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LetMyPeopleVote's Journal
December 1, 2025
How the Supreme Court Rejected Denaturalization as a Political Weapon Long Ago
Tonight, trump announced that he wants to revoke the citizenship of naturalized US citizens.
https://x.com/Acyn/status/1995255692140445824
We are fortunate that the SCOTUS has addressed this issue
https://x.com/BrennanCenter/status/1995242740179693745
https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/how-supreme-court-rejected-denaturalization-political-weapon-long-ago
The Trump administration and its supporters have made numerous threats to revoke the citizenship of political foes who are naturalized citizens. But if the government tries to follow through, it will have an uphill legal battle.....
Under the law today, the government may seek denaturalization proceedings either when naturalization is obtained illegally or disqualifying facts on citizenship applications are concealed. But throughout much of the 20th century, it was much easier to achieve.....
A few years later, the Supreme Court warned against using denaturalization proceedings as a political weapon. “Ill-tempered expressions, extreme views, even the promotion of ideas which run counter to our American ideals, are not to be given disloyal connotations in absence of solid, convincing evidence that that is their significance,” the Court’s majority wrote. “Any other course would run counter to our traditions, and make denaturalization proceedings the ready instrument for political persecutions.”
In 1967, the Court found that under the 14th Amendment, the government cannot forcibly deprive a naturalized American of citizenship without the citizen’s consent, except when citizenship is “unlawfully procured.”
In the succeeding decades, denaturalizations declined significantly. Between 1990 and 2017, the Justice Department filed an average of just 11 cases per year. Only during the Obama administration did they climb, when new technology allowed the government to search decades of data for indicators of possible fraud. In 2016, the yearly average rose to 15. During the first Trump administration, the program expanded, increasing the average to 25 per year.....
The second Trump administration is picking up where the last one left off, filing at least 25 cases in the first 10 months of 2025. Based on publicly available information, these cases are not obviously aimed at political viewpoints. But any attempt to use denaturalization as a political weapon will run into significant legal hurdles. The Supreme Court’s firmly established limits on the process are not only robust, but also deeply rooted in protections guaranteed by the 1st and 14th Amendments.
Under the law today, the government may seek denaturalization proceedings either when naturalization is obtained illegally or disqualifying facts on citizenship applications are concealed. But throughout much of the 20th century, it was much easier to achieve.....
A few years later, the Supreme Court warned against using denaturalization proceedings as a political weapon. “Ill-tempered expressions, extreme views, even the promotion of ideas which run counter to our American ideals, are not to be given disloyal connotations in absence of solid, convincing evidence that that is their significance,” the Court’s majority wrote. “Any other course would run counter to our traditions, and make denaturalization proceedings the ready instrument for political persecutions.”
In 1967, the Court found that under the 14th Amendment, the government cannot forcibly deprive a naturalized American of citizenship without the citizen’s consent, except when citizenship is “unlawfully procured.”
In the succeeding decades, denaturalizations declined significantly. Between 1990 and 2017, the Justice Department filed an average of just 11 cases per year. Only during the Obama administration did they climb, when new technology allowed the government to search decades of data for indicators of possible fraud. In 2016, the yearly average rose to 15. During the first Trump administration, the program expanded, increasing the average to 25 per year.....
The second Trump administration is picking up where the last one left off, filing at least 25 cases in the first 10 months of 2025. Based on publicly available information, these cases are not obviously aimed at political viewpoints. But any attempt to use denaturalization as a political weapon will run into significant legal hurdles. The Supreme Court’s firmly established limits on the process are not only robust, but also deeply rooted in protections guaranteed by the 1st and 14th Amendments.
