, nor will they ask whether people are in the country illegally. But Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told KARE 11 that ICE is working to root out illegal Somalis and criminals, and not lawful visa holders. "Every day, ICE enforces the laws of the nation across the country," she said. "What makes someone a target of ICE is not their race or ethnicity, but the fact that they are in the country illegally.".

CBS News [12/3/2025 10:24 PM, Joe Walsh, 39474K] reports a series of multimillion-dollar alleged fraud schemes in Minnesota has drawn the Trump administration’s attention in recent weeks, vaulting an issue that has brewed in state politics for years into the national conversation. President Trump has attacked Democratic Gov. Tim Walz over the fraud cases, calling Minnesota a "hub of fraudulent money laundering activity" and lashing out against the state’s Somali community. And Walz is facing an investigation by U.S. House Republicans. Meanwhile, federal prosecutors have continued to bring new charges against alleged fraudsters in the midwestern state in recent months. And this week, the U.S. Treasury said it will investigate whether tax dollars from Minnesota’s public assistance programs made their way to al Shabaab, an affiliate of al Qaeda and a U.S.-designated foreign terrorist organization based in Somalia, bringing the fraud cases back into the spotlight. Three years ago, federal prosecutors in Minnesota filed the first charges in what they described as the "largest pandemic fraud in the United States.” The $250 million scheme — which now includes upward of 75 defendants — revolved around a nonprofit group called Feeding Our Future that partnered with the Minnesota Department of Education and U.S. Department of Agriculture to distribute meals to children. During the COVID-19 pandemic, prosecutors say, Feeding Our Future and its affiliated food distribution sites submitted fake meal count sheets and invoices to trick state and federal officials into thinking they had helped serve food to thousands of children. The group allegedly raked in millions in administrative fees for the fake meal distributions, and got kickbacks from people who ran their distribution sites, according to federal charging documents. Feeding Our Future’s founder, Aimee Bock, was convicted at trial earlier this year. Several other defendants, including distribution site operators, have pleaded guilty or been convicted, in some cases receiving multiyear prison sentences and being ordered to pay millions in restitution. One defendant also pleaded guilty to attempting to bribe a juror, after a member of the jury in his fraud trial found a bag with $120,000 in cash at her home. Bock has long denied wrongdoing. At various points before charges were filed, Minnesota officials questioned some of the group’s filings and slowed approvals of distribution sites, leading Feeding Our Future to file a lawsuit accusing the state of discrimination. The case was part of a trend of large-scale fraud across the U.S. during the pandemic, as the federal government poured money into assistance programs at a rapid clip. One former federal watchdog estimated to "60 Minutes" earlier this year that COVID-19 fraud may have cost taxpayers some $1 trillion. Prosecutors said the program that was allegedly co-opted by Feeding Our Future — the Federal Child Nutrition Program — became more vulnerable to fraud during the pandemic. Oversight was more difficult because of the health crisis, and federal officials waived some of the program’s rules to let restaurants participate and allow off-site meal distribution. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

AP [12/3/2025 3:40 PM, Staff, 31753K] Video: HERE reports members of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations spoke to reporters as the state prepares for possible immigration enforcement operations that could focus on Somali immigrants

AP [12/3/2025 6:45 PM, Steve Karnowski, 14862K] reports recent statements by President Trump and top administration officials disparaging Minnesota’s large Somali community have focused renewed attention on the immigrants from the war-torn East African country and their descendants. Trump on Tuesday said he did not want Somalis in the U.S. because "they contribute nothing." The president spoke soon after a person familiar with the planning said federal authorities are preparing a targeted immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota that would primarily focus on Somali immigrants living unlawfully in the U.S. An estimated 260,000 people of Somali descent were living in the U.S. in 2024, according to the Census Bureau’s annual American Community Survey. The largest population is in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, home to about 84,000 residents, most of whom are American citizens. Ohio, Washington and California also have significant populations. Almost 58% of the Somalis in Minnesota were born in the U.S. Of the foreign-born Somalis in Minnesota, an overwhelming majority — 87% — are naturalized U.S. citizens. Of the foreign-born population, almost half entered the U.S. in 2010 or later, according to the Census Bureau. They include many who fled the long civil war in their East African country and were drawn to the state’s welcoming social programs. Trump has become increasingly focused in recent weeks on Somalis living in the U.S., saying they "have caused a lot of trouble.". He and other administration officials stepped up their criticism after a conservative news outlet, City Journal, claimed that taxpayer dollars from defrauded government programs have flowed to the militant group Al Shabab, an affiliate of the Al Qaeda terrorist network that controls parts of rural Somalia and often has targeted the capital, Mogadishu. Although Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a social media post Monday that his agency is investigating whether "hardworking Minnesotans’ tax dollars may have been diverted to the terrorist organization," little evidence has emerged so far to prove a link. Federal prosecutors have not charged any of the dozens of defendants in recent public program fraud cases in Minnesota with providing material support to foreign terrorist organizations. Last month, Trump said he was terminating Temporary Protected Status for Somali migrants in Minnesota, a legal safeguard against deportation. A report produced for Congress in August put the number of Somalis covered by the program at 705 nationwide. The announcement drew immediate pushback from some state leaders and immigration experts, who characterized Trump’s declaration as a legally dubious effort to sow fear and suspicion.

NPR [12/3/2025 6:31 PM, Staff, 28013K] Audio: HERE reports roughly 80,000 people of Somali descent now live in Minnesota. The vast majority of them are American citizens. This week, President Trump attacked Somali immigrants in racist and xenophobic terms.

Breitbart [12/3/2025 1:30 PM, Jeff Poor, 2416K] reports that on Tuesday on FNC’s "The Ingraham Angle," Trump border czar Tom Homan discussed Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) focus on the Twin Cities in Minnesota. Homan attributed it to the recently unveiled alleged criminal activity among immigrants in the area. "[T]om, this is amazing, right?" host Laura Ingraham said. "We have American taxpayers, including Minnesotans, being ripped off billions of dollars sent to Al- Shabaab and a terrorist organization in Somalia. We had all these other fraud schemes, autistic children. And [Minneapolis Mayor] Jacob Frey is worried about protecting the immigrant communities. Your reaction tonight to this. This is madness." Homan replied, "And to say those things, and to use his own words, we’re terrorizing community, you kidding me? I mean, we’re all there looking for illegal aliens and illegal alien criminals. And look, we’ve done operations in 20 cities. But you know what? The uncovering of criminal activity that Secretary Noem just talked about just elevated their priority status. So, yes, you know, there’s going to be an increase of activity up there and we’re going to hold people accountable. We’re going enforce the law without apology. So, again, I told every sanctuary city mayor, governor, you can stand aside and let us make your community safe and remove criminals." "And even legal aliens that commit crimes that make themselves, that they’re resident aliens that commit a certain offense, offending offense, even they’re deportable and they’ll be deported," he added. "We’re going to enforce the laws of this country without apology, including in the Twin Cities."

NPR [12/3/2025 6:56 PM, Joe Hernandez, 28013K] reports Minnesota boasts the largest population of Somalis in the U.S. — a community that’s recently faced attacks from President Trump. On Tuesday, Trump called Somali immigrants "garbage" and said he wanted to send them "back to where they came from." He continued on Wednesday, saying, "they’ve destroyed our country and all they do is complain, complain, complain.". The tirade came less than two weeks after Trump threatened to strip temporary legal protections from Somali migrants living in Minnesota. Trump and other conservatives have also recently seized on criminal investigations and news reports of fraud in Minnesota’s social services system — some of which was allegedly committed by Somalis — to disparage the entire community. Now, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement plans to target Minnesota and its Somali population in an upcoming immigration enforcement operation, The Associated Press and other outlets reported this week. Nearly 80,000 people of Somali descent currently live in Minnesota, roughly 78% of whom reside in the Twin Cities, according to the St. Paul-based group Wilder Research. But it didn’t begin with the Twin Cities. Rather, some of the first Somali immigrants to enter the U.S. in the late 1990s came to a town called Marshall, about 150 miles west of Minneapolis, according to Minnesota author Ahmed Ismail Yusuf, who wrote the book Somalis in Minnesota. Somalia at the time was gripped by a civil war that caused hundreds of thousands of people to flee the country located in the Horn of Africa, and some of those who came to the U.S. found work at a Marshall meat-packing plant. As word got out about work opportunities in Marshall, other Somali refugees arrived in the region and got jobs in the hospitality industry, as taxi drivers and more, Yusuf said, forming a sizable Somali community in and around the Twin Cities. "Those people who were hired, they brought their families. And when they brought their families with them, their families of course brought their children with them," he said. The Somali refugees who settled in Minneapolis and St. Paul were also attracted by the fact that Minnesota was known for martisoor, which translates to "hospitality" in Somali. Yusuf said the state’s "liberal attitude and social behavior" mirrored the immigrants’ own values. For some Somali refugees, the transition to living in Minnesota hasn’t been entirely smooth. Some religious Somalis have faced barriers in practicing their Islamic faith, which can involve praying multiple times per day and the wearing of a hijab for Muslim women, according to the Minnesota Historical Society. The society said the Somali population has also struggled to overcome its association with Islamic extremism, after the community became a recruiting target for ISIS over a decade ago.

AP [12/3/2025 6:20 PM, Tim Sullivan and Steve Karnowski, 4722K] reports even for a president who has long made clear he’s no fan of Somalia, the latest round of White House contempt was a shock Wednesday in the country’s largest Somali community. "They contribute nothing. I don’t want them in our country," President Donald Trump told reporters during a Tuesday Cabinet meeting. "We can go one way or the other, and we’re going to go the wrong way if we keep taking in garbage into our country.". Trump doubled down Wednesday: "Somalians should be out of here. They’ve destroyed our country.". Hamse Warfa, a Somali-born U.S. citizen from the Minneapolis area who has started series of successful businesses, sees things differently. "I am not garbage," said Warfa, who now runs a nationwide education nonprofit, World Savvy. Make us a Preferred Source on Google to see more of us when you search. "Words matter a lot — especially when it’s the president of the United States who is talking," he said, choosing his own words carefully. The Minneapolis-St. Paul area is home to about 84,000 people of Somali descent, who make up nearly one-third of the Somalis living in the U.S. Refugees from the East African nation have been coming to the frigid plains of Minnesota since the 1990s, drawn by the state’s generous social services and an ever-growing diaspora community. They have become increasingly prominent in the state, serving on the Minneapolis and St. Paul city councils and in the state legislature. Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar — a regular target of Trump, who on Tuesday singled her out specifically as "garbage" — represents part of the state in the U.S. House. Trump’s comments came days after his administration announced it was halting all asylum decisions following the shooting of two National Guard soldiers in Washington. The suspect is originally from Afghanistan but Trump has used the moment to raise questions about immigrants from other nations, including Somalia. Trump spoke soon after reports that federal authorities are preparing a targeted immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota that would primarily focus on Somali immigrants living unlawfully in the U.S., according to a person familiar with the planning.

AP [12/3/2025 12:37 PM, Staff, 31753K] reports U.S. President Donald Trump has called Somali immigrants living in the United States "garbage" and wants them to leave, claiming without evidence that "they contribute nothing." The crude language came Tuesday after a person familiar with the planning said federal authorities were preparing an immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota primarily focusing on Somali immigrants living unlawfully in the United States. Almost 58% of the Somalis in Minnesota were born in the U.S. And of the foreign-born Somalis there, 87% are naturalized U.S. citizens.

NewsMax [12/3/2025 9:33 AM, Sandy Fitzgerald, 4109K] reports President Donald Trump, while railing about Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and reports of COVID-era fraud involving members of the state’s Somali immigrant population, called Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Somali immigrant, "garbage" and said he does not want Somalis in the United States. "They contribute nothing," Trump told reporters after his Tuesday cabinet meeting, which aired live on Newsmax, including his remarks to the press. "The welfare is like 88%. They contribute nothing. I don’t want them in our country." He added that Somalia is "no good for a reason." "Their country stinks, and we don’t want them in our country," Trump said. "I can say that about other countries, too." The president added that the United States is "at a tipping point" and "could go one way or the other.". "We’re going to go the wrong way if we keep taking in garbage into our country," Trump said. "Ilhan Omar is garbage. She’s garbage. Her friends are garbage." And the immigrants, he continued, "aren’t people that say, ‘let’s go, come on, let’s make this place great.’" The city of Minneapolis on Tuesday also spoke out about reports that the administration is planning targeted enforcement against Somali immigrants in the Twin Cities. "Minneapolis is proud to be home to the largest Somali community in the country," said Mayor Jacob Frey.

Daily Caller [12/3/2025 10:03 PM, Mariane Angela, 835K] reports Democratic Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar said Wednesday that the Trump administration’s immigration raids are political theater. The Trump administration plans to flood Minneapolis and St. Paul with roughly 100 Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents this week to target undocumented Somali nationals with final deportation orders. Speaking on "The Lead with Jake Tapper," Omar said federal agents created chaos in her district by stopping U.S. citizens and demanding proof of citizenship. The crackdown, she said, has nothing to do with keeping a community safe. "We know it has really nothing to do about keeping a community safe. It’s actually terrorizing a community and creating fear," Omar told host Jake Tapper. Omar said the crackdown is unnecessary. "We know that Somalis, over 90% of them, are citizens of this country, a majority of them having [been] born in the United States. And we know that if you are a criminal, you already have deportation orders," Omar said. "And there is an easy way for them to do that instead of creating this sort of fear where they are having raids. And today we saw them stopping citizens, and people were proving their citizenship by showing their passports.” The directive prioritizes individuals with outstanding deportation rulings while leaving open the possibility that others with unresolved immigration files could be taken into custody. Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz blasted the effort as a politically driven dragnet that targets people without distinction. (RELATED: Minneapolis Police Chief Grovels After Flagging ‘East African’ Crime In City). Minnesota-based Somali nationals have funneled "untold millions" of dollars to the terrorist organization behind multiple East African attacks that killed at least 11 Americans. One member was convicted in November 2024 for planning a 9/11-style hijacking in the U.S. On Friday, Trump moved to end the federal Temporary Protected Status program for tens of thousands of Somali nationals living in Minnesota. He said Walz turned the state into a hub for large-scale fraud and money-laundering schemes.

FOX News [12/3/2025 6:25 PM, Staff, 40621K] Video: HERE reports the Maine Wire editor-in-chief Steve Robinson breaks down conflicts of interests for politicians involved in the U.S. and Somalia as fraud scandal comes into the limelight on ‘The Will Cain Show.

Axios [12/3/2025 2:17 PM, Staff, 12972K] reports the Trump administration’s surge of Border Patrol agents to North Carolina has resulted in "over 425" arrests in the Charlotte area, according to a Wednesday update from the Department of Homeland Security. This is the latest of the scant and inconsistent details that the federal government has shared about "Operation Charlotte Web," which Border Patrol says aims to target immigrants who "pose a direct threat to the safety and security of our neighborhoods." The Mecklenburg County sheriff said Nov. 20 that federal officials told him the immigration crackdown was over. Just hours later, DHS contradicted his statement, claiming the operation was "not ending anytime soon." The Charlotte operation officially launched Nov. 15 with 81 arrests and a goal to target "the worst of the worst" criminals. By day two, at least 49 more arrests were made, bringing the total to "over 130," per a Nov. 17 statement from DHS. By the evening of Nov. 18, "over 250" arrests had been made. As of Nov. 20, a DHS spokesperson said agents had arrested "around 370 illegal aliens." But on Monday, United States Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks posted that "interior operations in Charlotte, NC, yielded 274 arrests." A DHS spokesperson did not offer an explanation when the Observer asked about the discrepancy. DHS has so far declined to provide the names and criminal records of the majority of those apprehended in the Charlotte area. Only a select handful have been identified.

Axios [12/3/2025 5:55 AM, Mary Helen Moore, 12972K] reports the aggressive tactics used by immigration agents in North Carolina, which advocates say sow fear and confusion, aim to persuade immigrants to leave the U.S. voluntarily, Border Patrol’s chief recently affirmed. Federal agents surged into Charlotte and the Triangle last month, and were documented wearing tactical gear and masks while making arrests in public places, sparking widespread fear. The Department of Homeland Security reports making over 250 arrests in "Operation Charlotte’s Web," and Immigration and Customs Enforcement maintains a permanent presence here. Border Patrol leader Gregory Bovino has not sat for an interview with Axios Raleigh or Axios Charlotte, despite multiple requests, although he did discuss the work of the "mean green team" in Charlotte on a recent podcast. "There’s a strategy here ... And that is — self-deportations," Bovino told the retired federal agent interviewing him. DHS did not provide statistics about self-deportations before our deadline, but told The Atlantic’s Nick Miroff that around 35,000 people self-deported this year by using a government app that arranges plane tickets.

Breitbart [12/3/2025 5:28 PM, John Binder, 2416K] reports Gov. Gavin Newsom (D), a proponent of California’s sanctuary state policy, is being accused of protecting an illegal alien accused of killing 11-year-old Aiden Antonio Torres De Paz the day before Thanksgiving. As Breitbart News reported, illegal alien Hector Balderas-Aheelor of Mexico has been arrested by the Escondido Police Department and charged with felony hit-and-run causing death or injury. Police allege that while Aiden Antonio Torres De Paz was playing in his front yard and went to retrieve his soccer ball after it rolled into the street, Balderas-Aheelor hit him and left him to die. Aiden ultimately died from his injuries on Thanksgiving Day. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials are pleading with Newsom’s office to allow Escondido law enforcement to cooperate with ICE so that if Balderas-Aheelor is released from jail before he is convicted, he can be turned over to federal agents rather than going back into the community. Newsom’s office denied refusing the ICE detainer on Balderas-Aheelor, claiming "California honors federal criminal warrants." DHS officials hit back, posting the rejected ICE detainer. Blaze [12/3/2025 3:15 PM, Carlos Garcia, 1442K] reports DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin added that the state’s "sanctuary laws threaten to put this killer back onto California’s streets." Balderas-Aheelor was charged with felony hit-and-run causing death or injury. The Daily Caller [12/3/2025 5:31 PM, Hailey Gomez, 835K] reports that the DHS’ press release said the arrest detainer would not be honored because California is a sanctuary state. Newsom’s press office responded in a post calling the allegation a "complete lie." Before Balderas-Aheelor’s hit-and-run arrest, the criminal Mexican national had been deported from the United States four times, committing a felony when he illegally entered the country a fifth time, according to DHS. According to local reports, law enforcement in the San Diego area responded to a call on Nov. 26 around 5 p.m. local time and located De Paz injured after he was struck by a vehicle. Officials said the driver fled after hitting the 11-year-old in the roadway in front of his home as he went into the street to retrieve a soccer ball. De Paz was taken to Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego but ultimately succumbed to his injuries on Thanksgiving morning, according to NBC7.

FOX News [12/3/2025 6:00 PM, Peter Pinedo, 40621K] reports the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office rejected an immigration detainer by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on a criminal illegal immigrant allegedly responsible for a felony hit-and-run that resulted in the death of an 11-year-old boy on Thanksgiving morning. In a statement on Dec. 2, the Department of Homeland Security said that it had lodged a request to hold, called a detainer, Mexican illegal Hector Balderas-Aheelor, following his arrest for a felony hit-and-run that killed 11-year-old Aiden Antonio Torres De Paz. A spokesperson for the San Diego Sheriff’s Office told Fox News Digital it received the detainer request for Balderas-Aheelor, also known as Hector Amador Balderas, on Nov. 29. The spokesperson said that in accordance with California law, "a review of the criminal history was conducted, and the Immigration Detainer was rejected." They added that the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office "complies with the California Values Act" and directed Fox News Digital to an info page on the law that said, "The Sheriff’s Office does not hold individuals based on federal detainer warrants." ABC San Diego reported that Balderas-Aheelor was arrested on Saturday in connection with the death of Torres De Paz in Escondido. The outlet said that the child had run into the street to retrieve a soccer ball when he was hit, after which the driver sped off. Torres De Paz died in the hospital from his injuries on Thanksgiving Day. Baldaeras-Aheelor was previously removed from the United States four times, according to DHS.

