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Nixon’s Official Acts Against His Enemies List Led to a Bipartisan Impeachment Effort
Nixon’s “enemies list,” said his White House counsel, aimed to “use the available federal machinery to screw our political enemies.” Kash Patel, Trump’s nominee to head the FBI, published his own enemies list in his 2023 book. The list does not include anyone who tried to keep Trump in office illegally after he lost in 2020. It does, however, include a number of high-level Trump appointees who chose not to help him in that effort to overturn democracy.
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Backgrounder: Drone Operations in the U.S.
More than 1.7 million drones are registered for commercial and recreational use in the United States, and it is safe to assume that there are many additional unregistered drones out there.
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Former FBI Informant Pleads Guilty to Fabricating Biden Bribery Story
Alexander Smirnov, a former FBI informant, pleaded guilty Monday in Los Angeles federal court to faking the story about a phony bribery scheme involving President Joe Biden and his son Hunter. The fabricated story was the central element of a House impeachment inquiry.
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Vaccine Misinformation Distorts Science – a Biochemist Explains How RFK Jr. and His Lawyer’s Claims Threaten Public Health
Vaccinations provide significant protection for the public against infectious diseases and substantially reduce health care costs, but it’s easy to forget why many infectious diseases are rarely encountered today: The success of vaccines does not always tell its own story. RFK Jr.’s potential ascent to the role of secretary of Health and Human Services will offer up ample opportunities to retell this story and counter misinformation.
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On Reducing Public Fears and Threats of Political Violence
The 2024 election is over, with no substantial violence, but that does not mean the risks of political violence and unrest are off the table. A likely key driver: fears of what the other political side will have America become.
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Trump Migrant Deportations Could Threaten States’ Agricultural Economies
Roughly 40% of farmworkers are not legally authorized to work in the United States.
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“The Best Time to Prepare”: Migrant Rights Group Warns Undocumented Texans to Plan for Deportations
Groups are urging the state’s estimated 1.6 million undocumented migrants to prepare financially and make plans for their loved ones if they’re detained.
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FTC Rightfully Acts Against So-Called “AI Weapon Detection” Company Evolv
The Federal Trade Commission has entered a settlement with self-styled “weapon detection” company Evolv, to resolve the FTC’s claim that the company “knowingly” and repeatedly” engaged in “unlawful” acts of misleading claims about their technology.
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How Polarization Drives Republicans to Spread Misinformation
Researchers say people most likely to spread misinformation are Republicans, i.e., conservatives, but mainly only under certain conditions. “Both liberals and conservatives have a baseline tendency to do this,” says one expert, “but we see these big spikes only among the Republicans when they’re in a situation that feels like there is political conflict. When they’re in a competitive situation, Republicans want to win—almost at any cost.”
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What Is a Self-Coup? South Korea President’s Attempt Ended in Failure − a Notable Exception in a Growing Global Trend
South Kore’s President Yoon Suk Yeol short-lived martial law declaration was an example of “autogolpe,” or, in English, a “self-coup.” Self-coups are becoming more common, with more in the past decade compared with any other 10-year period since the end of World War II. Why that’s happening? What self-coups involve? And why, unlike in around 80% of self-coups, Yoon’s gambit failed.
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Washington Office Begins Tracking Statewide Deadly Use of Force Incidents
This month, the Washington State Office of Independent Investigation began tracking deadly use of force incidents involving law enforcement officers.
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The Apocalypse That Wasn’t: AI Was Everywhere in 2024’s Elections, but Deepfakes and Misinformation Were Only Part of the Picture
2024 is a “super-cycle” year in which 3.7 billion eligible voters in 72 countries had the chance to go the polls. The vast majority of various surveys’ respondents expected AI to be used for mostly bad purposes in these elections, but the dreaded “death of truth” has not materialized – at least, not due to AI.
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Election Denialism Has Staying Power Even After Trump’s Win
President-elect Donald Trump may have quieted his lies about widespread voter fraud after his win earlier this month, but the impact of his effort to cast doubt on the integrity of American elections lingers on.
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The Ghost Gun Surge Is Abating. This Is How It Happened.
Ghost guns went from being relatively rare to ubiquitous in a short time span. Regulating them appears to be fueling a reversal.
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Denver Will Stand in the Way of Mass Deportation
“More than us having DPD stationed at the county line to keep [National Guard units from other states] out, you would have 50,000 Denverites there,” Denver Mayor Mike Johnston said. “It’s like the Tiananmen Square moment with the rose and the gun, right? You’d have every one of those Highland moms who came out for the migrants. And you do not want to mess with them.”
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The long view
The Ghost Gun Surge Is Abating. This Is How It Happened.
Ghost guns went from being relatively rare to ubiquitous in a short time span. Regulating them appears to be fueling a reversal.
On Reducing Public Fears and Threats of Political Violence
The 2024 election is over, with no substantial violence, but that does not mean the risks of political violence and unrest are off the table. A likely key driver: fears of what the other political side will have America become.
Backgrounder: Drone Operations in the U.S.
More than 1.7 million drones are registered for commercial and recreational use in the United States, and it is safe to assume that there are many additional unregistered drones out there.