Good morning! Welcome to The Movement from NOTICE News, where we want to see a world that’s driven by human decency, compassion and love—not corporate greed and growth. We’re news for the people, not the profit. 🌹
In today’s newsletter:
The crisis at the border, briefly explained.
Donald Trump’s fate goes before the Supreme Court.
Your daily news roundup
Some good news: Be glad you’re not this guy.
The crisis at the border, briefly explained
An unnamed refugee crosses into the U.S. near San Diego in January (Qian Weizhong/VCG/Reuters)
Yesterday, Republicans in the U.S. Senate, along with a handful of Progressive senators, blocked a “compromise” immigration reform bill that left-leaning critics say would have further jeopardized human rights and life along the southern border. Republicans, who demanded this action—before ultimately blocking it—decided their own measure didn’t go far enough. Not to mention, it also would have deprived Trump of one of his most salient talking points.
To understand this incredibly complex story, here are some basic facts:
Yes, there’s a crisis at the southern border. The border has seen a surge of migrants—better described as refugees—over the past several years. For instance, between 2013 and 2019, the monthly average was 39,000 “encounters” (where refugees are caught and either taken into custody to await a hearing, or immediately expelled). In December 2023 alone, there were 302,000 “encounters.”
Often unreported in corporate media: that surge is being driven by political and economic instability, particularly in Latin America. Many come from Venezuela (which is undergoing an unprecedented social and humanitarian collapse), and Haiti (which is also experiencing continuing political instability), as well as Ecuador and Nicaragua (which are seeing surges of violence).
Under both U.S. and international law, these refugees have rights, including the right to be considered for asylum (the legal right to stay in a different country because you were forced to leave your own).
While migrants wait for their day in court they are usually allowed to wait in the country. Since 2021, some 2.3 million people have been allowed into the country, overwhelming border towns and cities they have been bused to. This is complicated because the surge has created a massive backlog in the U.S. court system.
The proposed fix to this issue would have established a new system for reviewing asylum cases (which is good), but also would have given the president unprecedented authority to effectively shut down the border after a certain number of “encounters” (which is bad). Here’s a good breakdown of what was in the bill.
Migrant rights groups and Progressives condemned the bill for effectively ending the legal right to asylum. Amnesty International said the deal contained “the most extreme anti-immigrant proposals this country has seen in 100 years,” and would “only lead to more suffering, more cruelty, and more death.”
Right-leaning and corporate-sponsored Democrats, eager to expand the Military Industrial Complex, supported the measure in exchange for $60 billion in handouts to Ukraine and another $14 billion to support Israel’s genocide of Gaza. With the collapse of this compromise, it’s unclear what happens to those requests. The Biden administration is now reportedly considering executive action to address the situation at the border, bypassing Congress altogether.
The Supreme Court might disqualify Trump from being president
This is the Supreme Court building (Reuters)
The Supreme Court of the United States will hear arguments today on a historic case: whether or not disgraced former President Donald Trump is constitutionally disqualified from holding office again.
Just before Christmas, Colorado’s Supreme Court dropped a bombshell opinion ruling that Trump must be removed from the 2024 ballot because, yes, his conduct related to January 6th did amount to insurrection, and, as such, he’s ineligible for the presidency under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.
That section, passed during Reconstruction, was was designed to keep former Confederates from holding public office. It’s never been used to disqualify a presidential candidate.
Trump’s lawyers are throwing a number of weak arguments against the wall, hoping something sticks. One of Trump’s [crazier] defenses is that he swore to “preserve, protect, and defend” the Constitution, but not “support” it, as Section 3 requires. 🤔
The Supreme Court only needs to side with Trump on one of the many arguments his lawyers are presenting. Three of the nine justices on the court were appointed by Trump himself—luckily the court has no history of ethics issues. Legal experts say it’s highly unlikely this court will disqualify Trump.
The court will hear arguments starting today at 10am ET - you can listen to a live audio feed being streamed here at that time. Colorado wants an answer by February 11, when that state starts voting by mail. Super Tuesday is March 5—voters in 15 states will cast their primary ballot that day.
Israel rejects ceasefire, insists on “total victory”
Alleged War Criminal Benjamin Netanyahu (Reuters)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday rejected Hamas' latest offer for a ceasefire and return of hostages. According to Reuters, Hamas proposed a ceasefire of 4.5 months, during which all hostages would go free, Israel would withdraw its troops from Gaza and an agreement would be reached on an end to the war.
Instead: The PM says Israel called that “delusional” and will instead push into an extremely crowded city in Gaza’s south, Rafah, where hundred of thousands of people have been displaced to. This after the Israelis told Gazans they would be safe if they fled south. So much for that.
Meanwhile, Joe Biden was greeted by hundreds of anti-Zionist Jewish activists supporting Gaza yesterday in NYC as he traveled between fundraisers.
🗞️ Also making news…
Here are some stories the algorithms may have kept out of your feed this week.
On politics…
74% of Republicans say it’s fine for Trump to be dictator for a day.
Biden, Obama and Bill Clinton are planning a big fundraiser— possibly at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.
A new poll suggests Black and Hispanic voters are deserting the Democratic party in large numbers.
The attorney general says the investigation of Biden classified documents is complete, and will be released soon.
On the climate crisis…
The hottest year in history has been followed by the warmest ever January.
Scientists say the number of monarch butterflies at their Mexico wintering sites has plummeted this year.
But but but - 55% of Americans said they’d “break up” with a brand if they found out it wasn’t eco-friendly.
On big pharma…
Thanks to Bernie Sanders, the CEOs of three of the country’s largest drug companies will testify before congress this morning about high drug prices.
The pharmaceutical industry’s outrageous profits, by the numbers.
Yes but: if you’re on Medicare, you could save money on drugs this year.
On culture…
Well, this is terrifying: a Missouri GOP candidate torched LGBTQ+ books with flamethrower.
While Fox News crusades against DEI programs, they completely ignore their own company’s.
The largest survey of trans people in U.S. history reveals vast improvement in life satisfaction after transitioning.
Good News: Be glad you’re not this guy.
Richard Plaud spent the last eight years painstakingly piecing together 706,900 matchsticks to make a 23.6-foot model of the Eiffel Tower, hoping to beat a world record. In fact, NBC News says he beat the existing record by 2 feet. But last week the Guinness Book of World Records had bad news for him: He used the wrong type of matchsticks to qualify for the record. They didn’t even come out to see it. So our good news this morning—be glad you’re not Richard Plaud! 🤣
Something we missed? Have a comment?
Just reply to this email and send it to us! We may just feature it here in The Movement. That’s it for us this week, we’ll be back in your inbox Monday morning. Have a good Super Bowl weekend!