Today: 1. A judge temporarily blocked the $1.8B slush fund 2. A judge ordered Trump’s name off the Kennedy Center 3. A judge asked the govt to answer charges of a fraud on the court in Trump’s lawsuit against the IRS 4. A judge asked DoJ to explain why he should dismiss the Oath Keepers’ charges

A large stretch of forest that has been owned by the state of Minnesota for more than 100 years will soon be returned to the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa.

Yesterday I signed a bill to return 3,400 acres of land to the Fon du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa - a joint effort between the Tribe, the state, and the University of Minnesota.

Breaking: South Carolina Senate just failed to invoke cloture on 7-0 gerrymandered map eliminating Jim Clyburn's majority Black district. It appears redistricting is dead for real this time as early voting begins today & 32,000 ballots already cast

This is just the tip of the iceberg in a pattern of corruption and abuse unprecedented in the history of the Presidency.

Today marks six years since George Floyd was murdered by a police officer in Minneapolis. George was a beloved father, grandfather, brother, and friend. His life mattered and he should still be here.

I feel personally dissed by this.

Historian of slavery here the Pope is single handedly showing us the best of America in these very troubling times and needed on the 250th of the republic, to see the virtues that made the U.S. admired all over the world, the ability to admit a mistake. apnews.com/article/pope...

A new post, on how lithium-mining interests threaten Indigenous nations in Nevada. nativeamerica.substack.com/p/lithium?ut...

Ya'll. I am shook. In a good way. Pope Leo XIV makes historic apology for Holy See's own role in legitimizing Slavery

🚨BREAKING: POWER OF THE PEOPLE🚨 Protesters outside Delaney Hall erupted after advocates said Martin Soto — a leader of the ICE prison hunger strike — will NOT be transferred following ACLU involvement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office. @jordanchariton.bsky.social LIVE ⬇️

As this war stumbles to a close, it is clear that the president is lost: He didn’t know what he was doing when he began it, and now he doesn’t know how to get out of it. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...

@americanancestors.bsky.social has a wonderful NYT account of a racially divided family reuniting -- descendants of two teenage brothers who separated 100 years ago when one passed for white and moved from NOLA to Chicago. (Hope the gift link works.) hubs.americanancestors.org/nyt-degrange...

Excellent, and quickly done:

Protestors in Greenland are outside the U.S. embassy chanting “Go Home USA.” #cdnpoli

“Trump admitted that the whole point of his bill is to ensure one-party rule in perpetuity…”

When Memorial Day was Woke open.substack.com/pub/amyfried...

Looks like we can stop worrying about hantavirus, so that’s good at least:

@whitehouse.senate.gov Are @judiciarydems.senate.gov going to take quick action to remove this staff lawyer, who the trial judge found had violated numerous rules for prosecutors?

How a bird feeder turns corvids into recycling pros. [📹 Hans Forsberg] Original post

5/22/1856: S. Carolina Congressman Preston Brooks attacked & severely injured Mass. Senator Charles Sumner on Senate floor. Brooks was angry about Sumner's recent "Crime Against Kansas" speech, in which Sumner called out Brooks's cousin, S. Carolina Senator Andrew Butler. Image: Boston Athenaeum.

Not all superheroes wear fancy superhero costumes.

As a teacher of English, I can definitively state that yes, this is exactly what happened. Particularly, the curse words. ◡̈

Today is #NativeNonprofitDay! 🙌🏼 Our work is rooted in Indigenous values, lived experiences, and a deep commitment to uplifting Native peoples through storytelling ✨ Visit www.givenative.org, click "Give Native! Give Now!", find our organization, click "Donate", pick the amount & pay Thank you! 🙏

BREAKING: Sen. Ed Markey calls for Trump's impeachment.

They’re not even trying any more.

A clear-eyed description of what is happening. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/20/o...

This is such a bullshit case. I remember the 1996 “Brothers to the Rescue” shootdown vividly. My officemate Saul Landau worked on that case. If a Cuban plane had buzzed restricted airspace over Washington, DC and ignored warnings, they would have been shot down in a heartbeat.

