Blue 812 News Issue 43 - October 26

Oct 26, 2025

After a few days of weak dodging and poor deception, the Trump administration – first via an unnamed senior official and then by President Trump himself – confirmed what photographic evidence had made undeniable: It has demolished the entire East Wing of the White House to make way for the president’s ballroom pet project.

By Friday, the Trump White House had rolled out a new version of an official White House page about the history of the building to tout the controversial ballroom project, all while gratuitously trolling the last three Democratic presidents. The “Major Events Timeline” section links Hunter Biden to the 2023 discovery of cocaine in the White House with no evidence, includes a picture of Joe Biden next to a shirtless woman while mocking Trans Day of Visibility, details former President Bill Clinton’s scandal with Monica Lewinsky, and highlights a photo of Barack Obama wearing a turban during a visit to Kenya in 2006. This government is so unserious.

The White House also released a list of companies and rich people funding Trump’s completely unnecessary ballroom. Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta, Lockheed Martin, and others are helping foot the bill, which is now estimated to be $350 million.

Pissed? Text SIGN PZXGEH to 50409, (or to @Resistbot on Apple Messages, Messenger, Instagram, or Telegram) to send a message to all 3 US Congressional reps. View text/send from here.

By its own admission, the Trump administration has expanded its lawless attacks on supposed drug-smuggling boats from the Caribbean to the Pacific. On Friday, the administration announced a tenth attack, killing six more people, bringing the total to 43. In a social media post that included a short video clip of the attack, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth asserted that, according to “our intelligence,” the vessel in question was “operated by” Tren de Aragua and was smuggling drugs. Notably, the administration is not even claiming the suspected drugs were en route to the United States; just that the occupants were “trafficking narcotics in the Caribbean Sea.”

In recent days, Hegseth has also ordered the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier strike group, including the Navy’s most advanced aircraft carrier, to the Caribbean. This signals that President Trump is serious about his threat to expand the military strikes from only sea-based to land-based targets. The forces sent to the region also include the Army’s Special Operations Aviation Regiment and the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, demonstrating readiness to attack on the ground and, potentially, to extract Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro, whom the Justice Department indicted in the first Trump administration on drug trafficking charges.

Throughout the weeks-old campaign, nearly all the publicly available information about the attacks has come from the notoriously unreliable Trump administration, running in parallel with an administration purging the reporters who usually cover the Pentagon, most of whom gave up their press credentials rather than accept Hegseth’s restrictive new media policy. What remains to cover the Defense Department on-site is a hodgepodge of mostly right-wing media outlets that agreed to sign on to the new restrictions.

The combination of fewer reliable reporters at the Pentagon and compromised news outlets taking their place could hardly come at a worse time, given the administration’s own struggles with truth-telling. Even now, the campaign is being waged based on a secret memo from the Trump DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel, and the president has issued a secret presidential finding authorizing the CIA to conduct covert operations in and around Venezuela. Congress and the American public have been kept in the dark about the legal basis for the attacks, their ultimate goal, the larger strategy, and the endgame.

Scotland’s national animal is the unicorn. Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

Let’s see what's new in all of the vindictive and spurious prosecutions coming out of the DOJ! New York Attorney General Letitia James pleaded not guilty in federal court on dubious mortgage fraud charges brought by the Trump administration. Her trial is scheduled for January and is expected to take “no more” than two weeks, according to government attorneys, who estimated they will call between 8 and 10 witnesses.

According to the indictment, James falsely described the property as a second home but used it as an “investment property” rented to a family of three. The grand jury alleged James collected thousands of dollars in rent and would have saved a whopping $17,837 over the life of the mortgage versus a loan at a higher rate. However, in a memo last month to Halligan’s predecessor, prosecutors offered a milder assessment, sources familiar with the memo said. While the indictment alleges “thousand(s)” received from rental income, sources tell ABC News that prosecutors found no record of James collecting rent from her niece beyond $1,350 that James reported on her 2020 tax return, which was said to cover the cost of utilities, according to sources familiar with the investigation.

James’ lawyers notified the court that they will be challenging the lawfulness of Lindsey Halligan’s appointment as U.S. attorney and suggested her challenge should be combined with the similar challenge by former FBI Director James Comey in his own politicized criminal case. The two motions raise the same issue; it therefore makes sense to assign it to the same judge who has been specially appointed from outside the district to address the matter.

James also brought Halligan’s Signal chat with Lawfare reporter Anna Bower to the court’s attention, asking for it to order Halligan to preserve the messages and stop making “any further disclosures” outside of court.

In Adam Schiff news, federal prosecutors in Maryland are hesitant to bring charges against the California senator for drummed-up mortgage fraud because they have insufficient evidence. The case has stalled, but under direction from the deputy attorney general’s office, prosecutors will keep the case open and continue the witch hunt, I mean, looking for more evidence. Ongoing open-ended investigations are one of the prime ways President Trump can abuse the Justice Department’s powers, and are totally not ominous at all.

A new addition to Trump’s Vengeance Corner is former Special Counsel Jack Smith. Smith has called the bluff of Hill Republicans in his response to their demand for his testimony behind closed doors by making his own demand to make it a public hearing (provided he gets permission from the Trump DOJ to testify and to access his old files so that he can prepare).

In a letter obtained by CBS News, Smith’s lawyers said he is prepared to answer questions from Congress about the investigations he oversaw and prosecutions of Mr. Trump that stemmed from them, but said doing so “requires assurance from the Department of Justice that he will not be punished for doing so.”

