Trump Action Archive

Supporting reports

• Utah activists rallied against national monument reductions — Activists with Utah Overpass Action and supporters of the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance demonstrated in Salt Lake City against changes to Bears Ears and Grand Staircase Escalante National Monuments. Trump's proclamations reduced Bears Ears to 121,096 acres and Grand Staircase Escalante to approximately 181,541 acres. Organizations have challenged the reductions in federal court, arguing the president lacks authority to make reductions of this scale. The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance reported new mining claims on lands removed from monument boundaries following these changes.

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• SCOTUS grants stay and certiorari in DHS v. D.V.D. immigration removal case — The Supreme Court granted an emergency stay of a February 2026 District Court order from Massachusetts that had invalidated the Government's guidance on third-country removals. The Court also granted certiorari and directed the parties to brief four questions, including whether the district court had jurisdiction, whether it had authority to enter classwide declaratory relief and APA vacatur, whether the Government's removal guidance violates 8 U.S.C. §1231(b), the Due Process Clause, or FARRA/CAT regulations, and such other questions the Government deems appropriate. The case is scheduled for argument in December 2026. Three Justices (Sotomayor, Kagan, Jackson) would have denied the stay.
• US Supreme Court lifts lower-court restrictions on third-country deportations — The US Supreme Court's six-justice conservative majority temporarily lifted a lower-court decision requiring the Trump administration to provide immigrants notice and opportunity to claim fear of torture or persecution before deporting them to third countries. The administration had argued the requirement prevented efficient removals. The ruling takes effect while the Court considers the larger case, with oral arguments scheduled for December. The administration has deported over 25,000 immigrants to at least 29 countries under these agreements.
• Supreme Court temporarily permits third-country deportations to continue — The Supreme Court approved the Trump administration's request to suspend a lower court ruling that restricted deportations to countries other than immigrants' countries of origin. A federal district judge had ruled against the administration's procedures for carrying out these removals, including treatment of notice and opportunities to raise fears of persecution or torture. The Supreme Court's order temporarily permits the contested procedures to continue while the case proceeds; oral arguments are scheduled for December. The Court has not yet issued a decision establishing whether the policy is lawful.

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• Authors sue Los Angeles Public Library over cancellation of Palestine Week event — Two authors, Jenan Matari (Palestinian-American) and Nora Lester Murad (Jewish-American), filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles state court against the City of Los Angeles after the Los Angeles Public Library cancelled their scheduled virtual book talk for Read Palestine Week on 6 December 2025. The library cancelled the event three days before it was set to occur, citing unspecified concerns. A staff librarian had sent an email to leadership accusing both writers of "strong terrorist ties and virulently antisemitic views" based on their social media posts and pro-Palestine activism. The lawsuit alleges free speech violations, discrimination, and breach of contract.

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• Tennessee governor denies clemency for Christa Pike; execution scheduled for September 30 — Tennessee Governor Bill Lee denied clemency for Christa Pike on Monday, September 29, 2026, clearing the way for her execution on Wednesday, September 30. Pike, 50, was convicted of first-degree murder in 1996 for killing a classmate at age 18 and has been on death row for 30 years. If executed, she will be the first woman executed in Tennessee in 200 years. Pike's attorneys have requested a stay from the state supreme court, citing her history of severe childhood sexual abuse, mental illness (bipolar disorder and PTSD), and evolving understanding of her crime.

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• CNN reported Republican nominee for Texas Railroad Commission made repeated calls for public executions of political opponents — CNN reported that Bo French, the Republican nominee for the Texas Railroad Commission, has repeatedly called for public executions of his political opponents, including former President Barack Obama, using the hashtag "HangEmHigh" over the past six years. The report noted that Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Republican U.S. Senate nominee Ken Paxton have not withdrawn their endorsements of French despite the inflammatory rhetoric.

