Supreme Court allows ICE to stop, detain based on race

Supreme Court allows ICE to stop, detain based on race

WASHINGTON, Sept. 28 (ZFJ) — A judge’s order prohibiting immigration agents from stopping and detaining people based on race was overturned by the Supreme Court on Sept. 8. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have been conducting roving patrols in Los Angeles since this summer to fulfill arrest quotas as part of President Donald Trump’s mass deportation campaign. In response to a lawsuit by multiple ICE detainees and advocacy organizations against the federal government, U.
Federal judge rules Trump LA military deployment violated federal law

Federal judge rules Trump LA military deployment violated federal law

WASHINGTON, Sept. 22 (ZFJ) — A federal district judge in California ruled on Sept. 2 that President Donald Trump’s use of the California National Guard and U.S. Marines in Los Angeles violated a federal law restricting the use of the military for domestic law enforcement. Raising concerns about Trump’s potential use of the military elsewhere in the nation, U.S. District Judge Charles R. Breyer found that Trump’s use of the soldiers violated the Posse Comitatus Act, which prohibits the use of the military for civilian law enforcement without authorization from Congress or the Constitution.
National Museum of American History opens gunboat Philadelphia restoration exhibit

National Museum of American History opens gunboat Philadelphia restoration exhibit

WASHINGTON, Aug. 31 (ZFJ) — The Smithsonian National Museum of American History (NMAH) opened an exhibit of the restoration of the Revolutionary War-era gunboat Philadelphia on Friday, Aug. 22. Viewing windows at “The Gunboat Philadelphia Preservation Project” exhibit allow visitors to observe the vessel’s underwater restoration in real time, conducted by a team of underwater archaeologists and maritime conservators from Texas A&M University’s Nautical Archaeology Program (under contract with the Smithsonian).
Trump orders National Guard, federal police to create specialized public order units

Trump orders National Guard, federal police to create specialized public order units

WASHINGTON, Aug. 28 (ZFJ) — President Donald Trump ordered all state National Guard forces as well as certain federal law enforcement agencies to create specialized public order units in an expansion of his declared D.C. crime emergency on Monday, Aug. 25. “PUBLIC SAFETY AND ORDER” UNITS In section 2(d)(i) of his executive order, Additional Measures to Address the Crime Emergency in the District of Columbia, Trump requires that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to “immediately create and begin training, manning, hiring, and equipping a specialized unit” within the D.
Patrolling DC National Guard soldiers now armed with rifles, pistols

Patrolling DC National Guard soldiers now armed with rifles, pistols

WASHINGTON, Aug. 28 (ZFJ) — National Guard soldiers patrolling D.C. as part of President Donald Trump’s federal intervention and declared crime emergency are now armed with rifles and pistols. Media reports indicated that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth ordered that the guardsmen be armed in a directive announced by the Pentagon on Friday, Aug. 22. Prior to the order, the guardsmen were not armed, and the Pentagon declined to comment further on the topic.
Three more states to deploy National Guard to DC

Three more states to deploy National Guard to DC

WASHINGTON, Aug. 18 (ZFJ) — Mississippi, Tennessee, and Louisiana have pledged to send National Guard troops to D.C. for policing at the request of President Donald Trump. Trump has declared a state of emergency due to crime in the nation’s capital and used it as the basis to federalize the district’s civilian Metropolitan Police Department and deploy guard soldiers and federal agents to the streets. An article by the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) says there are 810 D.
Three states pledge to send National Guard troops to DC

Three states pledge to send National Guard troops to DC

WASHINGTON, Aug. 16 (ZFJ) — West Virginia, South Carolina, and Ohio have pledged to send National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., for policing at the request of President Donald Trump. Trump has declared a state of emergency due to crime in the nation’s capital and used it as the basis to federalize the district’s civilian Metropolitan Police Department and deploy National Guard soldiers and federal agents to the streets. Currently, 800 D.
DC sues over federal takeover of Metropolitan Police

DC sues over federal takeover of Metropolitan Police

WASHINGTON, Aug. 16 (ZFJ) — D.C. officials are suing federal authorities over their federalization of the district’s Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). Washington officials contend that the federal government is exceeding its authority under Section 740 of the Home Rule Act, which allows the president to take temporary control of the MPD under a state of emergency. On Thursday, Aug. 14, MPD Chief Pamela A. Smith issued an executive order that directed police officers to share information about people not in their custody (such as during traffic stops) with immigration authorities.
White House initiates review of Smithsonian museums for “Americanism”

White House initiates review of Smithsonian museums for “Americanism”

WASHINGTON, Aug. 15 (ZFJ) — The White House has initiated a review of Smithsonian Institution museums to ensure content complies with President Donald Trump’s view of American history. In a letter to Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III released Tuesday, Aug. 12, White House officials invoke the March presidential executive order Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History to perform a “comprehensive internal review” of museum materials. “This initiative aims to ensure alignment with the President’s directive to celebrate American exceptionalism, remove divisive or partisan narratives, and restore confidence in our shared cultural institutions,” reads the letter.
Trump federalizes DC police, deploys National Guard, federal agents

Trump federalizes DC police, deploys National Guard, federal agents

WASHINGTON, Aug. 13 (ZFJ) — President Donald Trump federalized the capital’s Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), deployed 800 D.C. National Guard soldiers, and ordered federal agents to patrol the streets in response to his claims that crime in the city is out of control on Monday, Aug. 11. The District of Columbia is primarily under federal control and has limited local governance under the Home Rule Act. Section 740 of this law allows for the president to federalize the MPD under a state of emergency.