December 1, 2025
Former US military lawyers speak out
https://x.com/rgoodlaw/status/1994859617688719833Former US military lawyers speak out
"The Former JAGs Working Group unanimously considers both the giving and the execution of these orders, if true, to constitute war crimes, murder, or both"
"The Former JAGs Working Group unanimously considers both the giving and the execution of these orders, if true, to constitute war crimes, murder, or both"
December 1, 2025
MaddowBog-Speaker Johnson wants to make it harder for members to govern by going around him
There was a good segment on MS NOW tonight on discharged petitions. There are a couple of petitions that may get the required signatures including one on ACA tax credits.
https://x.com/hateGOP/status/1993116510051573768
https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/speaker-johnson-wants-to-make-it-harder-for-members-to-govern-by-going-around-him
Complicating matters for the House speaker, the maneuver that was once considered obscure is suddenly becoming rather popular on Capitol Hill. Politico reported:
The use of this procedure is likely to keep growing: Late last week, a bipartisan coalition of pro-Ukraine lawmakers, including Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, announced that he and his allies have “officially notified both the Clerk of the House and House leadership of our discharge petition to force a vote on crushing Russian sanctions immediately upon our return” from the Thanksgiving holiday recess.
Given the trend, GOP leaders have a solution in mind. Does it involve a more productive legislative process? Perhaps more opportunities for members to work their will?
No, the new plan is to curtail the use of discharge petitions.
Axios reported last week that Johnson is “weighing a crackdown” on the procedure, with the speaker telling the outlet that, as far as he’s concerned, it’s become “too common.” The same report quoted House Majority Leader Steve Scalise endorsing “a higher threshold” for the maneuver. (The current threshold is a simple majority of House members.)
Over the course of decades, House lawmakers had succeeded only a few times in triggering votes on bills the chamber’s leaders refused to call up. Then Mike Johnson became speaker. On the Louisiana Republican’s watch, the ‘discharge petition’ has caught fire. Rank-and-file lawmakers have managed five times since he won his gavel two years ago to circumvent Johnson’s wishes by getting the 218 signatures needed to force votes on legislation he had blocked — more than in the prior 30 years combined.
The use of this procedure is likely to keep growing: Late last week, a bipartisan coalition of pro-Ukraine lawmakers, including Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, announced that he and his allies have “officially notified both the Clerk of the House and House leadership of our discharge petition to force a vote on crushing Russian sanctions immediately upon our return” from the Thanksgiving holiday recess.
Given the trend, GOP leaders have a solution in mind. Does it involve a more productive legislative process? Perhaps more opportunities for members to work their will?
No, the new plan is to curtail the use of discharge petitions.
Axios reported last week that Johnson is “weighing a crackdown” on the procedure, with the speaker telling the outlet that, as far as he’s concerned, it’s become “too common.” The same report quoted House Majority Leader Steve Scalise endorsing “a higher threshold” for the maneuver. (The current threshold is a simple majority of House members.)
December 1, 2025
https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/the-white-houses-failed-doge-experiment-ends-with-a-whimper-not-a-bang
MaddowBlog-The White House's failed DOGE experiment ends with a whimper, not a bang
The Department of Government Efficiency was hyped as a governmental game changer. Its doors are now closing as a pitiful failure.
The White House’s failed DOGE experiment ends with a whimper, not a bang
— Rose Spitznogle (@rosespitznogle.bsky.social) 2025-11-24T21:11:29.808Z
The Department of Government Efficiency was hyped as a governmental game changer. Its doors are now closing as a pitiful failure.
Steve Benen
www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...
https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/the-white-houses-failed-doge-experiment-ends-with-a-whimper-not-a-bang
The quasi-governmental DOGE operation, however, didn’t quite reach its first birthday. Reuters reported:
According to the Reuters report, which has not been independently verified by MS NOW, Kupor went on to say that the department is no longer a “centralized entity.”
To be sure, the office had an impact. As The New Republic summarized, “DOGE’s legacy is both very stupid and very sad: It decimated the federal workforce, including Social Security personnel at local offices, and made it easier for hackers to access your data. The agency tore apart USAID, which resulted in hundreds of thousands of lives lost globally.”....
Even the “savings” the office touted proved illusory, misleading or both.
DOGE’s goals went unmet. Its promises went unfulfilled. It envisioned one set of results but delivered the opposite.
