Extra! Extra! 7/6

Flowers on the steps of our troubles.

Flowers on the steps of the Los Angeles Detention Center as faith leaders finish up another spectacular prayer vigil for victims of ICE raids.

Hi, all, and happy Sunday.

Sorry this is so late. I had to fly Mj to Boston from Los Angeles yesterday (Saturday) and then today (Sunday) drive them to Maine to camp, then turn around and drive back to Boston to catch the last flight out back to L.A., which is what I’m on now. As much as I wish I could master driving and working at the same time I simply can’t pull it off, so I’m quite behind on this newsletter. I was hoping to get it out before midnight tonight but it looks like, airplane wifi being what it is, it’ll be a bit after that.

Anyway. I know it’s been an absolutely awful week—one of the worst so far, and that’s saying something. So it’s more important than ever that we take a moment to consider the good things that also happened, simultaneously to the destruction. It’s not being pollyanna to say that even in the worst possible weeks, some good news does occur. This week was no exception.

So take a few minutes to read and enjoy the good tidings below. It’ll help bolster your spirits for the fight ahead. And remember, what we focus on tends to grow, so let’s make sure we give glad tidings their due.

OK, all. Enjoy, share, and re-read once or twice! Talk tomorrow!

Read This 📖

Thanks to the subscriber who drew this piece to my attention. I’d missed it, even though I regularly read Truscott. It’s terrific.

A decent human being

Celebrate This! 🎉

A group of EPA employees published a declaration of dissent from the agency’s policies under the Trump administration, saying they “undermine the EPA mission of protecting human health and the environment.”

The Miccosukee Tribe is partnering with the Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation to safeguard lands as part of a ‘moral obligation.’

A coalition of 20 states has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration for sharing personal health data with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

The AI deregulation provision came out of Trump’s bill. The vote to strip it out was almost unanimous.

Key West City commissioners voted 6-1 to void the 287(g) agreement with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Nice job local activists (some of whom are subscribers!) for helping to make this happen!

9,000 Philadelphia city workers are on strike for the first time in 40 years as they fight for better pay, benefits, and more.

Gavin Newsom signed a bill to scale back CEQA, an environmental law from the 70’s that’s made it almost impossible to build new housing in the state.

E. Jean Carroll says she plans to give away the millions Donald Trump was ordered to pay her—just to annoy him.

Tesla’s new delivery numbers are in, and they’re worse than expected.

Terminated NIH grants are being reinstated almost entirely in blue states.

Trump dropped his lawsuit against Iowa pollster Ann Selzer and the Des Moines Register.

Singer Sabrina Carpenter has raised $1M for mental health initiatives and LGBTQ+ rights in less than a year.

Warren Buffett announced he will donate $6 billion more in Berkshire Hathaway shares to five charities.

A federal judge in Washington ruled that the Trump administration can’t categorically deny asylum claims from people crossing the southern border.

A government ban on Hungary’s annual Pride parade backfired when more than 100,000 people marched through the Hungarian capital, far more than have taken part in previous such events.

Tuesday’s election of Imperial Beach Mayor Paloma Aguirre to fill a vacant seat on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors put Democrats back in control of San Diego’s most powerful governmental agency.

An iPhone app called ICEBlock is alerting users to nearby ICE sightings. Its designer said he wanted to do something to help in the face of what he sees (correctly) as rising fascism.

A federal judge ruled that recent mass layoffs at the HHS were likely unlawful and ordered the trump administration to halt plans to downsize and reorganize the nation’s health workforce.

Catholic bishops from Asia, Africa and Latin America penned a first-ever joint ecological appeal ahead of the next U.N. climate conference in November.

A federal judge blocked the Trump administration from ending temporary protected status early for Haitians who had their TPS extended until February.

Oil and gas drilling have contracted slightly in the last quarter due to Trump’s tariffs.

A Tennessee man pardoned by President Trump for taking part in the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6 is back behind bars, for life.

