Mastodawn

You know, I'm seriously considering becoming the uspol news filtering source I always wished I had in the past.

Because a bunch of places sprung up last time that collected everything they possibly could as if to be able to point and boggle at it and make sure everyone else was seeing it, too

But what I WANTED was just "round up the clickbait articles of the day, click, summarize into what responsible (salaried) journalists would have used as the headline in the first place" So you can just read what happened, leave out the speculation, leave out the "he said THIS THING... we don't know what his end position will be, but look we got your ad revenue" and leave out the developing stories that are so developing there's no actual information yet until the time when there actually IS information.

Leave out the schedule for the rest of the week... like ooooh so-and-so is up for a confirmation hearing tomorrow... who cares? we don't care. That's a reporter using us as their blackberry for lack of something to say so far, like this is not a sitcom, we do not need to "next time, on Happy Days" this shit, that should have be at the end of the article about the nomination, not its own article.

Today I'm seeing a billionty ... well, reaction articles, basically, about yesterday's stuff. So we're going to sit here freaking out MORE? No. We did that freakout.

Here's my news cull. For me, lol. Is it helpful for anyone else? This isn't a bad way to read up... looking for only things that actually happened today and aren't just in an intermediate stage or inconsequential to most of us meant I read the rest but didn't dwell overlong.

Today everyone was at the National Cathedral for the inaugural prayer service and the Right Rev. Mariann Budde spoke truth to power beautifully, calling for mercy toward our LGBTQ children and the undocumented.
Record snowfall of up to 6" blanketed the Gulf coast, with sub-freezing temperatures across the southeast tonight. Snow will continue to fall along the eastern seaboard tomorrow.
All federal DEI program staff have been placed on paid leave, pending layoffs. Treasury workers filed suit to prevent reclassification as at-will employees ("Schedule F").
Ross Ulbright, Silk Road founder who had been serving a life sentence, was pardoned.
Secret Service protection of John Bolton, former National Security advisor, was withdrawn despite ongoing threats to his life after a suspected 2022 assassination plot by Iran.
Multiple lawsuits have been filed to block actions and protect birthright citizenship, including one filed by officials from at least twenty states.

A way to help right now:

Migrants whose asylum appointments were abruptly canceled yesterday are now stranded at checkpoints (and there's still about a quarter million people who wanted those appointments). If you can spare a bit, a migrant shelter org I know offhand is https://www.elbuensamaritanomigrante.com/ and there are dozens more, try this: https://hipfunds.org/supporting-migrant-orgs 💜

Home | El Buen Samaritano Migrante

El Buen Samaritano M

Needs a proper name. Low-anxiety news? That's a bold promise. Low-impact? gentle? simple? I dunno. I'll work on it.

Officially, ICE yesterday arrested ~300, but they were planned targets. Reports of indiscriminate raids beginning seem to be rumor.
A 71 year old woman who participated in the Jan 6 riots, Pamela Hemphill, refused a presidential pardon (possibly only the third person to do so in US history). She has publicly stated her belief that the group's actions were wrong.
Trump threatened Russia (on truth.social) with tariffs and sanctions if the war in Ukraine continues.
Bloomberg Philathropies has again pledged to replace the dues the US normally pays to the UNFCCC. The US currently funds 22% of the UN climate framework.
At least 1000 active-duty military personnel have been ordered to the southern border.
Resettlement of Afghan refugees will be suspended Jan 27. The Welcome Corps program has also been canceled, as have scheduled flights for 1600 Afghan refugees.

