Sanctuary policies across the United States may be in jeopardy after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled on Tuesday that the federal government holds the authority to deport illegal aliens even when local authorities object.
A panel of three judges unanimously sided with President-elect Donald Trump's administration in a lawsuit against King County, Washington, and county executive Dow Constantine.
'A huge win.'
At the center of the complaint was Constantine's April 2019 executive order that prohibited Boeing Field, the county's international airport, from being used by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to facilitate deportations.
The executive order highlighted the sanctuary county's commitment to shielding immigrants and refugees from federal immigration officials.
It read, "Effective policies have been put in place to guarantee that King County does not partner nor collaborate with the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, demonstrated by King County's refusal to honor Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention detainers without a valid court order with regard to its correctional facilities."
The order stated that the county learned in 2018 that "aircraft operated by charter operators were providing services" to ICE and utilizing the airport "as a location for transportation of immigration detainees."
It called the practices "deeply troubling," claiming that it "could lead to human rights abuses."
As a result of Constantine's executive order, ICE relocated its operations, forcing the agency to increase its costs.
Trump's administration filed a lawsuit, arguing that the order violated the Supremacy Clause's intergovernmental immunity doctrine and the Instrument of Transfer agreement.
The district court previously sided with Trump, and King County moved to appeal the ruling to the Ninth Circuit. However, the appeals court upheld the lower court's ruling.
The Ninth Circuit panel found that Trump's administration had "two related concrete and individualized injuries."
"The United States' inability to conduct the charter flights — which has increased ICE's operational costs — constituted a de facto injury that affected the United States in a particularized, individual way. The United States also faced an imminent risk of future injury from the Executive Order," the filing read.
The court found that the "injuries were fairly traceable" to Constantine's order, noting that ICE charter flights would likely have resumed in its absence.
The Ninth Circuit further held that the order "improperly regulated the way in which the federal government transported noncitizen detainees by preventing ICE from using private FBO [fixed base operator] contractors at Boeing Field, and on its face discriminated against the United States by singling out the federal government and its contractors for unfavorable treatment."
Tom Homan, Trump's incoming border czar, called the appeals court's rulings "a huge win" for the administration's mass deportation plan.
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The Biden-Harris administration euthanized a 50-year-old elephant in Washington, D.C., on Friday. Its name was Kamala.
While zookeepers, members of Kamala's herd, and distant animal lovers mourned the creature's death, some commentators suggested online that Kamala's demise — so soon after the New York Department of Environmental Conservation's slaying of Peanut the squirrel and on the eve of the election — might constitute some sort of omen.
The National Zoo, one of the many federally owned Smithsonian Institution facilities in the D.C. area, announced Saturday that after helping manage Kamala's osteoarthritis for 10 years, the creature's keepers elected to "humanely" dispose of her.
According to the zoo, Kamala — not an African elephant but rather an endangered Asian elephant from Sri Lanka that was orphaned as a calf then raised by humans — found it increasingly difficult over the past several weeks to move, suffering limited motion in her wrists, hips, and shoulders. The elephant's degenerative disease affected her joint cartilage and the underlying bone, leaving her stiff and in constant pain.
'The elephant grew up in a middle class family.'
Hoping the flat terrain might help, the zoo let Kamala and her herd mates parade around the Elephant Community Center and neighboring outdoor habitat. Unfortunately, this change of scenery didn't help as the old elephant "increasingly chose to stand in one spot rather than move about."
The zoo also indicated that Kamala's pain medications were no longer a match for her osteoarthritis.
On account of her limited mobility and increasing discomfort, Kamala's keepers euthanized her in the Elephant Barn.
"The elephant care team fondly remembers Kamala as a smart and inquisitive individual who held a dominant role within the herd," the zoo said in a release. "She built strong bonds with her keepers and enjoyed their attention. Whenever keepers approached, she would rumble and squeak, behaviors that indicated her happiness and excitement."
Kamala was born in Sri Lanka in the mid-1970s, moved to Canada for a period during which she birthed two offspring, then was transferred with her daughter to the National Zoo in 2014.
