buzzfeed--2020-12-06--ICE Is Trying To Force BuzzFeed News To Divulge Its Sources

Guatemalan citizens wait at an Air Force base after being deported from the US in Guatemala City .
Immigration and Customs Enforcement investigators issued a subpoena this week demanding BuzzFeed News identify its sources — an extraordinary attempt by the government to interfere with a news outlet acting under the protections of the First Amendment , and a move that the agency ’ s former chief lambasted as “ embarrassing.
” The effort to pressure BuzzFeed News into revealing sources comes after relentless efforts by President Donald Trump ’ s administration to undermine the free press .
The outgoing president @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that publish true but critical stories about him and his administration , calling them “ fake news , ” which has opened reporters up to threats and violence .
BuzzFeed News is proud to bring you trustworthy reporting about ICE , DHS , and other government agencies .
If you have information , reach out to reporter Hamed Aleaziz at hamed.aleaziz @ buzzfeed.com or via one of our secure tip line channels .
The administration has also targeted journalist sources .
Specifically in the Department of Homeland Security , officials have warned employees @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with the media .
They have also told employees to report colleagues they suspected of sharing sensitive internal information , along with those who requested information that fell out of their day-to-day duties .
The subpoena appears to be an escalation of the Trump administration ’ s efforts to track down the identities of people who provide information to news outlets .
It comes just months after the Washington Post reported that DHS investigators had created “ intelligence reports ” about media members who had reported on leaked documents .
ICE did not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
`` BuzzFeed News emphatically rejects any requests for information about possible sources and methods of our reporting , ” said BuzzFeed News Editor-in-Chief Mark Schoofs .
“ We do not confirm or discuss confidential sources , and this subpoena is an outrageous overreach by the federal government .
It 's fundamentally at odds with the US Constitution and will not have any impact on our journalism . ''
A former ICE leader castigated the subpoena to BuzzFeed News .
“ This is embarrassing for ICE .
I think it is a weak @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said John Sandweg , former acting director of the agency .
“ When you ’ re trying to intimidate the press , you cross a line .
It is something that the agency should never do.
” Legal experts also raised alarm that the subpoena was an effort to undermine democracy .
“ If journalists had to divulge sources or information they obtained in the course of reporting , they ’ d be no better than the investigative arm of the state , ” said David Snyder , a lawyer and executive director @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ The power of journalism to advance the cause of our democracy would be severely diminished.
” The subpoena , issued on Dec. 1 by an agent with the ICE Office of Professional Responsibility , concerns emails sent to ICE attorneys on a fast-track deportation program and plans to fine certain undocumented immigrants .
It demands that BuzzFeed News “ provide all documentation including , but not limited to : ( 1 ) date of receipt , ( 2 ) method of receipt , ( 3 ) source of document , and ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the document.
” The subpoena states that BuzzFeed News should produce the records to an ICE agent in Virginia by Dec. 22 .
“ Failure to comply with this summons will render you liable to proceedings in a U.S. District Court to enforce compliance with this summons as well as other sanctions , ” the document sent to BuzzFeed News reads .
“ You are requested not to disclose the existence of this summons for an indefinite period of time .
Any such disclosure will impede this investigation and thereby interfere with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trump administration is trying to expand a program of quick deportations for undocumented immigrants who can not prove they have been in the country continuously for two years before agents pick them up .
The effort was blocked by a federal judge soon after the policy was first announced in 2019 .
But in June , the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia lifted the preliminary injunction , opening the door for ICE officers to arrest and deport undocumented immigrants without a hearing in front of an immigration judge .


buzzfeed--2020-12-05--Congress Took A Big Step Toward A New Coronavirus Relief Bill

WASHINGTON — Congress made its biggest breakthrough in nine months toward passing a coronavirus relief bill Wednesday as Democrats agreed to essentially cut their demands in half .
Democratic leaders in the House and Senate announced they would back a $ 908 billion bipartisan proposal as a basis for COVID-19 aid negotiations .
But Senate Republicans have not yet agreed to the blueprint and it ’ s not clear whether President Donald Trump would sign it into law .
The plan is just a framework , rather than detailed legislative text .
But it was presented as a compromise by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ months of Democrats insisting on a $ 2.2 trillion package and Republicans sticking by their own $ 500 billion plan .
The next two weeks will be crucial .
Both sides insist it is imperative to pass COVID relief before the end of the year , but they have limited time to get it done .
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said any plan will likely need to be attached to an end-of-year spending bill that must pass by Dec. 11 .
The bipartisan framework would provide $ 300 per week in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as the $ 600 per week provided in the CARES Act earlier this year , but also far more than out-of-work people have gotten since those payments expired at the end of July .
It would not include any additional direct payments like the up to $ 1,200 checks delivered to many American adults this spring .
McConnell has remained tight-lipped about the proposal and has spent the week discussing a Republican plan with the White House .
But any Republican-negotiated plan will almost certainly be too slimmed down to pass both chambers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ clear whether the $ 908 billion proposal can reach that bar either , but with the support of Democratic leadership in the House and Senate and some Republicans , it is the closest Congress has come to reaching a deal since it passed the CARES Act in March .
Many CARES provisions have long since expired .
Other COVID relief measures such as an eviction moratorium and student loan relief will expire at the end of the year .
Millions of Americans could start losing additional state unemployment benefits immediately after Christmas .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ loan relief , housing assistance , and unemployment benefits .
It also includes $ 288 billion for small businesses , including subsidies to keep employees on the payroll , and billions in subsidies for airlines and other transportation industries .
It would also include a short-term liability shield for businesses , preventing employees and customers from being able to sue if they contract COVID .
This is a huge priority for McConnell and other Republicans .
Because the framework is not laid out in legislation , there are no details of how this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Collins said details are still being hammered out and they expect to release its full text next week .
Liability immunity is a huge red flag for progressives , who have denounced it as a “ poison pill.
” Sen. Elizabeth Warren questioned whether even a temporary liability shield would be acceptable .
“ What , ( there ’ s immunity ) so long as people are dying , and then the shield is gone once everyone has died ?
” she said .
The bipartisan plan was introduced in the Senate by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Bill Cassidy , and Mitt Romney , along with Democratic Sens .
Joe Manchin , Mark Warner , Jeanne Shaheen , and Maggie Hassan , and Angus King , an Independent who caucuses with Democrats .
In the House , it is backed by Republicans Tom Reed , Anthony Gonzalez , Dusty Johnson , and Fred Upton , plus Democrats Josh Gottheimer , Dean Phillips , and Abigail Spanberger .

WASHINGTON — Congress made its biggest breakthrough in nine months toward passing a coronavirus relief bill Wednesday as Democrats agreed to essentially cut their demands in half.
Democratic leaders in the House and Senate announced they would back a $908 billion bipartisan proposal as a basis for COVID-19 aid negotiations. But Senate Republicans have not yet agreed to the blueprint and it’s not clear whether President Donald Trump would sign it into law.
The plan is just a framework, rather than detailed legislative text. But it was presented as a compromise by a bipartisan group of 16 lawmakers after months of Democrats insisting on a $2.2 trillion package and Republicans sticking by their own $500 billion plan.
The next two weeks will be crucial. Both sides insist it is imperative to pass COVID relief before the end of the year, but they have limited time to get it done. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said any plan will likely need to be attached to an end-of-year spending bill that must pass by Dec. 11.
The bipartisan framework would provide $300 per week in federal unemployment benefits — half as much as the $600 per week provided in the CARES Act earlier this year, but also far more than out-of-work people have gotten since those payments expired at the end of July. It would not include any additional direct payments like the up to $1,200 checks delivered to many American adults this spring.
McConnell has remained tight-lipped about the proposal and has spent the week discussing a Republican plan with the White House. But any Republican-negotiated plan will almost certainly be too slimmed down to pass both chambers of Congress.
It’s not clear whether the $908 billion proposal can reach that bar either, but with the support of Democratic leadership in the House and Senate and some Republicans, it is the closest Congress has come to reaching a deal since it passed the CARES Act in March.
Many CARES provisions have long since expired. Other COVID relief measures such as an eviction moratorium and student loan relief will expire at the end of the year. Millions of Americans could start losing additional state unemployment benefits immediately after Christmas.
The bipartisan framework includes billions for student loan relief, housing assistance, and unemployment benefits. It also includes $288 billion for small businesses, including subsidies to keep employees on the payroll, and billions in subsidies for airlines and other transportation industries.
It would also include a short-term liability shield for businesses, preventing employees and customers from being able to sue if they contract COVID. This is a huge priority for McConnell and other Republicans. Because the framework is not laid out in legislation, there are no details of how this liability shield would work. Sen. Susan Collins said details are still being hammered out and they expect to release its full text next week.
Liability immunity is a huge red flag for progressives, who have denounced it as a “poison pill.” Sen. Elizabeth Warren questioned whether even a temporary liability shield would be acceptable. “What, (there’s immunity) so long as people are dying, and then the shield is gone once everyone has died?” she said.
The bipartisan plan was introduced in the Senate by Republican Sens. Collins, Lisa Murkowski, Bill Cassidy, and Mitt Romney, along with Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin, Mark Warner, Jeanne Shaheen, and Maggie Hassan, and Angus King, an Independent who caucuses with Democrats. In the House, it is backed by Republicans Tom Reed, Anthony Gonzalez, Dusty Johnson, and Fred Upton, plus Democrats Josh Gottheimer, Dean Phillips, and Abigail Spanberger.


buzzfeed--2020-12-05--Coronavirus Vaccination Will Begin Next Week In The UK. It's A Major Milestone In The Fight Against

Coronavirus Vaccination Will Begin Next Week In The UK. It's A Major Milestone In The Fight Against The Pandemic.

