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 Wall Street Journal [5/22/2025 4:11 AM, Sadie Gurman, Meridith McGraw, and Olivia Beavers, 646K] reports a man who shouted “Free Palestine!” fatally shot two Israeli Embassy staff members late Wednesday near a Jewish museum in downtown Washington, law-enforcement officials said. The shooting took place just after 9 p.m. ET at the corner of 3rd Street and F Street Northwest in Washington, near the Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum, which focuses on Jewish life in the national capital region, according to its website. Police officers found a woman and a man suffering life-threatening gunshot wounds. FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said it appeared to be an act of targeted violence. Police believe the shooting was committed by a single suspect, identified as 30-year-old Elias Rodriguez of Chicago, who paced outside the museum before approaching four people with a handgun and opening fire. He was arrested when he went inside the museum, told officers where he had discarded the gun and implied that he committed the shooting, Metropolitan Police Chief Pamela Smith said at a news briefing. He chanted “Free, free Palestine!” while being taken into custody, she said. The FBI was working to do a deep dive into his background. “We will follow the facts. We will follow the law, and this defendant will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” said Attorney General Pam Bondi, who visited the crime scene. The Washington Post [5/22/2025 3:45 AM, Andrew Jeong, Emily Davies and Annabelle Timsit, 32099K] reports that the victims were both Israeli Embassy employees. The state of Israel’s X account identified them as Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim. The couple were exiting the museum after attending an event hosted by the American Jewish Committee when the gunman opened fire. Both were found unconscious and not breathing at the scene, D.C. police Chief Pamela A. Smith told reporters at a news conference held a few hours after the incident. Smith said police believed the shooting was carried out by a single person and that a suspect, identified as Elias Rodriguez of Chicago, was in custody. Rodriguez was observed pacing back and forth outside the museum before the incident, she said. After shooting the couple, he entered the museum, where he was detained by security, she said. Police initially said at the news conference that Rodriguez was 30 years old, but later confirmed he is 31. Smith said D.C. police had not received intelligence “with respect to any type of terrorist act or hate crime” when asked whether her department had any indication that such a crime would occur. She added that D.C. police had no previous interaction with Rodriguez. “We don’t see anything in his background that would have put him on our radar at this time.” Yechiel Leiter, the Israeli ambassador to the United States, was visibly shaken during the news conference and said the male victim had recently purchased a ring with the intention of proposing to his girlfriend next week in Jerusalem. “They were a beautiful couple, who came to enjoy an evening in Washington’s cultural center,” he said. Leiter added that President Donald Trump had called him to say that his administration would “do everything it can possibly do to fight and end antisemitism.” Politico [5/22/2025 1:18 AM, Gregory Svirnovskiy, 2100K] reports “These horrible D.C. killings, based obviously on antisemitism, must end, NOW!,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Hatred and Radicalism have no place in the USA. Condolences to the families of the victims. So sad that such things as this can happen! God Bless You ALL!” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said federal authorities were investigating the attack. Pamela A. Smith, chief of police for the DC Metropolitan Police Department, said in a press conference that a single suspect approached a group of four people exiting the museum and fired his handgun, striking two of them. He then entered the museum, where he was detained by event security. The suspect, tentatively identified as 30-year-old Elias Rodriguez, chanted “free, free Palestine,” while in custody, she said. Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote on X that she and Jeanine Pirro, the newly minted interim U.S. Attorney for Washington, D.C. had arrived on the scene shortly after the DC police department relayed word of the shooting publicly. “I spoke to the president of the United States multiple times tonight,” Bondi said at the press conference. “On behalf of the president, his prayers are with all of us, all of the Jewish community, everyone in Washington, DC, state, local and federal agencies and our great U.S. attorney, Jeanine Pirro, who will be prosecuting this case.” Danny Danon, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, called the shooting “a depraved act of anti-Semitic terrorism.” “Harming the Jewish community is crossing a red line,” Danon wrote in a post on X. “We are confident that the US authorities will take strong action against those responsible for this criminal act.”

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Washington Examiner [5/22/2025 1:17 AM, Christopher Tremoglie, 1934K] reports the suspected gunman accused of murdering two employees of the Israeli Embassy on Wednesday night allegedly chanted "Free, free Palestine" while in the custody of law enforcement officials. The shooting occurred at an event at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C. Police Chief Pamela Smith made the revelations while updating the media about the murders. She provided the name of the suspect, Elias Rodriquez, and chronicled the events leading up to the shooting, saying he shot at four people before killing the man and woman whose identities have not been released, according to reports. "Prior to the shooting, a suspect was observed pacing outside of the museum," said Smith. "The suspect chanted, ‘Free, free Palestine,’ while in custody. The suspect has been identified as 30-year-old Elias Rodriquez of Chicago, Illinois," Smith added. She mentioned that the murder victims were about to be engaged, with the male victim recently purchasing a wedding ring and planning to propose during an upcoming visit to Jerusalem. "The couple that was gunned down tonight in the name of ‘Free Palestine’ was a couple about to be engaged," said Smith. Tal Naim Cohen, a spokesperson for the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C., said the victims were shot and killed "at close range," the Times of Israel reported. United States Attorney General Pam Bondi visited the crime scene shortly after the news of the murders. She was at the press conference detailing the incident along with Interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro. Pirro will prosecute the case. Bondi condemned the act of violence. Bondi posted about the event on her X account and said she would pray for the victims. Earlier in the night, Danny Danon, Israeli ambassador to the United Nations, also condemned the attack, calling it a "depraved act of anti-Semitic terrorism," in a post on X. Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) also commented about the attack, claiming that the "Free Palestine" mantra is now associated with "terrorism.” "‘Free Palestine’ isn’t resistance," Mace posted. "It’s terrorism. And it’s being fueled by cowards who excuse it with cheap slogans and scarves. "I support all Jews and the state of Israel," she added. "‘May their memory be a blessing.’".

FOX News [5/22/2025 2:23 AM, Christina Shaw, 46878K] reports President Donald Trump took to Truth Social late Wednesday night following the fatal close-range shooting of two Israeli embassy staffers near the Capital Jewish Museum. "These horrible D.C. killings, based obviously on antisemitism, must end, NOW!" he wrote on Truth Social post. "Hatred and Radicalism have no place in the USA. Condolences to the families of the victims. So sad that such things as this can happen! God Bless You ALL!". A pro-Palestinian man is in custody after allegedly killing two Israeli embassy staff members who were leaving an event at the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday night, authorities confirmed. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio says they will track down the culprits and bring them to justice. "We condemn in the strongest possible terms the murder of two staff members from the Embassy of Israel in Washington, DC. Our prayers are with their loved ones. This was a brazen act of cowardly, antisemitic violence. Make no mistake: we will track down those responsible and bring them to justice," he wrote on X. Israeli President Isaac Herzog called it a "despicable antisemitic terror attack" and vowed support saying that Israel stands with the US Jewish community. "I am devastated by the scenes in Washington DC. This is a despicable act of hatred, of antisemitism, which has claimed the lives of two young employees of the Israeli embassy" Herzog said. "Our hearts are with the loved ones of those murdered and our immediate prayers are with the injured. I send my full support to the Ambassador and all the embassy staff. We stand with the Jewish community in DC and across the US. America and Israel will stand united in defense of our people and our shared values. Terror and hate will not break us.” The Jewish Federations of North America say they are horrified at the reported murder and say they are working to get a clear picture of what happened. "Our hearts go out to the victims and to our colleagues at AJC, whose event was being held at the museum," a statement from them said. "We are working closely with the Jewish Federation of Greater Washington and our security partners to monitor the situation, gain a fuller picture of what transpired, and keep our communities informed," they continued.

The Hill [5/21/2025 11:31 AM, Rebecca Beitsch and Brett Samuels, 18649K] Video HERE reports the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Wednesday defended its decision to deport eight migrants on a flight to South Sudan but remained coy about whether the war-torn nation would be the group’s “final destination.” The flight came after multiple court decisions barring DHS from removing migrants from the country, including an emergency order requiring the U.S. government to maintain custody of the men. In a rushed press conference, DHS officials described the eight men as “monsters” while attacking a Massachusetts-based federal judge set to hold a hearing on the matter later Wednesday. “No country on Earth wanted to accept them, because their crimes are so uniquely monstrous and barbaric. These heinous individuals have terrorized American streets for too long,” said Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary for public affairs at DHS, noting the men had been convicted of crimes such as rape and murder. “Now, a local judge in Massachusetts is trying to force the United States to bring back these uniquely barbaric monsters who present a clear and present threat to the safety of the American people.” The flight is the latest instance of Trump administration officials confronting U.S. District Court Judge Brian Murphy after he issued a ruling suspending migrant flights. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Breitbart [5/21/2025 11:40 AM, Neil Munro, 3077K] reports the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is forcing the media to showcase the deportation of eight "barbaric monsters" to the little-known nation of South Sudan. The secret 8,000-mile flight carried eight violent migrants and the national media is being pressured into describing the crimes committed by the migrants. "A local judge in Massachusetts is trying to force the United States to bring back these uniquely barbaric monsters who present a clear and present threat to the safety of the American people and American victims," agency spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said Wednesday morning. She added: We are fully compliant with the law and court orders, it is absolutely absurd for a district judge to try to dictate the foreign policy and national security of the United States of America. These are the monsters that the district judge is trying to protect. The contrast is brutally stark. President Trump and Secretary Noem are working every single day to get these vicious criminals off of American streets, and while activist judges are on the other side fighting to get them back onto United States soil. […] I would like to remind the journalists in this very room to do your job. We gave you the names of these monsters as you have right in front of you. Now tell the stories of the innocent Americans who they victimized. I implore you to stop doing the bidding of these disgusting individuals. Tell the stories of the innocents. It’s the American victims who actually matter.

Daily Wire [5/21/2025 1:45 PM, Spencer Lindquist, 3816K] reports that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Wednesday spotlighted the criminal records of eight illegal aliens who were deported to South Sudan as it gears up for a fight with a judge who could order them to be returned to the United States. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) explained that the illegal aliens’ countries of origin were unwilling to take them back. "We conducted a deportation flight from Texas to remove some of the most barbaric, violent individuals illegally in the United States," said Tricia McLaughlin, the Assistant Secretary of Public Affairs for the agency. "No country on earth wanted to accept them because their crimes are so uniquely monstrous and barbaric," McLaughlin added before explaining that South Sudan was "willing to accept custody" of the illegal alien criminals. However, U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy of Massachusetts has ordered the Trump administration to maintain custody of the deported illegals "to ensure the practical feasibility of return if the Court finds that such removals were unlawful." "A local judge in Massachusetts is trying to force the United States to bring back these uniquely barbaric monsters who present a clear and present threat to the safety of American people," McLaughlin charged before calling it "absurd" that the judge would attempt to "dictate the foreign policy and national security of the United States of America." The New York Post [5/21/2025 1:32 PM, Jennie Taer and Emily Crane, 49956K] reports Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin insisted Wednesday that the administration was acting lawfully and had given "plenty of prior notice" to the migrants and their attorneys about their deportations. "It is absolutely absurd for a district judge to try to dictate the foreign policy and national security of the United States," McLaughlin said. USA Today [5/21/2025 9:56 PM, Nick Penzenstadler, Tyler Jett, and Eduardo Cuevas, 75552K] reports Department of Homeland Security officials released information on eight individuals flown on a chartered removal flight bound for South Sudan May 20. All were convicted of serious crimes in the United States, but at least one victim’s family has questioned the hasty removal. Massachusetts federal district judge Brian Murphy ruled May 21 that the flight violated his April order that forbade the government from sending any migrants to third countries without providing them clear information about where they were going and giving them time to raise any concerns about being sent to that country. Murphy ruled late May 21 that the men had to remain in U.S. custody while they completed credible fear interviews. South Sudan has said they would send the men to their home countries, according Murphy. “It was impossible for these people to have a meaningful opportunity to object to their transfer to South Sudan,” Murphy said, holding off on deciding whether this rose to criminal obstruction. At a news conference earlier in the day, Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary for public affairs at DHS, scolded reporters to focus on the victims of the crimes committed by the individuals. “Do your job, we gave you the names of these monsters, tell the stories of the innocent Americans they victimized,” McLaughlin said. “Every single one of them was convicted of a heinous crime.” The Blaze [5/21/2025 5:54 PM, Carlos Garcia, 1805K] reports the Department of Homeland Security revealed shocking details about the "barbaric, dangerous" illegal aliens who were placed on a deportation flight to South Sudan. The Trump administration was accused of violating a federal order when it was discovered that the administration was flying illegal aliens to war-torn Sudan. On Wednesday, the administration released details about the convictions of the deported. Among those listed were Enrique Arias-Hierro, a Cuban national who had a criminal history including "convictions for homicide, armed robbery, false impersonation of official, kidnapping, robbery strong arm," according to the DHS. Laos citizen Thongxay Nilakout was convicted of first-degree murder and robbery and sentenced to life confinement. Mexican national Jesus Munoz-Gutierrez was convicted of second-degree murder and also sentenced to life confinement. His booking photo appears to show him with "216" tattooed on his neck. Dian Peter Domach, a citizen of South Sudan, was convicted of "robbery and possession of a firearm, of possession of burglar’s tools and possession of defaced firearm and driving under the influence." Burmese citizen Kyaw Mya was convicted of lascivious acts with a child victim less than 12 years of age and sentenced to 10 years of confinement. Another Burmese citizen, Nyo Myint, was convicted of first-degree sexual assault involving a victim mentally and physically incapable of resisting. Myint was sentenced to 12 years’ confinement. U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy intervened in deportations to Libya based on the humanitarian crisis there, and those conditions are also true of South Sudan.

FOX News [5/21/2025 11:41 AM, Staff, 46878K] reports Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin sounded off on a Biden-appointed federal judge who could decide Wednesday morning that a plane carrying illegal immigrants convicted of serious crimes to South Sudan has to return. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Univision [5/21/2025 4:2 PM, Staff, 4992K] reports three citizens originally from Latin American countries are among the immigrants deported this Tuesday by the Donald Trump administration from Texas to South Sudan. They are two Cubans and one Mexican, according to the White House. The acting director of Customs and Border Protection (ICE), Todd Lyons, argued that they were expelled to another continent because their governments had refused to accept them in the past. The Cubans are José Manuel Rodríguez Quiñones and Enrique Arias Hierro. A Mexican citizen was also deported to South Sudan in the group, despite the fact that the United States shares a border with that country. In this case, the White House identified him as Jesús Muñoz Gutiérrez, who was arrested by ICE on May 12, 2025, and had been sentenced to life in prison for second-degree murder. On its X account, the White House detailed that the group also included a citizen from Laos, one from Burma, one from Vietnam, one from South Sudan and one more whose nationality is not specified. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin asserted that "no country on earth has accepted them" for their crimes. "We are removing them from American soil so they can never harm an American victim again." Lyons said of all the migrants whose countries refused to accept them back, and that’s why they were released in the United States in the past. However, the expulsion of these eight immigrants once again brought the Trump administration into conflict with the courts. This Wednesday, Massachusetts federal judge Brian E. Murphy ruled that this deportation "unquestionably" violated a previous order he issued last month prohibiting the expulsion of immigrants to third countries without them being able to object to their expulsion or argue why their lives might be in danger. The judge’s decision came during a hearing in Boston District Court, which considered an emergency appeal filed by lawyers after the group was expeditiously deported to South Sudan.

FOX News [5/21/2025 7:35 AM, Anders Hagstrom, 46878K] reports a federal judge ruled that President Donald Trump’s administration must maintain custody of illegal immigrants deported to South Sudan in case he rules the removals unlawful and they must be transferred back to the U.S. U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy in Massachusetts issued the ruling Tuesday night after lawyers for illegal immigrants from Myanmar and Vietnam accused the Trump administration of illegally deporting their clients to third-party countries. They argue there is currently a court order blocking such removals. Murphy’s ruling said the government must "maintain custody and control of class members currently being removed to South Sudan or to any other third country, to ensure the practical feasibility of return if the Court finds that such removals were unlawful." Attorneys for the immigrants argue that the deportations violated a court order mandating that migrants be granted "meaningful opportunity" to establish that sending them to a third country would make them unsafe. Murphy said in his Tuesday order that U.S. officials must appear in court on Wednesday to identify the immigrants impacted, address when and how they learned they would be removed to a third country and what opportunity they were given to raise a fear-based claim. He also ruled that the government must provide information about the whereabouts of the migrants apparently already removed. The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.

New York Times [5/22/2025 3:19 AM, Alan Feuer, Tyler Pager, Hamed Aleaziz and Mattathias Schwartz, 330K] reports a federal judge in Boston said on Wednesday that the Trump administration had violated an order he issued last month barring officials from deporting people to countries not their own without first giving them sufficient time to object. The finding by the judge, Brian E. Murphy, was one of the strongest judicial rebukes the administration has faced so far in a series of contentious cases arising from its sprawling deportation agenda. It was not immediately clear what punishment, if any, Judge Murphy intended to mete out against the administration or those who took part in the operation, but he asked for a list of names of everyone involved so he could notify them that they might face criminal contempt penalties. The judge’s decision came at a hearing in Federal District Court in Boston to consider an emergency motion filed by lawyers for a group of men who they said were deported after being told they were being sent to South Sudan, a violence-plagued country in Africa. As the hearing began, officials from the Homeland Security Department in Washington disclosed that eight immigrants had been deported Tuesday on a flight to a third country, but they refused to say where the men were going. While much of the discussion at the court hearing took place under seal, Judge Murphy said that the government had given the deported men little more than 24 hours’ notice that they were being removed from the United States — a time frame that he described as “plainly insufficient.” “The department’s actions in this case,” he went on, “are unquestionably violative of this court’s order.” Judge Murphy, who was appointed by former President Joseph R. Biden Jr., said the administration’s violation could ultimately result in a finding of criminal contempt. He also said he was searching for a way to provide the men some version of the due process they had been denied. In an order after the hearing, the judge said the men should have legal representation and be granted an interview, which would allow them to tell U.S. officials if they feared being sent to a different country. According to two people familiar with the matter, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly, the flight carrying the deportees had landed for now in the East African nation of Djibouti. U.S. military personnel in Djibouti were standing by to assist with securing detainees if needed, one U.S. official said.

The AP [5/21/2025 8:58 PM, Lindsay Whitehurst, Michael Casey, Tim Sullivan And Rebecca Santana, 56000K] reports the White House violated a court order on deportations to third countries with a flight linked to the chaotic African nation of South Sudan, a federal judge said Wednesday, hours after the Trump administration said it had expelled eight immigrants convicted of violent crimes but refused to reveal where they would end up. The judge’s statement was a notably strong rebuke to the government’s deportation efforts. In an emergency hearing he called to address reports that immigrants had been sent to South Sudan, Judge Brian E. Murphy in Boston said the eight migrants aboard the plane were not given a meaningful opportunity to object that the deportation could put them in danger. Minutes before the hearing, administration officials accused “activist judges” of advocating the release of dangerous criminals. “The department actions in this case are unquestionably in violation of this court’s order,” Murphy said Wednesday, arguing that the deportees didn’t have “meaningful opportunity” to object to being sent to South Sudan. The group was flown out of the United States just hours after getting notice, leaving them no chance to contact lawyers who could object in court. Government attorneys argued that the men had a history with the immigration system, giving them prior opportunities to express a fear of being deported to a country outside their homeland. They also pointed out that the judge had not specified the exact time needed between notice and deportation, leaving room for misunderstanding. he migrants’ home countries — Cuba, Laos, Mexico, Myanmar, Vietnam and South Sudan — would not take them back, according to Todd Lyons, the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, who spoke to reporters in Washington. He later said the migrants either came from countries that often do not take back all their deported citizens or had other situations that meant they could not be sent home. “These represent the true national security threats,” Lyons said at a news conference. Behind him was a display of photos of men he said had been convicted of rape, homicide, armed robbery and other crimes. Administration officials, who have repeatedly clashed with the courts over their attempts to deport large numbers of immigrants, made their displeasure clear Wednesday. President Donald Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem “are working every single day to get these vicious criminals off of American streets — and while activist judges are on the other side, fighting to get them back onto the United States soil,” said Tricia McLaughlin, a department spokesperson. She pointed to the photographs and described them as “the monsters” that Murphy “is trying to protect.” Homeland Security officials released few specific details about the deportation flight. They said it left Tuesday with eight people on board and said they remained in the department’s custody Wednesday. Officials said they could not disclose the migrants’ final destination because of “safety and operational security.” The Wall Street Journal [5/21/2025 7:49 PM, Mariah Timms, Gretchen Tarrant Gulla, and Michelle Hackman, 646K] reports that the Trump administration said Wednesday that the men had been convicted of crimes ranging from robbery to sexual assault and murder. “No country on earth wanted to accept them because their crimes were so uniquely monstrous and barbaric,” DHS spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin said at a press conference. The White House released a statement calling Murphy’s decision “another attempt by a far-left activist judge to dictate the foreign policy of the United States—and protect the violent criminal illegal immigrants President Donald J. Trump and his administration have removed from our streets.” Lawyers representing the migrants pushed back at the idea that their clients’ backgrounds have a bearing on their rights.

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(B) NBC News Daily [5/21/2025 2:35 PM, Staff] reports a federal judge says the Trump administration violated his order that migrants who were sent for deportation to countries they are not from should be given a chance to object to their removal. Department of Homeland Security officials said they could not confirm the locations of eight men they deported Tuesday night. The DHS press secretary confirmed that there was plane that left the US yesterday bound for South Sudan but they could not confirm where they are now or what their final destination would be.

Daily Caller [5/21/2025 4:03 PM, Harold Hutchinson, 1082K] reports Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin accused reporters of ignoring the victims of illegal immigrants during a Wednesday press conference. United States District Judge Brian E. Murphy of the District of Massachusetts, a Biden appointee, accused the Trump administration of violating a court order by deporting eight illegal immigrants with criminal records to South Sudan, according to The New York Times. McLaughlin told reporters that the Americans who were victimized deserved to have their stories told. “A local judge in Massachusetts is trying to force the United States to bring back these uniquely barbaric monsters who present a clear and present threat to the safety of the American people and American victims,” McLaughlin told reporters before introducing United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) acting Director Todd Lyons. “While we are fully compliant with the law and court orders, it is absolutely absurd for a district judge to try to dictate the foreign policy and national security of the United States of America.” The Supreme Court heard oral arguments on judges issuing nationwide injunctions Thursday. The White House released a fact sheet detailing the eight illegal immigrants’ criminal convictions, including for murder, assault, robbery, sexual assault and child sexual abuse. “These are the monsters that the district judge is trying to protect. The contrast is brutally stark,” McLaughlin said. “President Trump and Secretary Noem are working every single day to get these vicious criminals off of American streets, and while activist judges are on the other side fighting to get them back onto United States soil.” “Before I turn it over to acting Director Todd Lyons, I would like to remind the journalists in this very room to do your job,” McLaughlin continued. “We gave you the names of these monsters as you have right in front of you. Now tell the stories of the innocent Americans who they victimized. I employ you — implore you to stop doing the bidding of these disgusting individuals. Tell the stories of the innocents. It’s the American victims who actually matter.”