San Diego Union Tribune [12/3/2025 9:46 PM, Teri Figueroa and Alexandra Mendoza, 1538K] reports a 44-year-old man accused in a hit-and-run crash that killed an 11-year-old Escondido boy last week was not authorized to be in the country and had been removed four times previously, immigration officials said. Hector Amador Balderas pleaded not guilty Wednesday in Vista Superior Court to felony hit-and-run in the death of Aiden Antonio Torres de Paz. The boy had been playing soccer in the parking lot of the apartment complex where his family lived when he chased a ball onto East Washington Avenue about 5 p.m. Nov. 26. As he headed back across the street, he was struck by a vehicle, Deputy District Attorney Nicole Gerard said during Balderas’ arraignment. The driver did not stop, Gerard said. Aiden died the following morning, on Thanksgiving. Balderas was arrested Saturday, three days after the collision. The prosecutor said he turned himself in. Department of Homeland Security officials said the suspected driver is a Mexican national removed from the U.S. four times - three times in 2004, and again in 2010. DHS also identified him as Hector Balderas-Aheelor. In court Wednesday, the prosecutor asked to triple Balderas’ bail from $100,000 to $300,000, citing concerns that he could be a flight risk, noting that he fled the crash scene, he is "transient," and he was born in Mexico. The prosecutor also noted that Balderas faces up to four years in prison if convicted. Judge Valerie Summers granted the requested increase. Several of the child’s family members and their supporters attended the brief hearing, many wearing T-shirts with his photo on the front and a soccer ball with angel wings on the back. A family spokesperson said the family did not want to comment Wednesday. After the hearing, Gerard indicated that a records check on Balderas did not turn up any criminal history. The spotlight on the case intensified when DHS issued a news release noting that Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials had sought to put an immigration hold on Balderas so they could be notified if he is to be released from county jail - a request generally made so federal agents can take a person into custody before their release from a local jail. In a statement, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin called on Gov. Gavin Newsom to "do the right thing and honor ICE’s arrest detainer." A spokesperson for Newsom said on Wednesday that "nothing prohibits the federal government from doing its job in this case." "Unlawfully returning to the United States after deportation is a federal criminal offense and California honors federal criminal warrants," the spokesperson said.

New York Post [12/3/2025 9:17 PM, Jared Downing and Alex Oliveira, 42219K] reports the family of an 11-year-old murdered in a horrific hit and run shared heartbreaking tributes and demanded justice for the boy — as they stared down the homeless illegal immigrant accused of killing him in a California courtroom Wednesday. "Fly high, my warrior child," the boy’s heartbroken relative posted in Spanish, with a black and white photo of Aiden Antonio Torres De Paz smiling in front of a cake for his 11th birthday — the last he’d ever celebrate. In another post, the relative is seen walking side-by-side with Aiden. "My angel," he captioned the snap. Meanwhile, a GoFundMe launched for the boy’s family noted that "Aiden deserves justice.” Little Aiden was mowed down and abandoned after allegedly being hit by Hector Balderas-Aheelor just days before Thanksgiving. Aiden was chasing a soccer ball into the street outside his Escondido home on Nov. 26, when the car ran him over and fled the scene. He was found unconscious as his family ran out to help him, and later died at the hospital on Thanksgiving morning. Balderas-Aheelor was arrested days after the hit and run — with the Department of Homeland Security quickly revealing the illegal Mexican immigrant had been deported four times before the deadly incident, with removals dating back to 2004. He otherwise had no criminal history. It remains unclear how fast he was allegedly driving. The road where Aiden was hit has a 35 mph speed limit. Balderas-Aheelor appeared in court Wednesday to enter a not-guilty plea on felony hit and run causing death or injury charges — and Aiden’s family turned out wearing matching shirts with photos of the beloved boy while staring daggers at his alleged killer from the gallery. He was locked up on $300,000 bail and remains behind bars, while the judge barred reporters from taking photos of his face. A prosecutor described him as a flight risk and said he was a "transient.” Aiden’s family was too despondent to talk to reporters after the hearing. "We’re doing the best that we can under the circumstances," aunt Irene Gonzales told The Post, declining to comment further. Instead, they let the photos of Aiden do the talking on social media. Another family member posted shots of Aiden smiling and pulling faces with family, and wearing a jersey from his beloved San Diego Padres. One video panned over a makeshift memorial to the boy, which included samples of his favorite snacks — Takis, Nerds, Sprite, and ramen — his favorite toys and games and photos and candles lit in his honor. Aiden’s tearful family also held a service outside the home following the court hearing, with the boy’s tiny casket nearby. Prosecutors vowed to bring Aiden’s alleged killer to justice. "This case is a tragedy and every parents’ worst nightmare. We are doing everything in our power to get justice for Aiden’s family," Deputy District Attorney Nicole Gerard said after the hearing.

FOX News [12/3/2025 6:14 PM, Louis Casiano, 40621K] reports an illegal immigrant previously charged with DUIs and ordered deported in 2023 is the main suspect in a head-on collision that killed an 8-year-old California girl over the weekend, authorities said. Brayan Josue Alva-Rodriguez, 25, a Guatemalan citizen, is being investigated in connection with the deadly collision in the San Diego County community of Julian on Sunday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) said. The girl and several other people were injured on a rural road shortly after 3 p.m. on the two-lane county Highway S-2, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported. Fire crews were able to extricate one victim trapped in a vehicle and extinguish the blaze, Cal Fire spokesperson Capt. Mike Cornette told the paper. Two people in the Tacoma were able to exit the truck on their own, he said. Five patients were airlifted to hospitals by four helicopters, and three others were transported by ambulance, Cornette said. Three children in the back of the Camry were taken to a children’s hospital. Two boys, ages 5 and 4, survived, but the girl succumbed to her injuries. Alva-Rodriguez illegally entered the United States on Feb. 8, 2018, and was arrested by U.S. Border Patrol agents in Calexico, California. He was issued a notice to appear before an immigration judge and released, ICE said. While in immigration proceedings, he was charged with two DUIs on Sept. 6, 2020, and April 7, 2021, according to the agency. On March 16, 2023, an immigration judge ordered him deported. However, Alva-Rodriguez failed to leave the U.S. as ordered, authorities said. ICE said an immigration detainer will be placed on him once he is formally charged.

Politico [12/3/2025 4:13 PM, Lindsey Holden, 2100K] reports attorneys for people being held at the largest immigration detention facility in California are imploring a federal judge to order improved conditions, saying the detainees live in filthy cells and have been deprived of adequate medical care and basic necessities. The ACLU and a coalition of lawyers representing detainees at California City Detention Facility this week requested a preliminary injunction forcing better treatment at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement-leased center in Southern California’s Mojave Desert. Their lawsuit, filed last month in the Northern District of California, is one of several cases alleging federal officials are forcing immigrants to live in squalor with little access to legal representation, which officials deny. “ICE has higher detention standards than most US prisons that hold actual US citizens,” said Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security.

Reuters [12/3/2025 6:05 PM, Brad Brooks, 36480K] reports California has launched an online portal to allow the public to send videos, photos and other evidence of possible crimes committed by federal immigration agents, joining other states that have launched similar efforts in response to President Donald Trump’s nationwide crackdown on undocumented migrants. U.S. immigration agents, often masked and employing aggressive tactics, have carried out large-scale operations in Los Angeles and other cities. Immigrant rights groups across the U.S. have frequently accused federal agents of using unnecessarily violent tactics to intimidate immigrant communities and of detaining people indiscriminately. The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees immigration agents, did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but has defended its agents’ actions in the past and said it is lawfully carrying out Trump’s orders to deport people who are illegally in the U.S. California Governor Gavin Newsom’s office said in a social media post that the portal was meant to "assist members of the public in sharing information" so that the state’s Department of Justice can "create a record of potential unlawful conduct by federal agents, and inform possible legal actions the state may take to protect Californians’ rights.". The portal’s site states that "examples of potentially unlawful activity by federal law enforcement agents include use of excessive force, unlawful searches or arrests, wrongful detentions, interference with voting, or other civil-rights violations.".

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Los Angeles Times [12/3/2025 3:58 PM, Kevin Rector, 14862K]
FOX News [12/3/2025 4:59 PM, Louis Casiano, 40621K]
NewsMax [12/3/2025 4:28 PM, James Morley III, 4109K]
San Francisco Chronicle [12/3/2025 5:02 PM, Bob Egelko, 4722K]
Washington Examiner [12/3/2025 5:37 PM, Emily Hallas, 1394K]

Telemundo52 [12/3/2025 5:53 PM, Gabriel Huerta and Marvelia Alpizar, 76K] reports one person was injured after being run over while trying to flee from an alleged immigration operation in the parking lot of a Huntington Park Home Depot. The incident occurred on Tuesday morning, when the worker was at the location with a group of people. Huntington Park authorities confirmed that at least one person, allegedly an undocumented immigrant, was arrested by federal agents during the operation. They also confirmed that the man who was struck by a vehicle while attempting to flee was not taken into custody. Blowing a whistle, activists tried to warn farmworkers about the presence of federal agents, as heard in a video shared by a witness. Several workers ran away trying to escape to avoid being arrested. One of them, however, in his desperate flight, was run over by a vehicle unrelated to the operation. The mayor reported that the victim was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries. He added that the injured man was not detained by immigration authorities. Authorities indicated that this was not the only operation that took place Tuesday in the Los Angeles area. Raids were also reportedly carried out in Lynwood, South Gate, and South Central Los Angeles.

Daily Wire [12/3/2025 9:57 AM, Leif Le Mahieu, 2494K] reports a 54-year-old man has been arrested after carrying out a self-described "terrorist attack" by throwing Molotov cocktails at security officers outside of a federal building in California that houses Immigration and Customs Enforcement offices, the Justice Department said Tuesday. Jose Francisco Jovel was accused by federal investigators of carrying out the attack on Monday at a building in Los Angeles that houses Immigration and Customs Enforcement offices. Investigators say that the attack was motivated by opposition to the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration. "This case exemplifies how misleading and hateful rhetoric against federal law enforcement can and does result in violence," said First Assistant United States Attorney Bill Essayli. "Irresponsible rhetoric by politicians and activists have real-world consequences. It must stop.". Jovel, who lives in Koreatown, has been charged with attempted malicious damage of federal property and is expected to appear in federal court on Wednesday. Essayli said that additional charges may be added. On Monday, Jovel rode his bike to the Federal Building located in the Civic Center of downtown Los Angeles hours after lighting his own apartment on fire after being evicted, prosecutors said. He then allegedly threw a Molotov cocktail through a sliding door of an employee entrance to the building before throwing another one into the public door. While the bottles did not catch on fire, investigators say that surveillance footage shows Jovel trying to light one of the devices on fire. Jovel was then arrested by federal officers who found five more Molotov cocktails and a lighter in his possession, investigators say. He was also found with knives and was making anti-ICE comments, according to federal law enforcement sources. Officers reported hearing Jovel say he was motivated by his anger at the Trump administration’s immigration policies. He allegedly referred to his actions as "a terrorist attack" and told officers, "you’re separating families," before urging nearby people to "start shooting these" officers. The attack prompted the building’s lobby to be shut down for the investigation. FOX News [12/3/2025 7:28 AM, Greg Norman Fox, 40621K] reports federal authorities released new images of the suspect accused of throwing Molotov cocktails into a downtown federal building in Los Angeles on Monday, identifying him as 54-year-old Jose Francisco Jovel. Jovel, a Los Angeles resident who allegedly carried out "an attack law enforcement believes was motivated by anti-immigration enforcement sentiment," is expected to make an initial federal court appearance Wednesday afternoon on a charge of attempted malicious damage of federal property, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California. "This case exemplifies how misleading and hateful rhetoric against federal law enforcement can and does result in violence," First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said in a statement. "Irresponsible rhetoric by politicians and activists have real-world consequences. It must stop.".

Breitbart [12/3/2025 2:16 PM, Hannah Knudsen, 2416K] reports that authorities have released of the name of the suspect accused of throwing Molotov cocktails into a federal building, adding that they believe he was "motivated by anti-immigration enforcement sentiment." The incident occurred on Monday, with the suspect identified as 54-year-old Jose Francisco Jovel. Authorities have released images showing the moment Jovel allegedly carried out his act. Bill Essayli, First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California, said in a statement that the building he targeted "houses our U.S. Attorney’s Office, ICE, and is where illegal immigrants are processed." "Jovel was targeting our immigration enforcement operations and wanted to send a political message," he said. "Thankfully, the devices did not ignite and no one was injured. Jovel was immediately arrested. Federal officers seized Jovel’s belongings and discovered five other Molotov cocktails," Essayli, said, adding that Jovel is charged with "attempted malicious damage of federal property, and faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in federal prison and up to 20 years’ imprisonment. This is an ongoing investigation and we’ll be looking at adding additional charges." Essayli said this case shows how "misleading and hateful rhetoric against federal law enforcement can and does result in violence." Further, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) added that the suspect wanted to go even further by blowing up the building.

CNN [12/3/2025 6:00 AM, Michael Williams and Priscilla Alvarez, 18595K] reports President Donald Trump’s latest immigration crackdown, prompted by the shooting of two National Guard members, means he has now halted or significantly tightened every legal and illegal form of foreign entry into the US, prompting widespread fear and confusion among immigrants who are unsure what will happen to their pending cases. Trump’s mass deportation campaign has garnered attention for its heavy-handed arrest tactics of undocumented immigrants nationwide. But the administration’s steady drumbeat of incremental changes to the US immigration system has also been disruptive — gumming up an already-arduous process for millions of people. In the days since two National Guard members were shot in DC, allegedly by an Afghan migrant, the administration has announced a handful of policy shifts, including a pause on asylum decisions, a review of cases under the Biden administration and a "reexamination" of certain green-card holders, that have wide ramifications for immigrants residing in the US. "We’re going back on all of these folks that have applied for asylum, people that would be traveling to this country, and looking at more information, what their social media platforms, they may have visited, the communications that they have, biometric information and data that we can collect from them, but also from their government too," Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on Monday.

CBS Chicago [12/3/2025 12:23 PM, Todd Feurer and Jacob Sarracino, 39474K] reports that U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) is pressing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem for answers regarding the arrests of U.S. citizens during federal immigration operations in Illinois and across the country. In a six-page letter, Durbin criticized a recent statement from Noem in which she falsely claimed that no U.S. citizens have been caught up in the Trump administration’s immigration raids. "In the first nine months of President Trump’s immigration crackdown, at least 170 citizens were wrongfully detained. As of mid-October, approximately two dozen U.S. citizens had been held for more than a day without being able to contact anyone, including their lawyers," Durbin wrote. "The numbers continue to grow. My staff has documented the reported detention of at least 40 U.S. citizens in Illinois alone between late August and early November 2025. Since the President ramped up his militarized immigration raids in the Chicagoland area, arrests of U.S. citizens have occurred with increasing frequency." Durbin went on to cite specific examples of citizens being roughed up and detained during Operation Midway Blitz in the Chicago area. In September, ICE agents federal agents raided a South Shore apartment building in the middle of the night, detaining several people, including U.S. citizens. Two U.S. citizens also were among seven people detained in an ICE raid in September in Elgin.

CBS News [12/3/2025 2:00 PM, Julia Ingram, 39474K] reports that during some of the federal government’s most recent high-profile immigration crackdowns in Chicago, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. — which the Trump administration has said are intended to target mainly unauthorized immigrants with criminal histories — most of the people detained had only civil immigration violations, new data shows. The data, released by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and published by the Deportation Data Project on Monday, shows detentions of people without criminal records spiked in recent months in those cities. From early September, when the Chicago operation began, to mid-October, average daily book-ins to temporary detention facilities in Chicago or nearby Broadview increased from about three people a day without criminal records to more than 45, a jump of more than 1,400%. Fewer than 25 people with criminal charges or convictions were detained per day on average by mid-October, the data shows. Meanwhile, in Washington, D.C., average daily detentions of people without criminal records peaked at 37 per day in late August. Throughout that month and into September, a daily average of fewer than 10 people with criminal charges or convictions were booked, about the same number as before the crackdown began. In Los Angeles, total immigration arrests have declined since the summer, when agents carried out the most raids. In June and July, 63% of those initially detained in L.A.-area facilities did not have criminal records.

Washington Post [12/4/2025 5:01 AM, Teo Armus and Emmanuel Martinez, 153395K] reports more than 80 percent of the immigrants arrested in D.C. during the surge in federal law enforcement this year had no prior criminal record, newly released federal data shows, even though that crackdown was portrayed as targeting violent crime. President Donald Trump cast the “crime emergency” he declared on Aug. 11 as an effort to root out the worst criminal offenders in a city under siege. “Our capital city has been overtaken by violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals,” Trump announced as he deployed the National Guard, ordered hundreds of federal law enforcement officers to patrol city streets and prompted his administration to take over the city’s police department. The crackdown led to a steep surge in immigration arrests, including many carried out without warrants — a practice that a federal judge said this week probably violated the law. DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said some of those arrested without criminal convictions or pending criminal charges are wanted for violent crimes outside the United States. In a statement, she pointed to a handful of such cases across the country, including one man arrested in March in Maryland who is wanted for aggravated homicide in El Salvador.

FOX News [12/3/2025 12:56 PM, Asra Q. Nomani, 40621K] reports late last month, when former Afghan commando fighter Rahmanullah Lakanwal vanished without warning from his home in Bellingham, Wash., his wife, Khamila, called his phone, trying to learn where he had gone, according to people familiar with the matter. "Where are you?" she asked in one call, speaking in their native language of Pashto, according to people briefed on the communications. He told her, "I’m busy with some friends.". Hours later, she called again. This time, he allegedly answered differently. He continued, "I’m doing Tabligh," according to sources. To his wife, the word "Tablighi" had immediate meaning, family contacts said, setting off alarm bells that she shared with Lakanwal’s older brother, Ismail Khosti. In Afghanistan, surnames may vary among family members as they choose different tribal or geographical affiliations. The family is from Lakan district in Khost province. Tablighi is an Arabic word that means to "inform" or "convey" and it refers today to Tablighi Jamaat, a global Islamic missionary movement established in 1926 in British India as a revivalist wing of the strict Deobandi religious school of thought that today fuels the tyrannical interpretation of Islam practiced by the Afghan Taliban and Pakistani militant groups. Much like its sister group, the Muslim Brotherhood, established in 1928, and other Muslim groups preaching the extremist Wahhabi and Salafi interpretations of Islam, counterterrorism experts say it acts like a conveyor belt to extremism. Fox New Digital has learned that Lakanwal’s brother has shared details from the phone calls, previously unreported, with FBI agents. Now, FBI and Department of Homeland Security investigators are scouring the country to see if anyone tied to the Tablighi Jamaat network radicalized Lakanwal, facilitated his cross-country trip or offered assistance, encouragement or financial support for his Thanksgiving eve ambush of West Virginia National Guard service members Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Andrew Wolfe, 24, as they quietly patrolled 17th Street NW, near the White House. Beckstrom died from her injuries. Wolfe remains critically injured. On Sunday, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem hinted at this new information, saying on NBC’s "Meet the Press," "We believe he was radicalized since he’s been here in this country. We do believe it was through connections in his home community and state."