If you wish to help refugees at particularly high risk due to cancellation of these programs, organizations aiding those from Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Myanmar, Syria and Venezuela are good places to start.

lmao I crack myself up
there's no nuance here as I slept through the day

A judge has blocked Monday's executive order denying birthright citizenship to the children of undocumented parents. This is the first successful lawsuit against the administration.
A new fire that broke out in Castaic along the 5 on Wednesday is 36% contained. The whole Angeles National Forest is closed. Additional small fires broke out today, but the other large fires, Palisades and Eaton, are now 75% and 95% contained respectively.
Trump signed orders to release classified files on JFK, RFK and MLK Jr. As 99% of files on JFK have already been released, this will likely expose the identities of protected sources who are still alive.
Trump spoke at Davos indicating the goal worldwide should be to slash interest rates and expressing protectionist goals.
ICE raids begin in earnest, with a consensus 500+ detained today and a higher number of total arrests, 1300+, likely but not confirmed. The Newark mayor publicly objected to the warrantless detention of lawful US citizens, including a US military veteran whose military identification was rejected.
House bill filed to extend Trump's eligibility to a third term is being reported without the context that an earlier bill sought to affirm that the two term limit applies to non-consecutive terms. (The 22nd amendment continues to agree).

when you hear people talking about "cute winter boots," that's organizing tiktok liberals while getting around the auto-moderator. (Some are making it weird).

A border patrol death reported earlier this week has led to the arrest of a 21 year old woman (and death of the passengers thereof) who had been under surveillance for traveling with tactical gear and firearms. The original stop was an immigration check because the (now deceased) German owner's visa had expired.
A Chicago school turned away agents they believed were ICE trying out their new directive to detain people even in schools and churches. Mistaken identity, but now there's precedent for refused entry onto school grounds.
Additional former coworkers of Trump's have lost their security details, now including Dr. Fauci, who receives regular threats.
Deportation flights were sent to Guatemala but flights to Mexico were halted. Flights resumed quickly and the incident described as an administrative issue, but not until after the internet decided it was a firm stand against Trump's tariff threats.
Pete Hegseth was confirmed as DOD secretary only by a tie-breaking vote. Earlier this week, he was accused of abusing his second wife, adding to a laundry list of ethical concerns.
Foreign Aid to Ukraine has been frozen as well, but we continue to supply Israel.

It was a day for a lot of news, but not a lot of News within it. Trump said, Trump said, Trump said.... and we never know what he means. That'll be the last entry on the list:

Trump said a lot of things and was a general embarrassment. Updates will follow if anything comes of any of it.

ok let's just stick with this

Since yesterday, Trump removed inspectors general from their posts in at least a dozen federal departments, effective immediately. These officials were introduced in 1978 to serve as auditors and oversight for their departments. Their contracts were violated in the order, as they require 30 days' notice and a reason presented to Congress for their removal.
Foreign aid is now frozen to ALL nations, including Israel, but Israel will now be receiving 1800 Mark-84 bombs which Biden had been refusing to send since May due to fears they would be used against civilians (more). This action is being taken during a ceasefire period.
Kristi Noem was confirmed as secretary of Homeland Security on a bipartisan basis.
A minister spoke out and Brazilian police intervened to remove restraints the US had placed on arrivals from deportation flights. Lula had the passengers transferred to a Brazilian air force plane for the remainder of their journey.
After a year panda-less, Bao Li and Qing Bao have debuted at the National Zoo, renewing our panda partnership with China. You can watch them during the daytime at https://nationalzoo.si.edu/webcams/panda-cam 🐼🎍

Giant Panda Cam

Watch the giant pandas at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo starting in January 2025.

Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute

ICE reports nearly 1000 people arrested today. Officials now admit that the promise of deporting "millions" by aircraft was never practicable.
Trump created a review board to recommend overhauls to FEMA, but lacks the power to dismantle it.
A second Jan 6 rioter has refused his pardon and now accepts guilt. (The guy who broke into an office and drank a bottle of wine).
The Hezbollah and Israel ceasefire has been extended to Feb 18.

The following two items currently represent bad outcomes AVERTED for now:

Trump approached Jordan with an ethnic cleansing plan to relocate a million Palestinians to purpose-built housing in Jordan and Egypt. They refused. Jordan did not publish this information, but the White House did.
After refusing deportation flights, Colombia was threatened with 50% tariffs by the US and immediately returned the threat with 50% tariffs of their own, then both backed down. Colombia sent their Presidential plane to fetch their people with dignity.

