Politics and views in the United States

Immigration officials and their allies defend ICE actions in Minnesota, as other states cement rights of immigrants and citizens and Dems argue that new GOP-backed led voting restrictions are meant to tilt the next election.

TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to 2026 Talks, where we're following our democracy and historic times.

We know that it's a challenging job and the environment is made particularly challenging by those who want to oppose our law enforcement from carrying out their lawful duties.

Pennsylvania Republican Congressman Ryan McKenzie is defending ICE and Border Patrol's aggressive sweep in Minneapolis.

But the agency's heads were met with anger from Democratic lawmakers in a hearing called after the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretty.

The chief of the Border Patrol falsely blamed conflicts during ICE's largest ever operation on paid agitators.

The shooting of protesters during raids accused of routinely violating Fourth Amendment due process protections risk undermining the Constitution and the rule of law.

Jason Marisam is a professor at St.

Paul's Mitchell-Hamlin School of Law.

I've seen students questioning the value of studying a commitment to the rule of law when they're doubting whether the rule of law will be upheld, even if you get to court and win.

That's not a great place to be.

Colorado lawmakers are the latest state legislators aiming to reaffirm the constitutional rights of immigrants and citizens alike.

Legislation in the state house calls for ICE to stop wearing masks and conducting raids in schools, health clinics, and houses of worship.

Democrat Nikita Ricks represents Aurora.

They've killed American citizens, they've come after the press, And the question is, who's next?

We need to continue to exercise our rights to protest and to speak up about what is right and what is wrong.

The US House is set to vote on a string of bills that voting rights advocates warn could keep people from casting their ballots.

The SAVE Act would require proof of citizenship to register, a photo ID at the polls, and would mandate monthly purges of names from the voting rolls.

Another bill called the MEGA Act is being debated by the House Administration Committee.

It would prevent the counting of ballots that arrive after election day and universal mail voting and allow more lawsuits against election officials.

Democratic New York Congressman Joe Morelli says American voters have continued to reject President Donald Trump's policies at the ballot box, so his allies want to change the rules.

Because of these failures, Republicans know they have one hope at winning the next election, change the rules of the game, destroy the rule of law, and desert any last remaining shred of allegiance to the United States Constitution.

As Democrats continue to win special elections, strategists are classifying more districts as competitive in the midterms.

The DCCC added five new Republican-leaning districts in Minnesota, Colorado, and South Carolina to its battleground map.

A judge appointed by Trump has dismissed a Justice Department lawsuit to force Michigan to turn over voter registration data.

The ruling says Justice failed to prove it has a compelling reason for the demand, and no law mandates that the federal government get access to private voter information.

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard warned the lawyer for an unspecified whistleblower not to share a classified complaint with Congress.

The nature of the accusation hasn't been made public, but members of intelligence committees say the controversial DNI seems to be trying to bury it.

I'm Zamone Perez for Pacifica Network and Public News Service.

Find our just indicators at publicnewsservice.org.