In a television interview , UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock praised the speed of his government 's regulators but added , `` The vaccine wouldn ’ t be approved if it wasn ’ t clinically safe . ''
The UK government on Wednesday became the first Western country to officially authorize one of the dozen or so vaccines that have been in development since the pandemic began .
Citing `` months of rigorous clinical trials and a thorough analysis of the data , '' the UK approved Pfizer and BioNTech 's vaccine , which trials showed to be safe and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The United Kingdom will begin vaccinating members of the public against the coronavirus next week — a major milestone in the worldwide race to combat a pandemic that has killed 1.5 million people .
‘ The vaccine wouldn ’ t be approved if it wasn ’ t clinically safe.
’ Health Secretary Matt Hancock explains how the UK regulator has made ‘ rigorous ’ safety check to allow the UK to become the first country in the world to approve the vaccine .
@ Piersmorgan | @ susannareid100 The Pfizer vaccine is one @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has been disclosed so far .
Trial results for the second , made by Moderna , showed it to be 94 % effective .
The makers of the third , Oxford University and AstraZeneca , have released data showing 70 % effectiveness overall , though questions have been raised about the trial 's design .
All of the vaccines require two shots to work .
The UK has yet to approve the Moderna or the Oxford University/AstraZeneca vaccine .
In the United States , both the Pfizer vaccine and the Moderna vaccine are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Drug Administration .
On Dec. 10 , an FDA panel will meet to consider authorizing the Pfizer vaccine .
Though initial vaccinations are likely to begin this month , ensuring enough people have received it to bring the pandemic under control will be a major logistical challenge spanning months .
The companies that produce approved vaccines will need to manufacture many millions of doses , and governments around the world will need to buy them , store them , and figure out how to get them to people as quickly as possible .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ at an ultra-cold -70 degrees Celsius , creating extra challenges to distributing it easily and equitably .
Who should receive the first available vaccinations is a subject of intense debate .
The UK 's first doses will likely go to healthcare workers , because of their heavy exposure to the virus but also because the Pfizer vaccine must be stored in extremely cold temperatures , which is easier to do in hospitals .
Next in line will be elderly people living in nursing homes and the people who care for them .
In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Tuesday voted to recommend that healthcare workers and people living in nursing homes should be vaccinated ahead of everyone else .
The panel 's recommendations will help state governors decide who gets top priority .

The Pfizer vaccine is one of three for which late-stage trial data has been disclosed so far. Trial results for the second, made by Moderna, showed it to be 94% effective. The makers of the third, Oxford University and AstraZeneca, have released data showing 70% effectiveness overall, though questions have been raised about the trial's design. All of the vaccines require two shots to work. The UK has yet to approve the Moderna or the Oxford University/AstraZeneca vaccine.
In the United States, both the Pfizer vaccine and the Moderna vaccine are awaiting emergency approval from the Food and Drug Administration. On Dec. 10, an FDA panel will meet to consider authorizing the Pfizer vaccine.
Though initial vaccinations are likely to begin this month, ensuring enough people have received it to bring the pandemic under control will be a major logistical challenge spanning months. The companies that produce approved vaccines will need to manufacture many millions of doses, and governments around the world will need to buy them, store them, and figure out how to get them to people as quickly as possible.
Pfizer's vaccine needs to be stored at an ultra-cold -70 degrees Celsius, creating extra challenges to distributing it easily and equitably.
Who should receive the first available vaccinations is a subject of intense debate. The UK's first doses will likely go to healthcare workers, because of their heavy exposure to the virus but also because the Pfizer vaccine must be stored in extremely cold temperatures, which is easier to do in hospitals. Next in line will be elderly people living in nursing homes and the people who care for them.
In the US, a CDC panel on Tuesday voted to recommend that healthcare workers and people living in nursing homes should be vaccinated ahead of everyone else. The panel's recommendations will help state governors decide who gets top priority.


buzzfeed--2020-12-06--This Viral Video Of A Girl Explaining Things She Never Realized About Abortion Has Some Truth To It

In 1857 , a doctor named Horatio Storer led the American Medical Association ( AMA ) in a campaign to @ @ @ @ @ Storer did argue in favor of life beginning at fertilization and not quickening ( when @ @ @ @ @ ) , one of his main agendas was to prove that physicians were superior to @ @ @ @ @ were competing for business at the time .
`` The argument that abortion was murder @ @ @ @ @ immoral — was central to Storer 's campaign .
However , the campaign had self-interest @ @ @ @ @ doctors like Storer to claim that they were better informed and had more moral scruples @ @ @ @ @ adding that Storer was Harvard-educated .

In 1857, a doctor named Horatio Storer led the American Medical Association (AMA) in a campaign to criminalize all abortions. While Storer did argue in favor of life beginning at fertilization and not quickening (when fetal movements can be felt), one of his main agendas was to prove that physicians were superior to midwives and other practitioners who were competing for business at the time. "The argument that abortion was murder — and that it was immoral — was central to Storer's campaign. However, the campaign had self-interest. Talking about abortion allowed doctors like Storer to claim that they were better informed and had more moral scruples," she said, adding that Storer was Harvard-educated.


buzzfeed--2020-12-06--Miley Cyrus Opened Up About Breaking Her Sobriety During The Pandemic

`` I 'm not the best partner ; I 'm not the best daughter ; I 'm not the best @ @ @ @ @ a little unreliable .
So if that 's an alcoholic — if we 're not @ @ @ @ @ we drink but how we perform as a human being — then I would say @ @ @ @ @ me because I 'm not at my best . ''

"I'm not the best partner; I'm not the best daughter; I'm not the best sister. I can be a little unreliable. So if that's an alcoholic — if we're not measuring it by how much we drink but how we perform as a human being — then I would say alcohol is a problem for me because I'm not at my best."


buzzfeed--2020-12-06--Trump's Desperate Effort To Overturn The Election Is Running Out Of Time

WASHINGTON — One month and dozens of failed election challenges since Nov. 3 , President Donald Trump and Republicans have not persuaded any judge to invalidate a significant number of ballots , let alone flip a state that President-elect Joe Biden won — and they ’ re running out of time .
Trump has vowed to press baseless allegations that the election was tainted by widespread fraud — his campaign filed another round of legal challenges in Wisconsin on Thursday — but his own lawyers have acknowledged that they ’ re up against a narrowing window .
A key date @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will make it even harder for Trump and his supporters to convince any court to take dramatic steps that would upend Biden ’ s victory .
Tuesday marks the “ safe harbor ” deadline — the date when states must certify results if they want protection under federal election law against Congress stepping in to decide which candidate gets their electoral votes .
The fact that lawsuits are pending won ’ t prevent states from getting the benefits of certifying results by that date , according to election law experts .
Judges are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the election and causing chaos and will be even more reluctant to do so after the deadline passes .
“ The doors close significantly after the safe harbor deadline passes , ” said Rebecca Green , codirector of the Election Law Program at William & Mary Law School .
“ It ’ s going to be a heavy lift to convince a judge to defy federal deadlines .
I think it would only happen or be successful if some kind of wild evidence of just unbelievable scale were unearthed that was credible.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Dec. 8 deadline is key to the fate of its legal challenges .
It has pushed courts to rush to consider cases by then .
In the campaign ’ s failed constitutional challenge to Biden ’ s win in Pennsylvania , Trump ’ s lawyers argued on Nov. 22 that it was “ critically important ” for a federal appeals court to hear the case before the deadline , which at that point was 16 days away .
The court agreed to expedite the case and ruled against Trump in a 3–0 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ News has journalists around the US bringing you trustworthy stories on the 2020 elections .
To help keep this news free , become a member .
Trump ’ s campaign has focused its attention more recently on Wisconsin .
On Dec. 1 — one week before the safe harbor deadline — it attempted to skip the lower courts and bring a challenge to hundreds of thousands of absentee ballots in Milwaukee and Dane counties ( the state ’ s largest and most racially diverse counties ) directly to the Wisconsin Supreme Court .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ 4–3 that the campaign couldn ’ t jump ahead and had to go through the standard appeal process .
The campaign quickly filed appeals in county circuit courts later that day and sent a letter requesting a fast timeline “ to avoid any delay.
” Trump ’ s lawyers wrote that “ given the time limitations inherent in the election for President , ” they were prepared to submit all briefs and evidence by Dec. 7 .
Judges can still rule on election challenges after Dec. 8 , or even after Dec. 14 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The federal Electoral Count Act accounts for situations where there are competing slates of electors — if , for instance , a state certified results by the safe harbor deadline , but a court later invalidated those results and ordered a different slate of electors to be sent to Congress .
But election law experts who patiently gamed out for BuzzFeed News all the hypothetical legal paths that Trump and his supporters could pursue between now and Biden ’ s inauguration on Jan. 20 , 2021 , stressed that such scenarios were extremely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ School said that for any court to consider the extreme step of invalidating election results at this stage , a case would need to present a “ real meaningful question ” about whether ballots were invalid and at a scale that would change the outcome .
The remaining cases brought by Trump and Republican challengers — which he described as “ factually inaccurate , ” “ grotesquely implausible , ” and “ fishing expeditions ” — did not come close to meeting that bar , he said .
Green said it was a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ challenger to convince a court to undo results after a state had certified them and the safe harbor deadline passed .
Green said it was possible Trump was hoping to use these court fights to angle for a political solution — for instance , to convince members of Congress to reject slates of electors in states that Biden won .
Alabama Rep. Mo Brooks said this week that he would challenge the Electoral College vote , garnering a “ thank you ” tweet from Trump .
But for that to work , Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Congress to reject the results , an extremely unlikely scenario , particularly in the Democrat-controlled House .
If the House and Senate split , the Electoral Count Act says that Congress goes with the slate certified by a state ’ s governor — putting Trump back where he started in the swing states that went for Biden .
Even if Trump managed to undermine Biden ’ s win in one state , he ’ d have to do that for multiple states to get enough electoral votes to win .
The latest round @ @ @ @ @ @ @ campaign and , separately , by legal teams led by attorney Sidney Powell ( whom the Trump campaign disavowed ) are rooted in sweeping , unsupported theories of widespread fraud .
Cases raising similar claims have failed so far , either because judges didn ’ t find the allegations credible or because Trump and GOP challengers failed to satisfy baseline requirements for bringing these cases before they could get to the merits .
If you have a news tip , we ’ d like to hear from you .
Reach out to us @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Trump and Republicans lost a flurry of cases in Pennsylvania that didn ’ t allege fraud and instead challenged specific clusters of absentee ballots — a situation more similar to the recount mess in Florida in 2000 that led the Supreme Court to step in .
The one win they scored in those cases failed to make any dent in Biden ’ s lead in the state .
A federal judge tossed Trump ’ s constitutional challenge to the results in Pennsylvania , and the campaign failed to convince an appeals court @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of publication time they hadn ’ t filed a petition in the US Supreme Court , notwithstanding pledges by Rudy Giuliani and campaign legal adviser Jenna Ellis that the case would end up there .
An effort in state court by Republican Rep. Mike Kelly and other Republican challengers to invalidate Pennsylvania ’ s results has failed so far , too .
In a lawsuit filed weeks after the election , they challenged a law passed by the Pennsylvania legislature in October 2019 that expanded mail-in voting .
The state Supreme Court rejected @ @ @ @ @ @ @ waited too long to file suit .
On Dec. 3 , the court denied their request to put the ruling on hold so they could go to the US Supreme Court .
Kelly and his co-challengers did petition the US Supreme Court this week to stop state officials from taking any more steps to finalize Biden ’ s win in advance of the Electoral College vote .
On Dec. 3 , Justice Samuel Alito ordered the state to respond by Dec. 9 , one day after the safe harbor deadline — a scheduling @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a sign that the court was not inclined to upend the state ’ s certification of Biden ’ s win .
In Michigan , the Trump campaign is appealing the dismissal of a lawsuit that alleged poll watchers in Wayne County , which covers Detroit , were denied access to observe ballot-counting .
In a brief filed last week in the Michigan Court of Appeals , the campaign argued for an order declaring that Michigan officials improperly managed the election and that would make clear what ’ s required in future elections — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ win .
There ’ s a separate case pending brought by Republican poll watchers seeking an audit of the results in Wayne County ; they ’ d previously sued , unsuccessfully , to stop the county from certifying its results .
In Wisconsin , the campaign has a case pending in federal court that ’ s separate from the appeals it filed on Dec. 3 in Milwaukee and Dane counties .
The federal lawsuit , filed Dec. 1 , accuses state election officials of unconstitutionally going against the wishes of the state legislature @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year .
The campaign is asking the court to declare that the Wisconsin election was unconstitutional , to direct the legislature to decide what to do , and to block “ any actions inconsistent with the Court ’ s declaration and judgment.
” The pending cases in Wisconsin offer examples of how US election law allows for the possibility of legal fights that extend past the safe harbor deadline or the Electoral College vote .
If , for instance , Trump ’ s appeals in Milwaukee and Dane counties didn ’ t wrap @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that could mean Wisconsin wouldn ’ t get the benefit of “ safe harbor ” for the results — a Biden victory — that Gov .
Tony Evers already signed off on .
That wouldn ’ t guarantee Trump would win Wisconsin , however — it would be up to Congress .
If the Wisconsin Supreme Court ultimately upheld Biden ’ s win , he said , it ’ s unlikely Trump could convince Congress to reject that result .
There are already signs that Trump doesn ’ t have the votes on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Three justices dissented from the Dec. 3 order kicking the campaign ’ s challenges to the lower courts , but two of those justices made clear that even if they agreed that Wisconsin election officials violated state law , striking ballots “ may be out of reach.
” What exactly state and federal courts would have the power to do after the safe harbor deadline passes or after the Electoral College votes also isn ’ t clear , since it ’ s a largely untested area of federal election law .
In 2000 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Bush v. Gore on Dec. 12 , which was the safe harbor deadline that year .
A majority of the justices gave significant weight to the Florida legislature ’ s intent to meet that deadline and halted a recount that would have gone past it , which meant George W. Bush won the state and the presidency .

