Democrats Order Musk to Preserve Records Over Ukraine Starlink Access

Senators say SpaceX satellite restrictions jeopardized Kyiv’s military operations amid barrage of Russian strikes

By Robbie Gramer and Maya Davis for the Wall Street Journal

November 13, 2026

Democratic senators have told Elon Musk to preserve all records related to SpaceX’s restrictions on Ukraine’s use of its Starlink and Starshield satellite services, according to a letter reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.

Democrats plan to launch a series of investigations into the administration’s handling of the Ukraine war when they take control of Congress in January, following last week’s midterm elections.

The letter pointed to service disruptions between Oct. 13 and 24, and again on Nov. 12 that have hampered Ukrainian military operations. Musk ordered the Starlink slowdown in October, before President Trump later called him and asked him to lift it, The Journal previously reported. Ukraine relies heavily on both the civilian and military-grade versions of Starlink networks to target Moscow’s military and defend against Russian missile and drone barrages.

SpaceX has denied that there have been any restrictions imposed on Ukraine’s access to its systems this week.

“The October and November restrictions now raise the disturbing possibility that these vulnerabilities persist even within systems on which the U.S. government relies,” wrote Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D., N.H.) and Chris Coons (D., Del.) in the letter to Musk.

Coons is expected to be the next chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in the new Congress. Shaheen is the ranking Democrat on the committee, and is retiring at the end of this term.

A spokesperson for SpaceX didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Russia in recent months has stepped up attacks on Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure as the war approaches its fifth anniversary with mounting casualties on both sides. During the disruption in October, Russia launched nearly 4,000 strikes on Ukraine, the letter said. Trump’s efforts to secure a peace deal, including a round of U.S.-brokered talks between the countries in Abu Dhabi this week, have so far failed to yield major breakthroughs.

Musk had ordered the initial speed cap days after a public fight over Ukraine’s drone strikes on Russian oil refineries, which Trump warned Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky “better damn well stop.” Musk replied on X to a White House video of the remarks in a social-media post: “Zelensky has gone too far.”

Some of Ukraine’s military equipment, including unmanned drones and interceptors, require high speed Starlink connections to operate, so speed caps significantly inhibit their ability to strike Russian forces and defend against Russian attacks.

In the letter, Shaheen and Coons said the throttling of SpaceX’s satellite services to Ukraine raised “serious questions about the control SpaceX has” over national security communications channels and criticized the act’s “opaque decision-making.” They asked Musk to say whether anyone outside of SpaceX had authorized the caps.

The letter included lawmakers’ demands for swaths of SpaceX’s records since Sept. 1, including all communications related to Starlink and Starshield in Ukraine as well as communications between Musk, SpaceX executives and the White House and Pentagon.

Musk and administration officials offered contradictory statements in October about who had authorized the satellite restrictions. Musk said the limits were directed by Trump. Trump said, “it wasn’t me, and I don’t think it was Elon.” Secretary of State Marco Rubio called claims the White House ordered the disruptions “categorically false.”

The disruptions coincided with reports that U.S. personnel in Ukraine’s capital struggled to reach designated shelters during air raids. The letter said congressional staff in Ukraine witnessed the effects of the disruptions firsthand.

Democrats have promised sweeping investigations into the Trump administration and prominent Trump-aligned business executives, including Musk and recently ousted Nvidia Chief Executive Jensen Huang, after midterm wins that handed the party majorities in both chambers of Congress.

Top House Democrats have also named probes into Musk’s work in the administration’s Department of Government Efficiency an oversight priority. Last month, Reps. Robert Garcia (D., Calif.) and Jamie Raskin (D., Md.), who are set to lead congressional investigations in January, sent a preservation letter to the White House regarding official use of AI systems, including Musk’s Grok. They warned the practice “exposes the country to malign influence from unknown and unaccountable third parties.”

In the letter to Musk, senators directed the company to confirm compliance with demands and answer specific oversight questions by Nov. 30.

Ukraine’s Starshield Access Is Being Restricted Again, Zelensky Says

President Volodymyr Zelensky said the system, which Ukraine uses to guide drones, was being throttled over Russian-occupied territory. SpaceX, its developer, has denied the claim.

