Local and federal agents, including immigration officials, may not wear masks while conducting official business

California will be the first state to ban most law enforcement, including federal immigration agents, from covering their faces while conducting official business under a bill signed by the state’s governor, Gavin Newsom, on Saturday.

The ban is California’s direct response to a recent series of immigration raids in Los Angeles where federal agents wore masks while making mass arrests. The raids prompted protests and led Donald Trump to deploy national guard troops and marines to the city.

It’s unclear how – or whether – the state can enforce the ban on the federal agents who have been carrying out those raids. A homeland security official called the legislation “despicable” in a statement this week, adding that the ban would only put officers in danger.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ca/post/51980997

post from Newsom, who wrote, “Kristi Noem is going to have a bad day today,”

Social Security Administration (SSA) commissioner Frank Bisignano has not ruled out raising the retirement age to help shore up the payment system's solvency.

Speaking on Fox's Mornings with Maria on Thursday, Bisignano, who was appointed by President Donald Trump earlier this year, said "I think everything's being considered" when asked by host Maria Bartiromo if he would look at raising the retirement age.

A spokesperson for the SSA told Newsweek that Bisignano "outlined that there are a whole host of items being considered and that eight years is a long way away. While he did say that 'everything will be considered,' it was after a much more insightful conversation regarding solvency and how Commissioner Bisignano is making the Social Security Administration easier to access, faster to respond, and better prepared to meet the challenges of tomorrow."

New York Mayor Eric Adams did not mince his words about his disapproval of what he called the large number of “nasty” Gen Z voters supporting Zhoran Mamdani, the democratic socialist candidate leading the race for NYC mayor.

The federal investigation into the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk has yet to find a link between the alleged shooter, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, and left-wing groups on which President Donald Trump and his administration have pledged to crack down after the killing, three sources familiar with the probe told NBC News.

One person familiar with the federal investigation said that “thus far, there is no evidence connecting the suspect with any left-wing groups.”

“Every indication so far is that this was one guy who did one really bad thing because he found Kirk’s ideology personally offensive,” this person continued.

In addition, two of the people familiar with the probe said it may be difficult to charge Robinson at the federal level for Kirk’s killing, while the third source said there is still an expectation that some kind of federal charge is filed against Robinson.

Factors that have complicated the effort to bring charges at the federal level include that Robinson, a Utah resident, did not travel from out of state; Kirk was shot during an open campus debate at Utah Valley University. Additionally, Kirk himself is not a federal officer or elected official.

A Justice Department spokesperson said, “The investigation is ongoing and beyond that we decline to comment.”

Following Trump's state visit, Keir Starmer is finally moving towards recognising Palestinian statehood. This is generally quite unexpected considering Keir's stance on Israel, his weapons donations, the fact he himself is a zionist, and him declaring Palestine Action, the group of peaceful protesters a terrorist organisation. Deputy PM David Lammy, has said “It will not change the position on the ground.” presumably meaning this will not change their stance on Israel. This does mean however the Palestinian Authority is due to get their official embassy. This makes a total of 140 countries officially recognising Palestinian Statehood.

Demonstrators are getting more familiar with their tactics. When the masked and unmasked federal agents surfaced on the rooftop of the red-brick building in suburban Broadview, some armed with pepper ball guns, protesters began to put on their protective gear — masks, goggles, helmets.

As federal agents, some with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and some with U.S. Border Patrol, approached the ICE facility’s main gate, some demonstrators moved in closer. Others stood further away; they know what’s coming.

The gate opened around 8:30 a.m., and a white cargo van inched out. The rooftop agents shot round pellets filled with chemical irritants into the crowd. More masked federal agents ran out and surrounded the van, pushing and shoving demonstrators who used their bodies to block the van’s forward motion.

Then came the tear gas.

The crowd retreated, coughing and reaching for their eyes. Those with heavy-duty protective gear kept pushing. Agents grabbed two of them, forced them to the ground, and rushed them inside the metal gates. Federal agents did this in front of the news cameras and helicopters. They did this in front of elected officials and political hopefuls. They did this in a tucked-off industrial park off 25th Avenue, the main thoroughfare that connects this occupied corner of Broadview from the otherwise quiet suburb just 12 miles west of Chicago.

Rickey Hendon Jr., an activist and organizer, joined the demonstration at 8:00 a.m.

“This particular facility has been one of the worst that we’ve heard about for a long time. They have people sleeping on the floor here,” Hendon Jr. said. “They’re supposed to be here for 12 hours; sometimes they’re here for days and even weeks.”

You will say what we want, when we want, and only if we want. sieg heil

The White House Peace Vigil, widely considered the longest continuous act of political protest in U.S. history, was dismantled by federal law enforcement Thursday night in what activists described as the most direct attack on the protest in its 44-year history.

What was left after demonstrators said National Park Service workers and U.S. Park Police officers closed Lafayette Square and hauled off protest banners, flags and other supplies was the vigil at its most bare: A small handful of protesters lined up on the red brick sidewalk to the north of the White House, holding whatever signs they managed to salvage.

The dismantling of the peace vigil on Thursday came nearly two weeks after President Donald Trump ordered: “Take it down. Take it down today. Right now.” The vigil had been under intense scrutiny ever since Trump’s demand for its removal. In two previous encounters with law enforcement, activists said, the vigil had lost several supplies, including a blue tarp and historic “peace rocks” painted by vigil keepers of years past.

The president’s demand that the vigil be removed on Sept. 5 came after Brian Glenn, a correspondent for the conservative network Real America’s Voice, told Trump during a press gathering that there was “a blue tent” in front of the White House that was “an eyesore.”

Vigil holders said that they were not given any warning late Thursday before federal officers closed Lafayette Square and began to dismantle their protest.

As Park Service officials began to move people out of the square just after sunset, Nadine Seiler said, an officer told her to take what she could carry – or else the protest materials would be declared abandoned property and promptly removed. As she scrambled to fill her arms with what she could lug out of the park, she said, an officer handed her a stack of papers. On it was a letter dated Sept. 12 and signed by National Park Service Superintendent John Stanwich.

The letter, which vigil keepers shared with the Post, states: “You are receiving this letter because you are, or reasonably appear to be, a participant in an ongoing unpermitted demonstration in Lafayette Park.”

The average reading and math scores of American high school seniors fell to their lowest levels in two decades in 2024, according to new national data released last week.

The results, from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), found that, on average, reading scores for 12th graders were 10 points lower in 2024 than they were in 1992, when the test was first administered, and that math scores fell to their lowest levels since 2005, when the math assessment began.

The test, administered by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), which is part of the US Department of Education, assessed roughly 19,300 12th-graders in math, 24,300 in reading and 23,000 eighth-graders in science between January and March of last year.

Looks like Jesus took the wheel.

Errrmmm... what?

The Trump administration said on Friday it would ask companies to pay $100,000 per year for H-1B worker visas, prompting some big tech companies to warn visa holders to stay in the U.S. or quickly return.

The change could deal a big blow to the technology sector that relies heavily on skilled workers from India and China.

Since taking office in January, Trump has kicked off a wide-ranging immigration crackdown, including moves to limit some forms of legal immigration. The step to reshape the H-1B visa program represents his administration's most high-profile effort yet to rework temporary employment visas.