WASHINGTON — One month and dozens of failed election challenges since Nov. 3, President Donald Trump and Republicans have not persuaded any judge to invalidate a significant number of ballots, let alone flip a state that President-elect Joe Biden won — and they’re running out of time.
Trump has vowed to press baseless allegations that the election was tainted by widespread fraud — his campaign filed another round of legal challenges in Wisconsin on Thursday — but his own lawyers have acknowledged that they’re up against a narrowing window. A key date in the federal election timeline next week will make it even harder for Trump and his supporters to convince any court to take dramatic steps that would upend Biden’s victory.
Tuesday marks the “safe harbor” deadline — the date when states must certify results if they want protection under federal election law against Congress stepping in to decide which candidate gets their electoral votes. The fact that lawsuits are pending won’t prevent states from getting the benefits of certifying results by that date, according to election law experts. Judges are already wary of injecting legal uncertainty into the election and causing chaos and will be even more reluctant to do so after the deadline passes.
“The doors close significantly after the safe harbor deadline passes,” said Rebecca Green, codirector of the Election Law Program at William & Mary Law School. “It’s going to be a heavy lift to convince a judge to defy federal deadlines. I think it would only happen or be successful if some kind of wild evidence of just unbelievable scale were unearthed that was credible.”
Trump’s campaign has conceded that the Dec. 8 deadline is key to the fate of its legal challenges. It has pushed courts to rush to consider cases by then. In the campaign’s failed constitutional challenge to Biden’s win in Pennsylvania, Trump’s lawyers argued on Nov. 22 that it was “critically important” for a federal appeals court to hear the case before the deadline, which at that point was 16 days away. The court agreed to expedite the case and ruled against Trump in a 3–0 decision just five days later.
BuzzFeed News has journalists around the US bringing you trustworthy stories on the 2020 elections. To help keep this news free, become a member.
Trump’s campaign has focused its attention more recently on Wisconsin. On Dec. 1 — one week before the safe harbor deadline — it attempted to skip the lower courts and bring a challenge to hundreds of thousands of absentee ballots in Milwaukee and Dane counties (the state’s largest and most racially diverse counties) directly to the Wisconsin Supreme Court. On Dec. 3, the court ruled 4–3 that the campaign couldn’t jump ahead and had to go through the standard appeal process.
The campaign quickly filed appeals in county circuit courts later that day and sent a letter requesting a fast timeline “to avoid any delay.” Trump’s lawyers wrote that “given the time limitations inherent in the election for President,” they were prepared to submit all briefs and evidence by Dec. 7.
Judges can still rule on election challenges after Dec. 8, or even after Dec. 14, when the Electoral College votes. The federal Electoral Count Act accounts for situations where there are competing slates of electors — if, for instance, a state certified results by the safe harbor deadline, but a court later invalidated those results and ordered a different slate of electors to be sent to Congress.
But election law experts who patiently gamed out for BuzzFeed News all the hypothetical legal paths that Trump and his supporters could pursue between now and Biden’s inauguration on Jan. 20, 2021, stressed that such scenarios were extremely unlikely.
Justin Levitt of Loyola Law School said that for any court to consider the extreme step of invalidating election results at this stage, a case would need to present a “real meaningful question” about whether ballots were invalid and at a scale that would change the outcome. The remaining cases brought by Trump and Republican challengers — which he described as “factually inaccurate,” “grotesquely implausible,” and “fishing expeditions” — did not come close to meeting that bar, he said.
Green said it was a “strong-slash-insurmountable burden” for an election challenger to convince a court to undo results after a state had certified them and the safe harbor deadline passed.
Green said it was possible Trump was hoping to use these court fights to angle for a political solution — for instance, to convince members of Congress to reject slates of electors in states that Biden won. Alabama Rep. Mo Brooks said this week that he would challenge the Electoral College vote, garnering a “thank you” tweet from Trump.
But for that to work, Trump would have to convince both chambers of Congress to reject the results, an extremely unlikely scenario, particularly in the Democrat-controlled House. If the House and Senate split, the Electoral Count Act says that Congress goes with the slate certified by a state’s governor — putting Trump back where he started in the swing states that went for Biden. Even if Trump managed to undermine Biden’s win in one state, he’d have to do that for multiple states to get enough electoral votes to win.
“It’s long shot upon long shot,” Green said.
The latest round of lawsuits filed by Trump’s campaign and, separately, by legal teams led by attorney Sidney Powell (whom the Trump campaign disavowed) are rooted in sweeping, unsupported theories of widespread fraud. Cases raising similar claims have failed so far, either because judges didn’t find the allegations credible or because Trump and GOP challengers failed to satisfy baseline requirements for bringing these cases before they could get to the merits.
If you have a news tip, we’d like to hear from you. Reach out to us via one of our tip line channels.
Trump and Republicans lost a flurry of cases in Pennsylvania that didn’t allege fraud and instead challenged specific clusters of absentee ballots — a situation more similar to the recount mess in Florida in 2000 that led the Supreme Court to step in. The one win they scored in those cases failed to make any dent in Biden’s lead in the state.
A federal judge tossed Trump’s constitutional challenge to the results in Pennsylvania, and the campaign failed to convince an appeals court to let them try again. As of publication time they hadn’t filed a petition in the US Supreme Court, notwithstanding pledges by Rudy Giuliani and campaign legal adviser Jenna Ellis that the case would end up there.
An effort in state court by Republican Rep. Mike Kelly and other Republican challengers to invalidate Pennsylvania’s results has failed so far, too. In a lawsuit filed weeks after the election, they challenged a law passed by the Pennsylvania legislature in October 2019 that expanded mail-in voting. The state Supreme Court rejected it, finding Kelly and his co-challengers waited too long to file suit. On Dec. 3, the court denied their request to put the ruling on hold so they could go to the US Supreme Court.
Kelly and his co-challengers did petition the US Supreme Court this week to stop state officials from taking any more steps to finalize Biden’s win in advance of the Electoral College vote. On Dec. 3, Justice Samuel Alito ordered the state to respond by Dec. 9, one day after the safe harbor deadline — a scheduling decision that constitutional law scholars took as a sign that the court was not inclined to upend the state’s certification of Biden’s win.
In Michigan, the Trump campaign is appealing the dismissal of a lawsuit that alleged poll watchers in Wayne County, which covers Detroit, were denied access to observe ballot-counting. In a brief filed last week in the Michigan Court of Appeals, the campaign argued for an order declaring that Michigan officials improperly managed the election and that would make clear what’s required in future elections — but not to undo Biden’s win. There’s a separate case pending brought by Republican poll watchers seeking an audit of the results in Wayne County; they’d previously sued, unsuccessfully, to stop the county from certifying its results.
In Wisconsin, the campaign has a case pending in federal court that’s separate from the appeals it filed on Dec. 3 in Milwaukee and Dane counties. The federal lawsuit, filed Dec. 1, accuses state election officials of unconstitutionally going against the wishes of the state legislature in how they managed mail-in voting this year. The campaign is asking the court to declare that the Wisconsin election was unconstitutional, to direct the legislature to decide what to do, and to block “any actions inconsistent with the Court’s declaration and judgment.”
The pending cases in Wisconsin offer examples of how US election law allows for the possibility of legal fights that extend past the safe harbor deadline or the Electoral College vote. If, for instance, Trump’s appeals in Milwaukee and Dane counties didn’t wrap up before Dec. 8, Levitt said that could mean Wisconsin wouldn’t get the benefit of “safe harbor” for the results — a Biden victory — that Gov. Tony Evers already signed off on.
That wouldn’t guarantee Trump would win Wisconsin, however — it would be up to Congress. If the Wisconsin Supreme Court ultimately upheld Biden’s win, he said, it’s unlikely Trump could convince Congress to reject that result. There are already signs that Trump doesn’t have the votes on the Wisconsin court to invalidate ballots. Three justices dissented from the Dec. 3 order kicking the campaign’s challenges to the lower courts, but two of those justices made clear that even if they agreed that Wisconsin election officials violated state law, striking ballots “may be out of reach.”
What exactly state and federal courts would have the power to do after the safe harbor deadline passes or after the Electoral College votes also isn’t clear, since it’s a largely untested area of federal election law. In 2000, the Supreme Court issued its decision in Bush v. Gore on Dec. 12, which was the safe harbor deadline that year. A majority of the justices gave significant weight to the Florida legislature’s intent to meet that deadline and halted a recount that would have gone past it, which meant George W. Bush won the state and the presidency.