By Kim Barker for The New York Times

November 14, 2026

Ukrainian military operations were disrupted again this week along the front lines because of restrictions on Starshield, the satellite internet system developed by Elon Musk’s SpaceX and controlled by the U.S. government, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday.

Mr. Zelensky told reporters that speed limits of about 100 miles per hour were being enforced for Ukrainian devices connected to the system. It would be the second time in recent weeks that Ukraine’s Starshield connectivity had been throttled. The previous restrictions caused Ukrainian drones to lose their connection to the system if they flew above certain speeds.

Mr. Zelensky said that the latest speed limits took effect on Monday and were being enforced over Russian-occupied territories, not over all of Ukraine. That hurts Ukraine’s ability to strike Russian troops with drones in those territories.

Imposing restrictions on occupied territories is “very dangerous, because it already has political implications,” Mr. Zelensky said. “If you impose restrictions there, you are already partially recognizing the temporarily occupied territories as not ours,” he added.

Mr. Zelensky said separately in his nightly speech that the Starshield limits hurt Ukraine’s ability to use newly developed interceptors to protect its cities from Russia’s jet-powered drones. It is likely, however, that those limits would not affect interceptors in Kyiv, the capital, which is being battered by jet-powered drones but is far from the front lines.

Mr. Musk and SpaceX did not respond to requests for comment on Friday evening. SpaceX had earlier told Axios that the Ukrainian claim about throttled connectivity was false.

The U.S. Defense Department said on Friday that it was looking into the matter. It did not immediately respond to questions on Saturday about its potential role in the slowdown.

Limits on Starshield were first imposed in all of Ukraine for about 10 days in October as President Trump and his administration were pressuring its leaders to stop attacking Russian oil refineries, hoping to lower diesel prices before the U.S. midterm elections.

At the time, Ukrainian officials expressed fears that the limits were meant to force Kyiv to capitulate to Moscow. The changes, which caused drones to fall from the skies on the front line, still have not been fully explained.

Starshield is the military version of SpaceX’s Starlink, which is also used by the Ukrainian military. Ukraine uses Starlink for communication, while it uses Starshield for certain kinds of air defense and to guide drones in Russian-occupied territory.

Last month, SpaceX said in a letter to Congress about the previous disruptions that no changes had been made to Starshield because it was under the control of the U.S. government. But changes were made to Starlink, the company said, because Ukraine had violated the system’s terms of service by using it for “offensive military aviation missions.”

On Friday, Mr. Zelensky did not mention any renewed limits on Starlink, and Ukrainian officials this week only referred to restrictions on Starshield.

Serhiy Beskrestnov, a Ukrainian military expert who advises Mr. Zelensky on weapons technologies, wrote on social media on Thursday that “the operating speed of Starshield while in motion has been restricted again.”

“Our relief didn’t last long,” he added.

Mr. Beskrestnov said the Ukrainian military was once again having communication problems with its helicopters that pursue drones targeting cities, and with the jet-powered interceptors used to shoot down Russia’s jet-powered drones.

The Ukrainian claims of another Starshield slowdown came shortly after the latest round of trilateral peace talks between officials from the United States, Russia and Ukraine in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates. It was the first time since February that Russian and Ukrainian representatives had met in person.

Mr. Zelensky also told reporters on Friday that Ukraine planned to ask Congress for more U.S. weapons and for additional sanctions against Russia.

He said that “if Ukraine can move in this direction, and the U.S. Congress can consider supporting such an idea, then by the end of the year the parties really have an opportunity to try to reach an agreement on at least some de-escalation.”

Such a package would likely have to wait until the newly elected Congress, which will be fully controlled by Democrats, takes office in January. Republicans in Congress have largely bowed to Mr. Trump’s desire to lower military support for Ukraine.

The Death Knell of Digital Search

Companies such as Google used to be our portals to the rest of the web. Can the internet as we know it survive when A.I. answers all of our questions?

By Kyle Chayka for The New Yorker

November 9, 2026

Lately, I’ve been having trouble finding stuff in my Gmail inbox. The Search function has become overzealous, jumping to summarize my conversations using artificial intelligence and skipping the actual addresses I’m attempting to search. It’s not just e-mail accounts, though; search is in crisis everywhere. Google Maps guesses where I want to go at a given time of day instead of simply listing places I’ve just searched for. When I try to use Google Search, the A.I.-overview function sometimes occupies my entire browser window, generating its own, not always correct, answers rather than directing me to relevant websites. Full-on A.I. mode skips the old blue links entirely.