FOX News [12/3/2025 4:06 PM, Elizabeth Elkind, Leo Briceno, Kiera McDonald, 40621K] reports House Republicans are calling for the U.S. immigration system to undergo new scrutiny after an attack by an Afghan refugee left one National Guard member dead and another fighting for his life. Several GOP lawmakers who spoke with Fox News Digital homed in on the migrants and refugees allowed into the country during the Biden administration, of which the attack suspect had been a part. The alleged shooter came to the U.S. in 2021 under "Operation Allies Welcome" after the military’s withdrawal from Afghanistan. The Trump administration has also promised action in the wake of the shooting, temporarily pausing all immigration from 19 countries deemed areas of concern to the U.S.

Reuters [12/3/2025 9:32 AM, Staff, 36480K] reports the shooting of National Guard members in Washington, D.C., over which an Afghan immigrant has been charged, has nothing to do with Afghanistan’s people or its government, Afghan Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi said on Wednesday. Muttaqi’s comments are the first on the incident by the Afghan Taliban government, and come a week after events in Washington when suspect Rahmanullah Lakanwal is accused of , killing one and critically wounding another. "This incident has nothing to do with the honorable people of Afghanistan or with the Afghan government," Muttaqi said. "This is an individual criminal act, and the person who committed it was trained by the Americans themselves."

FOX News [12/3/2025 3:52 PM, Staff, 40621K] Video: HERE reports House Republicans say it’s time for the U.S. to rethink its immigration policies after the deadly shooting that left one National Guard member in Washington, D.C. dead, and another fighting for his life.

Daily Wire [12/3/2025 12:50 PM, Kassy Akiva, 2494K] reports Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott is calling on the Trump administration to strip the largest self-described Muslim civil rights non-profit organization in the United States of its tax-exempt status for its alleged ties to foreign terrorist organizations. In a letter sent Tuesday to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Abbott requested an investigation into the Council on American-Islamic Relations’ tax-exempt status over alleged ties to Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood, which President Donald Trump has made moves to designate as a terrorist organization. Last week, Trump signed an executive order paving the way for his administration to classify certain Muslim Brotherhood chapters as terrorist organizations. He said that "final documents are being drawn" for the designation to be "done in the strongest and most powerful terms." Abbott argued that CAIR has been identified by federal investigators and court filings as "a direct subsidiary of the Muslim Brotherhood" and as a "front group" for Hamas in the United States. Abbott emphasized that Hamas has been a U.S.-designated terrorist organization since 1997 and is the Muslim Brotherhood’s Gaza-based branch, which kidnapped and murdered American citizens during the October 7 attack in Israel. Abbott also cited a recent report that claims CAIR awarded $1,000 cash grants to university students who disrupted classes and intimidated or harassed fellow students "while celebrating Hamas’ October 7th attack." "Americans have generous hearts, and federal law wisely creates incentives to donate to nonprofit organizations that promote the public good," Abbott wrote. "But charity must not become a backdoor to sponsor terrorism, endanger Americans, and subvert our democracy." Under federal law, tax-exempt status must be suspended when a group is listed as a foreign terrorist organization, according to Abbott. "Domestic organizations created by known terrorist organizations-for the express purpose of supporting and advancing their destructive goals-should clearly be suspended from the benefit of tax-exempt status as 501(c)(3) nonprofits in the United States," Abbott wrote.

NBC News [12/4/2025 5:00 AM, Rich Schapiro and Dan De Luce, 43603K] reports in the days and months after the U.S. military’s chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan, Thomas Kasza and some of his fellow Special Forces members focused their attention on the Afghans who had fought alongside them. These Afghans who risked their lives for the U.S. were prime targets of the Taliban. Remaining in their homeland was akin to a death sentence. “Given how they served exclusively alongside U.S. Green Berets, they were by default among those highest on Taliban target lists,” said Kasza, who was one of many military veterans who assisted their former Afghan counterparts in leaving the country and resettling in the U.S. President Donald Trump said last week that many of the Afghans who came to this country “are criminals” who “shouldn’t be here.” CIA Director John Ratcliffe said the suspect “and so many others should have never been allowed to come here.” Those kinds of sentiments haven’t gone over well with Army Special Forces veterans, known as Green Berets, and others who worked closely with Afghans during the war. “It is definitely not fair to group all Afghans that helped us during our time in Afghanistan in that same basket as this individual,” said Ben Hoffman, a Green Beret with five deployments to Afghanistan. Another Green Beret, Dave Elliott, said many of the Afghans he is in touch with are now “terrified” over their fates in the U.S.

Washington Post [12/3/2025 8:08 AM, Leo Sands, 24149K] reports deportation flights carrying Venezuelan migrants were scheduled to resume from the United States to the authoritarian country on Wednesday, officials in Caracas said, despite President Donald Trump’s warning over the weekend that Venezuela’s airspace should be considered closed as the threat of a U.S. attack loomed. Caracas said it granted a request for an Immigration and Customs Enforcement flight to land, marking a rare moment of cooperation between the Trump administration and Venezuelan authorities amid weeks of rising tensions. According to a Telegram post from Venezuela’s foreign minister, a deportation flight carrying 379 people operated by Eastern Airlines was granted permission to land at Simón Bolívar International Airport near Caracas on Wednesday. Trump has used increasingly combustible rhetoric to describe Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in recent weeks, refusing to rule out sending U.S. troops to the country and continuing to conduct military strikes against alleged drug traffickers in the Caribbean Sea. The administration has alleged that Maduro and his aides are the leaders of a drug cartel that is sending narcotics to the U.S. Last month, the State Department designated the “Cartel de los Soles,” which is neither a formal organization nor a cartel, as a foreign terrorist organization, potentially paving the way for a legal justification to launch strikes against Venezuelan government targets. On Saturday, Trump said commercial airlines should consider Venezuelan airspace closed, further ramping up pressure on Maduro. The White House does not have the legal authority to close another country’s airspace, though such a move can be a precursor to airstrikes. Venezuelan authorities said Trump’s directive — which it described as illegal — had effectively also suspended the deportation flights negotiated by the White House with the Maduro government this year. Since February, Venezuela’s Foreign Ministry said last week, nearly 14,000 Venezuelans have been returned to the country from the U.S. on 75 flights under that agreement.

NewsMax [12/3/2025 4:25 PM, Staff, 4109K] reports a plane from the United States carrying 266 Venezuelan migrants landed in Venezuela on Wednesday, according to Foreign Minister Yvan Gil speaking to Reuters. The flight — an Eastern Airlines charter from Phoenix — was cleared to land at Maiquetía International Airport near Caracas after approval from Venezuela’s transportation ministry, the ministry said Tuesday in a statement reported by Reuters. The resumption comes after a brief suspension of flights triggered when President Donald Trump wrote on social media that Venezuelan airspace should be considered "closed in its entirety," a message that Caracas interpreted as a hostile move, according to reporting from CBS News. Under pressure from Washington, the Venezuelan government accepted a formal U.S. request to resume deportation flights, clearing the way for the Phoenix-to-Maiquetía aircraft to proceed, according to Reuters. The transportation ministry said in remarks carried by Reuters that the U.S. request represented a diplomatic overture that allowed the repatriation program to continue under negotiated terms. Foreign Minister Gil told Reuters that "since the beginning of the year, at least 18,354 Venezuelans have arrived in the country on 95 flights, 76 of them directly from the United States," underscoring the scale of the repatriation effort.

New York Times [12/3/2025 6:09 PM, Simon Romero and María Victoria Fermín, 135475K] reports two repatriation flights carrying hundreds of Venezuelan migrants who had been living in the United States arrived on Wednesday at the international airport near Caracas, highlighting a rare example of cooperation between the two countries as tensions simmer over a U.S. military pressure campaign targeting Venezuela’s leader, Nicolás Maduro. The flights were the first to arrive since President Trump declared last week that Venezuelan airspace was “closed in its entirety,” although he has no legal authority over that airspace. Venezuela’s government had asserted that Mr. Trump’s declaration meant that such flights were halted. But communication between the two governments seemed to remain alive, if on life support. Yván Gil, Venezuela’s foreign minister, said that U.S. authorities had asked Venezuela’s government to receive the flights, and Mr. Maduro “immediately approved the request because it concerns the return of our compatriots.” Some confusion over the safety of flying to and from Venezuela has emerged in recent weeks as the United States carryies out deadly strikes on boats in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific that American officials claim were carrying illicit drugs. Several airlines temporarily suspended their international routes into the country. Venezuela’s government responded last week by banning the airlines from landing in the country after they failed to meet a deadline to resume operations. Mr. Trump’s declaration that Venezuela’s airspace was closed, coming after his previous assertions that the United States would carry out land strikes in Venezuela, fueled more safety concerns. “You are seeing the normality of the operations of this airport,” Mr. Gil, the foreign minister, said at Simón Bolívar International Airport as he sought to assuage such concerns. “Our civil aeronautics system is one of the safest and works perfectly.” The first repatriation flight to arrive on Wednesday at the airport carried 304 Venezuelans who were in Mexico, where the United States has been sending many deported Venezuelans. The second flight departed from Phoenix and carried 266 Venezuelans, authorities said. It was not immediately clear whether all of the Venezuelans on the two flights had been deported or if some voluntarily chose to leave the United States.

AP [12/4/2025 12:01 AM, Stephen Groves and Lisa Mascaro, 30493K] reports the Navy admiral who reportedly issued orders for the U.S. military to fire upon survivors of an attack on an alleged drug boat is expected Thursday on Capitol Hill to provide a classified briefing to top congressional lawmakers overseeing national security. The information from Adm. Frank "Mitch" Bradley, who is now the commander of U.S. Special Operations Command, comes at a potentially crucial moment in the unfolding congressional investigation into how Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth handled the military operation in international waters near Venezuela. There are mounting questions over whether the strike may have violated the law. Lawmakers are seeking a full accounting of the strikes after Washington Post reported that Bradley on Sept. 2 ordered an attack on two survivors to comply with Hegseth’s directive to "kill everybody." Legal experts say the incident amounts to a crime if the survivors were targeted, and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are demanding accountability. Bradley will speak to a handful of top congressional leaders, including the Republican chairs and ranking Democrats of the House and Senate committees on Armed Services, and separately to the GOP chairman and Democratic vice chairman on the Senate Intelligence Committee. "This is an incredibly serious matter. This is about the safety of our troops. This is an incident that could expose members of our armed services to legal consequences," Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said in a floor speech Wednesday. "And yet the American public and the Congress are still not hearing basic facts.” As Bradley appears for questions in the classified setting, lawmakers will be seeking answers to key questions: What orders did Hegseth give regarding the operations? And what was the reasoning for the second strike? Democratic lawmakers are also demanding that the Trump administration release the full video of the Sept. 2 attack, as well as written records of the orders and any directives from Hegseth. While Republicans, who control the national security committees, have not publicly called for those documents, they have pledged a thorough review. "The investigation is going to be done by the numbers," said Sen. Roger Wicker, the chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee. "We’ll find out the ground truth.” President Donald Trump has stood behind Hegseth as he defends his handling of the attack, but pressure is mounting on the defense secretary. Hegseth has said the aftermath of an initial strike on the boat was clouded in the "fog of war." He has also said he "didn’t stick around" for the second strike, but said Bradley "made the right call" and "had complete authority" to do it.

Reuters [12/4/2025 12:15 AM, Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart, 36480K] reports a U.S. military commander is expected tell lawmakers on Thursday that survivors of a military strike in the Caribbean were legitimate targets for a second attack because their vessel was still believed to contain illegal narcotics, a U.S. official told Reuters. On September 2, the U.S. military carried out a strike in the Caribbean which killed 11 suspected drug traffickers. Officials have said that the U.S. military carried out a second strike against their vessel, which has raised questions about the legality of the operation. Admiral Frank M. Bradley, who was the head of Joint Special Operations Command at the time, will tell lawmakers in a classified briefing on Thursday that the two survivors were legitimate military targets because they were perceived as capable of continuing drug trafficking, the official said. Bradley, who now leads U.S. Special Operations Command, will be joined by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dan Caine, during the closed-door hearing, the official added. The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The early September strike has drawn bipartisan scrutiny from Congress and concerns about the legality of the administration’s moves. So far, there have been 20 U.S. military strikes in the Caribbean and Pacific against suspected drug vessels, killing more than 80 people. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday he had watched the first U.S. strike in September on the alleged drug-smuggling vessel in real time, but did not see survivors in the water or the second lethal strike that he described as being carried out in the "fog of war." But he defended Bradley’s decision to carry out a follow-up strike. "Admiral Bradley made the correct decision to ultimately sink the boat and eliminate the threat," Hegseth said. Trump, who told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday that he would not have wanted the second strike, largely voiced support on Tuesday, while saying he hadn’t been aware of the second strike. U.S. officials have told Reuters that Hegseth has ordered lethal strikes on drug vessels, including the early September one in question, as part of a broader Trump administration campaign that equates suspected drug traffickers with terrorists despite objections from many legal experts.

Wall Street Journal [12/3/2025 8:04 PM, Shelby Holliday and Alexander Ward, 646K] reports two survivors of a Sept. 2 U.S. strike on a boat in the Caribbean were killed in follow-up attacks after they were seen still aboard the damaged vessel alongside packages of illegal narcotics, a senior commander is expected to tell lawmakers Thursday. Adm. Frank “Mitch” Bradley plans to say he and his legal adviser concluded the two survivors were attempting to continue their drug run, making them and the already-damaged vessel legitimate targets for another attack, two defense officials said. The details of the strike have emerged as a matter of concern for members of Congress who are seeking more information about the role played by Bradley and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and whether aspects of the operation violated laws of war or Pentagon procedures. The version of events Bradley is expected to deliver would rebut claims by legal experts that the killing of the two survivors could have constituted a war crime. Lawmakers are likely to press Bradley, who commanded Joint Special Operations Command at the time, in the closed-door briefing on the extent of the damage to the boat, whether the men were injured, how Bradley reached his conclusions that the survivors were still legitimate targets, and whether he considered rescuing them.

CBS News [12/3/2025 11:25 AM, Caitlin Yilek, 39474K] reports the family of a Colombian man who was killed in a U.S. military strike on a boat in the Caribbean has lodged a complaint against the United States with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR). The family of 42-year-old Alejandro Carranza Medina, who was killed on Sept. 15, rejected assertions there were any drugs on the vessel targeted in Washington’s anti-narcotics military campaign, and insisted he was a fisherman just doing his job on the open sea. "We know that Pete Hegseth, US Secretary of Defense, was responsible for ordering the bombing of boats like those of Alejandro Carranza Medina and the murder of all those on such boats," reads the complaint seen by AFP on Wednesday. U.S. strikes in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific have killed more than 80 people on boats that Washington claims, without providing evidence, were ferrying drugs from Venezuela. Legal experts and lawmakers critical of the strikes have argued that the military action targeting the suspected drug smuggling boats are legally dubious. Family members and victims’ governments insist some of those killed were fishermen, and rights groups say the strikes are illegal even if the targets were in fact drug traffickers. The IACHR complaint said Hegseth gave the orders "despite the fact that he did not know the identity of those being targeted for these bombings and extra-judicial killings" it said were "ratified" by President Trump. The IACHR is a quasi-judicial body of the Organization of American States, created to protect human rights in the region. In a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Hegseth said the U.S. has "only just begun striking narco-boats and putting narco-terrorists at the bottom of the ocean." He noted a recent pause in strikes, explaining that "it’s hard to find boats to strike right now.". "Deterrence has to matter," he said. "Not arrest and hand over and then do it again, the rinse-and-repeat approach of previous administrations.".

FOX News [12/3/2025 6:31 AM, Staff, 40621K] reports Fox News’ Lucas Tomlinson reports the latest on the Trump administration’s crackdown on narco-terrorism. Manhattan Institute fellow Daniel Di Martino also joined ‘Fox & Friends First’ to weigh in and discuss why land targets could be next. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

FOX News [12/3/2025 7:19 PM, Jasmine Baehr, 40621K] reports President Donald Trump said Wednesday that the U.S. is preparing to take its campaign against narcoterrorism directly "on land" inside Venezuela, warning that the Nicolás Maduro regime has already sent "killers, murderers… gang members" and other violent offenders into the U.S. during past years of mass migration. Speaking in the Oval Office during a Q&A session with reporters, Trump said U.S. forces are escalating operations against the trafficking networks behind the synthetic opioids and narcotics he blames for hundreds of thousands of American deaths. "We’re knocking out drug boats right now at a level that we haven’t seen," Trump said. "Very soon we’re going to start doing it on land too.” The president said American intelligence agencies have mapped the routes, safehouses and production sites used by narcotics manufacturers operating inside Venezuela. "We know every route. We know every house. We know where they manufacture this crap," he said. "The poison… they’ve been feeding us.” Trump has repeatedly accused the Maduro government of weaponizing migration. On Wednesday, he repeated his claim that Venezuela "sent us killers, murderers… drug dealers at the highest level… gang members, and people from their mental institutions," alleging the country had "emptied their prisons into our country.” He argued that this occurred because the U.S. had previously been run by "stupid people… really stupid people.” Trump tied the potential escalation to the fentanyl and synthetic opioid crisis, saying traffickers have "been killing our people by the millions," and adding, "I think last year we lost close to 300,000 people." He said American families devastated by overdoses were demanding a more aggressive response after years of "poison" entering the country through transnational networks. Trump also confirmed he had spoken only "briefly" with President Maduro and told him "a couple of things," adding, "We’ll see what happens with that." But he emphasized that the pressure campaign currently underway extends beyond diplomacy. Trump also defended the decision to strike drug-smuggling vessels and suggested the same standard applied to operators of land-based narcotics hubs. "I support the decision to knock out the boats," he said. "Whoever is piloting those boats, they’re guilty of trying to kill people in our country.”

Breitbart [12/4/2025 5:00 AM, Christian K. Caruzo, 2416K] reports Socialist dictator of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro on Wednesday claimed his recent phone conversation with President Donald Trump was “friendly” and “cordial.” Trump confirmed to reporters Sunday aboard Air Force One he spoke with Maduro over the phone. While the president did not disclose details on the call or mentioned the date that the call took place, he stressed, “I wouldn’t say it went well or badly. It was a phone call.” Maduro, during a regime event broadcasted by state media, also confirmed for the first time that he recently spoke to Trump. According to the regime-funded propaganda network Telesur, Maduro claimed the exchange was started by the White House, and touted his past tenure as Foreign Minister during the rule of his predecessor, late socialist dictator Hugo Chávez. “I received a call and spoke with the President of the United States, Donald Trump. I can say that the conversation was respectful in tone,” Maduro said. “I can even say that it was cordial between the President of the United States and the President of Venezuela.” “I will say more, if that call means that steps are being taken toward a respectful dialogue from State to State, from country to country, then dialogue is welcomed, diplomacy is welcomed, because we will always seek peace,” he continued. The Venezuelan dictator, in an apparent new attempt at speaking English, then said, “Welcome diolops, welcome diplomats, welcome the pits. Pits? Yes. War? Never, never in the like [sic throughout].”

