The Common Ills: Chump's illegal war on immigrants

Saturday, August 23, 2025

Chump's illegal war on immigrants

While Donald Chump spends much of his time trying to erase history, he just keeps teaching it. For example, Naomi LaChance (ROLLING STONE) reports:

The Trump administration opened an immigrant detention site at a former Japanese internment camp in Texas, leading to condemnation from politicians, advocacy groups, and descendants of survivors of the WWII-era program.

Fort Bliss, a military base headquartered in El Paso, is slated to be the site of the largest federal detention center in the country. It currently holds around 1,000 detainees, but it is expected to eventually hold 5,000. Costing more than $1 billion in private contracts, it has also been used as a base for deportation flights.

The camp is reminiscent of “Alligator Alcatraz,” the Florida immigration detention facility that is slated to be shut down soon, per a judge’s order. Like Alligator Alcatraz, this makeshift tent facility forces detainees to endure soaring temperatures, risking heat-related illnesses.

Texas Rep. Jasmine Crockett said in a press release that there were “disturbing parallels” with Japanese internment at Fort Bliss. “Texas knows this history all too well, and we refuse to let it happen again,” she said.

[. . .]

Fort Bliss previously held up to 91 people of Japanese, German, and Italian descent in 1942 during World War II according to the Densho Encyclopedia, which chronicles the history of Japanese internment during the war. The facility had two compounds surrounded by barbed wire with guard towers.

Eduardo Cuevas and Lauren Villagran (USA TODAY) note:

But stewards of Japanese American history, including the children and grandchildren of those who were held in detention, are criticizing the use of Fort Bliss and the plans to expand immigrant detention on American military bases.

Fort Bliss was a "cog" in the United States Japanese internment machine, said Brian Niiya, a historian and content director at Densho, a nonprofit that chronicles Japanese American internment.

Niiya's own grandfather, the managing editor of a Japanese language newspaper, was arrested the night of Japan's Pearl Harbor attack, on Dec. 7, 1941, in Honolulu and held in six different internment camps over the next two years.

"It’s important to look to this past to maybe try to understand what’s going on in the present and what the end results could be," he said.

This teachable history moment brought to you by the idiots Chump, Kristi Noem and Tom Holman.

Way to go, Chump. His decision to use Fort Bliss could draw more attention to the illegal internment of Japanese Americans throughout the country in WWII than any Smithsonian exhibit.

Convicted Felon Donald Chump can't help himself, he's a crook. And we all know what Freud said about the criminal having a compulsion to confess.

Fort Bliss is his confession that he is a War Criminal intent on disgracing this country and attacking human rights. US House Rep Jasmine Crockett's office issued the following on Thursday:

EL PASO, TX — Today, Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (TX-30) joined the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and immigrant rights advocates in El Paso to condemn the Trump administration’s plan to convert Fort Bliss into the nation’s largest immigration detention camp. The proposed tent camp—projected to cost taxpayers $1.26 billion—could hold up to 5,000 people, exposing them to inhumane conditions.

More than 700 contract workers are already stationed at Fort Bliss. That’s proof Trump is putting his friends first and turning detention into a payday. Meanwhile, more than 1,000 people are being held without access to something as basic as a legal library. This isn’t about safety or justice. It’s about profit.

“What I saw today was a dangerous misuse of military land and resources to cage human beings,” said Rep. Crockett. “This attempt doesn't make our country safer, it wastes taxpayer dollars, rips families apart, and takes us backwards as a nation.”

Fort Bliss has a documented history of being used to detain people unjustly, including Japanese Americans during World War II. Rep. Crockett noted the disturbing parallels and vowed to continue fighting against Trump’s attempts to repeat that history.

“Texas knows this history all too well, and we refuse to let it happen again,” Crockett added. “Instead of pouring millions into mass detention, we should be fixing our broken immigration system in ways that respect people’s rights and dignity.”