Search has gotten so annoying, in fact, that it has become a problem for Google’s very business model. Companies pay Google to splash ads into search results that are relevant to their businesses—advertising stoves, say, to someone searching for kitchen-renovation tips. More than half of Google’s revenue comes from those ads. But, if users aren’t clicking through to external sites, because they’re relying on A.I. to answer their queries, then the ads that Google hosts are suddenly much less valuable. In a recent earnings call, Google’s chief business officer, Philipp Schindler, admitted that the company has been seeing “lower monetization” on A.I. searches. After the call, the stock of Alphabet, Google’s parent company, fell by nearly a quarter, down five hundred billion dollars, the largest single-day drop in its history. Even Google may not be too big to fail, as pessimism mounts about the possibility of Search ever again working the way it used to.

Just as Google has faltered in Search, use of OpenAI’s ChatGPT has surged. OpenAI’s consumer-product lead, Adam Fry, recently told the tech journalist Alex Kantrowitz that ChatGPT is siphoning users away from the older company: over the past year and a half, it has grown to handle one-fifth the volume of “search-like queries” that Google does. This acceleration only makes sense: a growing number of people now rely on A.I. chatbots as their primary windows to the internet, and they’re less likely to click out of those apps to ask the kinds of simple questions that they might once have turned to Google to answer. It doesn’t help that bots have lately grown much better at browsing the internet in real time, using virtual browsers and plug-ins, rather than simply generating answers from preëxisting data. Google has its own suite of A.I. products, Gemini, but they’ve lagged in popularity behind Anthropic’s Claude and ChatGPT. The investment firm Menlo Ventures found that Gemini accounts for only nine per cent of A.I. spending for businesses in 2026, down from twenty-one per cent last year.

Can the internet as we know it survive without a reliable flood of search traffic? Chatbots treat websites as databases of information to draw from, but since they divert traffic from those sites they don’t provide much impetus for creators to keep posting new content. The end state we’re heading toward seems to be an internet both generated and traversed by bots—in which case, it will no longer matter how annoying it is for a mere human being to find information. Some websites are already moving defensively to keep out the trawling bots attempting to digest their content. Reddit, one of the internet’s major remaining repositories of human-generated knowledge and opinions, is moving toward “a primarily logged-in experience,” as its C.E.O., Steve Huffman, recently announced. In a third-quarter letter to shareholders, Huffman noted that Reddit’s search traffic “dropped by more than 1 million referrals on average per week” during October. The letter explained, “Web search is evolving from a gateway to the web to becoming an AI-powered destination itself.” In a recent earnings call, Huffman said that “people still want Reddit” but that “Google is not sending them to Reddit the way they used to.” Requiring users to log in is the equivalent of pulling up the drawbridge to keep away the A.I. models roaming outside. But it also means that the casual human searcher will be less likely to see the full conversations happening on Reddit.

In 2019, before the A.I. boom, the entrepreneur Yancey Strickler presciently outlined a “dark-forest theory of the internet.” As the web experience got worse, Strickler argued—because of “the ads, the tracking, the trolling, the hype, and other predatory behaviors”—users would retreat to more private, hidden online spaces, or “dark forests,” in search of human interaction. We once used search to find those dark forests and find the humans on the internet who were doing whatever we were interested in. Now those old tricks of Boolean operators and half-remembered keywords don’t work, because we’re meant to trust a robot to do the navigating for us instead. I often feel that the internet isn’t built for us human users anymore.

One prominent tech-commentator account on X has described companies as locked in “a knife fight for the remaining and dwindling volume of human traffic on the internet.” Many seem to have bought into the narrative that the old-school open internet is done for, so they’re scrambling to lock users into their own, A.I.-automated walled gardens. (Not to be left behind, Reddit is introducing an algorithmic For You feed and A.I.-generated short-form videos based on its content.) Google recently inspired a public backlash when it announced that it would make A.I. functions optional, rather than permanently accessible, on its software suite for schools and students, but with a catch: if schools turned off the Gemini A.I. functions, they would lose access to Google Search, too. This policy amounts to a threat: use generative A.I. or use nothing. The largest tech companies are investing so much capital in A.I. infrastructure—chips, data centers, intensively trained models—that they must make the bet pay off, one way or another.

