Trump’s terrible day / Talk about derangement / Journalism in jeopardy

Trump’s terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day—in court. Intelligencer is tracking the ways judges are blocking the president’s agenda …
 … including a ruling yesterday that the “Department of Government Efficiency” dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development probably violated the Constitution.
 Norm Eisen, who chairs the State Democracy Defenders Fund, which brought the case, calls the ruling “a milestone in pushing back on … DOGE’s illegality.”
 Trump told Fox News last night he will never defy the courts—but also undercut that pledge: “You have to start looking at what do you do when you have a rogue judge?”
 MSNBC’s Steve Benen: “Republican lawmakers have launched impeachment efforts targeting sitting members of the federal judiciary for ruling in ways that Trump didn’t like. And there is no precedent for that.” (Cartoon: Jack Ohman, whose free newsletter you should certainly be getting.)
 New York Times columnist Jamelle Bouie (gift link): “Trump has gone from unconstitutional to anti-constitutional.”

‘John Roberts is increasingly unnerved by the leopard eating his face.’ That’s Discourse blogger Rafi Schwartz’s characterization of the Supreme Court chief’s rejection of Trump’s call to impeach a judge who ruled against his deportation plans.
 Public Notice columnist Lyz Dye: “When the attorney general is promising to defy a court order, the nation is in grave trouble.”
 Axios: Trump’s running “a multipronged, methodically planned strategy to push the Supreme Court to bless his power to deport vastly more people with vastly fewer judicial restraints.”
 In a letter from a federal immigration detention center, Columbia University student Mahmoud Khalil declares, “I am a political prisoner.”
 Read the letter here.
 Washington Post columnist Karen Attiah (gift link, courtesy of Chicago Public Square supporters): “What happened to him should chill all Americans.”

‘An armed assault on the U.S. government.’ Rachel Maddow recaps the DOGE takeover of the U.S. Institute of Peace.
 The Revolving Door Project: “DOGE’s onslaught against the federal workforce … will soon be responsible for the premature deaths of people throughout the United States.”
 Economist Paul Krugman: Why Elon Musk has it in for Social Security.

‘The latest in a string of firings at agencies designed to be insulated from the White House.’ That’s how Politico sees Trump’s dumping of the Federal Trade Commission’s Democratic members.
 Columnist and former Labor Secretary (under Bill Clinton) Robert Reich calls those firings illegal: “One result … will be higher prices for American consumers because the FTC cop is now off the beat” …
 … aaaaaand, as of this morning, Wired reports, the FTC has dumped posts critical of Amazon, Microsoft and AI companies.

Does AI qualify for First Amendment protection? As Illinois lawmakers consider rules governing artificial intelligence tech in elections, the American Civil Liberties Union is raising free-speech concerns.
 Platformer’s Casey Newton characterizes the Trump administration’s AI policies as “let’s see what happens.”
 A Tribune headline on a story about Northwestern Medicine’s trial of new tech: “Would you let a robot draw your blood?

Talk about derangement. A Minnesota Republican pushing a bill to designate “Trump Derangement Syndrome” a mental illness category for critics obsessed with Trump has been arrested on charges of soliciting a minor for prostitution.
 The sheriff police chief of the town filing the charges has declared it an “Orange Jumpsuit District.”
 Jimmy Kimmel: “Trump Derangement Syndrome … is a very serious condition. But many people who suffer from it can lead happy, productive lives. Some even host their own late-night talk shows.”

‘Good-ish’ news. Columnist and former Illinois Rep. Marie Newman sees reasons for Democrats to be at least a little cheerful.
 Pod Save America co-host Dan Pfeiffer: After “a hellish past few weeks,” they may be nearing “their Tea Party moment.”
 Gov. Pritzker’s targeting Trump’s impact here with a “Standing Up for Illinois Tour” beginning today in Champaign-Urbana.

Journalism in jeopardy. WBEZ’s under investigation from the newly Trump-compliant FCC for airing “underwriting” messages in possible violation of a federal ban on public-broadcasting commercials.
 WBEZ’s nonprofit corporate sibling, the Sun-Times, is losing 20% of its staff under a buyout offer.
 A member of Politico parent Axel Springer’s board accuses its reporters of being “woke,” and led by management that “does not dare to fire them.”
 The Wrap’s Brian Lowry sees a trend: Media figures attacked by Trump have increasingly “chosen not to engage, either fearing Trump’s vindictiveness … or simply seeing little percentage in getting drawn into the sort of dispute that will trigger the ire of the MAGA faithful.”
 But the AP’s David Bauder says that, even as CBS corporate leaders consider Trump’s $20 billion lawsuit against 60 Minutes, the show’s been unflinching in its Trump coverage.