###

Back to the USA TODAY report:

A Cato Institute analysis of government data in June found ICE was arresting four times more non-criminals each week on the streets than people with convictions. ICE's own data show that 45% of the roughly 59,000 people in custody in mid-August had no criminal record or charges.

Mike Ishii, executive director and co-founder of Tsuru for Solidarity, an immigrant rights advocacy group, said he sees parallels with the current administration “coming in and removing people from their homes, from their workplaces, often with no explanations.”

Ishii, whose family was held at the Minidoka concentration camp in Idaho, said, “Right now, it's very frightening for people,” he said. “In 1941, it was also frightening.”

Eighty years ago, Fort Bliss housed dozens of people labeled "alien enemies" by the government in a detention camp that included two compounds surrounded by double barbed wire fences, according to Densho.

Yes, we're back on an ugly page of history, one we all hoped we were long finished with. But that's what happens when you staff an administration with idiot, not just idiots though, idiots prone to cruelty. Jason Wilson (GUARDIAN) explains:

The US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has repeatedly endorsed the Reformation Red Pill podcast, and has appeared on four episodes. But the former pastor who hosts the show, and who attends Hegseth’s theocratic church, has voiced a range of extreme positions in recent months on issues including Ice raids, capital punishment, the racist “great replacement” theory, adultery and neo-Nazism.

The revelations come on top of recent media reports focused on Hegseth also boosting a video of Douglas Wilson and other Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches (CREC) pastors arguing that women should lose the vote in the United States. They also follow previous revelations about Hegseth’s links to or apparent sympathies for Christian nationalist positions.

Joshua Haymes is a member of the CREC-aligned Pilgrim Hill Reformed Fellowship (PHRF), and his podcasts advocate for the CREC’s moral and theological positions. As the Guardian previously reported, he once served as a pastoral intern at the church. Online he has claimed that liberalism is a greater threat to the US than neo-Nazism, and that the Bible is “pro-Ice raids”. On X, he has also advocated for capital punishment for adultery and abortion, and appeared to call for the drowning of LGBTQ+ Pride marchers.

[. . .]

Despite distancing himself from the PHRF, Haymes regularly hosts Brooks Potteiger, the congregation’s pastor and Hegseth’s closest spiritual adviser. Potteiger’s most recent appearance was just over a week ago. Pottiger appears alongside Haymes in the profile image for the podcast’s channel on YouTube, whose description reads: “We created this podcast as a resource to serve you in your reformation red pill journey.”

These materials, mostly published since Hegseth was confirmed as secretary of defense, underline the extreme Christian nationalist positions at Pilgrim Hill, in Goodlettsville, Tennessee, the community within which Hegseth acquired an 8,800 sq ft, $3.4m mansion in 2022.

And in a functioning administration, that would be more than enough to finally get Loose Lips Hegseth kicked out as Secretary of Defense.

But this is the administration run by a convicted criminal so they're all about keeping the worst of the worst in the administration in order to carry out more crimes. The stupidity and lust for cruelty combine to create a lot of laws broken by the corrupt administration. Gustavo Sagrero Álvarez (KUOW) reports:

The University of Washington’s Center for Human Rights is warning that federal immigration action has crossed a new boundary and is now breaking international humanitarian law.

The report zeroes in on 16 cases where people have been arrested by government agents and held for extended periods of time without access to a lawyer, or to the outside world. The legal term for such detentions is “enforced disappearance.”

“What I'm talking about is cases where days or even weeks go by that families still don't know where their loved one is,” said Center for Human Rights Director Angelina Godoy.

All of the cases covered in the center’s report have connections to Washington state. The people involved were either Washington residents, they were held at federal facilities in the state, or they were deported through Tacoma’s ICE immigrant lockup.

“The level of secrecy is what's different in these cases,” Godoy said.

Another example? Alexander Willis (RAW STORY) reports:

The Department of Homeland Security admitted to what experts called a “violation” of federal law when pressed by a watchdog organization in late July, according to reporting from The New York Times Friday.

