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A Fear-based Immigration Policy (Immigration Policy Brief #142)

A Fear-based Immigration Policy (Immigration Policy Brief #142)

Trump’s mass deportation efforts remain ongoing across the U.S., capturing headlines with the arrests of student activists like Mahmoud Khalil and Rumeysa Ozturk, and the deportation of alleged Tren de Aragua members/Venezuelans legally here on asylum, not to Venezuela but El Salvador, including a U.S. resident misidentified as a gang member. Despite the high-profile raids and fiery rhetoric, government data shows that deportations under Trump still lag behind levels seen under the Biden administration.

Tangled Part 1: How Trump uses Machiavelli to Win An Election

Tangled Part 1: How Trump uses Machiavelli to Win An Election

Niccolo Machiavelli’s The Prince provides a playbook for rulers to seize, hold, and consolidate power. Donald Trump’s second ascent to the Oval Office demonstrates that Machiavelli’s lessons are just as valid in 2025 as they were in 1515. The Prince is frequently summarized with the adage of “the ends justify the means”.

Introducing Gulf of America – from the person who gave us Trump Tower (Environmental Policy Brief #178)

Introducing Gulf of America – from the person who gave us Trump Tower (Environmental Policy Brief #178)

For the last 475 years, the expanse of ocean from western Florida to southern Texas has been called the “Gulf of Mexico.” English geographer Richard Hakluyt referred to the “Gulfe of Mexico” in his work of 1589. With the stroke of a pen on February 9, 2025, the President of the United States signed Executive Order 14172 and renamed the body of water “Gulf of America.” In addition to “restoring American pride,” President Trump justified the name change by referencing territorial rights over much of the area and that those waters have “long been an integral asset to our once burgeoning Nation and has remained an indelible part of America.” Trump considers the Gulf a business asset.

Legal Battles: The Quiet Yet Powerful Resistance of the State Attorneys General

Legal Battles: The Quiet Yet Powerful Resistance of the State Attorneys General

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), established under the Trump administration and led by Elon Musk, has embarked on an ambitious mission to streamline federal operations by significantly reducing the workforce across various agencies. This initiative aims to cut $1 trillion from the federal budget during the 2025-2026 fiscal year, primarily through substantial layoffs and restructuring efforts. While proponents argue that these measures are necessary to eliminate inefficiencies and reduce government spending, critics warn of potential disruptions to essential public services and the erosion of institutional knowledge within federal agencies.

Musk’s Outrageous Conflicts of Interest

Musk’s Outrageous Conflicts of Interest

Distaste for Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is fueling protests at Tesla showrooms, a boycott of the company’s cars, and a rapidly deteriorating stock price.  But Musk can easily make up the losses from the federal government he is gleefully gutting.  Musk is poised to continue making billions from federal subsidies and contracts despite the obvious ethical problems.

The Ripple Effect: DOGE’s Workforce Reduction and Its Impact on Federal Agencies

The Ripple Effect: DOGE’s Workforce Reduction and Its Impact on Federal Agencies

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), established under the Trump administration and led by Elon Musk, has embarked on an ambitious mission to streamline federal operations by significantly reducing the workforce across various agencies. This initiative aims to cut $1 trillion from the federal budget during the 2025-2026 fiscal year, primarily through substantial layoffs and restructuring efforts. While proponents argue that these measures are necessary to eliminate inefficiencies and reduce government spending, critics warn of potential disruptions to essential public services and the erosion of institutional knowledge within federal agencies.

Our Values

Our Values

Dear President Trump, last month we wrote wishing you well on your 2nd term in Office. This month we write to express concern about the negative tone your administration has put forward in many of it  policies and pronouncements. We’d like to remind you of the values that are most important for a President to preserve when he or she serves as the custodian of our democracy.

The Week That Was: Global News in Review

The Week That Was: Global News in Review

The United States in early March was added to the CIVICUS Monitor Human Rights Watchlist. CIVICUS is a global research organization that studies and publishes the status of freedoms and threats to civil liberties in various countries around the world each year. CIVICUS has pointed to Trump’s erratic use of executive orders, mass firings of federal workers, dismantling of foreign aid programs, antagonism of journalists and efforts to tamp down pro-Palestinian protests as just some of the reasons for the change in the United States status.

A World Without USAID: Deadly Impact

A World Without USAID: Deadly Impact

40% of the U.S. population line our coasts. That equates to approximately 130 million people residing in coastal counties. In addition to those who retire seaside, entire economies are integrated into the coastal industries of fishing, tourism, energy, shipbuilding, and recreation. Even a cursory glance using google maps shows how tightly clustered the built space is, all on only 10% of the total U.S. land mass. Shoreline communities have five times the population density as compared to the U.S. average.

Elon Musk’s Government Influence and Political Dynamics

Elon Musk’s Government Influence and Political Dynamics

This is the second of two briefs examining Elon Musk’s extensive role in government and politics, including his actions under the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and his close ties to the Trump administration. Recent reports indicate that Musk had used his personal wealth to finance President Donald Trump’s campaigns while also threatening to fund challengers against those who fail to support Trump’s platform. Critics question whether this practice makes politicians indebted to Musk, an arrangement some regard as an extreme extension of the Citizens United ruling on campaign contributions.

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