Good afternoon, everyone. We have several serious updates to share.
Donald Trump is now openly encouraging the arrest and prosecution of journalist Don Lemon for reporting on protests at a Minneapolis church. At the same time, ICE agents forcibly raided a Hmong family’s home and dragged a U.S. citizen outside into the freezing cold without clothing. Separately, the former physician for Vice President Dick Cheney is calling for an investigation into Trump’s mental fitness to serve as president as he publicly entertains the idea of using force to take Greenland.
Taken together, these developments make one thing clear. The Justice Department appears willing to target journalists simply for doing their jobs and telling the truth.
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Here’s what you missed:
- ICE agents raided a Hmong family’s home in St. Paul, forcibly detaining ChongLy Scott Thao—an elderly U.S. citizen with no criminal record—by breaking down the door without a valid warrant, pointing guns at family members, handcuffing him in front of his young grandson, and holding him for nearly an hour in freezing weather before confirming his citizenship and releasing him without apology.
- Justice Department officials, led by Assistant AG Harmeet Dhillon, warned Don Lemon he could face legal consequences after he filmed and questioned people during a Minnesota church service disrupted by anti-ICE protesters, as the Trump administration vows aggressive federal prosecution amid nationwide protests following the fatal ICE shooting of Renée Good. This is a significant attack on the First Amendment.
- Trump further amplified a call to prosecute Lemon on his Truth Social today:
- A scoop I broke today: The Trump administration is proposing a sweeping Justice Department rule that would eliminate prosecutors’ ability to recuse themselves over conflicts of interest, giving Attorney General Pam Bondi sole authority over recusals and drawing warnings that the change would undermine prosecutorial ethics, judicial independence, and defendants’ due process rights while consolidating political control over DOJ cases.m
- President Donald Trump refused to tell NBC News whether he would use military force to seize Greenland, while escalating pressure on Denmark and other European nations with threatened tariffs and tying his Greenland push to resentment over not winning the Nobel Peace Prize.
- Greenland’s Dog Sledding Association disinvited Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, President Trump’s special envoy to Greenland, from a traditional dog sled race in protest of Trump’s recent tariff threats against Denmark, according to Politico.
- The physician for former Vice President Dick Cheney has called on Congress to open a bipartisan investigation into Donald Trump’s fitness to serve following Trump’s letter to Norway suggesting that he may invade Greenland due to the fact that he did not receive the Nobel Peace Prize.
- According to the Washington Post, after Renée Good was fatally shot in Minneapolis, the FBI briefly opened a civil rights probe into the immigration officer but no investigation is currently active, as the Justice Department says Trump administration officials instead pushed scrutiny toward Good’s partner rather than the officer.
- The Pentagon placed about 1,500 troops on prepare-to-deploy orders for a possible Minnesota deployment as protests intensified after the fatal ICE shooting of Renée Good, with the Trump administration threatening use of the Insurrection Act and the Justice Department signaling aggressive federal prosecutions tied to unrest and church protests in the Twin Cities.
- According to NBC, FBI has asked agents nationwide to volunteer for temporary assignments in Minneapolis amid intensified anti-ICE protests following the fatal shooting of Renée Good, with agents expected to help investigate assaults on federal officers and vandalism as the Trump administration expands its federal law enforcement presence in the city.
- Donald Trump became the first president since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was established to skip issuing an MLK Day proclamation, breaking a nearly 40-year bipartisan tradition and signaling a broader retreat from federal recognition of civil rights observances.
- Epstein victims’ advocates condemned the Justice Department for missing the legal deadline to release all investigative files under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, saying millions of documents remain withheld despite a clear congressional mandate and accusing the Trump administration of prolonging a decades-long failure to deliver accountability and justice for survivors.
- A second detainee has died in two weeks at a Texas ICE facility, with ICE calling the death of Nicaraguan national Victor Manuel Diaz a presumed suicide, as advocates raise alarms about rising fatalities, disputed accounts of prior deaths, and dangerous conditions in immigration detention during the Trump administration’s deportation surge.
- Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem reversed her denial that ICE used pepper spray on Minneapolis protesters after video evidence surfaced, as federal courts, the DOJ, and the Pentagon all became involved amid escalating tensions over aggressive ICE tactics, church protest investigations, alleged denial of legal access to detainees, and preparations for a possible troop deployment following the fatal shooting of Renée Good.
- A giant version of the birthday card sent from Donald Trump to Jeffrey Epstein is on the National Mall today.
- The three senior U.S. Catholic cardinals said the Trump administration’s foreign policy has become overly militaristic, citing actions in Venezuela and threats to take Greenland by force, and warned that pursuing peace through weapons rather than diplomacy raises serious moral questions about America’s role in the world.
- The Trump administration’s suspension of naturalization ceremonies has left thousands of approved immigrants—many who already passed citizenship tests—stuck in limbo, as critics call the move collective punishment tied to security claims and a broader immigration crackdown, while Democrats press the administration to resume oath ceremonies and explain how long the pause will last.
- NBC News has confirmed that U.S. Marshals arrested a Washington state fugitive wanted for probation violations after finding him hiding under a child’s bed in Spokane, where officers recovered a handgun and high-capacity magazines, with authorities saying the peaceful arrest removed a violent offender and illegal weapons from the community.
See you soon.
— Aaron
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