ABC News [5/21/2025 9:50 PM, Linsey Davis, 31733K] Video: HERE reports ABC News’ Linsey Davis spoke with attorney Jonathan Ryan, who represents one of eight migrants believed to have been deported to a country that is not their own.

FOX News [5/21/2025 4:38 PM, Breanne Deppisch, 46878K] reports a U.S. appeals court ordered the Trump administration this week to comply with a lower court judge’s order to return a 20-year-old Venezuelan migrant deported from the U.S. to El Salvador in March, marking another setback in legal battles over its use of the Alien Enemies Act. The 2–1 decision from the 4th Circuit leaves in place U.S. District Judge Stephanie Gallagher’s earlier ruling that Daniel Lozano-Camargo, previously identified in court documents as "Cristian," must be allowed back into the country. Gallagher, a Trump appointee, ruled that Lozano-Camargo’s removal violated an agreement that the Department of Homeland Security struck with a group of other migrants who entered the U.S. illegally as children and later sought asylum. DHS agreed not to deport these individuals, who later sought asylum in the U.S. until their cases could be fully adjudicated in court. The decision paves the way for the Trump administration to appeal the case to the Supreme Court. In the interim, Gallagher has said she will amend her ruling to set a formal timeline for the government to return the 20-year-old migrant to the U.S. It is unclear whether the Trump administration will appeal the case to the Supreme Court.

The Hill [5/21/2025 2:00 PM, Ella Lee, 18649K] reports a federal judge chided the Department of Justice (DOJ) during a Wednesday hearing where he agreed to dismiss a trespassing charge against Newark Mayor Ras Baraka (D) that stemmed from his visit to a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility earlier this month alongside three Democratic members of Congress. U.S. District Judge Andre Espinosa said the arrest suggested a "worrisome misstep" by the New Jersey’s U.S. attorney’s office, noting the "apparent rush" in bringing the case that culminated in the government’s "embarrassing" retraction of the charge. He dismissed the complaint against Baraka with prejudice, meaning the charge cannot be brought again. "Your role is not to secure convictions at all costs, nor to satisfy public clamor, nor to advance political agendas," Espinosa said to the government’s lawyer. "Your allegiance is to the impartial application of the law, to the pursuit of truth and to the upholding of due process for all.” The dismissal comes after Alina Habba, interim U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey, said her office planned to drop the single misdemeanor trespassing charge. She revealed in the same announcement that Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.), one of the lawmakers Baraka accompanied to the Delaney Hall ICE detention center, would be charged with assaulting law enforcement while at the detention center. McIver was due in court Wednesday. The criminal complaint against her says she "slammed her forearms" into immigration officers as they attempted to arrest Baraka. In response to Espinosa’s remarks, DOJ lawyer Stephen Demanovich said it is the U.S. attorney’s office’s goal "at all times" to uphold justice and that he understood the judge’s message. Espinosa warned the government that an arrest is a "severe action carrying significant reputational and personal consequences." He offered Baraka’s counsel an opportunity to rebut the accusations. "I think it’s clear that the mayor is not guilty of the offenses with which he was charged," Baraka lawyer Raymond Brown said.

Politico [5/21/2025 4:13 PM, Josh Gerstein and Ry Rivard, 2100K] reports New Jersey Rep. LaMonica McIver is facing felony charges of assaulting a pair of unnamed Homeland Security agents during a scuffle that broke out earlier this month as three House members were trying to visit an immigration detention center in Newark, New Jersey, a court filing released Tuesday shows. The criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Newark alleges McIver “slammed her forearm” into one agent and “forcibly” grabbed him. The Democratic congressmember is also accused of using “each of her forearms to forcibly strike” another officer, according to the complaint, which includes multiple photos from video cameras worn by officers, as well as others mounted outside the facility. New Jersey Rep. LaMonica McIver is facing felony charges of assaulting a pair of unnamed Homeland Security agents during a scuffle that broke out earlier this month as three House members were trying to visit an immigration detention center in Newark, New Jersey, a court filing released Tuesday shows. The criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Newark alleges McIver “slammed her forearm” into one agent and “forcibly” grabbed him. The Democratic congressmember is also accused of using “each of her forearms to forcibly strike” another officer, according to the complaint, which includes multiple photos from video cameras worn by officers, as well as others mounted outside the facility. Each of the charges against McIver carries a maximum statutory punishment of eight years in prison, although defendants are typically sentenced in accordance with federal guidelines that usually result in sentences well below the maximum.

Politico [5/21/2025 2:10 PM, Ry Rivard, 2100K] reports the “hasty arrest” and swift dismissal of a trespassing charge against Mayor Ras Baraka “suggests a worrisome misstep” by interim U.S. Attorney for New Jersey Alina Habba, a federal judge said Wednesday afternoon. U.S. Magistrate Judge André M. Espinosa granted what he called the “embarrassing retraction” of the misdemeanor charge following a May 9 incident at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Newark that unfolded in a tussle between federal authorities and three members of Congress and resulted in the arrest of the city’s Democratic mayor, who is also running for governor. Espinosa said an arrest is a “severe” step, not part of an investigation, and he said prosecutors must not try to secure convictions at all cost, satisfy public clamor or advance political agendas. “Your office must operate with a higher standard than that,” he said. Habba was not present for the 1 p.m. virtual hearing for Baraka, though she did phone in to a morning hearing for Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.), who was charged earlier this week with two counts of assault for actions that happened during the same incident.

Bloomberg [5/21/2025 12:48 PM, David Voreacos, 19320K] reports LaMonica McIver, a New Jersey Congresswoman, made a court appearance Wednesday to face felony charges accusing her of assaulting US immigration officers as she tried to prevent the city’s mayor from being arrested outside a private detention facility. McIver, 38, appeared by video from Washington in Newark federal court, where interim US Attorney Alina Habba charged the first-term Democrat with shoving officers during a scrum outside the 1,000-bed Delaney Hall detention facility on May 9. US Magistrate Judge Stacey Adams set a June 11 preliminary hearing for McIver, who faces as many as eight years in prison on each of two counts. McIver’s lawyer, Paul Fishman, has said the decision to charge her was “spectacularly inappropriate” and that ICE agents “chose to escalate what should have been a peaceful situation.” McIver had joined two other Democratic House members in touring Delaney Hall, which GEO Group Inc. operates under a 15-year US contract that the company values at more than $1 billion. Delaney Hall has become a flashpoint in the national debate over the immigration policies of President Donald Trump, who has vowed to deport millions of migrants. McIver was released on her own recognizance and can travel anywhere in the US. She can travel internationally for work as long as she notifies court officials and can petition the court to travel abroad for vacation, the judge said. The judge explained the charges to McIver, who did not enter a plea at Wednesday’s hearing.

The Hill [5/21/2025 10:10 AM, Filip Timotija, 18649K] reports Veteran Democratic strategist James Carville said that the federal charges against Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.) are meant to be a distraction, arguing the Trump administration is attempting to divert the public’s attention from the economy and the GOP’s “big, beautiful bill.” “They’re trying to do everything they can to draw attention to immigration because the global economy is terrible. The rates on 10-year bonds are going up. It’s soft everywhere. Companies are warning of lower earnings. And all of this is happening. He’s not done anything about any of this,” Carville said Tuesday on MSNBC’s “The Beat.” “He can’t get his bill through Congress. So great. I got a great solution. Let’s go out and arrest a Black woman, and then that’ll solve everything, and that’ll have everybody talking about it,” the longtime operative told host Ari Melber. The Department of Justice (DOJ) accused McIver of slamming “her forearms” into immigration authorities during a scuffle outside of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center in New Jersey as officers tried to arrest Newark, N.J., Mayor Ras Baraka (D) earlier this month. McIver was charged with two counts of assaulting federal employees who were carrying out their duties, one corresponding to a Homeland Security Investigations agent and the other of an ICE officer. The charge can carry up to eight years in prison if McIver is convicted. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem defended the charges earlier this week. “They can conduct oversight, but senator, what I would ask is that they understand that that doesn’t mean they could show up with a mob with the intention to break in and assault law enforcement officers. That’s what happened at Delaney Hall last week,” Noem said during a Senate hearing on Tuesday. “We were accommodating that when those individuals showed up, and they decided instead to break in,” Noem added.

FOX News [5/21/2025 4:26 PM, Alec Schemmel, 46878K] reports Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., introduced a House resolution on Wednesday to expel Democratic New Jersey Rep. LaMonica McIver, who earlier this week was served with federal charges for allegedly assaulting law enforcement officers this month while protesting at a federal immigrant detention center. "On May 9th, McIver didn’t just break the law, she attacked the very people who defend it," Mace said in a press release announcing the new House Resolution. "Attacking Homeland Security and ICE agents isn’t just disgraceful, it’s assault. If any other American did what she did, they’d be in handcuffs. "McIver thinks being a Member of Congress puts her above the law. It doesn’t. She should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.” The Department of Justice announced federal charges against McIver on Monday, accusing her of "assaulting, impeding and interfering with law enforcement" earlier this month at a Newark-area immigrant detention center known as Delaney Hall. McIver was protesting at the detention center with two other members of Congress to conduct what they claimed were their congressionally mandated oversight duties. Ras Baraka, the mayor of Newark, New Jersey, who was arrested after the incident, later had his charges dropped. Law enforcement said McIver "slammed her forearm into the body of a uniformed" immigration official while trying to "restrain the agent by forcibly grabbing him." McIver also allegedly tried to block agents from arresting Baraka and, after he was put in handcuffs, allegedly "pushed an ICE officer and used her forearms to forcibly strike the agent.” According to a press release accompanying Mace’s resolution, the House of Representatives already has a precedent for expelling members of Congress who have been charged with serious criminal offenses. "In a time when public trust in government is at a historic low, the House must act decisively," Mace said. "The charges are serious. And the public deserves to know that criminal conduct in the halls of Congress has consequences.” McIver made her first court appearance on Wednesday virtually before a United States Magistrate Judge for the District of New Jersey at 11 a.m. ET. The judge read McIver her rights and the charges against her, later indicating to the member of Congress she would be granted bail and released on her own recognizance as the case makes its way through the courts. But she will only be allowed to travel domestically and must notify the government if she intends to travel internationally for her work duties. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for June 11.

Reported similarly:
The Hill [5/21/2025 4:16 PM, Ashleigh Fields, 18649K]
Blaze [5/21/2025 7:30 PM, Carlos Garcia, 1805K]
Washington Times [5/21/2025 4:27 PM, Seth McLaughlin, 2106K]

New York Times [5/21/2025 6:42 PM, Hamed Aleaziz and Alan Feuer, 138952K] reports a mistake had been made. That much was clear. The Trump administration had deported a Maryland man named Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia to a prison in El Salvador, even though a judge had issued a ruling expressly prohibiting that from happening. But when the news reached the Department of Homeland Security, it set off a dayslong scramble and clashes among officials in three different agencies over how to deal with what everyone knew had been an error. As it became clear that keeping it quiet was not an option, D.H.S. officials floated a series of ideas to control the story that raised alarms among Justice Department lawyers on the case. In the days before the government’s error became public, D.H.S. officials discussed trying to portray Mr. Abrego Garcia as a “leader” of the violent street gang MS-13, even though they could find no evidence to support the claim. They considered ways to nullify the original order that barred his deportation to El Salvador. They sought to downplay the danger he might face in one of that country’s most notorious prisons. And in the end, a senior Justice Department lawyer, Erez Reuveni, who counseled bringing Mr. Abrego Garcia back to the United States, was fired for what Attorney General Pam Bondi said was a failure to “zealously advocate on behalf of the United States.” Documents obtained by The New York Times laying out the debate among leading lawyers at the State, Justice and Homeland Security Departments reveal new details of the administration’s early efforts to develop a strategy for a case that has become a major test of President Trump’s mass deportation effort. The discussions do not directly capture any conversations about the case inside the White House or at the level of the relevant cabinet secretaries. But the documents show how Trump officials, from the start, tried to keep Mr. Abrego Garcia out of the reach of the American judicial system. To this day, Mr. Abrego Garcia remains locked up in El Salvador despite court rulings demanding that the United States work toward securing his release. And he got there in the first place through what everyone agreed was a bureaucratic slip-up. “This was an administrative error,” James Percival, a D.H.S. official appointed by Mr. Trump, wrote to his colleagues on March 30. “(Not that we should say publicly.)” Tricia McLaughlin, a D.H.S. spokeswoman, said in a statement that Mr. Abrego Garcia’s deportation was part of “a highly sensitive counterterrorism operation with national security implications.” “We invoked the state secrets privilege over many of the details — of course our officials discussed what should be divulged publicly,” she added. “This just proves they are responsible public servants putting the safety of the American people first. The leakers of these emails, on the other hand, clearly do not care about public safety.”

Blaze [5/21/2025 10:15 AM, Joseph MacKinnon, 1805K] reports that Secretary of State Marco Rubio testified Tuesday before his former colleagues on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee regarding the State Department’s fiscal year 2026 budget request. Democratic senators seized upon the opportunity to attack Rubio and the Trump administration, characterizing the government’s foreign policy as regressive, oppressive, and isolationist. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), in particular, complained about the house-cleaning executed at the U.S. Agency for International Development, the cancellation of radical foreigners’ student visas, the deportation of criminal noncitizens, and the admission of white refugees from South Africa. Rubio coolly dismantled Democrats’ critiques and drove home the message that mature foreign policy "requires a balancing of interests"; that the U.S. is not withdrawing from the world but engaging in a way that "makes America stronger, safer, and more prosperous"; and that he does not answer to meddlesome federal judges when it comes to foreign policy engagements abroad. Van Hollen, fresh off trying to bring a Salvadoran MS-13 affiliate accused of domestic abuse and human trafficking back into the U.S., told Rubio, "Like the McCarthy-era witch hunts of the 1950s, your campaign of fear and repression is eating away at foundational values of our democracy.”

AP [5/21/2025 8:23 AM, Meg Kinnard, 48304K] reports Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem says the constitutional provision that allows people to legally challenge their detention by the government is actually a tool the Trump administration can use in its broader crackdown at the U.S.-Mexico border. She called habeas corpus “a constitutional right that the president has to be able to remove people from this country and suspend their rights.” Noem, testifying before a congressional committee Tuesday, gave that response when asked by Sen. Maggie Hassan to define the legal concept. “That’s incorrect,” the New Hampshire Democrat swiftly interrupted Noem, defining the “legal principle that requires that the government provide a public reason for detaining and imprisoning people.” Hassan, a former attorney who practiced in Boston, went on to call habeas corpus “the foundational right that separates free societies like America from police states like North Korea.” The back and forth follows comments by White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, who said earlier this month that President Donald Trump is looking for ways to expand his administration’s legal power to deport migrants who are in the United States illegally. To achieve that, Miller said the administration is “actively looking at” suspending habeas corpus.

NewsMax [5/21/2025 7:00 PM, Jim Thomas, 4622K] reports families whose loved ones were killed by illegal immigrants are pressing lawmakers to pass President Donald Trump’s immigration-focused reconciliation package, calling it "a lifeline" for American families, Breitbart reported. Families who lost loved ones to crimes committed by illegal immigrants are urging Congress to approve Trump’s proposed reconciliation package. Sometimes called "angel families," they describe it as a critical measure to restore law and order at the border and across the country. Known as the "big, beautiful bill," the proposed legislation includes sweeping immigration reforms. It would fund at least 1 million deportations annually, add 10,000 new Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, expand immigration detention, implement a remittance tax, fund the ‘Remain in Mexico’ program, and require screening of unaccompanied alien children for gang affiliations. In a letter obtained by the New York Post, the families called the legislation "a lifeline," writing that the current system has failed to protect Americans. "Every single one of us is living with a permanent hole in our lives because an illegal immigrant, who never should have been in this country, was allowed to stay and take an innocent life. These were preventable tragedies," the letter reads. "And yet, year after year, Washington offers excuses instead of solutions. That must end now. The ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ is not just another piece of legislation — it’s a lifeline. It is a long-overdue step toward restoring the rule of law, prioritizing public safety, and finally putting American families ahead of politics.” House Homeland Security Committee Chair Mark Green, R-Tenn., echoed those sentiments, emphasizing that the legislation fulfills Trump’s campaign promises and is already making a difference in enforcement efforts. "President Trump was decisively elected in large part because he promised to fix the self-inflicted crisis created by the prior administration," Green said Wednesday.

NewsMax [5/21/2025 6:08 PM, Michael Katz, 4622K] reports Vice President JD Vance warned that America’s social fabric has been put in jeopardy by "too much immigration too quickly," adding it is undermining the Trump administration’s goal of preserving a unified nation. President Donald Trump has emphasized border security and the mass deportation of illegal immigrants since starting his second term. The administration’s efforts have faced resistance, with U.S. district courts thwarting attempts at some deportations. "The point that I’ve tried to make is I think a lot about this question of social cohesion in the United States," Vance said in Rome on Monday during an interview on New York Times’ "Interesting Times" podcast. Vance, a Catholic, was in Rome for Pope Leo XIV’s inaugural Mass. "I think about how we form the kind of society again where people can raise families, where people join institutions together," Vance said. "And I do think that those who care about what might be called the common good, they sometimes under weigh how destructive immigration at the levels and at the pace that we’ve seen over the last few years is to the common good. "I really do think that social solidarity is destroyed when you have too much migration too quickly. That’s not because I hate the migrants or I’m motivated by grievance. That’s because I’m trying to preserve something in my own country where we are a unified nation. And I don’t think that can happen if you have too much immigration too quickly.” Vance said there are easy and difficult paths to dealing with immigration. The easier road is "to have the actual law enforcement infrastructure to make this possible.” "It requires more beds at deportation facilities," he said. "It just requires more of the basic nuts and bolts of how you run a law enforcement regime in the context of deportation. And that’s one of the main things in the big, beautiful bill that is moving through Congress right now: more money for immigration enforcement.”

CBS News [5/21/2025 6:00 AM, Scott MacFarlane, 51860K] reports the Justice Department is shaking up the priorities for a popular grant program that provides millions of dollars in aid to budget-strapped local police departments across America, according to public documents reviewed by CBS News. In a fact sheet for the Community Policing Development microgrant program, the Trump administration eliminated language that encouraged police agencies to seek federal money for initiatives to help "underserved populations," build trust in police, boost diversity in police departments and support community violence intervention. Instead, the administration lists "immigration and border security," "violent crime prevention" and "uplifting the image of the law enforcement profession" as programs that are priorities for the highly sought-after grants, which are administered by the Justice Department’s Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) division. The instructions to local police departments for funding in 2025 mark a noticeable shift from the guidance issued by the Justice Department during the Biden administration a year earlier. The 2024 guidance prioritized efforts at "building trust and legitimacy with the community" and "community violence intervention" initiatives, which include efforts to combat racism, trauma, poverty and other triggers to violence.

Washington Examiner [5/21/2025 6:30 AM, Jack Birle, 1934K] reports the Supreme Court issued a pair of rulings over the past month that suggest the justices are keeping a close eye on procedure in immigration-related cases, even as key questions of immigration law remain unanswered. On Friday, the Supreme Court ruled 7-2 to pause the deportation of a group of Venezuelan nationals under the Alien Enemies Act in Texas and sent the case to a federal appeals court to review the merits of the legal challenge. That loss for the Trump administration at the country’s highest court was followed up by a win on Monday, when the justices ruled 8-1 to pause a federal district court’s ruling blocking the Trump administration from revoking the temporary protected status afforded to nearly 350,000 Venezuelan migrants living in the United States. While much uncertainty still surrounds how the justices will rule on the Trump administration’s efforts to find legal backing for its deportations, both orders by the high court appear to show a common thread. John Shu, a constitutional law scholar and expert who served in both Bush administrations, believes that the Supreme Court is telling litigants to "follow the existing rules" with its pair of orders on immigration. "These rulings show that the court at this point was concerned about the cases’ procedural aspects and not the substantive legal or policy issues," Shu told the Washington Examiner.

NewsMax [5/21/2025 5:26 PM, Jim Mishler, 4622K] reports the man accused of stealing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s purse from a Washington restaurant is being held without bail. A second man charged in the case was not involved in the Wednesday court action. It was also revealed in court proceedings that the suspect, Mario Bustamante-Leiva, a 49-year-old illegal immigrant from Chile, tried to get help from the Chilean Consulate after the crime occurred to leave the U.S. The New York Post reported that a federal judge decided the man posed a flight risk and ordered him detained pending his next court appearance. Federal prosecutors, according to the Post, accused the man of a string of purse snatchings leading up to the theft of Noem’s bag from a restaurant in Washington on April 20. The AP [5/21/2025 3:49 PM, Michael Kunzelman] reports federal magistrate judge on Wednesday ordered the pretrial detention of a man charged with stealing a purse from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem while she dined at a restaurant under the protection of Secret Service agents. U.S. Magistrate Matthew Sharbaugh concluded after a hearing that the suspect, Mario Bustamante Leiva, must remain jailed because he poses a flight risk. Bustamante Leiva, a 49-year-old a native of Chile, pleaded not guilty to charges of wire fraud, robbery and aggravated identity theft. Bustamante Leiva also is charged with stealing purses from two other people at other restaurants earlier last month. A Secret Service agent’s affidavit said Bustamante Leiva used Noem’s stolen credit cards to buy over $200 in food and alcohol at a different restaurant. But the indictment says that the amount of that unauthorized charge was just over $15. Authorities said there was no evidence Noem was targeted because of her position. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has lodged an immigration detainer against Bustamante Leiva.