Singer Angélique Kidjo became the first African performer to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Thanks to Mayor Brandon Scott’s focus on violence intervention programs, Baltimore has seen a nearly 23 percent drop in murders from this time last year.

It’s small consolation, but Trump’s megabill is, according to Dan Pfeiffer, “the least popular piece of major legislation passed since the advent of polling nearly a century ago.”

A billboard depicting Trump as “Swamp King" is now on display in Phoenix, AZ.

Six months into congestion pricing in New York City traffic is down and business is up. Also, the revenue generated by the program is funding critical transit upgrades that will benefit millions of New Yorkers. Suck it, Robert Moses!

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries broke the record for the longest House floor speech, speaking for eight hours and 45 minutes in an attempt to stall the final vote of Trump’s vicious bill.

National parks were recently told of a new Interior Department policy requiring them to post signs asking visitors to report any employees teaching “negative” history. The vast majority of visitors are using the feedback forms instead to praise park programs, rangers, tour guides, and more.

After decades of pollution, a California community has secured a $550 million settlement from Chevron.

A 6-year-old Honduran boy with leukemia whose arrest sparked a public outcry after he, his mother and sister were seized by ICE agents and sent to a Texas detention center is back in Los Angeles.

After being temporarily detained, the Freedom Flotilla has set sail again to bring life-saving humanitarian relief to Gaza.

Runners protesting ICE covered 15 miles through immigrant communities in Los Angeles this weekend in the “Run Against ICE Resistance Relay.”

Rep. Mark Green has officially resigned from Congress. Good riddance.

​Texas became the first red state to pass a ‘right to repair’ law.

Flint, Michigan, has replaced most of its lead water pipes, more than 10 years after contaminated water was found in its water system, prompting national outrage.

In Pasadena, CA, dozens pitched in to help a 14-year-old boy who recently took over his family's tamale cart in Pasadena after they stopped coming out due to fears over the immigration raids.

The Yale Program on Climate Change Communication’s opinion maps show that majorities in all 50 states now think climate change is impacting weather patterns, and 63% are worried about it. The maps also reflect strong support for several climate policies and initiatives

Joe Rogan is continuing to sour on Trump. So is Musk, who started a new political party over it.

A group in San Diego is patrolling neighborhoods to identify potential ICE presence. They keep watch for vehicles that may belong to federal agencies, and use livestreams, radios, and social media to keep communities informed.

A combined 15 U.S. cities and states are raising minimum wages, effective this week!

Pete Buttigieg, Stacey Abrams, J. Michael Luttig, Sophia Bush and many more launched a new initiative to fight for our democracy and freedom together.

Students in Illinois with high enough grades will be able to automatically qualify for admission into state universities under a new law signed by Gov. JB Pritzker.

A coalition of groups, ranging from environmental activists to Native Americans advocating for their ancestral homelands, converged outside an airstrip in the Florida Everglades Saturday to protest the imminent construction of “Alligator Alcatraz.”

Europe’s largest floating solar farm is now operational in France.

There are more than 20 million fewer children in child labor today than in 2020.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court formally struck down an abortion ban from 1849 that had technically taken effect after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe. Thanks, Janet Protasiewicz!

A federal court granted a preliminary injunction in a challenge brought against the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the U.S. African Development Foundation (USADF).

One of America's first Black churches is being rebuilt on its original site in Williamsburg, Virginia.

The San Diego County Board of Supervisors has unanimously voted to consider a program that would improve emergency housing for veterans living on the streets in unincorporated areas.

The world's most endangered sea turtle is nesting in record numbers along the Texas coast this year.

Watch This! 👀

Bad Bunny celebrated the Puerto Rican diaspora and immigrant community this Fourth of July by releasing the music video for "NUEVAYoL" off his latest album. In it he takes a clear stand against Trump's anti-immigrant policies and rhetoric and for the immigrant community. Bravo!