FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
ABC7
— Hundreds detained as part of immigration ‘Operation Midway Blitz’ ordered released on bond
https://abc7chicago.com/post/hundreds-detained-part-federal-immigration-operation-midway-blitz-ordered-released-bond-judge-says/18148124/
— DD: Democrat employers use DEI a) to not hire Republicans and b) to get rid of their Republican employees.
https://abc7chicago.com/post/city-chicago-sues-us-department-justice-dei-restrictions-community-policing-hiring-grant-mayor-brandon-johnson-says/18148498/
WLS
— Judge orders release of hundreds arrested in Illinois immigration crackdown
https://www.wpsdlocal6.com/news/wls-judge-orders-release-of-hundreds-arrested-in-illinois-immigration-crackdown/article_6e83bab3-06f8-5136-93e5-50b4ea730813.html
WTTW
— Chicago Will Stop Investing in US Treasury Securities to Protest ‘Authoritarian’ Trump, Treasurer Announces
https://news.wttw.com/2025/11/12/chicago-will-stop-investing-us-treasury-securities-protest-authoritarian-trump-treasurer
WGN RADIO
— DD: Democrat and RINO leaders ever-increasingly promote Pat Brady.
https://wgnradio.com/lisa-dent/pat-brady-rahm-emanuel-epstein-files/
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— Federal judge says he’ll order release of hundreds of ‘Operation Midway Blitz’ arrestees on bond
https://wgnradio.com/lisa-dent/pat-brady-rahm-emanuel-epstein-files/
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— Illinois steps up where feds fall down in making college affordable. DD: What made college affordable for you? Way back when I was young, way back in the 1960s, many of my high school classmates did not try to earn a college degree because their parents could not afford it. My parents could not afford it. My father often decried his not having a college degree. So I bought a 1958 Chevrolet Bel Air in 1964 with money I had earned doing yard work and delivering newspapers. I used that car to get to/from my parents’ home in Crete and my minimum wage dishwashing job in the basement of the S.S. Kresge in Chicago Heights. I took college preparatory courses. I got an ACT score of 24. I graduated in the upper 20% of my Crete-Monee High School class. UIC accepted me. I used the money I had earned washing dishes to but a new 1966 Pontiac Tempest Sprint in May of 1966. I used that car to get to/from summer jobs during 1966 and then classes at UIC. The Park Forest Post Office hired me in November of 1966. I used the money I earned delivering mail to pay not only for my college expenses but a new 1968 Oldsmobile 442 in 1967 and a new 1969 Dodge Charger SE in 1968. I transferred from UIC to NIU in January of 1969. I graduated debt-free from NIU with a bachelor’s degree in business in August of 1970.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/other-views/2025/11/12/illinois-college-costs-trump-administration-students-color-low-income-denise-forte-juliana-stratton
FOX ILLINOIS
— Trump faces criticism from MAGA base over comments on American workers. DD: Employers want cheap labor. Noncitizens work for less money and are easier to exploit.
https://foxillinois.com/news/nation-world/president-trump-faces-criticism-from-maga-base-over-comments-american-workers-laura-ingraham-h1b-scott-bessent
(FROM THE ARTICLE: President Donald Trump’s recent defense of the H-1B visa program has stirred controversy, even among his staunchest supporters. During an interview with Laura Ingraham, Trump had a back-and-forth with the Fox News host over the H-1B visa program. “You also do have to bring in talent,” Trump said. “We have plenty of talented people here,” replied Ingraham. “No, you don’t, no you don’t,” Trump replied, causing Ingraham to press him on whether or not we have talented American workers domestically. “You don’t have certain talents and people have to learn. You can’t take people off an unemployment line and say I’m going to put you into a factory and you’re going to make missiles,” Trump said. These remarks contrast sharply with an executive order he signed in September, which increased H-1B visa application fees to $100,000, up from the previous $2,000 to $5,000 range. The comments have been perceived as a slight against American workers, drawing criticism from figures like Steve Bannon. “All the visa programs…I think we’ve got enough folks, until everyone has a high-paying, high-value job,” he said on his “Bannon’s War Room” show Wednesday. Pro MAGA voices on social media expressed outrage, with some labeling the comments as “insanity” and predicting electoral losses. However, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent defended the president’s stance Wednesday morning, citing the lack of domestic production in industries like shipbuilding and semiconductors. “An American can’t have that job because we haven’t built ships in the US for years, we haven’t built semiconductors, so this idea of overseas partners coming in, teaching American workers, then returning home, it’s a home run,” he told Fox News. The H-1B visa issue has been a contentious topic within the MAGA movement since late 2024, when figures like Elon Musk and Vivek Ramswamy faced criticism for supporting the program to attract tech workers.)
