If Donald Trump and his cronies spent as much energy actually listening to Americans and doing what voters want as they have on their freakout about the spotlight on Natalie Harp, perhaps the president’s approval rating wouldn’t have dipped to 33% this week.

While Trump’s allies rushed to the defense of Harp, the president’s close and influential aide dubbed the “human printer,” his administration was busy further harming democracy, undermining the Constitution, and hurting societies worldwide.

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This week, Trump’s newly sworn-in attorney general, Todd Blanche, refused to pledge that his Justice Department would act independently of the White House. That’s troubling but not surprising when it comes to Trump’s cronies, given we also learned this week the DOJ sought to interview FBI agents involved in the 2022 classified documents search of Mar-a-Lago. And Trump’s DOJ is preparing to deploy about 1,000 “election monitors” for the midterms.

Here’s more from ‘This Week in Democracy – Week 83’:

Saturday, Aug. 15 – Trump DOJ’s ‘Ridiculous Fishing Expedition’ Into Law Firm

The New York Times reported that, over the past year, Chicago prosecutors have investigated a Democratic fundraising firm that was previously co-owned by the daughter of the judge who oversaw Trump’s 2024 hush money trial, which ended in his conviction on 34 felony counts.

The founder of the firm, Mike Nellis, called the move “a ridiculous fishing expedition based on conspiracy theories that are completely divorced from reality,” and accused Trump’s DOJ of trying to seize “sensitive political communications of my clients,” including Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.

Sunday, Aug. 16 – Blanche Won’t Pledge Independence

During an interview on ‘Meet the Press,’ former Trump defense lawyer and newly-minted Attorney General Todd Blanche suggested the Justice Department may ask the Supreme Court to overturn the nearly two dozen lawsuits the DOJ has lost trying to force states to turn over their voter rolls.

He also refused to pledge that the DOJ would act independently of the White House, saying, “No attorney general should ever pledge that.”

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Monday, Aug. 17 – Trump’s DOJ to Deploy 1,000 Election Monitors for Midterms

Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon told Bloomberg that Trump’s Justice Department is planning to deploy about 1,000 monitors during the midterm elections in November.

It’s unclear where the monitors will be assigned, but she hinted that they may be sent to jurisdictions where the DOJ alleges there may be “voter fraud issues,” despite the fact that voter fraud is nearly non-existent.

Tuesday, Aug. 18 – Trump’s Antisemitism Probes Against Universities ‘Predetermined’

Multiple outlets reported that a Monday whistleblower disclosure revealed that the outcomes of the Trump administration’s investigations into three Ivy League universities over allegations of antisemitism constituted an “unlawful process designed to achieve predetermined political goals” that were “without regard for the evidence.”

Meanwhile, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced sanctions against the International Criminal Court president who issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s arrest, along with one of the Court’s senior lawyers.

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Wednesday, Aug. 19 – Trump’s ‘Laughable’ Voter Report

NPR reported that the Census Bureau report Trump cited as evidence of non-citizens voting in the 2020 presidential election was drafted by individuals affiliated with the Trump-aligned think tank, America First Policy Institute.

The Center for Election Innovation & Research’s David Becker told NPR the seven-page report was “laughable” and pointed out that “Census data cannot be reliably matched to voter data.”

Thursday, Aug. 20 – DOJ Tries to Interview FBI Officials Tied to Mar-a-Lago Search

AP reported that investigators at Trump’s Justice Department have made efforts to question FBI officials tied to the 2022 search of Mar-a-Lago that led to the president’s indictment the following year for unlawfully retaining classified documents.

The move is part of an investigation based in Florida seeking to establish a conspiracy against Trump by his perceived enemies.

Friday, Aug. 21 – Ballroom Construction Can Continue For Now, Supreme Court Says

Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts handed another victory to the Trump administration by allowing construction on the president’s White House ballroom to continue for now by pausing a lower court’s ruling that ordered a halt to the project.

Construction on the ballroom is already about two-thirds complete, according to one White House official, with a team of 250 people working 20 hours a day, seven days a week on the project.

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It’s no secret that Donald Trump only looks out for himself, but this week, a bombshell report from the Washington Post underscored just how expendable even those closest to him really are. As Swin laid out in ‘First Draft,’ Trump left Marco Rubio, Scott Bessent, and Stephen Miller, along with the White House press corps, as human shields in a plane the administration claims was the subject of an Iranian assassination threat. (There’s also a question about the Israeli-provided unverified intel about the threat itself, as Mehdi explained in ‘First Draft’ this morning.)

We wish we could say such stories still surprise us.

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Meanwhile, in democracy news, Trump-endorsed election denier MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell lost his gubernatorial primary in Minnesota, while another Trump-endorsed election denier, Tom Tiffany, secured the Republican nomination for governor of Wisconsin. Trump still refuses to rule out declaring a national emergency to take over the midterm elections. And ICE is planning to spend up to $20 million for agents to use electric shock gloves.

That’s not all that happened this week – another bombshell report shed light on a terrifying investigation the Trump admin conducted into left-wing groups. Here’s just a taste of how Trump and his allies harmed democracy, undermined the Constitution, and hurt societies worldwide this week:

Saturday, Aug. 8 – Former Trump Lawyer Confirmed as Attorney General

The Senate narrowly voted to confirm Trump’s former criminal defense lawyer Todd Blanche as attorney general.

As acting attorney general, Blanche greenlit the second indictment of former FBI Director James Comey, reauthorized the use of firing squads for death penalty executions, and signed off on a now-supposedly rescinded $1.776 billion “anti-weaponization fund.”

Sunday, Aug. 9 – Trump Crypto Company’s Curious $100 Million Investment

The New York Times reported that a businessman once under investigation in the UK for money laundering became one of the biggest buyers of tokens from Trump’s cryptocurrency company, spending $100 million through a newly formed firm.

As much as three-quarters of the money ultimately went to a company controlled by Trump and his sons.

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Monday, Aug. 10 – Trump Left Government Officials, Reporters as Human Shields

The Washington Post published a bombshell report that Trump hid in a catering container and was secretly shuttled into a different plane when leaving Turkey last month, in response to what the administration claims was an Iranian assassination threat against the president. (Israel provided the intel about the threat – intel U.S. officials could not independently verify.)

While Trump switched planes, he left key officials, like Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller – along with reporters in the White House press corps – aboard Air Force One, which effectively became a decoy.

Tuesday, Aug. 11 – ICE Wants Agents To Use Electric Shock Gloves

AP reported that ICE, an agency already known for its use of excessive force, is planning to spend up to $20 million to give its agents electric shock gloves to use as part of its enforcement operations.

The manufacturer says the gloves shouldn’t be used on children, pregnant people, or elderly or disabled people.

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Wednesday, Aug. 12 – Top Trump Propagandist to Leave White House

On Truth Social, Trump announced that White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt is leaving her post by the end of August, but will remain as one of the president’s “top outside advisors.”

Leavitt, the youngest press secretary ever, welcomed multiple far-right content creators into the “new media” seat at press briefings, lashed out at a reporter during an exchange about the killing of Renee Good, and argued that reporters who won Pulitzer Prizes for their coverage of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election should be stripped of their awards.

Thursday, Aug. 13 – DHS Investigated Left-Wing Groups After Pretti’s Killing

The New York Times reported that the Department of Homeland Security quietly launched an investigation into several left-leaning political organizations in the wake of Alex Pretti’s killing by federal immigration agents.

The probe targeted many groups and individuals who weren’t connected to any criminal activity, and involved expansive surveillance efforts, including infiltrating group chats on Signal, as well as obtaining financial records of organizations.

Friday, Aug. 14 – Trump Takes White House Ballroom Fight to Supreme Court

Trump asked the Supreme Court to clear the way for his White House ballroom to continue construction before an appeals court ruling halting above-ground work on the project goes into effect on Aug. 21.

The Trump administration argues the injunction that blocked the construction “threatens the security and safety” of the president.

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It’s always a good week when what’s left of the levers of democracy actually work the way they’re supposed to. And Abdul El-Sayed’s victory in the Michigan Senate primary against $60 million in outside spending, including over $30 million from AIPAC, showed that the people – the voters – are what truly make democracy great.

Of course, Republicans and others have already kicked into overdrive, ramping up their racism and Islamophobia against El-Sayed, as Mehdi laid out in ‘First Draft.’ And Zeteo’s politics team painted a horrifying picture this week about Donald Trump’s plans to steal the midterm election.

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Meanwhile, ICE is not investigating the Maine killing, but it is collecting DNA of migrants who have never been convicted of a crime. Trump’s former personal lawyer is one step closer to running the Justice Department. And Trump still thinks he can limit birthright citizenship. Here’s just a taste of what Trump and his cronies did this week that harmed democracy, undermined the Constitution, and hurt societies worldwide:

Saturday, Aug. 1 – Trump Sells Early Access to Truth Social Posts for $100K

Trump’s media company launched a premium version of Truth Social that includes a “Truth API,” giving users early access to the president’s posts – which often include announcements that affect the stock market and could prove lucrative to traders – for a monthly fee of up to $100,000.

One anonymous Wall Street executive told NPR the move would be “considered criminal” in a different administration.

Sunday, Aug. 2 – Questions Swirl About Rescinded ‘Anti-Weaponization Fund’

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche released two documents the Justice Department says rescind Trump’s $1.8 billion so-called “anti-weaponization fund” and narrow a provision to only retroactively protect Trump, two of his sons, and his company from tax audits.

The orders helped Blanche secure key votes from holdout Republican senators, but legal experts question whether the documents are legally binding, and they expressed concerns about loopholes that could result in the original orders being reinstated.

Blanche’s nomination was later approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee. He’s now on track to be confirmed as the permanent attorney general, albeit by an extremely slim majority.

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Monday, Aug. 3 – ICE Collected DNA From Nearly 1 Million People in 2025

Wired reported that ICE has collected the DNA of roughly 920,000 immigrants in 2025 who were in ICE custody, according to new data from Georgetown Law’s Center on Privacy and Technology.

The DNA samples, which include those of young children, have become the largest single source of new genetic profiles in the FBI’s criminal database, even though the vast majority of people in ICE custody have never been convicted of a crime.