FOX News [12/3/2025 10:38 AM, Elizabeth Elkind, 40621K] Video: HERE reports House Republicans say they’re behind President Donald Trump and his administration’s pressure campaign on Venezuela so far, but the uncertainty over what happens next is spurring both questions and concerns among some in the GOP. Several Republican members of the House Armed Services Committee and House Foreign Affairs Committee told Fox News Digital that the Trump administration has been well within its rights to act against Nicolás Maduro’s regime. But they’re eager for more information after several strikes against alleged Venezuelan drug boats and Trump’s own heightened rhetoric targeting the country’s dictatorial president. "I support the actions that are being taken," Rep. Austin Scott, R-Ga., told Fox News Digital. "I absolutely support stopping the flow of drugs in this country. I’m interested in seeing what the longer-term plans are, and that’s what I want to see." The White House confirmed that the U.S. carried out two attacks — one initial hit on the boat and a follow-up strike that killed two remaining survivors. Democrats have accused the GOP administration of committing a possible war crime. Trump and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, who said the second strike was carried out on orders from U.S. Navy Admiral Frank M. Bradley, have emphatically defended the decision. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

FOX News [12/3/2025 11:37 AM, Leo Briceno, Elizabeth Elkind, and Kiera McDonald, 40621K] Video: HERE reports Republicans diverged on Tuesday when asked if the Trump administration should push for regime change in Venezuela. Despite hopes of a new direction for Venezuela, lawmakers who spoke to Fox News Digital on Tuesday were split on whether the United States should support a regime change in Caracas. Many expressed fears about repeating mistakes of the past, like toppling regimes in the Middle East, while others emphasized a need to remove a security threat in the United States’ backyard. "Yes. Maduro is an illegitimate ruler and extremely dangerous for the Western Hemisphere," Rep. Michael Baumgardner, R-Wash., said, referring to Venezuelan President Nicholás Maduro. "Having a government we could partner with there would be in America’s national security interests." Rep. Barry Moore, R-Ala., who agrees with Baumgardner, also framed his stance as a matter of national security. "If you look at who Maduro is tied to, he’s tied to Iran, China and Russia. Those are not our friends. We know they’re not going to do anything to help us. I think President Trump understands there’s an opportunity here," Moore said. But not all Republicans agree with Moore and Baumgardner. "Looking back at our history, it isn’t something that hasn’t played out," Rep. Blake Moore, R-Utah, said. "Peace through strength and strong deterrents against a horrific regime is the best approach, but going in and making it happen on our own? We’re still dealing with the effects of Iran, right?" Moore, who serves as the House GOP Conference vice chair, said he hopes Venezuela manages to enact political change but expressed pessimism in the current environment. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Breitbart [12/3/2025 9:59 AM, Alana Mastrangelo, 2416K] reports the Trump administration reportedly fired eight immigration judges in New York City on Monday, part of a broader nationwide effort to accelerate the deportation of illegal immigrants successfully. All eight terminated judges were from offices at 26 Federal Plaza, one of New York City’s three federal immigration courts, two people with knowledge of the matter told the New York Times. The newspaper disclosed that an official with the U.S. Department of Justice and an official with the National Association of Immigration Judges — a union that represents immigration judges — spoke with reporters on the condition on anonymity. The fired judges reportedly included Amiena A. Khan, an assistant chief immigration judge who supervises other judges in the building. So far this year, about 90 immigration judges have been terminated nationwide — not including Monday’s firings. According to federal officials, there are roughly 600 immigration judges in the United States. Olivia Cassin, an immigration judge who was fired last month from a separate New York City courthouse, called the recent firings "a Monday afternoon massacre.". "The court has been basically eviscerated," Cassin told the New York Times. "It feels like a Monday afternoon massacre.". Notably, Monday’s firings are part of a broader effort to ensure that illegal migrants are successfully removed from the U.S. as President Donald Trump ramps up deportations across the country.

NPR [12/4/2025 4:32 AM, Ximena Bustillo and Steve Inskeep, 34837K] reports the White House has been firing immigration judges all year. But in the latest round, a lot more experienced judges are being let go, not just those still on probation. [Editorial note: consult audio at source link]

FOX News [12/3/2025 12:28 PM, Breanne Deppisch Fox, 40621K] reports Attorney General Pam Bondi pushed back Tuesday after being sued by a former immigration judge who claims she was wrongfully fired — the first legal challenge to the Trump administration’s sweeping removal of more than 100 immigration judges this year. The lawsuit, filed Monday by former Ohio immigration Judge Tania Nemer, accuses the Justice Department of discrimination based on sex, nationality and political affiliation. Its filing comes as the administration accelerates its effort to reshape the immigration courts amid record legal clashes over its border crackdown. Speaking at a White House Cabinet meeting with President Donald Trump, Bondi dismissed the discrimination allegations and highlighted the department’s recent push against violent crime and drug trafficking in the face of numerous lawsuits. "Most recently, yesterday, I was sued by an immigration judge who we fired," Bondi said. "One of the reasons she said she was a woman.". "Last I checked, I was a woman as well," she quipped. Nemer’s lawsuit accuses the Justice Department of illegally violating her protections under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, as well as her First Amendment rights to engage in political activity. She is not the only immigration judge to be removed from her position under the Trump administration. Since January, at least 100 immigration judges have been fired or "pushed out" from their roles, according to the American Immigration Lawyers Association, a union that represents many of the judges.

NewsMax [12/3/2025 10:35 AM, Theodore Bunker, 4109K] reports House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Andrew Garbarino, R-N.Y., told Newsmax on Wednesday that he will use his first full hearing as the panel’s new leader to spotlight rising violence against law enforcement, arguing the issue has become urgent and widespread across local, state, and federal agencies. The hearing, scheduled for later this morning, will feature nongovernment witnesses and focus on recent increases in attacks on officers nationwide, including incidents involving federal immigration agents as well as municipal police and sheriffs, Garbarino said in an interview with Newsmax’s "Wake Up America." "That’s why it’s my first hearing," Garbarino said. "We have to focus on this increase of attacks on our law enforcement. These guys are doing their jobs. These men and women are out there protecting our country." Garbarino said he expects testimony will include data showing a sharp rise in assaults against law enforcement over the past several years, describing the trend as "across the board" and not limited to any one agency or region. He said the committee’s goal is to elevate the threat environment facing officers and frame it as a homeland security concern.

Los Angeles Times [12/3/2025 5:42 PM, Lorraine Ali, 14862K] reports another week, another pop star angry that their song was used without their permission in an Immigration and Customs Enforcement recruitment ad. The list of luminaries who have condemned the agency’s actions or filed legal copyright removal requests (Jay-Z had his song "Public Service Announcement" struck from a DHS social media post) reads like a sold-out Coachella lineup: Jay-Z, Olivia Rodrigo, MGMT, Zach Bryan, The Cure, Usher, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club. It also includes the estates and companies that represent Tom Petty’s "I Won’t Back Down," Pokémon’s original theme song "Gotta Catch ‘Em All" and the "Wicked" soundtrack’s "Defying Gravity" as sung by Cynthia Erivo. From the Stones to Springsteen to Swift, GOP campaigns, rallies and election-year ads have featured the music of performers who didn’t want their songs associated with Reagan’s trickle-down economics, either Bush administration’s Gulf war, or Trump’s scorched-earth policies.

The Hill [12/3/2025 2:08 PM, Lindsey Granger, 12595K] reports let me start with this: I know we’re living in strange political times, but lately it feels like the federal government’s social media feeds are being run by the kids they used to warn us about online. The tone is petty, the memes are chaotic, and the creative direction? Unhinged. At the center of the chaos are artists — real people — who keep getting dragged into political battles they never signed up for. This week, it was Sabrina Carpenter. The White House posted a video celebrating migrant deportations, complete with federal agents "handcuffing, tackling and chasing people," all set to Sabrina’s song "Juno.". She didn’t mince words, writing on X: "this video is evil and disgusting. Do not ever involve me or my music to benefit your inhumane agenda.". The Trump administration doubled down, with White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson emailing a snarky response referencing Sabrina’s own album title and lyrics: "Here’s a Short n’ Sweet message for Sabrina Carpenter: We won’t apologize for deporting dangerous criminal illegal murderers, rapists and pedophiles… Anyone who would defend these sick monsters must be stupid, or is it slow?". But Sabrina isn’t the only one saying, "Keep my art out of your politics.".

CNN [12/3/2025 11:09 PM, Michael Rios, Lex Harvey, 606K] reports Honduras’ former President Juan Orlando Hernández thanked US President Donald Trump for pardoning his US drug trafficking conviction amid criticism from lawmakers that the pardon undermines the White House’s efforts to stop drug trafficking. "My profound gratitude goes to President (Trump) for having the courage to defend justice at a moment when a weaponized system refused to acknowledge the truth," Hernández wrote on X Wednesday. President of Honduras from 2014 until 2022, Hernández was convicted and sentenced last year to 45 years in prison and given an $8 million fine by a US judge for drug trafficking offenses. Hernández insisted he was innocent, claiming his trial was "rigged" and that it relied on the accusations of criminals who sought revenge against him. Both Republican and Democratic members of Congress have criticized Trump’s decision to pardon someone with a drug trafficking conviction when his administration has been so focused on disrupting drug trafficking in Latin America, ramping up military activity and launching controversial strikes on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean. Several lawmakers have pointed out the inconsistency in pardoning Hernández while going after Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who is wanted in the US for similar charges. "Why would we pardon this guy and then go after Maduro for running drugs into the United States? Lock up every drug runner! Don’t understand why he is being pardoned," GOP Sen. Bill Cassidy posted on X. GOP Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar told CNN she felt Trump’s announcement sent a mixed message and she "would have never done that.” Trump, however, defended his decision to grant Hernández clemency, telling reporters Tuesday that he feels "pretty good about it.” "Well, he was the president, and they had some drugs being sold in their country, and because he was the president, they went after him – that was a Biden horrible witch hunt," Trump said. "A lot of people in Honduras asked me to do that, and I did it.” Prosecutors had accused Hernández of conspiring with drug cartels during his tenure as they moved more than 400 tons of cocaine through Honduras toward the United States. In exchange, prosecutors said, Hernández received millions of dollars in bribes that he used to fuel his rise in Honduran politics. Several people in Trump’s orbit lobbied for Hernández’s pardon, including his longtime ally Roger Stone. Stone said he called on Trump in June to pardon Hernández, claiming the former Honduran leader was targeted by the Biden administration.

Washington Examiner [12/3/2025 11:49 AM, Barry Angeline and Dan McCabe, 1394K] reports what does a failed watchdog look like? The Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General offers the clearest example in modern federal oversight: a measurable, documented collapse, demonstrated in its reports to Congress. The office has become an oversight void — where credible whistleblower disclosures disappear, and accountability is systematically avoided. We compiled these numbers from the Office of Inspector General semiannual reports to Congress during DHS Inspector General Joseph Cuffari’s tenure. We then compared those numbers to those of other agencies. From fiscal 2019 to fiscal 2025, the Office of Inspector General’s Whistleblower Protection Division reviewed 3,144 retaliation complaints. It confirmed just 11 — a validation rate of 0.35%. Other federal watchdogs corroborate 3%–8% of retaliation cases. In the private sector, the rate is 20%–25%. That makes the Office of Inspector General between ten and 25 times less likely to confirm retaliation than comparable federal offices and 50 to 70 times less likely than the private industry. No statistical model explains a gap this extreme. It reflects institutional posture, not case quality.

USA Today [12/3/2025 6:01 AM, Thaddeus L. Johnson and Natasha N. Johnson, 67103K] reports since beginning his second term, President Donald Trump has made border security a top priority, pledging to deport 1 million people annually. To reach that goal, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials are racing to hire 10,000 agents, offering incentives such as sign-up bonuses and student loan repayment. But the push lowers the bar for recruits, including reduced training, slower background checks and lower physical abilities. Whatever your view of the Trump administration’s broader immigration policy, this rush threatens safety on our streets and trust in the badge. ICE should return to basics, ensuring recruits are fully screened before training begins, providing structured mentoring for rookies, requiring basic language skills and hiring officers who reflect America’s communities.

FOX News [12/3/2025 6:06 AM, Simon Hankinson, 40621K] reports I did my first H-1B visa interview 25 years ago as a consular officer in India, and from the start saw that something was badly wrong with this program. I just published a report on H-1Bs, and this week, I interviewed a panel of experts to discuss the visa at the Heritage Foundation. Our consensus: the H-1B visa has badly deviated from its original intent and needs significant reform to put American workers first. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the H-1B was intended to bring workers in a "specialty occupation" to America "to help employers who cannot otherwise obtain needed business skills and abilities from the U.S. workforce." But employers aren’t required to prove they can’t find qualified Americans — or even that they bothered to look.

Federalist [12/3/2025 6:03 AM, Eddie Scarry, 785K] reports if there was ever a perfect case study in just how destructive the Democrat Party’s top two policy priorities — mass welfare distribution and unchecked immigration from the Third World — are to America, it’s what continues to unfold in Minnesota. Federal prosecutors have uncovered hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars stolen over the past five years by Somali descendants living throughout the state in pockets of immigrant-dense communities. The schemes led to more than $1 billion in theft of welfare money intended for the impoverished who are supposedly unable to feed and house themselves. The dollars instead were pocketed primarily by Somali scammers who ran fake nonprofits claiming to help the needy. The story has all the problems Democrats swear don’t exist: rampant welfare fraud, criminal immigrants, and bogus accusations of bigotry. New York Times, of all places, captured the enraging nature of the situation in an article last weekend. "The episode has raised broader questions for some residents about the sustainability of Minnesota’s Scandinavian-modeled system of robust safety net programs bankrolled by high taxes," the paper wrote. "That system helped create an environment that drew immigrants to the state over many decades, including tens of thousands of Somali refugees after their country descended into civil war in the 1990s." Wait, you mean impoverished foreigners from a war-torn, wildly corrupted country will flock to a state with European-style welfare giveaways and ultimately abuse the system? You’re telling me for the first time.

New York Post [12/3/2025 6:25 PM, Steve Hilton, 42219K] reports that I love this country. Becoming an American citizen was one of the proudest days of my life. Since moving here from the UK with my wife and two sons in 2012, I’ve taught at Stanford University, started a business and hosted a show on national TV. Now I’m running for governor of California, the state I love. I believe in the American Dream. In many ways, I’ve lived it. But over the last few years, Democrats have turned the American Dream into an Alien Welfare Scheme. As an immigrant, I’m disgusted by the behavior being revealed in Tim Walz’s Minnesota. Arrogant criminals see living in America as a right, not a privilege — and taxpayers are footing the bill for people who refuse to accept the most fundamental principles of our culture, history and way of life. But whatever is going on there, the corruption in Gavin Newsom’s California is a thousand times worse. We have by far the largest number of illegal immigrants in America, and the nation’s highest poverty and unemployment rates. Our highest-in-the-nation taxes inflate a bloated, bureaucratic monstrosity of a state government that produces the worst results in the country. Minnesota has been controlled by Democrats for the last three years. In California, it’s been 15. One-party rule breeds complacency, entitlement and ultimately corruption. Sure enough, Newsom’s most recent chief of staff was just indicted on corruption charges, and so has a top aide of Xavier Becerra, one of the Democrats running to replace him. California’s attorney general is mired in his own corruption scandal. Bad as the Minnesota scandal is, it’s dwarfed by the California fraud we already know about. Our Employment Development Department paid out at least $20 billion in fraudulent unemployment benefits during the pandemic — over a billion alone in the names of state and local prisoners, even inmates on death row. The corrupt "homeless industrial complex" grabbed $24 billion in state spending, as crony nonprofits and developers pocketed taxpayer cash while homelessness increased. One-party rule has turned California into a failed state. On Tuesday, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said that half of Minnesota’s immigration visas are "fraudulent.". Today I’m writing to her requesting an urgent investigation into the situation in California as well. For years, whistleblowers in Minnesota’s state government tried to reveal the massive fraud they were seeing — and the efforts of Walz and the Democratic political establishment to cover it up. We need that bravery in California, too.

FOX News [12/3/2025 10:17 PM, Staff, 40621K] reports DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin speaks on rhetoric and threats made against I.C.E. agents on ‘Hannity.’

CBS News [12/3/2025 9:45 AM, Christopher Harris, 39474K] reports citing mounting reports of human rights violations in U.S. immigration detention, Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff is demanding that the Department of Homeland Security stop blocking members of Congress from inspecting ICE facilities. Ossoff, joined by 13 Senate colleagues, including fellow Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock, launched a formal inquiry Monday pressing DHS for answers after what lawmakers describe as "arbitrary and illegal obstruction" of access to detention centers and ICE field offices holding detainees. The push follows a growing number of public reports this year of members of Congress and their staff being denied or delayed entry to ICE facilities across the country. "Obstructing Congressional access to immigration detention facilities violates federal law and undermines Congress’s inherent authority to conduct oversight," Ossoff and the group wrote in a letter to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. Under federal law, DHS must allow members of Congress to inspect detention facilities without notice and must let their staff enter with at least 24 hours’ notice. But lawmakers say DHS and ICE have repeatedly ignored those requirements. According to the letter, ICE recently required a seven-day notice for Congressional staff to inspect a facility, delaying what Ossoff described as an urgent visit to review conditions for children held in a "family" detention center. Members of Congress also reported being barred from unannounced inspections and from bringing doctors, attorneys, or other experts on facility tours. The senators say DHS further tightened access in June when ICE issued a guidance memo, since removed from its website, that appeared to require a 72-hour notice for all visits and excluded ICE field offices from oversight, despite federal law allowing access to any facility where detainees are held. A DHS press statement at the time asserted that a seven-day notice was necessary to prevent interference with the administration’s executive authority.

AP [12/3/2025 11:20 AM, Staff, 31753K] reports over 75 leaders from government, law enforcement, and the private sector convened today during the United to Safeguard America from Illegal Trade (USA-IT) 2025 National Summit in Washington, D.C. to call on Congress to enact new policies needed to address the $2.2 trillion criminal enterprise of illegal trade. Encompassing a network of interlinked crimes—from counterfeiting and organized retail theft to the trafficking of guns, drugs, and human beings—the underground economy and its profiteers are increasingly one of the most pervasive and dangerous challenges to American’s security and prosperity. "Criminal networks are quick to exploit weaknesses in our trade and financial systems for profit, with zero concern for public safety. Law enforcement is working tirelessly to counter the dangers that illegal trade poses to our national security, economy, and communities," said USA-IT spokesperson and former Acting Executive Associate Director for Homeland Security Investigations, Alysa Erichs. "But no single agency can address this challenge alone. Success depends on strong collaboration between the public and private sectors. By working together across sectors, we can share intelligence, strengthen expertise, spot emerging trends, and develop innovative strategies to stop criminals from enriching themselves at America’s expense.". The coalition’s third national summit in Washington, D.C., included keynote remarks from the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center (IPR Center) and panel discussions on a variety of illegal trade issues, including but not limited to: The global issue of human trafficking, its effects on local communities, and how we can better fight back; how the public sector can maximize its operational effectiveness through cross-sector cooperation; and legislative pathways towards intellectual property security.

CBS News [12/3/2025 6:50 PM, Staff, 39474K] Video: HERE reports advocates for people in immigrant communities experiencing domestic violence warn that widespread fear of ICE is stopping many victims from reaching out for help. Community members say some the worry that using services for domestic violence could expose them to the risk of deportation and family separation. One metro Atlanta immigrant survivor shared with CBS News Atlanta the challenges women like her face — and the message she has for those too afraid to ask for help. Sewa Fields was only 17 when she left her home country of India to go to college in the U.S. There she met the man she’d later marry in 2006. Shortly after, she says the abuse started. "Because I was in this vulnerable space, I was maybe feeling a little alone or isolated, being in a new country, learning a new culture, "she said. "It was, I think, an easy in for me to get into a relationship that ended up being toxic and abusive.". It took her eight years to leave, but Fields said, if she faced today’s risk of detention or deportation by ICE, she might have never spoken up or left her abusive marriage. "Even for those of us doing this work, we know that the protections are there. But are they being enforced? And do the new folks that they’re hiring even know about this, right?" said Aparna Bhattacharyya, the executive director of Raksha — a nonprofit serving South Asian American victims of domestic violence. Bhattacharyya said misinformation is also keeping women from using support like the group’s survivor pantry, because they wrongly believe it counts as "public charge" on government benefits and could jeopardize their immigration status. "Our concerns are that, you know, ICE has been showing up in courtrooms. ICE might show up at shelters and have done that in other states, and it might not be safe for survivors," she said.

