Big Day In The Senate. Make Your Calls. Let's Rein In ICE For "ICE Is Not A Law Unto Itself"

Senator Klobuchar announces for Minnesota Governor: "hard work, freedom, and simple decency and good will"

Morning all. Big day today. Leader Schumer and Republicans are working on a deal to split off the 5 other appropriations bills from the DHS appropriations, and vote on those before the weekend. If this happens there will be still a funding lapse and a partial government shut down for Cowardly and Idiotic Speaker sent his Members home and they do not return until Monday night. To be clear - after keeping the House from meeting for months last year the Cowardly Speaker and his Cowering Conference are once again nowhere to be found on a critical day for our country. And so vital government operations will cease this weekend - for the Speaker once again did not show up for work.

Under this plan the DHS appropriations bill would move on a different track. Democrats have proposed a package of reforms to DHS/ICE that would be added to the current appropriations bill and if passed by the Senate would head to the House. Here’s where this gets very interesting, according to Punchbowl:

If Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and the White House come up with a deal to avert a shutdown, that proposal will then come over to Speaker Mike Johnson’s House, where any plan to overhaul the Department of Homeland Security will be met with deep skepticism.

The House will return Monday night to several new dynamics.

Voters in Houston will elect a candidate this weekend to replace the late Rep. Sylvester Turner (D-Texas). If Johnson swears in a new Democrat as expected, the House will have 218 Republicans and 214 Democrats. That’s a one-vote margin on any bill for the GOP (remember, ties don’t count.)

Now let’s review the other issue at hand – funding for DHS, and ICE in particular. As the Senate seeks to avert a shutdown, the House Republican leadership is extremely concerned about what lies ahead.

In fact, House Republican leaders don’t see a clear path to getting a new Homeland Security funding bill through the chamber again. President Donald Trump will have to be directly involved in the whipping effort to have any chance at all.

The House Freedom Caucus has made clear that it is opposed to renegotiating the DHS measure. Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) — who’s running for attorney general in the Lone Star State — said that if the DHS bill gets reopened, he’d seek to cut all funding for sanctuary cities. Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.), the chair of the House Freedom Caucus, would likely push for additional H-2B visas, something he’s fought for in the past.

More fundamentally, most House Republicans don’t agree with the main policy demands from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. For example, the House GOP leadership has serious reservations about mandating that ICE obtain judicial warrants for arrests. Privately, the White House says this is a non-starter. Yet it’s also a red line for most Democrats, so there’s a huge gap here.

The only hope is that Trump gets deeply involved in the negotiations and brings skeptical House Republicans along.

Meanwhile, House Democratic leaders seem incredibly comfortable with their position. They feel as if a showdown over DHS funding will continually remind voters that federal agents fatally shot two people in Minneapolis and Republicans are refusing to take any legislative action to respond to the crisis.

“Our cards are great and they know their cards are bad,” one House Democratic aide told us.

What are Democrats asking for? Here’s Politico:

Senate Democrats on Wednesday revealed the DHS restrictions they need in exchange for helping Republicans avert a shutdown Friday night, including the tightening of rules on warrants.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer outlined the asks after a closed-door caucus meeting, telling reporters that Democrats were united around “common sense and necessary policy goals.”

The list – featuring several demands previously reported by POLITICO — also included a prohibition on agents using masks, mandates for body cameras and IDs and a “uniform code of conduct and accountability,” including requiring independent investigations of incidents like Saturday’s fatal shooting of Alex Pretti.

“Republicans must work with Democrats to find legislative solutions,” Schumer said.

This is a good list. It’s meaningful reform. What happens next? Who knows, but man do we need to be loud today. Call your Senators and House Rep, demand they fight to pass this package and rein in ICE. Don’t buy this bullshit fake “de-escalation” from the White House. It is important to note that yesterday Senator Schumer made an additional demand, something that we’ve been discussing here for days - Stephen Miller must go.