Tuesday, Aug. 4 – Oath Keepers Off the Hook for Jan. 6, No FBI Probe into ICE Killing

A federal judge begrudgingly granted Trump’s Justice Department’s request to dismiss seditious conspiracy charges against members of the far-right Oath Keepers over the group’s involvement in the Jan. 6 insurrection, but noted he wished for “a different ending” in the matter, saying the move “diminishes the gravity of that day.”

Meanwhile, CBS News reported that the FBI isn’t conducting a civil rights probe into the death of Joan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, who was killed by an ICE officer in Maine in July – despite the fact that such fatal shootings are typically investigated by the agency.

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Wednesday, Aug. 5 – Another ‘Inadvertent’ Deportation

The lawyer of a Maine man who was “inadvertently” deported to Guatemala after ICE claimed they had mistaken him for someone else said he will be returned to the U.S. next week. The man was removed from the country even though he didn’t have a deportation order – and a federal judge had ordered ICE not to remove him one day before his deportation.

Meanwhile, AP reported that more than 50 parents and spouses of active-duty military members have been detained by immigration agents since Trump returned to office. At least six of the loved ones were deported, while another eight remain in federal custody.

Thursday, Aug. 6 – Trump Targets Birthright Citizenship…Again

Trump signed a pair of executive orders designed to further restrict eligibility for birthright citizenship, while also seeking to stop people from coming to the U.S. to give birth.

The new executive orders, which are likely to face legal challenges, come just over a month after the Supreme Court upheld birthright citizenship as constitutionally protected.

Friday, Aug. 7 – White House Once Again ‘Considering’ Axing Lisa Cook

ABC News reported that the Trump administration is renewing its effort to remove Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook after White House deputy chief of staff Dan Scavino sent her a letter Wednesday giving her three weeks to respond to previous allegations of mortgage fraud she has steadfastly denied.

The latest push to fire Cook follows a Supreme Court ruling in June allowing her to continue in her position. The ruling, however, didn’t prevent Trump from attempting to remove Cook from her post again.

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We’re less than 100 days from the midterms, and things are looking worse and worse for Donald Trump and his Republican allies. The MAGA president and his cronies know it and appear increasingly desperate, as Trump kicked his effort to restrict mail-in voting ahead of the midterms to his pals on the Supreme Court this week and as Elon Musk prepared to spend big to help the GOP in November.

The president, however, doesn’t seem desperate enough to do what voters actually want. Instead of reigning in immigration enforcement, ICE began arresting people who overstayed their visits, including spouses of U.S. citizens who have active applications to stay in the country, at airports. Trump appears no closer to ending the war in Iran, even as his own base begins to sour on it. And instead of acknowledging the anxiety Americans feel about the economy, Trump’s lackeys continue to insist everything is “amazing.”

This is what ‘democracy’ looks like in Donald Trump’s America.

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From hundreds of thousands of Haitians losing their legal status to be in the country to new revelations about the administration’s effort to imprison the president’s perceived enemies, here’s more of what Trump and his allies did this week that harmed democracy, undermined the Constitution, and hurt societies worldwide:

Saturday, July 25 – Brazil Accuses Trump Admin of Election System ‘Ploy’

Brazil’s Foreign Ministry confirmed it rejected visas to two senior State Department officials, whom the Trump administration said were planning to meet with “authorities involved in the election process.”

Brazilian officials told the Washington Post they suspected that the trip was part of a “ploy” to meet with election skeptics to produce a report designed to undermine the integrity of Brazil’s electronic voting systems ahead of its upcoming election in October.

Sunday, July 26 – ICE Expected to Target Haitians as TPS Ends for 300,000

CBS News reported that ICE is planning to expand operations to arrest and deport Haitians as hundreds of thousands of people from the country, which is experiencing widespread unrest, are set to lose their legal status following a Supreme Court ruling in June allowing the Trump administration to end Temporary Protected Status programs for Haitians and Syrians.

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Monday, July 27 – Trump Asks Supreme Court to Restrict Mail-In Voting

The Trump administration filed an emergency appeal asking the Supreme Court to allow the president’s March executive order restricting mail-in voting to move forward ahead of November’s midterm elections.

The move comes two days after a federal appeals court upheld a block on the order, writing that allowing it to take effect for the midterms “would sow confusion and threaten disenfranchisement of many eligible voters.”

Tuesday, July 28 – Thousands Arrested by ICE Thanks to Office of Refugee Resettlement Tips

Reuters reported that more than 12,000 people, including children and their sponsors, have been arrested after immigration agents received tips from the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR). Since January 2025, the office has shared more than 460,000 leads with ICE, and the amount of time unaccompanied children are spending in ORR custody has spiked from an average of 30 days in fiscal year 2024 to nearly 200 days by June 2026.

Meanwhile, the New York Times reported that ICE has started arresting immigrants at airports whose visas have expired, including spouses of U.S. citizens, despite many of them having active applications to stay in the country.

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Wednesday, July 29 – Trump Admin Directed Law Enforcement in Comey Probe

MS Now reported that the Trump administration directed Secret Service agents to secretly surveil James Comey’s phone in the aftermath of the former FBI director’s infamous “86 47” Instagram post that led to his second indictment by the president’s Justice Department, according to records released in court filings this week.

Meanwhile, the New York Times reported that Secret Service agents who questioned Comey about the post were told to send details of the interview to Trump so he could review them – revealing the president’s involvement in the criminal investigation.

Thursday, July 30 – Musk Spending Big on Midterm Elections

The New York Times reported that Elon Musk’s super PAC is expected to spend between $100 million and $120 million to help elect Republicans in the midterm elections. Musk had previously been the biggest donor in the 2024 presidential election.

The nine-figure funding is expected to be spent in at least eight states, including in Senate races in Alaska, Iowa, Maine, Michigan, and Ohio, as well as House races in California, Wisconsin, and Washington.

Friday, July 31 – FBI Obtained Voter’s IP Address

Axios reported that Trump’s FBI requested and received the IP address of an individual who registered online to vote in South Carolina as part of a new strategy by the administration to investigate alleged voter fraud.

A former senior Justice Department official said it’s both “not typical” and “not appropriate” for the FBI to conduct a “fishing expedition to see private voter data.”

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An illegal war more and more Americans don’t want. Tariffs the country has repeatedly said it doesn’t support. And “beautification” projects in Washington, DC, the majority of Americans are unhappy with. That’s just the start.

Americans are telling Donald Trump and his cronies they don’t like their policies – yet the president and his allies are still escalating – and providing more money for – the war in Iran, announcing unpopular economic policies, and continuing to obsess over expensive projects that aren’t actually making the U.S. capital look more beautiful.

But that’s life in Donald Trump’s America – where fascism and idiocy are valued over democracy. From the Trump administration turning to a decades-old immigration court that’s never been used, to federal judges in Tennessee greenlighting a new voting map that will disenfranchise Black voters, here’s what Trump and his cronies did this week that harm democracy, undermined the Constitution, and hurt free societies worldwide:

Saturday, July 18 – DOJ Files First-Ever ‘Alien Terrorist Removal Court’ Application

CourtWatch reported that Trump’s Justice Department submitted an application to the Alien Terrorist Removal Court – which legal scholars had dubbed a “zombie” court having been established in 1996 but never used – in an effort to quickly deport noncitizens the government considers “alien terrorists.”

The law that created the court allows the secretary of state to label someone an “alien terrorist” who intends to engage in activities that “could endanger the welfare, safety, or security of the United States.”

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Little is known about the application submitted by the Trump administration. The court’s procedures allow for the use of secret evidence that the targets of deportation never see, a practice that has raised concerns among legal scholars about potential constitutional violations.

Sunday, July 19 – FBI No Longer Investigating ICE Confrontations

The New York Times reported that federal agents were informed that the FBI is no longer investigating ICE confrontations, a move that comes after multiple killings by federal officers in recent weeks and one that would make it much more difficult to collect evidence that could be used to prosecute agents.

The DOJ and the Department of Homeland Security denied the change is taking place, saying the FBI “will continue to investigate in accordance with agency policy.”

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Monday, July 20 – Trump Admin Tried to Get Phone Records of NYT Reporters, Relatives

The New York Times reported that the Trump administration sought phone records of some of its reporters dating back to Jan. 1, along with the records of their relatives, as part of its recent subpoenas surrounding an investigation into the Times’s reporting on security concerns about Trump’s new Air Force One, which was donated by Qatar.

In a court motion, the Times said the move is just one of many that amount to a “bad-faith effort to intimidate the journalists and chill their ability to report on the administration.” (Later, the DOJ withdrew its subpoenas against the journalists.)

Tuesday, July 21 – Election Deniers Win GOP Primaries in DOJ-Monitored Arizona Elections

Two election deniers involved in Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election won key primary races in Arizona, putting them one step closer to securing pivotal positions of power in November.

Alexander Kolodin, who was involved in lawsuits challenging election results in 2020 and in 2022 before being sanctioned by the state bar, became the Republican nominee for the state’s top election official. Meanwhile, Rep. Andy Biggs, who supported Trump’s push to block the certification of Joe Biden’s presidency, won the Republican nomination for Arizona governor.

During the state’s primary election, three counties were monitored by the Justice Department, as part of Trump’s plan to send federal election monitors to six states during their primaries.

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Wednesday, July 22 – Another Trump Investigator Targeted by GOP

House Judiciary Committee chair Jim Jordan sent a letter to acting Attorney General Todd Blanche urging Trump’s Justice Department to prosecute former special counsel Jack Smith, in the latest attack on officials who have charged the president with crimes.

Jordan alleged that Smith made false statements during his closed-door testimony last year, but the former special counsel’s lawyers say the referral “reflects a chilling eagerness to weaponize the justice system by attacking a career, nonpartisan public servant who faithfully and fearlessly performed his duties by following the facts and the law.”

Thursday, July 23 – Majority-Black District Split Up in Tennessee

Federal judges approved the use of a new congressional map in Tennessee that splits up a majority-Black district in Memphis, eliminating the state’s only Democrat-held seat.

The decision, which puts Republicans on the path to secure an additional seat in the midterms, comes after Republicans revised Tennessee’s congressional districts in May in response to the Supreme Court’s ruling weakening the Voting Rights Act.

Friday, July 24 – Trump Has Demanded Over $70 Billion in Lawsuits and Claims Since Late 2022

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) published a new analysis finding that Trump has sought more than $70 billion in lawsuits and claims since launching his most recent presidential campaign in November 2022.

Among the litigations CREW tracked are Trump’s lawsuit against the IRS, in which he initially sought $10 billion, as well as his $10 billion ongoing suit against the BBC.