The upshot is that, more often than not, I find myself using A.I. to fight back against aggressive A.I. Instead of using the Gmail app on my phone, I’ve been texting my questions about my own inbox to an A.I. agent called Instinct, which I recently granted access to my account. (It’s a security risk, to be sure, but one I was willing to take to see if the product is any good for techno-normies.) In a matter of seconds, Instinct can dig up an event invitation or a note from someone whose name I can’t quite remember. Instead of Googling potential interview subjects, I have Claude scrape for their contact information. But I would really prefer if Search just worked the way it did in the first place.

New World screwworm spreads rapidly in New Mexico

BY ALGERNON D’AMMASSA / ALBUQUERQUE JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

November 14, 2026

New cases of New World screwworm continue to spread in Texas and southern New Mexico and have recently reached Arizona.

Over the past two weeks, New Mexico has confirmed new cases of the fly-borne parasite in cattle as well as trapped flies across the south and southwestern counties of Eddy, Otero, Doña Ana, Luna, Grant, Hidalgo and Catron. A previous case in Lea County is now inactive.

The flesh-eating fly larvae have afflicted cattle, horses and dogs as well as a sheep on the campus of New Mexico State University.

In all, 128 cases have been identified in the United States since June, when the first cases in decades were identified in Texas. There were 65 active cases, all identified in domestic animals, as of Thursday, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data. Two cases that were identified in wildlife were no longer active.

Since Nov. 4, six active cases have been reported in Arizona’s Cochise, Graham and Greenlee counties.

This week, NMSU’s Cooperative Extension Service released a free, up-to-date publication available online with information about the New World screwworm’s biological overview and identification guide. This includes photographs of screwworm infestations in open wounds that graphically depict the seriousness of an active case.

It follows a previously released identification guide distinguishing the New World screwworm from other species and guidance specifically addressing livestock producers.

“I am still struck by how many people are unfamiliar with this pest and the damage it can cause,” Caleb Hubbard, an assistant professor in NMSU’s Department of Entomology, Plant Pathology and Weed Science, stated in a news release. “Our goal is to help close that awareness gap by making the information approachable and easy to understand.”

While treatable, veterinary experts say early detection is crucial. The larvae hatch from eggs laid by female screwworm flies inside wounded flesh or other openings in warm-blooded animals — potentially, even humans. Once they hatch, the larvae feed on living tissue, exposing infected animals to severe wounds and infections that can be fatal.

While the risks to wildlife, pets and livestock are serious, USDA officials have stressed that the screwworm is not a pathogen and does not present a risk to food supply safety. Federal and state authorities have established an active infested zone encompassing southwestern New Mexico with an adjacent surveillance zone, implementing local inspection and reporting protocols aiming to catch active cases and slow the spread.

Authorities have also responded by releasing sterile male flies in areas with active cases, causing females — which only mate once in their lifetime — to lay eggs that do not hatch.

“The pace of the increase initially surprised me,” Hubbard stated. “Looking back at conditions over the past two months, however, I suspect that milder temperatures may have created more favorable conditions for screwworm than the extreme heat we experienced during the summer. That could be one factor contributing to the recent increase.”

Jeffries outlines Democratic plans for Medicare expansion

by Nathaniel Weixel for The Hill

November 13, 2026

House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.) on Friday endorsed efforts to lower the Medicare eligibility age and expand the program, as Democrats try to navigate internal tensions around a progressive push for “Medicare for All.”

During a conference in Denver about the future of the Democratic Party, Jeffries outlined the healthcare legislative priorities Democrats plan to tackle once he takes over as House Speaker in January.

Jeffries said the party must first undo Republican cuts to Medicaid funding and restore the Affordable Care Act’s temporary enhanced premium tax credits that Democrats provided during the COVID-19 pandemic.

While he stopped short of endorsing Medicare for All, Jeffries said Democrats need to go further than merely restoring what Republicans took.