American Oversight, a nonprofit watchdog group, filed a public records request with DHS related to the deployment of National Guard troops in Los Angeles in June. In a letter received by the organization on July 23, however, the agency said it “no longer maintained” records – specifically text messages from DHS officials and staff – as of April 9.

“(Text messages of top DHS officials) are records that must be preserved and kept because they are created in the course of conducting government business,” said Chioma Chukwu, executive director of American Oversight, speaking with The New York Times.

“If they are not preserving those records, or if they are making so they cannot search for those records, that is a violation of the Federal Records Act.”

The DHS’ failure to maintain communications as is required by law is not new under Trump’s two administrations.

Need another? David Fischer and Mike Schneider (INDEPENDENT) report:

A controversial immigration detention centre, nicknamed "Alligator Alcatraz" and located deep within Florida's Everglades, faces an uncertain future after a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction to halt its expansion and begin its closure.

US District Judge Kathleen Williams formalised a temporary halt she had imposed two weeks prior, amidst ongoing testimony in a multi-day hearing. Environmental advocates had argued the facility violated crucial environmental laws.

The state of Florida swiftly responded to the ruling, filing a notice of appeal on Thursday night.

"The deportations will continue until morale improves," DeSantis spokesman Alex Lanfranconi said in response to the judge's ruling.

The judge said she expected the population of the facility to decline within 60 days through the transferring of the detainees to other facilities, and once that happened, fencing, lighting and generators should be removed. She wrote the state and federal defendants can't bring anyone other than those who are already being detained at the facility onto the property. The order does not prohibit modification or repairs to existing facilities, "which are solely for the purpose of increasing safety or mitigating environmental or other risks at the site.,"

Well maybe it can reopen in January 2029? Just in time to house Chump.

Then again, he might not be up for prison. He's probably going to need to be rushed to assisted living. Molly Byrne (OK!) notes:

Donald Trump’s flesh-colored concealer has returned.

The president was seen leaving The People’s House: A White House Exhibit on Friday, August 22, when reporters snapped photos of his right hand with a blotch of unblended makeup.

Trump, 79, put on a brave face for the public, but under his concealer-covered hand is a permanent reminder to the politician that his days as a brisk, vigorous alpha are materializing before his eyes.

The president hasn’t confirmed why he smears the top of his hand with makeup; however, instances of the concerning nature continue to arise after it was revealed in July that he was diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency.

And Mayukh B (INQUISITR) adds:

President Donald Trump might act like he is ever young and is fit like he can do anything, but people can’t deny nature’s work. He still is an exception though. At 79 years of age, he has achieved the record of being the oldest person ever to become the president of the country, and on top of that, if he stays at the White House until August 15, 2028, he will set another major record of being the oldest sitting U.S. president in history. That would surpass every commander-in-chief before him.

However, keeping his victory aside, which earned him a second Presidential term, Trump was seen relentlessly questioning his predecessor, Joe Biden, concerning his age and fitness for office, but it now seems like his criticism has boomeranged on him. His physical and cognitive health has taken a toll from high talk with critics, even speculating that going forward, this role might be a toll for him.

Trump has given multiple physical signs in his recent public appearances that have eventually fueled the talk, which significantly circles around a mysterious, lingering bruise on the back of his hand, noticeably swollen ankles, and unexplained marks on his neck. Observers say these aren’t just minor details — they’re visual cues that have many questioning his condition behind closed doors.

This week, Billal Rahman (NEWSWEEK) reports, yet another parent was kidnapped by ICE on or near a school doing a child drop off. The incident occurred at or near California's Park Dale Lane Elementary School in Encinitas and some students -- along with parents -- witnessed the kidnapping. This comes as Donald Chump escalates his war on immigrants and education. Robert McCoy (NEW REPUBLIC) explains:

In Portland, Oregon, Trump’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency’s use of chemical weapons has chased away a K-8 school just weeks before the start of the academic year, Rolling Stone reports.