One of the things we’ve been discussing here, and was the main focus of my recent conversation with Glenn Kirschner, is how ICE has been allowed/encouraged by Trump-Vance-Miller to ignore the law rather than enforce it. A Minnesota judge is now working hard to bring to light just how extraordinarily lawless ICE has been. From The NYT:

The chief federal judge in Minnesota excoriated Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Wednesday, saying it had violated nearly 100 court orders stemming from its aggressive crackdown in the state and had disobeyed more judicial directives in January alone than “some federal agencies have violated in their entire existence.”

The extraordinary broadside by the judge, Patrick J. Schiltz, came in a ruling in which he temporarily rescinded an order he had issued on Tuesday, summoning Todd Lyons, the acting director of ICE, to appear in front of him to explain why he should not be held in contempt for violating so many orders arising from the Trump administration’s hard-line immigration actions in Minnesota.

While Judge Schiltz, a conservative jurist appointed by President George W. Bush, let Mr. Lyons off the hook for the moment, he cautioned that he might change his mind and order him to appear again to answer questions if ICE continues to violate court orders.

“ICE is not a law unto itself,” the judge wrote. “ICE has every right to challenge the orders of this court, but, like any litigant, ICE must follow those orders unless and until they are overturned or vacated.”

Judge Schiltz attached to his ruling a list of 96 court orders from 74 different immigration cases that ICE has failed to follow since Jan. 1. He noted that his tally was “almost certainly substantially understated” because it had been “hurriedly compiled by extraordinarily busy judges.”

“This list should give pause to anyone — no matter his or her political beliefs — who cares about the rule of law,” Judge Schiltz added.

The federal courts in Minnesota have been deluged this month by legal cases filed by immigrants swept up in the administration’s dragnet. Some of the immigrants have sought to avoid being sent out of the state by federal agents, while others have complained they were wrongfully detained.

Judge Schiltz’s initial order demanding that Mr. Lyons appear in front of him on Friday arose in the case of Juan Hugo Tobay Robles, an Ecuadorean man who entered the United States illegally nearly 30 years ago and was taken into custody by immigration agents on Jan. 6. Judge Schiltz determined that ICE had detained Mr. Tobay Robles under an improper reading of federal law and two weeks ago instructed federal officials either to let him challenge his detention or release him.

After that failed to happen, the judge told Mr. Lyons to appear in front of him. But he provided a way out. He said that if Mr. Tobay Robles were quickly released, he would cancel the hearing with Mr. Lyons.

Mr. Tobay Robles was, in fact, released from ICE custody in Texas on Tuesday afternoon, his lawyer, Graham Ojala-Barbour, wrote in a letter to Judge Schiltz on Wednesday. But even though his client was free, Mr. Ojala-Barbour asked Judge Schiltz to hold a contempt proceeding with Mr. Lyons, saying the administration’s “failures to comply with this court’s orders” had led to “significant hardships” for the immigrants involved.

A separate ruling last night highlights something we discussed yesterday - in this upcoming debate about DHS and ICE, we must force ICE to narrow their operational targets to criminal migrants, something Trump has said is their priority. For ICE has not only been deporting long settled undocumented immigrants without criminal record, in one of its most lawless acts, it has been detaining and deporting LEGAL IMMIGRANTS. Here’s The NYT on the new ruling:

A federal judge on Wednesday evening ordered federal agents to stop detaining and deporting refugees in Minnesota who were lawfully admitted to the United States, and to immediately release those currently held for re-examination of their cases.

The judge granted a temporary restraining order, halting for now the Trump administration’s operation, which has swept up at least 100 people so far. The administration is likely to appeal the ruling.

“Refugees have a legal right to be in the United States, a right to work, a right to live peacefully — and importantly, a right not to be subjected to the terror of being arrested and detained without warrants or cause in their homes or on their way to religious services or to buy groceries,” said Judge John R. Tunheim of the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota.

