Behind The Scenes of Trump’s Haphazard Occupation of LA

In June, Major-General Scott Sherman had a problem.

He was in command of the Federal Troops of the National Guard of California stationed in Los Angeles and had received a bizarre request: the immigration authorities wanted military vehicles and troops of the National Guard to support an operation targeting the MacArthur park of the city on the day of the Father’s Day.

Sherman fell. Gregory Bovino, a chief of the CBP sector known for his flamboyant puffy, allegedly answered by questioning Sherman’s “loyalty” in the United States.

These details emerged during a trial on the bench currently organized in Los Angeles for Trump’s decision to federalize the California National Guard. US District Judge Charles Breyer for the Northern District of California is organizing a three -day trial this week. The case examines whether the administration has broken the posse Comitatus Act by taking over the California National Guard and in the deployment in Los Angeles. Trump ordered the takeover and deployment after demonstrations broke out on immigration and customs raids in South California.

During the testimony on Monday, California called Sherman as a witness. He told a lawyer for the State of California that “information” did not indicate a threat to federal functions near MacArthur park, but that the immigration authorities wanted more than 50 military vehicles to cross the park as part of the operation. Sherman said he had hesitated to go ahead with the idea. When the California lawyer asked Sherman if Bovino questioned his “loyalty” in the United States in response, Sherman confirmed that he had done so.

MacArthur Park’s operation finally took place on July 7.

Tuesday, during the testimonies, the lawyers of the MJ tried to minimize the operation as extremely limited, and only in support of the existing efforts for the application of immigration. This goes to a key distinction under the law: although it is illegal to use the military for national purposes of application of the law (the insurgency law is the main exception to this, and the administration has never invoked it), they can be used in a support role. DOD, for example, has long provided various forms of logistical support to immigration agencies acting along the American-Mexican border.

The Trump administration has expanded the definition of “support” to justify the use of soldiers to help the immigration authorities to make a repression. Trump on Monday sent the DC National Guard to the National Capital; Although it has more latitude about how to use the DC guard, this is another example of the creeping presence of troops in American cities.

What is essential to understand here is that serving the national police is not the mission of the military. This is not what soldiers join to do; This is not what they and their commanders spend years training. The missions are different.

This can be a problem at a purely logistical level. But this is a more fundamental question to explain why it all happens. The anecdote that Sherman confirmed shows a small instance of the internal conflict that the inanity of all this begins to create.

– Josh Kovensky

The federal judge finds that Trump Admin illegally retains the funds

A federal judge said on Monday that the Trump administration seems to illegally retain funds previously authorized by the Congress.

US District District Judge Dabney Friedrich, one appointed by Trump, said the administration “obstructed” tens of millions of dollars in the national endowment for democracy – a non -profit organization dedicated to the growth and strengthening of democratic institutions in the world – for months.

“The court simply notes that defendants cannot retain the appropriate funds under current conditions: on the grounds that the projects of the endowment do not align with the priorities of the executive,” wrote Friedrich in his opinion.

The decision comes as the Trump administration spent a large part of this year to the Gel funds, the Congress has already appropriated, mainly flying from the legislative branch of its handbag power. The White House also the Republicans of the Armed Congress to vote for an attraction package to reduce the funding he had already approved.

Meanwhile, the Government Accountability Office has already expressed several opinions claiming that the Trump administration had violated the law on the control of deduction by retaining federal funds.

The National Endowment for Democracy continued the Trump administration in March because it could not access the funds that the Congress was assigned to the organization. Shortly after filing the trial, the administration released the majority of the funds in question. But in recent weeks, the group has declared that the administration had once again started to slow down the release of money which is supposed to be at their disposal without a deadline until they are used.

– Emine Yücel

The big bill not so beautiful for the poor

The Congressional Budget Office published a new analysis on Monday, in detail, even in detail, how the so-called “big, beautiful” bill would make the rich richest and the poor poorer. The Megabill will cost households on average in the lowest decile in revenue distribution $ 1,200 – largely due to Medicaid discounts and the additional nutritional aid program – while increasing income for the highest decile by $ 13,600, due to the extension of Trump 2017 tax reductions.

– Emine Yücel

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What we read

Trump plays the Carnage card – Paul Krugman

The Pentagon plan would create a military “reaction force” for civil disorders – Alex Horton and David Ovalle

How to be a stranger in a strange country – Matt Pierce