Andrea Jesse's Blog: June 2025

Thursday, June 26, 2025

This 11 minute interview from March, 2015 with writer Michael Wolff tells you everything you need to know about Trump. He is only interested in getting headlines. He is a complete narcissist who cares about no one but himself and certainly is not interested in making America great.

Must see 98 minute documentary if you want to understand how Trump was able to win a second term. "Rewriting Trump" follows Michael Wolff who, with inside sources, has a better understanding of Trump and how he operates than anyone.

Tuesday, June 24, 2025

A Message to Jeff Bezos & Lauren Sanchez from Greenpeace in Venice - "If you can rent Venice for your wedding, you can pay more tax."

Friday, June 20, 2025

The right (Trump, in particular) is using political violence to intimidate anyone who would speak out against them. A method autocrats use to grab more power. Barbara Walter, a professor of international affairs at U.C. San Diego, is a leading expert on violent extremism and domestic terror. (Politics)

Tuesday, June 17, 2025

News: As Israel turns its focus to Iran, the death toll mounts in Gaza — and hunger deepens (NPR) (Politics)

https://www.npr.org/2025/06/17/g-s1-73175/gaza-hunger-aid-attacks-israel Israel's primary focus is now its war with Iran, but Israeli troops are still holding territory deep inside Gaza, and Tuesday marked the deadliest day in recent weeks for Palestinians there trying to reach food distribution sites and trucks. Health officials in Gaza say at least 59 people were killed by Israeli military drones and artillery fire Tuesday, and more than 200 wounded, trying to get food. Most of the deaths, at least 45, occurred at an intersection in southern Gaza's city of Khan Younis, where a large crowd of people had amassed waiting for trucks to enter carrying flour.It was the deadliest single incident of people desperately trying to lay their hands on food since late March, when Israel began allowing a trickle of aid into Gaza following nearly three months of total blockade. Israeli attacks on Palestinians trying to reach food aid since March 27 have killed at least 400 people and wounded more than 3,000, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which releases daily death counts. Those killed while seeking aid are among the ministry's overall death toll of nearly 55,500 people killed in the war.

Monday, June 16, 2025

A look back - October 24, 2023 - President Biden in a trip to Israel showed that he understood that Hamas did not represent the vast majority of Palestinians and, therefore, the Palestinian people should be spared Israel's wrath, but did Netanyahu listen? (Politics)

https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2023/10/was-hamas-elected-to-govern-gaza-george-w-bush-2006-palestinian-election.html In a speech during President Biden’s visit to Israel, he urged the nation’s military to do all it can to minimize civilian casualties in its war with Hamas. “The vast majority of Palestinians are not Hamas,” he said. “Hamas does not represent the Palestinian people.” How did Hamas come to power in Gaza in the first place? It was in January 2006 that the Palestinian territories held what turned out to be their last parliamentary elections. Hamas won a bare plurality of votes (44 percent to the more moderate Fatah party’s 41 percent) but, given the electoral system, a strong majority of seats (74 to 45). Neither party was keen on sharing power. Fighting broke out between the two. When a unity government was finally formed in June 2007, Hamas broke the deal, started murdering Fatah members, and, in the end, took total control of the Gaza Strip. Those who weren’t killed fled to the West Bank, and the territories have remained split ever since. In other words, Hamas’ absolute rule of Gaza is not what the Palestinians voted for back in 2006.

Definition of a terrorist: a person who uses unlawful violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims.

News: Trump directs immigration authorities to prioritize deportations in Democratic-run cities (Politics)

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-directs-ice-deportations-democratic-run-cities/ Washington — President Trump on Sunday night directed federal immigration officials to prioritize deportations from Democratic-run cities, a move that comes after large protests erupted in Los Angeles and other major metropolitan areas against the Trump administration's immigration policies. In a Truth Social post, the president called on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials "to do all in their power to achieve the very important goal of delivering the single largest Mass Deportation Program in History." He added that to reach the goal officials "must expand efforts to detain and deport Illegal Aliens in America's largest Cities, such as Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York, where Millions upon Millions of Illegal Aliens reside." "These, and other such Cities, are the core of the Democrat Power Center, where they use Illegal Aliens to expand their Voter Base, cheat in Elections, and grow the Welfare State, robbing good paying Jobs and Benefits from Hardworking American Citizens," the president wrote. Mr. Trump's declaration comes after weeks of increased enforcement, and after Stephen Miller, White House deputy chief of staff and main architect of the president's immigration policies, said ICE officers would target at least 3,000 arrests a day, up from about 650 a day during the first five months of Mr. Trump's second term. At the same time, the Trump administration has directed ICE to halt arrests at farms, restaurants and hotels amid concerns that the president's crackdown on illegal immigration is hurting key industries, two sources familiar with the abrupt policy change told CBS News. The pause on worksite immigration enforcement operations applies to the agricultural, hospitality and restaurant industries, which rely in large part on labor from immigrants, many of whom are in the U.S. unlawfully, the sources said, requesting anonymity to discuss internal actions. Opponents of the president's immigration policies took to the streets as part of the "No Kings" demonstrations Saturday that came as Mr. Trump held a massive parade in Washington for the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army. The parade featured tanks, flyovers and fireworks. Mr. Trump made the call for stepped up enforcement in Democratic-controlled cities on social media as he was making his way to the Group of Seven economic summit in Alberta, Canada.

News: California wants to ban face coverings for ICE agents and cops - The No Secret Police Act - SB 627 - California would become the first state to prohibit law enforcement officers from concealing their faces. (Politics)

https://sfstandard.com/2025/06/16/california-donald-trump-ice-face-covering-masks-n95-doxxing/ California could soon tick off one more box on its long and expanding list of anti-Trump stances: becoming the first state to clamp down on federal agents and police concealing their identities. Introduced days after hundreds of thousands of Golden State residents marched in protest of President Donald Trump’s second term, new legislation would prohibit law enforcement officers who operate in California from wearing face coverings. The No Secret Police Act, introduced Monday by state Sen. Scott Wiener, comes as Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and other law enforcement officials have been seen in recent weeks covering their faces during immigration raids and at anti-Trump protests. Democrats have criticized the practice, arguing that it decreases transparency as Trump ramps up his use of federal law enforcement to achieve his hard-line immigration policies. Republicans say masks help prevent authorities from being targeted or doxxed, which is when an individual’s home address or other information is shared online. “The recent federal operations in California have created an environment of profound terror,” said Wiener, who is introducing the bill with state Sen. Jesse Arreguín. “If we want the public to trust law enforcement, we cannot allow them to behave like secret police in an authoritarian state.” Wiener said law enforcement should be “proud to show their faces,” and doing so will increase trust in public-safety officials. SB 627 would also require officials to be identifiable through uniforms or other means.