Good riddance.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency has disbanded with eight months left to its mandate, ending an initiative launched with fanfare as a symbol of Trump’s pledge to slash the government’s size but which critics say delivered few measurable savings. ‘That doesn’t exist,’ Office of Personnel Management Director Scott Kupor told Reuters earlier this month when asked about DOGE’s status
According to the Reuters report, which has not been independently verified by MS NOW, Kupor went on to say that the department is no longer a “centralized entity.”
To be sure, the office had an impact. As The New Republic summarized, “DOGE’s legacy is both very stupid and very sad: It decimated the federal workforce, including Social Security personnel at local offices, and made it easier for hackers to access your data. The agency tore apart USAID, which resulted in hundreds of thousands of lives lost globally.”....
Even the “savings” the office touted proved illusory, misleading or both.
DOGE’s goals went unmet. Its promises went unfulfilled. It envisioned one set of results but delivered the opposite.
Good riddance.
November 30, 2025
https://www.rawstory.com/hegseth-2674355077
'It's murder. Period': George Conway warns Hegseth that Trump may not be able to save him
Hegseth may have confessed
'It's murder. Period': George Conway warns Hegseth that Trump may not be able to save him
— Raw Story (@rawstory.com) 2025-11-29T20:00:30.730Z
https://www.rawstory.com/hegseth-2674355077
Reacting to a Washington Post report that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth instructed military officials to “kill them all,” in an attack on what the Donald Trump administration has labeled “narco-terrorists,” attorney George Conway claimed the former Fox personality faces a wide array of criminal charges that may be beyond the president’s reach.
According to the report, there were two survivors of initial attack who were then blown up in the water with a second launch, which has only increased the outrage over the unlawful attacks.
On Saturday morning, a fuming Conway told the hosts of MS NOW’s “The Weekend,” Hegseth could be in a heap of trouble for cold-blooded murder.
“There is no war between us, Venezuela and these people were not sailors or soldiers fighting with weapons against us, so that the law of war doesn't even [apply],” he explained. “You don't even get to the law of war. But even if it were, even if these guys were a naval ship armed to the teeth and the ship was blown up and these guys were in the water, firing against them would be an act — would be a violation of the laws of war.”
“No matter how you look at this, you can apply civilian law, military law, the Uniform Code of Military Justice, international law, foreign law, domestic law, federal law, state law. No matter what legal regime you apply to, the second strike, it's murder. Period,” he added. “It's not even an argument — that's how outrageous this is.”
According to the report, there were two survivors of initial attack who were then blown up in the water with a second launch, which has only increased the outrage over the unlawful attacks.
On Saturday morning, a fuming Conway told the hosts of MS NOW’s “The Weekend,” Hegseth could be in a heap of trouble for cold-blooded murder.
“There is no war between us, Venezuela and these people were not sailors or soldiers fighting with weapons against us, so that the law of war doesn't even [apply],” he explained. “You don't even get to the law of war. But even if it were, even if these guys were a naval ship armed to the teeth and the ship was blown up and these guys were in the water, firing against them would be an act — would be a violation of the laws of war.”
“No matter how you look at this, you can apply civilian law, military law, the Uniform Code of Military Justice, international law, foreign law, domestic law, federal law, state law. No matter what legal regime you apply to, the second strike, it's murder. Period,” he added. “It's not even an argument — that's how outrageous this is.”
November 30, 2025
https://www.rawstory.com/patel-travel
Patel's gallivanting with his girlfriend has earned him a new nickname at the FBI: insider-'Make-A-Wish director,'
Patel has a nickname
Patel's gallivanting with his girlfriend has earned him a new nickname at the FBI: insider
— Raw Story (@rawstory.com) 2025-11-29T21:00:24.933Z
https://www.rawstory.com/patel-travel
Before getting around to describing FBI Director Kash Patel tenure at the law enforcement agency as a “dumpster fire,” former FBI Special Agent Christopher O’Leary claimed the Donald Trump appointee has been bestowed with a new nickname behind his back at headquarters......