Weather watch. Severe thunderstorms could target Chicago this afternoon and evening.
 And maybe a tornado.

Ready to vote early? The Chicago Public Square Voter Guide Guide’s been corrected: Haven’t registered yet? Too late to do so online for this go-round, but you can do it in person up to and including Election Day.
 Thanks to reader—and former Oak Park village clerk—Terri Powell for the catch.

‘Thank you for doing what you do! I look forward to your email every day.’ — Those kind words yesterday accompanied a reader’s support for Square. You can join her for as little as $1, once.
 And you can use PayPal if you prefer.
 Chris Koenig made this edition better.

Surprise Israeli airstrikes / ‘The perfect Trump lickspittle’ / ‘Outright theft’ / Snap!

Surprise Israeli airstrikes. Updating coverage: More than 400 Palestinians are dead in an assault that ended a monthlong ceasefire and threatens to reignite the war.
Donald Trump’s Justice Department and the FBI have set up a task force to investigate Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel—and, notably, to target Americans who may have supported Hamas.

‘The president of the United States considers me an enemy and has promised retribution.’ Democracy Docket founder and Democratic election lawyer Marc Elias says that, since Jan. 20, he gets asked almost daily, “Are you worried?”—and, although he says the answer’s yes, “I will continue to fight.”
Dahlia Lithwick and Mark Joseph Stern at Slate: “We’ve officially entered the next phase of Trump’s dictatorship era.”
In what critics are flagging as a security risk, First Bro Elon Musk’s Starlink internet Wi-Fi service has been installed across the White House campus.

‘We did not authorize or condone the White House’s use of our song in any way.’ The band Semisonic’s unhappy the White House used its song “Closing Time” as the soundtrack for a social media post showing a shackled deportee.
A new lawsuit accuses the feds of arresting 22 people in the Midwest illegally since Trump returned to office.
Law professor and former U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance warns, “Deportations: It’s not where it starts, it’s where it ends.”
USA Today’s Rex Huppke has a new slogan for the U.S. National Travel and Tourism Office: “Come to America! You might win a free trip to El Salvador!”
France called—and it wants its Statue of Liberty back.

‘The perfect Trump lickspittle.’ Wonkette’s Gary Legum considers White House border czar Tom Homan “so dumb that a syphilitic howler monkey could mate him in three moves in a chess match.”
As the Tribune rolls out its endorsements in suburban elections, it’s backing a challenger to Orland Park’s mayor, who attended a December holiday bash featuring Homan.
Ready to vote? The Chicago Public Square Voter Guide Guide’s here for you.

If Illinois were more like California … A new Northwestern University study concludes that adopting California-style limits on truck pollution could save 500 Chicago-area lives a year.
The New York Times (gift link): More than 1,000 scientists could be laid off under a Trump plan to dismantle the EPA’s scientific research arm. (Cartoon: Jack Ohman.)

‘Your approval is only seven points ahead of where it turns red and goes into low-power mode.’ Daily Show host Jon Stewart rips into Democrats for their submission on Republican spending plans.
Public Notice: Democrats’ concession was months in the making.

About those abortion pills … Popular Information: Trump promised to protect access to them, but, um, that was then.
Abortion, Every Day author Jessica Valenti: “Stop believing Republicans … especially when it comes to abortion rights.”
Stat: The Trump administration’s canceled funding for a landmark diabetes study.

‘Outright theft.’ In a front-page editorial, the Tribune—along with other Alden Global Capital-owned newspapers across the country—slams OpenAI and Google for trying to “steal the content created with the sweat equity of America’s human journalists” to train artificial intelligence products.
Axios: “AI firms argue that using public data to ‘teach’ AI models is a fair use … similar to the use case search engines make in cataloging online information.”
Author and tech watchdog Cory Doctorow: “AI can’t do your job, but an AI salesman (Elon Musk) can convince your boss (the USA) to fire you and replace you (a federal worker) with a chatbot that can’t do your job.”
The Freedom of the Press Foundation: Wired is dropping paywalls for Freedom of Information Act-based reporting. Others should, too.

Petitions, anyone?
Consumer Reports is urging the Federal Trade Commission to outlaw the creation of an AI fake of your voice without your consent.
The nonprofit Free Press Action is petitioning the Federal Communications Commission, now under the leadership of Project 2025 coauthor Brendan Carr, to abandon a “campaign of intimidation and censorship.”

Snap! Tedium’s Ernie Smith explores the Illinois origin of things you probably encounter every day: “The plastic buckles where you use two fingers to press in, and the two pieces of plastic disconnect from one another.”
Here’s the patent filing. (Image: PxHere.)

The day things changed. Axios Chicago reviews how the COVID-19 pandemic affected life in Illinois.

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