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Two separate speeches this week – one by the president and one by the arguably shadow president – were a crock of BS and could be ignored, if only they didn’t have real and devastating consequences for democracy and Americans.

First, there was White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, and his whiny speech about the administration’s campaign against the scary “radical” left. Then came Donald Trump, and his “address to the nation” – aka lies, conspiracies, and already-known information – about the president’s greatest obsession of all: the election he lost. If you missed these speeches, we don’t blame you. Zeteo’s politics team endured both so you didn’t have to. We have more on both below, and here and here.

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The speeches, and their expected consequences, are exactly why we maintain this project – Trump and his cronies’ efforts to harm democracy, undermine the Constitution, and hurt societies worldwide continue at a rapid pace. Here’s more from ‘This Week in Democracy – Week 78’:

Saturday, July 11 – Times Reporters Subpoenaed About Trump Coverage

The New York Times reported that the Trump administration subpoenaed several of the publication’s journalists last Friday to testify before a federal grand jury about their reporting on security concerns surrounding Trump’s new Air Force One, which was donated by Qatar.

David McCraw, the top newsroom lawyer for the Times, said the move should “shock the conscience of any American who believes in the Constitution and the press freedom it protects.”

The Times later reported that the subpoenas followed a meeting at the White House where FBI Director Kash Patel was directed to lead a leak investigation into the newspaper’s reporting about the plane.

Sunday, July 12 – DOJ Investigating Head of Union Auto Workers

Bloomberg reported that Trump’s Justice Department launched a grand jury investigation into United Auto Workers (UAW) President Shawn Fain over allegations that he pressured a top union official to secure special favors for his fiancée and her sister.

Fain denied the allegations and accused the union’s vice president, Rich Boyer – who had filed complaints to the UAW’s court-appointed monitor about Fain – of trying to influence its upcoming election.

Monday, July 13 – Trump’s IRS Settlement Voided by Federal Judge

A federal judge voided Trump’s $1.8 billion settlement with the IRS that included an “anti-weaponization fund” and immunity from tax audits, ruling that the president’s $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS over his leaked tax returns was filed “to manipulate the judicial process.”

The judge sanctioned two of Trump’s personal attorneys, one of whom was banned from practicing in the Southern District of Florida for at least one year. She also suggested that acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and associate Attorney General Stan Woodward could face investigations or disciplinary actions by state bar associations.

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Tuesday, July 14 – Mahmoud Khalil Sues Trump Under KKK Act of 1871

Mahmoud Khalil, who was detained by ICE for more than 100 days last year and is currently challenging a deportation order, sued the Trump administration and pro-Israel groups, including Canary Mission, Betar, and the Heritage Foundation.

The lawsuit, which was brought under a statute of the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871, argues that the Trump administration conspired with the organizations to “terrorize and make an example of” Khalil to “intimidate and silence the growing movement for Palestinian rights and political freedom.”

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Wednesday, July 15 – Trump Wants ICE Traffic Stops to Continue Despite String of Deaths

On Truth Social, Trump called for ICE officers to continue conducting traffic stops, calling the practice one of the agency’s “most important and effective Crime Fighting tools,” one day after administration officials told ICE to suspend most vehicle stops.

The move came after ICE shot and killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo last week in Texas. He had been living in the U.S. for 35 years. Another ICE officer killed Joan Sebastian Guerrero in Maine, letting him bleed out in front of his 3-year-old daughter on Monday. A third man died on Tuesday in Florida after he was hit by a tractor-trailer while trying to flee from immigration officers.

Thursday, July 16 – Trump Relitigates His 2020 Loss Live on Television

In an address to the nation, Trump delivered a sluggish speech chock-full of debunked lies and conspiracy theories about foreign interference in the 2020 presidential election, in an effort to pressure Republicans to pass the voter suppression bill, the SAVE America Act. He also called for ABC and NBC to have their broadcasting licenses revoked for refusing to air his propagandic tirade live on their networks.

Hours earlier, in helping launch the Trump administration’s global campaign against so-called “radical left terrorism,” White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller delivered a speech that Zeteo senior politics editor Andrew Perez described as “characteristically apocalyptic and authoritarian” and that only served to help Miller live out his “violent fantasy.”

Friday, July 17 – Election Officials Threatened With Jail Time

Speaking to reporters, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin escalated the Trump administration’s threats to jail election officials, warning that they could be criminally prosecuted if they refuse the federal government’s baseless demands to turn over their voter rolls.

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Every week, we struggle to choose which of Donald Trump’s attacks on democracy to highlight for each day. This week was no exception.

The U.S. president started the week off in Turkey, embarrassing himself (if you missed his litany of gaffes, check them out at the bottom of this piece) and making threats against everyone from Tehran to his NATO allies – while at the NATO summit (not to mention ordering more strikes on Iran). He ended the week firing the rest of the Democratic election commission members (thanks to his right-wing Supreme Court) and his administration gutting protections for endangered species.

A lot happened in between, as you can see below. Here’s just a taste of what Trump and his cronies did this week that harmed democracy, undermined the Constitution, and hurt societies worldwide:

Friday, July 3 – Trump Pardons 11, Including a Major GOP Donor

Trump pardoned 11 people, including Adam Kidan, a former business partner of Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff who pleaded guilty in 2005 to fraud and conspiracy charges. Kidan, who has donated nearly $4 million to Republican Party campaigns and committees since 2017, was reportedly among the hosts of a March fundraiser at Mar-a-Lago.

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Those who received pardons also included Jack Harvard, a ranch owner and former mayor of Plano, Texas, who was convicted of bank fraud, and nine people who faced charges related to violations of the Clean Air Act, including for helping people bypass vehicle emissions control systems.

Saturday, July 4 – White Supremacists Mark July 4 in DC

The white supremacist Patriot Front group descended on Washington, DC, wearing masks and carrying baseball bats and flags, on the morning of the country’s 250th birthday as they chanted “reclaim America.” DC police said they were tracking Patriot Front’s “First Amendment” activities.

Sunday, July 5 – Trump Asked FIFA to Review U.S. World Cup Red Card

After Trump called FIFA’s president and asked him to review the suspension of the U.S. soccer team’s top goal scorer in the World Cup, Folarin Balogun, FIFA reversed the suspension – the first time it has allowed a player to participate in a game they would have been suspended from in the World Cup since 1962.

Balogun, who was eligible to play for the U.S. because of birthright citizenship, was suspended after being given a red card. But the Trump administration worked with lawyers to help the U.S. Soccer Federation try to appeal, even though there is no way for teams to appeal.

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Monday, July 6 – ICE’s Watchdog Investigates U.S. Citizens

Wired reported that ICE’s internal watchdog, which is tasked with conducting internal probes, is now investigating U.S. citizens who have spoken out against the agency.

Between January 2025 and March 2026, the Office of Public Responsibility launched 131 investigations into “incidents of doxing and threats directed towards ICE employees nationwide,” according to an April court declaration by an ICE official.

Meanwhile, AP reported that the Trump administration is planning to open a new immigrant holding facility with a capacity for more than 500 beds on a former U.S. Air Force base in Alexandria, Louisiana. The facility, which would be next to an airport hub, is expected to help ICE speed up deportations.

Tuesday, July 7 – ICE Kills Father of Three in Houston

A federal agent shot and killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old Mexican man who had been in the U.S. for 35 years, while he was traveling to work in Houston. Officials later said Salgado Araujo, a father of three, wasn’t the intended target, but that he “resembled” the target of an operation (we all know what that means).

The three men in the van Salgado Araujo was driving disputed the Department of Homeland Security’s claim that Salgado Araujo was attempting to ram ICE officers, saying there were no agents in front of the van.

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Wednesday, July 8 – Trump Says He Wants Rehearing in Birthright Citizenship Case

A week after the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionally-protected right of birthright citizenship, Trump said he would “IMMEDIATELY” ask the Supreme Court to rehear the case, calling the ruling “wrong” and an “absolutely insane decision.”

The last time the Supreme Court reheard a case was more than half a century ago, and requires a majority of the court to approve a rehearing.

Thursday, July 9 – Election Commission Has No Members Left

Trump fired the two remaining Democratic members of the bipartisan U.S. Election Assistance Commission, which provides federal grants to states, maintains the national voter registration forms, and oversees voting systems testing, while the sole remaining Republican resigned from her post after the firings.

In a statement, the White House argued that Trump has the right to fire the commissioners, citing last week’s Supreme Court ruling that expanded the president’s power to remove individuals from independent commissions and agencies.

Friday, July 10 – Trump Shreds Protections for Endangered Species

The Trump administration drastically cut protections for endangered species by announcing a final rule that would open vulnerable animals’ habitats to farming, drilling, mining, and real estate development.

Environmentalists say the move marks the biggest erosion of wildlife protections in half a century.

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Did you miss Trump’s flubs at the NATO summit? Watch the lowlights Zeteo put together below:

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This week, Donald Trump’s corruption was on full display, the Supreme Court granted him more king-like powers, and the U.S. president hosted an election-denying convict in the Oval Office. Happy 250th Birthday, America!

It’s hard to celebrate American democracy, when America is looking more and more like a dictatorship.

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As Americans reflect on 250 years since their independence, here’s just a taste of what Trump and his cronies did this week that harmed democracy, undermined the Constitution, and hurt societies worldwide:

Saturday, June 27 – So-called ‘Board of Peace’ Preps Immunity Resolution

The Guardian reported that Trump’s so-called “Board of Peace” is planning to grant itself sweeping immunity from “any arrest, detention, or legal proceedings in the courts or other entities in Gaza,” according to a draft of a resolution that also lets the organization take over public property in Gaza “free of charge.”

The resolution also states that Trump, the board’s chair, would have the right to waive someone’s legal immunity with the support of the majority of the board.

Sunday, June 28 – Trump Family Continues Cashing in on His Presidency

The New York Times reported that within weeks of the Trump administration securing a billion-dollar mining deal with the president of Kazakhstan, a firm partly owned by Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump partnered with others to take a 20% stake in an entity connected to the project.

Meanwhile, the Times found that either the Trump family or Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick’s family has financial ties to at least 14 companies working with the federal government on mining deals – all of which have benefited directly from the administration.

The Trump Organization sent a letter to the Times demanding the outlet retract the story, calling it “deeply misleading.” But as the Times notes in its response to the letter, the Trump Organization “does not deny … that Eric and Donald Jr. have profited” from the mining deal.

