SCOTUS and the Courts

The day's most prominent theme was the Supreme Court. Aaron reposted multiple reactions to what one commenter described as five "wretched rights-stripping decisions" handed down in a single day. These included Landor v. Louisiana, which gutted individual liability under RLUIPA, and Blanche v. Lau, a 6–3 ruling holding that the government does not need clear and convincing evidence before stripping green card holders of their lawful status at the border — to which Aaron simply replied, "What the fuck." He also amplified commentary on the Court's habitual inconsistency: intervening on behalf of the Trump administration without explanation while refusing to act on sweeping executive overreach, and applying the "major questions" doctrine to targeted student loan relief but not to the dismantling of entire cabinet agencies. One thread framed the Roberts Court era as analogous to the Lochner era — a body of precedent that future lawyers may have to draw a circle around and set aside entirely. https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-prison-dreadlocks-rastafari-louisiana-f9b4d53346daee56335185542db3d4ec

Democratic Primaries and the Party's Direction

Aaron engaged heavily with primary results and the broader question of what they signal for the Democratic Party. He reposted coverage of Brad Lander projected to win NY-10 and state senator Jeremy Zellner's ouster in Buffalo by Working Families Party-backed Jon Rivera. He also amplified a call to support Julie Gonzales in Colorado's upcoming Senate primary against a "do-nothing" Democratic incumbent. Two reposts pushed back directly against criticism of progressive primary challengers, arguing that the fault lies with incumbents who failed to act during the last Democratic trifecta, and that channeling dissatisfaction through primaries is a legitimate and even healthy democratic response. One post added nuance, welcoming the party's leftward shift on issues like Palestine while flagging disagreements on NATO and Russia sanctions. https://www.julieforcolorado.com

Immigration Enforcement and Civil Liberties

Aaron shared several stories about aggressive immigration enforcement and its legal consequences. One involved ICE coercing a 17-year-old with Special Immigrant Juvenile Status — a category designed for abused and neglected children — into signing a removal order he didn't understand, then hiding him from lawyers and deporting him. Another involved a trans woman in Kansas being charged with driving on an invalid license after complying with the state's anti-trans ID law. He also reposted reactions to the Prairieland sentencing, in which a judge explicitly stated he was imposing maximum sentences to "send a message to anyone who shares a similar ideology," drawing comparisons to the kind of political repression the U.S. nominally opposes abroad. https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:fha2kmwr3qmwhus3f5tvtxo2/post/3moy3ptc2gk2h

Media, Power, and Political Dysfunction

A handful of reposts touched on the concentration of power and media. Aaron shared criticism of Trump threatening to sue ABC over a story he disliked, with one poster noting this is "fashy" behavior regardless of how absurd the underlying grievance. He also reposted news that Scientific American is being sold and that union staff have been fired ahead of a ratification vote. A broader thread questioned whether the real crisis in developed democracies isn't dictatorship but ungovernability, driven by a "global median voter" who wants anti-immigrant politics, minimal lifestyle disruption, and tolerates corrupt populists. A separate post flagged the bureaucratic chaos that will result from splitting oversight of disabled students across three federal agencies. https://group.springernature.com/gp/group/media/press-releases/divestment-consumer-media/52799204