FOX News [12/3/2025 2:56 PM, Staff, 40621K] Video: HERE reports Fox News senior congressional correspondent Chad Pergram has the latest on the House hearing investigating the rise in attacks on police and federal agents on ‘America Reports.’

New York Times [12/3/2025 2:35 PM, Michael J. de la Merced, 135475K] reports Alex Karp, the chief executive of Palantir, on Wednesday defended his company’s work for the Trump administration, while denying that his data-mining company was doing anything improper. At the DealBook Summit, Mr. Karp, who in the past had donated to Democratic politicians and describes himself as politically independent, strongly supported the Trump administration’s border and immigration policy, as well as its focus on building up America’s military strength. “I care about two issues: I care about immigration and re-establishing the deterrent capacity of America without being a colonialist neocon view,” Mr. Karp said onstage. “On those two issues, this president has performed.” When asked whether President Trump was a fascist, Mr. Karp — who wrote his college thesis on fascism — had a blunt answer. “Of course not,” he said. “I think that’s stupid, honestly.” For much of Palantir’s 22-year history, the company has wrapped itself in secrecy, even as it racked up consulting work from major companies and government agencies. Since Mr. Trump returned to the White House, Palantir has secured federal contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars, including for developing software to help Immigration and Customs Enforcement meet its deportation goals. Such efforts have drawn scrutiny and even pushback from former employees, The New York Times has reported. But on Wednesday, Mr. Karp defended Palantir’s work, saying the company was not abetting mass surveillance of innocent Americans. “Are we building a database that can be used for surveillance? No,” he said. But, he added, he “completely” supports efforts to surveil America’s adversaries. Palantir’s use of artificial intelligence and its growing ties to the Trump administration have pushed up the company’s stock price over the past year to an eye-popping clip, outstripping far better-known technology companies like Nvidia. That performance has drawn skeptics, however, including the investor Michael Burry, who was a central character in the movie “The Big Short.”

Breitbart [12/3/2025 8:47 PM, Elizabeth Weibel, 2416K] reports Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) introduced legislation that would severely limit the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) ability to enforce the nation’s immigration laws. In a press release, it was revealed that Jayapal, an Indian-born immigrant, and Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA) had introduced the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act. The bill would repeal mandatory detention, prohibit the detention of families and children in family detention; create a presumption of release and impose a higher burden of proof to detain primary caregivers and vulnerable populations, including pregnant women, survivors of torture or gender-based violence, people with serious mental or physical illness or disability, LGBTQ individuals, asylum seekers, and people over age 60, phase out the use of private detention facilities and jails over a three-year period, require DHS to establish civil detention standards that provide, at minimum, the level of protection in the American Bar Association’s Civil Immigration Detention Standards, mandate the DHS Inspector General to conduct unannounced inspections with meaningful penalties for failure to comply with standards; and require DHS to admit Members of Congress to detention facilities for unannounced inspections. "Our Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act has a remarkable, unprecedented 123 original co-sponsors — before we’ve even introduced it," Jayapal said during a press conference. "One hundred and twenty-three co-sponsors, and it overhauls the detention system. It drastically scales back the use of detention, it ensures that every single immigrant who is in detention has their human and civil rights protected.” Breitbart News’s John Binder reported in September that Jayapal, who serves as a ranking member on the Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement, has described Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as a "terrorist force" on several occasions: On Wednesday morning, a gunman killed one ICE detainee and injured several others after opening fire on ICE’s Dallas facility. The gunman, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, had an anti-ICE "ideological motive" and had even written "ANTI ICE" on one of his shell casings. In July, Jayapal, an influential member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, called ICE "a terrorist force," to which the White House responded by calling her a "deranged" leftist for making such a remark. In response, Jayapal doubled down on her accusation, again calling ICE "a terrorist force" in a fundraising email and taking to CNN to accuse ICE agents of kidnapping, among other crimes. During an interview with CNN in July, Jayapal also stated that the Trump administration needed to "apologize to U.S. citizens that have been rounded up, to legal permanent residents, to people with legal statuses across the country who are getting swept up.” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem has previously announced that the Trump administration "is breaking records with more than 527,000 illegal aliens" having been deported so far. DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin also stated that the Trump administration was on track "to shatter historic records and deport nearly 600,000 illegal aliens" by the end of Trump’s first year back in office.

New York Post [12/3/2025 9:38 AM, Chris Nesi, 42219K] reports chilling new details have emerged about the illegal migrants — including killers tied to 29 homicides — who have been released onto the streets of New York due to sanctuary laws, according to the Department of Homeland Security. The violent rogue’s gallery includes the likes of Cuban national and convicted killer Jose Antonio Andreo-Quezada, an illegal alien with a criminal history involving homicide, larceny, disorderly conduct, possession of stolen property, dangerous drugs, burglary, trespassing and assault, according to the Department of Homeland Security. He was released from Rikers Island, only to be picked up again on a parole violation, with ICE promptly putting in a detainer for him Aug. 16. Another is Anastacio Tejada Almonte, a criminal and Dominican national with a rap sheet including homicide, assault, illegally carrying a weapon and flight to avoid prosecution, DHS said. Despite an ICE detainer being lodged in May, he was released from the New York Department of Corrections on July 27. The men are just two of the 6,947 criminals released from New York jails in the past year, despite having active ICE detainers requesting they be handed over to immigration authorities for deportation. The killers were cut loose, and many others have nine toes out the door, rather than being removed from the country, in accordance with the city and state’s sanctuary policies, which limit how much local law enforcement is allowed to cooperate with federal agencies such as ICE, DHS said.

The Washington Post [12/3/2025 3:45 PM, Salvador Rizzo and Emma Uber, 24149K] reports that the Trump administration’s escalating use of warrantless immigration arrests in D.C. this year probably violated federal law, a judge ruled Tuesday in a decision that prohibits such arrests for all migrants in the city except those at risk of escaping. U.S. District Judge Beryl A. Howell granted a preliminary injunction sought by the immigrant-rights group CASA Inc. and four migrants who were arrested without administrative warrants in August amid President Donald Trump’s law enforcement surge in the capital. All four had pending immigration applications at the time of their arrests and were eventually released after spending time in detention facilities. “They were arrested while going about unavoidable, lawful activities of daily life,” Howell said. The judge, in an 88-page opinion, took Trump administration officials to task for depriving migrants of their rights and basic necessities as they languished in cramped detention facilities before being released. She criticized immigration authorities’ “systemic failure” to follow the law and said top administration officials, including Chief Border Patrol Agent Gregory Bovino, had repeatedly misstated the legal requirements for warrantless arrests in public comments. Bovino and a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security had asserted that officers needed “reasonable suspicion” to conduct such arrests, but Howell said the legal standard was more stringent: probable cause. Bloomberg Law [12/3/2025 1:01 PM, Daniel Seiden Senior, 803K] reports Latinos in Washington, DC, are entitled to early relief in their suit accusing ICE officers and federal agents of unlawfully targeting them for immigration arrests without warrants and probable cause. The plaintiffs showed they are likely to succeed in establishing the officials are engaging in practices that violate the Immigration and Nationality Act, Judge Beryl A. Howell of the US District Court for the District of Columbia said Tuesday order partially granting a preliminary injunction. US officials must stop enforcing their policy of conducting warrantless civil immigration arrests without probable cause to believe an arrestee is likely to escape before officials can obtain an administrative warrant, Howell said. Howell cited Chief Border Patrol Agent Gregory Bovino telling the press, for example, that officers only need to show reasonable suspicion to make an arrest. Those public statements are backed by examples of more than two dozen declarations describing about 40 warrantless civil immigration arrests performed without requisite probable cause findings, the judge said. Howell additionally noted that White House Chief of Staff Stephen Miller instructed ICE to stop developing target lists of immigrants, and instead should "‘just go out there’ and arrest people right away at Home Depots or 7-Elevens." And, when a former acting US Attorney for the Eastern District of California informed Bovino that they couldn’t make civil immigration arrests without probable cause, they reportedly lost their job, the judge said. Howell critiqued government attorneys, who said during a hearing that Trump administration officials don’t necessarily understand "legal terms of art" like "reasonable suspicion and probable cause.". "This is a remarkable assertion," the judge said. "On its face, the government’s defense appears to be that the individuals behind these statements are ignorant or incompetent, or both. These statements, however, were made by high-ranking officials—including Secretary Noem’s principal communications advisor and a Chief Border Patrol Agent—in their official capacity to the press, on DHS’s official website, and on DHS’s official social media account.".

Reported similarly:
FOX News [12/3/2025 5:38 AM, Landon Mion Fox, 40621K]
Washington Examiner [12/3/2025 12:53 PM, Kaelan Deese, 1394K]

FOX News [12/3/2025 10:39 AM, Charles Creitz, 40621K] reports a Chicago suburb’s police department is under fire after it announced a Montenegran immigrant serving on the force that had been arrested by ICE for a visa-overstay will continue on the job. Officials in Hanover Park, Illinois – which straddles DuPage and Cook Counties — defended Officer Radule Bojovic, saying in a statement to CBS News he had been hired in "full compliance" with the law, and had proper federal work authorization. DHS was nonplussed, with Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin commenting, "What kind of police department gives criminal illegal aliens badges and guns? It’s a felony for aliens to even possess a firearm.". "A so-called law enforcement officer is actively breaking the law," McLaughlin said, with her agency releasing further statements claiming Bojovic’s employment had an estimated cost to taxpayers of $205,707. The agency said Bojovic was "encountered" during Operation Midway Blitz, the Chicago ICE and Border Patrol enforcement action led by Commander Gregory Bovino. Bojovic’s tourist visa reportedly expired in 2015, leading McLaughlin to wonder in a statement how he could be hired after 10 years living in the U.S. illegally. Hanover Park officials told CBS News that Bojovic was hired through the proper checks and channels and he also provided a valid work authorization card that had recently been renewed. Bojovic’s first day back on full duty was Tuesday, according to police statements, as officials said the man’s $2,500 bond from his DHS case was not contested.

AP [12/3/2025 3:58 PM, Scott Bauer, 31753K] reports a divided Wisconsin Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to take a case brought by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of an immigrant rights group arguing that it is illegal for local jails to hold immigrant detainees at the request of federal authorities. The Wisconsin lawsuit comes as federal agents have launched high-profile immigration crackdowns in cities including Chicago and Charlotte, North Carolina. Another operation is expected in the coming days in Minnesota, targeting Somali immigrants. The enforcement tactics have been met with protests and lawsuits. A majority of justices on the Wisconsin Supreme Court voted to take the ACLU case directly as an original action, rather than have it first work its way through lower courts. The court’s decision means there could be a final ruling in the case by the middle of 2026, far faster than if it first had to wind its way through lower courts. All briefs in the case are due within two months, and the court will set a date for oral argument sometime after that early next year. The ACLU brought the lawsuit against five county sheriffs in September on behalf of Voces de la Frontera, an immigrant rights group based in Milwaukee. The lawsuit contends that it is illegal for local jails to hold immigrants on detainers sent by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to local sheriff’s offices. The lawsuit was filed against sheriffs in Walworth, Brown, Marathon, Kenosha and Sauk counties, all of which honor those requests. The sheriffs had argued that because the lawsuit involves a complicated area of the law — federal immigration law and the relationship between federal and state and local law enforcement — the case was best “resolved and refined” by first going through the lower courts, rather than skipping directly to the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

Reported similarly:
Reuters [12/3/2025 6:06 PM, Nate Raymond, 36480K]

Houston Chronicle [12/3/2025 6:01 PM, Matt deGrood and Abby Church, 2983K] reports a plan that would reduce the Houston Police Department’s cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement looks stalled, even before the city council has a chance to discuss it publicly. The city attorney’s office has been silent for seven days on whether or not the latest version of a draft proposal would pass legal muster, and other members of council are reticent to sign off on bringing the idea for discussion without an opinion, according to its author, Council Member Letitia Plummer. "I think we have something," Plummer said Wednesday. "If this ordinance was illegal, I think (the city attorney’s office) would jump on that. They could say, this goes against SB 4, which would prevent people jumping on board.". Texas Senate Bill 4 requires law enforcement to cooperate with federal immigration authorities, but the law doesn’t explicitly demand that officers call ICE whenever they encounter an immigrant living in the country illegally.

Univision [12/3/2025 2:47 PM, Staff, 5004K] reports in the last three months, sheriffs and even a police department in the San Antonio area have signed agreements to collaborate with ICE to assume very specific functions of immigration agents. This is as part of the 287(g) program, which, although not new, has been revived during this second administration of President Trump. The 287(g) program allows ICE to delegate specific immigration functions to local and state officials. According to a database published and updated weekly by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), seven sheriff’s agencies and one local police department in the San Antonio area were added in 2025. It’s important to note that there are three types of collaboration. Understanding this is crucial because a sheriff’s office signing the 287(g) program doesn’t mean it performs all of ICE’s functions.

CBS News [12/3/2025 8:09 PM, Staff, 39474K] Video: HERE reports charges stem from the July 4th attack at the Prairie Land Detention Center.

Blaze [12/3/2025 8:30 AM, Dave Urbanski, 1442K] reports the Old State Saloon in Eagle, Idaho, achieved national prominence last year when it launched what it deemed "Heterosexual Awesomeness Month.". The punch line? The plucky watering hole chose June for its 30 days of celebrating all things straight — which, of course, immediately ignited fuses dangling from left-wing noggins given that June has long been Pride Month and all. Well, the Old State Saloon once again is managing to poke at the left — this time offering free beer for a month to all those who help Immigration and Customs Enforcement capture and deport illegal immigrants. The bar’s Saturday X post reads, "ALERT: Anyone who helps ICE identify and ultimately deport an illegal from Idaho gets FREE BEER FOR ONE MONTH at Old State Saloon!" On the same day, the Department of Homeland Security reposted the saloon’s offer with a humorous GIF underscoring how floored the agency is with the promotion helping its cause — and the repost has received a whopping 3.7 million views. The Old State Saloon replied, "Let’s go! Deport them all!" Part of the deal, however, is that those who want to claim the month-long sudsy prize must "send a detailed email with any evidence, photos, videos, summary of events, dates, and times" to deportations@oldstatesaloon.com.

Blaze [12/3/2025 5:30 AM, Carlos Garcia, 1442K] reports a man living in Oklahoma was convicted for charges related to the attempted sexual trafficking of a minor after getting caught in an undercover sting operation. Braulio Luna, 59, arranged to purchase an 11-year-old girl for sexual activity, but unbeknownst to him, he was speaking to police officers pretending to be human traffickers. The operation involved officers posting ads as a mother who was trying to sell her 11-year-old daughter. "Mr. Luna responded to that ad and started making preparations to actually purchase an 11-year-old for a sexual encounter," said Maj. Adam Flowers of the Canadian County Sheriff’s Office to KFOR-TV. Luna pleaded guilty to felony child exploitation and was sentenced to 25 years in prison. He must serve at least 18 years before being released. Court documents indicated that Luna would also be deported to his country of origin after serving his time in prison. He was a legal U.S. resident but not a citizen.

Deseret News [12/3/2025 2:17 PM, Tim Vandenack, 2446K] reports that Caroline Dias Goncalves can remove the ankle monitor she’s been required to wear since her release in June from a federal immigration detention facility in Colorado. Moreover, federal officials must refund the bond money the Brazilian transplant to Utah posted per the terms of release from the facility, and she’s no longer subject to reporting requirements imposed by immigration officials after her arrest. More significantly, perhaps, a preliminary injunction in the federal suit she and three other immigrants filed against the federal government says immigration agents in Colorado may no longer carry out the sort of warrantless arrests they faced, at least for now. On the flip side, Tricia McLaughlin, a U.S. Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman, blasted the Nov. 25 decision as an "activist ruling" and rejected any suggestion that immigration agents act inappropriately. She didn’t outline the next steps of the defendants in the case — Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Immigration and Customs Enforcement Acting Director Todd Lyons and Robert Guadian, head of the Denver field office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. "This activist ruling is a brazen effort to hamstring the Trump administration from fulfilling the president’s mandate to deport the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens," McLaughlin said in a statement. "There are no ‘indiscriminate’ stops being made. DHS conducts enforcement operations in line with the U.S. Constitution and all applicable federal laws without fear, favor or prejudice."

Univision [12/3/2025 3:51 PM, Staff, 5004K] reports a Hispanic man reported that he was stopped for an alleged traffic violation only so that ICE could arrest his employees, and that he was also issued a fake ticket. The events occurred on Friday , November 28, when Enrique González and his four employees were heading to their place of employment. Enrique said that some state troopers, in about 6 or 8 official vehicles, stopped him. The camera in his truck recorded the entire incident. “Yes, in the dashcam videos I have, you can see that they followed me practically from the moment I left here on Roosevelt. They followed me, and about a mile and a half later they stopped me ,” Enrique said. Enrique added that the state police officers kept him occupied for several minutes, which they used to call ICE officers, who arrived to arrest the four workers. “Supposedly because of a light (on the vehicle). They made me waste time checking my license and insurance, and then immigration arrived and practically ambushed us. We couldn’t do anything. Unfortunately, six or seven trucks surrounded me; we couldn’t do anything. They arrested them and took them away ,” he added. After the workers were arrested, the state troopers issued Enrique a traffic ticket, but upon reviewing it, he realized it was a fake ticket, as none of the information on the ticket matched his own. “The fine, the light, and the supposed ‘ warning ‘ they were going to give me have nothing to do with it. They gave me a completely fake ticket ,” Enrique said, showing the document. The fine is not issued in the name of Enrique González, but in the name of Isidro Alexandro Sandoval, a person Enrique does not know. Furthermore, the fine was issued to a white 2016 model truck, but Enrique’s vehicle is a blue 2007 Chevrolet. The fine also does not match the time, date of birth, or license number of Enrique. Enrique even says he’s not sure if the name of the officer on the ticket is the same as the officer who arrested him. Now Enrique González doesn’t know what will happen to his four employees, nor does he know how he will be able to pay a fine that is not in his name. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

FOX News [12/3/2025 3:12 PM, Charles Creitz, 40621K] reports the Department of Homeland Security has condemned an Oregon man who has been protesting ICE for months, according to reports, after new video surfaced showing him verbally describing to one officer that his wife would receive his head on a pike through the mail. John Paul Cupp, 45, also known as Walid al-Amriki, is the poster child for the 8,000-fold increase in threats against federal law enforcement, a top DHS official told Fox News Digital. Cupp is charged with making threats against a federal law enforcement officer after he allegedly threatened to kill ICE agents and sexually assault their wives. DHS shared video with Fox News Digital posted on the suspect’s Instagram that was labeled "Daddy Walid’s Come Get Bin Laden Challenge," which featured Cupp swearing repeatedly and loudly self-identifying to responding ICE agents as the deceased Al-Qaeda terrorist: "I’m over here advocating your death and the violent overthrow of the government, and you want to attack some females and some children." In a statement to Fox News Digital, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said Tuesday that Cupp is now facing federal charges for his threats. Cupp has also been associated with White supremacist and pro-North Korean groups inside the U.S., with an NBC News report connecting dictator Kim Jong Un’s "personality cult" with admirers in the U.S. like the protester. The Portland FOX affiliate reported Cupp was remanded to the Northwest Detention Center in Oregon.

San Francisco Chronicle [12/3/2025 4:09 PM, Ko Lyn Cheang, St. John Barned-Smith, 4722K] reports for 15 years, Afghan interpreter Sayed served alongside American soldiers in Afghanistan, first as a translator, then as a contractor providing internet services for the U.S. military. The 36-year-old U.S. green card holder never imagined his sister and two nephews, who worked alongside him supporting the U.S. 19-year-war in Afghanistan, would be arrested and detained by the government they had risked their lives to serve. But that’s what happened Monday when his family members were called in for a surprise ICE check-in at the agency’s San Jose field office, handcuffed and detained. He hasn’t heard from them since. His relatives are among hundreds swept up in a harsh immigration crackdown against Afghans launched by the Trump administration after an Afghan man granted asylum shot two National Guard members in D.C. last week, killing one. At least 17 Afghans in Northern California have been detained in this manner, said Zahra Biloo, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations for the Bay Area.