NewsMax [5/21/2025 10:54 AM, Sandy Fitzgerald, 4622K] reports Department of Homeland Security employees say they are undergoing an increasing number of polygraph exams under Secretary Kristi Noem’s direction to determine if they are being disloyal and leaking information to the media. Intelligence agencies such as the DHS have used polygraph exams for years while working on job applications, security clearances, and some investigations. However, the exams under Noem are used to determine whether employees are releasing information deemed disloyal or embarrassing, according to current and former officials, adding that what they are being asked about is not classified information, reports The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday. Current and former DHS employees, who have worked under administrations for both parties, say they haven’t seen polygraphing used at nearly the scale Noem has directed. Tricia McLaughlin, a DHS spokeswoman, said that under Noem, the department is "unapologetic about its efforts to root out leakers that undermine national security." "We are agnostic about your standing, tenure, political appointment, or status as a career civil servant — we will track down leakers and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law," she said. McLaughlin would not say how many DHS employees have undergone polygraph tests since President Donald Trump took office in January. Noem told CBS News’ "Face the Nation" in March, when asked if she was going to keep testing her employees, responded that her authorities as DHS secretary are "broad and extensive." "I plan to use every single one of them to make sure that we’re following the law, that we are following the procedures in place to keep people safe, and that we’re making sure we’re following through on what President Trump has promised," Noem said. McLaughlin denied that the tests are "about disloyalty."

Breitbart [5/21/2025 10:12 PM, Jeff Poor, 3077K] reports that, Wednesday on Fox Business Network’s "Mornings with Maria," Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) discussed her effort to end so-called birthright citizenship. The Tennessee Republican has a bill under consideration in the Senate that would end what she said had led to an industry advertised worldwide. "You say ICE arrests are keeping Tennesseans safe, as crime rates are on the decline," host Maria Bartiromo said. "You also have a new bill banning the birth tourism loophole used by thousands of foreigners every year. Tell us about it.” Blackburn replied, "Yes, indeed. Banning this birthright tourism is important to do. You have brokers who are advertising and pushing for people in countries like Russia and China, and women, when they are pregnant, they can pay a fee to the broker, come into the U.S., live in a housing that is provided for them, have the baby, get the birth certificate, Social Security number, go back to their country, send the child here for education as a U.S. citizen, and then when that child hits age 21, they can begin the chain migration.” "Now, we know that there are at least 33,000 births per year that take place under this program, and we also know that this is an industry that is making tens of millions of dollars every year," she continued. "We need to shut it down, and we need to eliminate this ability to exercise this birthright tourism. Our citizenship is not for sale to individuals that are doing this. I mean, we have our military that is hard fought and hard won these battles to keep us a free nation.”

FOX News [5/21/2025 8:33 AM, Michael Dorgan Fox, 46878K] reports a federal judge in Oklahoma has put a two-week hold on a 2024 state law coming into force that criminalizes illegal immigrants living in the state, a decision that was welcomed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) but drew a strong rebuke from the state’s attorney general, who blasted the decision as "outrageous." Federal District Judge Bernard Jones on Tuesday ruled that House Bill 4156 may not be enforced for at least 14 days while a court challenge proceeds. The law creates the crime of "impermissible occupation" and empowers state and local law enforcement officers to arrest immigrants suspected of being in the U.S. illegally. A first offense under the law is a misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail and a fine of $500, and a second offense is a felony that could result in up to two years in prison. The law also requires a person to leave the state within 72 hours of conviction or release from custody. The bill was signed into law in April 2024 but was held up from taking force due to a lawsuit filed by the Biden administration challenging its constitutionality in that it violates the federal government’s immigration authority, which led to a pause in enforcement. However, the new Trump Justice Department decided to drop the federal government’s case in March. That led to two unnamed undocumented immigrants and the ACLU representing a local advocacy group filing a new lawsuit, which prompted Jones to issue another temporary injunction on Tuesday.

FOX News [5/21/2025 4:53 PM, Matt Finn, 46878K] reports in a sweeping, pre-dawn raid in Los Angeles on Tuesday, twelve wanted criminals were arrested in a dramatic seven-agency sting led by the Department of Homeland Security. The bust was the culmination of a nearly two-year investigation dubbed "Operation Supper’s Ready," that targeted dueling transnational gangs that U.S. officials say are exploiting and terrorizing the United States. Some of the suspects are charged with attempted murder, kidnapping and fraud. One scheme alone stole $83 million in Amazon goods, according to court documents. The gangs that were targeted are Armenian-led, but they’re ultimately transnational with members born in various countries, including Iran and Azerbaijan. The organized crime syndicates also have ties to the Mexican mafia and, in one instance, hired an assassin from the Sureño gang, who shot two people in a murder-for-hire plot, killing one of them. Fox News got exclusive access with DHS as it carried out a fully armored search-and-arrest of one of the suspects at his home before sunrise in an upscale L.A. area neighborhood. DHS and the U.S. Attorney in Los Angeles told Fox on site that the ability to make arrests at home and carry out these types of stings has become much easier under the Trump administration. The U.S. Attorney’s Office says approximately $100,000 in cash, three armored vehicles, and 14 firearms were recovered during the bust and one suspect remains at large.

The Hill [5/21/2025 3:50 PM, Filip Timotija, 18649K] reports the Treasury Department has sanctioned two high-ranking members of the Mexican drug trafficking group Cartel del Noreste (CDN), a transnational group formerly known as Los Zetas. The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed the sanctions Wednesday on the two members of CDN, which is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States government. The U.S. has sanctioned Miguel Angel de Anda Ledezma, who officials say resides in the border city Nuevo Laredo across the Rio Grande from Texas. The Treasury Department said he oversees the procurement of ammunition and guns for CDN, and is in charge of payments to straw purchasers and facilitators in the U.S. OFAC also slapped sanctions on Ricardo Gonzalez Sauceda, who officials said also lives in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. He was the second-in-command of CDN before he was arrested by Mexican law enforcement in February, according to the Treasury Department. The DailySignal [5/21/2025 3:23 PM, Virginia Allen, 558K] reports Mexico-based Cartel del Noreste members Miguel Angel de Anda Ledezma and Ricardo Gonzalez Sauceda have engaged in drug and arms trafficking and violence against U.S. and Mexican authorities, according to the Treasury Department. Mexican authorities arrested Gonzalez, who led the armed enforcement wing of Cartel del Noreste, in February. At the time of his arrest, Gonzalez was found in possession of 1,500 fentanyl pills, methamphetamine, and guns, according to the Treasury Department. Now, all property and interests belonging to Gonzalez and De Anda that are in the U.S., or in U.S. possession, are "blocked." The AP [5/21/2025 11:06 AM, Fatima Hussein, 48304K] reports that earlier this year, President Donald Trump’s administration designated Cartel del Noreste as a “foreign terrorist organization,” along with seven other groups. The Republican president has made securing the U.S.-Mexico border among his top priorities. He has pledged to carry out mass deportations, send active-duty troops to the border and reach deals with some countries to take in more migrants.

Reported similarly:
FOX News [5/21/2025 2:02 PM, Brooke Singman, 46878K]

Bloomberg [5/21/2025 7:30 AM, Mark Gongloff, 19320K] reports twenty years ago this September, President George W. Bush praised how his Federal Emergency Management Agency director, Michael Brown, was responding to Hurricane Katrina. “Brownie, you’re doing a heck of a job,” he infamously declared. Less than two weeks later, Brownie was no longer doing any kind of job because FEMA had actually made a hash of preparing for and reacting to Hurricane Katrina, putting lives at risk and hobbling New Orleans’ recovery. Bush’s approval ratings, already sinking because of the increasingly disastrous Iraq war, took another permanent hit as voters deemed his management of the homefront another failure. Now, less than two weeks ahead of what promises to be another busy hurricane season, FEMA is again being mismanaged, only far more blatantly. The risk of another tragically flawed response to a natural disaster is rising. Even in the best of times, FEMA is underfunded and understaffed while also being a bloated spider in the middle of a hopelessly complex web of government bureaucracies. Quickly getting relief to people who need it the most has often been a challenge for the agency, which has long needed streamlining and reform. But instead of thoughtfully fine-tuning the nation’s disaster response mechanism, Trump and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency have taken a jackhammer to it. They’ve fired hundreds of workers from an already thin workforce without regard to function. They’ve shut down funding that helped communities prepare for disasters and potentially saved the federal government billions in future relief spending. Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem have repeatedly kicked around the idea of killing FEMA altogether and putting the onus of disaster recovery on state and local governments that have even less funding. At the same time, Trump and Musk have also gutted the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, whose studies of climate and weather help FEMA prepare for disasters. Trump’s choices of FEMA leadership in his second term have been just as alarming.

Washington Times [5/21/2025 8:47 AM, Peter Roff, 2106K] reports contrary to what people might think, it rains a lot in California, often to the point of flooding that causes tens of millions of dollars in damage and the loss of human lives. Such was the case in January 2023, when Santa Maria Valley Water Conservation District officials realized that an above-average rainfall had filled the usually empty Twitchell Reservoir and that the dam holding back approximately 6 billion gallons of stormwater and sediment was in danger of bursting. With a budget of $820,000, the conservation district didn’t have the equipment or personnel to mitigate the coming disaster, so it turned to Mitigation Solutions LLC and Barnett Southern Corp., a Georgia-based construction company specializing in such matters. The companies moved quickly. They deployed barges, pumps and heavy equipment, as well as the much-needed manpower to operate them, to the Twitchell Reservoir site. Working with the local conservation board, the California Office of Emergency Services, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, they launched an around-the-clock effort to prevent the situation from reaching the critical stage. Everything worked out, but not everyone was satisfied. FEMA is responsible for paying Mitigation Solutions and Barnett Southern for their work but has refused to fulfill its obligations. This affects just one of the many projects the agency oversees each year. Think about it. When was the last time you heard of FEMA doing anything right? Florida, North Carolina, California and Puerto Rico captivated our attention after torrential storms, raging fires and other natural disasters where FEMA was supposed to mitigate damage, manage cleanup and help reconstruct. The agency hasn’t been getting it done. President Trump seemed to reach that conclusion while visiting the destruction wrought by Hurricane Helene in North Carolina. Agencies such as FEMA need to work fast from beginning to end. They must step up when lives and property are on the line. Mr. Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem say they want to replace FEMA rather than reform it. That seems like a good idea. One idea worth considering is increasing the roles of states and localities while leaving the federal government to fund their efforts. Block grants are a better way than bureaucracy to manage the diverse problems in emergency management. Let’s hope for action soon.

New York Post [5/21/2025 7:43 PM, Staff, 49956K] reports New Jersey Rep. LaMonica McIver’s arrest for attacking ICE agents, and the unhinged wagon-circling that followed, is fresh proof that Democrats are still extremists on immigration. On Monday, acting New Jersey US Attorney Alina Habba filed charges against McIver after she was caught on camera shoving agents while trying to charge into the new Delaney Hall detention center in Newark with a hoard of publicity-seeking protesters. McIver’s excuse for her assault on federal law-enforcement officers: She and her fellow Democratic electeds, including Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, were just trying "to inspect the treatment of ICE detainees.” Bull: The legal way to ensure that detainees (who only started arriving at Delaney in early May) are being treated humanely is to get a subpoena or other court order. Plus, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin says: "Had these members requested a tour, we would have facilitated a tour of the facility.” But getting permission ahead of time and walking in the front doors wouldn’t have won the attention that McIver and Baraka plainly were really after. So they instead showed up with a mob outside the gates and forced their way into the fenced area. Yet McIver’s arrest — for breaking the law on camera — sent the Democrats into hysteria.

The Hill [5/21/2025 12:00 PM, Rachel E. Barkow, 18649K] reports that the Trump administration launched a war against the Constitution and due process when it took the unprecedented step of sending immigrants allegedly present illegally in the United States to a notorious prison in El Salvador — the Center for Terrorism Confinement or CECOT. It has floated the idea of sending others to Libya — a country the State Department warns American citizens not to visit — before being blocked, at least for now, by a federal judge. When individuals are sent to other countries, the administration has a habit of claiming it lacks the authority to bring them back. It has refused to facilitate the return of one man, Kilmar Abrego Garcia, in defiance of a Supreme Court decision, and even though the administration admits he was sent there in error. The administration won’t even tell the lower court overseeing Abrego Garcia’s case what it has done, arguing that it is a state secret. Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff for policy, threatened suspension of habeas corpus next, meaning the administration would refuse to answer to any court when it detains someone. This looks more like human trafficking than a lawful immigration enforcement program, and there is no telling how far it might go. Although the administration argues these drastic measures are necessary to fight illegal immigration, American citizens would also be at risk.

FOX News [5/21/2025 5:47 PM, Peter Pinedo, 46878K] reports the Trump Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is warning Democrats and leftists doxxing ICE agents and impeding immigration enforcement operations that it is "not playing games." In response to an online video of a Democratic state representative in Tennessee allegedly stalking ICE agents, DHS said, "This Administration is not playing games with the lives and safety of our ICE officers." The DHS statement claimed that "people doxxing our officers and impeding ICE operations are siding with vicious cartels, human traffickers, and violent criminals." The statement came in response to a video posted on social media by Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., allegedly showing Tennessee Democratic state Rep. Aftyn Behn "stalking" ICE agents in the Nashville area. In response to the incident, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Fox News Digital "attacks and demonization of ICE have resulted in officers facing a 413% increase in assaults." DHS and the U.S. Secret Service served a search warrant May 1 on the home of a Los Angeles resident accused of posting fliers in various Southern California neighborhoods with the names, photos, phone numbers and locations of ICE officers working in the region.

AP [5/22/2025 1:30 AM, Joshua Goodman and Gisela Salomon, 3077K] reports that, Juan Serrano, a 28-year-old Colombian migrant with no criminal record, attended a hearing in immigration court in Miami on Wednesday for what he thought would be a quick check-in. The musty, glass-paneled courthouse sees hundreds of such hearings every day. Most last less than five minutes and end with a judge ordering those who appear to return in two years’ time to plead their case against deportation. So it came as a surprise when, rather than set a future court date, government attorneys asked to drop the case. “You’re free to go,” Judge Monica Neumann told Serrano. Except he really wasn’t. Waiting for him as he exited the small courtroom were five federal agents who cuffed him against the wall, escorted him to the garage and whisked him away in a van along with a dozen other migrants detained the same day. They weren’t the only ones. Across the United States in immigration courts from New York to Seattle this week, Homeland Security officials are ramping up enforcement actions in what appears to be a coordinated dragnet testing out new legal levers deployed by President Donald Trump’s administration to carry out mass arrests. While Trump campaigned on a pledge of mass removals of what he calls “illegals,” he’s struggled to carry out his plans amid a series of lawsuits, the refusal of some foreign governments to take back their nationals and a lack of detention facilities to house migrants. Arrests are extremely rare in or immediately near immigration courts, which are run by the Justice Department. When they have occurred, it was usually because the individual was charged with a criminal offense or their asylum claim had been denied. “All this is to accelerate detentions and expedite removals,” said immigration attorney Wilfredo Allen, who has represented migrants at the Miami court for decades.

New York Times [5/21/2025 5:00 AM, Ashley Wu and Albert Sun, 153395K] reports the Trump administration has taken a flurry of actions to drive up deportation numbers as part of its large-scale immigration crackdown. These efforts include expanding the group of people who can be targeted for removal, speeding up the deportation process for others and, in some cases, tightening the rules for legal immigrants. Below is an explanation of those efforts and an accounting of the millions of immigrants who may be affected. Expanding the pool of who can be deported: The Department of Homeland Security in February moved to terminate Temporary Protected Status for about 350,000 Venezuelans who had received the status in 2023. After a legal challenge, the Supreme Court on Monday allowed the Trump administration to remove these protections, pending appeal of the case. Speeding up the deportation process: In addition to removing protections, the Trump administration has tried to speed up deportations for some immigrants by sidestepping the normal legal process that gives people a chance to contest their removal and make arguments to stay. Threatening to deport legal immigrants: The administration has also been willing to go after legal immigrants with stricter conditions for their stay. About three million people with student visas or other long-term visas and 13 million green-card holders, could be targeted for removal if they are accused of committing a crime.

Telemundo Amarillo [5/21/2025 3:43 PM, Staff, 4K] reports in a controversial move by the Trump administration, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has issued multimillion-dollar fines to migrants in the United States. 4,500 migrants who remain in the country after receiving final deportation orders have received these hefty fines totaling more than approximately $500 million. Individual penalties reach amounts of up to $1.8 million, a figure that has generated consternation and concern in immigrant communities and among human rights advocates. The penalty amounts are based on a 1996 law, implemented during Trump’s first term in 2018, which allows for fines of $998 for each day a person remains in the country after receiving a deportation order. The law provides for a retroactive payment of up to five years, which can lead to multimillion-dollar penalties like Ortiz’s. The government has even considered confiscating assets from those unable to pay, although it is still unclear how this measure would be implemented. The management and possible execution of the seizures is being coordinated between ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which is still working on the logistics for implementing these actions, according to officials cited by Reuters. In some cases, the sanctions affect people who were already trying to regularize their status.

AP [5/21/2025 5:50 PM, Rebecca Santana, 56000K] reports carrying out mass deportations was a key rallying cry during Donald Trump’s campaign for the presidency. Since the day he was sworn into office, his administration has focused on how to make that rallying cry reality. They’ve touted their policy of going after “the worst of the worst” — meaning people who’ve committed crimes in America — while leaning on some nations to take migrants who the U.S. has difficulty deporting to their own countries. They’ve removed protections from hundreds of thousands of people the Biden administration admitted on a temporary basis into the country with the aim of eventually making them deportable. Immigration enforcement officials have repeatedly portrayed their initial efforts as going after people they describe as “the worst of the worst.” Those are people who pose public safety or national security threats, people who’ve been arrested or convicted of committing crimes in America or who ICE determines are gang members. On their social media feeds, they posted a constant stream of photos of people arrested by ICE and crimes they’re alleged to have committed. Previous administrations have also prioritized people who are considered public safety threats so that strategy isn’t necessarily new. What is different under the Trump administration is that ICE agents now have authority to arrest other people they find with immigration violations when they’re going after “the worst of the worst.” These are called “collateral arrests” and they weren’t allowed under the Biden administration. As one ICE agent described it: “Nobody gets a free pass anymore.” Immigration enforcement officials have long complained about countries that do not take their citizens back when the U.S. has determined they can be deported. Some countries don’t take back any of their citizens. Others are selective, especially when it comes to people with criminal convictions or who’ve committed particularly egregious crimes. And according to a 2001 Supreme Court ruling, ICE cannot hold someone for more than six months if there is no reasonable chance to expect they can be sent back to their home country. To get around this problem, the Trump administration has leaned on other countries to accept people who are not their own citizens. The most high profile of these deals was announced in February by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio during a trip to El Salvador. The Trump administration is trying to strip protections from hundreds of thousands of people admitted into the U.S. on a temporary basis during the Biden administration. This could eventually make those people subject to deportation. The Democratic president’s administration admitted nearly 1.5 million people through two key programs that use a legal tool known as humanitarian parole to admit people into the country. There are millions of people in the country illegally including about 1.1 million with final orders of removal but only about 6,000 deportation officers. Those are the officers tasked with finding, arresting and removing people who don’t have the right to be in the country. Through aggressive social media and television campaigns, they’re encouraging people in the country illegally to go home, saying that otherwise they could face fines and never be allowed back into America. They’re also offering $1,000 and air fare to people who self-deport. Earlier this week, the Department of Homeland Security touted the first flight of people who took up that offer to return to Honduras.

Washington Examiner [5/21/2025 11:38 AM, Bethany Blankley, 1934K] reports that a multi-agency investigation led to the arrest of 13 alleged members of Armenian organized crime syndicates operating in California and Florida. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and law enforcement officers in California and Florida arrested 13 alleged members and associates of Armenian organized crime syndicates on Tuesday, also seizing firearms, approximately $100,000 in cash and three armored vehicles. They were charged in five federal complaints for allegedly committing attempted murder, kidnapping, illegal firearm possession and over $80 million worth of theft from Amazon and its retailers. "This transnational criminal organization operated with the structure and brutality of an international cartel, inflicting significant harm on public safety and causing substantial damage to legitimate commerce and supply chains," ICE Homeland Security Investigations Los Angeles acting Deputy Special Agent in Charge Dwayne Angebrandt said. Multiple federal agencies were involved in the investigation, including Homeland Security Investigations; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General; IRS Criminal Investigation; and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Investigators with the Los Angeles Police Department Major Crimes Division – Transnational Organized Crime Section and Burbank Police Department were also heavily involved. The U.S. Attorney’s Office is prosecuting the case.

New York Post [5/21/2025 6:41 PM, Georgett Roberts and Chris Nesi, 49956K] reports acting Columbia University President Claire Shipman on Wednesday bizarrely chose to stoke the flames by acknowledging arrested ex-grad student Mahmoud Khalil at the Ivy League school’s chaotic graduation. Hoards of graduating students in the riled-up audience began chanting Khalil’s name and nearly booed Shipman off the stage throughout her remarks at the embattled university’s commencement. "We firmly believe that our international students have the same rights to freedom of speech as everyone else, and they should not be targeted by the government for exercising their right," Shipman told the crowd of nearly 37,000. "I know many in our community are mourning the absence of our graduate, Mahmoud Khalil," she said. Khalil was arrested by ICE agents at an off-campus apartment owned by the university in March and whisked away to a Louisiana migrant detention facility awaiting deportation. The Trump administration claims Khalil, who served as a spokesman for anti-Israel groups including Columbia University Apartheid Divest, engaged in activities "aligned to Hamas," the Palestinian terror group. Some students at the ceremony told The Post they felt Shipman’s shout-out of the former grad student — who helped organize on-campus protests where pro-Hamas literature was handed out — was inappropriate.

Wall Street Journal [5/21/2025 3:35 PM, Joseph Pisani and Jennifer Calfas, 646K] reports Columbia University’s acting president defended higher education and acknowledged the absence of Mahmoud Khalil during the school’s commencement ceremony, as pro-Palestinian demonstrators protested outside the school’s main gates. Acting President Claire Shipman was greeted by roars and boos as she addressed Wednesday’s graduation crowd and briefly mentioned Khalil, who was arrested by immigration authorities in March while still a graduate student. Khalil, who remains detained at an ICE facility in Louisiana, finished his credit requirements and had planned to walk in the graduation ceremony, according to his lawyer. Shipman told the nearly 16,000 Columbia graduates that academic institutions are pillars of a healthy democracy and must be protected. “We firmly believe that our international students have the same rights to freedom of speech as everyone else and they should not be targeted by the government for exercising that right,” Shipman said in her remarks. Outside the gates of Columbia’s campus Wednesday, about 100 demonstrators tussled with the New York Police Department as they attempted to disrupt the graduation ceremony. A line of police pushed people back, stopping protesters holding Palestinian flags from crossing the street. Two people were arrested and issued desk appearance tickets, a New York Police Department spokeswoman said. A Columbia spokesperson said the university planned commencement events for months, and they were successful. Security was tight Wednesday, with metal barricades surrounding the school. Rows of tables were set up for visitors to have their bags checked. Flags, signs and noisemakers were banned from the event. An announcement ahead of the graduation ceremony reminded attendees that interruptions to the event weren’t allowed.