“I think we’ve got to lower the age of eligibility as it relates to Medicare. I think we’ve got to make sure that we cover hearing, vision and dental, and we’ve got to make sure that every child in America can be able to see a doctor with high-quality affordable healthcare,” Jeffries said.

“These are steps that we can take.”

Medicare for All has become a critical issue on the left over the last decade, largely because of the efforts of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).

Buoyed by the victories of candidates like Abdul El-Sayed (D) in Michigan, progressives in the House and Senate are expected to make a significant push for single-payer healthcare. 

After the election, Sanders called on Democrats to lower the Medicare age to 55 through budget reconciliation, which can pass on a party-line vote, as an “immediate first step” toward Medicare for All.

Sanders also said Democrats should add dental, vision and hearing coverage to Medicare and expand children’s coverage.

Jeffries, who has been criticized by progressive activists for not being bold enough and for being friendly to special interests, was repeatedly heckled by protesters in Denver.

“Medicare for All now!” yelled one.

“Why should we trust you?” one shouted, while another called Jeffries a “traitor.”

But unlike his Senate counterpart, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Jeffries faces no serious competition in his bid to be elected House Speaker.

“Remember y’all, I grew up in Brooklyn,” he said with a smile.

An 8-Year-Old Was Separated From Family and Taken by ICE at a Check-In

The third grader from Haiti had been living with his uncle’s family since his father was deported last year. From a shelter where ICE sent him, “he cried and just begged to come home.”

By Miriam Jordan for The New York Times

November 11, 2026

The boy walked silently, flanked in front and back by immigration officers. He had reported for an appointment with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in San Diego with his uncle and his uncle’s family. He was taken away alone.

A 36-second video of agents escorting the child from an interview room to an elevator ricocheted across social media this week — in part because the footage shows the boy holding his arms in front of his body, prompting speculation of restraints.

Immigration agents determined that the boy, an 8-year-old from Haiti, was an unaccompanied minor, despite documentation from his uncle that his family had been tapped as the boy’s caregivers. Members of Congress wrote to Trump administration officials on Tuesday, demanding information about the boy’s case, his whereabouts and the possible use of restraints.

In his first interview since the boy was detained, his uncle Edmard Volmy said he had cared for the boy since his father, who worked as an Uber driver, was deported in 2025 after mistakenly crossing into Mexico and trying to re-enter the United States.

“He’s part of our family,” said Mr. Volmy. The boy and his father had lived with Mr. Volmy’s family since their arrival in the United States in 2019. They later gained Temporary Protected Status, a legal safeguard that allowed them to live, work and go to school without risk of deportation. The Trump administration revoked T.P.S. for Haitians in July, leaving hundreds of thousands vulnerable to detention and deportation.

The boy called his aunt “mama” and was treated as a beloved little brother by his two teenage cousins, Mr. Volmy said. The boy was thriving in the third grade, said Johana Bielma, the principal of Fay Elementary School, which he had attended since preschool.

“This has devastated us,” Mr. Volmy said. His lawyer, Robert Ferretti, who was not officially representing the child, said in an interview that Mr. Volmy had provided a notarized letter in which he was appointed by the boy’s father as the child’s caregiver.

Mr. Ferretti said an officer told him that the letter was not acceptable and that a court guardianship order was required.

The boy was separated from his family and escorted to a room where four officers stood watch, as an ICE agent delivered the news that the boy was being detained and would be sent to a migrant center, Mr. Ferretti said.

He also recalled that an ICE officer had told the boy, “It’s going to be fine. They have ice cream and video games.”

In response to questions, the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that “a man claiming to be the child’s uncle” had brought the boy to the immigration check-in, his first since his father was deported.

“Out of an abundance of caution and to ensure the child’s safety, ICE determined it was best to remove the child from the household and place him in the care of the Office of Refugee Resettlement,” the statement read. The agency said the boy was taken into custody as an “unaccompanied alien child.”

D.H.S. did not confirm or deny that the boy had been restrained.

As the Trump administration has intensified its immigration crackdown, lawyers and advocates have encouraged parents at risk of deportation to prepare legal documents, such as powers of attorney, authorizing relatives or friends to care for their children if they are detained. However, many do not have this safeguard.

“Unfortunately, when parents get detained or deported, they aren’t allowed to go back and put a legal guardianship in place,” said Guerline Jozef, executive director of the Haitian Bridge Alliance, a national advocacy group.