buzzfeed--2020-12-07--Miley Cyrus Opened Up About Breaking Her Sobriety During The Pandemic


buzzfeed--2020-12-06--Congress Took A Big Step Toward A New Coronavirus Relief Bill


buzzfeed--2020-12-07--This Viral Video Of A Girl Explaining Things She Never Realized About Abortion Has Some Truth To It


buzzfeed--2020-12-07--Keke Palmer Got Candid About Her Experience With Polycystic Ovary Syndrome And Acne, And This Is So

Keke Palmer Got Candid About Her Experience With Polycystic Ovary Syndrome And Acne, And This Is So Important

Keke had to figure out her diagnosis herself because doctors were n't helping her reach it .
`` Unfortunately doctors @ @ @ @ @ don ’ t ‘ look the part ’ they may not think that ’ s @ @ @ @ @ explained .
`` They may not even suggest it if you ‘ look healthy ’ @ @ @ @ @ came to a doctor in tears once and all they offered was a measles vaccine… @ @ @

Keke had to figure out her diagnosis herself because doctors weren't helping her reach it. "Unfortunately doctors are people and if you don’t ‘look the part’ they may not think that’s your problem," she explained. "They may not even suggest it if you ‘look healthy’ whatever that means! I came to a doctor in tears once and all they offered was a measles vaccine… Exactly."


buzzfeed--2020-12-07--Kelly Loeffler Repeatedly Avoided Saying Trump Lost During Georgia's Senate Debate

Sen. Kelly Loeffler avoided multiple questions about whether she acknowledged President-elect Joe Biden ’ s win over President Donald Trump in the general election and continued to push conspiracy theories about the state ’ s voting systems during a Sunday night debate against her Democratic opponent Rev .
Raphael Warnock .
Throughout the debate , when she was pressed by both moderators and Warnock to answer whether she thought the election was “ rigged ” and whether the president had lost , she repeatedly claimed that there were “ 250 investigations ” open in the state and claimed that there @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hadn ’ t been counted in counties across Georgia .
She never said whether she believed Trump had lost .
In the first question of the debate , moderator Greg Bluestein asked Loeffler if she stood by Trump ’ s “ narrative that the election was rigged.
” Loeffler did not directly answer , saying instead that Trump has “ every right to every legal recourse.
” Later , she was asked by Warnock to answer yes or no if Trump had lost the election .
She said Trump has “ every right @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” without responding directly .
Later , another moderator asked her if her answer to a separate question about the importance of Republicans keeping Senate control presumed a Trump loss — she again did not directly answer .
Warnock , for his part , dodged some questions as well : he twice avoided directly answering whether or not he supports adding more justices to the Supreme Court , just saying he was not “ focused ” on the issue .
Loeffler has spent the weeks since the presidential election echoing Trump ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Dominion Voting Systems , demanding recounts of the results , and calling on Georgia Secretary of State Brian Raffensperger to resign after claiming the Republican had not conducted a “ honest and transparent elections.
” Both Loeffler and Sen. David Perdue , who is running against Democrat Jon Ossoff in another Georgia runoff that combined will decide which party controls the Senate , have echoed Trump ’ s attacks on Republican officials in the state who are in charge of its election systems .
Perdue declined to debate Ossoff , leaving Ossoff speaking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
While many of the attacks have focused on Raffensperger , Trump has recently taken aim at Gov .
Brian Kemp , who he campaigned for in 2018 , after calling on him to help overturn the results of the election .
Last Sunday , during a phone interview with Fox Business , Trump said that he was “ ashamed ” to have endorsed Kemp and during a rally for Loeffler and Perdue on Saturday night , Trump suggested that another Republican primary Kemp .
Raffensperger and Kemp have pushed back on Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ urged Republicans to stop pushing conspiracy theories that have triggered threats against election system workers and officials .
“ There are those who are exploiting the emotions of many Trump supporters with fantastic claims , half truths and misinformation , ” Raffensperger said during a press conference last week .
Last week after Gabriel Sterling , Georgia ’ s voting systems implementation manager warned that “ someone is going to get killed ’ , Loeffler condemned violence and added that she also condemned “ inaction and lack of accountability in our election system @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it out.
” There have been no substantiated claims of widespread voter fraud in Georgia and the state has already conducted two statewide recounts of the general election ballots .

Sen. Kelly Loeffler avoided multiple questions about whether she acknowledged President-elect Joe Biden’s win over President Donald Trump in the general election and continued to push conspiracy theories about the state’s voting systems during a Sunday night debate against her Democratic opponent Rev. Raphael Warnock.
Throughout the debate, when she was pressed by both moderators and Warnock to answer whether she thought the election was “rigged” and whether the president had lost, she repeatedly claimed that there were “250 investigations” open in the state and claimed that there were “thousands” of ballots that hadn’t been counted in counties across Georgia. She never said whether she believed Trump had lost.
In the first question of the debate, moderator Greg Bluestein asked Loeffler if she stood by Trump’s “narrative that the election was rigged.” Loeffler did not directly answer, saying instead that Trump has “every right to every legal recourse.” Later, she was asked by Warnock to answer "yes" or "no" if Trump had lost the election. She said Trump has “every right to use every legal recourse available,” without responding directly. Later, another moderator asked her if her answer to a separate question about the importance of Republicans keeping Senate control presumed a Trump loss — she again did not directly answer.
Warnock, for his part, dodged some questions as well: He twice avoided directly answering whether or not he supports adding more justices to the Supreme Court, just saying he was not “focused” on the issue.
Loeffler has spent the weeks since the presidential election echoing Trump’s conspiracy theories about the election results and Dominion Voting Systems, demanding recounts of the results, and calling on Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to resign after claiming the Republican had not conducted an “honest and transparent elections.”
Both Loeffler and Sen. David Perdue, who is running against Democrat Jon Ossoff in another Georgia runoff that combined with Loeffler's race will decide which party controls the Senate, have echoed Trump’s attacks on Republican officials in the state who are in charge of its election systems. Perdue declined to debate Ossoff, leaving Ossoff speaking Sunday night next to an empty podium.
While many of the attacks have focused on Raffensperger, Trump has recently taken aim at Gov. Brian Kemp, who he campaigned for in 2018, after calling on him to help overturn the results of the election.
Last Sunday, during a phone interview with Fox Business, Trump said he was “ashamed” to have endorsed Kemp, and during a rally for Loeffler and Perdue on Saturday night, Trump suggested that another Republican primary Kemp.
Raffensperger and Kemp have pushed back on Trump and Loeffler’s claims and have urged Republicans to stop pushing conspiracy theories that have triggered threats against election system workers and officials.
“There are those who are exploiting the emotions of many Trump supporters with fantastic claims, half-truths, and misinformation,” Raffensperger said during a press conference last week.
Last week after Gabriel Sterling, Georgia’s voting systems implementation manager, warned that “someone is going to get killed," Loeffler condemned violence and added that she also condemned “inaction and lack of accountability in our election system process—and won’t apologize for calling it out.”
There have been no substantiated claims of widespread voter fraud in Georgia, and the state has already conducted two statewide recounts of the general election ballots.


buzzfeed--2020-12-08--Khloé Kardashian Says The Kardashians Are No Longer Having Their Annual Christmas Party Or Doing A C

Khloé Kardashian Says The Kardashians Are No Longer Having Their Annual Christmas Party Or Doing A Christmas Card

Matriarch Kris Jenner later defended the party against backlash , saying , `` At Kendall 's , everyone got [ @ @ @ @ @ walked in the door ...
So we are really responsible and we make sure that @ @ @ @ @ our closest friends are tested religiously ... We do what we can , we , @ @ @ @ @ rules .
And then if people are , you know , they 're commenting and @ @ @ @ @ I ca n't control that . ''

@rodashian I pray not! I think it will have to be way smaller obviously. And I’m totally fine with that! But we’re definitely celebrating Christmas! It will just have to be small and safe. Maybe do rapid testing before 😳 We have to think of what is safest


buzzfeed--2020-12-07--Bill Nye Went Mega-Viral On TikTok After He Shut Down "Anti-Maskers" For Their Fake Science

And indeed , when Bill dropped three fake `` spit balls '' through a board with a bunch of `` @ @ @ @ @ all three balls were stopped almost immediately : `` So when the droplet gets into @ @ @ @ @ , it gets trapped .
This is not that hard to understand , everybody .
@ @ @ @ @ rules about wearing a mask . ''

And indeed, when Bill dropped three fake "spit balls" through a board with a bunch of "tangles" on it, all three balls were stopped almost immediately: "So when the droplet gets into the fibers of the mask, it gets trapped. This is not that hard to understand, everybody. That's why we have rules about wearing a mask."


buzzfeed--2020-12-08--This Viral Video Of A Girl Explaining Things She Never Realized About Abortion Has Some Truth To It


buzzfeed--2020-12-07--I’m 33 Years Old. I Got COVID-19 Eight Months Ago. I’m Still Sick.