Washington Times [5/21/2025 5:56 PM, Matt Delaney, 2106K] reports Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin slammed Arlington County on Wednesday for breaking an agreement with immigration authorities, a week after the county just outside of the nation’s capital voted to stop alerting federal agents when they arrest migrants accused of violent crimes. Mr. Youngkin, a Republican, delivered the broadside while celebrating the arrest of more than 1,000 illegal immigrants suspected of major crimes as part of an ongoing operation by the Virginia Homeland Security Task Force. "I want to challenge jurisdictions like Arlington County," he said while standing beside U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi. "The federal resources, the state resources are going to work to take these violent criminals off the streets … You should be part of the solution as opposed to standing in the way.” The governor said members of Salvadoran gang MS-13 and Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua are among those captured by the task force. Virginia’s state police and correctional officials, and the FBI, DEA, ATF, and U.S. Marshals make up the partnership that came about following President Trump’s return to the White House. Mr. Youngkin’s comments were spurred by Arlington County’s vote last week to end voluntary cooperation with the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.

NBC News [5/21/2025 5:10 PM, Daniella Silva, Priya Sridhar and Dan Gallo, 44540K] reports a 19-year-old college student in Georgia, who was detained by immigration authorities after police pulled over the wrong car in a traffic stop, was granted bond on Wednesday. Ximena Arias-Cristobal was held in a detention center under the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement in western Georgia while her lawyer and family fought for her release. She was detained after she was pulled over by the Dalton Police Department on May 5 and accused of making an improper turn and driving without a proper license. A week later, all charges against her were dropped after the department said police had pulled over the wrong car. But ICE kept Arias-Cristobal in detention because the agency determined she was in the United States illegally. Arias-Cristobal was born in Mexico but has lived in the United States since she was 4 years old. The Dalton State Community College student did not qualify for protections under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) established in 2012 because she was brought to the U.S. after new applications were stopped, following lawsuits by Republican states trying to end the program. She now faces deportation proceedings. On Wednesday, Arias-Cristobal was granted the minimal amount of bond possible under the law, $1,500, her lawyer Dustin Baxter said. The government did not appeal the judge’s bond order, according to Baxter. Her father, José Arias Tovar, had been held in the same detention center after he was pulled over in a separate traffic stop a couple of weeks earlier. The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement Wednesday that the facts of the case remain unchanged. "Both father and daughter were in this country illegally," Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. "The United States is offering aliens like this father and daughter $1,000 apiece and a free flight to self-deport now. We encourage every person here illegally to take advantage of this offer and reserve the chance to come back to the U.S. the right legal way to live the American dream. If not, you will be arrested and deported without a chance to return."

Reported similarly:
Washington Post [5/21/2025 4:51 PM, Praveena Somasundaram and Anumita Kaur, 32099K]
ABC News [5/21/2025 3:32 PM, Meredith Deliso, 31733K]
CBS News [5/21/2025 4:30 PM, Camilo Montoya-Galvez, 51860K]
(B) NBC News Daily [5/21/2025 3:06 PM, Staff]
Telemundo [5/21/2025 5:56 PM, Staff, 3352K] r

New York Post [5/21/2025 7:42 AM, Patrick Reilly, 49956K] reports a Florida middle school teacher is facing deportation after being charged with allegedly showing a teenage student a nude photograph of himself and asking for one in return, according to police. Federal immigration officials have been notified about the case of Jonathan Rowe, a 45-year-old math teacher and Jamaican national, after he was arrested for showing a 15-year-old boy images of his genitals on his phone last week, according to the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office. The teenager told investigators he was in Rowe’s classroom at Explorer K-8 in Spring Hill on Tuesday last week for a planning period when he asked the teacher if he could see a photo they’d previously taken together in the classroom. As he scrolled through the phone, Rowe would “stop on photos of what the student believed was Rowe’s genitalia,” according to the sheriff’s office. Rowe was arrested at his Spring Hill home and charged with showing obscene material to a minor and unlawful use of a two-way device — both felonies in Florida. Police notified the Department of Homeland Security and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) of Rowe’s arrest to obtain a detainer, or immigrant hold, “which starts the deportation process” once he’s turned over to ICE, according to the sheriff’s office. Rowe had been working in the US on a J-1 visa, which allows foreigners to enter the country for education or exchange programs.

Reported similarly:
NewsNation [5/21/2025 9:41 AM, Sierra Rains, 5801K]

NBC News [5/21/2025 1:18 PM, Staff, 44540K] reports that a federal agent involved in the raid of Sean Combs’ Miami mansion testifying in the rap mogul’s sex trafficking trial told jurors about guns, drugs and other evidence found in the home. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

CBS News [5/21/2025 5:04 PM, Sarah Lynch Baldwin, 51860K] reports ICE officials and a prison contractor have refused to grant a contact visit between Mahmoud Khalil and his family, according to the American Civil Liberties Union, denying him the chance to hold his newborn son. The boy was born last month while Khalil, a Columbia University graduate student and Palestinian activist, remained in ICE custody in Louisiana. "After flying over a thousand miles to Louisiana with our newborn son, his very first flight, all so his father could finally hold him in his arms, ICE has denied us even this most basic human right," his wife, Noor Abdalla, said in a news release from the nonprofit civil rights organization on Wednesday. "This is not just heartless. It is deliberate violence, the calculated cruelty of a government that tears families apart without remorse.” The ACLU said the refusal by ICE and the prison contractor GEO Group came after multiple requests from Khalil’s legal team pointing to federal policies that encourage contact visits between children and their detained parents. Officials, they said, cited "a blanket no-contact visitation policy at the Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center (CLIPC) and unspecified ‘security concerns’ relating to the presence of a mother and newborn baby in an unsecure part of the facility.” Khalil’s detention is part of the Trump administration’s targeting of student protesters with green cards or student visas, which has raised questions about their First Amendment rights.

New York Times [5/21/2025 7:44 PM, Jonah E. Bromwich, 138952K] reports that, on Wednesday evening, hours before the latest immigration hearing in the case of Mahmoud Khalil, the Trump administration was in the midst of pitched battle to prevent Mr. Khalil from holding his 1-month-old son. Lawyers for Mr. Khalil, a Columbia University graduate who was a leading figure in pro-Palestinian protests on the campus, have been fighting for days to win him what is known as a “contact visit” with his wife and child. Mr. Khalil, who is being detained in Louisiana, has not seen his wife, Dr. Noor Abdalla, in person since he was arrested in March, and has never met their son, Deen, who was born on April 21. On Wednesday, a New Jersey judge, Michael E. Farbiarz, ordered the administration to allow Mr. Khalil to hold a single joint meeting with his wife and his lawyers. But it was unclear whether the judge’s order would permit Mr. Khalil to meet his son, given Trump officials’ reluctance to allow such a visit. “Granting Khalil this relief of family visitation would effectively grant him a privilege that no other detainee receives,” Justice Department officials wrote in a court filing on Wednesday. “Allowing Dr. Abdalla and a newborn to attend a legal meeting would turn a legal visitation into a family one.” Their filing also included an affidavit from Brian Acuna, the acting director of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office in New Orleans. “Because the facility does not house female detainees or minors, it is unsafe to allow Mr. Khalil’s wife and newborn child into a secured part of the facility,” Mr. Acuna wrote, adding that a contact visit had “never been offered to any other detainee.” Mr. Khalil’s lawyers said in court filings that the administration’s refusal to allow the family to touch was “further evidence of the retaliatory motive behind Mr. Khalil’s arrest and faraway detention as well as the ongoing punitive nature of his detention.” Mr. Khalil, Dr. Abdalla and their infant son “are, as all the evidence in this case demonstrates, the farthest thing from a security risk,” the lawyers wrote.

FOX News [5/21/2025 6:01 AM, Greg Wehner and Bill Melugin, 46878K] reports a 24-year-old illegal immigrant from Venezuela was arrested in Perrysburg, Ohio, after he allegedly enrolled in a public high school using fraudulent documents. Court records show that 24-year-old Anthony Emmanuel Labrador Sierra has been charged with forgery, and he is being held on $50,000 bond. The Perrysburg Police Department said it was contacted by the Perrysburg Local Schools on Monday about possible fraudulent activity involving one of its students. After a preliminary investigation, a fraud case was established and handed over to the department’s detectives for further investigation. Detectives worked with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and it was discovered that Labrador was a 24-year-old from Venezuela. Investigators also learned Labrador Sierra used fraudulent documents to enroll in Perrysburg Schools and was posing as a 16-year-old student. Perrysburg School officials said in a statement obtained by Fox News Digital that Labrador Sierra had been enrolled at Perrysburg High School under the name and age of a 16-year-old unaccompanied minor on Jan. 11, 2024, in accordance with federal and state requirements for enrolling students experiencing homelessness or without a legal guardian. Breitbart [5/21/2025 8:38 AM, Bob Price, 3077K] reports that the Venezuelan migrant was illegally present in the United States after his visa expired in 2023. A Perrysburg family with adopted children took the man, claiming to be a 16-year-old boy, into their home, WTVG ABC13 reported. Labrador’s plans came unraveled when a woman claiming to be the mother of his son contacted the family and told them he was a 24-year-old father. She provided the family with an Ohio license, revealing his age of 24. His actual name on the license was Anthony Emmanuel Labrador Sierra. The family contacted the police to report the alleged fraud, WTOL CBS11 reported. Perrysburg police officers contacted U.S. Border Patrol agents, who reported that Labrador had a visa that expired in 2023. The agents said the Venezuelan migrant overstayed his visa. The Blaze [5/21/2025 4:55 PM, Carlos Garcia, 1805K] reports that [Labrador] also claimed to be a victim of human trafficking and presented the school with a birth certificate from the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela that showed a birthdate in 2007. He started attending the school in Jan. 2024, according to police. When police reached out to U.S. Border Patrol, the agency confirmed that Labrador had an actual birthdate from 2001 and an expired work visa. Border Patrol also said that Labrador was considered a visa overstay. Police arrested Labrador on Monday on felony forgery charges. The Daily Wire [5/21/2025 3:25 PM, Leif Le Mahieu, 3816K] reports Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told The Daily Wire that it had confirmed that Sierra was a 24-year-old illegal alien from Venezuela, and placed the detainer to make sure he remains behind bars. “ICE lodged a detainer to ensure that this criminal illegal alien is removed from this community and no longer able to prey on the students of Perrysburg High School,” McLaughlin told The Daily Wire. “It is disturbing that a grown man would impersonate a teenager and surround himself with underage girls and boys and fool them into doing God knows what.” Sierra was charged on Monday with forgery charges after the Perrysburg School District revealed that Sierra used forged documents to obtain legal guardianship, a Social Security number, an Ohio driver’s license, and Temporary Protected Status from deportation.

Reported similarly:
New York Post [5/21/2025 5:54 PM, Jared Downing, 49956K]
CNN [5/21/2025 5:52 PM, Andi Babineau, 21433K]

(B) CBS Mornings [5/21/2025 8:25 AM, Staff] reports that a Venezuelan man is behind bars, accused of posing as a student at Perrysburg High School for more than a year. Perrysburg Police 24-year-old Anthony Emmanuel Labrador Sierra used fraudulent documents to enroll in the school district in November of 2023, staying with a family who took him in. According to police, the family was contacted by a woman last week who said Labrador Sierra was the father of her child. They then alerted Perrysburg schools which contacted police and opened up a fraud case with help from US Customs and Border Protection and ICE. Labrador Sierra is pleading not guilty to felony forgery and set to be back in court next week.

Univision Chicago WGBO [5/21/2025 6:00 PM, Staff, 4992K] reports Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced the arrest of Ricardo Granadillo Padilla and Edward Martínez Cermeno, Venezuelan citizens, suspected of participating in a mass shooting in Chicago. The mass shooting occurred on December 2, 2024, during a party at a residence in Chicago’s Lawn neighborhood. Three men were killed, and five more people were injured, Chicago police reported at the time. ICE says the arrests of both migrants are part of an operation targeting members of the Tren de Aragua criminal organization, which originated in Venezuela. One of the suspects, Ricardo Granadillo Padilla, 25, was arrested on February 8, 2025, in Raleigh, North Carolina, by ICE agents and other federal agencies, the statement said. Granadillo Padilla had previously been sentenced for illegally entering the United States in 2022 near El Paso, Texas. The other suspect, Edward Martinez Cermeno, 24, was arrested on January 26, 2025, in Schaumburg, Illinois. Martinez was released by a federal judge and re-arrested by ICE on immigration charges related to his illegal presence in the country. He faces criminal charges for illegally entering the United States in 2023 near Eagle Pass, Texas, the ICE report states. In addition to the arrests of Granadillo Padilla and Martínez Cermeno, ICE reported that in recent weeks they arrested 16 additional members of the Tren de Aragua gang in the Chicago and Raleigh, North Carolina areas on immigration charges. Jon Carlos Blancarcer, 28, Hector Sajo, 26, and Osmer Angel Ferrer Oria, 32, are the three men who lost their lives when the shooting occurred in the basement of a residence located in the 3500 block of West 59th Street, according to Chicago Police.

Breitbart.com [5/21/2025 4:14 PM, Hannah Knudsen, 3077K] reports U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested an illegal immigrant wanted in connection to a deadly DUI crash, which resulted in the death of a Minneapolis mother, despite local authorities refusing to honor the suspect’s ICE detainers not once, but twice. The fatal, head-on crash occurred on August 2, 2024. The suspect, German Adriano Llangari Inga, is said to have crossed a double yellow line crashing into another vehicle head-on, according to the criminal complaint. The vehicle he hit — a Dodge Durango — was carrying three individuals — two adults and a teenager. The adult driver, later identified as Victoria Eileen Harwell, died at the hospital. The other two individuals in the car were said to be her sister and daughter. Court documents indicate that officers could smell "a strong odor of alcohol" from the Ecuadorian illegal immigrant. His blood alcohol level was .172 — twice the legal limit. He was charged with vehicular homicide, and ICE placed a detainer for Llangari Inga two days after the incident. However, Homeland Security states that "the Hennepin County Jail refused to honor the detainer, and he was released without notification to ICE on August 6, 2024." Llangari Inga was arrested again on May 10, 2025 "on an outstanding warrant for vehicular homicide by the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office and ICE placed a detainer the same day." Yet, he was released yet again on May 13 with no notification to ICE. ICE finally arrested Llangari Inga once and for all on May 16, 2025. Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement that ICE was able to successfully arrest the criminal illegal alien "despite a lack of cooperation from local Minnesota authorities."

CBS Chicago [5/21/2025 5:59 PM, Sara Tenenbaum and Suzanne Le Mignot, 51860K] Video: HERE reports U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Wednesday that they arrested two Venezuelan nationals with ties to the Tres de Aragua gang in connection with a Chicago mass shooting in December. Three people were killed and five more were injured in the shooting at birthday party at a home in the Chicago Lawn neighborhood on Dec. 2, 2024. Police were called to the scene in the 3500 block of West 59th Street around 2:10 p.m. that day, where they found four men and four women between the ages of 20 and 35 with gunshot wounds. Three of the four men were killed. They were identified as 28-year-old Jon Carlos Blancarcer, 26-year-old Hector Sajo, and 32-year-old Osmer Angel Ferrer Oria. "I got home from work, and I seen a lot of people at the house — it was like over 20 people — and shortly after, I started hearing shots — very loud shots — maybe, I don’t know, I can’t recall how many," neighbor El Towers told CBS News Chicago after the shooting. "It seems like it was a party. There’s always people at that house partying.” ICE said Edward Martinez Cermeno ended the party that day by shooting it up. "It’s a devastating tragedy that happened, Ald. Jeylu Gutierrez (14th) said after the shooting, speaking for the whole community.

Houston Chronicle [5/21/2025 1:28 PM, Caroline Wilburn, 1982K] reports that more than 60 people flew from Houston to Central and South America this week on a pilot flight of the new U.S. Department of Homeland Security initiative Project Homecoming, which offers free flights and $1,000 stipends to immigrants who voluntarily leave the United States, or "self-deport," according to federal officials. A group of 38 people, including 19 Honduran adults and 19 children — four of whom were born in the U.S. — arrived at Ramón Villeda Morales International Airport on Monday afternoon, the Associated Press reported. In addition to funds from the U.S. government, participants received food vouchers, assistance in finding in employment and an additional $100 bonus for those over 18, as part of the Honduran government’s "Hermano, Hermana, Vuelve a Casa" program, U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials said in a news release. An additional 26 participants aboard the flight also returned to Colombia. They were provided with social services from the Family Welfare Institute (ICBF) and the Department of Social Prosperity in Colombia, according to the department. The DHS declined to provide names of people who departed through the program and information about possible future flights.

NewsNation [5/21/2025 3:28 PM, Mario Gonzalez, 5801K] reports agents with the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics (OBN) Human Trafficking Unit arrested a suspect accused of trafficking a juvenile, maintaining a house of prostitution, and child neglect. According to OBN, on Monday, May 19, their Human Trafficking Unit found an online commercial sex advertisement, which contained images of a juvenile female through the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC). Agents with OBN were able to find evidence within the advertisement that indicated that there was a second potential victim. During the investigation, agents identified 23-year-old Jakitra Watson as the person who promoted and facilitated the commercial sex trafficking of the juvenile, according to OBN. OBN says the juvenile victim and small children were released to DHS for custody. Watson was arrested for alleged human trafficking of a minor, maintaining a house of prostitution, and child neglect.

Telemundo [5/21/2025 10:25 PM, Karla Gonzalez, 37K] reports that, due to the socialist regime and corruption in Venezuela, José’s family says that this led him to seek political asylum in the United States. For fear of reprisals, his relative asks not to be identified. "It is a country where all of us who have been politically persecuted feel safe because there is separation of powers," the young man’s uncle told Telemundo 20.  José, 22, was part of the National Guard in that country, and after only 5 months of being in the U.S., this Wednesday he was detained by ICE agents when he was leaving the courtroom minutes after his deportation order had been canceled. His lawyer, Michael Hirman, told how surprised he was as the handcuffs were placed on him, and that in more than 20 years of his career he had never experienced this situation. "We feel very disappointed, we feel not only sad but we feel cheated because we did everything possible to be within the framework of the law," said the young man’s uncle. Jose entered the country in January while the CBP One application was still operating and obtained authorization to stay in the U.S. for two years, but later received a deportation letter. His legal representative indicated that this seems to him to be a "lazy" and unfair way of wanting to expel people from the United States. "We are a family that is going through this, but we are not the only ones, there are many who are silent, there are many who are going through this and silently do not say it out of fear," said the uncle. In all this time in the U.S., Jose has been studying English and also recently found love. His family’s greatest fear is that he will be deported to Venezuela, where deserters are rigorously persecuted and could even face death upon his return. His family hopes that the U.S. government will conduct a credible fear interview. So far ICE has not responded to our request for information about this Venezuelan immigrant’s case. "We believe in liberties, we believe in the separation of powers, we believe in the rule of law, but we do not believe in these arbitrary measures," added Jose’s family member. Jose’s hearing will be held next Tuesday, May 27 at the ICE Detention Center in Otay, where his family and his attorney hope he can be released on bond and continue with his political asylum process.

Houston Chronicle [5/21/2025 9:00 AM, Sam González Kelly, 1982K] reports a Venezuelan man believed to have been deported to El Salvador remains unaccounted for after the U.S. attorney’s office said it is unable to provide information about his health and whereabouts — despite a Houston’s judge’s order to do so. At a pre-trial hearing on Monday afternoon, District Court Judge Keith Ellison gave the government 24 hours to provide evidence of Widmer Josneyder Agelviz Sanguino’s location and health and explain the basis for his continued detention. He later granted the U.S. Attorney’s Office an extension until 11:59 p.m. On Tuesday night, the government’s lawyers filed a declaration from Michael Kozak, senior bureau official for the State Department’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs. Kozak said he was unable to learn any specific information regarding Agelviz Sanguino’s whereabouts or wellbeing, according to a copy of the filing obtained by the Houston Chronicle. Kozak said that the U.S. Embassy in El Salvador "made an inquiry with relevant contacts in the Salvadoran government" but had not received a response as of Tuesday afternoon. "It is my understanding that the Venezuelan nationals transferred from the United States to El Salvador continue to be detained pursuant to Salvadoran domestic law," Kozak wrote. Agelviz Sanguino’s attorney, Javier Rivera, said he was frustrated by the lack of clarity.

Univision [5/21/2025 7:43 PM, Staff, 4992K] reports at least 50 of the Venezuelan immigrants deported by the Donald Trump administration to the “mega-jail” in El Salvador entered the United States legally, according to an investigation published this week by the Cato Institute, a right-wing think tank. The report concludes that these immigrants never violated U.S. immigration laws and thus contradicts the version of the White House, which has always assured that the deportees are undocumented and criminals. “These individuals arrived in the U.S. with prior permission from the U.S. government, were screened prior to arrival, did not violate any U.S. immigration laws, and the government dispatched them without due process and sent them to a foreign prison,” reads the Washington, D.C.-based think tank’s report. Despite a judge’s order prohibiting it, the Trump administration in March sent two planes carrying nearly 240 Venezuelan immigrants to the notorious “mega-jail” in El Salvador after invoking the 1798 Alien Enemies Act and issuing an executive order calling the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang an “invading force.” The deportees, however, have not been formally charged, much less convicted, for being members of this group. The conclusion of the Cato Institute report is based on 90 immigrants for whom it is known how they entered the US. The number of those who entered legally could therefore be higher than 50, given that it has not been possible to analyze the rest of the cases due to the government’s lack of transparency when it comes to publishing information on deportees. The list of names of the deported Venezuelans, in fact, was initially leaked by CBS News, although the government has neither confirmed nor denied it. Therefore, the think tank had to conduct its study by compiling information provided by family members and confirming it through official US entry documents, witness statements and government statements.

Reported similarly:
Telemundo [5/21/2025 2:19 PM, Staff, 3352K]

Blaze [5/21/2025 4:40 PM, Candace Hathaway, 1805K] reports China-linked sources have allegedly funded a nongovernmental organization that was accused of instructing illegal aliens on how to evade Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, according to a Tuesday report. A Daily Caller News Foundation investigation discovered that Chinese government sources bankrolled the Chinese-American Planning Council, a nonprofit group founded in 1965. According to the organization’s website, it is dedicated to promoting "the social and economic empowerment of Chinese American, immigrant, and low-income communities." However, the NGO has previously been accused of helping illegal aliens evade immigration authorities and facilitating unlawful immigration with federal funding.

