Weekend Quotables
Trump launches a 'following orders" war.
R.I.P. — H. “Rap Brown” (Jamil Al-Amin) and Jimmy Cliff
U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis
Judge Ellis issued a blistering review of immigration agents’ use of force during “Operation Midway Blitz,” offering new insight into the aggressive deportation campaign that’s torn through Chicago area neighborhoods.
She found examples of agents lobbing tear gas into crowds of protesters while exclaiming ‘f--- yea!”, slamming their brakes to cause car crashes, and using ChatGPT to write their reports.
The “mountains of evidence” undermined any claims that agents’ actions toward protesters, press, and clergy had been “more than exemplary,” Ellis wrote. While federal officials would like people to believe Chicago is overrun by violent rioters and agitators, to justify their “unprecedented swath of indiscriminate uses of force ... That narrative simply is untrue.” — Sun-Times
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Trump has ordered Sec. of Defense (War) Hegseth to launch an investigation and possible recall to active duty and court-martial of Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona for possible breaches of military law after Kelly joined a handful of other lawmakers in a video that called for U.S. troops to refuse unlawful orders.
Speaking Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation,” Kelly said Trump’s words were “very serious” and “carry tremendous weight.” Kelly added that “because of what he says, there are now increased threats against us.” Troops, especially uniformed commanders, do have a specific obligation to reject unlawful orders if they make that determination. — AP
More Weekend Quotables
JD Vance posted that it’s Illegal for members of Congress to tell the military to defy legal orders from the president. But if that’s true, then this must also be true: It’s legal for members of Congress to tell the military to disobey illegal orders—a contrapositive relationship within a system of authority.
Did I get that right, prof?
Rep. Lisa McClain, (R) Conference Chair
“Not everything President Trump is doing is illegal.” — CNN
Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colorado), a former Army Ranger
“It’s so telling that when members of Congress simply remind service members of the Constitution and their duty to obey the law…[Trump] cannot handle that and resorts to threats of violence and execution.” — Face The Nation
John Catsimatidis
“If you’re a billionaire, you want to stay a billionaire,” said Catsimatidis, whose net worth is estimated at $4.5 billion. — Washington Post