Breitbart [12/3/2025 8:05 AM, John Binder, 2416K] reports an illegal alien, previously deported four times from the United States, is now accused of killing 11-year-old Aiden Antonio Torres De Paz in a hit-and-run crash the day before Thanksgiving. Hector Balderas-Aheelor, an illegal alien from Mexico, was arrested by the Escondido Police Department last month and charged with felony hit-and-run causing death or injury. According to police, on November 26, the day before Thanksgiving, Aiden Antonio Torres De Paz was playing outside when his soccer ball rolled into the street. When Aiden went to get the ball, he was hit by a car, allegedly being driven by Balderas-Aheelor. Police allege Balderas-Aheelor hit Aiden and sped off — leaving him to die from his injuries on Thanksgiving Day. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials have since revealed that Balderas-Aheelor has been deported four times from the U.S. "Thanksgiving should be a day of celebrating family and giving gratitude, but instead the family of Aiden Antonio Torres De Paz mourned this beautiful child’s death because a criminal illegal alien stole his life," the Department of Homeland Security’s Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement: Now, sanctuary laws threaten to put this killer back onto California’s streets. Hector Balderas-Aheelor was previously removed four times before he chose to commit a felony and illegally re-enter the country a fifth time. Gavin Newsom, we are calling on you to do the right thing and honor ICE’s arrest detainer.

Los Angeles Times [12/3/2025 6:00 AM, Rachel Uranga, 14862K] reports Lorena Pineda was five months pregnant when masked agents picked her up on a street corner near a San Fernando Home Depot in June. An agent grabbed her from the vending stand she ran with her sister-in-law and put her against a car. "Be careful," she told him. "I’m pregnant." "Don’t think I am going to let you go because of that," she recalled him saying. Immigration and Customs Enforcement policy states agents shouldn’t detain, arrest or hold pregnant, postpartum and nursing mothers for "administrative violation of immigration laws" barring "exceptional circumstances" or if their release is "prohibited by law.". But pregnant women are increasingly picked up, deported and detained under the Trump administration, advocates and lawyers contend. Pineda, 27, was held at a downtown L.A. processing center before being transferred to San Bernardino, flown to Atlanta and then to a staging facility in Alexandria, La., and then taken on an hours-long ride to a rural part of that state — where for 3½ months she watched her belly grow and her dreams of life in America fade. "This is only the tip of the iceberg," said Eunice Cho, a lawyer with the ACLU and co-author of a letter sent to acting ICE Director Todd Lyons in October asking that pregnant detainees be released. According to Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin, it is "exceedingly rare" for pregnant women to be in detention. Those who are, she said, receive "regular prenatal visits, mental health services, nutritional support, and accommodations aligned with community standards of care.".

Daily Wire [12/3/2025 12:27 PM, Jennie Taer, 2494K] reports Democratic lawmakers are proposing new legislation to "drastically scale back" the detention of illegal immigrants across the country, which would also result in the release of any illegal immigrants who claim to be LGBTQ. The "Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act" would end detention that is considered mandatory for many illegal immigrants, including members of the LGBTQ community, Washington Rep. Pramila Jayapal announced Wednesday. And Immigration and Customs Enforcement sources told The Daily Wire it will create a gaping loophole allowing for the release of illegal immigrants en masse. One ICE source quipped that "almost every" illegal immigrant detainee will now say they’re gay or transgender "just to get released.". "It would spread like wildfire," the source said. Another agency source called the move a "f*cking joke," adding that, "It’s gonna turn into bail reform like New York. Criminals just released because their feelings are hurt.". The bill already has 123 Democrat co-sponsors. In Jayapal’s own words, the proposed legislation "overhauls the detention system," and "drastically scales back the use of detention." The bill has the "unprecedented" backing of 123 Democratic cosponsors, Jayapal said. The bill would also end ICE’s use of privately-run detention centers, which hold thousands of the agency’s detainees, while preventing it from detaining children and families. Along with the LGBTQ community, anyone who is above 60 years old or has a "serious" mental or physical illness, or is a pregnant woman, can be released from detention under the bill.

AP [12/3/2025 3:31 PM, Dyepkazah Shibayan, 852K] reports the United States will restrict visas for Nigerians and their family members involved in mass killings and violence against Christians in the West African country, the U.S. State Department said Wednesday. The attacks on the community are part of a longstanding and extremely complex security crisis in Nigeria — a nation recently singled out by U.S. President Donald Trump for “the killing of Christians” by “radical Islamists.” Last month, Trump also said he has ordered the Pentagon to begin planning for potential military action in Nigeria following the claims of Christian persecution. “The United States is taking decisive action in response to the mass killings and violence against Christians by radical Islamic terrorists, Fulani ethnic militias, and other violent actors in Nigeria and beyond,” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement posted on X. He added that the policy would apply to other governments or individuals engaged in violations of religious freedom, and that the restrictions are in line with a new policy under the Immigration and Nationality Act. The move follows the designation of Nigeria by the U.S. as a “country of particular concern” under the International Religious Freedom Act last month. It wasn’t immediately clear how Wednesday’s policy would be implemented, as the State Department already has the ability to restrict travel to the U.S. by those involved in human rights abuses.

The Washington Examiner [12/3/2025 9:28 AM, David Zimmermann, 1394K] reports U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services decided to freeze pending immigration requests from 19 countries that the Trump administration deems "high risk" for national security reasons after an Afghan national critically shot two National Guard members in Washington, D.C., last week. In a four-page memo issued Tuesday, the immigration and naturalization agency said all benefit applications filed by foreign nationals from 19 high-risk countries, including Afghanistan, are placed on hold until further notice. All asylum applications, regardless of the applicant’s country of nationality, are also paused indefinitely. Joining Afghanistan on the list are Burma, Burundi, Chad, Cuba, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Laos, Libya, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Togo, Turkmenistan, Venezuela, and Yemen. These are the same countries that were included in President Donald Trump’s June 4 proclamation for travel restrictions, both full and partial. "In light of identified concerns and the threat to the American people, USCIS has determined that a comprehensive re-review, potential interview, and re-interview of all aliens from high-risk countries of concern who entered the United States on or after January 20, 2021 is necessary," the memo states, referencing former President Joe Biden’s inauguration date as a starting point for the immigration freeze. "Lastly, USCIS may, when appropriate, extend this review and re-interview process to aliens who entered the United States outside of this timeframe." USCIS said it remains committed to making sure all immigrants who enter the U.S. from countries of concern are not considered threats to national security or the general public. ABC News [12/3/2025 11:50 AM, Luke Barr, 30493K] reports "The Trump Administration is making every effort to ensure individuals becoming citizens are the best of the best. Citizenship is a privilege, not a right," said a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson. "We will take no chances when the future of our nation is at stake. The Trump Administration is reviewing all immigration benefits granted by the Biden administration to aliens from Countries of Concern.". The memo cited last Wednesday’s attack on two National Guard members near the White House by a suspect who authorities say entered the United States from Afghanistan in 2021. U.S. Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom died the following day, while the other National Guard member, Andrew Wolfe, remains in critical condition. The suspect was formally charged with murder on Tuesday. The 19 travel ban countries include Afghanistan, Burma (Myanmar), Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela. The pause is in effect until USCIS issues guidance on additional vetting of these nationals, according to a source, who has reviewed the internal USCIS documents.

Reported similarly:
New York Post [12/3/2025 6:55 AM, Samuel Chamberlain, 42219K]
Reuters [12/3/2025 10:57 AM, Diane To, 36480K]
CBS News [12/3/2025 9:57 AM, Staff, 39474K] Video: HERE
FOX News [12/3/2025 8:02 AM, Rachel Wolf and Bill Melugin, 40621K]
USA Today [12/3/2025 3:45 PM, Kinsey Crowley, 67103K]
Daily Caller [12/3/2025 10:55 AM, Jason Hopkins, 835K]
Univision [12/3/2025 2:38 PM, Patricia Clarembaux, 5004K]

Reuters [12/4/2025 5:10 AM, Ram Nabong, 36480K] reports residents and businesses in Somalia and Togo expressed frustration on Wednesday (December 3) after the Trump administration suspended immigration applications from their countries, part of a sweeping pause affecting 19 nations. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Reuters [12/3/2025 7:59 PM, Humeyra Pamuk, 36480K] reports the Trump administration has ordered increased vetting of applicants for H-1B visas for highly skilled workers, with anyone involved in "censorship" of free speech considered for rejection, according to a State Department cable seen by Reuters. H-1B visas are crucial for U.S. tech companies which recruit heavily from countries including India and China. Many of those companies’ leaders threw their support behind Trump in the last presidential election. The cable, sent to all U.S. missions on December 2, orders U.S. consular officers to review resumes or LinkedIn profiles of H-1B applicants - and family members who would be traveling with them - to see if they have worked in areas that include activities such as misinformation, disinformation, content moderation, fact-checking, compliance and online safety, among others. "If you uncover evidence an applicant was responsible for, or complicit in, censorship or attempted censorship of protected expression in the United States, you should pursue a finding that the applicant is ineligible," under a specific article of the Immigration and Nationality Act, the cable said. The enhanced vetting for H-1B visas, which allow U.S. employers to hire foreign workers in specialty fields, has not been previously reported. The cable said all visa applicants were subject to this policy, but sought a heightened review for the H-1B applicants given they frequently worked in the technology sector "including in social media or financial services companies involved in the suppression of protected expression.". "You must thoroughly explore their employment histories to ensure no participation in such activities," the cable said. The new vetting requirements apply to both new and repeat applicants. Bloomberg [12/3/2025 8:53 PM, Derek Wallbank and Nick Wadhams, 18207K] reports “BE ON THE LOOKOUT: APPLICANTS RESPONSIBLE FOR OR COMPLICIT IN CENSORSHIP OF AMERICANS,” the cable seen by Bloomberg said. Reuters first reported the policy change. H-1B visas are designed to attract high-skilled workers, and are widely used within the tech industry, including social media companies that the White House has criticized over questions of censorship abroad. The cable specifies that all individuals applying for visas are subject to the policy, but that H-1B applicants in particular are more likely to work in social media or financial services firms “involved in the suppression of protected expression.” The instructions come President Donald Trump threatened a slew of aggressive actions to curtail legal migration to the US in response to one National Guard member dying after being ambushed near the White House last month. The administration had previously implemented a $100,000 fee for H-1B visa applications as of September. Consular officers are encouraged to review resumes and LinkedIn pages, as well as articles in trade publications. Among the issues that would be flagged include complying with content moderation or censorship demands from a foreign entity or “adopting global content moderation policies inconsistent with freedom of expression.” The State Department didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. In June, Secretary of State Marco Rubio ordered more scrutiny of the social-media profiles of any foreigners seeking to visit Harvard University, telling US consular officers that applicants’ lack of an online presence might be enough evidence to deny a visa.

NewsMax [12/3/2025 6:49 PM, Jim Mishler, 4109K] reports Iowa and three other Republican-led states have agreed to help the Department of Homeland Security pursue broader access to state driver’s license data through a national law enforcement network as part of efforts to verify that registered voters are U.S. citizens. The agreement is part of a legal settlement filed Friday between Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Ohio, and DHS. The Des Moines Register reported that the settlement requires DHS to continue expanding its citizenship verification system, known as SAVE, which was originally designed to confirm the immigration status of individual applicants for government benefits. Federal officials recently equipped SAVE to conduct bulk searches of voter records, linking it to other federal data, including Social Security information. In exchange, the four states have agreed to support DHS as it seeks access to the data. The network typically allows police agencies to retrieve driver and vehicle records across state lines, and officials have said it could serve as a centralized method for identity checks rather than connecting to 50 individual state databases. Under the settlement, the participating states may provide DHS with 1,000 randomly selected driver’s license records within 90 days as part of a quality review for SAVE. The agreement also instructs the states to "make best efforts" to help DHS obtain full use of state driver’s license files, though the scope of that pledge remains unclear. Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate, a Republican, said the arrangement adds a tool for ensuring voter eligibility. In 2024, his office flagged more than 2,100 registrants as potential noncitizens based on past state records, later determining through SAVE that 277 of them were confirmed to lack U.S. citizenship. Supporters of the expanded system say it strengthens election integrity by giving states more efficient ways to verify voter information. Critics, including several Democratic state election officials, argue the changes could create an extensive federal database containing sensitive personal information. They also question how the data might be used. Twelve Democratic secretaries of state filed a joint public comment opposing the SAVE overhaul, saying it could undermine election administration rather than improve it. DHS and the Department of Justice have also sought unredacted voter rolls from states as part of broader enforcement efforts. Several related DOJ lawsuits are pending. Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose said the expanded verification system will help ensure voting integrity by giving officials faster, more reliable tools to confirm voter eligibility. He maintains that the program strengthens protections against noncitizen registration and helps maintain accurate voter rolls, preventing those who do not have a legal voice in U.S. elections from slipping into the system.

San Diego Union Tribune [12/3/2025 3:14 PM, Staff, 1538K] reports four Republican states have agreed to help the Trump administration gain access to state driver’s license data through a nationwide law enforcement computer network as part of the administration’s hunt for alleged noncitizen voters. The Trump administration said as recently as October that federal officials wanted to obtain driver’s license records through the network. The commitment from officials in Florida, Indiana, Iowa and Ohio comes as part of a settlement agreement filed on Friday in a federal lawsuit. The lawsuit was originally brought by the states last year alleging the Biden administration wasn’t doing enough to help states verify voter eligibility. The settlement, between the states and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, requires the federal department to continue its development of a powerful citizenship verification program known as SAVE. Earlier this year, federal officials repurposed SAVE into a program capable of scanning millions of state voter records for instances of noncitizen registered voters. In return, the states have agreed to support Homeland Security’s efforts to access the National Law Enforcement Telecommunications System, an obscure computer network that typically allows law enforcement agencies to search driver’s license records across state lines. Nlets — as the system is known — lets police officers easily look up the driving records of out-of-state motorists. The Trump administration and some Republican election officials have promoted the changes to SAVE as a useful tool to identify potential noncitizen voters, and Indiana had already agreed to provide voter records. Critics, including some Democrats, say the Trump administration is building a massive database of U.S. residents that President Donald Trump or a future president could use for spying or targeting political enemies. Stateline reported last week, before the settlement agreement was filed in court, that Homeland Security publicly confirmed it wants to connect Nlets to SAVE. A notice published Oct. 31 in the Federal Register said driver’s licenses are the most widely used form of identification, and that by working with states and national agencies, including Nlets, "SAVE will use driver’s license and state identification card numbers to check and confirm identity information.". Matthew Tragesser, a spokesperson for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services — the agency under Homeland Security that oversees SAVE — told Stateline last week that USCIS was committed to "eliminating barriers to securing the nation’s electoral process.". "By allowing states to efficiently verify voter eligibility, we are reinforcing the principle that America’s elections are reserved exclusively for American citizens," Tragesser said in a statement.

NewsMax [12/3/2025 6:37 PM, Solange Reyner, 4109K] reports Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., on Wednesday released a bill that would "put American citizens first" and "ensure that migrants are not benefiting at the expense of American citizens.". The American Citizens First Act would end federal benefits, allow the Department of Homeland Security to denaturalize naturalized citizens who "undermine domestic tranquility" by participating in unlawful protests involving violence or property destruction, and expand expedited removal authority. It would also require a full review of every Afghan admitted as a refugee, parolee, or special immigrant visa holder from Jan. 20, 2021, to the present. The bill would automatically end temporary protected status for any nationality if DHS determines the home country is safe enough for return, or if the group receiving TPS exceeds a specified crime-rate threshold. "Hardworking Arkansans should not be forced to support non-U.S. citizens on federal programs. My bill will put American citizens first," Cotton said in a press release. The move comes a day after U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said in a memo that it would pause reviews of all pending green card, citizenship, or asylum applications from immigrants from 19 countries listed in a previous travel ban. "The Trump Administration is making every effort to ensure individuals becoming citizens are the best of the best. Citizenship is a privilege, not a right," a DHS spokesperson said in a statement.

Reported similarly:
Breitbart [12/3/2025 1:12 PM, Olivia Rondeau, 2416K]

NBC News [12/3/2025 4:29 PM, Nicole Acevedo and Rich Schapiro, 34509K] reports fear, stress and worry have gripped the lives of thousands of Afghans living in the United States since an Afghan national was accused of shooting two National Guard members near the White House last week — leading the Trump administration to aggressively expand its efforts to crack down on legal immigration from Afghanistan. Across the nation, Afghans have condemned the shooting that killed Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and critically wounded Andrew Wolfe, 24, and expressed their condolences to the families of both National Guard members. But they also criticized the shift in immigration policy based on the actions of one person. Among those critics is Afghanistan’s Foreign Minister Maulvi Amir Khan Muttaqi, who on Wednesday called the shooting "an individual act" that "has nothing to do with Afghanistan and its respectable people." After the suspected gunman was identified as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an Afghan asylee, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has halted all asylum decisions for applicants from 19 countries deemed as "high risk" by the Trump administration in June, including Afghanistan. The announcements sent a chilling wave of uncertainty among the more than 190,000 Afghans resettled in the United States since 2021.

New York Times [12/3/2025 8:18 PM, Miriam Jordan, 135475K] reports in the frenzied American exit from Afghanistan, Obaidullah Durani, a fighter pilot who had been trained by U.S. forces, was scrambling to get his family out, too. His daughter, Hela, was hoisted over the fence by a Marine at the Kabul airport as the family rushed to make a departing plane. But Mr. Durani’s wife, Shafaro, was separated from him and their two children and never made it onto an evacuation flight. Allowed to enter the United States through a special program for people who worked with American forces, Mr. Durani settled in Arizona, with his infant daughter and toddler son. He had never changed a diaper in his life, he said, but he was now a single father juggling parenting with delivery jobs. Yet he felt safe in the United States and hopeful that the family would eventually be reunited. That all changed with the deadly attack on National Guard members last week in Washington, D.C., which authorities say was carried out by a 29-year-old Afghan man. Following the attack, President Trump directed his administration to suspend all Afghan immigration cases and immigration agents have been ordered to track down nearly 2,000 Afghans who have what are known as final deportation orders but are not in detention. That threatens the lives built by the Duranis and thousands of other Afghan families in the United States. Mr. Trump has seized on the shooting to intensify his broader anti-immigration campaign, and he has sought to depict the attack and the man charged, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, as evidence of a dangerously broken system he inherited from President Biden. “We must now re-examine every single alien who has entered our country from Afghanistan under Biden, and we must take all necessary measures to ensure the removal of any alien from any country who does not belong here or add benefit to our country,” the president said on Truth Social. “If they can’t love our country, we don’t want them.” All told, about 200,000 Afghans who were considered wartime allies of the United States have been admitted to the United States since the chaotic pullout that concluded the 20-year occupation. Many had worked alongside U.S. troops in combat or on bases; others were employed by organizations — including The Times and other media outlets — as well as institutions that supported U.S. operations or interests. The rhetoric and the threats from Mr. Trump have stirred panic in communities that are home to many Afghan arrivals, including the Phoenix area where about 4,000 have settled since 2021.