Bloomberg [5/21/2025 1:35 PM, Ellen M. Gilmer, 111K] reports that Joseph Edlow, President Donald Trump’s pick to oversee legal immigration, wants US Citizenship and Immigration Services to be seen as an enforcement agency if confirmed to lead it. "I will restore integrity within the legal immigration system," Edlow testified Wednesday before the Senate Judiciary Committee, where he fielded questions about immigrant vetting, asylum backlogs, and "Dreamers" who arrived in the US as children. The agency must play "as critical a role" in enforcement as other Department of Homeland Security agencies, including Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he said. Edlow is poised to play a key position.

Los Angeles Times [5/21/2025 11:22 AM, Kevin Baxter, 14672K] reports a bipartisan group of Congressional representatives are calling on Secretary of State Marco Rubio to streamline the government’s visa processing system to ensure visitors from abroad will be able to attend next year’s FIFA World Cup as well as the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. The World Cup, which kicks off in less than 400 days, is expected to generate $3.75 billion in economic activity in the U.S. With SoFi Stadium in Inglewood hosting eight games, the economic impact on Southern California is estimated at nearly $600 million. But cost-cutting measures proposed by Rubio could threaten that by reducing staff and closing some embassies and consulates, increasing visa wait times and making an already cumbersome system more complicated and costly. That could keep tens of thousands of fans at home. Even without the changes, six countries have at least one U.S. diplomatic post with visa wait times that extend beyond the start of the World Cup. Earlier this month President Trump held the first meeting of a White House task force charged with overseeing what the president called “the biggest, safest and most extraordinary soccer tournament in history.” But the administration has sent mixed signals over exactly how welcoming it intends to be. At that meeting attended by FIFA president Gianni Infantino, Vice President JD Vance — co-chair of the task force — said the U.S. wants foreign visitors “to come, we want them to celebrate, we want them to watch the games. But when the time is up we want them to go home, otherwise they will have to talk to Secretary Noem.” He referred to Homeland Security secretary Kristi Noem, whose agency has detained and interrogated visa holders at U.S. points of entry.

CNN [5/21/2025 7:05 PM, Samantha Delouya, 21433K] reports foreign nationals with $5 million to spare will soon be able to register for a new "gold card" visa that would give them the right to live and work permanently in the United States, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on Wednesday. "I expect there will be a website up called ‘Trump card dot gov’ in about a week," Lutnick said at Axios’ "Building the Future" event in Washington, DC, on Wednesday. "The details of that will come soon after, but people can start to register.” Further information about the visa program will come in the next few weeks, he added. Lutnick has said the card would replace the government’s EB-5 immigrant investor visa program, which grants green cards to immigrants who make a comparatively smaller investment of $1.8 million into the US or $900,000 into economically distressed zones. On Wednesday, Lutnick suggested there is already strong interest in the new visa program, saying that on a recent trip to the Middle East he was already "selling" cards. "Basically, everyone I meet who is not an American is going to want to buy this card if they have the fiscal capacity," Lutnick said. The new "gold card" visa program was first proposed in February by President Donald Trump. "We’re going to be putting a price on that card of about $5 million and that’s going to give you green card privileges, plus it’s going to be a route to citizenship. And wealthy people will be coming into our country by buying this card," Trump said from the Oval Office in February. Immigration law experts have warned that creating a new visa requires approval from Congress, though. On Wednesday, Lutnick said the "gold card" program could help pay down the US federal debt, which currently totals over $36 trillion.

Reported similarly:
FOX News [5/21/2025 10:12 PM, Greg Wehner, 46878K]

CBS Austin [5/21/2025 10:57 AM, Jackson Walker, 558K] reports Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., on Tuesday announced the introduction of a new bill, which she said would block foreign adversaries from "buying" American citizenship. The Ban Birth Tourism Act would amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to prevent "birth tourism" as a valid basis for receiving a temporary visitor visa. Birth tourism, the senator claimed, is a "multi-million-dollar industry" in which pregnant foreigners travel to the U.S. to give birth, granting their child full American citizenship. "Foreign nationals have been exploiting our nation’s immigration laws for far too long, taking advantage of the system to come to the United States for the sole purpose of giving birth to obtain U.S. citizenship for their children," Sen. Blackburn said. "The Ban Birth Tourism Act would prevent foreign nationals, including those from adversaries like Communist China and Russia, from buying American citizenship for their children. As President Trump works to end birthright citizenship, we need to get this bill to his desk.”

Breitbart [5/21/2025 10:52 PM, Staff, 3077K] reports Denis Caldeira says he is in legal limbo since the US Supreme Court let the Trump administration strip him and 350,000 other Venezuelans of a special legal status that shielded them from deportation. "I have to go out and work. I can’t stay shut in at home. Obviously I am afraid but there is nothing I can do," Caldeira, who has been in the US for four years, said in the Miami suburb of Doral, where 40 percent of the population is from Venezuela. Caldeira, a 47-year-old employee of an export company, had temporary protected status (TPS), which can be granted to foreign citizens who cannot safely return home because of war, natural disasters or other "extraordinary" conditions. Joe Biden extended TPS for Venezuelans for 18 months just days before Trump returned to the White House in January, citing economic and other crises in the South American country under authoritarian socialist ruler Nicolas Maduro. Maduro is accused of stealing Venezuela’s last election to start a third six-year term in power. He has presided over the collapse of the oil-rich country’s economy, which is saddled with shortages of food, medicine and other basics. Millions have fled in recent years. But Trump — whom many Americans of Venezuelan heritage voted for in the 2024 election — revoked the TPS extension while an appeal proceeds in a lower court. A judge in California put a stay on the administration’s plans in March. But on Monday the Supreme Court voted to let Trump proceed and eliminate TPS protection for Venezuelans. "Since his term started there has been a kind of persecution of Venezuelans in particular," Caldeira told AFP as he sat in El Arepazo, a popular Venezuelan restaurant in Doral. The city, where Trump operates a golf course, is known locally as Doralzuela because it is home to so many Venezuelans. Sitting around Caldeira, many people said they do not understand how Trump included them in his aggressive campaign to rid America of undocumented migrants. "Most Venezuelan-Americans voted for him thinking he was going to be much tougher against the Maduro regime, that he was going to remove him from power — not that he would end up removing Venezuelans from the United States," said Jose Antonio Colina, president of an organization of Venezuelan exiles. "There is a huge contradiction because if the US intelligence services assessed that Venezuela is a country where human rights are not respected, how can he send back there thousands of people who left precisely due to political persecution," Colina mused. Maduro himself criticized the Trump administration’s insistence on removing TPS for Venezuelans. "Migrating is not a crime. Removing TPS is a crime," Maduro said.

NBC News [5/21/2025 5:02 PM, Mekahlo Medina, 44540K] reports despite his undocumented status, Francisco Hernandez-Corona, 34, and his U.S. citizen husband, Irving Hernandez-Corona, never thought they would leave the United States. But the new administration changed all that when it came in in January, according to the couple. They fled to Mexico’s west coast, flying into Puerto Vallarta three weeks ago, where they say they finally felt safe and wanted. He later didn’t renew DACA since he filed for a Violence Against Women (VAWA) visa; he and his mom were victims of abuse by his dad, he said, adding his parents had divorced. But Francisco said processing of the VAWA visas have been delayed by more than a decade. And because he technically re-entered the country illegally when he was forced to cross the border at 10 — his mom had brought him on a tourist visa when he was 6 and she had overstayed their visit — Francisco was told he’d be barred from returning to the U.S. After marrying Irving last year, he thought there might be a way to fix his status but his attorneys instead recommended they cancel their honeymoon to Puerto Rico, fearing Francisco might be detained at some point. That’s when the couple decided to self-deport.

NPR [5/21/2025 1:48 PM, Yonat Shimron, 37958K] reports the 12×30-foot storage unit in a Raleigh, North Carolina, suburb is crammed full of chairs, tables, mattresses, lamps, pots and pans. Most of its contents will soon be hauled off to two apartments that Welcome House Raleigh is furnishing for three newly arrived refugees. It’s a job the ministry, which is a project of the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of North Carolina, has handled countless times on behalf of newly arrived refugees from such places as Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Syria and Venezuela. But these two apartments are going to three Afrikaners — whose status as refugees is, according to many faith-based groups and others, highly controversial. Last week, Marc Wyatt, director of Welcome House Raleigh, received a call from the North Carolina field office of the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants asking if he could help furnish the apartments for the refugees, among the 59 Afrikaners who arrived in the U.S. last week from South Africa, he told RNS. . It was a common request for the ministry that partners with refugee resettlement agencies to provide temporary housing and furniture for people in need. And at the same time, the request was extremely challenging. After thinking about it, consulting with the Welcome House network director and asking for feedback from ministry volunteers, Wyatt said yes. "Our position is that however morally and ethically charged it is, our mandate is to help welcome and love people," said Wyatt, a retired Cooperative Baptist Fellowship missionary who now works for CBF North Carolina. "Our holy book says God loves people. We don’t get to discriminate.”

FOX Business [5/21/2025 5:17 PM, Greg Wehner, 49956K] reports the Walt Disney Company has put dozens of Florida-based Venezuelan employees on unpaid leave as they face the possibility of losing Temporary Protected Status (TPS) as soon as next month, according to reports. Bloomberg reported that Disney notified the employees on Tuesday that their jobs will be terminated next month because of a ruling from the Supreme Court that allows the Trump administration to revoke protections in the US for some 350,000 Venezuelans. The workers were reportedly told they were being placed on 30-day unpaid leave beginning May 20. If any of the employees are not able to provide the company with new work authorization by the end of the 30 days, Disney reportedly told them they will be fired. A Disney spokesperson told FOX Business that about 45 cast members were placed on leave. "As we sort out the complexities of this situation, we have placed affected employees on leave with benefits to ensure they are not in violation of the law," the spokesperson said in an email. "We are committed to protecting the health, safety, and well-being of all our employees who may be navigating changing immigration policies and how they could impact them or their families.” The move comes after the Supreme Court agreed on Monday to lift a lower court injunction that blocked President Donald Trump’s decision to terminate the protected legal status of hundreds of thousands of migrants living in the US. The decision clears the way for the Trump administration to move forward with plans to terminate Biden administration-era TPS protections for hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan migrants living in the US. It also allows the administration to move forward with plans to immediately remove those migrants, which lawyers for the administration argued they should be able to do. The protections were extended during the end of the Biden administration, shortly before Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in February terminated the program for a specific group of Venezuelan nationals, arguing they were not in National Interest.

Reported similarly:
Los Angeles Times [5/21/2025 4:12 PM, Fabiola Zerpa, 14672K]

CNN [5/21/2025 6:11 AM, Nimi Princewill, 21433K] reports a group of 59 White South Africans arrived in the United States last week after being granted refugee status by the White House, which has fast-tracked the processing of Afrikaner refugees but paused refugee applications for other nationalities. On Wednesday, South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa is set to meet his US counterpart Donald Trump in Washington, seeking a reset in relations with the United States. Ties between both nations have been fraught since Trump froze aid to South Africa in February over claims it was mistreating its minority White population. The South African government said "reframing bilateral, economic and commercial relations" was the specific focus of Ramaphosa’s US visit. Ramaphosa said that the White South Africans arriving in the US "do not fit the bill" for having refugee status as someone who is leaving their country out of fear of persecution. But as thousands more Afrikaners hope for admission to the US, others insist they have no need of refugee status but want America’s help instead to tackle a wave of violent crime in South Africa, or even to establish an autonomous state within a state. Joost Strydom leads the group of White South Africans who have dismissed the US’ offer of asylum, and heads Orania, a separatist "Afrikaner-only" settlement in the country’s Northern Cape. "Help us here," he said his message was to Trump, whom he hopes will recognize Orania’s quest for self-determination. "We don’t want to leave here," he told CNN. "We don’t want to be refugees in the US."

Daily Wire [5/21/2025 12:13 PM, Kassy Akiva, 3816K] reports that President Donald Trump welcomed South African President Cyril Ramaphosa to the White House on Wednesday, amid controversy over the Trump administration’s acceptance of white South African refugees. "Hello, nice to see you," Trump said before turning to take a picture with Ramaphosa upon welcoming him outside the Oval Office. The Afrikaner farmers came to the United States, alleging they are the victims of a genocide in their country. The Trump administration accepted 49 farmers - who arrived in the United States on a U.S.-chartered flight earlier this month - through an expedited program. Democrats have denied that Afrikaners are being persecuted for their race, and have criticized the Trump administration for resettling the refugees in the United States. Trump pushed back on those criticisms last week, saying the refugees "happen to be white, but whether they’re white or black makes no difference to me." "White farmers are being brutally killed and their land is being confiscated in South Africa, and the newspapers and the television media doesn’t even talk about it," the president added. Trump and Ramaphosa will have a bilateral lunch followed by an Oval Office meeting, where Elon Musk is expected to be present, Axios reported. Musk, a South African native, has been a vocal critic of its current government.

Washington Post [5/21/2025 1:58 PM, Cleve R. Wootson Jr., Matt Viser, and Lesley Wroughton, 32099K] reports that President Donald Trump pressed South African President Cyril Ramaphosa to protect White Afrikaner farmers from violent attacks in an extraordinary Oval Office confrontation Wednesday in which it fell to others to remind Trump of the nation’s long-standing epidemic of violence against both White and Black people. Trump amplified false claims that White Afrikaners have been victims of a genocide, even showing video of crosses and earthen mounds that he said represented more than 1,000 grave sites of murdered farmers. The mounds were in fact part of a protest against the violence, not actual graves. Trump also made no mention of South Africa’s violent and discriminatory history of White rule before the end of apartheid. While Ramaphosa and several of his deputies agreed with Trump that curbing violence should be a priority, they also noted that it is a problem across all of South Africa, not just in rural areas and certainly not just against White people. And they rejected Trump’s claim that the government is responsible for the murder of White farmers, a group he has characterized as victims of violence and of discriminatory laws.

FOX News [5/21/2025 5:44 PM, Preston Mizell, 46878K] reports in an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital, Trump border czar Tom Homan outlined the progress that has been made at the border, and detailed how the president’s "big beautiful bill" could solidify items that have improved border security. According to data from the Customs and Border Patrol (CBP), apprehensions at the border are down 93% from April 2024 to April 2025 under the Trump administration. Fulfilling the president’s campaign promise to reign in the heightened flow of illegal immigrants has been one of the administration’s top priorities, and Homan told Fox the "big beautiful bill" will "solidify the success" the numbers are already illustrating. Trump’s border czar also pointed out an important element of the legislation, which provides funding for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to purchase beds for illegal migrants who are detained. The president’s "big beautiful bill" contains many components of Trump’s agenda, including border security, tax policy, debt limit, and defense spending. It has had issues making it through the legislative process as some House Republicans have advocated for provisions such as state and local tax (SALT) deduction caps and spending cuts.

NewsMax [5/21/2025 2:14 PM, Theodore Bunker, 4622K] reports that Border Patrol agents and a legislator whose district sits along the U.S.-Canadian border told the Washington Examiner this week that technological improvements would help maintain security more than a physical wall along the northern border. Multiple personnel from U.S. Customs and Border Protection told the Examiner during a tour of the border in Upstate New York that technological improvements, specifically the use of drones, ground sensors, and cameras, are more useful for border protection than a physical barrier would be. The 1,950-mile southern border is partially covered by 750 miles of wall, but the northern border is roughly twice that size and has thousands fewer personnel assigned to maintain security in addition to the geographical issues with building physical barriers, which Republicans reportedly discussed constructing last year. "There are parts where, look, a wall isn’t going to stop people," said Rep. Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., told the Examiner. "What it does is slows them down so that the Border Protection can get time to get to people and find people that might actually be committing crimes or trafficking either people. It’s a little trickier with the weather conditions and also with these waterways.” Scott Good, the chief of Border Patrol’s Law Enforcement Operations Directorate in Washington, told the Examiner that some technology used by agency personnel along the southern border doesn’t adapt well to the north.

FOX News [5/22/2025 4:00 AM, Peter D’Abrosca, 46878K] reports an immigration expert says that the flow of Chinese illegal aliens into the United States could largely be supported by the Chinese community in a western Canadian city and that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is likely using known Canadian smuggling routes to sneak operatives into the U.S. As southern border crossings have ground to a virtual halt, the executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, Mark Krikorian, shared his thoughts on the continuing flow of Chinese illegal aliens from the north. "It would be logical if they’re trying to come across the northern border instead," he told Fox News Digital. "And there are lots of Chinese people in Vancouver. I mean there’s this very large Chinese population, Hong Kong population, etc.” Krikorian said the Chinese population in Vancouver is not so much "teeming with spies" as it is a tool that serves as cover for potential Chinese bad actors looking to cross into the U.S. "Whether they’re regular criminals or whether they’re People’s Liberation Army operatives, or who knows what, a Chinese community gives them a medium through which to move where they’re not alien," he said. "It’s kind of like one of Mao’s sayings," Krikorian said. "‘The people are like the sea and the revolutionaries are like the fish.’ In other words, they use the people as the sea through which [the revolutionaries] swim.” According to data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the number of Chinese nationals caught crossing into the U.S. via the northern border so far in fiscal 2025 is 4,042. The total in fiscal 2024 was 12,414. The fiscal year closes at the end of September, meaning that the U.S. is on pace for fewer crossings by Chinese nationals this year than last. "It would make perfect sense that they (the CCP) would use preexisting Chinese communities and networks as the medium through which they get into Canada and then [it’s] kind of a jumping off point to get into the United States," Krikorian said.

Washington Examiner [5/21/2025 4:16 PM, Paul Bedard, 1934K] reports U.S. Customs and Border Protection is enjoying historically high recruiting, with agents happy the job is back to law enforcement after four years of "diaper" duty and "Uber" shuttling during former President Joe Biden’s opening of the border, according to a top official. Tom Homan, President Donald Trump’s border czar, said Wednesday that the president’s moves to close the border have boosted morale in the agency and convinced possible applicants that the Border Patrol’s job is again doing the job of securing the border, not caring for illegal migrants.

Breitbart [5/21/2025 2:00 PM, John Binder, 3077K] reports that President Donald Trump is accusing officials who worked for former President Joe Biden of "treason at the highest level," blaming them for opening the nation’s southern border and allowing some eight million migrants to arrive in the United States in just four years. In a Truth Social post on Wednesday, Trump laid into officials who worked for the Biden administration and blamed them for the former president’s lax enforcement of the U.S. immigration laws that welcomed millions of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border. Most significantly, Trump suggested that such officials, perhaps former Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, be charged with crimes. "Joe Biden was not for Open Borders, he never talked about Open Borders, where criminals of all kinds, shapes, and sizes, can flow into our Country at will," Trump wrote: It wasn’t his idea to Open the Border, and almost destroy our Country, and cost us Hundreds of Billions of Dollars to get criminals out of our Country, and go through the process we are going through now. It was the people that knew he was cognitively impaired, and that took over the Autopen. They stole the Presidency of the United States, and put us in Great Danger. This is TREASON at the Highest Level! They did it to destroy our Country. The Joe Biden that everybody knew would never allow drug dealers, gang members, and the mentally insane to come into our Country totally unchecked and unvetted. All anyone has to do is look up his record.

(B) NBC News Daily [5/21/2025 12:36 PM, Staff] reports that as the Trump administration carries out its immigration crackdown, a growing number of American citizens say they are being detained by customs at airports. Viral videos of American citizens are sharing their experiences of being held up at Customs and Border Patrol reentering the US. Some of them say they were asked to show their social media pages and even banking information. According to DHS, overall searches have increased and advanced searches have gone down slightly.

NBC News [5/21/2025 6:00 AM, Maya Eaglin, 44540K] reports a video from an immigration lawyer offering advice on what rights U.S. citizens and visa holders have if stopped by customs at airports is going viral on TikTok, racking up more than 8 million views. The post from New York-based immigration lawyer Brad Bernstein comes on the heels of accounts from TikTok users who say they are American citizens but were detained for hours and had their phones or luggage searched when entering the country. The videos — and the details Twitch streamer Hasan Piker shared about being stopped and questioned at Chicago O’Hare International Airport — have many wondering what to do and what rights they have if they are detained by U.S. customs officials. Bernstein said one of the biggest questions he hears is whether all constitutional rights are protected during CBP screenings. Bernstein said that individual protections depend heavily on a traveler’s citizenship status, and that those on visas or green card holders have less protection. “A U.S. citizen has to be allowed back into the United States. The government cannot take your U.S. passport away, they cannot take your citizenship away,” Bernstein said. But he advised caution. Piker said he wasn’t surprised when he was asked to step aside by agents. “I knew that it was most likely going to happen because I’d heard so many reports of this happening to immigration attorneys and even TikTokers and stuff that have said negative things about Donald Trump,” he said. DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a post on X that Piker was “Lying for ‘likes.’” “I thought it was really funny cause they admitted that it happened,” Piker said in response to McLaughlin’s post. “The parts that they omitted that I think is very nefarious is that like, is this an admission that asking people about their loyalty to the current administration or their opinion on Israel-Palestine is a part of a routine investigation? Because there’s nothing routine about that at all. It’s not pertinent to my entry into the country as an American citizen.” [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Washington Examiner [5/21/2025 6:00 AM, Anna Giaritelli, 1934K] reports the northern border is the longest in the world, though none of it has a wall like the U.S.-Mexico border barrier. At a time when the White House is pushing Congress to pass tens of billions of dollars in funding for more wall at the southern border, federal police up north say the investments in tech have proven themselves and should be strengthened. U.S. Customs and Border Protection personnel told the Washington Examiner during a tour of the border in upstate New York that they want to see more technology incorporated in how they do their jobs, patrolling the vast spaces between border crossings and inspecting vehicles coming through the ports of entry. A wall covers roughly 750 miles of the 1,950-mile southern border, and most of it was erected during the first Trump administration. On the 4,000-mile northern border, there is no towering steel wall to prevent illegal immigration, even though Border Patrol agents have the same responsibilities as those on the Mexico border. Up north, they especially depend on drones, ground sensors, infrared cameras, and long-range cameras, given that there are thousands fewer personnel with twice as long a border to patrol. Some of the technology used on the southern border is not adequate logistically or functionally up north, according to Scott Good, the chief of Border Patrol’s Law Enforcement Operations Directorate in Washington. In a Senate appropriations hearing on May 8, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) pointed out that in her home state, Border Patrol agents have good technology, but some of it does not work. "In New Hampshire, we have video cameras that are supposed to pick up people coming across the border, and there’s no service to those video cameras because we don’t have cell service on our northern border," Shaheen said. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who testified during the same hearing, agreed with Shaheen that a fix for that shortcoming is needed. "The cameras you talked about, yes, do need to be fixed," Noem said. "The cellphone service, and their reliance on that is not dependable, and we need the new technology upgrades in order to make sure that we can keep those operating. And we need more [unmanned aerial systems], and counter-UAS technology at the northern border as well."

