Extra, Extra
Minn There, Done That: “It’s not just that I’ve had to watch the Trump administration destroy cherished alliances, like ours with Western Europe and Canada, that have upheld freedom, democracy and global trade since World War II. It’s also been the stunning cowardice and boundless greed with which leaders of big law firms and Big Tech have bent their knees to King Donald and indulged a cabinet of clowns — not one of whom they’d hire in their own businesses. But then I spent time in my native state, Minnesota, after something else that I’d never seen in nearly 50 years: a spontaneous uprising of civic activism propelled by a single idea — I am my neighbor’s keeper, whoever he or she is and however he or she got here.” Tom Friedman in the NYT (Gift Article): Why Minnesota Matters More Than Iran for America’s Future.
+ But the Beatdown Goes On: “Stephen Miller is the architect of Trump’s immigration policies, and there’s little reason to think that Noem’s ouster will change Miller’s approach. It may even serve to embolden it, by giving him fresh cover. The department has temporarily paused large-scale arrest operations in the wake of a national outcry over abuses in Minnesota, and it is in the midst of a partial shutdown owing to opposition from congressional Democrats. The Administration’s bigger ambitions show no signs of flagging, however. In fact, they are leading toward a new humanitarian and legal crisis.” Jonathan Blitzer in The New Yorker: Trump’s Mass-Detention Campaign. Meanwhile, Deportees sent by Trump to Salvadoran prison are still stuck a year later.
+ Ringing the Farm Alarm: “As the president’s immigration policies squeeze an already tight supply of farm labor, the Trump administration is making it cheaper to hire foreign farmworkers.” No, this is not the Onion. It’s the NYT (Gift Article): To Address Farm Labor Shortage, Trump Administration Turns to Migrant Workers.
+ Markwayne and the Stock Gain: “Mr. Mullin reported buying shares in Chevron, the only major U.S. oil company producing in Venezuela. Five days after the purchase, President Trump attacked Venezuela, demanding that its leadership give better terms to U.S. oil companies. Chevron’s stock price has since jumped, even as the market as a whole has slipped. The Chevron transaction, which Mr. Mullin reported in January, was among as much as $2.8 million he invested in 31 companies on Dec. 29 — and part of a pattern of large and frequent trades that has made him one of the most prolific stock buyers in Congress.” How Trump’s Homeland Security Pick, a Prolific Investor, Got a Lot Wealthier in Congress. (This is an extreme example of a wider, and bipartisan, issue. It’s flat out crazy that members of Congress can purchase individual equities. It’s also flat out crazy that members of Congress can be named Markwayne.)
+ Are You Bot or Not: “The worker uncurls its claw-like fingers, daintily grips the basket by its edges and walks it over to a conveyor that will send it through an industrial washing machine. About a minute after it grabbed the first basket off a pallet, it returns to grab another. So it goes for eight hours a day, basket after basket, pallet after pallet.” WSJ (Gift Article): When Humanoid Robots Come to a Small-Town Factory. (Please come for NextDraft next…)
+ Throw the Book at Em: Does using AI ever remind you of searching through those encyclopedias that once lined your shelves? There might be a reason for that. Encyclopedia Britannica sues OpenAI over AI training.