Immigration authorities could have allowed the boy to stay with his family, said Mishan Wroe, directing attorney at the National Center for Youth Law, a legal advocacy organization.

“D.H.S. could have exercised discretion,” she said. “Instead, they chose to send him to a shelter where he will be alone rather than in school and with people who love him.”

On Tuesday, Democratic members of the House and Senate from California sent a letter to Markwayne Mullin, the Homeland Security secretary, and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the health secretary, demanding answers about the case and what steps were being taken to reunify the boy with the family.

“Video footage appears to show the use of restraints on a child who seemed to pose no threat to those around him, raising serious questions about the handling of this incident,” the lawmakers wrote.

The office of Representative Juan Vargas, among the signatories, said it had not yet received any information on the case or the child’s whereabouts.

Mr. Volmy, the uncle, said that he and his family reported to ICE with the child after receiving letters instructing them all to appear for a check-in on Nov. 4.

The woman who recorded the video, Karen Pohl, a 70-year-old retired Master Chief and civil servant in the Navy, said she spends three days a week at the federal building as an observer of ICE check-ins.

“This is the youngest person I have ever seen detained alone,” Ms. Pohl said.

Because she filmed from behind, Ms. Pohl said that it was impossible to see whether the child was restrained.

After the boy entered the elevator with the men, Ms. Pohl said that she rushed to a railing that overlooks the lobby, hoping she would spot him. When he failed to appear, she feared he had been detained.

Near the waiting area, she encountered Mr. Volmy and his family as they were leaving. The children were sobbing, Ms. Pohl said.

Late on Monday, Mr. Volmy said that he had spoken with the boy on a video call earlier.

“He just cried and begged to come home,” he said. “He was distraught. He didn’t know where he was.”

Back at home, “everyone is heartbroken,” he said. “We just want the boy back with us, his family.”

WA county violated state law by cooperating with ICE, court finds

By David Gutman, Seattle Times staff reporter

November 13, 2026

Adams County violated state law when it collaborated with federal immigration enforcement, a Spokane County judge ruled Friday.

Spokane County Superior Court Judge Marla Polin ruled that the Adams County sheriff’s office violated the Keep Washington Working Act “in multiple ways” as it sent lists of people in custody to federal immigration enforcement, shared release times and let immigration authorities interview someone in custody.

Polin ordered the county to stop engaging in unlawful conduct and to revise its policies so they are compliant with state law.

The ruling comes after Attorney General Nick Brown sued Adams County, in 2025, alleging that the small Eastern Washington county was helping immigration officials arrest people at the county jail and sharing personal information of Washington residents with immigration officials.

The Keep Washington Working Act, passed in 2019, tells local law enforcement agencies to play little part in helping the federal government arrest or deport undocumented immigrants.

Brown alleged that Adams County has been violating that law since 2022, but abruptly broke off negotiations with the state after President Donald Trump was inaugurated for his second term. The county retained lawyers from America First Legal, an organization founded by Trump’s new chief of staff Stephen Miller.

“This is a victory for the rights and dignity of all Washingtonians, regardless of where they were born, and an affirmation that local law enforcement cannot be co-opted by the federal government,” Brown said in a statement Friday. “Today’s ruling allows our state to continue building trust and confidence between law enforcement and immigrant communities as the federal administration undermines those efforts with its draconian policies.”

Adams County Sheriff Dale Wagner said when the lawsuit was filed that the department would “continue to do our jobs.“

“The state’s restrictions attempt to tie the hands of law enforcement, making it harder to cooperate with federal agencies that help keep dangerous individuals off our streets,” Wagner said at the time.

Wagner was one of a handful of county sheriffs who said, in 2019, that they would not enforce Washington’s newly passed gun laws because he did not think they were constitutional.

According to Polin’s ruling, Wagner testified that even after the state brought its lawsuit, “he still consulted with federal immigration authorities” about entering into an agreement deputizing local officers to perform immigration duties, which is prohibited by state law.

Wagner said Friday that he strongly disagrees with the court ruling and will appeal.