#OTD 1825 Antoinette Brown Blackwell, feminist writer and the first woman to be ordained as a Protestant minister (1853), was born in Henrietta, NY. She graduated from Oberlin College and completed its theological course (but wasn't given the degree). She voted in 1920 at age 95.

Can’t amplify this sentiment enough.

For the "But when are Democrats going to *do* something?" crowd:

I know it's quaint to believe such things matter, but under 26 USC 7217 it's a crime for POTUS "to request, directly or indirectly, any [IRS] officer . . . to conduct or terminate an audit or other investigation of any particular taxpayer." www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/...

Sen. Reed: This seems to be an obvious abuse of power by Trump. He negotiated with himself, you're his appointee and he's the plaintiff. Who are the commissioners that will decide who receives the money? Trump's Acting AG: They're not named yet. Reed: Who will name them? Trump's Acting AG: I will

Election Day is today in GA and GA is our last line of defense to protect our democracy. Call GA voters today and urge them to vote for Miracle Rankin, @jenjordanga.bsky.social for the GA Supreme Court seats and Will Wooten for the Court of Appeals seat who are pro-rights & pro-democracy candidates

Cuba accuses US of building 'fraudulent case' for military action www.bbc.com/news/article...

JUST FILED: Senators launch probes into Todd Blanche and Trump's $1.7 billion taxpayer-funded payout to convicted criminals Lots of enterprise reporting in my daily "DAY AHEAD" editorial note (these are the notes I used to share with bosses at CBS) open.substack.com/pub/macfarla...

The LIRR strike is over, and service will resume at noon tomorrow. The MTA and the LIRR unions have agreed on a fair deal that will protect both workers and commuters.

very interesting article my sister sent me, about the college my parents and I all attended - which is named after a famously murdery missionary family - and some of the reparative efforts they've been making with the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla

BREAKING: 93 House Democrats have filed a motion to block Trump’s self-dealing settlement in his sham $10 billion IRS lawsuit, which would create a $1.7 billion slush fund for Jan. 6 rioters and political allies.

The Tomaquag Museum's "Revolution to Reclamation" exhibit invites visitors to reconsider the country's founding from Native perspectives. Learn more here: https://bit.ly/42DguE7

You know about the voter registration deadline for voters, but candidates must be registered to vote even sooner! The candidate voter registration deadline is May 25. You can view the full 2026 Rhode Island Elections Calendar online at vote.sos.ri.gov/Forms/Electi...

Since DJT considers himself to be the #1 Victim-in-Chief of unwarranted prosecutions, is there anything to limit how much of that $1.776B can be paid out directly into his pocket? (And why would he allow any of it to go to random no-accounts who won't even give him a kickback?)

The City of Philadelphia urgently needs pollworkers for tomorrow's primary election (Tuesday, May 19). Must be a city resident 17 or older. Must be available for the full day, 6:00am to about 9:00pm. Pay is $200 for the day, plus $50 if you complete online training. docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

Discharge motion to rescind this deal. Use it against every Repub who won’t sign it (esp Hinson) OR, possibly, learn that enough Repubs will sign it that it passes the House then use it to strangle Collins, Graham, the Florida lady, the Ohio guy, Marshall, Cornyn (if he survives), Sullivan etc

the prosecutor in question is up for Senate confirmation as Wyoming's US attorney this week wyofile.com/judges-toss-...

Seriously, if you have ANY GOP (or live in PA) Senators, call and make sure they know Smith's corruption has endangered cases against an alleged murderer, a child abuser, and several accused drug dealers.

Question to fellow religion nerds: I dropped mention of the fundamentalist-modernist controversy in an interview yesterday and the person responded with deep fascination. They wanted to know if there are easy-read books or podcasts on the subject, and I couldn't quickly name one. Any suggestions?

The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes are moving forward with their climate plan despite the loss of state support and federal funding. n.pr/3ReVdOI

Best word in @theguardian.com crossword puzzle: Omnishambles. Perfect description for (waves hands) all this.

Excellent by @karenattiah.bsky.social on declining U.S. empire, maybe ripe to crater. The volume of awful news is overwhelming, and meant to be, so many tune out. From tearing up voting rights to erasing Black people & women from powerful roles to Trump’s 1000s of insider trades and on and on … 1/2