Eight months out from the first frightening peak of coronavirus cases in the US , Americans are facing another dangerous surge of the pandemic .
More than 100,000 Americans are in the hospital right now , sick with COVID-19 — the most there ’ s ever been .
At least 13.9 million people in the US have had the virus .
Some fully recovered and bounced right back to their lives , perhaps without even knowing they ’ d ever been infected .
Some — at least 273,000 so far — have died .
And others , like me , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of headaches , exhaustion , chest pains , and shortness of breath , their post-viral symptoms dragging out for weeks that have turned into months , with no end or relief in sight .
I ’ m 33 years old .
Before I got sick with COVID-19 in April , I was traveling nonstop for my work as a campaign reporter , with 12- to 14-hour days on my feet , sometimes working 10 or more days in a row .
In between all that , I ’ d fit in hot yoga @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The best way I can describe how I am now , at the end of this strange , horrible year , is that I wake up most days feeling like I drank a six-pack of beer the night before .
Washing the dishes , doing my laundry , or walking a few blocks leaves me in need of a sit-down .
It ’ s a sort of gritty feeling in my body , a woolly feeling in my brain .
My breathing is up and down ; when I 'm tired , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at least 10 hours of sleep most nights .
And if I push too hard , it ’ s not just laborious — it ’ s actually painful , from my lungs to my head to the stinging in my eyes .
“ Hopefully it will improve soon , ” one doctor told me a few months ago .
That was the extent of her advice .
Before he got sick in July , “ I had tons of energy .
I ’ d never take a break , probably like you , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and patient benefit adviser at a hospital in Orlando , told me .
“ And just all of a sudden , it just hit me out of nowhere .
I went from feeling 27 to feeling like I 'm 207 years old.
” For the past eight months , those of us who have long-term post-COVID symptoms , as well as those who ’ ve watched loved ones suffer or die from the virus , have seen the president refuse to acknowledge that COVID-19 has killed hundreds of thousands of Americans and made @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a “ Fake News Media Conspiracy ” — even after getting sick himself .
“ Don ’ t let it dominate you .
Don ’ t be afraid of it , ” Trump said right after coming out of Walter Reed Medical Center , where he ’ d been treated with antibodies and steroids inaccessible to most Americans .
“ You ’ re going to beat it .
We have the best medical equipment , we have the best medicines , all developed recently.
” Of course , hundreds of thousands of people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the virus .
Now , can the US be a place where someone can survive even if they ’ re knocked off track by a severe illness ?
The answer , for a long time , has been that it is not .
This country ’ s disability safety net has been woefully inadequate since well before the pandemic .
It ’ s certainly not capable now of handling the needs of everyone who is currently seeing or will in the next few months see their lives dramatically upended by long-term COVID-related illness @ @ @ @ @ @ @ acknowledged the devastation of COVID-19 and has a clear plan to address the pandemic — but there are still two and a half months to survive before that plan can be put into action .
And there ’ s still no specific plan to federally fund clinics or research to help people with lingering symptoms .
Biden ’ s main offering , according to his team , is to protect health insurance coverage for preexisting conditions and make insurance accessible for those who lose their jobs because of the pandemic .
That will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who have long-term symptoms and no health insurance — but even those of us with post-viral problems who already have decent health insurance are struggling to access guidance and care .
COVID-19 has forced me to reevaluate how I think about health , work , vulnerability , and strength .
And I ’ ve wondered whether the pandemic will force our culture at large to make some reevaluations , too .
Maybe it will force us to question the American cult of individualism , that idea that doing well or being well is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ willpower .
Maybe it will finally make clear that we ’ re not , as the ads at the beginning of the lockdowns said , “ all in this together , ” and that our failure to think about collective health and responsibility means many , many people fall through the cracks in a crisis .
By the time we have a vaccine , there will only be more of us struggling to see what the future looks like with slowed down bodies and long-term consequences of the virus , trying to figure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of life for however long this lasts .
When well-meaning friends express shock at how long I ’ ve been sick and how supportive my employer has been in giving me time to recover , it rankles .
I ’ m so grateful , but shouldn ’ t we all have this basic human consideration ?
To be able to rest and recover instead of driving ourselves to work , potentially at the cost of our lives ?
But the paradox is that if we don ’ t just keep laboring through it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ survive .
Every now and then , over the past seven months , I have obsessively gone back through my calendar and counted the days leading up to it .
On March 5 , I was in LA at a packed rally for Joe Biden , talking to voters about why they ’ d gotten behind him after their candidates dropped out .
On March 6 , I was at LAX , and it had started to sink in that things were getting weird .
There were a few people in masks .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ and bought four bottles at the only place that still had them , the Magic Johnson store in Terminal 5 .
On the flight , I sat wedged between two men , chatting with one about news of this virus and prognosticating how bad it could really get .
“ If you look at what we know , millions of Americans are going to get sick , ” he said .
“ And I guess a lot of people are going to die.
” We looked at each other in silence for a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ me sneezed and wiped his nose with his hand .
On March 7 , I was in Kansas City , Missouri , reporting on another Biden rally .
Before it started , I sat in a crowded restaurant with colleagues eating barbeque with our hands .
Pretty soon after , the campaign trail dissolved , and we all retreated to our respective bubbles .
The first weekend I was home in DC , my 12-year-old cousin came over for a sleepover — we watched movies and snuggled on the couch , cooked and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no 6-foot distance between us .
It 's a very specific ache now , to think about the warmth of being that close to someone you love .
On April 4 , a Saturday , I went for a run , and that ’ s when things took a turn .
I couldn ’ t stop coughing — I assumed it was allergies .
But for days afterward , the coughing didn ’ t stop .
By April 8 , a Wednesday night , I wrote this email to my editors at 2:51 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Hey just wanted to let you both know , coughing is a fair bit worse tonight .
Reached back out to One Medical and will assess what to do in the morning I think .
Hoping it settles but just wanted to make sure you had that and to keep you posted .
I gave them my updated emergency contact number , my aunt ’ s , just in case .
Looking back , the mild language I was using speaks to how reluctant I was to accept that something serious was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I was doing “ fair bit worse , ” I was actually struggling to breathe .
When I said I would assess what to do in the morning , I was really considering whether I needed to call an ambulance and go to the hospital right then .
I didn ’ t go to the hospital in the end , though maybe I should have .
Sitting up in bed , I watched videos my mum sent me from a doctor on YouTube explaining how to breathe through COVID coughing and got through @ @ @ @ @ @ @ several months of intense sickness , followed by several more months of getting a bit better and then worse again .
It felt like I was being put through my paces with cycles of new and freshly horrifying symptoms every few weeks .
For about a month , I was throwing up a lot and had to switch to a bland diet .
Then for about two months , I woke up every day with intense chest pain , as if I 'd been doing chest presses all night in my sleep .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of breath came and went throughout .
Month to month I can see that I ’ m very slowly getting some energy back — but there ’ s the constant possibility , which no one has been able to really rule out , that one of these setbacks will be so bad that I actually do end up in the hospital , or worse .
One day early on , I tried to do a YouTube yoga session “ for when you ’ re sick ” and ended up a sobbing mess on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t have the energy to get past about three minutes .
I kept pushing myself to get back to work , as though by the force of sheer willpower I could stop being sick .
The day Trump left Walter Reed Medical Center , I watched on TV as he puffed up the steps of the White House to the Truman Balcony , where he removed his mask , waved , and saluted .
An obvious lesson I learned this year : You ca n't bully yourself into disappearing a life-threatening illness .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ on , that it ’ s a question of fearlessness or mental toughness , is just not how this — or any — illness really works .
And yet , as he minimized the disease on national television , I once again minimized my own sickness : I can get back to work in a day or two , I told myself , while I labored to breathe .
Just one more day .
So far , there ’ s an element of randomness in how hard different people are hit by COVID @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the research to tell us why a healthy 33-year-old is knocked down for months while a seventysomething man with other risk factors can bounce back in days ( though level of care can certainly be a factor ; not everyone has had access to the president ’ s exclusive , top-tier treatment ) .
Our recovery , too , is not created equal .
In a country with no federally mandated paid sick leave or protections for workers who are too ill to work — even in a pandemic , when spreading the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — people with long COVID are forced to choose between resting for their health and a paycheck .
That leads to a deep-seated fear that so many of us , and particularly women of color , have ingrained in us .
If you stop working , if you don ’ t push yourself , if you don ’ t fight for it , you lose everything .
Some of the questions I asked myself in the first few months I was ill : Are you really this sick ?
Why aren ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and keep going ?
Why aren ’ t you doing your job as a reporter as the world falls to bits around you ?
What use are you like this to the people you love and the world at large ?
Whether or not they can work is also not an abstract question for the four others with long COVID who I spoke to for this story .
Jenn Fryer , 36 , from Costa Mesa , California , lost her job as a fashion designer in March , a few months before @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been avoiding seeing doctors , especially because her brother , who also had COVID-19 , was hospitalized for a few weeks and landed with a roughly million-dollar bill .
He has insurance that will help with those charges , she said , but for her , it ’ s not an option to rack up medical costs .
“ Ever since my brother went to the hospital and got put on the ventilator , I get massive anxiety attacks thinking about it .
I 'll just break down crying .
I do n't @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or anything .
And I was also scared … because I do n't have health insurance right now , ” she said .
Jenn said she ’ s receiving $ 450 per week , the maximum unemployment she can get in California , which only just covers her rent .
“ I mean , it affects your self-esteem , but also it ’ s our livelihood .
And especially right now , it 's not getting any extra help from the government anymore .
You ca n't really survive that way , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the unemployment funding boost from the federal CARES Act .
She ’ s trying to apply for jobs , but there ’ s not a lot out there — and just the effort of going through the interview is sometimes absolutely exhausting .
“ I had an interview last month , and I had to put together a whole presentation and do that via Zoom , and it was exhausting .
Like afterwards , I felt like I ran like 5 miles .
And it 's not just like exhausting physically ; @ @ @ @ @ @ @ she said .
“ I realized that even the way that I pronounce things is different , which is kind of weird .
I 'll have to think about it , like is this pronounced this way or this way ?