A collection of Quaker groups have filed suit about the directive to ICE to proceed with arrests in churches.
The 2021 executive order reinstating transgender service members has been rescinded.
Service members who refused covid vaccination and were discharged are now able to rejoin and collect back pay.
Trump terminated members of the Justice Department assigned to the two criminal cases for which he was prosecuted.
Workers in Philadelphia voted to form the first union in a Whole Foods store.

There is a large outbreak of tuberculosis in Kansas. Two have died in the past year and there are currently ~80 active cases. TB is treated by months of antibiotics and spreads through respiratory contact and raw milk.
A judge canceled a broad federal funding freeze set to go into effect at 5pm. State AGs filed an additional suit to block the freeze (which does not include direct payments).
Transgender service members and prospective members have filed suit re: yesterday's service ban.
Trump banned federal funding for gender transition for minors. This includes healthcare provided to military families and federal workers as well as medicaid. Nearly half of children in the US rely on federal funding for health coverage, though many are children 5 and under.

Last one's a little tricky because I want to break it apart but I also want you to understand no one is USING this full document yet, only the first section. An Office of Personnel Management memo highlighted four "pillars" for reforming the federal workplace.

Federal employees were offered nearly eight months of pay and benefits without in-person in exchange for deferred resignation (many will likely be placed on administrative leave).

introduced an unknown performance standard/assessment process

notice of intention to begin furloughs, reductions in force and the reclassification of many federal workers to at-will employees

"enhances" conduct standards on the basis of reliability, loyalty, trustworthiness and striving for excellence. This specifically mentions unlawful behavior as potential cause for termination, though there are already considerable ethical conduct guidelines and agreements in place for federal workers.

The specific items included here may be intended to override the confines of the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978, which created our post-Nixon concept of the "career" civil servant who cannot be fired without just cause and retains clearly protected political speech and right to protest. Expect legal challenges on various grounds.

The memo regarding a federal funding freeze, blocked yesterday, was rescinded. The Impoundment Control Act of 1974 forces the executive branch's expenditure of funds appropriated by Congress.
A passenger flight arriving from Kansas with 64 on board collided with a military helicopter on a training flight above Reagan National Airport (DCA), sending both craft into the Potomac River. Impact forces and near-freezing water limit survivability of this event, but a count of casualties has not been released.
Trump ratified the Laken Riley Act, the first new law of his second term. This requires the detention of any undocumented immigrants who are arrested, face charges or have committed theft (which often leads to a citation and release).
Trump ordered the preparation of the Guantánamo Bay Migrant Operations Center for up to 30,000 undocumented immigrants, the highest-priority "criminals." This appears intended to operate independently of the high-security prison at Guantánamo, currently housing fifteen.
ICE raids have now led to the illegal detention of lawful US citizens, including members of the Navajo Nation.
Trump signed an order instructing federal agencies to identify ways to deport resident aliens who are pro-Palestinian activists and demonstrators.

Tank running on empty and already out of new photos of your favorite baby zoo animals? Check out www.zooborns.com for some lesser-known new friends from past months.

ZooBorns

The Newest and Cutest Exotic Baby Animals from Zoos and Aquariums Around the World!

The FDA approved suzetrigine, a first-in-class pain signal blocker and opiate alternative to treat acute pain with minimal sedation or addiction risks.
Trump signed an executive order to investigate ... not yesterday's plane crash, or the apparent ATC staffing shortage, but all FAA hiring in the past four years, targeting disabled and minority employees.
A federal court struck down the ban on handgun sales to 18-20 year olds, in place since 1968.

