Larger meaning of Trump’s pushback against reality

Last Friday the Administration released a a video of the Minneapolis shooting, captured by the shooter himself, to bolster the claim he acted in self-defense. In fact, it shows just the opposite, as detailed by Heather Cox Richardson.

Why the total disconnect on the part of Trump officials? Because they are trapped in an authoritarian bubble Their mandate is to deliver a message directed at all of us, “an American exercising their constitutional rights must submit, without question, to a white man holding a gun.”

ICE’s approval rating has plummeted in the past year from +16 to -14 as reported by G. Elliott Morris at Strength in Numbers. Despite this fact, the Administration continues its expansion of the agency and attacks any opposition, writes Richardson.

After Good’s murder, the administration sent 200 Customs and Border Patrol agents (trained for combat, not civil resistance) to Minneapolis. Federal agents now outnumber local police, 3 to 1. A day later Homeland Security’s Kristi Noem restricted the ability of members of Congress to conduct oversight of ICE facilities.

Minnesota had previously been targeted by Trump, ostensibly because of problems (unproved) caused by its large Somali-American population, but more likely because of Trump’s losses there in 2016, 2020, and 2024. He unilaterally cut $10 billion in antipoverty funding to Minnesota and four other Democrat-led states - California, Colorado, Illinois, and New York.

Although ICE currently employs more than 20,000 people, it is looking to hire over 10,000 more, targeting right-wing radio fans, UFC, NASCAR, military enthusiasts, and people who shop for guns and tactical gear.

Photo credit: Jordan Gale for The New York Times

https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/january-10-2026

Protesters in Portland, OR gathered along the downtown waterfront on Saturday morning