A motley crew of democracy defenders uniting against a wretched hive of scum and villainy. At STATE OF THE SWAMP organized by DEFIANCE. With @oliviaoftroye.com @briankarem.bsky.social @kurtbardella.bsky.social @maritsageorgiou.bsky.social

To Trump: “We are not your audience, we are your employers, and we will remind you of that and the ballot box” - @oliviaoftroye.com at State of the Swamp

Peace summits on stage. A kindergarten teacher calling a deportation tip line. Children in Dilley, Texas behind razor wire. Billionaires writing seven-figure checks and getting meetings. This is how it scales.

They called peaceful protesters “terrorists.” They sent troops into American cities. People showed up anyway. 🐸 Tuesday night, February 24 — join us for a night of truth, courage, and defiance. State of the Swamp — the rebuttal to the State of the Union. Hope to see you there! www.defiance.org

CBS declined to broadcast the James Talarico interview. Stephen Colbert took it to YouTube. He aired it anyway. That’s holding the line.

A 23-year-old Coast Guardsman goes missing at sea. Search-and-rescue underway. Kristi Noem allegedly tried to redirect an aircraft away from the rescue mission for migrant transport. Nine days into her tenure as DHS Secretary, this is how it began. That tells you everything.

Jesse Jackson, civil rights icon, dies aged 84

Tariffs.
Violence without ideology.
Healthcare theater.
Alliances under strain.
Chaos at DHS. If you’re tired of spin and want the signal, this one’s for you.

They shut down the sky over El Paso under “National Defense.” Flights grounded. Local leaders blindsided.
The story shifted. And the object? A balloon. The object isn’t the story. The scale of the response is.

The FAA has reopened the airspace over El Paso. Bad comms & incompetence likely played a role but something isn’t quite right…this isn’t the first time a cartel drone has breached US airspace. There will be more to this story.

Airspace over El Paso, Texas & southern New Mexico is closed for 10 days under a “national defense” designation. No explanation. El Paso is my hometown. After talk about bombing cartels & expanding border ops, people are obviously worried. The public deserves answers.

Seeing the monks arrive in Alexandria, Virginia on day 107, just before their journey concludes in Washington, D.C., was deeply moving. Here are some highlights. #WalkforPeace

“The only thing more powerful than hate is love…. Together we are America!🇺🇸” —Bad Bunny

Orgullosas! Mom and I waiting for Bad Bunny!🫶 #SuperBowlLX

Strong coffee required. This week came with Trump's racist video post, a refusal to condemn it, and a quiet insistence that none of it was a big deal. That insistence tells you everything. Let's also talk about how DHS is using secret subpoenas, and why it matters for free speech...

Foreign money intersecting with presidential power distorts decision-making, weakens guardrails, and undermines U.S. credibility abroad.

Every dollar spent militarizing streets is a dollar not spent on housing, hospitals, disaster preparedness, or infrastructure. Thank you @oliviaoftroye.com

“I am not convinced that the entire Department [of Homeland Security] survives.” Former national security adviser to VP Pence @oliviaoftroye.com explains why it’s time for a ‘complete review’ of the Department of Homeland Security. Watch the full interview: zeteo.com/p/troye-stan...

Buttigieg on Fox News: "When you see an American woman opening the door to her home and on her doorstep finds half a dozen federal agents in tactical gear that is more tricked out than what I would take outside the wire in Afghanistan -- I think most people get that that is wrong."

The arrest of Don Lemon, Georgia Fort and other journalists isn’t law enforcement. It’s a warning. When scrutiny is treated as a threat, it's not just journalists that become the target. This week’s 5 Things connects the dots: press freedom, surveillance, federal force, elections & some inspiration.

They arrested Don Lemon. This is retribution. Years of hostility from the Trump circle toward a journalist who called them out. Instead of accountability for a killing in Minneapolis, DOJ went after the press. Stand with Don Lemon. Stand with the Constitution. Stand with a free press.

Minnesota proved it. When people protested, documented, and refuted the lies federal power panicked. Public pressure forced change. Greg Bovino is leaving, but the system that enabled him is still in place. Don’t forget this.

Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara: "People have had enough. This is the third shooting in less than 3 weeks. The MPD went the entire year last year recovering about 900 guns from the street, arresting hundreds of violent offenders, and we didn't shoot anyone ... this is not sustainable."

Another U.S. citizen killed by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis. Lethal force, lies, and blocked independent investigations aren’t public safety. They’re the signs of a government turning on its own people.