Two side notes on that last:

The original Gun Control Act set handgun sale ages at 21 and long guns at 18, viewing the handgun as the weapon requiring more maturity. The intention here has broken over modern times and weapons technology, leaving the AR-15 rifle most often used in mass shootings legal for ownership at age 18.

This is for federal dealer licensed sales, not private sales. It also does not reflect state restrictions on buyer ages, which range from 16-21 on handguns.

good night, good night

A medevac plane carrying six crashed in Philadelphia, causing fires on the ground.
FBI leaders have been directed to supply a list of all employees ever involved in the Jan 6 investigations. It was the largest case in FBI history.
The director of the Census Bureau has resigned.
The acting Treasury secretary has resigned.
25% tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico and 10% tariffs on China may go into effect today (Feb 1). European Union tariffs have now been promised.
Government websites now read LGB only.
Louisiana has issued arrest warrants regarding a NY doctor issuing an online prescription of abortion pills later used by a minor. This could be the first test of New York's "shield" laws, intended to protect abortion providers from prosecution or extradition across state lines.
California's Eaton and Palisades wildfires are now 100% contained.
Asteroid 2024 YR4 measures an estimated 40-100m across and has a 1-in-77 chance of hitting Earth in 2032.

Trump ordered an airstrike on an ISIS leader in Somalia.
Trump fired the head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Tariffs went into effect, and Canada and Mexico retaliated in kind. Natural gas and oil from Canada are set at a 10% tariff rather than 25%.
Musk and associated forced their way into access to the Treasury payment system, though possibly read-only access.
Democrats elected Ken Martin as their new national chairperson. 24 year old Parkland school shooting survivor David Hogg won his election as one of three vice chairs.

Good morning, folks.

I could collect these over the day and release them on a schedule at the same time every evening. I haven't. Why? Well, I'm tired and don't want to set that up. But also, I like being able to wait to tell you how things turn out. Like the trade war with Colombia that was over before it began. Like the funding freeze that was easily blocked (twice) and rescinded completely... someone reading a weekly paper would have encountered that as a laughable blunder, not the horror we read it as, and which constant news-checkers lived through in agonizing real-time.

And I think, for sanity's sake, we should REMEMBER that the truth eventually ends up somewhere in the middle.

Someone recommended this, and I think if you are getting scared out of control, you should take some time and go read it: https://archive.ph/WrNy5 and you might feel a little more powerful.

Here's the news:

Musk has declared the world's single largest donor, USAid, to be "criminal'" and is trying to shut it down (technically illegal, as it's funded as an independent agency by Congress). USAid provides 42% of all humanitarian aid recorded by the UN.
Trump revoked temporary protection status for 300,000 Venezuelans currently in the US. This status does not create a path to citizenship and exists for humanitarian purposes only.
protests in Arkansas
protests in Missouri
protests in multiple cities in Georgia
protests in multiple cities in Texas
protests in multiple cities in California
downtown Los Angeles brought to a standstill by protestors blocking the 101 in both directions
other small and large, planned and spontaneous demonstrations nationwide. Many such protests are scheduled all day, every day at central locations.

I've been doing these posts for people who are ill or need to stay informed but minimize the stress impact since administration day two. It was pointed out that if I use hashtags, people can separate the thread from other uspol content. But that means posting on public instead of unlisted. Please forgive my noise and filter out (or follow, or ignore) #QuietNews however you see fit.

The tariffs on Mexico and Canada are delayed at least 30 days. Both countries announced updated border strategies (similar to their existing plans - this was Trump mostly backing off).
The 10% tariff on China may still go into effect today (Feb 4). China plans to enact retaliatory tariffs/export controls on Feb 10 and filed a complaint with the WTO.
The White House claims it will dismantle the Department of Education, primarily a student protection body, but cannot do so without Congress. (Same deal as USAID from yesterday: the President's power doesn't extend to agency closure).
El Salvador offered prison space for deportees of any nationality as well as US criminals. This is likely illegal under US and international law.
Elon Musk is classified as a "special government employee," a position which does not require confirmation, disclosure of assets or a conflict of interest statement, but which only allows 130 days of employment.