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Monday, June 29 – Supreme Court Ruling ‘Reshapes Our Government’

The Supreme Court overturned a 90-year-old ruling that protected members of certain independent agencies from being fired by the president without cause, a move that Justice Sonia Sotomayor warned “reshapes our government.”

In her dissent, Sotomayor noted that dozens of independent commissions “are now likely to become purely executive agencies, shifting tremendous power over broad swaths of American life into the president’s hands.”

(In another pivotal ruling this week, the Supreme Court upheld birthright citizenship, but not by a 9-0 margin, a shocking outcome considering birthright is clearly laid out in the Constitution.)

Tuesday, June 30 – Trump’s Presidency Profits Soar As He Hosts Election Denier in Oval Office

Trump made a staggering $2.2 billion in the first year of his second term as president, compared to the $622 million he pulled in during 2024, according to a new financial disclosure. Of the $2.2 billion, $1.4 billion came from his family’s cryptocurrency businesses – making Trump the highest crypto earner in the United States.

Meanwhile, on Truth Social, Trump revealed that he hosted election denier Tina Peters in the Oval Office. Peters, a former Colorado county clerk who was convicted of tampering with voting machines following the 2020 presidential election, was recently granted clemency by Governor Jared Polis and released from prison.

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Wednesday, July 1 – ICE Arrests 10,000 People in 5 Days

The New York Times reported that ICE is ramping up its arrests, detaining more than 10,000 people in the last five days – roughly doubling the 1,000 people who were arrested each day earlier this year.

The dramatic increase comes as the White House pushed for more arrests, which have taken place at immigration check-ins, during traffic stops, and on the street. ICE officials have been told the 2,000 arrest rate per day is to be considered the new normal.

Thursday, July 2 – FBI’s 2020 Georgia Election Probe Intensifies

MS NOW reported that Trump’s FBI has authorized hundreds of intelligence analysts to work overtime as part of a “priority” investigation related to the 2020 presidential election in Georgia, according to an unclassified memo issued Wednesday.

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Did you miss previous weeks of ‘This Week in Democracy’? Catch up here. And check out more of Zeteo’s reporting from this week below:

This week, Donald Trump kicked off America’s 250th celebrations with a campaign-style rally, declaring “America is back.”

You’ve got to hand it to the president, perhaps America is back: Back to a time when racism dictates policy; back to a time, when just a few ultra-rich (white) men – whose wealth was built at least in part on corruption – hold all the power; back to a time, when climate change wasn’t acknowledged, much less thought about. We could go on and on.

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This year should be about celebrating American democracy – the progress the U.S. has made, and recognizing the progress yet to come. But instead, it’s a reflection of the very worst of America.

Just this week, Trump and his cronies ramped up their efforts to interfere with elections, ended temporary protective status for hundreds of thousands of people, and held bipartisan legislation meant to lower housing costs because… the president isn’t getting his way on voter restrictions.

It was yet another week that exemplified the fascism that has defined Trump’s second term. Here’s more about how Trump and his allies harmed democracy, undermined the Constitution, and hurt societies worldwide this week:

Saturday, June 20 – FBI Tried to Turn Delaney Hall Protesters Into Informants

The Intercept reported that at least half of the roughly 90 people who have been arrested in recent weeks for protesting at the Delaney Hall ICE detention center in New Jersey have been contacted by FBI agents who tried to get them to become informants.

The move prompted a complaint by a deputy public defender representing multiple protesters, who argued it violated the constitutional rights of his clients.

Sunday, June 21 – Trump Admin Quashed Criminal Investigation of Clemency

The New York Times reported that the Trump administration shut down a criminal investigation into Trump’s December 2025 commutation of the sentence of David Gentile, a private equity executive who was convicted in 2024 of securities and wire fraud charges in a case prosecutors described as a $1.6 billion scheme that defrauded thousands of investors.

As part of the probe into Gentile, who served less than two weeks of his seven-year prison sentence, investigators learned about jailhouse communications where he discussed making payments of $2.5 million or more to people or companies to help secure his clemency.

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Monday, June 22 – Trump Ramps Up Efforts to Interfere in Elections

CNN reported that the Trump administration is threatening to withhold tens of millions of dollars in federal Homeland Security funds to states unless they make sweeping changes to their election laws, including submitting their voter rolls through the DHS’s citizenship verification database.

The changes, which would be required under new rules for several homeland security grant programs, would also force states to phase out certain electronic voting systems and instead use hand-marked paper ballots.

Tuesday, June 23 – Anti-ICE Protesters Get Up to 100 Years in Prison

Federal judges gave a group of anti-ICE protesters, who were convicted for their roles in a 2025 demonstration in Texas as alleged members of “antifa,” prison sentences that ranged between 30 and 100 years. The person who got 30 years wasn’t even at the protest. The person who received 100 years was convicted of attempted murder, along with other charges, after a police officer was shot and injured.

The landmark case marks the first to incorporate Trump’s presidential declaration that labeled “antifa” as a domestic terrorist organization (antifa, which simply means “antifascist,” is not an organization). The protesters’ sentences are notably longer than those given to Jan. 6 insurrectionists.

“The prosecution of the protesters is part of an increasingly disturbing pattern of the Trump administration criminalizing speech and assembly in the United States,” Zeteo contributor Kim Wehle wrote. “And it should alarm us all.”

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Wednesday, June 24 – Trump Holds Housing Bill Hostage

On Truth Social, Trump abruptly canceled the signing of a bipartisan bill designed to lower the cost of housing until the Republican-led House and Senate pass the SAVE America Act, which would disenfranchise millions of voters by requiring proof of citizenship and photo ID to cast a ballot in elections.

Trump doesn’t have much leverage to hold the bill hostage, as legislation can still become law 10 days after it’s presented to the president while Congress is in session. Additionally, the bill received enough support from Congress that lawmakers could override a veto by the president if he tries to do so.

Thursday, June 25 – Supreme Court Allows Trump to End TPS for Haitians, Syrians

The Supreme Court cleared the way for the Trump administration to remove the Temporary Protected Status of roughly 350,000 Haitians and 6,000 Syrians, in a move that will require them to leave the country or risk being arrested and deported once a termination date is set.

In the ruling, Justice Samuel Alito concluded that the TPS law authorizes Trump to end the program without intervention from the courts, a finding that threatens protections for people from the other 15 countries under the program.

Friday, June 26 – Hundreds of Thousands of Children Have No Lawyer for Deportation Hearings

Drop Site reported that more than half of the over 750,000 children facing deportation hearings have no legal representation, according to data from the Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review.

The rate of children navigating immigration court proceedings without a lawyer (57%) is slightly higher than the 54% of adults who are unrepresented in their cases.

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Did you miss previous weeks of ‘This Week in Democracy’? Catch up here. And check out more of Zeteo’s reporting from this week below:

Thankfully, there’s a preliminary deal to end Donald Trump’s illegal, deadly, and costly war on Iran. Unfortunately, as Zeteo’s ‘First Draft’ pointed out this week, his war on Americans continues.

Just this week, reports revealed that Trump and his cronies were weighing suspending a Constitutional right, that the FBI director may have a “personal slush fund,” and that deaths in ICE custody have more than doubled since the MAGA leader retook the Oval Office.

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That’s why we continue ‘This Week in Democracy’ – to document Trump’s ongoing war on the U.S. Constitution, democracy, and his own citizens. Here’s just a taste of what that war looked like this week:

Saturday, June 13 – Trump to Appoint His Own Lawyer for US Attorney Position

On Truth Social, Trump announced that he will appoint one of his personal lawyers, James McDonald, to succeed his National Intelligence chief nominee Jay Clayton as the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

McDonald is part of the legal team appealing the president’s convictions in New York that stemmed from his hush money payments to Stormy Daniels.

Sunday, June 14 – Trump’s Big Fight Night

Trump marked his 80th birthday by holding a UFC fight on the White House’s South Lawn – an event that cost at least $60 million (paid for by UFC’s parent company TKO), and required the help of more than seven federal agencies. Some of the fighters received bonuses paid in cryptocurrency from the Trump family’s World Liberty Financial.

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Monday, June 15 – Trump Weighed Suspending Constitution Right, Newsom Under DOJ Investigation

The New York Times reported that Trump actively considered suspending habeas corpus – the constitutional right for people to challenge their detention in court – in an effort to accelerate his mass deportation campaign early in his second term after the Supreme Court ruled that migrants expelled under the Alien Enemies Act were entitled to challenge their deportations in court before being removed.

Meanwhile, California Governor Gavin Newsom said in a video that Trump’s Justice Department is investigating him and his wife, noting that the couple have been placed on the president’s political “hit list” and posted on X that federal agents are on a “fishing expedition” to find a crime to indict him as he prepares a possible run for president in 2028.

Tuesday, June 16 – Patel’s ‘Personal Slush Fund’

FBI Director Kash Patel may be using part of the agency’s budget as a “personal slush fund” to provide more than $1 million in “unlawful ‘bonus’ payments” to special agents on his Director’s Advisory Team and his security detail, according to a letter from Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin that was obtained by MS NOW.

Raskin noted that by issuing the payments, Patel’s office “may be knowingly breaking federal law.” He also said the payments have been sent at “such a frenzied rate” that some of them have bounced from “exhausted accounts.”

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Wednesday, June 17 – ICE Deaths More Than Double Under Trump as Agency Buys Immigrants’ Tax Info

Reuters reported that the number of people who have died in ICE detention centers has more than doubled since Trump’s second term began last year, rising from one death per year for every 3,848 detainees between 2009 and 2024 to one death for every 1,630 people under Trump.

Meanwhile, 404 Media reported that ICE appears to be buying records of tax identifiers of immigrants from a data broker as part of a $10 million contract that could potentially be a workaround of a court order banning ICE from obtaining those records.

Thursday, June 18 – Record Number of Denaturalization Cases Planned by Trump Administration

CNN reported that the Trump administration is ramping up its efforts to revoke the citizenship of naturalized Americans, with plans to file at least 250 cases by October. Trump’s Justice Department has filed 29 denaturalization cases in less than two months.

Only 166 denaturalization cases were filed between 2008 and June 12 of this year.