Noting the growing controversy over Patel being a frequent flyer on the taxpayer’s dime as he visits his girlfriend and flits from one high-profile sporting event to the next, O’Leary pointed out Patel's lack of seriousness about the responsibilities of his job has not gone unnoticed at the agency.,,,,
“I'll tell you, this is a nickname that I've heard he's being called from agents within the FBI. He's the ‘Make-A-Wish director,’” he said referencing the organization that makes dreams come true for children with critical illnesses. “So he flies to see Ovi score the winning goal on a 757, a jet that he used for the render safe mission on the ready to dismantle a nuclear bomb if it is found in the United States.”
“What?” Capehart exclaimed.
“He goes to UFC fights. He goes to the Boondoggle Ranch during a government shutdown for four days. He goes to a golfing outing in Scotland with his buddies on the G5 jet,” O’Leary continued. “I'll give you an example. I was in command of a unit that used it regularly for counter-terrorism missions. Just one example: when Benghazi happened, I led a small team of select FBI special personnel to immediately fly out of Washington, D.C. within hours of notice to link up with a special operations unit so we could go into Benghazi. That is what those planes are intended for. They're not intended for going to see your girlfriend sing the national anthem.”
Noting the growing controversy over Patel being a frequent flyer on the taxpayer’s dime as he visits his girlfriend and flits from one high-profile sporting event to the next, O’Leary pointed out Patel's lack of seriousness about the responsibilities of his job has not gone unnoticed at the agency.,,,,
“I'll tell you, this is a nickname that I've heard he's being called from agents within the FBI. He's the ‘Make-A-Wish director,’” he said referencing the organization that makes dreams come true for children with critical illnesses. “So he flies to see Ovi score the winning goal on a 757, a jet that he used for the render safe mission on the ready to dismantle a nuclear bomb if it is found in the United States.”
“What?” Capehart exclaimed.
“He goes to UFC fights. He goes to the Boondoggle Ranch during a government shutdown for four days. He goes to a golfing outing in Scotland with his buddies on the G5 jet,” O’Leary continued. “I'll give you an example. I was in command of a unit that used it regularly for counter-terrorism missions. Just one example: when Benghazi happened, I led a small team of select FBI special personnel to immediately fly out of Washington, D.C. within hours of notice to link up with a special operations unit so we could go into Benghazi. That is what those planes are intended for. They're not intended for going to see your girlfriend sing the national anthem.”
November 30, 2025
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/11/28/trump-media-criticism/
Trump ramps up reporter attacks with White House media bias tracker
A new White House webpage presents a “Hall of Shame” for news reports the president disagrees with, coming after the president has voiced personal attacks on female reporters at ABC, CBS, the New York Times and Bloomberg.
Right out of the fascist playbook:
— Frank Amari (@frankamari.bsky.social) 2025-11-29T17:09:06.643Z
Trump ramps up reporter attacks with White House media bias tracker
www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/11/28/trump-media-criticism/
The White House launched a page on its website Friday devoted to naming and shaming media outlets and reporters that publish stories it disagrees with.
“Misleading. Biased. Exposed,” the site reads, naming the Boston Globe, CBS News and the Independent as “media offenders of the week” for allegedly misrepresenting President Donald Trump’s call for six Democratic members of Congress to be hanged for a video saying that military personnel should not follow illegal orders.
“The Democrats and Fake News Media subversively implied that President Trump had issued illegal orders to service members,” the site reads. “Every order President Trump has issued has been lawful. It is dangerous for sitting Members of Congress to incite insubordination in the United States’ military, and President Trump called for them to be held accountable.”
It also lists an “Offender Hall of Shame” that features The Washington Post, CBS News, CNN and MSNBC — the former name of the cable network MS NOW. The page shows a database of news articles from these publications and others, the names of the reporters who wrote them and categories of offenses, including “bias,” “lie” and “left wing lunacy.” A leaderboard lists The Post as the top offender. The page also includes a sign-up prompt for a newsletter promising weekly updates on the “truth.”