Houston Chronicle [5/21/2025 7:00 AM, Yvette Orozco, 1982K] reports counterfeit Apple phone chargers valued at more $7 million were recently seized by the Area Port of Houston/Galveston, part of U.S Customs and Border Protection. The agency’s Houston Seaport Trade Enforcement Team intercepted 7,460 cartons in late April that contained phone chargers bearing the Apple trademark. “Counterfeit activities negatively impact American legitimate jobs and counterfeiters don’t pay taxes,” said CBP Acting Area Port Director John Landry in a statement. “Consumers deserve the real deal when spending their hard-earned money on these products.” CBP dedicates substantial resources — including trade specialists — to identify counterfeit products at U.S. ports and intercept smuggling operations, said spokesman Rusty Payne. Products from China and Hong Kong accounted for approximately 90% of the total quantity seized in 2024, according to the CBP. The seizure of fake chargers was conducted in late April, but the process to confirm whether an item is fake includes the participation of the company, such as Apple in this case, before being made public, he said.

Reported similarly:
USA Today [5/21/2025 11:18 AM, Saleen Martin, 75858K]

CBS News [5/21/2025 11:31 PM, Jack Fink, 51860K] reports the state of Texas may be getting one step closer to being reimbursed by Congress for the billions of dollars it spent to secure the border during the Biden administration. An amendment to the House reconciliation bill provides a total of $12 billion through 2029 to reimburse states for their efforts to reduce illegal immigration since Biden took office in January 2021. The Department of Homeland Security would set up a process for states like Texas to apply for reimbursement. CBS News Texas was on Capitol Hill in February when Gov. Greg Abbott met with Texas Republicans to push for this type of reimbursement. Abbott said the state spent more than $11 billion during the Biden administration securing the border. The reconciliation bill consists of President Trump’s priorities, including spending and tax cuts. Both the House and Senate will have to pass it. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

New York Post [5/21/2025 10:09 PM, Daryl Khan, 49956K] reports a Texas sheriff deputy discovered a dozen illegal migrants crammed together inside hay bales in an alleged human smuggling scheme during a routine traffic stop Tuesday. The deputy pulled over a white Ford F-250 pickup towing several massive bales of hay on a trailer driving along IH-10 near Flatonia just before 1 p.m., according to the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office. When the officer got a closer look at the round hay bales, he was shocked to find 12 people hidden inside. The smugglers had "meticulously altered and hollowed out" the bales to create cramped compartments where they could sneak people into to hide from the authorities, Sheriff Keith Korenek said. The bales concealed a metal framework contraption fitted with small compartments where the illegal immigrants were hidden, according to Korenek. "Inside those compartments, deputies discovered multiple undocumented individuals being smuggled in dangerously confined spaces," the sheriff’s office statement read. "This method of concealment is not only deceptive but incredibly dangerous to human life.” The driver of the F-250, identified by police as Delbert Flanders, 44, of Kansas, was arrested on state and federal smuggling charges and taken to a local hospital for unspecified medical treatment, Korenek said. What type of medical treatment was not released by a spokesman for the sheriff’s office. Police also arrested two suspects who they identified as the "coordinators of the operation.” Houston resident Adanaylo Lambert, 22, and Lency Delgado Fernandez, 25, were both charged with state and federal smuggling charges as well. "Smugglers continue to use increasingly creative and hazardous techniques to transport individuals across Texas highways," Korenek said in a statement. The 12 undocumented people crammed into the counterfeit bales were turned over to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement for processing, according to the sheriff’s statement. Officers with the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Flatonia Police Department and Fayette County Sheriff’s Office deputies also were part of the arrest, according to Korneck.

San Diego Union Tribune [5/21/2025 9:00 AM, Staff, 1611K] reports a San Diego man is facing federal charges for allegedly trying to smuggle 17 exotic birds across the U.S.-Mexico border, with his arrest coming just days after a different man tried to smuggle birds into the U.S. by stuffing them into his boots. Ricardo Alonzo, 26, was arrested May 4 at the San Ysidro Port of Entry with 10 Burrowing Parakeets, five Yellow-Crowned Amazon Parrots, and two Red-Lored Amazon Parrots in four bags underneath one of his vehicle’s seats, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in San Diego. The two Red-Lored Amazon Parrot chicks died, but the other surviving birds were transported to a U.S. Department of Agriculture-managed quarantine facility. Alonzo allegedly told U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers that he only had two chickens to declare, according to a statement of facts included in his criminal complaint. The statement indicates Alonzo did not have documentation permitting the birds’ importation, nor was it likely that the birds were in the vehicle unbeknownst to him because they weren’t under sedation and were making noises while Alonzo was at secondary inspection. The alleged smuggling attempt is the second recent incident announced by federal prosecutors of suspected bird smuggling through a San Diego port of entry.

FOX News [5/21/2025 10:02 PM, Kyle Schmidbauer, 46878K] reports a California woman is accused of trying to smuggle 151 pounds of cannabis onto an international flight, officials announced this week. Diane Bahlawan, 34, was first arrested May 6 at San Francisco International Airport while attempting to board a United Airlines flight to Frankfurt, Germany, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. Airport security flagged Bahlawan’s four roller bags for appearing unusually heavy. Inside, they reportedly discovered 131 vacuum-sealed bags of cannabis. In addition to the cannabis, authorities also claimed to have seized Bahlawan’s cellphone, boarding pass and $960 in cash. Bahlawan was charged with burglary and unlawful transport of marijuana, but was released from jail after posting bail. Her initial arraignment in court is scheduled for June 2. "It is unusual for my office to get a marijuana transportation case through the airport that involves [this] much marijuana," San Mateo County District Attorney Stephen Wagstaffe told Fox News Digital, noting that the U.S. Attorney’s Office has equal jurisdiction over cases like these. "They tend to take the big ones and we get the smaller ones," Wagstaffe continued. "So this is a large amount for us to handle. But we are glad to prosecute whatever the Federal authorities leave for us.” The district attorney’s office indicated that further details of the case will be made public following the suspect’s court appearance, according to the Chronicle. Bahlawan’s case is not the only one of its kind to come out of California – or San Francisco International Airport – in recent months. In February, a 25-year-old Australian national was arrested at the travel hub on multiple felony charges after she was reportedly caught with 44 pounds of methamphetamine, according to local outlet KTVU. Then, in April, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers seized roughly 150,000 cigarettes from a couple disembarking at the Long Beach Cruise Ship Terminal after returning from Ensenada, Mexico.

Univision19 [5/21/2025 3:47 PM, Andrea Igliozzi, 4992K] reports a Mexican family who decided to voluntarily return from the United States for fear of deportation was not welcomed with open arms, but with an unexpected fine. The family had arrived in the U.S. a year ago under the CBP One program, but when President Donald Trump was eliminated, they were left in immigration limbo, so they opted to self-deport. The family crossed the border with three suitcases containing their personal belongings, confident that Mexico, as their country of origin, would allow them to re-enter without complications. However, upon arriving on the Mexican side, customs agents fined them for alleged illegal importation, starting at 11,000 Mexican pesos, equivalent to about US$600. When asked about the case, the Mexican consulate in Sacramento declined to comment on specific details, arguing that each situation is unique. However, they did share an alternative to avoid these types of incidents: the household goods process.

AP [5/21/2025 7:54 PM, Staff, 56000K] reports the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is prepared for Memorial Day weekend travel. From Thursday, May 22, until Wednesday, May 28, TSA expects to screen about 18 million passengers and crew. “TSA is ready for the additional passenger volume, and we look forward to welcoming families traveling during this peak period,” said TSA Acting Administrator Ha McNeill. “As a friendly reminder, to ensure a smooth screening experience, bring acceptable forms of ID like your REAL ID.” Since implementing REAL ID on May 7, 93% of passengers are presenting a REAL ID or another acceptable ID, such as a passport. Passengers 18 and older are required to present a TSA accepted form of identification at TSA checkpoints. The holiday weekend kicks off the summer travel season, which represents a sustained period of higher passenger volumes until Labor Day weekend in September.

USA Today [5/21/2025 2:33 PM, Nathan Diller an Zach Wichter, 75552K] reports that when it comes to possible privatization of the Transportation Security Administration, the agency’s chief said "nothing is off the table." Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-Texas, asked TSA’s Acting Administrator Ha Nguyen McNeill during an oversight hearing before the House Appropriations Committee whether she believed the agency should be privatized. Escobar cited concerns from constituents and TSA employees about the possibility. "I think… the North Star for us at TSA is making sure that we are driving the highest level of security, the best passenger experience in the most efficient way possible," McNeill told lawmakers during the May 20 hearing. "And so if new privatization schemes make sense, then we’re happy to have that discussion to see what we can come up with." She added that some airports could choose to privatize while others don’t. "It’s not an all-or-nothing game," she said. The possibility of privatizing TSA has been a divisive idea. The public agency was "created specifically in response to the failures of the private airport screening model to stop" the terrorist attacks on 9/11, said Scott Keyes, founder of Going. "Proponents of privatizing TSA argue that doing so would save money (especially in smaller airports), allow for more accountability of errant workers, and bring the U.S. in line with many other countries that have privatized some or all of their airport screeners," he told USA TODAY in an email.

The Hill [5/21/2025 12:04 PM, Filip Timotija, 18649K] reports Southwest Airlines is implementing a rule later this month that will require flyers who use portable chargers and batteries while traveling on their flights to keep the electronics in plain sight, citing potential fire risks. The airline said the regulation will take effect May 28 and that some customers may start getting notifications about it on its mobile app. “Southwest will introduce a first-in-industry Safety policy on May 28, requiring Customers to keep portable charging devices visible while in use during flight,” the airline told The Hill in an emailed statement. “Using portable charging devices while stored in a bag or overhead bin will no longer be permitted.” “Nothing is more important to Southwest than the Safety of its Customers and Employees,” the company spokesperson wrote. The Dallas-based airline pointed to safety reasons for introducing the new policy after a number of incidents of lithium batteries overheating or catching fire. The company argued that by keeping the batteries in plain sight, crew members would have quick access, allowing for faster intervention. The Transportation Security Administration does allow travelers to have power banks in carry-on bags, but they are not allowed in checked luggage.

The Hill [5/21/2025 11:55 AM, Michael Bartiromo, 18649K] reports the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has been working to bring facial recognition technology to security checkpoints at hundreds of airports over the last several years, with the goal of streamlining the ID process and improving “traveler convenience.” “The facial recognition technology TSA uses helps ensure the person standing at the checkpoint is the same person pictured on the identification document (ID) credential,” the TSA writes of its Credential Authentication Technology (CAT-2) scanners, which are currently being used at 259 airports, according to a TSA spokesperson. The agency also explains that the images are not used for surveillance purposes. These biometrics are “solely” used to assist with ID comparisons, the TSA says, and will be deleted shortly after the verification of a passenger’s identification. (There are “limited” instances when photos are kept to evaluate or test the accuracy of the technology, but passengers will be notified when this is the case, the spokesperson said.) Despite these assurances, some passengers have expressed reservations about the process, or find it a bit intrusive. But these people may be interested to know that the process is completely voluntary. Passengers who opt out of the photo, though, will still be subjected to an ID verification process by a TSA officer.

(B) NBC News Daily [5/21/2025 1:01 PM, Staff] reports that it is expected to be another record-breaking travel weekend this Memorial Day as airports brace for the holiday rush. The FAA is stepping in to try to ease those recent disruptions at Newark by placing new restrictions on all flights there. Arrivals and departures are capped at 28 an hour. Officials say the rule will stay in place through June 15. Passengers flying in and out of Newark over the past few weeks have faced severe delays and cancellations caused by a mix of staffing shortages, equipment issues, and new runway construction. TSA data shows that the daily average of number of passengers at Newark has dropped by as much as 20% compared to this time last year.

(B) Good Morning America [5/21/2025 9:29 AM, Staff] reports Pensacola International Airport had its busiest day in history this week. The airport had more than 15,000 passengers Monday. Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves says TSA officials handled the crowds well. Memorial Day weekend is expected to be busy at the airport also.

(B) Good Morning America [5/21/2025 7:24 AM, Staff] reports TSA is calling recent incidents at the Indianapolis International Airport troubling ahead of the summer travel season. They say in five day they have detected four firearms in separate incidents at security checkpoints. That makes 18 total cases this year, which TSA says it is fewer firearms than previous years but all four guns have been found between Thursday and Monday and were loaded. The Indianapolis Airport Authority Police say they were alerted, responded, and confiscated the weapons.

FOX News [5/21/2025 11:20 AM, Greg Norman, 46878K] reports that a U.S. Navy technician was identified as the suspect charged with making a false bomb threat on board a Hawaiian Airlines flight preparing to take off from San Diego. The Port of San Diego Harbor Police Department announced that John Stea, 35, was arrested following Tuesday’s incident. "The suspect was onboard Hawaiian Airlines flight 15 when he told a flight attendant the passenger next to him had a bomb. The flight attendant informed the captain of the plane about the potential threat as the flight was pulling away from the jetway and getting ready to depart the San Diego International Airport to Honolulu, Hawaii," it said in a statement. A spokesperson for the U.S. Third Fleet Fox News Digital that "The Navy is aware Electronics Technician 2nd Class John Stea, assigned to Maritime Expeditionary Security Group One, was arrested by San Diego Harbor Police on May 20 following an alleged bomb threat. "The safety of the public and our personnel is of utmost importance to the Navy. We take all threats seriously and are cooperating fully with local and federal authorities," the spokesperson added. The Port of San Diego Harbor Police Department said its "Police Maritime Tactical Team, K-9 Team, and Joint Terrorism Task Force, along with the San Diego Fire Department and multiple federal agencies, responded to the scene to search the aircraft and its contents." [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

CBS Los Angeles [5/21/2025 1:31 PM, Austin Turner, 51860K] Video: HERE reports a flight leaving Hawaii for California was diverted early Wednesday morning after a "potential security concern," officials confirmed. United Airlines Flight 1169 was headed to Los Angeles International Airport when its pilots eventually turned the plane around and returned it to its origin, Honolulu’s Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, at about 1:35 a.m., according to the Federal Aviation Administration. In a statement, United Airlines said the security concern was found written on a lavatory mirror on the flight. Avery Sarzo, a passenger aboard the flight, told KCAL News that the message was a bomb threat. After the diversion, law enforcement officials swept the aircraft for more evidence. It’s not yet clear if any materials were found or if any suspects were identified. The airline said it’s working to rebook customers to another flight to L.A. on Wednesday evening. As many as 339 passengers and 10 crew members were aboard the Boeing 777 plane at the time, according to officials.

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Los Angeles Times [5/21/2025 9:44 PM, Summer Lin, 14672K]
Washington Times [5/21/2025 3:19 PM, Brad Matthews, 2106K]

Federal News Network [5/21/2025 6:28 PM, Justin Doubleday, 2346K] reports a panel appointed by President Donald Trump to recommend reforms to the Federal Emergency Management Agency is looking to take on bureaucracy and "red tape" at FEMA. The FEMA Review Council met for the first time on Tuesday. Trump directed the establishment of the council in January. The panel is co-led by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Trump later appointed a total of 12 members to the council. They include a range of state and local officials. In opening the panel Tuesday, Noem reiterated that Trump’s goal is to "eliminate FEMA as it exists" today. "He wants state and local governments and emergency management directors to lead response immediately when something happens in a state or a jurisdiction, and for us to be in a supporting role, a financial role," Noem said. She added that the role would be like managing a "state block grant model.” "Our goal is to make sure that we put in a place where every state can be ready to be that manager of that disaster response," Noem said. She added that the council members should "reimagine this agency," including potentially rebranding FEMA. "I believe this agency needs to be renamed," Noem said. "It’s the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and our goal is that states should manage their emergencies, and we come in and support them, and we’re there in a time of financial crisis.” However, many members of Congress and state governors have pushed back against calls to drastically decrease FEMA’s disaster response and recovery responsibilities. They have instead called for focused reforms that address delays in accessing disaster relief and bureaucratic hurdles associated with FEMA. "Delays in funding, stringent application requirements, and a complex bureaucratic process often slow down recovery efforts," the National Governors Associate wrote in May 15 comments to the council. "Additionally, rebuilding efforts can take years, requiring a more flexible and responsive federal partnership to begin with, to ensure communities are not left behind. The economic burden often extends beyond immediate recovery, straining state budgets and diverting resources from other critical services.” During Tuesday’s inaugural meeting, many council members also called for streamlining processes at FEMA.

Reuters [5/21/2025 10:20 PM, Ted Hesson and Nathan Layne, 51390K] reports the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency announced the departure of 16 senior executives on Wednesday, a significant shakeup of its leadership ranks less than two weeks before the start of what is expected to be a busy hurricane season. Those leaving include MaryAnn Tierney, a 26-year emergency management veteran who until May 9 had been the agency’s acting No. 2, as well as key people in finance and disaster response, according to internal emails seen by Reuters. The agency, which coordinates the federal response to natural disasters, has been roiled by the loss of hundreds of staff and low morale since finding itself targeted by President Donald Trump. Trump wants FEMA to be shrunk or even abolished, arguing that many of its functions can be carried out by the states. The changes have, however, disrupted the agency’s planning for the hurricane season, stoking concern that it will be ill-equipped to deal with any disaster. The departures unveiled on Wednesday follow the abrupt firing of FEMA’s then-acting administrator Cameron Hamilton earlier this month. The agency’s new leader, David Richardson, has vowed to "run right over" staff who resist reforms. In emails to staff, acting FEMA chief of staff Julia Moline thanked the departing executives and announced several replacements, including the appointment of Cynthia Spishak as acting deputy administrator, the role Tierney held. FEMA did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The mass departure of senior talent represents a significant loss of institutional knowledge that will further degrade FEMA’s capacity to respond to disasters, said Michael Coen, former FEMA chief of staff under the administrations of former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden. Coen called Tierney, a regional administrator who has managed over 100 disaster and emergency declarations for an area that includes Pennsylvania and Delaware, a "leader of leaders" and said she "will be the most significant loss.” Tierney said her decision to resign was not easy. "FEMA is not a job, it’s a calling," Tierney said in a statement to Reuters. "It was a privilege to serve alongside a team of people who dedicate themselves to helping their fellow Americans on their worst day.” Other departing executives include acting chief financial officer Monroe Neal; Eric Leckey, who was responsible for human resources and other management support functions; and Leiloni Stainsby, a high-ranking executive in the agency’s office overseeing response and recovery operations.

CBS News [5/21/2025 7:52 PM, Nicole Sganga, 51860K] reports less than two weeks until the official start of the Atlantic hurricane season, Federal Emergency Management Agency acting Administrator David Richardson has rescinded the agency’s strategic plan, a comprehensive policy document that outlines the disaster relief agency’s priorities. In a short memo sent to FEMA employees on Wednesday and obtained by CBS News, Richardson wrote, "The 2022-2026 FEMA Strategic Plan is hereby rescinded. The Strategic Plan contains goals and objectives that bear no connection to FEMA accomplishing its mission. This summer, a new 2026-2030 strategy will be developed. The strategy will tie directly to FEMA executing its Mission Essential Tasks.” The memo authored by Richardson was brief — the new agency head now requires that all FEMA memos to, from or for his office be no longer than one page in length, according to multiple current FEMA employees. FEMA did not immediately respond to a CBS News request for comment. One FEMA official described the strategic plan to CBS News as the agency’s "organizational backbone.” "Without it, there are just a bunch of offices doing whatever they feel like doing," the official said. The strategic plan, which was published in December 2021 under former administrator Deanne Criswell, was set to expire in 2026. The plan no longer appears on FEMA’s website. Criswell, in a news release at the time the plan was published, laid out three main goals for the agency: "Instill Equity as a Foundation of Emergency Management," "Lead Whole of Community in Climate Resilience" and "Promote and Sustain a Ready FEMA and Prepared Nation.” The official told CBS News Richardson is now trying to figure out how to operate FEMA so that it does nothing more or less than what the law requires. Part of that includes nixing the agency’s Office of Resilience Strategy. "That office exists to figure out how to maximize efficacy of publicly spent money on projects that build a resilient infrastructure that can withstand disaster events," the official said. "Without that guiding star, FEMA will operate as triage instead of actually trying to mitigate future damage before it happens.” Richardson has been FEMA’s acting administrator for less than two weeks, replacing the agency’s former acting head, Cameron Hamilton, who was fired by the Trump administration after he told lawmakers he doesn’t believe eliminating FEMA is in the country’s "best interests.”

CNN [5/21/2025 1:04 PM, Gabe Cohen, 21433K] reports amid growing concerns within the Federal Emergency Management Agency that internal turmoil has left it unprepared for the fast-approaching hurricane season, the agency is taking significant steps to bolster its disaster response workforce and training infrastructure. In a series of internal memos issued this week and obtained by CNN, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, whose department oversees the disaster relief agency, approved requests by FEMA to reopen several training facilities and lengthen contract extensions for thousands of staffers who deploy during natural disasters. This comes days after CNN reported on an internal FEMA assessment acknowledging that the agency "is not ready" to handle catastrophic storms this summer. The document outlined FEMA’s struggles in recent months, including a general uncertainty around its mission moving forward, lack of coordination and training with states and federal partners, and plummeting morale among its diminishing workforce. The Trump administration – which has vowed to "eliminate" FEMA – is in the process of overhauling the agency’s operations and drastically shrinking its workforce as it shifts far more responsibility for disaster response and recovery onto the states. With these new memos, the Trump administration is taking steps to shore up disaster preparations. But multiple FEMA officials tell CNN it could be too little, too late with the official start of hurricane season less than two weeks away. "It will help stop the bleed, but I also feel the damage is done for this season," a FEMA official said, speaking to CNN anonymously out of fear of professional reprisals. CNN reached out to FEMA and DHS about the memos.

Axios [5/21/2025 5:48 AM, Natalie Daher, 13599K] reports President Trump’s campaign to dismantle FEMA is on the verge of a high-stakes stress test, as the U.S. hurtles toward peak disaster season under uniquely dangerous conditions. Extreme weather is growing deadlier and more destructive. But instead of strengthening the systems that help states respond, the Trump administration is gutting FEMA, banning climate change research and urging governors to go it alone. With less than two weeks until the start of Atlantic hurricane season, leaks from inside the government continue to suggest that FEMA is understaffed, underfunded and underprepared. Acting FEMA head Cameron Hamilton was fired earlier this month after testifying to Congress that eliminating the agency — as Trump has called for — is not "in the best interests of the American people." His successor, David Richardson, has no experience managing natural disasters and acknowledged in private meetings that the agency doesn’t yet have a fully formed hurricane response plan, the Wall Street Journal reported. "As FEMA transforms to a smaller footprint, the intent for this hurricane season is not well understood," warned an internal review obtained by CNN. "Thus FEMA is not ready." Trump — whose budget proposes more than $646 million in cuts to FEMA — has signed executive orders aimed at streamlining the federal disaster agency and shifting more responsibility to the states. "I say you don’t need FEMA. You need a good state government," Trump said during a tour of the Los Angeles wildfires in January. "FEMA is a very expensive, in my opinion, mostly failed situation."