#QuietNews is my daily, intentionally calm US news roundup meant to inform friends and others who need staying informed to have minimal impact on health. Please reply only in kind.

A judge blocked the order forcing transfer of women to men's prisons and removal of gender-affirming care.
Thirty federal lawsuits are in progress against the administration's actions to date.
The USPS has stopped accepting packages temporarily from China and Hong Kong (more of which will now be subject to duties).
During a press conference with Netanyahu, Trump floated the idea of the US taking over and rebuilding Gaza into "the riviera of the Middle East."
Congress put a hold on Trump’s $1 billion arms sale to Israel.
Today (Feb 5) marks the 50501 Protests (50 states, 50 protests, one day) which will mostly happen at state capitol buildings at noon.

#QuietNews is my daily, intentionally calm US news roundup meant to inform those who need news-reading to have minimal impact on health. Please only reply in kind.

A second judge blocked the order to limit birthright citizenship until that case is decided.
Partial names of all CIA probationary employees (recent hires) were sent over an unclassified method.
Senate Democrats seek to delay confirmation of Russell Vought, nominated to direct the OMB, who believes the Impoundment Control Act of 1974 is unconstitutional.

Sidenote on this last: there have been no successful challenges to this act, which compels the executive branch to defer to legislators over expenditures. When an administration proposes recission of particular funds to Congress, that proposal must be approved within 45 session days or else the funds are released. This is a failsafe to prevent the Executive branch from unilaterally refusing to spend appropriated funds indefinitely. Judges are likely to frown upon the current attempts to bypass this legal process.

In recent years this act has been successfully used to overturn the Obama administration's misappropriation of funds for ACA cost-sharing reduction payments and force Trump to provide military aid to Ukraine in 2019.

Trump ordered a ban on transgender athletes which will impact the NCAA through Title IX and potentially the USOPC due to its governmental oversight. In recent years the NCAA has heavily recruited international athletes, and the DHS secretary has been directed to apply this order to the visa process.
The new Transportation Secretary has invited DOGE to make aviation "safety upgrades."
Amtrak's running a flash sale ending today (Feb 6) to bring a friend along to enjoy your first class roomette rental for free. 🛤️

#QuietNews is my daily, intentionally calm US news roundup meant to inform those who need news-reading to have minimal impact on health. Please only reply in kind.

Trump issued his order to agencies to identify ten existing regulations or guidance documents to repeal for each new one introduced, similar to a (minimally effective) two-for-one deregulation scheme in his first term. Individual regulations for particular industries can number into the hundreds of thousands. This "x-for-y" approach is used in multiple other countries.
The State Department's twitter account announced US ships would no longer pay fees to use the Panama Canal. The canal authority immediately disagreed.
A viral video by AOC noted that tax cuts benefitting the ultra-wealthy expire this year and must be funded to be extended. DOGE et al may simply hope to find a spare $4 trillion in the couch.
A judge blocked transfer of Department of Labor records to DOGE until today's (Feb 7) decision whether to grant a temporary restraining order.
A judge has halted the attempted buyout of remote federal workers to consider its legality (and apparent bypass of a rule limiting administrative leave to ten days) ~60,000 ultimately agreed of the 2.3 million civilian executive branch workers.
A judge temporarily barred DOGE employees from accessing Treasury records, allowing only two people working for the treasury department to maintain read-only access. One promptly resigned after his racist twitter posts were published.

(That AOC video is well over an hour long and I watched it so you don't have to. It was mostly organizing 101: bite off only what you can chew, chosen from the areas where you can actually have an impact, and don't just stand in front of the media firehose nonstop while people are using these shock doctrine tactics).

#QuietNews is my daily, intentionally calm US news roundup meant to inform those who need news-reading to have minimal impact on health. Please only reply in kind.