” Carlos Cabral , 35 , who works as a surgical technologist at a hospital in Pasadena , California , got sick from COVID-19 after traveling to Mexico to be with his dying grandfather in April .
He was hospitalized for about a week , and in that time he was so @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and heart were affected .
A few days in , the doctor suggested he talk to a chaplain and sort out his financial affairs because it wasn ’ t looking good .
“ I wrote a farewell message on my phone to my mom , my dad , and my sisters and my best friend .
That was a really powerful moment for me this year .
Where I felt like I had no control over what was happening .
I lived a beautiful life .
I felt grateful , but you know @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , all I really wanted was to hug them one last time.
” The following day , somehow , Carlos began to recover .
He ’ s back at work now , but his lungs are not back to normal , he said he ’ s noticeably slower than he used to be , and he still has fatigue and neuropathy — tingling and pain — in his hands and feet .
He told his bosses he can ’ t pull the 24-hour shifts that are expected at the hospital anymore , so @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to 12 hours at a time .
Junior had to put his music work on hold — when he got sick in July he was about to record an EP .
His work at the hospital , too , has paused .
He ’ s on short-term disability right now , because he can ’ t do his job remotely and he ’ s not only too fatigued to work but also scared of whether or not he ’ s still infectious .
He ’ s been testing negative for COVID , but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ symptoms .
His hospital , like many others around the country , has also been losing money fast .
They ’ ve closed their outpatient services and have a freeze on hiring , so he can ’ t look for a job in a different department there .
Junior is very concerned that he ’ ll soon lose his job .
“ I had to take like a month off , and then I told them after the month , I still do n't feel good .
I could probably drive to work @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of my energy is driving to work , and once I get there , it 's done , ” he said .
At first , like me , he struggled with not being able to work and be more helpful in the midst of a pandemic .
But then “ it kind of shifted my perspective , ” Junior said .
“ Before it was , ‘ I miss going to work , ’ but as the symptoms progressed and life kept going on but you kind of stay in that same place @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ] .
Now it 's not ‘ I miss going to work.
’ It 's ‘ I miss being able to walk down the sidewalk for 30 minutes.
’ ” There are a handful of clinics around the country starting to focus specifically on COVID patients with post-viral symptoms .
But there isn ’ t widely available medical support or research to help this new population of Americans .
As someone with pretty good health insurance , it ’ s still taken me more than six months to speak to a doctor , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ get to the root of what I ’ m going through .
Last week , after several tests , he landed on the same thing several other doctors have told me : It ’ s not clear why I ’ m not better yet , and there ’ s nothing to be done except rest and wait .
In other countries , governments are starting to acknowledge that the long-term public health fallout of long COVID isn ’ t going away .
The head of the UK ’ s National Health Service said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ publicly funded clinics to serve people with these post-viral complications , investing £10 million into clinical services , planning , and research .
“ Long COVID is already having a very serious impact on many people ’ s lives and could well go on to affect hundreds of thousands , ” said NHS Chief Executive Simon Stevens , estimating that around 60,000 people in the UK are already dealing with long-term COVID symptoms .
“ More recent evidence is also showing that long COVID can be categorised into four different syndromes : post @ @ @ @ @ @ @ syndrome , permanent organ damage and long term COVID syndrome , ” the NHS announcement said .
That ’ s already more clarity than most of us in the US with long COVID have been able to get .
Our CDC took until July to even acknowledge that people have long-term issues from COVID and now offers only this explanation : “ The long-term significance of these effects is not yet known .
CDC will continue active investigation and provide updates as new data emerge , which can inform COVID-19 clinical care as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ COVID-19.
” In the absence of real medical guidance , we ’ re realizing that we need to learn how to live with this illness .
Educating ourselves in these support groups is exhausting but necessary — something we ’ re learning from people who have for far longer dealt with other “ invisible ” illnesses like chronic fatigue and lupus .
They ’ re all too familiar with what we ’ re dealing with now : when the medical profession doesn ’ t seem to have many answers for you , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to understand or even believe that you ’ re struggling .
For many people — myself included — the scarcity of tests early in the pandemic has left us adrift in a particularly strange limbo , experiencing the crushing symptoms of the virus while having no definitive positive test result .
When tests were still scarce , many people were told by doctors that they likely had the virus but couldn ’ t get tested unless they were hospitalized .
And then there were plenty of false negative test results , which doctors @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the early months .
( That ’ s what happened to me — and after ruling out other possibilities , I was told by doctors that I should assume I had COVID-19 . )
Both of those scenarios are particularly hard to deal with in this culture of reluctance to give people space and resources to be sick and recover , where illness must be in some way certified to be taken seriously ( to the point where , in several states , voters had to provide a doctor ’ s note @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the midst of a pandemic ) .
“ I woke up with fatigue so bad one day — I woke up and I actually laughed because of how ridiculous the fatigue was , like , if I were to tell people nobody would believe me .
I was that tired , ” said Junior .
“ No one will ever believe me that I can barely walk to the bathroom.
” Carlos said he filed a complaint to the hospital he works for after a surgeon and anaesthesiologist he was working with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t real and mocking him after he told them he was having a hard day with the fatigue .
They were suspended for their comments , he said .
“ After that moment , I remember thinking , I 've always been such a happy person .
I 'm just so tired of feeling unworthy .
Because that ’ s what it ’ s like , feeling broken .
Like not myself , ” he said .
He ’ s taken up meditation , which has helped improve his mental health , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of gentle stretching every day .
In one long COVID support group , there ’ s a discussion about histamines , with links to preliminary studies .
In another , people share stories about stupid things we forget : One woman ran a bath and only realized after she tried getting in that it was ice cold .
Jenn told me she sometimes forgets how to put her car in drive .
Jenn always has a thesaurus site open on her phone now , for when she loses her words .
I ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ blank is coming and try to slow down my speech until my brain can catch up .
Swapping these stories , we laughed about our weird brain freezes — relieved to speak to someone else who truly understands .
A friend of mine who had chronic fatigue for years has helped me draw a road map for how to live with this , and importantly , how to stop seeing relapses and improvements as failures and victories — a tally that can drive you mad .
She introduced me to spoon theory : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ advocate Christine Miserandino came up with to try to explain how she lives with lupus .
When you have a chronic illness , you have limited amounts of energy every day — imagine you start the day with 15 spoons .
Each thing you do , from showering to making coffee to speaking to your boss on the phone , takes a certain number of spoons .
The spoons are finite .
Ration your energy accordingly , and know that if you exceed your daily spoons , you ’ ll be working with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lose my words , sometimes , in the middle of a sentence .
I ’ m asking a question or making a point , and the gears in my brain just grind to a halt .
This is a jarring feeling for someone whose livelihood hinges on finding the right words , in multiple languages .
My mind is trying to race ahead at its normal pace and it just .
Doesn ’ t .
Work .
So maybe it ’ s OK if I speak a little slower for however long this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the words , and catch my breath .
Jenn tells me how she ’ s still struggling with fatigue almost every day , body aches , swelling of her feet , and trouble regulating her body temperature .
I can relate .
Occasionally , after a busy day , I ’ ll have some trouble breathing again — maybe the worst symptom because it ’ s hard to talk to family and friends outside my isolated apartment .
In recent weeks , I ’ ve been exhausted every single day .
Pre-COVID , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ class , take a long walk , hang out with friends , all things that I ’ ve relied on to pick me up when I ’ m low on energy .
Now , the options are sleep , walk down the block , a video chat .
This is just how it has to be sometimes .
I tell myself it won ’ t be forever .
Right before getting sick , Jenn bought a Peloton bike — she had to sell it pretty soon after , because leisurely walks and a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s able to do right now .
“ Sometimes I 'll go for walks with my dog , and honestly , even if I go up a slight hill , I 'm like , Oh my gosh .
And then my inhaler does n't work , I mean , there 's nothing that can help it , ” she said .
Junior had chronic fatigue in the past .
He said he ’ s trying to heal his post-COVID symptoms the same way he dealt with that disease : through lifestyle and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ immune system .
“ You have to completely change your diet to like anti-inflammatory everything , all organic everything .
You have to regulate your sleep .
You ca n't exercise too little , but you can not exercise too much .
You have to get rid of stress , ” he said .
Easier said than done with the pressure to find and keep work , while feeling like your body ’ s on the brink of giving up on you some days .
Despite these challenges , he ’ s philosophical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ optimistic .
He said where there ’ s hardship , often there ’ s transformation , both for individual people and for us as a society .
“ I 'm not really like a religious person , but I do believe in the universe and our connection with it , and how we 're all intertwined , ” he said .
“ This year the world is shifting , with the volcanoes and COVID and the rioting and what 's going on overseas in , like , Hong Kong and China , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ like everyone is going through something at the same time.
” “ I feel like we 're going through some kind of huge energy , spiritual shift , but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel , kind of with this election being like the first thing to change , ” he said .
“ And then after that , it 's going to be like a snowball .
Everything will get better one by one , and then we 'll all go into that shift .
But right @ @ @ @ @ @ @ through it.
” It ’ s comforting to hear Junior ’ s optimism , though I ’ m more skeptical about the world at large making real progress .
As we head into a pandemic winter that feels particularly foreboding , I am more hopeful about people on an individual level .
Surely , if nothing else , more of us have to come out of this with a greater awareness of this country ’ s systemic failures and how we internalize the harsh demands that are placed on us .
The week @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , now 13 , for the first time since the spring , bundled up against the cold in my aunt and uncle ’ s backyard , masked and at a distance across a fire pit .
I wanted to cry with the simple relief of being in their company , talking about the usual things ( school , soccer , work , food , politics ) and the less usual things ( masks , hospitals , symptoms , vaccines ) .
The next day , I traveled for work again for the first @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
I needed to sleep for 17 hours when I got home .
I ’ ve taken these things as evidence that although it ’ s nothing like what it used to be , life is moving forward .
Maybe moving at a slightly slower pace doesn ’ t have to be a terrible calamity .
Having a little patience and a lot of restraint does not mean that I 'm giving up .
●