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• Supreme Court paused lower court order on SAVE citizenship database — The Supreme Court, over the dissent of its three liberal justices, paused a lower court order and allowed the administration to resume using its overhauled SAVE database while litigation continues. The SAVE system links Social Security data with state voter rolls for citizenship verification. A federal judge had found in June that the overhaul violated the Privacy Act and other federal laws. When Texas ran all 18 million of its voters through SAVE, the system flagged 2,724 people; nearly 20 percent were confirmed as citizens and reinstated. Federal law prohibits systematic voter purges within 90 days of federal elections. The Court's majority acknowledged this limit but stated citizenship checks remain permissible in that window and each state decides whether to use SAVE.
• U.S. Supreme Court rules Trump administration may resume voter suppression database for voter removal — The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Friday that the Trump administration can resume using its voter suppression database to help Republicans remove voters from the rolls. The decision permits the federal government to conduct individualized voter inquiries using the modified SAVE program during the 90-day quiet period before Election Day, though the Court acknowledged this "limits the potential impact" of the ruling. The Court has scheduled a separate case, Republican National Committee v. Mi Familia Vota, for December argument to consider the scope of the quiet period and whether states may conduct systematic noncitizen removal during that window.

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• U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan criticized ICE for inhumane detention conditions — U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan criticized Immigration and Customs Enforcement for ignoring his previous orders and continuing to hold people in "inhumane and unconstitutional" conditions at Manhattan's 26 Federal Plaza. The judge found detainees were deprived of "sleep, sanitary living conditions, basic personal hygiene needs, sufficient food and water, and adequate medical care." Kaplan required ICE to provide adequate space and humane conditions for detainees.

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• Trump administration petitions Supreme Court to overturn third-country deportation ban — Attorney General Todd Blanche announced that the Department of Justice filed a petition with the US Supreme Court on Thursday, September 25, 2026, seeking to overturn a federal appeals court ruling that blocked the Trump administration's policy of deporting immigrants to countries other than their own. The administration has already deported over 25,000 migrants to at least 29 third countries, including dangerous locations such as the Central African Republic and South Sudan. The lower court had declared the Department of Homeland Security's policy unlawful, and the appeals court upheld that decision in a class-action lawsuit brought by migrants subject to deportation orders.

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• California Supreme Court orders sheriff to return confiscated ballots — California's Supreme Court ruled that Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco unlawfully confiscated over 650,000 ballots during an inquiry into unsubstantiated fraud claims following a November 2025 special election. Chief Justice Patricia Guerrero found the seizure violated election law and created substantial risk to election integrity. Attorney General Rob Bonta had ordered Bianco to return the ballots; Bianco refused. The court rejected Bianco's argument that the AG could not direct a sheriff's investigation, affirming state authority over election materials. Governor Newsom signed legislation preventing future ballot seizures.
• California Supreme Court ordered sheriff to return confiscated ballots — The California Supreme Court ordered Sheriff Chad Bianco to return the confiscated ballots, ruling that it was Bianco, not voters, who was endangering elections. The court stated: "Allowing law enforcement unfettered access to ballots, or the ability to handle and count them in secret, based on unregulated protocols, itself creates a substantial risk to election integrity."

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• Texas Supreme Court lets stand acquittal in Crystal Mason voting case — Texas's highest criminal court declined to hear an appeal by the Tarrant County district attorney in the case of Crystal Mason, a Black woman convicted in 2018 of casting a provisional ballot while on supervised release for a federal tax felony. A lower court had acquitted her in 2024; the state's highest criminal court voted 5-4 on Thursday to let that acquittal stand without explanation, ending nearly a decade of litigation. Mason had maintained the ballot-casting was an innocent mistake and that she was never informed of her ineligibility.

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• DHS whistleblower alleges voter impersonation by federal agents — A Department of Homeland Security whistleblower alleged that DHS, as part of its "Unlawful Voter Initiative," directed federal agents to impersonate voters in violation of state laws, using Social Security numbers and other information to look up voter history on state websites. The allegation prompted US Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff to request an investigation by California's attorney general, citing concerns about how DHS obtained and used voter data and whether it complied with law.

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• ICE rapidly hired 10,000 agents with minimal vetting — The Department of Homeland Security added 10,000 new ICE agents after Congress provided billions of dollars to double the ICE workforce. ICE ramped up hiring by offering $50,000 signing bonuses and cutting normal vetting procedures, sometimes not even checking fingerprints, identities, or conducting job interviews. David Brouillette, an ICE officer with a volatile history who killed Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Biddeford, Maine, in July, was also a recent hire. ICE has been quietly firing some of those hastily hired agents.