NPR ILLINOIS
— Who is Laura Loomer, President Trump’s self-described chief ‘loyalty enforcer’?
https://www.nprillinois.org/2025-11-12/who-is-laura-loomer-president-trumps-self-described-chief-loyalty-enforcer
NAPERVILLE COMMUNITY TV
— DuPage County Trade Apprenticeship Expo sees record attendance
https://www.nctv17.org/news/dupage-county-trade-apprenticeship-expo-sees-record-attendance/
CAPITOL FAX
— Afternoon roundup
https://capitolfax.com/2025/11/12/isabel%e2%80%99s-afternoon-roundup-422/
FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
ILLINOIS FREEDOM CAUCUS
— It’s The Holiday Season…and the Democrats Dumped More Coal In Your Stocking. Veto Session 2025 Looked Like Something The GRINCH Would Have Planned For Christmas… tax increases, legal suicide, restricting law enforcement and more.
https://illinoisfreedomcaucus.substack.com/p/its-the-holiday-seasonand-the-democrats
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES
NEW YORK POST
— Epstein emails: The Dems and their lapdogs with laptops cry Wolff again
https://nypost.com/2025/11/12/opinion/epstein-emails-the-dems-and-their-lapdogs-with-laptops-cry-wolff-again/
AMERICAN CONSERVATIVE
— MAGA’s ‘Multiracial Coalition’ Was a Mirage. DD: To get more votes from those who are the following, Democrat candidates ever-increasingly promise to use government to give them more preference: minority, female, younger, LGBTQ, unmarried, veteran, non-Protestant, non-German American, have ancestors who have not been in America for a long time, have less money than others, are noncitizens, etc.
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/magas-multiracial-coalition-was-a-mirage/
BLAZE
— Trump celebrates historic crime drop in hostile sanctuary city after federal ‘blitz’
https://www.theblaze.com/news/trump-celebrates-historic-crime-drop-in-hostile-sanctuary-city-after-federal-blitz-dhs
DAILY SIGNAL
— Noem Pledges ‘Surge’ of Resources to Chicago After Pritzker Calls Bovino a ‘Snowflake’
https://www.dailysignal.com/2025/11/12/noem-pledges-surge-resource-chicago-after-gov-jb-pritzker-calls-top-immigration-official-snowflake/
CAMPUS REFORM
— Northwestern helps illegal alien students access employment, health care, scholarships, and more. As ICE increases enforcement operations near Chicago, Northwestern continues programs that shield illegal alien students from the law. The university provides illegal aliens with wellness workshops, scholarships, hotlines, travel guides, free health care, career series, graduate school opportunities and more. DD: All the universities that admitted me would admitted noncitizens instead of me if they could have. All the employers that hired me would have hired noncitizens instead of me if they could have. My critics/opponents have no problem with that.
https://www.campusreform.org/article/northwestern-helps-illegal-alien-students-access-employment-health-care-scholarships-/28936
DAILY WIRE
— Border Agents Head To Charlotte After Illegal Immigration Sweep In Chicago. Border Patrol chief for California’s El Centro sector, Gregory Bovino, will also head to Charlotte, sources said.
https://www.dailywire.com/news/border-agents-head-to-charlotte-after-illegal-immigration-sweep-in-chicago
EPOCH TIMES
— Trump Defends Plan To Offer 600,000 Chinese Student Visas. DD: All the universities that admitted me would admitted noncitizens instead of me if they could have. All the employers that hired me would have hired noncitizens instead of me if they could have. My critics/opponents have no problem with that.
https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/trump-defends-plan-to-offer-600000-chinese-student-visas-5943597
FOX NEWS
— A member of Sen. Tammy Duckworth’s office allegedly signs forms while misrepresenting himself as the attorney of an illegal immigrant. ICE said person’s purported client had already been deported four times and convicted of a DUI.
https://www.foxnews.com/video/6385005028112
HOMELAND SECRITY
— Operation Midway Blitz Brings Historic Drop in Crime to J.B. Pritzker and Brandon Johnson’s Chicago
https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/11/12/operation-midway-blitz-brings-historic-drop-crime-jb-pritzker-and-brandon-johnsons
NEWSMAX
— Trump’s ‘Midway Blitz’ Slashes Chicago Crime: Carjackings Plunge 48%
https://www.newsmax.com/us/trump-dhs-chicago/2025/11/12/id/1234241/
PJ MEDIA
— California Issued 17,000 CDLs to ‘Dangerous Foreign Drivers’
https://pjmedia.com/catherinesalgado/2025/11/12/california-issued-17k-cdls-to-dangerous-foreign-drivers-n4945903
FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES
WMAL
— Trump Endorses Abbott for Fourth Term in Texas. DD: Which candidates on the March 17, 2025 Republican primary ballot in your precinct a) have sought Trump’s endorsement and/or b) have received Trump’s endorsement?