A friend of mine who had chronic fatigue for years has helped me draw a road map for how to live with this, and importantly, how to stop seeing relapses and improvements as failures and victories — a tally that can drive you mad.
She introduced me to spoon theory: an imperfect but helpful concept that patient advocate Christine Miserandino came up with to try to explain how she lives with lupus. When you have a chronic illness, you have limited amounts of energy every day — imagine you start the day with 15 spoons. Each thing you do, from showering to making coffee to speaking to your boss on the phone, takes a certain number of spoons. The spoons are finite. Ration your energy accordingly, and know that if you exceed your daily spoons, you’ll be working with far fewer the following day.
I lose my words, sometimes, in the middle of a sentence. I’m asking a question or making a point, and the gears in my brain just grind to a halt. This is a jarring feeling for someone whose livelihood hinges on finding the right words, in multiple languages. My mind is trying to race ahead at its normal pace and it just. Doesn’t. Work. So maybe it’s OK if I speak a little slower for however long this lasts. Give myself time to find the words, and catch my breath.
Jenn tells me how she’s still struggling with fatigue almost every day, body aches, swelling of her feet, and trouble regulating her body temperature. I can relate. Occasionally, after a busy day, I’ll have some trouble breathing again — maybe the worst symptom because it’s hard to talk to family and friends outside my isolated apartment. In recent weeks, I’ve been exhausted every single day. Pre-COVID, I’d go to a yoga class, take a long walk, hang out with friends, all things that I’ve relied on to pick me up when I’m low on energy. Now, the options are sleep, walk down the block, a video chat. This is just how it has to be sometimes. I tell myself it won’t be forever.
Right before getting sick, Jenn bought a Peloton bike — she had to sell it pretty soon after, because leisurely walks and a weekly gentle yoga session are what she’s able to do right now.
“Sometimes I'll go for walks with my dog, and honestly, even if I go up a slight hill, I'm like, Oh my gosh. And then my inhaler doesn't work, I mean, there's nothing that can help it,” she said.
Junior had chronic fatigue in the past. He said he’s trying to heal his post-COVID symptoms the same way he dealt with that disease: through lifestyle and diet changes that help his energy and immune system.
“You have to completely change your diet to like anti-inflammatory everything, all organic everything. You have to regulate your sleep. You can't exercise too little, but you cannot exercise too much. You have to get rid of stress,” he said.
Easier said than done with the pressure to find and keep work, while feeling like your body’s on the brink of giving up on you some days.
Despite these challenges, he’s philosophical about this chaotic year, and ultimately optimistic. He said where there’s hardship, often there’s transformation, both for individual people and for us as a society.
“I'm not really like a religious person, but I do believe in the universe and our connection with it, and how we're all intertwined,” he said. “This year the world is shifting, with the volcanoes and COVID and the rioting and what's going on overseas in, like, Hong Kong and China, and then with the election, it seems like everyone is going through something at the same time.”
“I feel like we're going through some kind of huge energy, spiritual shift, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, kind of with this election being like the first thing to change,” he said. “And then after that, it's going to be like a snowball. Everything will get better one by one, and then we'll all go into that shift. But right now, we're all just going through it.”
It’s comforting to hear Junior’s optimism, though I’m more skeptical about the world at large making real progress. As we head into a pandemic winter that feels particularly foreboding, I am more hopeful about people on an individual level. Surely, if nothing else, more of us have to come out of this with a greater awareness of this country’s systemic failures and how we internalize the harsh demands that are placed on us.
The week before Thanksgiving, I saw my cousin, now 13, for the first time since the spring, bundled up against the cold in my aunt and uncle’s backyard, masked and at a distance across a fire pit. I wanted to cry with the simple relief of being in their company, talking about the usual things (school, soccer, work, food, politics) and the less usual things (masks, hospitals, symptoms, vaccines). The next day, I traveled for work again for the first time since March — a 48-hour trip. I needed to sleep for 17 hours when I got home. I’ve taken these things as evidence that although it’s nothing like what it used to be, life is moving forward. Maybe moving at a slightly slower pace doesn’t have to be a terrible calamity. Having a little patience and a lot of restraint does not mean that I'm giving up. ●