New York Times [5/21/2025 6:53 PM, Patricia Mazzei, Judson Jones, Christopher Flavelle, Emily Cochrane, and Jennifer Reed, 153395K] reports states and cities along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts are heading into hurricane season with an extraordinary level of uncertainty, unable to gauge how significant cuts at vital federal agencies will affect weather forecasts, emergency response and long-term recovery. They are bracing for the likelihood that fewer meteorologists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will lead to less accurate forecasts, and that the loss of experienced managers at the Federal Emergency Management Agency will lead to less coordination and more inaction. Governors and mayors are also anticipating less financial aid, as the Trump administration shifts the burden of response and recovery away from the federal government. Exactly who will pay for what moving forward is a gaping question as disasters become bigger and costlier. “There’s no plan in writing for how FEMA intends to respond during this disaster season,” said Trina Sheets, the executive director of the National Emergency Management Association, which represents state emergency managers. “Things seem to be changing on a daily basis. But there’s no road map for states to follow or to be able to plan for.” FEMA did not respond to requests for comment. Kristi Noem, the Department of Homeland Security secretary, whose department includes FEMA, said on Tuesday that the agency was prepared for hurricane season, which extends from June through November. Some of the other federal agencies involved in disaster response agreed, in responses to emailed questions. But the Army Corps of Engineers, which is often called on to help communities after storms, acknowledged that it did not know “the full impact that staff departures or other reductions will have.”

Reuters [5/21/2025 9:45 PM, Jonathan Landay, 51390K] reports the State Department office that handles refugee issues and works to cut illegal migration will lead the U.S. response to overseas disasters, according to excerpts from an internal department cable, a role for which experts say it lacks the knowhow and personnel. The Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration, known as PRM, is assuming that function from the U.S. Agency for International Development, the main U.S. foreign aid agency that the Trump administration has been dismantling, say the excerpts reviewed by Reuters. USAID’s gutting - largely overseen by billionaire Elon Musk as part of U.S. President Donald Trump’s drive to shrink the federal government - has already led to what many experts called the administration’s late and inadequate response to a serious earthquake in Myanmar on March 25. The excerpts come from a cable known as an ALDAC, which stands for "All Diplomatic and Consular Posts," sent this week to U.S. embassies and other diplomatic posts worldwide. Reuters could not learn the precise date of the ALDAC. Under the new arrangement, all U.S. overseas missions should consult with PRM on foreign disaster declarations, said the cable. "With approval from PRM based on established criteria for international disaster assistance, up to $100,000 can be issued to support the initial response," it continued. "Additional resources may be forthcoming based on established humanitarian need" in consultation with other State Department offices. The State Department did not respond immediately to a request for comment. A source familiar with the matter confirmed on condition of anonymity the authenticity of the excerpts. Only 20 experts out of the roughly 525 who did the work at USAID’s Bureau of Humanitarian Assistance and its Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Relief are being hired by PRM, the source said. But, the source continued, the number is far from adequate and the PRM leadership has "no concept of how to" mount responses to major overseas disasters. "They do not understand disaster response," said the source. "It’s a joke. It’s ridiculous," said Jeremy Konyndyk, a former director of the Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Relief who serves as president of Refugees International, an advocacy organization. "PRM is not an operational entity. They do important stuff but this is not what they do.”

New York Times [5/21/2025 6:48 PM, Mark Walker, 138952K] reports just before a tornado descended on St. Louis with a roar — killing five people and injuring dozens during its sweep through the city on Friday — there was a silence where there should not have been. There was no wailing warning from the city. No high-pitched alarm. Nothing to warn the city’s residents and send them scrambling to their basements or bathtubs. Only wind. The city’s sirens to warn people of a tornado threat were never activated by the City Emergency Management Agency, and a backup to activate the mechanism that is operated by the Fire Department was broken. Mayor Cara Spencer has placed the city’s emergency manager, Sarah Russell, on paid administrative leave while an investigation is conducted into a series of failures, Ms. Spencer’s office said in a statement issued on Tuesday. The mayor’s office also said that it had changed the protocol for activating the warning system as a result of what had happened. The city’s emergency management agency “exists, in large part, to alert the public to dangers caused by severe weather, and the office failed to do that in the most horrific and deadly storm our city has seen in my lifetime,” Ms. Spencer said in her statement. Ms. Russell could not immediately be reached for comment on Wednesday. City officials confirmed that one of five people killed in Friday’s storm was outside when the tornado ripped through St. Louis. About 40 people were injured in the storm, but city officials did not know how many of them were outdoors when they were hurt. St. Louis was among the cities hit by raging storms that produced tornadoes late last week, tearing through the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. At least 28 were killed. According to the mayor’s office, Ms. Russell was not at the emergency management office — where the button to activate the tornado warning alarms sits — but blocks away at a training session when the storm hit, despite earlier forecasts that warned of severe weather. On Friday, the National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for the St. Louis area at 2:34 p.m. Central time. Eleven minutes later, at 2:45 p.m., a tornado was confirmed, moving east over St. Louis at 50 miles per hour. Ms. Russell placed a call to the Fire Department, hoping to pass the baton, but the message was muddled and unclear, the mayor’s office said. “The directive to activate the sirens was ambiguous, which cannot happen when a tornado is sweeping through our city and St. Louisans’ safety depends on being alerted immediately,” according to the statement. Even if the message to sound the sirens had been clear, the Fire Department’s button itself was broken. That malfunction was discovered only on Tuesday, during routine testing after the tornado damage, the mayor’s office said. It was Ms. Russell’s job to make sure that the system was working properly, the city said.

Los Angeles Times [5/21/2025 2:33 PM, Rong-Gong Lin II, 14672K] reports that the Trump administration has canceled $33 million worth of federal funds meant to help pay for earthquake retrofits in California — sparking "grave concern" and a call to reconsider from one of the state’s highest elected officials. In a letter dated Wednesday, Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) urged U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to reinstate the funds, which would’ve been used to strengthen between 750 and 1,500 apartment buildings. "In California, earthquakes are not a question of if, but when," Schiff wrote in his letter, addressed to both Noem and David Richardson, a senior official performing the duties of the FEMA administrator. "This move must be reversed before tragedy strikes next." The grants — originally green-lit through the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which is part of Noem’s department — were meant to help retrofit the kind of vulnerable apartment buildings that crushed people to death when they collapsed during California’s last major urban earthquakes. FEMA issued a statement on April 4 announcing the cancellation of the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program, known as BRIC, that would have funded the California earthquake retrofits. "The BRIC program was yet another example of a wasteful and ineffective FEMA program. It was more concerned with political agendas than helping Americans affected by natural disasters. Under Secretary Noem’s leadership, we are committed to ensuring that Americans in crisis can get the help and resources they need," the agency’s statement said.

Daily Wire [5/21/2025 3:39 PM, Virginia Kruta, 3816K] reports former FBI Director James Comey embarked on a media tour to save face after an Instagram post landed him in hot water, and he doubled down on claims that he’d had nothing to do with creating the shell formation he’d photographed during a casual "beach walk" - and that he’d had no idea the term "86" might imply a threat. Comey first found himself at the center of heated conversation when he shared a photo from the beach, showing seashells that "someone" had arranged to form the numbers "86" and "47." Critics immediately noted that "86" was generally understood to mean "get rid of" and "47" was a clear reference to President Donald Trump, the 47th president - and they pointed out the fact that Comey should have known better than to post something that so many would interpret as a threat. The former FBI chief, who was fired by Trump in 2017, claimed at the time that he did not realize the term implied violence and deleted the post - but not before it caught the attention of current FBI Director Kash Patel, and it earned Comey a visit from the United States Secret Service.

FOX News [5/21/2025 1:00 PM, Staff, 46878K] reports Former FBI Director James Comey explained what led to his controversial "86 47" Instagram post directed at President Donald Trump during an appearance on "The Late Show" Tuesday night. Comey claimed that he and his wife, Patrice, saw the "clever political message" while walking on the beach when his wife suggested that he take a picture of the shells and post it online. The ex-FBI director posted an Instagram photo of seashells arranged to show the numbers "86 47," a message White House officials swiftly condemned as an attempt to put out a "hit" against the 47th president. Comey told host Stephen Colbert that his wife initially questioned why someone would "put their address in the sand," before coming up with a second theory behind the message. Comey later deleted the post after online backlash from government officials, lawmakers and Trump’s son.

Reported similarly:
Washington Examiner [5/21/2025 12:26 PM, Jenny Goldsberry, 1934K]

New York Post [5/21/2025 7:11 PM, Haley Brown, Joe Marino and Jorge Fitz-Gibbon, 49956K] reports authorities cracking down on national organized-crime rings swiping $18 billion a year through ATM card-skimming have now turned their sights on aiding Big Apple victims. The US Secret Service, which investigates financial crimes along with protecting the president, started the crackdown in California last year because of the staggering problem and has now expanded to team up with a new NYPD task force to try to thwart the criminals better here. "It’s billions of dollars [stolen] annually across the nation, so that jumps off the page by any metric," Secret Service spokesman James Byrne told The Post on Wednesday, as the New York City initiative was rolled out. The feds launched "Operation Flagship" after the US Department of Agriculture and credit-card carriers detected such theft involving the government’s food-assistance, or Electronic Benefits Transfer, cards. The skimming devices can be installed on top of the ATM and remotely steal PIN numbers and other data from the user’s card use the information to steal the money. Scammers simply attack the device using double-sided tape. Thieves can also install tiny cameras in the ATMs that grab images of the PIN number on a card. In the Big Apple, the rings primarily target the poorest neighborhoods, authorities said. "Unfortunately, they’re targeting people who really need the money the most, and that’s why this problem is really blowing up in the city," NYPD Detective James Lilla said. "They’ll come in, distract the teller, the [skimming] device will go on. It can take 2 to 4 seconds to install the device. The devices steal an average of $300,000 per skimming device — and $1,000 for each person targeted, authorities said. The joint federal task force focused on bodegas and small markets in Brooklyn on Wednesday and plans to hit locations this week to look for skimmers. "It’s a message to folks that are doing these crimes," said Patrick Freaney, Secret Service special agent in charge of the agency’s New York office, to The Post. "People are coming for you.” Secret Service agent Michael Peck said, "They are taking the terminals that you see in stores visually, and they are fitting these skimmers so perfectly that the average eye doesn’t catch them.

ABC News [5/21/2025 5:34 PM, Anne Flaherty, 31733K] reports the Army on Wednesday began preparing to ship Abrams tanks from its base in Fort Cavazos, Texas, to Washington, D.C., to participate in its 250th birthday parade along the National Mall on June 14, loading the tanks aboard trains that will depart later this month. In all, 28 M1A1 Abrams tanks will be sent to participate in the parade, officials said. The Army said it expects to spend anywhere from $25 million to $45 million on this year’s events, although the final tally is expected to be much higher when other costs are factored in. The U.S. Secret Service has designated the event a "national security special event" akin to the Super Bowl or a presidential inauguration, requiring significant security resources. The Department of Homeland Secretary has not released a cost estimate for securing the event.

Washington Examiner [5/21/2025 3:59 PM, Mike Brest, 1934K] reports President Donald Trump will nominate Adm. Kevin Lunday, the acting Coast Guard commandant, to fill the vacancy, according to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Noem made the disclosure Wednesday while addressing the graduating class at the Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut. Lunday is the Coast Guard’s confirmed vice commandant and has served as the acting commandant since January, when the Trump administration fired Adm. Linda Fagan. The secretary also announced that Vice Adm. Thomas Allan, who is the acting deputy commandant for operations, will be nominated to become the Coast Guard’s vice commandant. If confirmed, he would replace Lunday. Once confirmed, Lunday will lead the Coast Guard through a transformational reformation. Lunday and Noem announced last month Force Design 2028, a plan for bringing about "transformational change to renew the Coast Guard," Lunday said at the time. The plan consists of four main campaigns: people, organization, technology, and acquisition and contracting. One of the planned changes to Coast Guard leadership is a call for the creation of a Coast Guard Service Secretary. The person who fills the position will operate like the secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air Force, because the Space Force is within the Air Force, and the Marine Corps is within the Navy. The Coast Guard is also preparing to cut 12 flag officer positions, according to a Lunday message to the troops on Thursday, which is a part of the Pentagon’s broader effort to reduce the number of senior military leaders.

Marine Corps Times [5/21/2025 1:45 PM, Leo Shane III, 120K] reports that Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced Wednesday that acting Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Kevin Lunday will be nominated for the permanent command role, filling the service’s top leadership post. Noem’s announcement of Lunday’s promotion came at the Coast Guard academy graduation ceremony in Connecticut. In addition to that nomination, Adm. Thomas Allan Jr. will be tapped to serve as vice commandant. "These leaders have the full faith and trust of me, and they have the full faith and trust of the president of the United States," Noem said. "I am certain that they will not let us down." Lunday, 60, has served in the Coast Guard for the last 38 years. He took over the acting command post after Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Linda Fagan was abruptly fired on Jan. 21, just one day after President Donald Trump’s inauguration. White House officials at the time said Fagan was terminated because of a failure to address border security threats and a perceived excessive focus on diversity programs. Fagan was the first woman to serve in the top uniformed Coast Guard post and the first uniformed woman to lead any branch of the armed forces. Officials also cited her poor response to reports of sexual assault cases at the Coast Guard Academy.

Bloomberg [5/21/2025 12:34 PM, Ellen M. Gilmer, 88K] reports that the US Coast Guard would bolster its workforce and join other military branches in having a Senate-confirmed leader under a reorganization plan from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Noem unveiled details of the plan Wednesday in a Coast Guard Academy commencement speech, arguing that the service is past due for an overhaul. "We will reorganize the service, and we’re going to be more effective and capable in ensuring that the Coast Guard will always be ready to meet the challenges of the 21st Century," she said. [Editorial note: consult extended commentary at source link]

AP [5/21/2025 4:56 PM, Susan Haigh, 2346K] reports the U.S. Coast Guard is facing its largest readiness crisis since World War II, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Wednesday as she promised an overhaul of the service that she called the "point of the spear" in the nation’s defense. Noem, the keynote speaker at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy’s commencement, outlined the Trump administration’s plans to increase the service’s military workforce by at least 15,000 by the end of fiscal year 2028. The plan also calls for reducing the number of admirals by 25%, boosting recruiting efforts and increasing the fleet, including icebreakers that are used in the Arctic. "A new chapter for America’s Coast Guard, one like we have never seen before, starts right now," she told the 256 cadets, who became newly minted officers from the prestigious service academy in New London, Connecticut. Noem spoke of the Coast Guard being 10% short of its enlisted workforce goals and relying on outdated aircraft and ships, some sailing with 75% of the needed crew members. She recalled a meeting with President Donald Trump, who she said asked what the Coast Guard needed. "I said sir, they need everything," Noem said. "They’ve been neglected for too long.” The Coast Guard has more than 43,000 active duty members, 8,000 reservists, and 30,000 auxiliary members. "We are on the edge of transformational change," said Adm. Kevin E. Lunday, who Noem announced Wednesday will become the service’s new commandant. Lunday has been the service’s acting commandant since Jan. 21, after Trump fired former Commandant Adm. Linda Fagan, the first female leader of the Coast Guard. The administration’s modernization plan, called Force Design 2028, officially takes effect on Wednesday, Noem said. Besides increasing the workforce, it calls for the appointment of a dedicated civilian leader to oversee the nation’s maritime service, essentially mirroring how the other branches of the U.S. military are led at the Pentagon. Nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate, the proposed Coast Guard Service Secretary within the Homeland Security Department would advocate for a service "weakened by decades of underinvestment, neglect and strategic drift," and create a new level of accountability, according to the plan released Wednesday. Such a change would require congressional approval. Currently, there is at least one bill before Congress that would create such a position. "Creating a Secretary of the Coast Guard ensures they have the leadership, resources, and support they need to continue their vital missions," said the bill’s author, Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Ezell of Mississippi, chair of the House Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Subcommittee, in a recent written statement. "It’s time we give the Coast Guard the same level of recognition and advocacy that other military branches receive.” Control of the Coast Guard was officially transferred from the U.S. Department of Transportation to DHS in 2003. The Commandant of the Coast Guard, a four-star admiral and the highest ranking Coast Guard officer, is now tasked with leading the service. The Coast Guard competes for attention with more than a dozen components of the DHS, including U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Under the Trump administration’s plan, the appointment of a secretary, accountable to the president and the DHS secretary and subject to congressional oversight, presents an opportunity to reform the service’s organizational structure. "The Coast Guard must be able to conduct its missions and deliver results without being mired in wasteful bureaucracy," the report reads.

SeaPower Magazine [5/21/2025 3:15 PM, Staff, 16K] reports Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem announced Force Design 2028 (FD2028) Wednesday during the Coast Guard Academy commencement ceremony. This initiative provides a blueprint to transform the Coast Guard into a stronger, more ready and capable fighting force. Speaking at the ceremony, Noem expressed respect for the Service and committed to advocating for funding support. Noem’s FD2028 executive report outlines a vision for the Coast Guard’s future. “Now, more than ever, the American people need a strong and capable Coast Guard,” said Noem. “The Coast Guard must not simply evolve. It must revolutionize how it functions and operates to ensure decisive advantage over adversaries. This requires a fundamental change. Force Design 2028 is the bold blueprint needed to drive urgent action and win.” Noem also announced President Donald J. Trump’s nomination of Adm. Kevin E. Lunday to serve as the 28th commandant of the Coast Guard. Lunday will continue serving as acting commandant until confirmed by the U.S. Senate. The 28th commandant will lead the Coast Guard through a historic period of change. Under their leadership, we will establish the first Coast Guard service secretary and facilitate the implementation of FD2028. FD2028 will re-shape how the Coast Guard functions and operates to ensure decisive advantage over adversaries. “Now is the time for fundamental change,” said Lunday. ”Secretary Noem has said that we must reinvigorate the Coast Guard or risk strategic failure. I am honored to lead our Coast Guard men and women in this historic effort to renew the service for the future.”

WSHU 91.1 FM Connecticut [5/21/2025 3:50 PM, Brian Scott-Smith, 42K] reports Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem delivered the keynote address at the 144th Commencement Exercise of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London on Wednesday, congratulating the 262 graduating cadets and outlining major changes coming to the service. Noem said the Coast Guard is entering a period of transformation as it begins implementing “Force Design 2028,” a new operational blueprint aimed at streamlining leadership and accelerating modernization. “The service will reduce its number of admirals by 25% so that we can return the decision-making to the front line, where it belongs,” Noem said. “We’ll develop a high-velocity acquisition and contracting system ... [to] rapidly deliver equipment and resources ... and accelerate the adoption of secure, cutting-edge technology. Noem pledged that she and President Trump would provide the agency with the resources it needs to become the “best military service in the country.” At the close of her remarks, Noem announced a major overhaul of the Coast Guard’s leadership. Admiral Kevin Lunday was named the new commandant of the Coast Guard, following his service as acting commandant after President Trump dismissed Admiral Linda Fagan earlier this year. “Today, Admiral Kevin Lunday will be the new commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard,” Noem said. “Thomas Allan will be the vice commandant ... Vice Admiral Nathan Moore [will be] Deputy Commandant for Operations ... and Jo-Ann Burdian as Atlantic Area Commander.” Noem also named a new Pacific Area Commander and Chief of Staff, part of a broader shakeup of senior leadership as the Coast Guard begins implementing its long-term restructuring plan.

AP [5/21/2025 10:40 PM, Staff, 56000K] reports one person was rescued by a good Samaritan and authorities were looking for three others after a boat took on water and sank in waters north of Seattle, the U.S. Coast Guard said Wednesday. The vessel was a 20-foot (6-meter) long cuddy cabin boat, Coast Guard Petty Officer Steve Strohmaier said. The person who rescued the male individual said three others were on board, Strohmaier said. The distress call came in at 1:10 p.m., he said. A Coast Guard boat crew and helicopter were searching for the missing alongside Everett firefighters and police and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. The site is in Possession Sound about 35 miles (56 kilometers) north of Seattle.

San Francisco Chronicle [5/21/2025 10:38 PM, Molly Burke, 4120K] reports Coast Guard Captain David Melton was "relieved" of his post of commander of the military branch’s Alameda base over a "loss of confidence," the Coast Guard announced Tuesday. Rear Admiral Carola List, the commander of the Coast Guard’s Operational Logistics Command, "temporarily relieved" Melton of his command, the Coast Guard announced. The dismissal was not due to misconduct, the agency said. Captain Brian Winburn has temporarily taken over the post of commander at Base Alameda, the Coast Guard said, which remains fully operational without any impact to public safety. The base on the San Francisco Bay provides services in "direct support" of Coast Guard activities across the West Coast, the agency said, and is home to various Coast Guard vessels. The Alameda base is also home to 700 housing units belonging to the Coast Guard, as well as other community services to families and members of the military branch. Melton has served in various positions in the Coast Guard after graduating from the Coast Guard Academy in 1999, according to his biography on the agency’s website. Melton has also received numerous awards, including at least one meritorious service medal, three commendation medals, five achievement medals and awards for marksmanship. Before working out of the Alameda base, Melton worked for three years in Oakland focusing on extending the service life of CGC Polar Star, an ice breaker ship considered to be the most powerful ship in the Coast Guard, with 75,000 horsepower, the agency said. Melton also worked for three years as Commanding Officer of Sector Field Office in Galveston, Texas and previously served in Coast Guard positions in Alaska and captained ships across the West Coast, according to his biography. Melton could not be reached for comment on Wednesday evening.

