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PULSE POINTS:
❓What Happened: Former Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz compared U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to Adolf Hitler’s Gestapo during a commencement speech.
👥 Who’s Involved: Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN), ICE, Trump aide Stephen Miller, Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
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📍 Where & When: University of Minnesota Law School, Saturday.
💬 Key Quote: “Donald Trump’s modern-day Gestapo is scooping folks up off the streets,” said Walz.
⚠️ Impact: Strong backlash from Trump allies and the DHS, citing increased assaults on ICE officers and misleading claims about deportation processes.
IN FULL:
Minnesota Governor and former Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz sparked controversy during a Saturday address to graduates of the University of Minnesota Law School, where he referred to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents as “Trump’s modern-day Gestapo.” The Gestapo, a secret police force under Adolf Hitler’s National Socialist regime in Germany, was responsible for widespread atrocities and repression across Europe.
Walz alleged that ICE agents were abducting individuals in unmarked vans, denying them trials, and sending them to “foreign torture dungeons.” Notably, Walz’s 2024 running mate Kamala Harris previously compared ICE to the Ku Klux Klan (KKK).
Walz’s remarks provoked immediate backlash from Trump allies and federal agencies. “This vile anti-American language can only be construed as inciting insurrection and violence,” said Stephen Miller, a senior aide to President Donald J. Trump. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) oversees ICE and called the comparison “absolutely sickening.” A DHS statement noted, “Attacks and demonization of ICE and our partners is wrong. ICE officers are now facing a 413 percent increase in assaults.”
Critics argue Walz’s claims misrepresent ICE’s role and the deportation process. Migrants facing deportation are provided legal avenues to contest their cases before immigration judges within the Department of Justice (DOJ), not criminal courts. Deportation orders are only issued after due process is observed, though expedited removal is possible for individuals who have been in the U.S. for less than two years.
Walz’s comments also come amid broader Democratic efforts to undermine Trump’s immigration policies, including his campaign promise to deport millions of illegal migrants, with pro-migration groups working to obstruct ICE operations.
A man opposed to pro-life values committed what authorities are calling “an intentional act of terrorism” over the weekend, bombing a reproductive center in California.
The details: On Saturday, 25-year-old Guy Edward Bartkus blew up his car outside the American Reproductive Centers (ARC) in Palm Springs, killing himself and injuring four others. ARC performs IVF treatments, egg retrievals, and other fertility care.
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- Police found two rifles and ammunition with the exploded vehicle.
- None of the embryos or other “sensitive material” was damaged by the blast.
His motive: Bartkus is a self-described “pro-mortalist” and “anti-natalist.” In a manifesto posted to his website with the tag line “F*ck you pro-lifers!,” he wrote:
- “I think we need a war against pro-lifers.”
- “I just wanted to say, your god definitely doesn’t exist, but if he did, I’d choose satan over your evil god. Did you ever think that maybe the bible is just slander against satan, and that satan just realized what a f***ing creep your god is?”
Glossary: A pro-mortalist believes death can be good or should happen sooner. An anti-natalist thinks having children is wrong because life causes pain or harm.
What they’re saying: The FBI Los Angeles field office confirmed: “This was a targeted attack against the IVF facility. Make no mistake, we are treating this, as I said yesterday, is an intentional act of terrorism.”
Zoom out: President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order to expand access to in vitro fertilization, aiming to reduce treatment costs and remove regulatory barriers.
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A man opposed to pro-life values committed what authorities are calling “an intentional act of terrorism” over the weekend, bombing a reproductive center in California. show more
PULSE POINTS:
❓What Happened: Measles cases are rising in the United States, on course to reach their highest annual total since the 1990s.
👥 Who’s Involved: Communities in Texas and several other states, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Texas Health and Human Services, and other state health departments.
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📍 Where & When: Several U.S. states, 2025.
💬 Key Quote: “In many of these areas, vaccination rates are below 90 percent, well below the 92-94 percent needed for community or ‘herd’ immunity.” — Marlen Ramirez, a community health worker and program coordinator at Vaccinate Your Family.
⚠️ Impact: With three in every 1,000 children infected dying from the disease, the number of deaths could increase if case numbers are not brought under control.
IN FULL:
Measles cases in the United States are already almost four times last year’s figures, potentially approaching numbers not seen since the 1990s. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data reveal that Texas alone has seen 718 cases this year, while the number of cases has surpassed 1,000 across the country.
The Texas outbreak has been attributed to a specific area in the west of the state. It has been reported mainly in children who are either not vaccinated against the disease or have an unknown vaccination status. Two children have died from the disease: an eight-year-old girl and another school-aged child.
Texas Health and Human Services states that 93 of the 718 cases required those infected to be hospitalized over the course of the outbreak, but the current number hospitalized is likely much lower.
Marlen Ramirez, a community health worker and program coordinator at Vaccinate Your Family, told the media that the Mennonite community was most affected by the outbreak initially. Still, cases have also spread to other communities.
“In many of these areas, vaccination rates are below 90 percent, well below the 92-94 percent needed for community or ‘herd’ immunity… We fear the number of actual cases may be much higher than reported due to confusion and delays in the outbreak response,” Ramirez said.
Before the controversial MMR (measles-mumps-rubella) vaccine was released in 1963, the United States saw nearly 500,000 cases of measles per year. More recently, the last major outbreak took place in 1990, when over 27,000 cases were reported. The last flare-up occurred in 2019, with 1,274 cases.
Measles can be a serious disease for children and can kill those who have no other underlying symptoms. Three out of every 1,000 children who contract measles will likely die, while one in 1,000 can develop severe brain damage.
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