https://www.wmal.com/2025/11/12/trump-endorses-abbott-for-fourth-term-in-texas/
USA TODAY
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly use Carlson and Fuentes to paint Republicans as being antisemites. My Democrat superiors in the federal government used their Jewish superiors and supervisors to take many big adverse actions against me. They stressed to them that I was conservative, Republican, Protestant, and 100% German American. They stressed that I lived in Crete 1948-1972 and in Wheaton since 1978.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/11/12/carlson-fuentes-interview-maga-rift/87210363007/
BLOOMBERG
— DD: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly use Carlson and Fuentes to paint Republicans as being antisemites. My Democrat superiors in the federal government used their Jewish superiors and supervisors to take many big adverse actions against me. They stressed to them that I was conservative, Republican, Protestant, and 100% German American. They stressed that I lived in Crete 1948-1972 and in Wheaton since 1978.
https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2025-11-12/tucker-carlson-nick-fuentes-will-force-gop-to-confront-antisemitism
SPLC
— DD: Democrat leaders use Kirk’s assignation against Republicans.
https://www.splcenter.org/resources/hatewatch/charlie-kirk-trans-shooter-myth/
FROM FOREIGN SOURCES
INDEPENDENT
— ICE recruits are showing up for training with disqualifying criminal backgrounds. DD: In my defense, my Democrat Post Office, IRS, and GAO superiors fully vetted me. But they hired me only because they could not find a qualified Democrat, minority, female, younger person, and/or veteran who would take the job. I qualified myself for my Post Office job by passing the postal employment examination and earning a high school diploma. I qualified myself for my IRS job by passing the Federal Service Entrance Examination and earning a bachelor’s degree in business. I qualified myself for my GAO job by earning an MBA and passing the CPA examination on my first attempt.
https://www.aol.com/news/ice-recruits-showing-training-disqualifying-160752475.html
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Immigration and Customs Enforcement is flush with cash for an aggressive recruiting campaign to fulfill Donald Trump’s mass deportation agenda. But new recruits are reportedly failing physical fitness requirements and entering training programs before the agency performed background checks or finished a screening process. ICE officials have discovered that some recruits failed drug testing or had disqualifying criminal backgrounds while they were already enrolled in training, according to NBC News. Since the beginning of a summer hiring surge after the president approved $178 billion to expand the agency into one of the most expensive police agencies in the world, ICE has dismissed more than 200 new recruits while they were in training for falling short of requirements, according to agency data reviewed by NBC. Most did not meet physical and academic standards — including failing open-book tests — while several were dismissed for their criminal backgrounds or over safety concerns that were flagged in background checks, the outlet reported. At least one recruit at the agency’s training academy in Brunswick, Georgia, had been previously charged with strong-arm robbery and battery stemming from a domestic violence incident, according to a Homeland Security official speaking to NBC. Several recruits also had not submitted fingerprints or gone through any background checks at all before entering the six-week training course, officials said. Homeland Security deputy secretary Tricia McLaughlin claimed that a majority of new recruits are former law enforcement officers who go through a different hiring process; per ICE policy, applicants are required to pass drug tests and undergo a security check before they enter training. McLaughlin said the figures in NBC’s report are “not accurate” and “reflect a subset of candidates in initial basic academy classes.” “The vast majority of new officers brought on during the hiring surge are experienced law enforcement officers who have already successfully completed a law enforcement academy,” she said. “This population is expected to account for greater than 85 percent of new hires. Prior-service hires follow streamlined validation but remain subject to medical, fitness, and background requirements.” The Trump administration has aimed for hiring 10,000 ICE agents by next year, or roughly doubling its footprint, with a major boost to the agency’s Enforcement and Removal Operations division. Critics have warned that hitting that 10,000 target — without adequate guardrails to screen future agents and know exactly who is filling those roles — the government could open the door to repeat past mistakes, as ICE faces intense legal scrutiny over allegations of abuse and illegal use of force as Trump surges federal officers into cities across the country. “The loosening of hiring standards and training requirements is unacceptable and will likely result in increased officer misconduct — similar to or worse than what occurred during a small surge in hiring U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers in the early 2000s,” Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin wrote to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem this week. “Exacerbating our concerns, DHS has gutted offices responsible for overseeing ICE officers and ensuring accountability for use-of-force incidents,” he added. “Given these developments, greater congressional oversight of ICE’s hiring is essential.” To boost recruitment, Homeland Security offered a “maximum $50,000 signing bonus” and student loan forgiveness. DHS also dropped age limit requirements, allowing people as young as 18 years old to apply and opening ICE to recruits older than 40 years old. The training period at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Georgia shrunk from 13 weeks to eight — and then six. Recruits must also pass a physical fitness test, including running 1.5 miles under 14 minutes and 25 seconds. But dozens of new recruits were sent packing because they couldn’t pass a legal exam, in which officers are allowed to use their books and notes for a test on the Immigration and Nationality Act and the Fourth Amendment. Another group of recruits was dismissed after medical issues or failing the physical fitness requirements. “It’s pathetic,” one career ICE official told The Atlantic. The federal government has been struggling to enroll physically fit personnel to join the ranks since even before Trump, with military branches also regularly failing to meet recruiting goals. One Pentagon study found that more than three-quarters of Americans between the ages of 17 and 24 were ineligible for service because they were overweight, unable to pass an aptitude test, afflicted by physical or mental health issues, or ruled out by a criminal record.)
