The Sunday Slop Special
ICE arrests a NJ Mayor, Israeli Intentions, & Zohran's Small Donor Army and more - May 3 to May 11
Sometimes here on The Weekly Slop, we do long form analysis on an issue.
Other times, we highlight a few notable events happening around the world, with more headlines on the bottom.
This week, it’s the latter. Here is your slop, just in time for Mother’s Day.
ICE Targets American Politicians
We have already seen the Trump administrations sic their ICE agents on a judge from Milwaukee. This past Friday, in a further escalation, the mayor of Newark, Ras Baraka, was arrested after protesting outside an ICE detention center. The Department of Homeland Security has tried to justify the arrest by accusing the mayor and others of having “stormed the gate” and breaking into the detention facility.
He was charged with trespassing and later released from custody.
Aside from the government trying to cynically retrofit January 6th style language into justifying their actions against elected officials, protesters present at the actions, including other elected officials, dispute the claims of anyone attempting to trespass or attack agents.
If this weren’t worrying enough, the DHS is now confirming they may also arrest Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman, Rob Menendez, and LaMonica McIver, who were also present at the scene.
Maybe activists had it right when they said we needed to abolish ICE.
Headlines from Israel Tell the Story
Renowned linguist and political thinker Noam Chomsky once said something to the effect of preferring reading from places like the Wall Street Journal due to their readership being more aligned with our corporate dominated world, so they are less likely to sugarcoat certain realities.
With that in mind, let’s look at a small sampling of headlines from the Israeli press of what their plans are for Gaza:
Report: IDF document lists returning hostages as least important war goal - Times of Israel
'Flatten' Gaza, Halt Aid: The Israeli Division Commander Overseeing Gaza's Brutal Netzarim Corridor - Haaretz
Smotrich: Israel should embrace Gaza ‘occupation’; IDF won’t leave even for hostages - Times of Israel
Smotrich's New Leverage on Netanyahu: We Will Stay in Gaza Even After the Abductees Return - Maariv
Knesset Debate Reveals Not Everyone Thinks Starving Gazan Children Is a Bad Thing - Haaretz
It’s an instructive exercise because it shows us what people in Israel are being told, which is often a different than how American media tries to facilitate these debates.
In a sense, the Israeli press is more accurate about what the goals in Gaza are, much like the Wall Street Journal is more honest about the dealings of our financial rulers. Their editorial boards and op-eds much (much, much) less so.
And from reading those headlines, it paints a clear picture of displacement, ethnic cleansing, and disregard for human life, whether that’s a Palestinian family or an Israeli hostage.
Zohran Mamdani’s Small Donor Army
Surging Democratic candidate for New York City mayor, Zohran Mamdani, is lapping the field when it comes to individual donations from regular people. The New York Times has a nice visual write up on this and shows Mamdani has nearly 20,000 unique donors, more than triple his next closest competitor.
Mamdani has built quite the political operation in the past number of months and has gained serious momentum, being the main challenger to Andrew Cuomo.
What’s being built here is a project that galvanizes people into actively supporting both a candidate and a set of issues larger than any one individual candidate. Those are movements and political projects that can be nurtured to last and counter right-wing, reactionary movements long-term.
US Slop
Trump Administration
Taxpayers Pay Cost as Trump Has ICE Fly Immigrants Across US - Bloomberg
Pentagon orders military to pull books related to DEI and ‘gender ideology’ | US military - The Guardian
United cuts 35 daily flights at Newark, citing shortage of air traffic controllers - ABC News
Why the U.S.-U.K. trade deal may not be as good as it sounds - CBS News
‘From all sides’: universities in red states face attacks from DC and at home | US universities - The Guardian
Judge orders White House to temporarily halt sweeping government layoffs | Trump administration - The Guardian
'Another broken promise': California environmental nonprofits suffer from EPA grant cancellations - Los Angeles Times
U.S. representatives sound alarm over slowing port activity - Los Angeles Times
Civil Disobedience
I’m an Israeli professor. Why is my work in Harvard’s antisemitism report? - The Guardian
Rümeysa Öztürk, Tufts student held by Ice, vows to continue legal action after jail release - The Guardian
Shipman authorizes NYPD sweep of pro-Palestinian protest in Butler Library, police in riot gear arrest over 70 - Columbia Spectator
Nessel defends prosecutions of pro-Palestinian protesters with false claims, attacks on fellow Democrats - Detroit Metro Times
The Anti-Terrorism Act Is Being Weaponized to Harass Israel’s Critics - Lawfare
Daughter of Maggie Gyllenhaal and Peter Sarsgaard arrested at Columbia University protests - The Guardian
More News
The Hidden Struggle of John Fetterman - New York Magazine
An isolated John Fetterman clashes with colleagues and staff as he skips his Senate duties - NBC News
Elon Musk Set to Win Big With Trump’s Trillion-Dollar Pentagon Budget - The Intercept
‘He’s a liability’: Joe Biden’s tour is great news for Republicans - The Times
World Slop
Gaza and West Bank Crisis
The west's shameful silence on Gaza - Financial Times
Israel plans to seize Gaza under a new plan, officials say - AP News
New film claims to identify Israeli killer of journalist Shireen Abu Akleh | Shireen Abu Akleh - The Guardian
Israel is creating a power vacuum in Gaza by backing armed looters — and killing anyone who tries to stop them – Mondoweiss
If you were shocked by my film on Israeli settlers in the West Bank, you haven’t been paying attention - The Guardian
Israeli airstrikes kill 23 people in Gaza as international outcry over aid blockade grows - PBS News
'No food when I gave birth': Malnutrition rises in Gaza as Israeli blockade enters third month - BBC
Pope Francis's popemobile set to become health clinic for Gaza children - Reuters
Trump team gives ultimatum to UN over Gaza aid plan - Financial Times
More News
Conflict, extreme weather worsening hunger in West and Central Africa, WFP warns - Reuters
India and Pakistan reach ceasefire but trade claims of violations - France 24
Sudan cuts ties with UAE over alleged paramilitary support - BBC
Zelenskyy welcomes Russian overtures, but says ceasefire must come before peace talks - NPR
World Catholics See the First American Pope as Hardly American - The New York Times
USS Harry S. Truman: Second US Navy jet is lost at sea from aircraft carrier - CNN
German prosecutors move to strip AfD lawmaker's immunity amid bribery probe - Reuters
Leave me a comment with your views and any stories I missed.