“Misleading. Biased. Exposed,” the site reads, naming the Boston Globe, CBS News and the Independent as “media offenders of the week” for allegedly misrepresenting President Donald Trump’s call for six Democratic members of Congress to be hanged for a video saying that military personnel should not follow illegal orders.
“The Democrats and Fake News Media subversively implied that President Trump had issued illegal orders to service members,” the site reads. “Every order President Trump has issued has been lawful. It is dangerous for sitting Members of Congress to incite insubordination in the United States’ military, and President Trump called for them to be held accountable.”
It also lists an “Offender Hall of Shame” that features The Washington Post, CBS News, CNN and MSNBC — the former name of the cable network MS NOW. The page shows a database of news articles from these publications and others, the names of the reporters who wrote them and categories of offenses, including “bias,” “lie” and “left wing lunacy.” A leaderboard lists The Post as the top offender. The page also includes a sign-up prompt for a newsletter promising weekly updates on the “truth.”
November 29, 2025
https://www.thedailybeast.com/tepublican-or-tpublican-trump-79-has-baffling-plan-to-rename-the-republican-party-after-himself/
Trump, 79, Has Baffling Plan to Rename the Republican Party After Himself
trump wants to remake the GOP into his own image on a permanent basis
Trump, 79, Has Baffling Plan to Rename the Republican Party After Himself
— Rick de Ruiter (@rickderuiter.bsky.social) 2025-11-26T16:40:22.281Z
https://www.thedailybeast.com/tepublican-or-tpublican-trump-79-has-baffling-plan-to-rename-the-republican-party-after-himself/
Donald Trump has come up with a new nickname for the Republican Party.
He wants to name it after himself.
“There is a new word for a TRUMP REPUBLICAN,” the 79-year-old boldly declared on Truth Social media Wednesday, before asking his followers what exactly the word ought to be.
Scorning the low-hanging fruit of ‘Trumpublican,’ a suggestion so obvious even his son Don Jr. thought of it, the president mused: “It is, TEPUBLICAN??? Or, TPUBLICAN???”.....
Trump’s further assertion that “almost everyone” is a “TRUMP REPUBLICAN” comes as his nationwide approval rating hovers at about 38 percent, and as the embattled president struggles to retain full control of his party amid a confluence of simultaneous scandals and crises.
Concern has also continued to mount over the state of Trump’s cognitive health amid frequent memory lapses, difficulty articulating his thoughts and sudden bursts of aggression some experts say could represent the early stages of dementia.
He wants to name it after himself.
“There is a new word for a TRUMP REPUBLICAN,” the 79-year-old boldly declared on Truth Social media Wednesday, before asking his followers what exactly the word ought to be.
Scorning the low-hanging fruit of ‘Trumpublican,’ a suggestion so obvious even his son Don Jr. thought of it, the president mused: “It is, TEPUBLICAN??? Or, TPUBLICAN???”.....
Trump’s further assertion that “almost everyone” is a “TRUMP REPUBLICAN” comes as his nationwide approval rating hovers at about 38 percent, and as the embattled president struggles to retain full control of his party amid a confluence of simultaneous scandals and crises.
Concern has also continued to mount over the state of Trump’s cognitive health amid frequent memory lapses, difficulty articulating his thoughts and sudden bursts of aggression some experts say could represent the early stages of dementia.
November 29, 2025
https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/confronted-with-fresh-questions-about-his-age-trump-responds-in-trumpian-fashion
MaddowBlog-Confronted with fresh questions about his age, Trump responds in Trumpian fashion
With Trump’s 80th birthday on the horizon, The New York Times took a closer look at his “shorter days” and “signs of fatigue.” He didn’t take it well.
Confronted with fresh questions about his age, Trump responds in Trumpian fashion
— Progressive senior (@progressivefred.bsky.social) 2025-11-27T21:00:45.380Z
Read in MS NOW: apple.news/AyEdvFPKRRT2...
https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/confronted-with-fresh-questions-about-his-age-trump-responds-in-trumpian-fashion
The New York Times reported this week, for example, on the Republican’s effort to “project round-the-clock energy, virility and physical stamina,” which is starting to give way to an awkward new reality. From the article:
The same report noted a recent Oval Office event when Trump appeared to fall asleep. There’s also the unusual fact that the president recently had an MRI, and when asked about the reason for the scan, he wouldn’t say......
