Some weeks, I find it impossible to isolate just one heroic or even a few heroic figures in the fight for democracy, truth, and decency. That is when I know we have reached a transformative moment that engages people from all walks of life and all parts of our constitutional system.
From different corners of America, we saw the best of our neighbors: From Haven Watch (a new group that waits outside the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis to “help newly released people get home, contact their loved ones and stay safe from the cold”) to the volunteers bringing coffee to mourners at the memorial site for Alex Pretti to the nurses demonstrating around the country to honor one of their own.
On the Hill, Senate Democrats blocked a vote to fund the Department of Homeland Security without any meaningful reforms, something unimaginable just a week ago. And we were delighted to see Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) telling off Vice President JD Vance and to witness Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) standing up to an assailant and to a president who eggs on hate and spurs violence against those he demonizes.
We found hope in lawmakers promising to impeach DHS Secretary Kristi Noem if she does not resign or is not fired; in advocates pushing for a long list of reforms and restrictions on DHS (and ultimately scrapping it and starting over); and in the No Kings coalition announcing its next mass day of protest (March 28).
Less noticed in the maelstrom of news, several standouts in the faith and legal communities played key roles in fortifying our moral and constitutional values.
The Catholic Church continued to act as a moral beacon for the entire country, religious and secular. Archbishop Paul S. Coakley, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, denounced the “current climate of fear and polarization, which thrives when human dignity is disregarded [and] does not meet the standard set by Christ in the Gospel.”
Likewise, Archbishop of Newark Cardinal Joseph Tobin declared that we must say “no” to “the machinery of death”:
One way that we say “no” is that we mourn, we do not celebrate death, and what is probably worse, we do not pretend it doesn’t happen. We say names. We pray for the dead. We mourn for a world, a country, that allows 5-year-olds to be legally kidnapped and protesters to be slaughtered....
How will you say “no?” How will you say “no” to violence? How will you say “no” this week when an appropriations bill is going to be considered in Congress? Will you contact your congressional representatives, the senators and representatives from your district? Will you ask them, for the love of God and the love of human beings, which can’t be separated, to vote against renewing funding for such a lawless organization?
In the legal realm, District Court Chief Judge Patrick J. Schiltz ripped the Trump regime in a letter to the 8th Circuit in response to the government’s writ of mandamus regarding his denial of arrest warrants for five individuals accused, at worst, of entering a church to yell at its members. Not only was the writ wholly unnecessary (and without proper notice to the judge), but the only conduct at issue seemed to be protected First Amendment conduct, Schiltz said bluntly.
Separately, Schiltz, appointed by George W. Bush, “excoriated” ICE for violating “nearly 100 court orders stemming from its aggressive crackdown in the state.” He pointed out that Immigration and Customs Enforcement had disobeyed more judicial directives in January alone than “some federal agencies have violated in their entire existence.” Though he temporarily let the acting ICE director off the hook from testifying, Schiltz made clear that ICE has become a lawless, rogue agency:
This list should give pause to anyone — no matter his or her political beliefs — who cares about the rule of law. ICE has likely violated more court orders in January 2026 than some federal agencies have violated in their entire existence. The Court warns ICE that future noncompliance with court orders may result in future show‐cause orders requiring the personal appearances of Lyons or other government officials. ICE is not a law unto itself. ICE has every right to challenge the orders of this Court, but, like any litigant, ICE must follow those orders unless and until they are overturned or vacated.
One hopes that the notoriously right-wing 8th Circuit and the Senate (deciding whether/how to rein in the murderous operations) are paying attention.
Meanwhile, nine local prosecutors founded The Fight Against Federal Overreach (FAFO) — a reference to the slang phrase F*** Around, Find Out favored by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, among others — to coordinate efforts to hold accountable federal officials responsible for violating state and local criminal laws. District attorneys from Minneapolis (Mary Moriarty), Philadelphia (Larry Krasner), Austin (Jose Garza), Dallas (John Creuzot), and Pima County, Arizona (Laura Conover), and four Virginia localities put out a press release announcing they will “share strategies and best practices among prosecutors, provide regular public updates on efforts to rein in unlawful federal conduct and educate the public on what paths are legally available, and coordinate on accountability efforts across jurisdictions.”
Though no one doubts the difficulties involved in local and state prosecutors pursuing federal officials who normally enjoy protection under the Supremacy Clause, the Trump regime’s notion that violent, roving bullies enjoy “absolute immunity” is flatly wrong.
States and localities can prosecute if the federal agent was not performing “an act that he was authorized to do by federal law and did more than “what was necessary and proper.” The execution of Alex Pretti certainly seems to fall squarely within the Supremacy Clause’s carve out.
FAFO’s announcement underscores that Donald Trump, Stephen Miller, and JD Vance have moral if not legal responsibility for the mayhem and deaths that ensued when federal agents took them at their word. Perhaps the DAs’ engagement will prompt ICE and Customs and Border Protection to change their approach, if only out of fear that they will end up as defendants in state murder trials.
Minneapolis has shown the country and the world what courageous, organized, and morally righteous defense of democracy looks like. These heroic actions may well have set in motion the collapse of the MAGA tyranny project. But it does take all segments of society to defeat fascism. This week, we were heartened to see the Catholic Church’s efforts to rouse Americans from their moral indifference and Judge Schiltz’s and FAFO’s efforts to reel in lawless shock troops menacing Americans.
We should salute them all — and find inspiration to do our part in freeing America from the clutches of authoritarianism and cruelty.
Thank you, Jen, for using the huge skills you have as a writer, observer, and lawyer to rouse us to action. We are so fortunate that you greet us every morning with your insight.
I appreciate yesterday ‘s list of things we can do from far away to suppose those in Minnesota.
" THIS HAS BEEN....THE MOST SUCCESSFUL YEAR OF ANY ADMINISTRATION IN AMERICAN HISTORY" *
*Donald J Trump's statement to the press at his January 29, 2026 cabinet meeting, after which he took no questions.
From deploying his newly labelled Department of War to murder over 100 suspected drug smugglers, including survivors on the high seas, to invading a country to oust its ruler to capture their valuable oil fields, to threatening 8 of our closest allies with exorbitant tariff increases unless they agreed to get out of his way so he could seize ownership of Greenland, to sending armed troops to blue cities to supposedly quell protests but actually to incite violence to justify their oppressive military presence, to sending gangs of heavily armed masked Gestapo-type goons with fabricated warrants to forcibly enter homes to drag out suspected illegal immigrants and murdering protesters in the process, this has truly been an exceptional year.
What better way to congratulate himself than by inducing his friends and business acquaintances with deep pockets and lucrative present and/or prospective government contracts to contribute over $300 million to demolish the east wing of the White House to build a gold- encrusted ballroom to celebrate this historical accomplishment, which clearly puts George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, FDR and even Ronald Reagan to shame.
I'm sure that Trump will have the presence of mind to ensure that Epstein's name will not be mentioned during the festivities and that the tons of gold decorations in his ballroom will not clash with his newly gold-encrusted Oval Office to preserve the imperial theme of his presidency.
With all this self-promotional fanfare in the midst of a country being torn apart by a corrupt despot and megalomaniac, his thugs and his enablers, there is a line from Shakespeare's Macbeth that keeps coming back to me:
"Now does his title hang loose about him like a giant's robe upon a dwarfish thief"