Friday, June 19 – Trump’s Acting Intel Chief Weighs Firing Hundreds, CNN reports

CNN, citing two sources, reported that Trump’s acting director of national intelligence, Bill Pulte, showed up to work a day early and asked for a list of all employees in the office, with plans to potentially fire hundreds.

Pulte, who has no previous intelligence or national security experience, will likely remain in the acting role longer than lawmakers had hoped.

In an effort to pressure the Senate to pass a strict voter ID bill, Trump intervened earlier this week in what was expected to be a quick confirmation process for Jay Clayton, the president’s pick to lead the intel community permanently.

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Did you miss previous weeks of ‘This Week in Democracy’? Catch up here. And check out more of Zeteo’s reporting from this week below:

Donald Trump turns 80 this weekend. He’s preparing to celebrate with a bash that’s gobbled up resources from seven different agencies and adorned the White House lawn with a towering octagon arena and a “cage” where, as the New York Times put it, grown men will soon “beat one another to a pulp.”

If that doesn’t say ‘Happy Birthday’ to a U.S. president in the throes of trying to get a deal to end an unpopular (and illegal) war with Iran, contending with a near-record low approval rating, and raging over a soon-to-be-released book that’s already produced embarrassing details about his time back in office – most recently about the ‘White House freakout over the Epstein Files – we’re not sure what would.

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Happy Birthday, King Trump. Happy 250th, America.

But even his birthday bash prep hasn’t kept Trump and his cronies from continuing their efforts to destroy U.S. democracy, undermine the Constitution, and hurt societies worldwide. From new corruption revelations to fresh lashings of the media to a report that Trump and his allies may seek to expunge his first-term impeachments, here’s ‘This Week in Democracy – Week 73’:

Saturday, June 6 – Accepting Only White South African Refugees

Mother Jones reported that the only refugees admitted to the U.S. under the Trump administration this year, through the end of May, are white South Africans.

Since Oct. 1, 2025, all but three of the 6,668 refugees accepted by the U.S. are white South Africans. The three, who were admitted in November, were from Afghanistan.

Sunday, June 7 – Trump’s Big Walkout

Trump stormed off the set of an interview with NBC’s ‘Meet the Press’ after host Kristen Welker asked the president to provide evidence for his baseless claims that the 2020 presidential election and the recent California primary elections were “rigged.”

Trump accused Welker of being either “crooked” or “stupid,” and said she has “no credibility.” Trump also called ‘Meet the Press,’ ABC, CBS, and CNN “one-sided” and “crooked,” and told Welker she “oughta straighten out your press” as he took off his microphone and walked away.

Monday, June 8 – Trump Wants Senate Parliamentarian Fired

On Truth Social, Trump urged Senate Majority Leader John Thune to “immediately fire” and replace Senate Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough in order to pass the party’s voter suppression bill, the SAVE America Act.

MacDonough, who Trump called a “nasty holdover from Mitch McConnell” and a “Radical Left Lunatic,” had previously ruled that the legislation didn’t comply with the Senate’s Byrd Rule and wouldn’t be eligible to be included in a budget reconciliation package, which can be passed with a simple-majority vote.

Tuesday, June 9 – Indian Billionaire Invests in Company Secretly Linked to Trump Jr.

ProPublica reported that an Indian billionaire, whose family’s energy empire was targeted by Trump, “secured major policy wins from the Trump administration” after pouring at least $100 million into a Texas start-up that Donald Trump Jr. had secretly acquired a stake in.

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Wednesday, June 10 – Mail-in Voting at Risk

CNN reported that newly proposed rules could result in the U.S. Postal Service refusing to deliver mail-in ballots in states that refuse to turn over lists of all voters who are set to receive mail ballots to the agency.

The proposed rules seek to comply with Trump’s March executive order targeting mail-in voting, which is currently being challenged in the courts.

Thursday, June 11 – Trump Seeks to ‘Expunge’ His Impeachments

The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump and his allies have talked about urging Republican lawmakers to pass a resolution “expunging” the president’s two impeachments from his first term.

House Speaker Mike Johnson said the move, which would only be symbolic and carry no legal weight, is a “priority,” though the Journal noted that a measure to void the impeachments likely wouldn’t be considered until after the midterm elections.

Friday, June 12 – Thousands of Parents Deported, Hundreds of Babies and Toddlers in ICE Custody

ABC News reported that just 3% of people detained by ICE during the first 14 months of Trump’s second term had been convicted of a violent felony, despite the president promising he would target the “worst of the worst.” During the same period, ICE apprehended the parents of about 14,450 children who were born in the U.S., roughly half of whom were later deported.

The reporting comes days after MS Now and the Marshall Project revealed that at least 500 babies and toddlers have been in ICE custody at some point during the second Trump administration, 10 times more than during the previous year under the Biden administration.

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Did you miss previous weeks of ‘This Week in Democracy’? Catch up here. And check out more of Zeteo’s reporting from this week below:

Today, Senate Republicans passed a $70 billion bill to fund Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for three years.

The latter is the same agency that just this week faced a number of troubling reports – from worms in the food fed to detained children to dozens of children re-separated from their parents. That’s not even mentioning that it’s the same agency that’s killed U.S. citizens and that half of Americans said earlier this year they want to see abolished.

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But, as we know, in Donald Trump’s America, the lives of citizens, polling, human/children’s rights don’t matter. (In a bit of good news today, a judge did rule that the Trump administration must restart processing of asylum and immigration applications it had halted last year.)

From the horrific reports about ICE to more illegal boat strikes to dangerous new hires by the Trump admin, here’s what the president and his cronies did this week that harmed democracy, undermined the Constitution, and hurt societies worldwide:

Saturday, May 30 – More Than 200 People Now Killed in Trump’s Boat Strikes

U.S. Southern Command announced that, at the direction of Commander Gen. Francis L. Donovan, the U.S. military conducted a strike on a boat in the Eastern Pacific, killing three people.

It followed a strike the day before that killed three others, bringing the total number of people killed by the Trump administration’s likely illegal strikes to more than 200.

Sunday, May 31 – Children Served Food With Worms in ICE Detention

Children are being served meals with live worms, bugs, and mold in ICE detention, CBS News reported in an explosive piece about the horrific conditions at the ICE facility in Dilley, Texas.

Nearly half of the more than 6,300 children detained by federal agents during Trump’s second term – 97% of whom have no criminal record – are being held at this detention center.

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Monday, June 1 – Tina Peters Claims Democrats Will ‘Cheat’ Hours After Prison Release

Tina Peters, a former Colorado county clerk who was convicted of tampering with voting machines following the 2020 presidential election, was released from prison early after serving less than a quarter of her nine-year sentence.

Hours later, Peters went on fellow election denier Steve Bannon’s podcast and picked up right where she left off, saying without evidence, “I know the Democrats are going to cheat” in the midterm elections this fall.

Tuesday, June 2 – Dangerous New Trump Admin Hires

Trump named Federal Housing Finance Agency Director and staunch MAGA ally Bill Pulte, who is being investigated for targeting the president’s perceived enemies, as the acting director of national intelligence.

Meanwhile, the Washington Post reported that the Trump administration has hired a convicted Jan. 6 rioter to work inside an office at the Pentagon responsible for managing highly classified military operations.

But that’s not all: Reuters reported that Trump’s Justice Department hired Kurt Olsen, a White House official who participated in efforts to overturn the 2020 election, as a senior attorney who will report to a prosecutor building a criminal case against Trump’s enemies.

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Wednesday, June 3 – Trump Attacks Kaitlan Collins … Again

While speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump once again attacked CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, calling her a “corrupt reporter” who “never smiles” and has “hatred in her eyes.”

Later, when she asked Trump whether the DOJ’s $1.776 billion weaponization fund was dead or on hold, Trump told Collins she “should be ashamed of yourself.”

Thursday, June 4 – Re-Separating Families and Canceling ICE Reporting Requirement

AP reported that despite a legal settlement meant to reunify migrant families separated during the first Trump administration, the government has re-separated dozens of children from their families, including deporting some people who were legally prohibited from being removed from the country.

Meanwhile, the Washington Post reported that ICE acting director David Venturella sent a memo to employees announcing the elimination of a guideline that required the agency to report deaths that take place less than 30 days after people are released from ICE custody – a policy meant to ensure the agency doesn’t release people in an effort to avoid deaths in custody.

Friday, June 5 – Trump Admin Tried to Classify 2.7 Million Living People as Dead, Whistleblower Says

The Washington Post reported that the Trump administration planned to mark 2.7 million living people as dead, according to a whistleblower who worked at the Social Security Administration for 25 years and refused to help reclassify the people after agency lawyers warned doing so could violate federal law.

The move, which the whistleblower says was possibly meant to intimidate immigrants and affect their finances, included some U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents.

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Did you miss previous weeks of ‘This Week in Democracy’? Catch up here. And check out more of Zeteo’s reporting from this week below:

Donald Trump wants his face on a $250 banknote. It would be laughable – depictions of living individuals on banknotes have been banned since 1866 – if it weren’t yet another example of King Trump’s obsession with autocrats and turning DC into his very own version of Pyongyang.

There were plenty of other examples this week of Trump harming what’s left of American democracy, undermining the constitution, and hurting societies worldwide.

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From Trump and his cronies gutting the crypto enforcement agency to his immigration authorities pepper-spraying a U.S. senator to his Justice Department subpoenaing Hasan Piker and Medea Benjamin, here’s ‘This Week in Democracy – Week 71’:

Saturday, May 23 – DOJ Scrubs Jan. 6 Releases, Subpoenas Hasan Piker and Medea Benjamin

AP reported that Trump’s Justice Department admitted it was scrubbing press releases from its government website about criminal cases associated with the Jan. 6 insurrection, including those involving multiple people who were sentenced to several years in prison for assaulting police officers. On Twitter, the DOJ Rapid Response account ridiculously called the move an effort to strip the department’s website of “partisan propaganda.”

Meanwhile, Fox reported that the Trump administration subpoenaed Hasan Piker and CODEPINK co-founder Medea Benjamin over their trips to Cuba.

Sunday, May 24 – Trump Admin Is Gutting Crypto Enforcement Agency

The New York Times reported that during the past 16 months of the Trump administration, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission has gutted its workforce, sidelined several senior officials, massively cut back on cryptocurrency enforcement, and consistently helped prediction markets.

The commission placed two top officials on leave after they expressed concerns about three companies with ties to the president’s family business and placed them under internal investigation. The same thing happened to three others, who enforced crypto laws.