From Davos confusion to DOJ overreach, from affordability to federal funding pressure...to right-wing honeypot schemes—none of this is accidental. This week’s Saturday Morning Covfefe breaks down what it means, and the impacts. Free to read. Paid subs keep it independent.

“I will not be intimidated.” -Jack Smith

Jack Smith: "My fear is that we have seen the rule of law function in our country for so long that many of us have come to take it for granted. The rule of law is not self-executing. It depends on our collective commitment to apply it."

Jack Smith is testifying publicly. This is courage. The evidence didn’t fail. DOJ policy paused accountability for a sitting president. Today puts the record & facts on camera: evidence, process & what accountability is supposed to look like, even when power tries to intimidate it out of existence.

Trump at Davos is a live demo for the world: the same con, just on a bigger stage. The business community has seen this movie before.

One year in, the real danger isn’t chaos, it’s normalization. As we enter year two of Trump's presidency, history shows what actually works when power isn’t checking itself, and what people can do right now. www.livingitwitholiviatroye.com/p/year-two-w...

The worst politicians in America are about to quote Martin Luther King Jr. You can’t quote “I have a dream” on MLK Day then legislate against that dream every other day of the year.

Minnesota today. Who’s next tomorrow? DOJ targets state leaders after criticizing federal action. That’s not coincidence, it’s part of the ongoing intimidation and the weaponization of power.

What's at issue is the government’s decision to use one of the most intrusive investigative tools available—executing a search warrant at a journalist’s home—where the reporter is not accused of wrongdoing That choice changes the equation entirely. This Was an Escalation, Not Standard Practice

The FBI raiding a Washington Post reporter’s home is an extraordinary escalation. It sets a precedent that should concern anyone who cares about truth, accountability, and a free press.

"Once federal agencies start redefining terrorism to excuse their own behavior, the guardrails are gone. Everything becomes a threat. Everyone becomes a suspect." - @oliviaoftroye.com, Trump team alumna (2016-20) who rose to White House special adviser for homeland security and counterterrorism 1/2

On the ground, covering the ICE Out for Good protest in Alexandria, VA. We will not be silenced. We will not be intimidated. We will not normalize this abuse of power.

"As a former White House Homeland Security and Counterterrorism advisor [2018-20], I warned for years that blurring the line between immigration enforcement and national security would have consequences. . . ." -- @oliviaoftroye.com, Trump first term appointee [1/2]

5 developments worth paying attention to this week. Together, they show how power tests its limits: at home, abroad, and inside our cultural institutions, including the Kennedy Center where the Washington National Opera just said, we're out! In honor of Renee Macklin Good--Stay peaceful. Stay loud.

Kristi Noem calling the victim’s actions “domestic terrorism” is propaganda. Full stop. I served as a White House homeland security advisor. I know what that designation means & when it’s misused. A U.S. citizen is dead. She was a mom. This is what ICE impunity looks like. It cannot be normalized.

"I’ve measured my life in oil wars. And our oil-igarchs have learned nothing," writes David Rothkopf.

I lived through the Iraq planning and aftermath firsthand at the most senior levels of government. The parallels with Venezuela are unmistakable and deeply concerning.

Trump on Nobel Peace Prize winner María Corina Machado: "She doesn’t have the respect of the people there." Same Trump 1.0 pattern as Juan Guaidó—elevate a democratic figure when useful, discard them when they’re not. The U.S. will “run” Venezuela. So who’s next, Cuba? The Panama Canal? Greenland?

Venezuela, to the Trump administration, is about oil, not the Venezuelan people or democracy. There’s no plan for what comes next. Trump’s remarks today confirmed it.

Jack Smith testified under oath that Trump caused January 6. Trump is escalating in Venezuela—using force, “capturing Maduro,” bypassing Congress, and offering no explanation of what comes next. This week’s Covfefe is about accountability: when it’s documented, and when it’s avoided.

2025 didn’t answer every question. It clarified which ones can no longer be avoided. Before we pretend the new year is a reset—a reflection on what last year revealed and what it asks of us now.

Happy New Year! Here’s to clarity, courage, and care—for ourselves and for each other in 2026.

Closing out the year with clarity. Saturday Morning Covfefe: Five things I’m watching as we head into the New Year. No noise. Just context over chaos.

Merry Christmas!🎄🎁 Sending you love and light across the miles.

Venezuela policy keeps getting sold as regime change. In reality, it’s pressure without a plan, capped by a “Trump-class” golden fleet of ships offered as branding and distraction for the absence of strategy. What happens if they actually succeed? Who owns the aftermath?

All clear. The Trump speech is done. You didn’t miss anything. It’s safe to turn the TV back on and return to the Survivor finale.