buzzfeed--2020-12-07--How ICE Became The Face Of Trump’s Immigration Crackdown And Where It Goes From Here After Biden Is

How ICE Became The Face Of Trump’s Immigration Crackdown And Where It Goes From Here After Biden Is In Charge

`` ICE put their MAGA hat on .
They ’ re gon na try to take it off come January , but I don ’ t know how successful that will be . ''
On the day James Schwab realized the extent of the US government ’ s hard turn on immigration under President Donald Trump , he was sitting in a police station in Santa Cruz , the coastal city in California known for its surf spots and liberal leanings .
It was Feb. 13 , 2017 .
Immigration and Customs Enforcement , which employed Schwab as a spokesperson @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to join up with local cops to arrest 10 people suspected of ties to an affiliate of the MS-13 gang .
Schwab , then less than two years into the job , expected a routine gang takedown run by agents from Homeland Security Investigations , or HSI .
The lesser-known wing of ICE typically focused on criminal cases — smuggling , document fraud , that kind of thing .
But the atmosphere in the station that morning grew tense .
The regional ICE leaders there , Schwab said , began to receive phone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Later , he heard one senior agent describe the order they had been given : “ We need to take collaterals.
” “ Collaterals ” is agency slang for undocumented immigrants who cross paths with agents because they are in the same home or business as the target of an ICE action .
Under President Obama , agents had been told to mostly refrain from such arrests in order to concentrate on threats to public safety and to avoid striking terror in immigrant communities across the country .
Looking back , Schwab said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one of the first signs that his job , and his agency , had changed .
Over the next year , he said , there were more such signs , dictates that garnered headlines for their perceived harshness toward immigrants or anyone — including mayors and governors — who disagreed with the agency ’ s aggressive new enforcement stance .
Schwab was called upon to publicly highlight crimes committed by immigrants .
He was also asked , he said , to issue press releases criticizing elected leaders of so-called sanctuary cities and states @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the federal government for deportation .
“ At the time , I just did it , ” Schwab said of his public relations job .
“ I didn ’ t see the whole picture.
” But eventually , he said , he came to feel that under the Trump administration , ICE “ wasn ’ t about the humans , ” it was “ about being anti-immigrant and every statement we made , every minute that we spent on our statements , were about showing how immigrants have negatively influenced our country and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Biden prepares to take office , ICE , which is responsible for immigration enforcement and deportations inside the nation ’ s borders , is at a crossroads , its reputation in tatters and the scope of its mission in question .
The agency has lost the faith of many Americans .
According to a Pew Research Center poll earlier this year , ICE had the lowest favorability rating of the 10 federal agencies it asked about .
Biden has said he plans to halt all deportations for 100 days and has promised a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ week , Biden ’ s nominee to run the Department of Homeland Security , Alejandro Mayorkas , signaled the new tone : “ We must stop vilifying these communities , ” he said .
“ We must bring to an immediate end the inhumane and unjust treatment of immigrants.
” But what that change will look like remains to be seen .
There are strong political headwinds on all sides : The union that represents ICE officers supported Trump in 2016 ; many progressives , meanwhile , revile the agency .
BuzzFeed News @ @ @ @ @ @ @ officials who served during the Trump administration about their experiences and their thoughts about the future .
Many , like Schwab , said the new president must find a way to correct the excesses of the past four years and restore public trust in the agency by revamping policies and tactics .
But many also cautioned that it won ’ t be easy .
“ It has been branded as a partisan agency .
Law enforcement should be neutral , should be driven by policy and through fair and humane implementation of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ official , who served under both Obama and Trump .
“ Unfortunately , ICE put their MAGA hat on .
They ’ re gon na try to take it off come January , but I don ’ t know how successful that will be.
” The list of controversial policies that came out of ICE under Trump is a long one .
ICE leaders advocated publicly for city leaders in sanctuary cities to be charged with crimes , and planned massive worksite raids , along with operations targeting undocumented immigrant families .
Stories @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deporting sympathetic characters , like a cancer nurse in Oakland , became commonplace .
ICE arrested the potential adult sponsors who came forward to take care of unaccompanied children who had been in government shelters .
ICE officials also conducted operations targeting states and cities with sanctuary laws .
When some mayors and governors refused to increase their cooperation with ICE , the agency paid for billboards with photographs of “ wanted ” immigrants in the same areas .
An executive order signed by Trump made it so nearly every undocumented immigrant became @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after , ICE prosecutors were restricted from granting reprieves for certain immigrants facing deportation and ordered to review and potentially reopen previously closed cases , which was first revealed by BuzzFeed News through Freedom of Information Act requests .
Soon , the proportion of immigrants with no prior criminal convictions who were being arrested and placed into deportation proceedings began to shoot up .
That , along with a surge of immigrants at the border in 2019 , led to the agency detaining people at record levels in private prisons and local jails @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their family or others who could help them .
There were allegations of inadequate medical care within the facilities .
A government whistleblower detailed a string of incidents of bad patient outcomes , including two who were given the wrong drugs , and one immigrant who died after getting “ grossly negligent ” care , according to a document obtained by BuzzFeed News .
Comments by ICE leaders did little to help the perception of the agency .
At different times , one ICE leader said family detention centers were like “ summer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ should be afraid if they were in the country illegally .
Agency officials also publicly defended , and privately recommended , one of the Trump administration ’ s most controversial policies , the move to separate children from their parents at the border .
ICE , and its parent agency DHS , have also taken an aggressive stance with the media–at one point DHS investigators created “ intelligence reports ” about journalists who reported on leaked documents .
Last week , ICE investigators issued a subpoena to BuzzFeed News demanding the news outlet @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mark Schoofs rejected the demand , calling it “ outrageous.
” “ The whole agency changed a lot , ” said one former lead ICE detention official who worked under both Obama and Trump .
“ It felt uncontrolled.
” She added that many in the agency were elated when Trump came in , and that there was “ a feeling amongst some that law enforcement was finally a priority.
” But preserving civil rights “ got a lot harder.
” Ultimately , ICE was never able to reach the astronomical deportation numbers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ didn ’ t even manage to match Obama ’ s .
But what it lost in statistics it made up for in aggressive messaging coupled with controversial operations and policies .
Under Obama , the agency did not shy away from deporting people .
In fact , some critics called President Obama the “ deporter in chief ” because of the huge numbers of people deported during the first years of his administration .
But criticism from immigrant advocates , along with unfavorable court rulings , led the Obama administration to alter a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ arrested by local officials .
Meanwhile , counties and states , such as California , began passing laws limiting jail cooperation with ICE .
In November 2014 , DHS rolled out the “ priority enforcement program , ” in which local entities had the ability to simply notify ICE of a detainee ’ s release date after a fingerprint hit as opposed to holding them for longer than needed .
At the same time , DHS leaders restricted who ICE would target for arrest to only those convicted of serious crimes , among @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a dramatic downturn in arrests .
To some on the ground charged with carrying out the program , the changes were problematic .
“ If you went out and arrested someone who wasn ’ t a criminal , when you got back , you got in trouble .
There was this fear : Crap , I ’ m going to get in trouble , ” said one ICE official who works in the deportation enforcement wing of the agency .
When Trump took over , the restrictions issued by Obama were lifted .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It was being able to do the job without any fear — that is the difference , ” the official said .
In 2017 , then acting ICE Director Thomas Homan , who won an award from Obama for his work , celebrated the shift saying that Trump had “ taken the handcuffs ” off ICE officers .
“ ICE is doing their job to enforce the laws enacted by Congress , it shouldn ’ t apologize for it , ” he told BuzzFeed News .
But if the goal was to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to come back on board with ICE and work with officials to deport people who were detained in local jails , that did not happen .
“ Despite issuing a highly publicized executive order that significantly expanded the enforcement authority and leeway of ICE officers just five days after he took office , Trump has seen arrests and deportations idle , especially when compared to the peak Obama years , ” wrote Muzaffar Chishti and Sarah Pierce in a Migration Policy Institute report .
“ This is due to significant resistance from state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cooperation with ICE.
” In its place , ICE conducted high-profile operations , like one in Mississippi in August 2019 that led to more than 600 arrests , the largest single-state workplace raid ever .
The agency also spoke of going after entire families .
Then-acting director Mark Morgan held a press conference in which he said such an operation would “ send a strong message to those individuals contemplating coming here illegally not to do so.
” The operation was eventually delayed by Trump himself after negative publicity .
Ultimately , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the publicity around it caused many immigrants to literally hide in their homes out of fear .
Morgan , who got the ICE job after praising Trump on Lou Dobbs Tonight , had left for a role heading up US Customs and Border Protection by the time the results were revealed .
Morgan was one of five ICE leaders during the Trump administration , none of whom underwent Senate scrutiny and confirmation — a sign of how transient leadership was during the Trump years .
One former ICE official who served during the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ trying to please the White House , including senior adviser Stephen Miller , with policy proposals that would prove their willingness to carry out the president ’ s agenda .
“ There was a constant demand for numbers and for new ideas .
Getting tough and taking action to stop sanctuary cities , holding everyone accountable under the law .
The agency became focused in service to , in my opinion , a xenophobic enforcement policy , ” the former official said .
“ Immigration enforcement is contentious and difficult and it is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you can have on communities and on people .
That ’ s what happened under Trump — on steroids.
” In some cases , said one ICE official , some officers pushed the limits of the law .
“ We had officers who just stopped talking to their agency counsel .
They took to heart Trump ’ s early messaging .
They didn ’ t want or need their agency attorneys telling them that they couldn ’ t do something because it wasn ’ t in the law and would get us sued.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ certainly lead to a change in messaging .
It is likely , many predicted , the agency will stop paying for billboards depicting “ wanted ” immigrants , for example .
The agency ’ s deportation efforts will return to the background , and officers will almost assuredly be once again limited on who they should and should not arrest .
“ In the first 100 days of my administration , no one , no one will be deported at all .
From that point on , the only deportations that will take @ @ @ @ @ @ @ United States of America , ” he said in a March debate .
But these reforms and a return to the Obama-era version of the agency may not be enough to satisfy immigrant advocates who have long criticized those policies as well .
The Democratic primary largely left unresolved sticky debates over immigration policy , such as how much ICE should push local jails to collaborate with them to arrest and deport people and what types of “ felons ” should be targeted for enforcement .
Also left unaddressed was whether they should @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by the Trump administration to expel people from the US citing the coronavirus pandemic .
And while the incoming administration can implement changes , it will still have a workforce that ’ s dedicated to a single mission : arresting and deporting undocumented immigrants .
“ You have 7,000 officers who are tasked with removing people from the United States .
You can ’ t tell them to stop working , ” said John Sandweg , who headed up the agency during the Obama administration .
What ’ s more , many who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Among them is James Schwab , the public relations official who was so shocked by the decision to “ take collaterals ” in Santa Cruz .
“ I wish more people would ’ ve stood up to the administration and would ’ ve looked outside the bubble they were living in , ” he said .
“ Many were on the same page as me knowing what we were doing was wrong.
” In the time since Biden ’ s victory , progressive organizations have recommended significant changes to the way ICE @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to dismantle a program that allows local sheriffs to actively help ICE in arresting immigrants and to no longer request jails across the country hold immigrants for longer than necessary .
The Center for American Progress also had its share of recommendations , including winding down the agency ’ s detention apparatus and relying more on community-based programs .
Sandweg said the Biden administration should prioritize a cultural reset : deportation officers less focused on statistics and more focused on a smaller number of “ high-quality ” arrests of serious convicted criminals that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ There ’ s going to be a lot of pressure , but it ’ s not as simple as issuing a directive .
It ’ s going to take a lot of work , ” he said .
●

On the day James Schwab realized the extent of the US government’s hard turn on immigration under President Donald Trump, he was sitting in a police station in Santa Cruz, the coastal city in California known for its surf spots and liberal leanings. It was Feb. 13, 2017.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which employed Schwab as a spokesperson based in San Francisco, had planned to join up with local cops to arrest 10 people suspected of ties to an affiliate of the MS-13 gang.
Schwab, then less than two years into the job, expected a routine gang takedown run by agents from Homeland Security Investigations, or HSI. The lesser-known wing of ICE typically focused on criminal cases — smuggling, document fraud, that kind of thing.
But the atmosphere in the station that morning grew tense. The regional ICE leaders there, Schwab said, began to receive phone calls that left them visibly stressed. Later, he heard one senior agent describe the order they had been given: “We need to take collaterals.”
“Collaterals” is agency slang for undocumented immigrants who cross paths with agents because they are in the same home or business as the target of an ICE action. Under President Obama, agents had been told to mostly refrain from such arrests in order to concentrate on threats to public safety and to avoid striking terror in immigrant communities across the country.
Looking back, Schwab said, the events of that morning were one of the first signs that his job, and his agency, had changed. Over the next year, he said, there were more such signs, dictates that garnered headlines for their perceived harshness toward immigrants or anyone — including mayors and governors — who disagreed with the agency’s aggressive new enforcement stance.
Schwab was called upon to publicly highlight crimes committed by immigrants. He was also asked, he said, to issue press releases criticizing elected leaders of so-called sanctuary cities and states that refused to turn over immigrants to the federal government for deportation.
“At the time, I just did it,” Schwab said of his public relations job. “I didn’t see the whole picture.” But eventually, he said, he came to feel that under the Trump administration, ICE “wasn’t about the humans,” it was “about being anti-immigrant and every statement we made, every minute that we spent on our statements, were about showing how immigrants have negatively influenced our country and communities.”
Now, as President-elect Joe Biden prepares to take office, ICE, which is responsible for immigration enforcement and deportations inside the nation’s borders, is at a crossroads, its reputation in tatters and the scope of its mission in question. The agency has lost the faith of many Americans. According to a Pew Research Center poll earlier this year, ICE had the lowest favorability rating of the 10 federal agencies it asked about.
Biden has said he plans to halt all deportations for 100 days and has promised a new approach to immigration enforcement. Last week, Biden’s nominee to run the Department of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas, signaled the new tone: “We must stop vilifying these communities,” he said. “We must bring to an immediate end the inhumane and unjust treatment of immigrants.” But what that change will look like remains to be seen. There are strong political headwinds on all sides: The union that represents ICE officers supported Trump in 2016; many progressives, meanwhile, revile the agency.
BuzzFeed News spoke with 12 current and former ICE officials who served during the Trump administration about their experiences and their thoughts about the future. Many, like Schwab, said the new president must find a way to correct the excesses of the past four years and restore public trust in the agency by revamping policies and tactics. But many also cautioned that it won’t be easy.
“It has been branded as a partisan agency. Law enforcement should be neutral, should be driven by policy and through fair and humane implementation of the law,” said one former ICE official, who served under both Obama and Trump. “Unfortunately, ICE put their MAGA hat on. They’re gonna try to take it off come January, but I don’t know how successful that will be.”