Washington Examiner [12/3/2025 2:31 PM, Emily Hallas, 1394K] reports that First Lady Melania Trump’s former immigration lawyer on Wednesday weighed in on a Republican effort to eliminate dual citizenship, questioning the merits of a bill that could affect millions of Americans. Attorney Michael Wildes represented Trump’s parents in helping the Slovenian-born family obtain U.S. citizenship. The first lady and the only child she shares with President Donald Trump, Barron Trump, appear to remain dual citizens of the United States and Slovenia, meaning they could face consequences should Sen. Bernie Moreno’s (R-OH) Exclusive Citizenship Act of 2025, which the GOP lawmaker introduced on Monday, advance. If passed, a U.S. citizen who voluntarily acquires foreign citizenship would have to relinquish their U.S. citizenship after the date of enactment if they choose to remain a citizen of the other country. Those who possess dual citizenship would have to submit a written renunciation of foreign citizenship to the secretary of state or a written renunciation of U.S. citizenship to the secretary of homeland security, no later than one year after the enactment of the act.

CBS Miami [12/3/2025 8:44 PM, Staff, 39474K] reports immigrant communities in South Florida are expressing concern following the Trump administration’s latest policy move impacting immigrants from Venezuela, Cuba, Haiti, and 16 other countries. Federal immigration applications – including those for permanent residency or "green cards" – have been paused under a new directive from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The news has sent shock waves through cities like Doral, home to one of the largest Venezuelan populations in South Florida. Many Venezuelans recently lost Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, and immediately turned to alternative immigration protections. Now, they say they are once again facing uncertainty. Juan Carlos Hernandez is one of them. After losing TPS, he applied for political asylum. He says he’s confused by the sudden changes. "Like we say in my country, we pay the price for someone else’s mistake," Hernandez said. He was surprised to learn that immigrants from Venezuela, Cuba, Haiti, and others were flagged as high-risk under a Department of Homeland Security memo dated Dec. 2. The policy outlines three major changes affecting nationals from the listed countries. The first places a hold on all I-589 forms – asylum applications. Hernandez says asylum was his next option after TPS was terminated. "Many of us just want to work. We’re law-abiding citizens running away from a dictatorship in our homeland," he said, adding that most immigrants like him simply want stability. Under the updated guidance, individuals already in the U.S., regardless of when they arrived, will now face additional scrutiny. The change follows a series of immigration measures announced after an Afghan national was accused of shooting two National Guard members – one fatally. Another significant change will place a hold on pending benefit requests — including work permits — for immigrants from the affected countries. Miami immigration attorney Morella Aguado says this will impact thousands of people waiting for authorization to legally hold jobs. "The work permits for people who are pending an asylum will be placed on hold, which means their jobs are going to be affected," Aguado said. A third change will trigger a comprehensive re-review of already approved benefit requests, including green cards, granted to individuals who entered the U.S. on or after Jan. 20, 2021. "So, for example, somebody from Venezuela that was previously granted a green card – they will re-review or can re-review to see if there were any mistakes when granting that green card, and it can be revoked," Aguado said. Despite the uncertainty, Hernandez remains hopeful. "I do think a new measure will emerge," he said. "I’m hopeful the U.S. government will see most of us are not here to cause problems. We value peace – and if we have to wait longer, we will. I don’t have anything to hide.” For now, the decision on when to lift the pause is up to the agency’s director. Aguado advises that immigrants who already have asylum interviews scheduled should still attend. Those planning to apply can continue to do so – but should prepare for delayed processing times.

USA Today [12/3/2025 4:51 PM, Haley BeMiller, 67103K] reports Sen. Bernie Moreno wants to get rid of dual citizenship in the United States. Moreno, an Ohio Republican, introduced legislation that would require Americans to exclusively be U.S. citizens. Current law allows people to maintain citizenship with the United States and another country, provided that country permits it. Moreno is originally from Colombia and immigrated to the U.S. with his family as a child. He became a U.S. citizen and renounced his Colombian citizenship when he turned 18. "It was an honor to pledge an oath of allegiance to the United States of America and ONLY to the United States of America," Moreno said in a statement. "Being an American citizen is an honor and a privilege − and if you want to be an American, it’s all or nothing." Citizens of two countries owe allegiance to both and must follow their laws, according to the State Department. Dual citizenship can make travel more efficient and allows people to own property or operate businesses in another country. Moreno’s bill would give dual citizens a year to renounce either their U.S. or foreign citizenship. It says the current policy "may create conflicts of interest and divided loyalties." It remains to be seen whether the proposal has legs, but it could affect the White House if enacted. First lady Melania Trump and Barron Trump hold citizenship in the U.S. and Slovenia, according to the New York Times.

Breitbart [12/4/2025 1:15 AM, Staff, 2416K] reports the United States on Wednesday revoked the visas of executives and senior officials of a Mexico-based transportation company the Trump administration accuses of facilitating illegal migration. The number of visas revoked and the identities of the individuals affected were not made public by the State Department, which announced the development. "Investigations indicate that the individuals targeted arranged transportation for aliens, including minors, from the Caribbean and other regions to transit points in Central America, where many were later encountered attempting to enter the United States," a State Department spokesman said in a statement. "The department is revoking visas and taking steps to impose visa restrictions to prevent these individuals from entering our country.” The Trump administration has been conducting a crackdown on immigration and, as part of the effort, is targeting those facilitating illegal immigration. The punitive measure applied Wednesday was taken under a visa-restriction policy announced in March that permits the State Department to revoke or deny visas to foreign government officials and other individuals deemed responsible for facilitating illegal immigration — including by knowingly enabling the transit of migrants intending to unlawfully immigrate into the United States via the southern border. The policy was built on a Biden-era visa-restriction program that was expanded in 2023 and 2024 to target private-sector transportation providers accused of knowingly facilitating irregular migration, but extends the authority to include foreign government officials and other state-linked actors. "The United States will not tolerate any attempts to undermine our national security or immigration laws," the State Department spokesman said Wednesday. "The department will ensure those who profit from illegal immigration face consequences, and we will aggressively target smuggling networks to protect our borders.”

Reported similarly:
Telemundo [12/3/2025 7:02 PM, Staff, 2218K]

Bloomberg [12/3/2025 1:08 PM, Taylor Mills, 803K] reports that the Department of Homeland Security may evade environmental reviews that would otherwise be required to construct a portion the wall on the Arizona-Mexico border, a magistrate judge recommended. The waiver created by the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act doesn’t violate separation of powers principles in the US Constitution because Congress clearly established a policy to deter illegal border crossings, according to the Tuesday opinion. The government should therefore win its summary judgment in a lawsuit brought by conservation groups alleging DHS unlawfully approved construction without National Environmental Policy Act or Endangered Species Act reviews, Magistrate Judge James E. … [Editorial note: consult extended commentary at source link]

CBS News [12/3/2025 2:08 PM, Dan Raby, 39474K] reports that the FBI and local law enforcement agencies say they seized almost 1,600 pounds of methamphetamine that was hidden in pallets of blackberries shipped from Mexico to North Georgia. Investigators say the drugs that they seized from trucks in Atlanta and Hall County were worth tens of millions of dollars on the street. The seizures happened on Nov. 21. In Atlanta, federal, state, and local authorities say they discovered 419 kilos of the drug hidden in a shipment of the berries in a truck parked outside a home on Custer Avenue SE. In Hall County, deputies found another refrigerated box truck outside a business on McEver Road. Inside, authorities say they found 300 kilos of methamphetamine, making it the largest seizure of the drugs in the county’s history. A third truck was found but had since been emptied. The driver of that truck, identified only as a Mexican national, was moved to ICE custody for deportation. "Just in North Georgia, and just within the last few months, we have seen massive methamphetamine seizures of drugs smuggled in with cucumbers, or with celery, or with jalapeño peppers, and now, as you will hear, blackberries," said Theodore Hertzberg, the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, at a press conference discussing the seizure. Both seized shipments are believed to have been brought across the Southern border from Mexico.

Breitbart [12/3/2025 9:12 AM, Randy Clark, 2416K] reports Border Patrol agents announced the recent arrest of a Guatemalan woman wanted in Tennessee for aggravated child abuse after she illegally re-entered the United States near El Paso, Texas. According to the Border Patrol, the woman, 28-year-old Maria Rosario Fabian-Alvarado, faces a felony charge of re-entry into the United States and another deportation. On Tuesday, Chief Michael W. Banks of the United States Border Patrol announced the arrest in a social media post on X, saying, "A Guatemalan national wanted for aggravated child abuse attempted to sneak into the U.S. She’ll be charged with felony illegal reentry and trespassing in a National Defense Area- and then deportation. No free passes." As of Tuesday, the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office in Chattanooga listed the warrant for Aggravated Child Abuse as open and active for Fabian-Alvarado for a crime she allegedly committed in March 2025. The department lists Chattanooga as her last known address. According to a report by WRCB Local 3 News, Fabian-Alvarado was arrested by Chattanooga police for allegedly using a "Chicote", described by authorities as a whip, to strike a 7-year-old child because she was upset that the child had eaten too much. According to court documents, Alvarado told police the child "had a weight problem."

Chicago Tribune [12/3/2025 7:07 PM, Caroline Kubzansky, 4829K] reports federal prosecutors moved Wednesday to drop charges against a comedy club manager accused of shutting a car door on a federal immigration agent’s leg in the Lakeview neighborhood, the latest in a string of dismissals in high-profile cases that resulted from the Trump administration’s so-called Operation Midway Blitz. Nathan Griffin, 24, was charged in late October with assaulting, impeding or interfering with a federal officer during one of many skirmishes between federal agents and U.S. citizens that punctuated the Trump administration’s wave of illegal immigration enforcement in and around Chicago. Most federal agents have moved on from Chicago, while criminal cases against U.S. citizens that arose from their time here have continued to move through the legal system. But many of those charges have disintegrated only weeks after being filed. Griffin’s family declined to comment on the dismissal and his attorney didn’t immediately respond. U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agent Paul Delgado, whom Griffin had been accused of injuring, testified in a preliminary examination last month that when he and a group of other agents had just conducted an arrest at Belmont Avenue and Broadway in the Lakeview neighborhood when they mistakenly thought one of the other agents had dropped his body camera and returned to the scene in two separate cars. Delgado testified that he saw a crowd of people forming around the other vehicle and tried to get out of the car when Griffin allegedly slammed the door back on his leg. Agents then tackled Griffin and took him into custody, leading to a videotaped car ride in which Griffin, apparently well aware he was being filmed, unleashed a steady stream of invective about his opinion of the blitz and the agents carrying it out. One of the agents, several minutes into the tirade, told Griffin to "relax.". The motion to scrap the case against Griffin without prejudice follows prosecutors’ move to drop charges against Marimar Martinez, the 30-year-old woman who was shot five times by a Border Patrol agent in Brighton Park who claimed Martinez "rammed" a federal vehicle with her own car in an Oct. 4 standoff.

NewsNation [12/3/2025 6:17 PM, Shirley Escobedo, 8017K] Video: HERE reports nearly four dozen people were arrested in Mission during a suspected stash house operation conducted by U.S. Border Patrol. The U.S. Border Patrol, assisted by the Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office and the Texas Department of Public Safety, conducted the operation on Monday afternoon. According to a news release from U.S. Border Patrol, agents discovered 43 people hiding inside a small trailer in "substandard and unsanitary" conditions. The news release states that all 43 people are undocumented, with origins from Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala, Colombia, Peru, El Salvador, and Ecuador.

USA Today [12/3/2025 1:48 PM, Eve Chen, 67103K] reports look across any airport boarding area and you’ll see travelers scrolling through their phones and charging them before flights, but federal authorities have urged travelers to be careful on both counts. "Hackers can install malware at USB ports," the Transportation Safety Administration posted on Facebook earlier this year. "So, when you’re at an airport do not plug your phone directly into a USB port. Bring your TSA-compliant power brick or battery pack and plug in there." The Federal Communications Commission has also recommended using portable chargers or external batteries on X. If you have to plug into a public power source, the FCC suggested using an AC outlet or "consider carrying a charging-only cable, which prevents data from sending or receiving while charging, from a trusted supplier." "Don’t use free public WiFi, especially if you’re planning to make any online purchases," TSA warned. "Do not ever enter any sensitive info while using unsecure WiFi." "Anytime you’re exchanging some sort of password … you want to be cautious of the networks that you’re on," Eric Plam, an executive at mobile hotspot company SIMO, told USA TODAY last year. Password manager tools can protect and encrypt passwords.

Axios [12/3/2025 6:28 AM, Brittany Gibson and Chrissy Suttles, 12972K] reports travelers without a Real ID will soon face a $45 fee to fly domestically, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced Monday. The new charge is more than double what was previously announced. The new fee will kick in for air travelers starting Feb. 1. Passengers will be required to pay $45 in lieu of having a Real ID to cover an additional biometric screening for security. The screening process will take 10-30 minutes. The fee, which can be paid online in advance or in person, is valid for 10 days at security checkpoints. After that, a traveler will have to pay again. A Real ID is optional, but without one you need another federally accepted ID — like a passport or military ID — to board flights or enter certain federal buildings. In Pennsylvania, you can request a Real ID when renewing your driver’s license by paying a one-time $30 fee plus your regular renewal fee.

Zoom out: Without the additional data gathering covered by the new $45 fee, travelers might not make it past security, the TSA said.

(B) NBC News Daily [12/3/2025 3:23 PM, Staff] reports that there are new details in a case where deputies shot and killed a man, then arrested his brother on child pornography charges. 25-year-old Christian Baratta is now behind bars and he is charged with more than two dozen counts related to child pornography. His arrest report says that he made a full confession. 21-year-old Christopher Baratta was shot and killed by police. They were brothers and both worked at TSA as officers at Miami International Airport. The TSA is cooperating with law enforcement in their investigation.

FOX News [12/3/2025 7:33 PM, Emma Bussey, 40621K] reports an Albuquerque man was sentenced to roughly 10 months in federal prison "for using social media to issue violent threats against the president," according to officials. Tyler Leveque, 38, was sentenced after admitting to posting a series of threats targeting President Donald Trump over several days in early January 2025, according to a statement released by the United States Attorney’s Office District of New Mexico Wednesday. The statement set out how Leveque’s online posts had escalated across TikTok, X and Facebook and that they were explicit enough to trigger a federal investigation by the U.S. Secret Service and the FBI. Prosecutors said the threats began on Jan. 2, 2025, when Leveque posted a TikTok video in which he voiced hatred toward multiple groups, warned followers they should be "f---ing scared" and declared his willingness to die. He ended the video with the taunt, "Run, run.” The next day, Leveque continued on X directing threats at Trump and others. In one post, he wrote, "@realDonaldTrump I got my eyes on you sir! Cant wait for your Victory rally! The 19th right!? Lol you and your rich friends are dead no threat a promise.” In another, he referred to a supposed confrontation on Jan. 19, telling public figures and business leaders "its [sic] too late for yall… see u on the 19thfor [sic] war!". He also replied "Die" to one of Trump’s posts. On Jan. 4, Leveque posted on Facebook that he had "just bought my first gun" followed by statements calling for a march on state offices and claiming he was preparing for violent action. He even suggested he expected to die or be jailed. Secret Service agents and FBI investigators contacted Leveque at his Albuquerque home on Jan. 6 and learned he had initiated an online purchase of a gun two days earlier, though he had not completed the transaction or taken possession of the weapon, the statement said. Agents informed him that his posts constituted threats, which are not protected by the First Amendment. "Threatening violence against public officials is a serious federal offense, and this office will prosecute these cases to the fullest extent of the law," Acting U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison said in a statement. "Today’s sentencing serves as a clear reminder that such threats carry significant, lifelong consequences, including time spent incarcerated, a permanent felony record, the loss of firearm rights and years of federal supervision. We hope others take note and choose a different path.” "The sentencing today reminds all of us that threatening violence is not protected speech and the United States Secret Service will continue to aggressively investigate and pursue prosecution on all threats against our protectees and elected public officials," said Ron Emmot, resident agent in charge of the United States Secret Service, Albuquerque Resident Office.

CBS Boston [12/3/2025 8:56 PM, Logan Hall, 39474K] reports that the Coast Guard and Newburyport, Massachusetts police and fire department dive teams have suspended a large search for a missing boater in the Merrimack River Wednesday night. Newburyport City Marshal Matthew Simons and Fire Chief Stephen Bradbury said witnesses told them a person was seen clinging to the side of a small skiff boat in the Merrimack River around 8 a.m. Wednesday. "At 7:08 p.m., the U.S. Coast Guard and local first responders, after searching for a combined 14 hours, and pending no further developments, suspended the active search," the Coast Guard said Wednesday night. "Our deepest condolences go out to the family and loved ones during this difficult time." The Coast Guard said the boat was tied to a dock but it became loose and the person "entered the water in attempts to recover it." According to authorities, someone saw the small skiff boat adrift in the river and heard the person yelling for help on the other side of the boat. Then, the yelling suddenly stopped. "The Reporting party did not see (the) person go under and or resurface," U.S. Coast Guard spokesperson Keira Shantry said in a statement. "First responders located the boat drifting in the river, and are searching for the occupant," Newburyport police and fire said in a joint statement earlier Wednesday.

ABC News [12/3/2025 12:23 PM, Staff, 30493K] Video: HERE reports Sadie, a black lab-mix who ran off from a San Diego vacation home, was swept into a rip current and rescued by lifeguards and the U.S. Coast Guard. Her AirTag helped locate her nearly two miles away.

Bloomberg Law News [12/3/2025 12:05 PM, Staff, 91K] reports the Trump administration is ending a pay incentive program intended to hire and retain experts in the federal government’s primary civilian cybersecurity agency, which has already been depleted by firings, resignations and reassignments. The program covered nearly half of employees at the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, a part of the Department of Homeland Security known as CISA. It was created to help the agency compete with the private sector for top talent but has come under fire for mismanagement and abuse, including providing extra pay to employees without critical cybersecurity skills.

CyberScoop [12/3/2025 7:20 PM, Matt Kapko, 122K] reports twin brothers Muneeb and Sohaib Akhter were arrested in Alexandria, Va., Wednesday for allegedly stealing and destroying government data held by a government contractor minutes after they were fired from the company earlier this year, the Justice Department said. Prosecutors accuse the 34-year-old brothers of the crimes during a weeklong spree in February, compromising data from multiple federal agencies including the Department of Homeland Security, Internal Revenue Service and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Authorities did not name the federal government contractor, which provides services and hosts data for more than 45 federal agencies, but the company was previously identified as Washington-based Opexus in a Bloomberg report about the insider attack earlier this year. Opexus did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The brothers are no strangers to law enforcement, the hacking community and government contract work. They previously pleaded guilty in 2015 to wire fraud and conspiring to hack into the State Department and other crimes while they were employed as contractors for federal agencies. Muneeb Akhter was sentenced to 39 months in prison and Sohaib Akhter was sentenced to 24 months in prison at that time. An investigation aided by more than 20 federal agencies and specialized units alleges the brothers were back at it a decade later, committing cybercrime with privileged access and technical expertise gained from their employment at a government contractor. “These defendants abused their positions as federal contractors to attack government databases and steal sensitive government information,” Matthew R. Galeotti, acting assistant attorney general with the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, said in a statement. “Their actions jeopardized the security of government systems and disrupted agencies’ ability to serve the American people.”

AP [12/3/2025 2:03 PM, Fatima Hussein, 19051K] reports the U.S. imposed sanctions Wednesday on alleged affiliates of the Tren de Aragua gang and increased the reward to as much as $5 million for information leading to the arrest or conviction of one of the leaders of the criminal group that the Trump administration has designated as a foreign terrorist organization. The actions come as President Donald Trump’s administration has blamed the gang, which originated in a prison in Venezuela, for being at the root of violence and the illegal drug trade in many U.S. cities. Tren de Aragua also has become a key reference point in military attacks against vessels suspected of drug trafficking in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean as well as Trump’s crackdown on immigration. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control levied sanctions Wednesday on Venezuelan entertainer Jimena Romina Araya Navarro, who is known as "Rosita," on accusations of providing material support to Tren de Aragua by helping the head of the gang, Hector Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, escape from Tocorón prison in Venezuela in 2012. Navarro, known as Rosita for her character on a Venezuelan comedy show, has been linked to Guerrero for years. Local media previously reported that Araya, also a showgirl, frequently performed in a prison where Guerrero was once held and Tren de Aragua was established. Tren de Aragua controlled the prison for several years during which a nightclub, swimming pools, a lavish suite and more amenities were added to the facility. The State Department also increased the reward for Giovanni Vicente Mosquera Serrano, who is the first Tren de Aragua member to appear on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted List, after he was charged in January with international cocaine trafficking conspiracy. The previous award was up to $3 million.