A new report from the Indiana Business Journal indicates Governor Mike Braun could call a special session of the state legislature as soon as Monday. Gov. Braun, clearly butthurt after Politico reported he didn’t have the GOP support for his sycophantic gerrymander, even after VP JD visited the state (twice!) and the legislators had a phone call with Trump himself, decided to say ‘YOLO’ can just call a session anyway. Now the General Assembly can all influence each other in person on your dime.

IndyStar has been keeping track of where each Indiana senator stands on the matter (at least publicly). Since the Oct. 22nd Politico article, a handful of vocal state senators who support redistricting have doubled down, and one prominent Senate leader ― Chris Garten of Charlestown ― made clear his positive position for the first time. Most of the Republican senators have remained silent. The Indiana House already has the votes; the Senate needs at least 25 “yes” votes to make redistricting happen. Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith, one of the earliest proponents of redistricting, could be a 26th vote if he’s needed to break a tie. With all ten Democratic senators likely to vote “no,” only 15 of the 40 Republicans have to vote no for the measure to fail.

Unfortunately, Sen. Greg Goode of Terre Haute is a maybe, writing on X: “For those trying to bully me on redistricting, I love you. I pray to our Lord and Savior for wisdom and reflect on political heroes who stood up for the greater good above the politics of the day.”

Make sure Senator Goode knows your opinions so he can make his decision according to his constituents. Give him a call at (317) 233-0930, or use the webform from MADVoters.

In a follow-up to a story that appeared in Blue812News Issue 39, Sherriff Fell has issued a statement via the Sherriff’s Office Facebook page. In the statement, he describes an internal review that included reviewing the body cam footage in question in addition to other body cam videos from recent years involving Deputy Brown, as well as conversations with members in the recovery community and the administrative team.

Corrective action for Deputy Brown includes the following:

Vigo County is seeking public input to help identify and remove barriers for individuals with disabilities. Share your feedback through this survey by November 7 to support a more accessible community.

Facing threats, political pressure and a Supreme Court that has frequently not had their backs, lower court judges are still doing vitally important work to keep this administration’s power within the bounds of the law. Let’s acknowledge their work and send encouragement to keep it up!

District court judge April Perry temporarily blocked Trump from deploying National Guard troops to Illinois over the objections of Governor Pritzker.

Send a postcard or note thanking Judge Perry:

Judge April Perry
Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse
219 South Dearborn Street
Chicago, IL 60604

District court judge Rudolph Contreras issued a temporary restraining order on moving children who came to the country unaccompanied into adult facilities when they turned 18. The Trump Administration had been violating a 2021 court order against that exact practice.

Send a postcard or note to thank Judge Contreras

Judge Rudolph Contreras
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia
333 Constitution Avenue, N.W.
Washington D.C. 20001

A federal appeals court in Boston ruled that Trump cannot rewrite the Constitution to end birthright citizenship, upholding the ruling originally made by U.S. District Judge Joseph Laplante.

Write a note or postcard to Judge Laplante for the original ruling:

The Honorable Judge Joseph N. Laplante
United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire
55 Pleasant Street, Room 110
Concord, NH 03301

I just learned about HoosiersRise, a collective of independents working to create an ongoing activist atlas filled with calendar events, resources, connections, & community across the state. Their calendar is very comprehensive - including forums, trainings, town halls, protests, and mutual aid - and it covers the whole state. You can find the calendar here.

Nasty Women calendar | Indivisible Wabash Valley calendar |HoosiersRise calendar

Tuesday, October 28th at 6pm: Live-action Theatrical Rally, 6-8pm at the Pride Center. PLEASE DO NOT bring signs, the organizers have special signs to hand out for specific messaging. More information & register here

Tuesday, November 4th at 3pm: Mingle with the Mayor at Grand Traverse Pie Co. At this informal and relaxed gathering, various topics will be covered each month with opportunities to ask questions and voice concerns. Free pie and coffee will be served courtesy of Clinton Gardens.

Tuesday, November 4th at 5pm: Vigo County Council meeting in Annex building Council Room.

Thursday, November 6th at 6pm: Terre Haute City Council meeting at City Hall

On Wednesday afternoon, Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) concluded a marathon 22-hour floor speech in which he warned it was time to “ring the alarm bells about authoritarian control.”

During oral arguments this week, a three-judge panel of the Third Circuit Court of Appeals appeared deeply skeptical of the Trump administration’s effort to detain and deport pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil, the former Columbia University student being punished for his political views.

Voting rights groups have sued Indiana SoS Diego Morales over a law impacting new citizens.

Virginia Democrats are planning to redraw their state’s congressional districts to gain extra House seats, in an effort to counter Republicans’ nationwide redistricting.

Arizona filed a lawsuit accusing Speaker Mike Johnson of violating the Constitution by refusing to allow Representative-elect Adelita Grijalva (D) to take her seat in Congress.

Reps. Raskin and Garcia launched an investigation into Trump’s “blatantly illegal” plan to steal $230 million from U.S. taxpayers.

Most Americans - including 80% of Democrats and 41% of Republicans - think the U.S. should recognize Palestinian statehood, a sign that President Donald Trump’s opposition to doing so is out of step with public opinion.

Trump’s time in the White House runs out in:

There is some speculation that Warren G. Harding was murdered by his own First Lady. Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.