Trump attempted to fire the FEC Commission chair, who refused to leave her post in the independent, bipartisan commission to protect democratic voting rights. His powers do not extend to removal of heads of independent regulatory agencies, and the recently fired NLRB chair has already sued for wrongful dismissal. This committee member's term was up in 2008 and she would be automatically dismissed from the commission if her replacement were appointed, but that doesn't seem to have happened, and this may be attempted retaliation rather than a planned takeover.
Trump dismissed the CFPB head. (That one IS legal).
Four government agencies targeted by DOGE for budget cuts or illegal shutdown have now refused physical access to Democratic legislators attempting to meet with various officials.
A judge blocked the placement of 2,200 USAID employees on administrative leave without addressing other aspects of the closure attempt.
OPM has requested the names and job information from all federal divisions of every employee with a history of underperformance within the past three years.
Trump announced he will be taking over as chair of the Kennedy Center, reworking its board and deciding its programming, specifically to remove drag shows.
Trump signed an order freezing aid to South Africa over its recent repeal of an apartheid-era land use law, claiming human rights violations. Trump has framed it as racially-shaped policy of land confiscations directed toward white landowners, though this actually covers things like reclamation of dangerous areas when in the public interest. The administration claims it will prioritize Afrikaner refugee resettlement in the US.

#QuietNews is my daily, intentionally calm US news roundup meant to inform those who need news-reading to have minimal impact on health. Please only reply in kind.

The NIH dramatically lowered the grant money available for use for administrative costs at research institutions.
A judge temporarily barred transfer of the names of FBI officials who had handled the Jan 6 investigations to the administration.
A judge granted an emergency restraining order banning DOGE from Treasury systems and mandating destruction of data already collected.
Trump issued sanctions against the ICC, setting financial and visa restrictions on its staff, protesting the warrant on Netanyahu.
Trump established a "White House Faith Office," which will have liaisons and similar offices in other agencies.
The AG will be completing a second amendment compliance review of existing regulatory enforcement, rules issued by the ATF, positions in ongoing litigation and more.

And in nice news, the PlayStation network has recovered from its outage of over twelve hours. Nature Human Behaviour published a study last year with a unique experimental design taking advantage of lottery entrant pools for game consoles during the supply shortage. It showed that well-being isn't just correlated with game console ownership, but seems to genuinely be improved by it, so please make time to stack those blocks or go adventuring with your friends or whatever!

#QuietNews is my daily, intentionally calm US news roundup meant to inform those who need news-reading to have minimal impact on health. Please only reply in kind.

Trump ordered a stop to production of new pennies (which cost two pennies to create).
Trump threatened new aluminum and steel tariffs at 25% and reciprocal tariffs where the US has a trade imbalance.
The new OMB director was also installed as acting director at the CFPB (the bureau protecting US consumers from predatory financial services) and has effectively shut it down for the next week.
Trump stated that he is committed to "buying and owning Gaza," referring to it as a demolition site.

That's probably enough for today. Let's get some rest.

#QuietNews is my daily, intentionally calm US news roundup meant to inform those who need news-reading to have minimal impact on health. Please only reply in kind.

Mx Rey (Fuck ICE) 💜 🏳️‍⚧️Feb 6, 2025

@pamela thank you so much for doing this 💜

Fritz Adalis Feb 6, 2025

@pamela
I wish all news was like this.

dokuja Feb 6, 2025

@pamela thank you

blobcatcomfhappy

Russ Sharek Feb 5, 2025

Thank you for the gentle updates.

Josh Grosse Feb 5, 2025

@pamela thank you, again. These can't be easy.

Picks the Evangelist Jan 29, 2025

@pamela i want to say i really appreciate these, thank you for putting them together

Geoff Jan 23, 2025

@pamela 'News Nuggets You Need'?

Josh Grosse Jan 23, 2025

@pamela I've been avoiding my usual news feed. This has been ... very helpful! though I am unsure about how calm I am.