Obama deported more “illegals” than Trump in any year, including last year with ICE going full force, and he did it with courtesy and the law. No masks or guns, no people being shot, no cars being chased and rammed. With ICE, it’s a matter of skin color. www.alternet.org/alternet-exc...

The ex-husband of former first lady Jill Biden was charged in his wife’s murder on Tuesday, more than a month after she was found dead on her living room floor in their Delaware home. www.nydailynews.com/2026/02/03/j...

The Trump administration has turned its anti-fraud campaign largely into a tool for political retribution. It has tried to hold up billions of dollars for programs that Trump has long disfavored ... for states led by Democrats, particularly the president’s rivals. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/03/u...

White House adviser and deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller is once again attacking the judicial branch after it ruined his plans to deport thousands of Haitian immigrants. newrepublic.com/post/206077/...

Cartoon by Rob Rogers

President Trump called in a new interview for the Republican Party to “nationalize” voting in the United States, an aggressive rhetorical step that was likely to raise new worries about his administration’s efforts to involve itself in election matters. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/02/u...

President Trump called in a new interview for the Republican Party to “nationalize” voting in the United States, an aggressive rhetorical step that was likely to raise new worries about his administration’s efforts to involve itself in election matters. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/02/u...

A coalition of civil rights organizations today urged the Oklahoma Statewide Charter School Board to reject Ben Gamla Jewish Charter School’s application to form the nation’s first religious public charter school. www.au.org/the-latest/p...

A message to Gov. Lee during his State of the State Address from Rep. Justin Pearson (D-Memphis):

Nashville's Geodis Park has been named one of seven host stadiums for soccer games at the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic games. www.tennessean.com/story/sports...

Marsha Blackburn had an up-close seat to Gov. Lee’s State of the State Address, which she hopes to be delivering a year from now.

In the last year of his final term, Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee wants to “at least double” school vouchers [a new government entitlement to families that shun public schools]. nashvillebanner.com/2026/02/03/g...

January's crippling ice storm paralyzed parts of Nashville for days, and as of Feb. 2, more than 25,000 outages remained. The ordeal left people in the cold and the literal and figurative dark at times. www.tennessean.com/story/news/2...

Cartoon by Clay Jones

Cartoon by Adam Zyglis

The extraordinary arrests of the journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort last week are a dangerous escalation in the Trump administration’s attacks on the press and pose a clear threat to first amendment freedoms. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Journalist Don Lemon said Monday that he offered to turn himself in days before his arrest last week, but he was instead detained by federal agents in order to “embarrass” him. www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...

Check out NPE’s #SchoolVoucherScams - learn how vouchers bilk taxpayers, fail children, & funnel funding away from our public schools networkforpubliceduc...#SchoolVoucherScams- we will update monthly w/ the latest #SchoolVoucherScam$ - retweet & share our hashtag & stories

Cartoon by Chris Britt

In a last-minute ruling on Monday (Feb. 2), a U.S. district judge in Washington halted the Department of Homeland Security’s attempt to end temporary protected status for Haitian immigrants. religionnews.com/2026/02/02/j...

Republican gubernatorial candidate Marsha Blackburn has received a special dispensation to file its complete campaign finance disclosure after Monday’s filing deadline. pro.stateaffairs.com/tn/elections...

The American Federation for Children, the pro-school voucher organization founded by Betsy DeVos, issued a press release praising Gov. Lee’s push for more funding for private school vouchers. www.federationforchildren.org/american-fed...

Gov. Lee used his final State of State speech to double down on his signature issue, pressing lawmakers to dramatically expand his school voucher program that would allow families of thousands of additional students to use public money to pay private school tuition. www.axios.com/local/nashvi...

Despite planning to cut the state budget, TN Gov. Lee is proposing a 100% increase in private-school vouchers, even as lawmakers say the state is building an unsustainable entitlement program [new entitlement to subsidize nonpublic-school tuition]. tennesseelookout.com/2026/02/02/i...

TN Gov. Lee calls for $300+ million for expansion of nonpublic school vouchers. www.tennessean.com/story/news/p...