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Monday, May 25 – U.S. Senator Pepper-Sprayed at ICE Detention Facility

Federal agents used pepper spray on anti-ICE protesters outside of an immigration detention center in Newark, New Jersey, where detainees have staged a hunger strike against poor conditions in the facility and the denial of medical care.

Those pepper-sprayed included Senator Andy Kim, who had been denied entry to the facility, despite saying he had ICE approval for a congressional oversight visit. In a Twitter thread, he noted that detainees have been “threatened with retaliation” for their hunger strike.

Tuesday, May 26 – Kash Patel Fires Another Top FBI Official

MS NOW reported that FBI Director Kash Patel fired a top intelligence analyst who worked on an assessment following the 2017 mass shooting at a House Republican baseball practice in Virginia.

The report, which looked at the motives of the gunman, was controversial among Republicans who complained that the incident wasn’t labeled as an act of domestic terrorism.

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Wednesday, May 27 – More People Are Dying By Suicide In ICE Custody Than Ever

AP reported that at least 10 men have died by suicide while in ICE custody since Trump’s second term began last year. Nine of the 10 men were Hispanic, and the other was a citizen of China. Seven of the men had no record of violent crimes in the U.S.

In this fiscal year alone (since October), ICE has recorded seven deaths by suicide – the highest number for any fiscal year in ICE’s history. ICE typically reports one or no deaths by suicide each year.

Thursday, May 28 – Corruption Abounds

ProPublica reported that a $620 million loan approved by the Pentagon last year to a company linked to Donald Trump Jr. was initiated by White House adviser Peter Navarro, with one unnamed Pentagon source being told, “The call came from the White House: We have to get this done.”

Meanwhile, the New York Times reported that the Pentagon’s announcement of a $9.7 billion contract with Dell is likely to bolster Trump’s investment portfolio, after the president bought more than $1 million worth of the computer company’s stock earlier this year.

Friday, May 29 – Trump’s Slush Fund Blocked … Temporarily

A federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration from moving forward with the creation or operation of its planned $1.776 billion slush fund for people who claim they were wrongfully targeted by the government – potentially even those Trump pardoned over their involvement in the Jan. 6 insurrection.

The order prohibits the Trump administration from considering any claims that have been submitted or transferring or disbursing any funds from the so-called Anti-Weaponization Fund ahead of a June 12 hearing.

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Did you miss previous weeks of ‘This Week in Democracy’? Catch up here. And check out more of Zeteo’s reporting from this week below:

The sheer amount of news coming out of the Trump administration is hard to keep up with every week, but it was especially true this week: Tulsi Gabbard announced her resignation, a grand jury indicted 94-year-old former Cuban President Raúl Castro, and we witnessed what some have called the single “most brazen act of presidential corruption this century.”

On the last point, Donald Trump’s cronies at the Justice Department announced the so-called settlement of the president’s bogus lawsuit (effectively against himself), which includes the creation of a $1.776 billion slush fund to benefit his allies and immunity for Trump and his family for pending tax audits.

Trump doesn’t even rely on distraction anymore; he’s doing everything right out in the open.

From Trump’s slush fund to Republicans canceling a vote on the War Powers Resolution to shield the president from a likely humiliating result to a Democrat commuting an election denier’s prison sentence, here’s just a taste of how Trump and his allies hurt democracy, undermined the U.S. Constitution, and harmed societies worldwide:

Saturday, May 16 – Commuting Tina Peters’s Sentence Sets ‘Dangerous Precedent’

On MS NOW, Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold slammed Democratic Governor Jared Polis for commuting the prison sentence of Tina Peters, a former Colorado county clerk who was convicted of tampering with voting machines following the 2020 presidential election.

Griswold called the move, which Trump had repeatedly called for, a “gross injustice” and “demoralizing” to election officials, and warned that it sets a “dangerous precedent” for future elections. (Polis was later censured by Colorado Democrats for his decision.)

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Sunday, May 17 – Acting AG Says DOJ Is Hard At Work Investigating 2020 Election

On Fox, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche spoke about the Justice Department’s investigation into the 2020 presidential election, ridiculously claiming that “there’s a ton of evidence that the election was rigged,” and adding that the DOJ is “very focused on finding out whether the right people voted.”

He also claimed that the “incredibly troubling things” the DOJ is supposedly uncovering will be made public “at some point, at the right time.”

Monday, May 18 – DOJ Approves Trump’s Very Own Slush Fund

Trump’s Justice Department officially announced the $1.776 billion “Anti-Weaponization Fund” as part of the DOJ’s so-called “settlement” with Trump in his lawsuit against the Treasury Department and IRS over the leaking of his tax returns.

The fund will be overseen by a commission appointed by Blanche, whose members Trump can fire “without cause,” and will be made available, in secret, to those who claim they were wrongfully targeted by the government– potentially even those Trump pardoned over their involvement in the Jan. 6 insurrection.

Tuesday, May 19 – Trump Gets Immunity From Tax Probes

Acting AG Blanche signed off on a new provision as part of Trump’s “settlement” that “FOREVER” prohibits the IRS from investigating or prosecuting the president, his family, or his businesses for pending tax claims, including a current audit that could have reportedly cost Trump more than $100 million.

Meanwhile, CNN reported that longtime Trump ally and former administration official Michael Caputo filed the first known “Anti-Weaponization Fund” claim, seeking $2.7 million and claiming the “machinery of government was clearly politically weaponized against my family.”

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Wednesday, May 20 – Trump’s Pay-to-Play Extends to the Tobacco Industry

The New York Times reported that Trump’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued new guidance opening the door to the sale of flavored vapes after a tobacco company donated $5 million to the Trump-backed super PAC, MAGA Inc.

Two days after the donation, Trump had lunch with tobacco industry representatives, during which he interrupted the conversation to complain to his administration officials about the FDA’s e-cigarette regulations. The new guidance was issued just days later.

Thursday, May 21 – House GOP Leaders Cancel Vote To Limit Trump’s War Powers in Iran

House Republican leaders abruptly canceled a vote on an Iran War Powers Resolution, which was likely to be approved due to the absences of Republican members of Congress and others who signaled their support for the measure.

The cancellation comes after the Senate advanced a similar resolution earlier this week to limit Trump’s military action against Iran without congressional approval.

Friday, May 22 – Tulsi Gabbard Resigns as Director of National Intelligence

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard notified Trump that she’s resigning from her position, effective June 30, noting her husband was recently diagnosed with “an extremely rare form of bone cancer.”

During her time on Trump’s Cabinet, Gabbard, whose job is to oversee the country’s intelligence agencies and advise the president on national security matters, spent months investigating Trump’s long-debunked claims of the 2020 presidential election being stolen, and even appeared at an FBI raid of an election center in Fulton County, Georgia, back in January. You can read Zeteo’s Swin Suebsaeng’s take here.

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NOTE: If you subscribe to Zeteo’s U.S. Politics’ morning newsletter, First Draft, a reminder that there will not be a newsletter on Monday 25 due to it being a federal holiday in the U.S.

Did you miss previous weeks of ‘This Week in Democracy’? Catch up here. And check out more of Zeteo’s reporting from this week below:

Corruption.

Let’s be honest, that has been the theme of Donald Trump’s entire second presidency so far. But it was especially obvious this week.

From talks to settle Trump’s lawsuit against the IRS by shelling out billions in taxpayer funds to potentially dropping charges against a billionaire accused of an “elaborate bribery” scheme by accepting an apparent…bribe(!), here’s what the U.S. president and his cronies did this week that harmed democracy and undermined the Constitution:

Saturday, May 9 – Key DOJ Office Scrambling After Comey Indictment

The Washington Post reported that the push to prosecute former FBI Director James Comey has resulted in several prosecutors being demoted or pushed out of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia, with others seeking new jobs.

The fallout has also impacted major cases, including one involving a deadly attack in Afghanistan.

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Sunday, May 10 – Trump Says He’s Sending ‘Election Integrity Army’ to Every State

On Truth Social, Trump said he will send an “Election Integrity Army” to every state in the upcoming midterm elections, and baselessly accused the Democratic Party of trying to suppress Republican voters “and interfere” in elections.

Later, the Republican National Committee announced it is deploying “poll watchers” and “election observers” to at least 17 unnamed states as part of an “election integrity” operation.

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Monday, May 11 – Supreme Court Ruling Could Eliminate Another Majority-Black District

The Supreme Court paved the way for Alabama to get rid of one of its two majority-Black congressional districts ahead of the midterm elections by overturning a lower court order that blocked the use of a 2023 map approved by the Republican-led legislature that had only one largely Black district.

Alabama lawmakers have already passed a law to void the results of some May 19 congressional primaries, and the state is now moving forward with a special primary election for more than half of its congressional districts.

Tuesday, May 12 – White House, DOJ in Talks to Settle Trump’s $10 Billion IRS Lawsuit

The New York Times reported that the White House and the Justice Department have been exploring a possible settlement in Trump’s $10 billion lawsuit against the IRS for releasing his tax returns.

Later, ABC News reported that Trump is expected to settle the lawsuit in exchange for the launch of a $1.7 billion compensation fund for his allies who claim they were wrongfully targeted during the Biden administration, including those Trump pardoned over their involvement in the Jan. 6 insurrection – a move Mehdi called “the biggest Trump corruption scandal of all.”

The funds would be overseen by a commission that Trump would have the authority to remove members from without cause, while the identities of recipients could be kept private.

Wednesday, May 13 – Trump DOJ’s Revenge Tour Continues

Trump’s Justice Department sued the DC Bar Association for its efforts to discipline two key allies of the president, including former DOJ official Jeffrey Clark, who tried to help the president overturn the 2020 election results, and pardon attorney Ed Martin.

The lawsuit claims that the DC Bar is “weaponizing state bar discipline against Executive Branch attorneys,” which “chills them from giving candid legal advice.”

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Thursday, May 14 – DOJ To Drop Charges Against India’s Richest Man Thanks to Bribe

The New York Times reported that Trump’s Justice Department is expected to drop criminal fraud conspiracy charges against India’s richest man in connection with a bribery scheme after one of his new lawyers, who also serves as a personal attorney to the president, told DOJ officials that his client would invest $10 billion in the U.S. economy and create 15,000 jobs.

In other words, a bribe.