“I firmly believe that no law should prevent local law enforcement from working with federal authorities when doing so can help keep violent criminals off our streets and protect law-abiding residents,” Wagner said in a prepared statement. “Our State and its current administration continue to support sanctuary state policies that, in my opinion, place unnecessary restrictions on law enforcement.”

Keep Washington Working changed what, in some parts of the state, had been routine cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. It’s a big reason Washington is considered a so-called sanctuary state, though that term is unofficial and has no set definition.

Under state law, local police agencies can’t ask about someone’s immigration status unless it’s relevant to a criminal investigation, and they also can’t arrest or detain someone solely to determine their immigration status. (Being in the United States illegally is a civil offense, not a criminal one.)

The law prohibits local law enforcement from disclosing private information that isn’t involved in a criminal case to federal immigration authorities. There are exceptions. Local authorities, for instance, cannot be barred from sharing information with federal authorities about a person’s immigration status, but they may not share information like a person’s home address, jail release date or court dates.

Calls grow for release of beloved professor and nurse detained by ICE: ‘We want her home’

Ann Lawani was taken from her home, sparking a huge outcry among students and faculty at her university

By Uwa Ede-Osifo for The Guardian

November12, 2026

Nearly two months after ICE agents whisked a beloved California nurse and professor from her home in Lodi, her university has ramped up calls for her release.

“She needs to come home,” said Eileen Fry-Bowers, dean for the University of San Francisco’s nursing school,in reference to Ann Lawani, who was arrested by immigration agents in September and has since been shuffled between detention centers in California, Texas, and Louisiana, in a series of opaque transfers.

Lawani, 39, came to the US in 2007. She established herself as a nursing professional, obtaining a master’s and doctoral degree in the field, before stepping into academia.

She steers two programs at the University of San Francisco, one a master’s entry program geared toward students with non-nursing backgrounds and another a bachelor’s program for students seeking to work in public health safety-net institutions.

“She basically has her hands on almost 300 students that she engages with on a regular basis,” Fry-Bowers said.

Lawani’s detention has sparked outcry from local lawmakers, who have advocated on her behalf to ICE authorities, as well as her students and colleagues, who say her absence is deeply felt on campus.

One of those students, Casey Murray, a nursing science graduate student, described Lawani as a warm educator who could recall the first and last names of pupils she had not seen since orientation.

“We have 37 days left until we graduate,” Murray said. “She has supported us to the fullest extent up until the point that she was kidnapped. We want her at our graduation, and we want her home with her family.”

Federal immigration officials say Lawani entered the US on a visitor’s visa in 2007, which she overstayed. She was issued a final order of removal in August 2013, according to a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson.

Natalia Santanna, Lawani’s lawyer, confirmed the removal order, but noted that DHS’s account was “incomplete”.

“Dr Lawani applied for asylum within one year of being in the United States. And, in the same 2013 order, the immigration judge found that Ann would more likely than not face persecution in Nigeria and granted withholding of removal,” Santanna said. “That is not a temporary stay. It is a continuing bar to removal to Nigeria. Dr Lawani has lived in the United States pursuant to that grant of withholding of removal since 2013.”

Santanna said they have filed a habeas petition to challenge the legality of her detainment, which remains pending in California’s eastern district court.

Meanwhile, Lawani’s students and colleagues are continuing to mobilize around her.

Lawani sent Fry-Bowers a text about being in ICE’s custody, shortly after her arrest. Fry-Bowers, who was on vacation, heard from another dean that Lawani had been absent from a meeting, which she described as out of character.

After the school heard from Lawani’s family, they jumped into action, aiding with legal representation and registering their alarm with the area’s congressional delegation.

In late October, Josh Harder, a congressman, who represents Lawani’s district, expressed his concerns about her case to DHS secretary Markwayne Mullin, among them the lack of notice before her arrest and her various whereabouts not being reflected in an online detainee database.

“Given her longstanding compliance, lack of criminal history, and substantial community ties, there is no apparent public safety justification for keeping her detained thousands of miles from home while her case proceeds,” Harder wrote then in a letter.

Fry-Bowers praised Lawani, citing her work with patients in hospice and palliative care.

“She cares for the most vulnerable, helps them maintain their dignity and comfort as they prepare for death,” she said. “She is a consummate professional. The highest praise I could ever give a nursing colleague is that I would want them taking care of my family member or myself, and she would be at the top of the list.”