In his State of the State address, Gov. Lee called for providing more students “a shot at Education Freedom” — with taxpayer-funded “scholarships” [vouchers]. The expansion would boost Christian schools and subsidize parents paying tuition at nonpublic schools. www.tn.gov/governor/sot...

BREAKING: The Clintons agree to testify in the House's Epstein probe, bowing to pressure ahead of contempt of Congress vote.

Among Gov. Lee’s “State of State” special guests this evening were the principal and a group of students from Lighthouse Christian School in Antioch. They represent, the governor noted, the “education freedom” his voucher program was designed to provide.

DAN RATHER: Everything is bigger in Texas, including electoral upsets. steady.substack.com/p/why-is-thi...

The White House stands about 70 feet tall. The Lincoln Memorial, roughly 100 feet. The triumphal arch President Donald Trump wants to build would eclipse both if he gets his wish. www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

WSJ editorial: How does a Republican lose by 14 points in a safe conservative Texas state Senate seat that President Trump carried by 17 points in 2024? Answer: When there’s a voter backlash against the Trump Administration, notably its mass deportation debacles. www.wsj.com/opinion/a-te...

Face coverings may work less to protect federal agents from danger than to make it easier for them to do unconstitutional things, @adamserwer.bsky.social argues:

Ed Martin has been removed from his role as the head of Attorney General Pam Bondi's Weaponization Working Group, multiple sources told CBS News. www.cbsnews.com/news/ed-mart...

The president's longtime ally, who was helping lead the charge against Trump's perceived political foes, will reportedly be leaving the Justice Department.

In a new editorial, The Wall Street Journal warned Trump that a hardline immigration strategy promoted by top aide Stephen Miller is fueling voter backlash. www.thedailybeast.com/murdoch-pape...

President Trump threatened legal action against Grammys host Trevor Noah on Monday after the comedian’s cracks about Jeffrey Epstein, Greenland and Nicki Minaj, among other touchy topics. www.nydailynews.com/2026/02/02/t...

Can Trump be stopped before he demolishes the Kennedy Center?

In a healthy democracy, journalists are not handcuffed for doing their jobs. They are not dragged into courtrooms for showing up, asking questions, and bearing witness. They are not treated as threats simply because they point a camera toward power.... www.meidasplus.com/p/our-free-p...

An official in Fulton County, Georgia, announced the county will file a lawsuit Monday over the FBI’s search and seizure of 2020 election records. www.cnn.com/2026/02/02/p...

YIELDING TO STATE CENSORS: Texas A&M has also canceled six classes and asked faculty to remove some course context. One free speech expert said A&M is “staking out turf as the epicenter of higher education censorship nationwide.” www.insidehighered.com/news/busines...

Tennessee Republicans are pushing forward their plans to take over Memphis-Shelby County Schools, and they’re using the recent overhaul of Houston’s public school district as a model [with education “czar” like Roderick Richmond]. www.chalkbeat.org/tennessee/20...

ICE shielding: In Fridley, a Minneapolis suburb, school officials are driving nervous teachers and buying families groceries. At dismissal, the superintendent patrols for federal agents. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/31/u...

WATCH — @mrjamesob.bsky.social : “Trump’s DOJ says they won’t release the rest of the files. Why not? Why can’t we see everything? How can someone who appears in them hundreds and hundreds of times oversee the release of the files?”

Marsha Blackburn suggests Nashville Electric Service was unprepared for ice storm while attending to DEI (diversity, equity & inclusion) issues.

Winged Nazi Cartoon by Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Winged Nazi Cartoon by Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

REPUBLICAN NAZI TERRORISTS ARE AMERICAN TRAITORS! ABOLISH REPUBLICAN NAZI TERRORISTS, ICE! REPUBLICANS ARE DOING THIS!

Janet Napolitano, the longest-serving Homeland Security secretary in the department's 23-year history, offered a scathing assessment of the agency's current leader, Kristi Noem. www.rawstory.com/kristi-noem-...

The Department of Homeland Security has locked down the family detention center where it held a 5-year-old boy after medical staff confirmed two detainees had active measles infections.

Cartoon by Nick Anderson for RAW STORY