Friday, May 15 – Trump Calls New York Times Reporter ‘Treasonous’

Trump lashed out at New York Times reporter David Sanger after he rightly pointed out that the president’s war hasn’t resulted in political change in Iran.

“I actually think it’s sort of treasonous what you write,” Trump ridiculously said in his tirade.

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In Donald Trump’s America, it’s sometimes hard to distinguish between distraction and incompetence. It’s likely always a little bit (or a lot) of both.

This week, Trump launched a new “operation” to help “guide” ships through the Strait of Hormuz, only to pause it less than 48 hours later. Is a the United States at “war,” or is it just a “mini war,” or an “excursion”? Trump can’t seem to make up his mind. And no, Iran and the US trading blows, including the US reportedly striking civilian areas, is definitely not a ceasefire violation. OK!!

Whether distraction or incompetence, it doesn’t really matter: What Donald Trump says, does, and doesn’t do has real consequences for American democracy and societies worldwide. And that’s why Zeteo continues to document how Trump and his allies are harming democracy and undermining the US Constitution.

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Outside of the whiplash of Iran news, the theme this week was Trump’s attacks on the election system and Republicans’ efforts to disenfranchise Black voters. Plus, the FBI made some worrying moves, and we got a clearer picture of the Trump administration’s attacks on immigrant children. Here’s ‘This Week in Democracy – Week 68’:

Saturday, May 2 – Trump Accuses Obama’s AG of ‘TREASONOUS’ Conduct

On Truth Social, Trump, without evidence, accused President Barack Obama’s former Attorney General Eric Holder, who is now chair of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, of committing “treasonous” conduct.

Trump’s comments came days after Holder was also named as a member of a new task force announced by Chuck Schumer to combat threats to democracy and fair elections by Republicans.

Sunday, May 3 – ‘If They Have to Vote Twice, So Be It’

On Truth Social, Trump urged states, including ones where voting has already begun, to redraw their congressional maps ahead of the midterm elections, following the Supreme Court’s ruling that gutted the Voting Rights Act.

“If they have to vote twice, so be it,” Trump wrote, adding that changing the maps is “more important than administrative convenience,” and noting that doing so would result in Republicans gaining “more than 20” House seats this fall.

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Monday, May 4, 2026 – Trump Renews Efforts to Investigate 2020 Election

The New York Times reported that, in April, Trump’s Department of Justice demanded via a grand jury subpoena the identity and personal information of workers and volunteers who staffed the 2020 election in Fulton County, Georgia.

County officials have submitted a motion to quash the request, with the chair of the Fulton County commission calling the subpoena “yet another act of outrageous federal overreach designed to intimidate and to chill participation in elections.”

Tuesday, May 5 – Trump Admin Sues the New York Times … Again

Trump’s Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) sued the New York Times, alleging the publication engaged in “unlawful employment practices” and discriminated against a white man after he was passed over for a promotion, a move the EEOC argues was influenced by the paper’s “stated race and sex-based representation goals.”

A spokesperson for the Times called the allegations “politically motivated,” and added the paper will “defend ourselves vigorously.” The litigation comes after Trump sued the Times and several of its reporters last fall for $15 billion, accusing them of damaging his reputation and undermining his 2024 candidacy.

Wednesday, May 6: Trump’s FBI Targets Dem Lawmaker, Atlantic Reporter

Trump’s FBI executed a search warrant at the office of Virginia state Senate President Pro Tempore L. Louise Lucas, who was at the center of the state’s redistricting efforts.

Meanwhile, MS Now reported that the FBI also launched a highly unusual criminal probe into leaks to a reporter from The Atlantic in relation to an article she wrote about Director Kash Patel’s drinking habits and unexplained absences, which he sued the outlet over last month. An FBI spokesperson denied the investigation exists and claimed the MS Now’s reporting was “completely false.”

Thursday, May 7 – Separating More Families, Pepper Spraying and Tear Gassing Children

ProPublica reported that at least 79 children, including an infant, have been harmed by tear gas and pepper spray deployed by Trump immigration officers.

Meanwhile, NOTUS reported that the number of children forced into foster care after their parents were detained or deported increased by nearly 50% in the 2025 fiscal year. The data from the Department of Health and Human Services is an undercount, as only 34 states reported foster care transfers related to immigration enforcement.

Friday, May 8 – Virginia’s New Congressional Maps Struck Down

The Virginia Supreme Court struck down the state’s new congressional maps, which had been narrowly approved by voters in an April referendum, ruling that the constitutional amendment was submitted by the legislature “in an unprecedented manner.” The new map would have paved the way for Democrats to win as many as four additional House seats in the midterm elections.

Meanwhile, Tennessee Democrats filed a lawsuit to block the new congressional map passed Thursday by state Republicans that got rid of the state’s only majority-Black district.

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This week, we saw the Trump playbook rear its head once again after an alleged gunman breached a security checkpoint at Saturday’s White House Correspondents’ dinner: Attack the left in the most shameless of ways.

Not only did Donald Trump and his cronies immediately blame Democrats, comedians, and anyone else on the left, seemingly forgetting their King Donald is the most verbally abusive, name-calling, and violence-inciting politician in modern history, but they also used the alleged assassination attempt to market … Trump’s White House ballroom!

It was not a good week for American democracy – for free speech, for voting rights, for press freedom.

From moving to deny pro-Palestine immigrants green cards, to demanding the firing of Jimmy Kimmel, indicting James Comey, to gutting a key provision of the Voting Rights Act, here’s just a taste of what Trump and his allies did this week that hurt democracy, undermined the Constitution, and harmed societies worldwide:

Saturday, April 25 – You Might Not Get a Green Card If You’re Pro-Palestine

In new guidance issued by the Trump administration, criticizing Israel or participating in pro-Palestine campus protests could disqualify green card applicants, the New York Times reported.

The guidance also discourages approving green cards for applicants who have a history of “endorsing, promoting, or supporting anti-American views,” including “holding a sign advocating overthrow of the US government.”

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Sunday, April 26 – Trump Attacks CBS Journalist in Highly Edited Interview

During an interview on ‘60 Minutes,’ Trump lashed out at journalist Norah O’Donnell, calling her “a disgrace” and saying she “should be ashamed” of herself after she read an excerpt from a so-called manifesto written by the alleged gunman who tried to breach security at the White House correspondents’ dinner the previous evening.

The interview was also the subject of several significant edits, which is noteworthy considering CBS settled a lawsuit with Trump for editing a 2024 interview with Kamala Harris.

Monday, April 27 – Donald and Melania Call for Jimmy Kimmel to Be Fired

President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump called for Disney and ABC to fire late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel over a video where he jokingly called Melania an “expectant widow.” Trump ridiculously called the joke a “despicable call to violence.”

In response, FCC Chair Brendan Carr seemingly threatened ABC affiliates, saying, “We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” when it comes to “tak[ing action on Kimmel.” Later, the FCC launched a review of Disney’s broadcast licenses years ahead of schedule.

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Tuesday, April 28 – Trump’s DOJ Indicts Comey…Again

Trump’s Justice Department once again indicted former FBI Director James Comey, this time over a 2025 Instagram post of seashells depicting the numbers “86” and “47.” In the restaurant industry, “86” means an item isn’t available, and Trump is the 47th US president. But the DOJ ridiculously alleges the post was meant as a “threat to kill the president.”

In a video response, Comey said he is innocent of the charges, which some legal experts believe he could try to have dismissed on the grounds of “vindictive prosecution.”

Later, Bloomberg reported that the DOJ is pursuing more charges against Comey for allegedly leaking classified information.

Wednesday, April 29 – Supreme Court Guts Voting Rights Act

In a landmark ruling, the Supreme Court effectively weakened a key provision of the Voting Rights Act that has prohibited racial discrimination in voting for six decades. The move will allow Republicans to redraw their congressional maps in the South, potentially netting the GOP 19 additional seats in the House compared to 2024 maps, and could lead to the largest drop in Black representation in Congress ever.

The three Democratic justices dissented, with Justice Elena Kagan writing that the decision renders the provision “all but a dead letter,” and warned that the consequences of the ruling will likely be “far-reaching and grave.”

Thursday, April 30 – Louisiana’s Congressional Primaries Suspended After Supreme Court Ruling

Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry signed an executive order to suspend the state’s congressional primaries just two days before early voting was scheduled to begin, citing Wednesday’s Supreme Court ruling, which struck down a majority Black congressional district.

The order postponed the congressional primaries until either July 15 or a new date set by the legislature. State Republican leaders have said they are planning to pass new congressional maps.

Friday, May 1 – Trump Admin Diverted One-Quarter of FBI Personnel to Immigration

The Intercept reported that thousands of FBI employees were diverted from criminal investigations and public safety to civil immigration enforcement during the first nine months of the second Trump administration.

Nearly 9,200 FBI personnel – almost 25% of the agency’s entire workforce – worked on “immigration-related matters” during that time period, marking a staggering increase from the 279 employees assigned to immigration before Trump took office.

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Donald Trump and his cronies reek of desperation. As the president’s favorability numbers continue to plummet, his administration has intensified its weaponization of the Justice Department to go after its critics and perceived enemies.

Just this week, the Justice Department appointed an election denier to lead a probe into officials who investigated Trump, demanded Michigan’s biggest county hand over 2024 election data, and indicted a civil rights group in a move critics called “nakedly political.”

And that’s just a taste of what Trump and his allies did this week that hurt democracy, undermined the Constitution, and harmed Americans – and the world.

From the Justice Department’s latest targets to reportedly preparing an effort to denaturalize hundreds of Americans, here’s ‘This Week in Democracy – Week 66’:

Saturday, April 18 – Trump Loyalist to Lead Ridiculous ‘Grand Conspiracy’ Probe

The Justice Department announced it tapped staunch Trump loyalist Joe diGenova to lead a Florida-based federal probe into intelligence and law enforcement officials who investigated Trump.

In 2020, diGenova didn’t just peddle conspiracy theories about the results of the presidential election; he was part of a legal team, which included Rudy Giuliani, tasked with challenging and trying to overturn the results. He also reportedly worked with Giuliani in 2019 to find potentially damaging information on then-presidential candidate Joe Biden from Ukrainian officials.

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Sunday, April 19 – Trump’s Military Hits Another Boat in the Caribbean

On Twitter, the US Southern Command announced that, at the direction of General Francis L. Donovan, the US military conducted a lethal strike on a boat it claimed was trafficking drugs in the Caribbean Sea, killing three people.