StateScoop [5/21/2025 10:45 AM, Colin Wood, 40K] reports Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has been clear about her vision for the future of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. It includes no work policing disinformation, a stronger focus on protecting critical infrastructure and a considerably smaller budget. Less clear, though, was why at a cybersecurity conference in San Francisco last month she mentioned new work with governors to establish sensitive compartmented information facilities, better known as SCIFs. “The quicker we can set up communications, the better,” Noem told the RSA Conference. As highly secure rooms designed to prevent surveillance of the government’s most sensitive materials, SCIFs are considered a generally reliable way to limit information leaks. But some analysts and former state officials questioned whether there was any call for such a tool in state governments that need a way to quickly share information about emerging cyber threats. In a letter sent last month to Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont, Noem recommended he “put in” a SCIF for the purpose of communicating securely with the federal government during emergencies. She also asked him to purchase and “regularly travel with” a satellite phone “to ensure you have a reliable mode of communication from any location.” “While there is no federal funding available for this, this is a need for secure communications and something every state should have access to,” she wrote in an April 7 letter obtained by StateScoop. Other states received similar letters. The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to requests for additional information about its recommendation that each state house a SCIF.

Reuters [5/21/2025 11:04 AM, A.J. Vicens and Raphael Satter, 51390K] reports a hacker who breached the communications service used by former Trump national security adviser Mike Waltz earlier this month intercepted messages from a broader swathe of American officials than has previously been reported, according to a Reuters review, potentially raising the stakes of a breach that has already drawn questions about data security in the Trump administration. Reuters identified more than 60 unique government users of the messaging platform TeleMessage in a cache ofleaked data provided by Distributed Denial of Secrets, a U.S. nonprofit whose stated mission is to archive hacked and leaked documents in the public interest. The trove included material from disaster responders, customs officials, several U.S. diplomatic staffers, at least one White House staffer and members of the Secret Service. The messages reviewed by Reuters covered a roughly day-long period of time ending on May 4, and many of them were fragmentary. While Reuters could not verify the entire contents of the TeleMessage trove, in more than half a dozen cases the news agency was able to establish that the phone numbers in the leaked data were correctly attributed to their owners. One of the intercepted texts’ recipients - an applicant for aid from the Federal Emergency Management Agency - confirmed to Reuters that the leaked message was authentic; a financial services firm whose messages were similarly intercepted also confirmed their authenticity.

Bloomberg [5/21/2025 6:00 AM, Jason Leopold, 19320K] reports a software company that handles sensitive data for nearly every US federal agency was the victim of a cyber breach earlier this year due to a "major lapse" in security measures, according to documents reviewed by Bloomberg News. Opexus, which is owned by the private equity firm Thoma Bravo and provides software services for processing US government records, was compromised in February by two employees who’d previously been convicted of hacking into the US State Department. The findings were detailed in separate reports by Opexus and an independent cybersecurity firm, which characterized the incident as an “insider threat attack.” The investigations found that the employees, twin brothers Muneeb and Suhaib Akhter, improperly accessed sensitive documents and compromised or deleted dozens of databases, including those that contained data from the Internal Revenue Service and the General Services Administration. The brothers have since been terminated. The incident, which hasn’t been previously reported, is now being probed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and other federal law enforcement agencies, according to five people familiar with the matter who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case. Muneeb and Suhaib Akhter denied any wrongdoing in separate interviews with Bloomberg News. The damage attributed to the brothers includes the destruction of more than 30 databases and the removal of more than 1,800 files related to one government project, according to the cybersecurity firm’s report. Opexus’ own investigation found that the brothers’ conduct led to an outage of two key software systems used by government agencies to process and manage their records, and in some cases a permanent loss of data. Opexus declined to comment for this story.

USA Today [5/21/2025 3:29 PM, Kathryn Palmer, 75552K] reports Microsoft said on Wednesday, May 21 its Digital Crimes Unit partnered with law enforcement and cybersecurity agencies to disrupt an information-stealing malware that infected hundreds of thousands of Windows computers in the last two months. The unit filed a legal action against Lumma Stealer last week after it found 394,000 Windows computers globally infected with the malware between March 16 and May 16, Windows said in a statement on its blog, calling it a "favored" malware used by criminals to steal passwords, credit cards, bank accounts and cryptocurrency wallets. The U.S. Department of Justice assisted, Microsoft said, taking control of Lumma’s central command structure and disrupting the marketplaces where the tool was sold. Europol’s European Cybercrime Center and Japan’s Cybercrime Control Center also aided in dismantling Lumma infrastructure, which has "severed communications between the malicious tool and victims," according to the blog post. The Department of Justice said on Wednesday it seized five internet domains used by malicious cyber actors to operate the Lumma malware service. The FBI’s Dallas Field Office is investigating the case, according to Reuters.

CyberScoop [5/21/2025 11:42 AM, Matt Kapko] reports Lumma Stealer, a widely used infostealer malware linked to cybercrime sprees and multiple high-profile attacks, was dismantled through a coordinated global operation meant to seize its core infrastructure. The infostealer’s central command, malicious domains and marketplaces where the tool was sold to other cybercriminals have been seized or suspended, Steven Masada, assistant general counsel at Microsoft’s Digital Crimes Unit, said in a blog post. Acting on a court order granted in the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of Georgia, Microsoft seized and blocked about 2,300 malicious domains that served as the backbone of Lumma Stealer’s infrastructure, Masada said. The Justice Department was responsible for seizing Lumma Stealer’s central command infrastructure and disrupting marketplaces where it was sold, while Europol’s European Cybercrime Center and Japan’s Cybercrime Control Center worked to suspend locally based infrastructure, according to Microsoft.

CyberScoop [5/21/2025 4:40 PM, Tim Starks] reports LummaC2 infected around 10 million devices and systems, allowing for millions of follow-on attacks, before the information-stealing malware operation was dismantled through a coordinated global operation this week, Brett Leatherman, the FBI’s deputy assistant director for cyber operations, said during a media briefing Wednesday. “Since its inception in 2022, LummaC2’s malware-as-a-service platform rose to become the most prolific information stealer for sale in online criminal markets and used by cybercriminals to conduct attacks against millions of innocent victims,” Leatherman said. The FBI has identified at least 1.7 million instances where LummaC2 was used to steal usernames, passwords, browser extensions, remote connections, system information, cryptocurrency wallets and seed phrases, and data autofill information, including stored credit cards. The number of victims linked to LummaC2 increased exponentially and so quickly over the past couple years that officials are still digging through evidence to find and attribute more attacks to the infostealer outfit. The FBI estimates the malware platform facilitated $36.5 million in credit card theft alone in 2023.

CyberScoop [5/21/2025 2:45 PM, Greg Otto] reports a joint advisory from intelligence and cybersecurity agencies in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and multiple European countries has detailed an ongoing Russian state-sponsored campaign targeting Western logistics organizations and technology companies, especially those supporting aid to Ukraine. The campaign, orchestrated by the group known as APT28 or Fancy Bear, has relied heavily on established techniques to breach organizations and extract sensitive data. The campaign traces back at least to early 2022, coinciding with the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The group, which is tied to Russia’s Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU), has focused on logistics organizations and IT firms involved in coordinating, transporting, and delivering foreign assistance to Ukraine. Entities across nearly all modes of transportation — including air, rail, and sea — as well as government, defense, and IT service sectors have been singled out. Targets are widespread, spanning the United States, Ukraine, several NATO member states, and bordering countries such as Bulgaria, France, Germany, Poland, Romania, and Slovakia. Those running the campaign have deployed a mixture of previously observed tactics, techniques, and procedures.

CyberScoop [5/21/2025 6:45 AM, Derek B. Johnson] reports when the news broke that a Chinese hacking group known as Salt Typhoon had penetrated multiple U.S. telecommunications networks, gained access to the phones of a presidential campaign, and collected geolocation data on high-value targets around Washington D.C., one of the first questions on the minds of executives and U.S. officials was how long it would take to kick them out. The spying campaign shocked the government and telecom industry alike. While cyber-enabled espionage between world powers is broadly considered fair play, Salt Typhoon’s brazenness and the methodical, systematic way of compromising networks and collecting high-value intelligence reflected a deep understanding of how U.S. telecommunications networks operate. Salt Typhoon’s widespread intrusions for a U.S. adversary endangered the cellular communications of nearly all Americans — including high-level government officials — and posed a severe threat to U.S. national security. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., a former telecommunications executive, has called it “the most serious telecom hack in our nation’s history.” And yet in the months following, the Biden administration, current and former cybersecurity officials, members of Congress and other experts have repeatedly floated the possibility that many U.S. telecommunications firms may never fully expunge the hacking group from their networks. Laura Galante, who led the Cyber Threat Intelligence Integration Center at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence until January, told CyberScoop that the subdued reaction in some circles reflects the way that digital breaches are often treated less seriously by the public than physical ones. “We can’t accept this level of espionage on our networks,” Galante said. “If you had 50 Chinese [Ministry of State Security] spies or contractors sitting inside a major [telecom company’s] building, they would be walked out and it would be a full-scale effort. That’s in broad strokes what has happened, but the access was digital.” But in interviews with multiple U.S. government and industry officials, a full-scale effort to digitally eject Salt Typhoon will be easier said than done.

Reuters [5/21/2025 3:07 PM, Dietrich Knauth, 51390K] reports twelve U.S. states asked a federal court on Wednesday to halt President Donald Trump’s "Liberation Day" tariffs, arguing that he overstepped his authority by declaring a national emergency to impose across-the-board taxes on imports from nations that sell more to the U.S. than they buy. A three-judge panel of the Manhattan-based Court of International Trade is hearing arguments in a lawsuit brought by the Democratic attorneys general of New York, Illinois, Oregon, and nine other states. They say the Republican president has sought a "blank check" to regulate trade "at his whim." The states claim the president badly misinterpreted a law called the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to justify the tariffs. That law is meant to address "unusual and extraordinary" threats to the U.S., they have said. Brian Marshall, an attorney for the state of Oregon, told the judges that IEEPA requires presidential actions to be closely tied to a specific emergency. A president cannot use tariffs or other actions "only for leverage" under IEEPA, Marshall said. Trump has incorrectly claimed that "he can set tariffs of any amount, on any country, for any length of time, and no court can review it," Marshall said.

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AP [5/21/2025 4:28 PM, Paul Wiseman, 48304K]

Washington Examiner [5/21/2025 7:18 AM, Jamie McIntyre, 1934K] reports invoking former President Ronald Reagan’s vision of a system of space-based lasers to shoot down incoming missiles, dubbed “Star Wars” by critics at the time, President Donald Trump enthused over the Pentagon’s initial concept to make his Golden Dome for America dream a reality in an Oval office presentation Tuesday. “We will truly be completing the job that President Reagan started 40 years ago, forever ending the missile threat to the American homeland,” Trump said, claiming that technological advances in recent decades now make the concept of an impenetrable missile shield covering the entire United States possible. “The success rate is very close to 100%, which is incredible when you think of it. You’re shooting bullets out of the air. "This design for the Golden Dome will integrate with our existing defense capabilities and should be fully operational before the end of my term. So we’ll have it done in about three years," Trump said, describing the concept as a "state-of-the-art system that will deploy next-generation technologies across the land, sea, and space, including space-based sensors and interceptors.” "Once fully constructed, the Golden Dome will be capable of intercepting missiles even if they are launched from other sides of the world and even if they are launched from space," he said. "It’s a pretty evil world out there. So this is something that goes a long way toward the survival of this great country."

Breitbart [5/21/2025 9:48 PM, Jeff Poor, 3077K] reports that, Wednesday on Fox News Channel’s "The Will Cain Show," Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) said an investigation underway into the so-called Quiet Skies surveillance was "just scratching the surface.” Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard was revealed to have been under surveillance under the program before her confirmation as DNI. Paul said he wanted to know if other past and present members of Congress were on the watchlist. "Senator, thanks for being here," host Will Cain said. "It’s kind of fascinating to me that we hear this and you pull these receipts at the same time we’re hearing about this cover-up of Joe Biden’s not just mental decline, but also his cancer diagnosis. The reason I think those two things are connected, Senator, is that we were being told that the opposition represented a threat to democracy. I look at these things put together, and I’m like, is there any more evidence of subverting democracy?". "Yes, the Quiet Skies program is alarming, and we’re just scratching the surface," Paul replied. "But I will not let go of this. I told Secretary Noem yesterday and we were informing her by letter today we want to know all of the information. We want to know who placed Tulsi Gabbard on the list. And, further, I want to know if there are any other members of Congress that are on this list. My understanding is, there’s a broad list of thousands of people. And if you’re in Congress, they can put you on the list, but they don’t surveil you until you leave Congress. So, if we have politicians on there for political speech — and I do believe Tulsi Gabbard was selected for constitutionally protected speech and for her positions.” "And I don’t want to let it happen to an ordinary citizen, much less somebody who’s in our government," he added.

AP [5/21/2025 12:54 PM, Staff, 56000K] reports York Space Systems (York), the Denver-based aerospace company dedicated to the rapid deployment of complete space mission solutions, today announced its selection by the U.S. Space Force for a $237 million Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract to procure small satellites supporting national security missions. The contract award is designed to enable faster and more flexible acquisition of spacecraft, integration, and launch support. The award highlights York’s role as a trusted partner for defense space programs and builds on the company’s launch of its Space Systems Services offering, designed to provide mission-ready space capabilities under a commercial framework. This new contract vehicle provides a streamlined path for the Space Force to access York’s rapidly scalable production model and operational spacecraft services. “This award is another important step forward in how our national security partners are leveraging proven commercial providers to meet urgent and evolving mission requirements,” said Melanie Preisser, GM and Executive VP of York. “York has been demonstrating for years that we can deliver high-performance, affordable satellites fast and at scale. We’re thrilled to be selected and ready to respond at the speed of need as these missions are conceived and then activated under this contract.” This new contract supports a range of future missions, including remote proximity operations, space situational awareness, and Golden Dome demonstrations. York satellites performing these missions, and several others have all been built, integrated, and tested in Denver, Colorado, leveraging a now fully scaled domestic supply chain that continues to operate at high throughput.

New York Post [5/21/2025 8:00 AM, Ryan King, 49956K] reports Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa has privately expressed openness to joining the Abraham Accords and normalizing relations with Israel in a move that would dramatically shake up the Middle East, according to two congressmen who met with him last month. In exchange, al-Sharaa wanted assurances that Israel would stop bombing Syria, stop fomenting sectarian divisions and reach a renegotiated arrangement regarding the Golan Heights, Reps. Cory Mills (R-Fla.) and Martin Stutzman (R-Ind.) told The Post. “He said, ‘We’re open to not only recognizing Israel, but also to try and join the Abraham Accords, but they must stop bombing within our nation,’” Mills recounted. Trump made waves last week during his Mideast trek when, after meeting with the Syrian leader, he boldly predicted that the “young, attractive” al-Sharaa would join the Abraham Accords, a signature foreign policy breakthrough of his first term, which saw the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain normalize relations with Israel. Prior to that prediction, al-Sharaa conveyed his openness to the Abraham Accords to both Mills and Stutzman during separate one-on-ones with the two reps, who were the first sitting members of Congress to visit Syria’s new leader since the abrupt collapse of the Bashar al-Assad regime last December. Stutzman claimed that al-Sharaa told him “he would be open to the Abraham Accords” on two major conditions.

Reuters [5/21/2025 9:30 AM, Timour Azhari and Jonathan Spicer, 51390K] reports the United States will appoint President Donald Trump’s longtime advisor and current U.S. ambassador to Turkey, Thomas Barrack, as a special envoy for Syria, a person with direct knowledge of the matter and a diplomat in Turkey said. The decision follows Trump’s landmark announcement last week that U.S. sanctions on Syria would be lifted. It also suggests U.S. acknowledgement that Turkey has emerged with key regional influence on Damascus since Bashar al-Assad’s ouster by rebels in December, which ended 14 years of civil war. Trump met with Syria’s interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia on May 14 and urged him to normalise ties with longtime foe Israel following his surprise sanctions announcement. "There is no announcement at this time," a U.S. State Department spokesperson said when asked for comment about Barrack’s Syria role. Barrack, a private equity executive who has long advised Trump and chaired his inaugural presidential committee in 2016, is expected to continue as U.S. envoy to Turkey, the sources said. Speaking to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he was allowing Turkish embassy staff, including Barrack, to work with local officials in Syria to understand what aid they need.

CBS Austin [5/21/2025 4:50 PM, Kayla Gaskins, 558K] reports the United States reportedly has new intelligence indicating that Israel is planning to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities, a move that could complicate diplomatic efforts. According to CNN, U.S. officials believe such an attack would counter President Trump’s commitment to finding a diplomatic solution with Iran. "I don’t like permanent enemies...I want to make a deal with Iran," President Trump said during his trip to the Gulf states last week, emphasizing his preference for diplomacy. The U.S. and Iran are currently engaged in direct talks, with Trump confirming last Friday that the U.S. has proposed a nuclear deal to Iran, urging them to accept it. Earlier this month, we spoke with Danny Citrinowicz, an expert on Iran and senior analyst with the Institute for National Security Studies, an independent think tank at Tel Aviv University. Citrinowicz highlighted the differing priorities between the U.S. and Israel. "For the U.S., the most important thing is for Iran to not have a nuclear weapon. For Israel, the most important thing is toppling the regime. So there are different views," he said. Iran is arguably the weakest it’s been in decades after Israel bombed its missile production facilities and air defenses, along with the decimation of its proxies like Hezbollah. This could incentivize Israel’s desire to strike soon. Citrinowicz points out that even though Iran is weak, it’s still a formidable enemy. The U.S.-Iran talks have encountered obstacles over uranium enrichment, a critical component of nuclear power. On Wednesday, Iran’s top diplomat insisted that they will never stop enriching uranium. President Trump has made it clear that if diplomatic talks fail, airstrikes would be considered. Meanwhile, President Trump is advancing with his "Golden Dome Project," an aerial defense system akin to Israel’s "Iron Dome." Trump has selected a design and appointed Space Force General Michael Guetlein to lead the project, which is expected to cost $175 billion and be completed before Trump leaves office.

AP [5/21/2025 5:56 PM, Lolita C. Baldor, 31733K] reports that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has accepted a gifted Boeing 747 aircraft from Qatar for President Donald Trump to use as Air Force One, the Pentagon said Wednesday. The Defense Department will "work to ensure proper security measures" on the aircraft to make it safe for use by the president, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said. He added that the plane was accepted "in accordance with all federal rules and regulations.” Trump has defended the gift, which came up during his recent Middle East trip, as a way to save tax dollars. "Why should our military, and therefore our taxpayers, be forced to pay hundreds of millions of Dollars when they can get it for FREE," Trump posted on his social media site during the trip. Others, however, have raised concerns about the aircraft being a violation of the Constitution’s prohibition on foreign gifts. They also have noted the need to retrofit the plane to meet security requirements, which would be costly and take time. Trump was asked about the move Wednesday while he was meeting in the Oval Office with South Africa’s president. "They are giving the United States Air Force a jet," Trump said. The Republican president has presented no national security imperative for a swift upgrade rather than waiting for Boeing to finish new Air Force One jets that have been in the works for years.

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Washington Examiner [5/21/2025 2:04 PM, Mike Brest, 1934K]

Axios [5/21/2025 6:16 PM, Dave Lawler, 13599K] reports the top priority for the CIA’s new leadership is China, and in particular helping U.S. companies maintain "a decisive technological advantage" in areas like AI, chips, biotech and battery technology, Deputy Director Michael Ellis told Axios’ Colin Demarest in a rare interview. Ellis and CIA Director John Ratcliffe have pledged to restructure the agency and shift its priorities. Ellis offered insight into how exactly they plan to go about it. "China is the existential threat to American security in a way we really have never confronted before," Ellis said. Russia will still be a challenge and a priority for intelligence collection, Ellis said, along with adversaries like Iran and North Korea. But Ellis said the CIA will put much more emphasis on drug cartels, elevating the counter-narcotics division that had been something of an internal backwater. Ellis also contended that the CIA’s workforce and the tactics it employs need to evolve to fit the times and President Trump’s priorities. Cold War-era human intelligence techniques may still have some role, but they’re getting much harder to use successfully due in part to adversaries’ surveillance tech, Ellis said. "We need more people with technical backgrounds," Ellis said. "More STEM grads."

CBS News [5/21/2025 8:18 AM, Tucker Reals, 51860K] Video HERE reports China said Wednesday that the Trump administration’s plan to construct a so-called "Golden Dome" missile defense system to protect the U.S. from missile attacks carries "strong offensive implications" and will increase the risks of a global arms race and militarizing outer space. President Trump said Tuesday that his administration had "officially selected an architecture for this state-of-the-art system," and that a budget package currently being deliberated by Congress would provide an initial $25 billion in funding for the project. An unclassified assessment by the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency shows the military expects to be contending with missile threats that are greater in "scale and sophistication in the coming decade," noting specifically that "China and Russia are developing an array of novel delivery systems to exploit gaps in the current U.S. ballistic missile defenses." "North Korea has successfully tested ballistic missiles with sufficient range to reach the entire homeland, and Iran has space launch vehicles it could use to develop a military-viable ICBM by 2035, should Tehran decide to pursue the capability," the DIA assessment said, warning that already, "there is no part of the homeland which cannot be struck by existing ICBMs." But China, which has been deepening its ties with Russia while rapidly developing its missile and other military capabilities, including its nuclear weapons, accused the Trump administration of obsessing over U.S. defense at the risk of endangering global security. "The United States, in pursuing a ‘U.S.-first’ policy, is obsessed with seeking absolute security for itself. This violates the principle that the security of all countries should not be compromised and undermines global strategic balance and stability. China is seriously concerned about this," Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said Wednesday during a regular briefing in Beijing, according to multiple international news agencies. The White House plan "heightens the risk of space becoming a battlefield, fuels an arms race, and undermines international security," she said. "We urge the United States to abandon the development and deployment of a global missile defense system as soon as possible."

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FOX News [5/21/2025 9:53 AM, Morgan Phillips, 46878K]

Reuters [5/22/2025 4:48 AM, Mikhail Flores and Karen Lema, 51390K] reports the Philippines’ fisheries bureau said the lives of a civilian crew were put at risk when the Chinese Coast Guard fired water cannons and sideswiped one of its vessels while it conducted marine research around a disputed South China Sea reef. The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources condemned what it said was the "aggressive interference" of the Chinese Coast Guard against the Datu Sanday and a second ship in Wednesday’s incident, saying its vessels had not previously been subjected to water cannons in the area. The Chinese embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday’s statement by the bureau. Sandy Cay is close to Thitu Island, the largest and most strategically important of the nine features the Philippines occupies in the Spratly archipelago, where China, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam also have a presence. Last month, China said its Coast Guard had landed on Sandy Cay as part of operations to exercise its sovereignty. The Philippines has denied Beijing has seized control of the disputed reef. China claims sovereignty over nearly all the South China Sea, including areas claimed by Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam. A 2016 ruling of an international arbitral tribunal found Beijing’s sweeping claims had no basis under international law, a decision China rejects.

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