The Cottonwood School, a publicly funded charter school, was, until this month, located adjacent to the city’s ICE facility. But in recent months, as protests against Trump’s mass deportations ramped up around the facility, ICE agents began to deploy tear gas against demonstrators.

According to the school’s executive director, Laura Cartwright, chemical munitions began to stray onto school grounds.

“At the end of the school year, we started noticing more activity at the ICE building, and there were chemicals being used on a regular basis and munitions being found on our playground,” she told local NBC affiliate KGW.

Cartwright also told Portland’s ABC affiliate that they were finding the munitions on a daily basis.“We were getting footage in the evenings of green gases, and gases being used near our gardens and enveloping our area,” she said.

Tim Dickinson (ROLLING STONE) adds:

As a new academic year approaches, a nearby public school has been forced to abandon its longtime campus, citing threats to student health. “We didn’t know if there are new gases being used. We didn’t even know how to identify them,” says the school’s interim executive director, Laura Cartwright, who committed to an “emergency move” amid cratering enrollment. “If we would have stayed, we might have lost our school because of people’s concerns around safety.”

The publicly funded Cottonwood School is a charter school focused on “civics and science,” serving students from kindergarten to eighth grade. Its now-former campus sits south of downtown, near the Willamette River, amid a jumble of apartments and warehouses, with a Tesla dealership squeezed in for good measure.

The ICE facility sits half a block away from the school, across old trolley tracks. The multi-story concrete complex resembles a minimum-security prison. Because of protests, the windows of its bottom two floors have been up-armored with plywood. The building is tagged with graffiti, including incendiary messages like “ICE=Gestapo.”

When this reporter visited the area in late June, a laminated message hung on the fence of the Cottonwood School play area denouncing the “harm being inflicted on our neighbors, ecosystem, students and school.” It called on the feds to “cease the deployment of ‘less than lethal’ weapons,” including tear gas, “‘green’ gas, pepper balls, and rubber bullets reported near our campus.”

The makeup and potential health impacts of the chemical munitions used by ICE in the neighborhood has not been disclosed. ICE did not respond on the record for this story, including to questions about its crowd-control arsenal. Anti-ICE activists have begun cataloging canisters collected from the streets outside the facility, posting pictures of munitions labeled “CS,” or tear gas; “Green Smoke”; and “Orange Smoke.” (A demonstrator on the scene also showed this reporter a spent canister of Green Smoke.)

Schools have to protect the students and parents from Chump's gestapo. Some already are. NBC SAN DIEGO reports:

Two unmarked vehicles driven by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement officers left the parking lot of Herbert Ibarra Elementary School Friday following a confrontation by "community patrols," although ICE officials deny the agency was conducting an operation on school property.

The school's principal, Valerie Jurado, said in a statement to families of students that although she was unaware of any affiliation between the vehicles and any government agencies, she acknowledged how the belief made people uneasy.

"We understand how unsettling this report is and we stand with our community in our desire for ALL our students to be in a safe learning environment," Jurado wrote. "Our teachers and staff remain ready to support our students and ensure a day of calm and learning.

"We encourage our parents and community to take care of one another and support one another during times of uncertainty like this. School communities should be sacred spaces where all students deserve to obtain a high quality education, and all families feel welcomed."

Jurado reminded parents that ICE agents were not allowed on campus without a signed warrant. The San Diego Unified School District has a dedicated webpage to explain rights, regardless of immigration status: www.sdusdequity.com/protecting-students.

At CNN, Chelsea Bailey reviews our rights on this issue -- both for immigrants and citizens. And when it comes to the gestapo police force, citizens need to know their rights. Joe Kukura (SFIST) covers the targeting of American citizens by ICE:

We are now at the point where ICE agents are apparently arresting and detaining US citizens, as a San Francisco native became the third US citizen ICE agents have arrested this month in SF, though she was released on Thursday.

