William Lindsey 4h ago

"As the deadly federal immigration crackdown fueled by a racist obsession with Somali people kicked into high gear in Minnesota, a right-wing local news site in Maine had a clear message: Bring the chaos here.

The Maine Wire launched in 2011, and for the next decade most of its output was standard libertarian fare."

~ Noah Hurowitz

#Maine #Minnesota #Trump #Somalis #ICE #immigrants #EthnicCleansing #LeonardLeo
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https://theintercept.com/2026/04/08/maine-wire-conservative-news-leonard-leo-somalis/

GOP Megadonor Leonard Leo Is Bankrolling a Website on the Warpath Against Somalis

The Maine Wire presents itself as a plucky upstart fighting for the common Mainer, but it’s fueled by powerful right-wing money men.

The Intercept
Show threadWilliam Lindsey 4h ago

"But as the U.S. right took a hard nativist turn — and amid an infusion of cash from some of the most powerful right-wing money men in the country — the site developed a fixation on Maine’s Somali community, a highly visible immigrant population in a state that’s over 90 percent white."

#Maine #Minnesota #Trump #Somalis #ICE #immigrants #EthnicCleansing #LeonardLeo
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Show threadWilliam Lindsey 4h ago

"Beginning in December, as right-wing audiences frothed over the viral Nick Shirley video in Minnesota, The Maine Wire leapt into action. Its journalists dusted off earlier reporting to suggest the existence of a sprawling conspiracy of Medicaid fraud, protected by a sordid alliance between Democratic political elites and allegedly corrupt Somali-run nonprofits and health care providers."

#Maine #Minnesota #Trump #Somalis #ICE #immigrants #EthnicCleansing #LeonardLeo
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Show threadWilliam Lindsey 

"That month, the Maine Wire published at least 31 articles that included the word “Somali” and kept it up with at least 26 in January, at least 14 in February, and at least nine in March. Robinson published still more stories about the issue on his Substack, dubbed The Robinson Report."

#Maine #Minnesota #Trump #Somalis #ICE #immigrants #EthnicCleansing #LeonardLeo
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2:59pmWeb
Show threadWilliam Lindsey 4h ago

"It’s no accident that the events playing out in Maine resemble the playbook used to justify the federal crackdown in Minnesota, according to Graham Platner, a U.S. Senate candidate running against Mills for the Democratic nomination.

'This is a nationwide project. This is directly connected to the story in Minnesota to demonize Somali communities, which brought about ICE raids there,' Platner told The Intercept."

#Maine #Minnesota #Trump #Somalis #ICE #EthnicCleansing #LeonardLeo
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Show threadWilliam Lindsey 4h ago

"The money began to arrive in earnest in 2021, thanks to the largesse of groups connected with two of the country’s most powerful right-wing donors: Leonard Leo and Thomas D. Klingenstein. Leo, a longtime vacationer in Maine, moved to the state in 2020, and his fingerprints could soon be found on various political campaigns and causes."

#Maine #Minnesota #Trump #Somalis #ICE #EthnicCleansing #LeonardLeo
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