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• Solicitor General D. John Sauer asked Supreme Court to permit third-country deportations — Solicitor General D. John Sauer filed an emergency petition with the Supreme Court asking the Court to permit the Trump administration to resume sending migrants to third countries. The request came after a federal appeals court stopped the practice, finding that the short timeline for renditions stripped deportees of their right to due process. Sauer argued that disruption of the administration's "plans…imposes massive costs on the government and invariably requires new rounds of diplomatic engagement."

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• Nevada secretary of state rejected DHS noncitizen voter list — On Tuesday, Nevada Secretary of State Francisco Aguilar stated that the 185 people on the DHS list of alleged noncitizens are all citizens according to Nevada's records. Aguilar said: "Our records do not support DHS's claims, and DHS has still not provided evidence to change that. Instead, DHS officials continue their attempts to intimidate election officials into compliance and deter voters with huge claims of fraud with no evidence."

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• Complaint filed: DSCC v. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (D.D.C. 1:26-cv-03330) — The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Democratic Governors Association, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries filed a federal complaint against the Department of Homeland Security, ICE, and the FBI, alleging they have adopted a policy to station armed officers at polling places during the 2026 general election. Plaintiffs claim the policy violates 18 U.S.C. § 592 and Section 11(b) of the Voting Rights Act, chills voting particularly among naturalized citizens, and forces Democratic organizations to divert resources to voter protection. They seek declaratory and injunctive relief barring armed officers from polling places, drop boxes, and curbside voting locations.

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• Mario David Coronado Juarez dies in car crash during ICE traffic stop in Michigan — Mario David Coronado Juarez, a 36-year-old Guatemalan national, died on Sunday in Grand Rapids when his vehicle struck a tree at high speed and burst into flames shortly after ICE officers attempted a traffic stop. The driver fled at high speed after the stop was initiated; ICE stated agents discontinued pursuit in the interest of public safety. Democratic officials including Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Congresswoman Hillary Scholten have demanded transparency and investigation into the circumstances.

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• Justice Department Finds UCSF Medical School Discriminates Based on Race in Admissions — The Department of Justice announced this on 2026-09-22 through Civil Rights Division. The department's own account of it reads: "The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division announced today its finding that the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine (UCSF Medical School) discriminated based on race in granting and denying admission to its 2023-2025 incoming classes."

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• Charges dropped against Stanford students in pro-Palestine protest case — Five Stanford University students who faced felony conspiracy to trespass and vandalism charges related to a June 2024 occupation of the university president's office had all charges dropped on Monday. The California attorney general's office, which took over the case after the original prosecutor was recused for conflict of interest, reached a resolution requiring 100 hours of community service and approximately $50,000 in restitution—far less than the $1 million initially threatened. Three additional students with prior misdemeanor pleas will have convictions withdrawn upon completing community service.

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• ICE agents assault and arrest independent photographer John Abernathy during Minneapolis immigration protest — During a Trump administration immigration crackdown in Minneapolis, ICE agents tackled independent photographer John Abernathy while he documented a protest. A photograph showed him on the ground with pepper spray running down his face. The incident exemplified ICE's aggressive tactics against both immigrants and US citizens defending them, and demonstrated that journalists were not immune to the agency's violence. Abernathy managed to toss his camera to another photographer to preserve his images.

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• Trump administration deports 25,000+ migrants to third countries via 35 bilateral agreements — Since returning to office in 2025, the Trump administration has deported more than 25,000 migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers to countries where they have no connections, using 35 bilateral deals struck with foreign governments. The policy, led by White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller through a newly created Office of Remigration, has sent approximately 20,000 people to Mexico and at least 5,000 to Latin America, Africa, central Asia, and the Caribbean. The US has pledged at least $410 million to secure these agreements. A federal appeals court ruled the policy unlawful on procedural grounds (lack of due process notice and contestation), but the administration stated it would appeal and continue deportations during the 90-day appeal window.
• State Department pledged $410 million for third-country deportations — The Washington Post reported that the State Department's "Office of Remigration" pledged at least $410 million to facilitate third-country renditions to expel migrants that U.S. courts say cannot be returned to their home countries for fear of harm or death. The U.S. has sent more than 25,000 people to at least 28 third countries, including Eswatini, Uganda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, and Sierra Leone, for a fee. The money includes $81 million in direct payments to 13 foreign governments. Those countries either imprison the migrants or send them back to their home countries, circumventing the prohibition on direct U.S. deportations. White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller ordered the deals, and State Department official Christian Ehrhardt secured them.