Owing to the late elephant's namesake in the United States Naval Observatory, superstitious commentators online suggested Kamala's death had greater meaning while others made jokes at the vice president's expense.
Rob Eno, Blaze Media's director of content marketing, tweeted, "The die has been cast. The omens have been read."
Social media influencer Douglass Mackey, the man sentenced to prison last year for Hillary Clinton memes, wrote, "Ominous."
Since the elephant has long been a symbol for the Republican Party, it's unsure precisely what such an omen might portend regarding the election.
"The elephant grew up in a middle class family," wrote one X user.
"Only 50% of the country loved this elephant," quipped another user.
"Her name is Kamala, she lives in DC, is of Indian descent (but is often mistaken as African), has never worked at McDonald's, is claimed to be beloved by many (but is frankly not doing well) and is saying goodbye to supporters this week after a losing battle. She is an elephant," wrote X user Jolly Brandon.
The British political commentator Carl Benjamin, also known as Sargon of Akkad, noted that as news of Kamala's euthanization was spreading, there was also a trending video showing a baby hippopotamus "choos[ing] the Trump cake."
The video, reshared by the New York Post Monday, shows baby pygmy hippo Moo Deng of Thailand presented with a choice of two cakes, then eating the option emblazoned with President Donald Trump's name.
Jimmy von Thron, producer for BlazeTV's "Prime Time with Alex Stein," joked that his confidence was significantly shored up by the hippo's selection, writing, "Just put my mortgage on Trump."
Former NRA spokeswoman Dana Loesch said of the hippo's prediction, "More accurate than most."
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Heavily Democratic cities are now in the habit of boarding up windows and shuttering businesses ahead of political events that might upset local leftists.
That is certainly the case with Washington, D.C., which erected "Black Lives Matter"-branded plywood boards and fencing outside of stores ahead of the 2020 election and saw businesses brace for chaos again when Roe v. Wade was overturned. Some businesses in the city also took precautions ahead of the January 2017 anti-Trump riots, where all the rioters ultimately got off scot-free, as well as ahead of the Jan. 6, 2021, protests, where rioters were held to a different standard.
Possibly anticipating more chaos in the District of Columbia, where 92.1% of the vote in the last presidential election went to Joe Biden, businesses are once again reinforcing their windows and preparing for potentially "fiery but mostly peaceful protests."
Resident Stacy Snyder told WJLA-TV, "Hopefully no riots. Nobody wants to see anyone get hurt or any damage. After what happened last time, I guess, you have to be prepared for anything. So, like I said, better safe than sorry."
Ebony Boger, who works downtown, indicated she recently received an email from building management indicating it was going to fortify the exterior.
"It's not shocking. I'm kind of used to it. I think they should do it," said Boger.
The managers of various buildings confirmed to WJLA that the election was the reason behind the plywood reinforcement.
According to the Washington Post, some business and property owners have also boosted their private security in anticipation of possible riots and looting.
'If people choose to riot, I feel like we need to listen to the people.'
Leon Beresford, executive vice president of Admiral Security Services, indicated that his company, which provides security to 150 commercial office buildings in D.C., is mobilizing around 2,000 guards in time for Election Day.
"People would rather be overprepared and have nothing happen, as opposed to the alternative," said Eric Jones, vice president of government affairs for the Apartment and Office Building Association of Metropolitan Washington.
Washington Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela A. Smith said at a press conference last week, "I want to be very clear: We will not tolerate any violence of any kind. We will not tolerate any riots. We will not tolerate the destruction of property. We will not tolerate any unlawful behavior. Offenders will be arrested and will be held accountable."
Smith indicated that well over 3,000 police officers will be working 12-hour shifts through the election.
Storefronts in Portland, Oregon — another heavily Democratic city — have similarly disappeared behind protective boards. While big-name businesses like Chase Bank have reinforced their establishments, some have alternatively chosen to trust the mob.
Katherine Morgan, the owner of the relatively new Grand Gestures Books, told KATU-TV, "When I got the business, the windows were boarded up because of the protest, and they just never came down. For me, if people choose to riot, I feel like we need to listen to the people."
Morgan indicated she won't be boarding up her establishment, noting, "I'm someone who believes in protesting, I'm someone who believes in doing whatever you can for your voice to be heard."
Real estate developer Jordan Schnitzer told the Oregonian he is praying his building will go unscathed.
"If your sports team loses, do you go out and break windows?" said Schnitzer. "In this day and age to see that this type of behavior in America is so commonplace is heartbreaking."
Portland Police Chief Bob Day said last week, "We never can eliminate risk, but the confidence that I have in our community, the confidence I have in our law enforcement response, I'm really hopeful that that's not going to be necessary."
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Hundreds of ballots likely went up in flames after an explosive device apparently went off in a ballot drop box in Washington state, one of two such explosions that occurred early Monday morning.
Around 5:30 a.m. on Monday, police began working tirelessly to put out a fire in a ballot box near a bus station in Vancouver, Washington. Video of their efforts shows crews toiling in the pouring rain as the contents of the ballot box were reduced to ashes.
— (@)
"It appears that a device was attached to the outside of the ballot drop box that resulted in the ballots being ignited," Clark County auditor Greg Kimsey said, according to Oregon Live.
The ballot box was outfitted with a fire suppressant, Kimsey noted. Unfortunately, it did not work effectively.
When asked how many ballots were affected, Kimsey declined to give an exact number but claimed it was in the "hundreds."
Kimsey described the incident as "heartbreaking." "It’s a direct attack on democracy," he added.
Police likewise described the device as "suspicious."
'Southwest Washington cannot risk a single vote being lost to arson and political violence.'
Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs (D) suggested the incident may have even been an act of "terror."
"I strongly denounce any acts of terror that aim to disrupt lawful and fair elections in Washington state," he said in a statement, according to ABC News.
The drop box is located in Washington's 3rd Congressional District, where Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D) and Republican Joe Kent are in a tight rematch. In 2022, Perez beat Kent by fewer than 3,000 votes.
"Southwest Washington cannot risk a single vote being lost to arson and political violence," Perez said in a statement, according to ABC News.
Kent's team did not respond to a request for comment, the outlet claimed.
Ballots at the drop box were last collected around 11 a.m. on Saturday, so anyone who deposited a ballot after that time is encouraged to check the status of their ballot online. They may also contact the county elections office to receive a replacement ballot by calling (564) 397-2345 or emailing elections@clark.wa.gov.
Sadly, the drop box in Vancouver was not the only one in the area to be hit. About two hours before the incident in Vancouver, an "incendiary device" exploded in a drop box in Portland, a press release from the Portland Police Bureau indicated. Portland, Oregon, is located about 10 miles south of Vancouver, Washington.
Fortunately, a fire suppressant installed in the Portland ballot box activated, preventing a significant fire. Multnomah County Elections Director Tim Scott claimed that only three ballots had been damaged and that elections workers had already made plans to contact the affected voters.
"By the time officers arrived, the fire had already been extinguished by security personnel who work in the area," the PPB press release said. "Officers determined an incendiary device was placed inside the ballot box and used to ignite the fire. PPB’s Explosive Disposal Unit (EDU) responded to the scene and cleared the device."
It is unclear whether the two incidents are linked.
Yet another incendiary device was discovered at a drop box in Vancouver on October 8. Luckily, it did not cause any damage.
A man also allegedly admitted to lighting a fire in a ballot box in Phoenix last week, destroying perhaps 20 ballots, as Blaze News previously reported. The suspect denied having any political motivation, claiming instead that he "wanted to be arrested."
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Five members of a family were found fatally shot in their Seattle-area home earlier this week. A 15-year-old boy is accused of murdering his parents and three siblings, but he claimed his brother carried out the murders before committing suicide.
However, the boy's 11-year-old sister who survived the massacre refuted her brother's murder-suicide story and declared that her 15-year-old brother is the killer.
The sister said she survived because she played dead and exited the house through a window.
Shortly before 5 a.m. Monday, two adults and three children were found dead inside their waterfront home in Fall City — approximately 25 miles east of Seattle.