“At its best, America serves as a haven of individual liberties in a world too often full of tyranny and cruelty,” the judge wrote in a 32-page opinion. “We abandon that ideal when we subject our neighbors to fear and chaos.”

And just so we all understand - there has been no “de-escalation” in Minnesota or anywhere else. In fact yesterday DOJ dramatically escalated, bringing charges against 14 protesters in Minnesota:

Federal prosecutors charged more than a dozen people with crimes tied to alleged assaults on agents carrying out President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement surge in Minnesota.

Charges were unsealed Jan. 28 against 14 people in U.S. District Court in Minnesota, and all but one — who suffered a medical emergency — were in court for initial appearances.

On social media, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi referred to the group as “rioters” and accused them of “allegedly assaulting federal law enforcement” and resisting and impeding agents. Bondi claimed federal agents had arrested the individuals, plus two more who did not appear in court and did not have criminal charges that could be found in public filings after the hearing.

“We expect more arrests to come,” Bondi wrote from Minneapolis. “I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: NOTHING will stop President Trump and this Department of Justice from enforcing the law.”

They are among the first protesters and observers of the ICE crackdown in the state facing charges. Bruce Nestor, an attorney for two of the defendants, said the individuals had been arrested and held at the Whipple Federal Building at Fort Snelling in recent weeks for eight to 12 hours and released without charges. He said the government then issued arrest warrants, and individuals turned themselves in.

“The government is trying to shift the narrative by bringing these charges against people previously released without charge and create a false narrative that federal agents are under assault and attack,” Nestor said.

Bondi posted names and photos of the defendants to social media before their charges had been unsealed in court. The move prompted concern from a federal public defender and a scolding from U.S. Magistrate Judge Dulce J. Foster, who told Department of Justice attorneys she was “deeply disturbed” that the government posted photos of the individuals, who she noted are presumed innocent while awaiting trial.

Attorneys for the Department of Justice didn’t comment in court on Bondi posting the photos.

Finally, Senator Amy Klobuchar has announced her campaign for Governor of Minnesota with this powerful launch video:

Big day today. We are having the debate about DHS-ICE we all wanted to have. Senate Dems are working to rein in ICE. Make your calls, and now….

We Have More Work To Do People!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Winning The Midterms - Support Our Candidates

• Hopium’s Winning The House Campaign (2026) - $95,400 raised, $250,000 goal (new stretch goal) - Donate to all four endorsed House challengers with one click | Learn More | Enjoy our new conversations with Christina Bohannan (IA-01), Mayor Paige Cognetti (PA-08), Jo Mendoza (AZ-06), and Janelle Stelson (PA-10)

• Mary Peltola For Alaska Senate - $23,300 raised, $250,000 goal - Donate | Volunteer and learn more. Amazing start everyone!

• Winning Ohio - $44,100 raised, $250,000 goal - Our new campaign splits contributions evenly among Sherrod Brown, the Acton/Pepper ticket, and the Ohio Democratic Party. Donate today and help us turn this critical 2026 battleground blue! | Watch my conversation with David Pepper, who does a great overview of the opportunities we have in Ohio this year. Note a generous donor has sent $21,000 worth of Hopium-infused contributions directly to the candidates which are not included in on-line goal tracker.

• Roy Cooper for NC Senate (2026) - $71k raised, $250,000 goal - Donate | Learn More | Volunteer | Enjoy my conversation with Gov. Cooper and a new, terrific one with NC Dem Party Chair Anderson Clayton

• Jon Ossoff GA Senate (2026) - $116k raised, $250,000 goal - Donate | Learn More | Volunteer | Enjoy my inspiring conversation with Senator Ossoff

Expanding The Senate and Electoral College Maps, Winning In Red States and Red Places (2026-2032)

• Hopium’s Audacious Expansion Fund - $339,100 raised, $500,000 goal (new stretch goal) - Join our new campaign to expand our map by investing in the Democratic Parties of Alaska, Florida, Iowa, Maine, and Texas. Many thanks to two generous Hopium community members who have audaciously donated $10,000 to each of our five state parties

3 Campaigns Where We’ve Hit Our Goals, But Are Still Active - We have three campaigns where we’ve hit our goals but that folks can still participate in - Ken Martin’s New DNC, Anderson Clayton and the North Carolina Democratic Party, and the Democratic Party of Minnesota (DFL).