But even if we put all of these details aside, let’s not brush past that Trump, while using Stalin-like rhetoric to attack The New York Times, proceeded to argue that the reporter who wrote the article “is ugly, both inside and out.”
So, on the heels of the Republican’s “piggy” incident and overwhelming evidence of Trump’s routine and casual misogyny, especially toward women who work in media, the president didn’t think twice about attacking a newspaper article by complaining that he doesn’t find the journalist who wrote it to be attractive.
If the goal of the pushback was to prove to the public that the incumbent president is up to the job, Trump failed in humiliating fashion.
Mr. Trump, 79, is the oldest person to be elected to the presidency, and he is aging. … [N]early a year into his second term, Americans see Mr. Trump less than they used to, according to a New York Times analysis of his schedule. Mr. Trump has fewer public events on his schedule and is traveling domestically much less than he did by this point during his first year in office, in 2017, although he is taking more foreign trips. He also keeps a shorter public schedule than he used to. Most of his public appearances fall between noon and 5 p.m., on average.
The same report noted a recent Oval Office event when Trump appeared to fall asleep. There’s also the unusual fact that the president recently had an MRI, and when asked about the reason for the scan, he wouldn’t say......
But even if we put all of these details aside, let’s not brush past that Trump, while using Stalin-like rhetoric to attack The New York Times, proceeded to argue that the reporter who wrote the article “is ugly, both inside and out.”
So, on the heels of the Republican’s “piggy” incident and overwhelming evidence of Trump’s routine and casual misogyny, especially toward women who work in media, the president didn’t think twice about attacking a newspaper article by complaining that he doesn’t find the journalist who wrote it to be attractive.
If the goal of the pushback was to prove to the public that the incumbent president is up to the job, Trump failed in humiliating fashion.
November 29, 2025
Rep. Troy Nehls announces he'll retire at end of current term, adding to number of GOP departures from Congress
Nehls is my congresscritter. He is an asshole. Rumors are that Nehls timed his announcement to keep other GOP types from running and is going to endorse his asshole brother, Trevor. Trevor ran for sheriff and got beat a couple of cycles ago.
https://x.com/evan7257/status/1994846373431140839
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/article/troy-nehls-retiring-congress-21214033.php
U.S. Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Richmond, a hard-line conservative and one of President Donald Trump’s most ardent allies in Congress, will retire at the end of his current term.
The three-term Republican, who represents a swath of Houston’s southern suburbs, announced the decision on social media Saturday morning, highlighting his police and military record. Before serving in Congress, Nehls had been sheriff of Fort Bend County. ....
Nehls was first elected in 2020 and was a member of the House Freedom Caucus, the party’s rightmost wing that has frequently antagonized GOP leadership. He left the group last year, citing differences in philosophy.
Nehls has been embroiled in personal controversies in recent years. In 2024, the House Ethics Committee investigated his campaign finance records after an audit found evidence he had used funds on rent payments to his own company. Nehls filed a lawsuit in federal court alleging Capitol police had illegally searched his office. The complaint was later dismissed.
The three-term Republican, who represents a swath of Houston’s southern suburbs, announced the decision on social media Saturday morning, highlighting his police and military record. Before serving in Congress, Nehls had been sheriff of Fort Bend County. ....
Nehls was first elected in 2020 and was a member of the House Freedom Caucus, the party’s rightmost wing that has frequently antagonized GOP leadership. He left the group last year, citing differences in philosophy.
Nehls has been embroiled in personal controversies in recent years. In 2024, the House Ethics Committee investigated his campaign finance records after an audit found evidence he had used funds on rent payments to his own company. Nehls filed a lawsuit in federal court alleging Capitol police had illegally searched his office. The complaint was later dismissed.
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