SF assistant chief public defender Angela Chan told Mission Local that it was (previously) “unheard of” for agents to detain a US citizen at an ICE facility. Chan said that there are "extremely specific circumstances” in which ICE can detain a US citizen, saying, “They must witness a federal felony offense in front of them while engaging in immigration-related enforcement and have completed requisite training.”

But after one day in custody, Angélica was released, and NBC Bay Area now identifies her as San Francisco native Angie Guerrero. And the KTVU video above has footage of the fracas and arrest (from a distance), plus footage of the crowd applauding when Guerrero was released on Thursday afternoon.

"I was shipped back and forth between a bunch of different agencies," Guerrero told NBC Bay Area after being released. "For a while I was afraid that I was going to be taken somewhere like Louisiana because they have been taking citizens and non-citizens alike all across the country."

The arrests and disappearances continue across the country. Kaitlyn Burzin (WFSB) reports:

Seven people were arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement while working at a car wash on Saturday, according to Newington Mayor Jon Trister.

The mayor released a statement on Facebook saying these people were taken into custody while working at the Optimo Car Wash on Main Street.

Mayor Trister confirmed that Newington Police were not involved in these arrests.

“We are actively working to determine who was targeted, whether their families have been notified, where they are being held, and if or how they have been charged,” wrote the mayor.

Dalton Zbierski (FOX 61) quotes from the mayor's statement:

“In the United States, everyone – regardless of their immigration status or where they were born – has the right to due process and to fundamental protections that cannot and must not be denied,” Trister expressed.

The mayor added that right is a guarantee afforded to every person in the country by the U.S. Constitution.

“The recent actions of ICE by the federal government are designed to intimidate and terrorize immigrants and their families, and we will not stand idly by,” Trister wrote.

A group of local leaders signed off on Trister’s post, pledging to stand with Newington’s immigrant communities.

“Our town has been and will remain a place where families are welcome and where neighbors look out for one another. We will not be intimidated, and we will never be silent,” Trister concluded.

Let's wind down with this from Senator Adam Schiff's office:

Los Angeles, CA – In case you missed it, U.S Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) toured Valley Community Healthcare (VCH) in North Hollywood to learn more about the health care center’s vital services and to highlight how President Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” will have devastating consequences for families receiving care at this clinic and across the country.

VCH is a community health clinic that serves 21,000 patients annually at their clinics in North Hollywood and North Hills. The Republican budget passed earlier this year is projected to cut $5 million in funding from the clinic, part of the expected $750 million annual funding cut projected across clinics and hospitals covered by the Los Angeles Department of Health Services.

“It’s an honor to be here at Valley Community Healthcare and see the incredible work they do, taking care of patients every day. Thousands and thousands of patients during the course of the year come through these doors and get vital medical services, many of them who can’t afford to get health care elsewhere. And sadly, this is so much at risk with this Big Ugly Bill that was just passed in the Congress of the United States, that is going to make dramatic cuts to health care to the tune of hundreds of billions of dollars,” Senator Schiff said during his visit.

During the visit, the Senator heard directly from VCH staff about how the health care cuts in the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” will impact the clinic and patients that rely on its services. VCH leadership estimated more than 4,000 patients will lose their health care coverage because of health care cuts enacted by President Trump and the Republican Congress.

“We really want to make sure that our patients maintain access to care as much as possible. I want to thank you for your leadership over the many years, and also your support of community health centers. This is an effort that we’ll have to tackle together. We really must ensure that we protect Medicaid, that we preserve access to care and that we don’t leave anyone behind,” said Anita Zamora, President and CEO of Valley Community Healthcare.

The Senator emphasized how he will continue using all the tools at his disposal to fight to protect funding for community clinics and to restore funding for health care in upcoming appropriations bills.

View photos from the Valley Community Healthcare visit below: