Melissa Johnson
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Melissa Johnson
@moolissap.bsky.social

Devoted❤️Reader
📖 Nerd by nature; Librarian by choice
📚 Always reading 🏳️‍🌈

https://linktr.ee/moolissap

Psychology 33%
Political science 19%

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

Tuesday was the ICE oversight hearing. Today was Pam Bondi’s. I watched them both for you. The bottom line: There are (mostly Democratic) members of Congress who understand how important the moment is & they are standing up and showing courage. open.substack.com/pub/joycevan...
Two Days On The Hill: ICE & Pam Bondi
Writing this newsletter isn’t always easy.
open.substack.com
holy shit -- Bondi's new tactic is refusing to answer Democratic questions, then using time during the next Republican questioner to smear the previous Democratic member and accuse them of being complicit in violence crimes

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

Last night's Thoughts -- on DJT's selective invitations of governors to the White House, and more.

www.youtube.com/live/KUQM8HR...
A Few Thoughts for Those Who Can't Sleep
YouTube video by Dr. Joanne Freeman
www.youtube.com

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

The Fulton County search warrant affidavit has been unsealed by a federal judge. Read about what’s in it, and more importantly, what’s not. open.substack.com/pub/joycevan...
Fulton County: What's In The Warrant?
Hint: Everything but probable cause
open.substack.com
Reading the Fulton County affidavit now, which seems to say more about “if” there was probable cause than establishing that there actually is. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/10/u...
A stunning detail the ICE chief shared in this hearing that was supposed to be a brag, except it isn't: ICE has arrested 379,000 people between Jan. 2025-Jan. 2026 -- but only 8,700 were suspected gang members or known suspected terrorists.

That's 2%! www.huffpost.com/entry/latest...
Congresswoman Uses Simple Math To Show How Broken ICE Is
www.huffpost.com

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

In the last month ICE has bought warehouses in:

- Hagerstown, MD: $102 million
- Surprise, AZ: $70 million
- Hamburg, PA: $87 million
- Tremont, PA: $120 million
- San Antonio, TX: $82 million
- El Paso, TX: $123 million
- Social Circle, GA: price unknown

This is unprecedented.

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

Olympic athletes carrying the flame of democracy as we head into a week of important hearings on the Hill. These are not times for people who don’t like anything that challenges their comfortable existence. open.substack.com/pub/joycevan...

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

loved every second of Bad Bunny. That message of inclusion and a celebration of cultures like Puerto Rico’s is just what America needs right now. Plus, his music just gets you in motion. 10/10
Massie on Howard Lutnick: "He should just resign. Three people in Great Britain resigned for less than what we've seen Howard Lutnick lie about. He clearly went to the island, if we believe what's in these files. He was in business with Jeffrey Epstein."

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

February 6, 2026
February 6, 2026
Late last night, President Donald J.
heathercoxrichardson.substack.com

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

Some of my thoughts about the racist so-called “meme” posted by DJT.

www.youtube.com/live/hC-bAJQ...
A Few Thoughts for Those Who Can't Sleep -- February 6 Edition
YouTube video by Dr. Joanne Freeman
www.youtube.com

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

If you don’t know Alberto Castañeda Mondragón’s story, the story of his arrest by ICE, read here: open.substack.com/pub/joycevan...
We are not Nazis.
Also: No Kings, No Dictators.
open.substack.com
Vice President JD Vance gets roundly booed at the opening ceremony of the Milano-Cortina 2026 Olympics. "Those are a lot of boos for him, whistling jeering," says the presenter. US athletes receive a warm welcome from fans, though.

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

For anyone who wondered how the Germans turned a blind eye to the Holocaust, we are living through the answer. We watched it start in real time. Do you remember last October? The details slip away fast but holding onto them helps us hold onto who we are joycevance.substack.com/p/we-are-not...
We are not Nazis.
Also: No Kings, No Dictators.
joycevance.substack.com

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

Here's what Republicans think is "unrealistic"

1) Need a judicial warrant to enter private property
2) Require verification that someone is not a US citizen before sending them to immigration detention
3) No masks
4) No secret police: Officers must have ID
5) Keep enforcement away from
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Thursday that demands made by Democrats for new restrictions on federal immigration officers are “unrealistic” and warned that the Department of Homeland Security will shut down next week if they do not work with Republicans and the White House.
Homeland Security shutdown grows more likely as Republicans rebuff Democratic demands for ICE
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Thursday that demands made by Democrats for new restrictions on federal immigration officers are “unrealistic” and warned that the Department of Homeland Secu…
trib.al
Sir Ian McKellen performing a monologue from Shakespeare’s Sir Thomas More on the Stephen Colbert show. Never have I heard this monologue performed with such a keen sense of prescience. Nor have I ever been in this exact historical moment.TY Sir Ian, for reaching us once again.
#Pinks #ProudBlue

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

February 4, 2026
February 4, 2026
On the heels of last weekend’s special election in Texas, President Donald J.
heathercoxrichardson.substack.com

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

The Supreme Court’s one-line decision in the California Prop 50 gerrymandering case went the right way, but it hides a larger truth. open.substack.com/pub/joycevan...
ohhh ‘democracy dies in darkness’ was aspirational

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

New post on that Anthropic paper and a problem with defining sycophancy as AI not saying you are wrong. And more broadly a problem with conceptualizing these things as opinionated chatbots. open.substack.com/pub/mikecaul...

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

Hello folks:

I'm entirely pooped tonight -- too pooped to offer "A Few Thoughts for Those Who Can't Sleep."

But I WILL be back tomorrow.

In the meantime, here's yesterday's episode, on people in Florida hiding Haitians from our government...

www.youtube.com/live/vVDWYgv...
A Few Thoughts for Those Who Can't Sleep
YouTube video by Dr. Joanne Freeman
www.youtube.com

Reposted by Melissa Johnson

Donald Trump has been telling us that if he doesn't like the outcome of the elections he will seize ballots. He wants Republicans to take control of voting. He wants to take over elections in Democratic states.

People should be concerned and we all need to be ready.