MAGA Legislators Want To Add Mercenaries To Trump’s Perverse Take On The ‘War On Drugs’

https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://www.techdirt.com/2025/12/24/maga-legislators-want-to-add-mercenaries-to-trumps-perverse-take-on-the-war-on-drugs/

Bill introduced yesterday:
https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/3567

Press release from sponsor:
https://www.lee.senate.gov/2025/12/patriots-of-the-caribbean-lee-bill-authorizes-american-privateers-to-seize-cartel-assets-with-president-s-approval/6ed7fad5-5b91-47c0-aa8a-4b64ece3d16d

#Piracy #Trump #MikeLee Fascism #Cartel #USMilitary #InternationalLaw #MilitaryLaw

Continued...

Senate passes $901 billion defense bill that pushes Hegseth for boat strike video

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate gave final passage Wednesday to an annual military policy bill that will authorize…
#NewsBeep #News #Headlines #2026NDAA #defensedepartment #DonaldTrump #housearmedservicescommittee #MikeLee #militarypay #militarypayraise #NATO #PeteHegseth #RandPaul #RichardBlumenthal #RogerWicker #senatearmedservicescommittee #TedCruz #UnitedStates #Us #USA
https://www.newsbeep.com/317941/

Grindr supports age verification bill introduced by two Republicans

https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://www.advocate.com/news/grindr-supports-age-verification-bill-republican

Public lands are #StolenLands! #LandBack! No cities for #TechBros!

"One proposed Freedom City site lies within the National #Conservation Area on the Utah–Colorado border, just west of Grand Junction, but local officials note that the area lacks adequate #water. Another target is the #Presidio, part of Golden Gate National Recreation Area, in the heart of San Francisco, a rare urban parkland that offers green space, a trail system, historic buildings and museums, and beach access. The proposal would take this public #GreenSpace and convert it into a commercial and #RealEstate #SacrificeZone, robbing the city’s residents of a priceless natural amenity.

"Then there’s Rocky Mountain Arsenal, which despite its name, is no longer a military site but a a #NationalWildlifeRefuge — one of the largest to showcase High Plains grassland ecosystems. Ten miles from downtown Denver, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service bills the area as 'a sanctuary away from the hustle and bustle of busy urban life where time moves at nature’s pace.' Other areas identified for potential conversion include public lands near Boise, Idaho and Bend, Oregon.

"These groups are calling for congressional legislation, because without it, the core principles of the concept would probably be illegal. Waiving the #NationalEnvironmentalPolicyAct, granting tax incentives, waiving #CivilRights regulations, and fast-tracking #NuclearPlants are on the menu, a tempting prize for the pro-development #corporatists. To address this problem, legislation has already been proposed by Tom Bell, a libertarian legal consultant and tech entrepreneur, to create a Freedom Cities Board that would be empowered to waive state and federal laws within the bounds of lands carved out to become Freedom Cities. Senator #MikeLee’s (R-UT) recently-introduced HOUSES Act, which would authorize the sale of federal public lands for housing development, has also been trumpeted by Freedom Cities promoters as a possible avenue to advance their agenda.

"It should come as no surprise that the Freedom Cities initiative has its roots in communist China, where the government created #SpecialEconomicZones (#SEZ) to attract foreign investment through deregulation and tax incentives. The most prominent of these is Shenzhen, created by Deng Xiaoping as the ultimate experiment of unregulated capitalism, a place with special tax breaks and incentives, fewer labor protections, and greater freedom from regulation than was prevalent in mainland China. "

https://westernwatersheds.substack.com/p/freedom-cities-a-tech-bro-fantasy

#TechBrosSuck #NoNukes #WaterIsLife #NatureIsLife #CorporateColonialism

Trump ambassador pick vows to pressure South Africa over Gaza genocide case

https://fed.brid.gy/r/https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/michael-f-brown/trump-ambassador-pick-vows-pressure-south-africa-over-gaza-genocide-case

More #bullshit from Mike Lee; Utah has no international borders but somehow it's an immigration issue.

Sam Hill: 'Shameless': Utah senator revives crusade against public lands

"Republican Sen. Mike Lee is back with another bid to reshape America’s public lands — and this time, he’s framing it as a border security initiative."

#mikelee #republicans #congress
https://www.sfgate.com/national-parks/article/mike-lee-border-lands-conservation-act-wilderness-21104891.php