Reported similarly:
CBS News [12/3/2025 5:11 PM, Emily Mae Czachor, 39474K]

Washington Examiner [12/3/2025 6:21 PM, Brady Knox, 1394K] reports President Donald Trump leveled sanctions against a major Venezuelan model and influencer over her alleged support for the Tren de Aragua gang. Jimena Romina Araya Navarro, also known as Rosita, is a famous Venezuelan model, influencer, and DJ who performs at clubs internationally. She’s known for her sizable social media presence, boasting over 3.5 million followers on Instagram, where she posts videos showcasing her glamorous lifestyle. She’s also "romantically linked" to the leader of TdA, Niño Guerrero, and one of the most notable members of the entertainment industry to provide critical support for the deadly TdA. The designated foreign terrorist organization is known for crimes, including drug trafficking, human trafficking, extortion, sexual exploitation of women and children, money laundering, and murder-for-hire, according to the Treasury Department. Navarro’s relationship with Guerrero allegedly dates back over a decade, with the Treasury Department’s release claiming that she helped break him out of Tocorón prison in Venezuela in 2012. She has since allegedly worked to launder money from TdA, primarily through her performances as a nightclub DJ. Navarro resides in Mexico but has performed in Colombia, Guyana, Venezuela, and Spain. A post on her Instagram account advertised her appearance at nightclubs across Spain in June. The Treasury Department stated that a portion of the revenue generated during these performances is remitted to TdA leadership. "Under President Trump, barbaric terrorist cartels can no longer operate with impunity across our borders. The Tren de Aragua network’s narcotrafficking and human smuggling operations have long posed a grave threat to our nation," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement. "At the direction of President Trump, we will continue to use every tool to cut off these terrorists from the U.S. and global financial system and keep American citizens safe.". The new sanctions are targeted at an entertainment network linked to TdA. Other figures sanctioned included her former bodyguard and nightclub manager, Eryk Manuel Landaeta Hernandez, former Guerrero lieutenant Kenffersso Jhosue Sevilla Arteaga, and others. Several businesses owned fully or in part by Navarro and the others were also hit with sanctions.

New York Times [12/3/2025 9:50 PM, Hannah Ziegler, 135475K] reports an armed volunteer was charged on Wednesday over his role in a June shooting at a “No Kings” protest in Salt Lake City that killed a fashion designer who had competed on “Project Runway.” The Salt Lake County district attorney, Sim Gill, said on Wednesday that he had charged Matthew Scott Alder, 43, with one count of manslaughter, a second-degree felony. Mr. Alder was assisting with crowd control at the “No Kings” rally on June 14 when he tried to confront a man who was carrying an AR-15 style rifle. In the process, he shot the armed man and an unarmed bystander, prosecutors said. The fashion designer, Arthur Folasa Ah Loo, 39, appeared on Season 17 of “Project Runway” in 2019 and helped style celebrities for the red carpet. Mr. Ah Loo lived in Utah with his wife and two children. Laura Ah Loo, Mr. Ah Loo’s widow, said during a news conference on Wednesday that the wait for accountability in her husband’s death had been “long, painful and deeply frustrating.” She said the manslaughter charge filed against Mr. Alder was “both moral and just.” “Today’s charges represent a significant first step in the right direction and establish a precedent that I hope leads to a safer environment at public gatherings in the future,” she said. If convicted, Mr. Alder faces up to 15 years in prison. A lawyer for Mr. Alder did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday evening. The police had initially arrested the man with the rifle, Arturo Gamboa, 24, in connection with Mr. Ah Loo’s death. The authorities found Mr. Gamboa near the site of the shooting with blood on his hands, a wound in his abdomen and a disassembled AR-15 rifle in his backpack. He was wearing all black and had three loaded rifle magazines in his cargo pants. One witness, another member of the event’s safety team, became concerned after seeing Mr. Gamboa assemble a rifle and believed he was about to commit a mass shooting, according to court documents. The witness told detectives that they and Mr. Alder began yelling at Mr. Gamboa to drop his gun. Mr. Alder told investigators that he had seen Mr. Gamboa “psyching himself up” and hunched down in “combat mode” as he assembled his rifle against a wall near the site of the protest, according to court documents. Mr. Alder told investigators he was thinking “this is really bad — somebody’s going to get hurt.” After firing one shot toward Mr. Gamboa, Mr. Alder yelled at him to “get on the ground.” He then fired two more shots at him, thinking, “Don’t let me have to fire, but I want people to be as safe as I can,” Mr. Alder told investigators. The first two shots Mr. Alder fired hit Mr. Gamboa and the hand guard of his rifle, according to court documents. The third shot struck Mr. Ah Loo as he was filming the protest. Mr. Ah Loo was later pronounced dead at a hospital. Prosecutors declined to file charges against Mr. Gamboa, despite “what could reasonably be perceived as alarming and irresponsible conduct,” because Utah open-carry laws allowed him to have the rifle at the event, according to court documents. “Because of the man in black, I was concerned for the lives of everyone around me,” one witness told investigators, referring to Mr. Gamboa’s outfit, according to the court documents. The witness added, “The guy that shot the gun didn’t scare me.”

Washington Times [12/3/2025 5:05 PM, Mary McCue Bell, 852K] reports Ukrainian officials and humanitarian activists on Wednesday pressed Congress to advance legislation to designate Russia a state sponsor of terrorism because of Moscow-backed kidnapping of Ukrainian children. The kidnappings of 20,000 or more children in war-torn Ukraine have become a pressing issue for some lawmakers on Capitol Hill, and they also want to force President Trump to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism. A recently introduced bipartisan Senate bill would compel State Secretary Marco Rubio to add Russia to the list of terrorist countries. Kidnapping is one of the qualifications needed to define a country as a state sponsor of terrorism.

Bloomberg News [12/3/2025 6:59 PM, Ben Penn, 91K] reports FBI headquarters is pressuring the bureau’s domestic terrorism agents to open a seditious conspiracy investigation into six Democratic lawmakers who advised military service members to defy unlawful orders, according to three people familiar with the situation. Such an investigation, which has not yet been opened, would mark a more serious step than the FBI’s voluntary inquiry that several of the Democrats derided last week and would escalate the administration’s use of law enforcement to probe the president’s critics. Career leaders at the bureau’s Washington Field Office have thus far pushed back on the request for a formal investigation, which would follow President Donald Trump’s call for a trial into the Democrats’ "seditious behavior," the people familiar said. The Washington office supervisors cited a lack of legal and factual basis to initiate a criminal case against the senators and House members who posted a video Nov. 18 reminding service members and the intelligence community of their rights to "refuse illegal orders.". A final FBI decision on whether to launch a formal criminal investigation into the six lawmakers hasn’t been made, added the individuals, who spoke anonymously out of fear of reprisal. FBI headquarters requested that the investigation arise under the rarely invoked seditious conspiracy statute that DOJ used to convict a small number of Oath Keepers and Proud Boys leaders for organizing the Jan. 6 insurrection at the US Capitol. The domestic terrorism team asked to open the case against lawmakers is the same group that was involved in investigating people who breached the Capitol. One of the people with knowledge of the matter said an official from FBI headquarters asked the Washington Field Office to open an enterprise investigation against the six Democrats. Enterprise cases are rarely initiated and are reserved for organizations believed to be "involved in the most serious criminal and national security threats to the public," such as racketeering or terrorism, according to Justice Department guidelines for FBI operations. The Civil War-era seditious conspiracy law requires prosecutors to prove a defendant conspired to use force to oppose US government authority or to prevent, hinder, or delay the execution of any US law. The crime carries a maximum prison term of 20 years.

Wall Street Journal [12/3/2025 3:40 PM, Lara Seligman and Lindsay Wise, 646K] reports a Pentagon watchdog has found Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated some of the department’s regulations when he shared sensitive information from his cellphone on Signal earlier this year, according to Sen. Mark Kelly (D., Ariz). However, the Defense Department Inspector General also concluded that as Pentagon chief, Hegseth has the authority to declassify Defense Department information, Kelly said Wednesday after viewing the watchdog report the department sent to Congress. That suggests the defense secretary didn’t break the law. “They very clearly stated he should not be using his cellphone and putting…this kind of information on an unclassified system,” Kelly said in an interview about the report’s findings into what has become widely known as Signalgate. Sen. Eric Schmitt (R., Mo.) said he had also reviewed the IG report on Wednesday and dismissed it as a “nothing burger.” “The arc of the story is that it’s just a never ending stream of efforts to undermine Pete Hegseth, right? The whole controversy,” Schmitt said. “So they didn’t get him in the confirmation process? Make a big deal out of this…So it’s just an ongoing effort. I wouldn’t expect it to end with this, but I think again, the President has faith in Secretary Hegseth. I think he’s doing a great job, and it is what it is.” “The Inspector General review is a TOTAL exoneration of Secretary Hegseth and proves what we knew all along—no classified information was shared,” chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a written statement. “This matter is resolved, and the case is closed.”

FOX News [12/3/2025 5:18 PM, Staff, 40621K] Video: HERE reports Fox News chief national security correspondent Jennifer Griffin has the latest on what the Pentagon Inspector General report found about the Trump administration’s use of Signal chats on ‘America Reports.’

Washinton Post [12/4/2025 5:01 AM, Scott Nover, 153395K] reports the New York Times sued the Defense Department over its press policy prohibiting journalists from soliciting any information not explicitly authorized for release by the government. In a complaint filed Thursday morning in federal district court in Washington, the Times alleged that the press rules violated the First Amendment’s guarantee of a free press and the newspaper’s due process rights under the Fifth Amendment. “The policy is an attempt to exert control over reporting the government dislikes,” Charlie Stadtlander, a spokesperson for the Times, said in a statement. “The Times intends to vigorously defend against the violation of these rights, just as we have long done throughout administrations opposed to scrutiny and accountability.” Julian E. Barnes, a national security reporter for the Times who handed in his Pentagon press credentials rather than sign the policy, was named as a plaintiff alongside the newspaper. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Sean Parnell, the Pentagon’s chief spokesman, were also named as defendants. The Pentagon’s policy, which took effect in October and has been widely condemned by media organizations and press freedom groups, states that any reporter credentialed to cover the Pentagon in person must sign an agreement pledging not to solicit information — even unclassified material — that the government hasn’t expressly authorized for release. “It shouldn’t be that the press pass becomes a shackle,” said a senior attorney at the New York Times, who along with another attorney on the case spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the lawsuit before it was filed. “The press pass should be a badge that allows you to do more, not less.” In its lawsuit, the newspaper asks a federal judge to strike down parts of the policy that violate its constitutional rights. The Times retained Theodore J. Boutrous Jr. of Gibson Dunn, a prominent First Amendment lawyer, as outside counsel. Dozens of reporters, including representatives of the Times, The Washington Post, CNN and Fox News, turned in their press badges rather than comply with the policy. Many walked out of the building together in October, some carrying out boxes of belongings from decades of reporting from within the Pentagon.

NewsMax [12/3/2025 4:39 PM, Staff, 4109K] reports two Virginia brothers were arrested Wednesday on charges they conspired to destroy U.S. government databases and steal sensitive federal information in what prosecutors call an unprecedented betrayal by insider contractors, the Department of Justice announced. Federal officials say Muneeb and Sohaib Akhter, both 34, of Alexandria exploited their positions as federal contractors to attack critical government systems, wipe records, and sabotage the data infrastructure their employers trusted them to protect. The Justice Department said the brothers launched a coordinated digital assault after being fired, carrying out a vengeful campaign that allegedly included unauthorized access, deletion of databases, theft of government files, and efforts to conceal their crimes. The DOJ said the Akhter brothers represent the exact insider threat that federal cyber officials have long warned about: individuals who use privileged access as a weapon against the nation they were paid to serve.

FOX News [12/3/2025 8:07 AM, Staff, 40621K] reports a marathon five-hour meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner failed to yield any major breakthroughs in efforts to end Russia’s war in Ukraine. Witkoff and Kushner arrived in Moscow Tuesday for talks with the Kremlin leader following a Sunday meeting with key members of the Ukrainian delegation on a revised peace plan. Putin’s foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov, who also attended the Witkoff-Kushner meeting alongside Kirill Dmitriev, the CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, told reporters after that the conversations were "extremely useful, constructive and substantive," according to a readout released by the Kremlin. "We specifically discussed territorial issues, without which the crisis cannot be settled, as we see it. Of course, we also talked about the broad prospects for future economic interaction between our countries," said Ushakov. He added that the Russian side received four documents from Witkoff and Kushner during the meeting, including one that consisted of 27 points, but declined to go into detail of what they contained. The original leaked 28-point plan was criticized by European leaders as too favorable to Moscow and later whittled down. The issue of territory was a key part of the discussion, according to Ushakov, who said no compromise had yet been found.

NewsMax [12/3/2025 7:15 PM, Jim Thomas, 4109K] reports President Donald Trump said Wednesday that his envoy, Steve Witkoff, and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, held a "very good" five-hour meeting Tuesday with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin, advancing U.S. efforts to broker a peace agreement to end the war in Ukraine. The Kremlin talks mark a major diplomatic push at a pivotal moment, and the first public U.S. acknowledgment of the latest direct negotiations with Moscow. On Tuesday, one of the most significant diplomatic gambits of President Trump’s term unfolded in Moscow, where Witkoff and Kushner met with Putin to present and discuss a revised U.S. peace plan for Ukraine. In the Oval Office on Wednesday, Trump said the meeting with Putin was "reasonably good," which was later upgraded to "very good.” He told reporters that the envoys’ impression was that Putin "would like to see the war ended … their impression was very strongly that he wants to make a deal," though the president cautioned that it was still unclear whether an agreement was possible. Behind the scenes, Witkoff called Ukrainian national security adviser Rustem Umerov from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow the same night to brief him on the results. Umerov reportedly is expected to travel to Miami later this week for follow-up negotiations with the U.S. team. The peace plan under discussion grew out of private negotiations in Miami during late October, when Witkoff and a Russian envoy spent several days working on a draft 28-point proposal aiming to freeze Russia’s current front line as a de facto border and offer various security guarantees. Critics of the plan in both Washington and abroad note its heavy concessions to Russian demands. Under earlier versions, the proposal would require Ukraine to cede additional territory in the east, accept limits on its military size, and forgo future NATO membership. Supporters of the effort argue the war must end now, warning that continued fighting threatens further Ukrainian losses and broader European instability. A senior administration official told Reuters that the unconventional diplomacy, conducted without much involvement of traditional foreign-policy experts, represents a risk, but one with "potential rewards.” European partners and Ukrainian officials, however, have voiced skepticism. Many are wary of peace terms that could lock in long-term Russian control over contested regions or weaken Ukrainian sovereignty. As of now, no concrete deal has been reached. Kremlin spokespeople say several key elements remain unacceptable, especially those concerning territorial demands.

Washington Examiner [12/3/2025 3:22 PM, Mike Brest, 1394K] reports that the final inspector general report regarding the United States’s two-decade reconstruction attempt in Afghanistan found that “corruption affected everything.” Congress appropriated more than $140 billion from 2002 through the middle of 2021 for Afghanistan reconstruction and another $763 billion for warfighting. However, the collapse of the West-supported Afghan government in that final year demonstrated its fragility, which was concealed by the U.S.’s stance of supposed progress and stability. The total cost of the two-decade war far exceeded the billions of dollars spent, including the 2,450 U.S. service members who were killed, 20,760 U.S. troops who were wounded, and 66,000 Afghan troops and 48,000 Afghan civilians who were killed. According to the final report, SIGAR oversight identified more than $4.6 billion in cost savings to U.S. taxpayers. Through audits and investigations, it uncovered more than 1,300 instances of waste, fraud, and abuse, totaling between $26 billion and $29.2 billion. Its investigations resulted in 171 criminal convictions, which resulted in the forfeiture of about $1.7 billion in criminal fines, asset forfeitures, civil settlements, and more. In some instances, the fraudulent practices had fatal consequences for U.S. service members. Separate from SIGAR’s work, the Pentagon is conducting a new review of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, led by Sean Parnell, the department’s top spokesman. Pentagon spokeswoman Kingsley Wilson said on Tuesday that this report "is expected to be complete by summer of 2026."

Reuters [12/4/2025 2:11 AM, Yimou Lee and Ben Blanchard, 36480K] reports China is deploying a large number of naval and coast guard vessels across East Asian waters, at one point more than 100, in the largest maritime show of force to date, according to four sources and intelligence reports reviewed by Reuters. China is in the middle of what is traditionally a busy season for military exercises, though the People’s Liberation Army has not made any announcements of large-scale officially named drills. Still, the rise in activity is happening as China and Japan are in a diplomatic crisis after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said last month that a hypothetical Chinese attack on democratically-ruled Taiwan could trigger a military response from Tokyo. Beijing has also been angered by an announcement last month by Taiwan President Lai Ching-te of an extra $40 billion in defence spending to counter China, which views the island as its own territory. The Chinese ships have massed in waters stretching from the southern part of the Yellow Sea through the East China Sea and down into the contested South China Sea, as well as into the Pacific, according to four security officials in the region. Their accounts were corroborated by intelligence reports from a country in the region, which detailed the deployment. Reuters reviewed the reports on condition it did not name the country. As of Thursday morning, there are more than 90 Chinese ships operating in the region, coming down from more than 100 at one point earlier this week, the documents showed. The operations exceed China’s mass naval deployment in December last year that prompted Taiwan to raise its alert level, the sources said. Tsai Ming-yen, director-general of Taiwan’s National Security Bureau, said on Wednesday that China is now in what is generally the most active season for its military drills. As of Wednesday morning, China has four naval formations operating in the western Pacific, and Taiwan is keeping tabs on them, Tsai said, without giving details. "So we must anticipate the enemy as broadly as possible and continue to watch closely for any changes in related activities," he said, when asked if China could stage any new Taiwan-specific drills before the end of the year. China’s defence and foreign ministries, as well as its Taiwan Affairs Office, did not respond to requests for comment. Taiwan has a full and real-time grasp of the security situation in the Taiwan Strait and the broader region and "can ensure there are no concerns for national security", Presidential Office spokesperson Karen Kuo said in a statement. Taiwan will continue working closely with international partners to deter any unilateral actions that could threaten regional stability, she added.

Free Beacon [12/3/2025 5:00 AM, Jennifer Richmond, 411K] reports President Donald Trump’s surprise announcement in August that he’ll allow 600,000 Chinese students to attend U.S. universities—a major reversal in policy—is the latest example of how China’s influence operation in American higher education is shifting and adapting rather than receding. The controversial Confucius Institutes, Chinese government beachheads on American college and university campuses, may have largely shut down under U.S. government pressure, but the partnerships have quietly reemerged with new names and the same goals. Asked about the Chinese student visas last month, Trump defended his reversal—allowing 600,000 Chinese students would more than double the population of Chinese students now studying in the United States—as a smart "business" move. "It’s not that I want them, but I view it as a business," he told Laura Ingraham of Fox News after she pressed him on China’s bad behavior, such as spying and stealing American technology. "One thing you don’t want—to cut half of the people, half of the students from all over the world that are coming into our country, destroy our entire university and college system. I don’t want to do that."

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