We got the following note from Cynthia this week. She is one of the 3,000 Hopium subscribers in Minnesota:

I am a Minnesotan and cannot adequately express the depth of my gratitude to Simon for this conversation with Richard and organizing this fundraiser and to each person that donated. My heart is full and tears are running down my face. Thank you to everyone who has supported and spoke up for Minnesota in any way and pushed back against ICE and DHS anywhere.

This is the absolutely the most unsafe I’ve ever felt where I live. It far exceeds anything I’ve experienced, and I am white. It affects my decisions every time I go outside. I continue to call my reps and work with my friends and my partner to offer mutual aid, get training, and help others. My neighborhood has been quiet and we’re looking for more ways to help others in more affected areas. We are attending the Solidarity Mobilizations this coming Tues and next: https://www.mobilize.us/surj/event/885616/

I attended an excellent online event with Indivisible this week about the caucuses, plan to attend myself, and have gotten 2 more people to go already, with more on my call list.

I went to the annual art sled rally this weekend. It is one of my favorite events of the year! So much laughter, fun, and delight. Thankfully, there wasn’t ICE presence during the event that I’m aware of. Look for the Minnesota 2026 art sled rally on YouTube if you haven’t seen it yet!

Why We Must Invest Early, Now, And Not Wait - In three new essays (here, here, here) I discuss how one of the ways we win the 2026 midterms is by providing early support to our candidates and parties to allow them to staff up, be loud, define the terms of the debate now, before the inevitable onslaught on AI slop, Russian disinfo, and Trumpian lies funded through bribes and corruption wash across the land.

The midterms could be won or lost in these next few months - not in the fall of 2026 - and we need be fighting now with everything we got.

Winning The Big Arguments With Trump, Defend Our Democracy

1 - Call Your Senators and Member Of The House And Demand They Act Upon Our Five-Part Agenda - We need to be loud people, very, very loud and make the case for our now five part agenda:

1. Stand with Ukraine and our European allies, and far more forcefully challenge Trump’s traitorous efforts to sell out the US and the West to Russia; demand Congress rebuke/issue a no confidence vote on his new threats to seize Greenland and his new, dangerous European tariffs;

2. Congress must stand forcefully for rule of law in the Caribbean and the Pacific - these illegal strikes must end; no war can be waged without Congressional approval; there must accountability for those who have broken the law, and the US must withdraw from Venezuela and cease other threats to violate the UN Charter and the sovereignty of other nations

3. Roll back Trump’s terrible, illegal tariffs that are re-igniting inflation, driving up prices, shifting the tax burden from the wealthy to working people, hurting small businesses and farmers, reviving tyrannical “taxation without representation,” and alienating governments and people throughout the world. To put America on a sounder fiscal course due to the enormous deficits brought by Trump’s 2025 tax cuts we should reverse the cuts to the wealthy and corporations

4. Defend our democracy, rule of law, and our liberties by blocking the expansion of ICE; restoring due process for immigrants across the country; vigorously defending the 1st Amendment; warring against his outrageous targeting of his domestic political opponents; ending the use of the military on our streets and the dangerous occupation of our cities; stopping the unprecedented regime corruption; and by forcing the Administration to finally comply with Congress end the rancid cover up of the Epstein crimes.

5. Fight Trump’s war on science, higher education and our public health; reverse - not delay - the cuts to the ACA, Medicaid and our clean energy investments; support and co-sponsor the Stand Up For Science/Rep. Haley Stevens effort to remove Robert Kennedy from HHS.

Keep working hard everyone, and I remain so incredibly proud to be in this righteous fight with all of you - Simon