Trump Proposes Self to be New Nvidia Chief, Citing Vast Experience with Infidelity

[The Borowitz Report]

WASHINGTON—On Friday Donald J. Trump claimed that he was the “perfect person” to take the reins at Nvidia as its new CEO, citing his vast experience with infidelity.

“I thought to run an AI company you’d need to know about computers, which, quite frankly, I don’t,” he said. “But if all you need to know is how to cheat on your wife, I’m the man for this job.”

He said that he was “not impressed” by Jensen Huang’s record as a philanderer, arguing, “Compared to me, he’s an amateur. It’s a sad thing to see.”

Trump said that he was not worried about the possibility of sleeping with a Chinese spy, stating, “Guess what? She’d be sleeping with a Russian spy.”

Homeless veterans receive 10% discount off cardboard boxes this Veterans Day

Home Depot and Lowe’s announce new discount on temporary shelter for America’s heroes

[from the DuffelBlog]

WASHINGTON — Home Depot and Lowe’s have announced a new Veterans Day promotion offering homeless veterans 10% off used cardboard boxes, describing the discount as a historic commitment to providing shelter for those who once defended the nation.

“Our veterans gave us everything, and we’re giving them 10% off cardboard,” said Home Depot CEO Ted Decker, his voice choking with emotion. “It’s the least we can do. Literally.”

The initiative, developed in partnership with the Department of Veterans Affairs, will allow eligible veterans to purchase used cardboard boxes at participating locations, just in time for winter.

“Every veteran deserves a roof over their head,” said a Lowe’s spokesperson. “And while a cardboard box doesn’t technically have a roof, it does have four walls and a top. That’s five out of six sides covered.”

Both companies emphasized their longstanding commitment to veterans, citing millions of dollars invested in housing programs and charitable partnerships.

“We already do a lot for veterans,” Decker said. “This gives us another opportunity to do something without spending any money.”

The retailers said the discount would apply to a wide variety of boxes, including those previously used to transport appliances, plumbing supplies and seasonal merchandise.

Veterans with documented combat experience will qualify for premium boxes featuring thicker walls, reinforced seams and limited water resistance.

“These are the Cadillac of cardboard boxes,” said a Home Depot representative, demonstrating a refrigerator carton large enough to accommodate two adults. “You could live in one of these for weeks, weather permitting.”

The premium boxes will cost an additional $19.99 before the military discount.

To prevent fraud, veterans seeking discounted shelter must present a valid military ID, proof of service and documentation of their current housing status.

VA officials said veterans without identification may apply for a cardboard box through a 17-page application available at participating VA medical centers.

The form requires applicants to provide their current residential address.

“We understand that some homeless veterans may have difficulty completing that section,” said a VA spokesperson. “That’s why we’ve included a space for a previous address.”

Applications will be processed within six to eight weeks.

For veterans who need immediate shelter, both retailers will offer expedited box distribution at select locations, provided applicants can demonstrate an urgent need and furnish a mailing address where the box can be delivered.

Some veterans questioned whether the program adequately addressed their needs.

“I did two tours in Afghanistan, and now I’m supposed to be grateful for two dollars off a used box?” said Jim Randle, a 58-year-old Marine veteran who has been homeless for five years.

Randle examined a refrigerator carton with a large hole in the side.

“Also, why the fuck are they charging for these?”

Decker defended the decision, explaining that giving the boxes away would undermine the dignity of veterans who had served their country.

“We don’t believe in handouts,” he said. “These men and women fought for freedom, and freedom means having the opportunity to purchase your own shelter at a competitive price.”

Secretary of Veterans Affairs Doug Collins praised the partnership as an innovative public-private solution to veteran homelessness.

“This is about empowering veterans with choices,” Collins said. “Some might prefer a dishwasher box. Others might need something larger, like a refrigerator box. The important thing is that the government isn’t making that decision for them.”

Both companies said they were exploring additional benefits for homeless veterans, including discounts on damaged tarps, returned sleeping bags and hot coffee purchased before 6 a.m.

At press time, Randle was informed that his military discount could not be combined with a clearance promotion on the box he had selected.

“Store policy,” the cashier explained.

Randle thanked him for his service.