April 24, 2025 at 11:59 AM EDT
'We take our direction from the judge': Florida sheriff vows to ignore DeSantis directive

On February 13, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law a bill making it a first-degree misdemeanor to illegally enter the Sunshine State as an "unauthorized alien" and imposing additional penalties for reentry. But on April 4 in Miami, U.S. District Court Judge Kathleen Williams issued an order temporarily blocking the law. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, on Wednesday, April 23, sent Florida law enforcement a letter saying that he won't stop them from enforcing the law -- which has already led to arrests. However, Pinellas County, Florida Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, according to Florida Phoenix reporter Jackie Llanos, is saying he plans to abide by Williams' order and is telling his deputies not to arrest anyone under the law.

April 24, 2025 at 11:51 AM EDT
'Incompetent. Irresponsible. Negligent': Calls mount for Hegseth's ouster or prosecution

With seemingly near-daily revelations about U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth's alleged""and potentially unlawful""leaks of classified or sensitive information, concerns over his leadership, judgment, and efforts to reshape the Department of Defense, pressure for his resignation or removal and even prosecution is rapidly intensifying. Hegseth, confirmed by the narrowest of margins (51-50), is one of the youngest (44) Defense Secretaries, and had already been one of the most controversial. His Senate hearings were flooded with allegations and questions about sexual assault, use of alcohol, infidelities, position on women in combat, previous alleged poor leadership and financial mismanagement at several small nonprofits, and general lack of experience""sans his weekend gig as a Fox News host.

April 24, 2025 at 10:46 AM EDT
'This is war, actually': Expert explains how 'Trump is picking up where Biden left off'

Former Bank of America strategist David Woo said Thursday President Donald Trump's tariff policy is much more than just a trade war, calling it "very combative." "I think this is much more than just a trade war. I think this is war, actually," he said on the Odd Lost podcast, adding that "it is not surprising the way it is gone, because in a way, the whole thing has been heating up under [former President Joe] Biden."

April 24, 2025 at 10:34 AM EDT
Trump's sinking poll numbers reflect his 'terrible effect on the American psyche': conservative

More often than not, Fox News and its sister channel, Fox Business, are extremely supportive of Donald Trump's second presidency. But a late April poll from Fox News shows Trump with low approval ratings on a range of issues. According to the poll, Trump enjoys only 33 percent approval on "tariffs" and "inflation," while his approval is 38 percent on "the economy" and "taxes" and 40 percent on "foreign policy." Trump's overall approval on job performance, according to Fox News, is 44 percent positive.

April 24, 2025 at 6:13 AM EDT
'Repressive tactics': Highly-respected global org issues Kristi Noem a warning

The global human rights group Amnesty International on Tuesday called on supporters of the United States' core constitutional rights to write to Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, demanding that the Trump administration stop its campaign to strip foreign students of their right to be in the country for exercising their First Amendment freedoms. As Common Dreams reported Tuesday, since Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) accosted former Columbia University student organizer Mahmoud Khalil, forced him into an unmarked vehicle, and took him to a detention center in Louisiana thousands of miles from his pregnant wife in March, the administration's attacks on international students have only intensified.

April 24, 2025 at 6:00 AM EDT
'Chilling': Trump official threatens staff with criminal sanctions for speaking with press

A top official in the Department of Labor this week informed all staff members that they could face criminal charges if they speak to journalists, former employees or others about agency business. A memo sent Monday by Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer's chief of staff, Jihun Han, and obtained by ProPublica, states that "individuals who disclose confidential information or engage in unauthorized communications with the media may face serious legal consequences."

April 24, 2025 at 5:37 AM EDT
'Underhanded scheme': Emails reveal new Trump prosecutor made serious ethical violations

Reporting Highlights

April 24, 2025 at 5:22 AM EDT
'Blowing it': Rachel Maddow delivers devastating rant on Trump's first 100 days

Rachel Maddow outlined a multi-page list of President Donald Trump's mistakes since returning to office. She pulled enough material to fill the first half of her show. "... [I]f there is something to learn about what Trump in power is going to be like, I think the first 100 days have given us one very clear lesson," Maddow said, before launching into a tirade on purported savings Elon Musk's DOGE had incorrectly claimed, government property it had incorrectly put up for sale, and government employees it had wrongfully removed.

April 24, 2025 at 5:18 AM EDT
Ineptitude, incompetence, stupidity and chaos: The theme that unites everything

Some Democrats fear they're playing into Trump's hands by fighting his mass deportations rather than focusing on his failures on bread-and-butter issues like the cost of living. But it's not either-or. The theme that unites Trump's inept handling of deportations, his trampling on human and civil rights, his rejection of the rule of law, his dictatorial centralization of power, and his utterly inept handling of the economy is the ineptness itself.

April 23, 2025 at 10:02 PM EDT
'Absolutely blowing it': Rachel Maddow delivers devastating rant on Trump's first 100 days

Rachel Maddow outlined a multi-page list of President Donald Trump's mistakes since returning to office. She pulled enough material to fill the first half of her show. "... [I]f there is something to learn about what Trump in power is going to be like, I think the first 100 days have given us one very clear lesson," Maddow said, before launching into a tirade on purported savings Elon Musk's DOGE had incorrectly claimed, government property it had incorrectly put up for sale, and government employees it had wrongfully removed.

April 23, 2025 at 9:34 PM EDT
'A Trump magic trick': Daily Show's Jordan Klepper reveals his wildest MAGA moments

Comedian Jordan Klepper is known for his viral interviews with some of President Donald Trump's most diehard MAGA supporters, and recently shared details about some of the scariest -- and most insightful -- moments from those interactions. On Wednesday, the Daily Show posted a video from Klepper's recent "After the Cut" segment, which shows longer and more in-depth moments from the show that don't make it into the final broadcast. He wryly observed that as a former improvisational comedy teacher he wasn't used to having to travel with a security team, but that the combative tone of contemporary American politics required him to do so.

April 23, 2025 at 9:29 PM EDT
'Get in there and disrupt!' Critic orders Dems to take fight directly to Fox News

New Republic Columnist Greg Sargent says Republicans are showing a "dark endgame" on Fox News and other right-wing outlets, but Democrats have an opening to fight it--and they'd better. Democrats are leery of appearing on a hostile network and giving a "sheen of legitimacy" to what they consider propaganda but Sargent says not going on lets fringe outlets drag Republican news consumers and GOP-leaning independents even further to the fringe without the benefit of "contrary facts and complicating nuances."