WAPT reported that the King County Medical Examiner's Office identified the victims as Mark Humiston, 43; Sarah Humiston, 42; and their children Benjamin Humiston, 13; Joshua Humiston, 9; and Katheryn Humiston, 7.
The family’s father was shot four times and the mother was shot twice, the probable cause statement says.
The family's only survivors are an 11-year-old girl and a 15-year-old boy.
The 15-year-old boy notified the King County Sheriff's Office of the murders. He told police his 13-year-old brother "just shot my whole family and committed suicide, too," a sheriff's detective wrote in a probable cause statement, according to NBC News.
According to an affidavit of probable cause, the 15-year-old told a 911 operator that his brother did the shooting because he had gotten in trouble for looking at pornography.
However, the 11-year-old sister survived the mass shooting and contradicted her brother's account of the murders.
The girl told investigators that her 15-year-old brother shot her and her family with a Glock handgun that belonged to their father, according to the probable cause statement.
The girl informed investigators that the 15-year-old shot her and left the room; she then heard someone shouting "stop" and "help" before she escaped, the detective wrote.
The sister said she survived because she played dead and exited the house through a window. She then ran to a neighbor's home.
The girl was hospitalized and has since been discharged, a spokesperson for Harborview Medical Center in Seattle stated.
The girl told police the handgun was kept in a lockbox, and her 15-year-old brother was the only sibling who knew the combination, the probable cause statement says.
A few minutes after the 15-year-old called police, the neighbor called 911 to report that the 11-year-old had just survived a shooting by her teen brother, according to the affidavit.
The judge ordered the teenager — who's being held in a detention facility for juveniles — to have no contact with his surviving sibling.
Detectives determined that the 15-year-old attempted to frame his deceased brother for the murder of his parents and siblings and arrested him when they arrived at the crime scene.
The 15-year-old "staged the scene prior to the arrival of first responders" to make it appear that the 13-year-old brother committed the murders and then died by suicide, a detective wrote.
King County Detective Aaron Thompson wrote in the probable cause statement that the suspect "systematically murdered his mother, father, two brothers, and sister, and attempted to murder his other sister."
On Thursday, the 15-year-old was charged with five counts of murder and one count of attempted murder in juvenile court. All six criminal counts were filed with a designation that they were acts of domestic violence, according to the prosecuting attorney's office. The attempted murder count has a firearms enhancement, which allows for a more severe sentence if the suspect is convicted.
However, prosecutors filed a motion seeking a “discretionary decline hearing,” in which they would make the case that juvenile court should decline jurisdiction and have the case transferred to adult court — a process that could take months, according to the Seattle Times.
The outlet noted that 16-year-olds and 17-year-olds accused of murder and other serious violent crimes automatically can be charged as adults. However, a discretionary decline hearing is required to charge suspects 15 years old and younger as adults.
The teen's defense attorneys — Molly Campera and Amy Parker — said during a Tuesday hearing that "our client is a 15-year-old boy who enjoys mountain biking and fishing and has no criminal history. ... The law says our client is presumed innocent of these charges, and we are grateful for a judicial process that requires proof and evidence before there is a judgment."
The judge ordered the teenager — who's being held in a detention facility for juveniles — to have no contact with his surviving sibling.
The father worked as an electrical engineer for Hargis Engineers.
“We are blindsided and saddened by the tragic events that have led to the loss of a respected colleague, mentor, and friend, as well as the loss of immediate family members,” the company said in a statement. The man’s “leadership and vision were integral within our firm, and he will be greatly missed. Our thoughts are with his surviving family, friends, and colleagues during this difficult time.”
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A three-judge panel on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the federal government has the authority to deport illegal immigrants even if local leaders try to impede the process. The case arose after King County Executive Dow Constantine issued an executive order in 2019 that instructed county officials to prohibit “fixed base operators” […]
The second Trump administration was elected as the antidote to the administrative state — to make radical changes in personnel and policy.
'I just can't imagine a scenario, at least for myself, where I as a voter would take that ballot and put it into a mailbox,' Deschutes County Clerk Steve Dennison said.
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