Happy Monday, everyone. I hope you have an amazing start to your week!
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With that, here’s the news:
Migrants in ICE detention centers in South Florida were reportedly subjected to degrading treatment, including being shackled, forced to kneel to eat “like dogs,” denied basic hygiene and medical care, and confined in overcrowded, unsanitary conditions.
The report, based on interviews by advocacy groups, details widespread abuses at three facilities—Krome, Broward, and the downtown Miami jail—including holding detainees on buses for over 24 hours, cramming people into frigid intake rooms without beds, and turning off cameras during violent crackdowns.
Most migrants detained have no criminal background, with national ICE detention numbers reaching nearly 56,400 per day as of June 2025, a sharp rise from an average of 37,500 during 2024, according to the report.
The surge in reported abuse follows increased immigration enforcement under the Trump administration, with detention numbers rising sharply and conditions deteriorating, prompting concerns of a growing humanitarian crisis fueled by chaotic and punitive detention policies.
Donald Trump’s lawsuit against Rupert Murdoch and the Wall Street Journal has been assigned to Judge Darrin Gayles, a federal judge appointed by former President Barack Obama. I’ve seen Judge Gayles in action. While he may not be the judge Trump wanted given that he was an Obama appointee, he is one of the fairest and no BS judges in the district.
Overnight, Donald Trump posted an image of former President Barack Obama in a tan jumpsuit while also posting a video, as seen below, of President Obama being arrested in the Oval Office. The video has since been deleted:
Maria Farmer reported Donald Trump’s ties to sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein to the FBI on two occasions, suggesting his possible mention in the Epstein files held by the Justice Department.
Donald Trump suggested that Senator Adam Schiff should “pay [a] price,” attacking another political opponent:
As Trump pushes a redistricting plan in Texas to boost GOP control of the House, Democrats, led by Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, are preparing a counteroffensive to redraw maps in blue states like California and New York—an aggressive and legally complex strategy that could reshape the 2026 midterms and spark political and legal battles over gerrymandering.
In an interview on Face the Nation, ICE chief Todd Lyons said agents will arrest anyone in the U.S. illegally—regardless of criminal history—and step up enforcement against employers hiring undocumented workers, following expanded immigration mandates under President Trump’s second term.
A Delta regional jet pilot apologized to passengers after making a sudden maneuver to avoid a near-collision with a B-52 bomber near Minot, North Dakota; the incident, now under investigation, occurred without prior warning from air traffic control, prompting the pilot to explain the evasive action and reassure passengers mid-flight.
Alaska Airlines grounded all Alaska and Horizon Air flights Sunday evening due to an unexplained IT outage—the second fleet-wide grounding in just over a year—raising renewed concerns about cyber vulnerabilities in the aviation industry amid a wave of recent airline tech disruptions.
The Trump administration’s sweeping cuts at the U.S. State Department—through mass firings, buyouts, and a proposed 48% budget slash—have triggered allegations of unlawful actions, gutted human rights programs, sidelined seasoned staff, and replaced them with far-right ideologues, leaving morale shattered and experts warning of long-term damage to U.S. foreign policy and national security.
Harvard is in federal court challenging the Trump administration’s freeze on over $2 billion in research funding, arguing it’s an unlawful pressure campaign tied to political demands around antisemitism, DEI, and academic governance; the case marks a key battle over academic freedom, with high stakes for scientific research and future federal-university relations.
The United Kingdom may soon back down from its demand that Apple provide British law enforcement agencies with backdoor access to customer data.
A Bangladesh Air Force jet crashed into a school in Dhaka shortly after takeoff, killing at least 18 people—including the pilot—and injuring over 160 others, mostly students; the cause remains unknown, and it's considered the capital's deadliest plane crash in recent memory.
Good News:
With 57 million Americans over 50 now gaming, seniors like 60-year-old “TacticalGramma” Michelle Statham are redefining what aging looks like—using platforms like Twitch to build communities, raise money for charity, and stay mentally and socially active through video games like Call of Duty and Zelda, all while boosting brain health and breaking stereotypes.
In Fullerton, California, teens and seniors are connecting through a unique summer camp where grandmothers teach high school girls traditional skills like sewing, ironing, and cooking—reviving lost arts while reducing senior loneliness and fostering meaningful intergenerational friendships.
Fifteen years after losing his wedding ring on a Virginia Christmas tree farm, Wayne Corprew was reunited with it thanks to the extraordinary care of new owners Darren and Samantha Gilreath, who preserved an old handwritten note and spotted the ring while planting corn—turning a longshot hope into a heartwarming reunion.
See you this evening.
— Aaron