Since September 2025, the Trump administration has hit more than 50 boats, killing at least 181 people. The strikes have been widely condemned as violations of international law.

Monday, April 20 – Trump Admin Expands Election ‘Oversight’

Multiple outlets reported that Trump’s Justice Department sent a letter to the Wayne County Clerk’s Office in Detroit, Michigan – a city the president has long targeted by spreading debunked claims of massive fraud in the 2020 presidential election – demanding all ballots, envelopes, and receipts from the 2024 election, arguing they are needed to ensure “federal election laws were not violated.”

Governor Gretchen Whitmer called the DOJ’s demand a “poorly disguised attempt to justify more doubt and misinformation about our elections.” The letter gave a 14-day deadline to turn over the materials before the Trump administration could seek a court order against the clerk’s office.

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Tuesday, April 21 – DOJ’s Latest Target: The SPLC

Trump’s Justice Department indicted the Southern Poverty Law Center on federal fraud charges.

The indictment alleges the civil rights group defrauded donors by secretly paying informants more than $3 million to infiltrate white supremacist and other extremist groups, including the Ku Klux Klan – a tactic USA Today dutifully noted has been used by the FBI and other federal agencies for decades.

Wednesday, April 22 – Patel Had a NYT Reporter Investigated by the FBI

The New York Times reported that Trump’s FBI launched an investigation into one of its reporters, Elizabeth Williamson, last month after she published an article detailing Kash Patel’s use of an agency SWAT team to escort his girlfriend.

The Times’s executive editor, Joseph Kahn, called the probe “alarming” and “unconstitutional,” and added that it was both an attempt to “criminalize routine reporting” and to “prevent journalists from scrutinizing” the Trump administration.

Thursday, April 23 – Revoking Citizenship Still a Priority

On Truth Social, Trump reposted a transcript of a racist segment from right-wing Newsmax that referred to China and India as “hellhole[s],” and immigrants from those countries as “gangsters with laptops” who have “stepped on our flag.” The segment also called for a national referendum on banning birthright citizenship, rather than leaving it to the Supreme Court.

Meanwhile, the New York Times reported that Trump’s Justice Department is set to assign civil litigators to file denaturalization cases against 384 people, as part of an effort a DOJ spokesperson said was to pursue “the highest volume of denaturalization referrals in history.”

Friday, April 24 – DOJ Drops Criminal Probe of Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell

US Attorney for DC Jeanine Pirro announced that the Justice Department dropped their criminal investigation into the Federal Reserve and its Chair Jerome Powell, over renovations to the central bank’s headquarters in Washington.

Pirro noted that the Inspector General has been asked to “scrutinize” the project, and added she wouldn’t hesitate to restart a criminal probe “should the facts warrant doing so.” The IG has already reviewed the project twice…and found no evidence of wrongdoing.

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As we know far too well, when Donald Trump doesn’t get his way, he lashes out – and this week was no exception.

Trump and his cronies criticized judges, went after a whistleblower, and ridiculously lectured the… pope. Trump’s Truth Social tirades may seem like toddler-like tantrums, but they have real-world consequences, including hurting what’s left of the US’s standing in the world and harming what’s left of American democracy.

From firing judges for doing their jobs to removing the lead prosecutor from a probe investigating one of Trump’s political enemies to backing the far-right Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, here’s just a taste of what Trump and his allies did this week that undermines the Constitution, hurts democracy, and harms the world:

Saturday, April 11 – Judges Who Blocked High-Profile Deportations Fired

The New York Times reported that the Trump administration abruptly fired the immigration judges who blocked the deportations of Tufts University student Rümeysa Öztürk and Columbia University student Mohsen Mahdawi.

Both judges, who were appointed by the Biden administration in 2024, were approaching the end of their two-year probationary term and had granted asylum at higher rates than other judges.

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Sunday, April 12 – Trump Takes on…the Pope

Trump lashed out at his latest political target, the pope, who has been critical of the war in Iran. Trump called him “WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” adding that he should “get his act together as Pope, use Common Sense, stop catering to the Radical Left, and focus on being a Great Pope, not a Politician.”

In response, Pope Leo XIV said he won’t shy away from “looking for ways to avoid war any time that’s possible,” and later added he’s “not afraid of the Trump administration.”

Trump also shared an AI-generated photo depicting himself as Jesus, which drew significant backlash from his Christian supporters. He later deleted the post and ridiculously claimed he believed it depicted himself as a doctor, not Jesus.

Monday, April 13 – Election Deniers in Critical Government Positions

ProPublica reported that Trump has installed roughly two dozen people to key government positions that could affect elections, including 10 who actively worked to change the 2020 presidential election results. Some of the officials have been hired from activist organizations at the center of the election denial movement.

Meanwhile, at least 75 people across several agencies who helped work to prevent the results of the 2020 election from being overturned have either resigned, been fired, or reassigned by the Trump administration.

Tuesday, April 14 – DOJ Wants to Toss Oath Keepers Jan. 6 Convictions

Trump’s Justice Department asked a federal appeals court to dismiss the convictions of members of the far-right Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, who had been charged with seditious conspiracy for their roles in the Jan. 6 insurrection.

The members previously had their sentences commuted by Trump on his first day in office, but were not pardoned by the president alongside more than 1,200 others who were convicted or had pleaded guilty for crimes related to the insurrection.

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Wednesday, April 15 – Trump Admin Continues Retribution Campaign

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard issued criminal referrals to the Justice Department for a whistleblower who filed a complaint that helped lead to Trump’s first impeachment and former Inspector General Michael Atkinson, who handled the whistleblower complaint.

It’s unclear at this time what specific crimes Gabbard alleged in the referrals.

Thursday, April 16 – Trump Attacks Another Federal Judge

On Truth Social, Trump attacked a federal judge who again blocked his administration from moving forward with above-ground construction for the White House ballroom. Trump ridiculously called the judge “Trump Hating” and “highly political,” and baselessly accused him of using “illegal overreach.”

But the judge did authorize construction to continue on below-ground construction, citing the need to protect the White House’s “national security facilities.” Trump now claims the below-ground portion will include “Bomb Shelters” and a “State of the Art Hospital and Medical Facilities.”

Friday, April 17 – DOJ Removes Prosecutor From Brennan Probe

CNN reported that Trump’s Justice Department removed the lead prosecutor investigating former CIA Director John Brennan after she resisted pressure to quickly bring charges against him. The case relates to the 2017 intelligence assessment that found Russia meddled in the 2016 presidential election to boost Trump.

The news of the prosecutor’s removal comes after Reuters reported that the FBI is ramping up its investigation into Brennan, with plans to question multiple witnesses, including former intelligence officials involved in the assessment.

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Welcome to ‘This Week in Democracy – Week 64’ – the week Donald Trump threatened to commit war crimes.

He, of course, pulled back on his threat. And while his announced ceasefire (if it holds) is incredibly welcomed, the leader of the supposed free world explicitly threatening to blow up a “whole civilization” in a country of 90 million people itself underscores Trump’s disregard for humanity and the rule of law. This week could be one of the darkest weeks since we began documenting the rise of authoritarianism in Trump’s America last year.

Of course, Trump’s threats of escalation in a war he had no mandate for from the start weren’t the only things he and his cronies were up to this week.

From genocidal threats to wanting to jail journalists to investigating another perceived enemy, here’s just a taste of what Trump and his allies did this week that undermines the Constitution, harms democracy, and makes the world less safe:

Saturday, April 4 – Rubio’s New Target

Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that federal agents arrested those he claimed were the niece and great-niece of the late Qassem Soleimani, who was assassinated by the Trump administration in 2020. But in a statement, Soleimani’s daughter said the two “have no connection whatsoever” to her father “and the claims made by the US State Department are false.”

The pair, who were taken into ICE custody and awaiting deportation proceedings, were arrested after Rubio revoked their green cards.

Rubio later quietly deleted a tweet announcing the pair’s arrest.

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Sunday, April 5 – Trump Threatens War Crimes

On Truth Social, Trump marked the Easter holiday with an unhinged, expletive-laden post escalating his threats against Iran.

“Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!!” Trump wrote, adding, “Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah.”

Trump’s post was slammed by several politicians, including former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who called Trump’s post “evil,” adding that the president “has gone insane” and everyone in his administration is “complicit” in his “madness.”

Monday, April 6 – Trump Escalates War on Journalists

During a White House press conference, Trump threatened to jail journalists of an unnamed media outlet if they don’t identify their source who revealed that a second US airman was missing after Iran shot down a US fighter jet last week.

“[Iran] didn’t know there was somebody missing until this leaker gave the information,” Trump said. “So whoever it was, we think we’ll be able to find it out because we’re going to go to the media company that released it, and we’re going to say, ‘national security, give it up or go to jail.’”

Tuesday, April 7 – A ‘Highly Unusual’ Investigation

The New York Times reported that the civil rights division of Trump’s Justice Department is investigating former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson, who implicated Trump in the Jan. 6 insurrection while testifying before Congress in 2022.

The Times described the decision to assign the probe, which is focused on whether Hutchinson lied to Congress, to the civil rights division as “highly unusual,” considering its focus is on enforcing federal statutes prohibiting discrimination.

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Wednesday, April 8 – Bondi Backs Out of Deposition

The Republican-led House Oversight and Reform Committee announced that former Attorney General Pam Bondi will no longer appear for a deposition next week to provide testimony about the Justice Department’s handling of the Epstein files – testimony the White House wanted to avoid.

In a statement, Ranking Member Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) warned that if Bondi defies her subpoena to testify, the committee “will begin contempt charges in the Congress.”

Thursday, April 9 – Final Order of Removal for Mahmoud Khalil

The Board of Immigration Appeals, which Trump has cut in half and stacked with his own appointees, issued a final order of removal for Mahmoud Khalil, bringing him one step closer to being deported.

In a statement, Khalil called the ruling “biased and politically motivated.”

“The only thing I am guilty of is speaking out against the genocide in Palestine – and this administration has weaponized the immigration system to punish me for it,” he added.

Friday, April 10 – Everybody Gets a Pardon!

The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump has already promised mass presidential pardons to his staff before he leaves office, saying in a private meeting that he’d “pardon everyone who has come within 200 feet of the Oval.”

The White House didn’t deny Trump had made the promise, but claimed the president wasn’t being serious.

“The Wall Street Journal should learn to take a joke, however, the president’s pardon power is absolute,” press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.

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