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• Federal appeals court rules third-country deportation policy unlawful — A three-judge federal appeals court panel unanimously ruled on Friday (date of ruling not specified, but referenced as occurring before the article's publication) that the Trump administration's third-country removal policy violated due process by failing to provide adequate notice of deportation decisions or opportunity for legal contestation. Human rights lawyers argued the ruling should ground deportation flights immediately. However, the Department of Homeland Security's general counsel stated the policy would continue, and the government indicated it would appeal within the 90-day window allowed by law. The ruling relates to a March 2025 lawsuit; a district judge had issued a preliminary injunction in April 2025, but the Supreme Court lifted it in June 2025, allowing flights to resume.

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• Five major television networks suspend shared White House pool coverage — On September 21, after the White House removed CNN from its regular scheduled assignment, five major networks—ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox News, and NBC—that normally take turns recording and sharing presidential event footage suspended their shared coverage in solidarity. Fox News, which chairs the television pool this quarter, announced the suspension. The absence of pool microphones at a White House helicopter pad ceremony left Trump's remarks largely inaudible and prevented C-SPAN from carrying the event with its usual feed.
• Major television networks refuse to provide press pool coverage — ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox News, and NBC News, which normally take turns providing television pool coverage of the president, refused to cover Trump on September 21 after CNN was banned from the White House. CNN was scheduled to provide the television pool that day. In a joint statement, the networks said: "The public has a vital interest in receiving accurate, independent information about its government. No administration should restrict a news organization because it objects to its reporting." As a result, Trump held a White House event without audio or press pool coverage.
• Major TV networks suspended White House pool coverage in solidarity with CNN — After Trump barred CNN from the White House, the five major TV networks (CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN, FOX) that comprise the presidential TV pool voted to suspend all pool coverage of Trump's events. The pool chair announced no replacement pool would be established, meaning no major TV network would provide coverage of Trump's events, including his UN trip. C-SPAN and other outlets that rely on the pool feed were unable to broadcast White House events.

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• ICE agents beat and injured US citizen in mistaken arrest attempt in Evanston, Illinois — On September 20, 2026, ICE agents in Evanston, Illinois, allegedly beat a Black US citizen during a botched arrest, mistaking him for a fugitive. Eyewitnesses reported the man was pinned down, punched, and had his face scraped against the sidewalk while shouting he was a citizen. The agents left after realizing their error. The victim was hospitalized with head, neck, and teeth injuries. DHS stated the agents encountered someone resembling their target, who was "not cooperative," but eyewitnesses contradicted the official account.
• ICE agents wound US citizen during mistaken detention in Evanston, Illinois — Federal immigration agents detained a US citizen in Evanston, Illinois on Sunday morning, believing he resembled a fugitive they were seeking. When the man refused to provide identification and resisted detention, agents injured him during an attempted handcuff, causing head, neck, and teeth injuries. After fingerprinting determined he was a US citizen and not the person they sought, he was released and hospitalized. Witnesses identified the agents as ICE personnel; the incident occurred as ICE faces scrutiny over violent tactics in Trump's immigration crackdown.
• ICE agents attempt arrest of U.S. citizen in Evanston, Illinois in apparent mistaken identity case — Two ICE agents in Evanston, Illinois attempted to arrest a U.S. citizen in an apparent case of mistaken identity, resulting in injuries requiring hospital treatment. The incident occurred on the same day as the Coronado death and the Austin shooting, contributing to concerns about aggressive and error-prone enforcement operations.

Supporting reports

• Guatemalan national dies after crashing car while fleeing immigration officers in Michigan — On September 20, 2026, a 36-year-old Guatemalan national died after crashing his car into a tree at high speed in Michigan while reportedly attempting to flee immigration officers attempting to detain him. Authorities are investigating the death as part of a pattern of violent immigration enforcement incidents that day.
• ICE agent shot and seriously wounded Venezuelan man during traffic stop in Austin, Texas — On September 20, 2026, an ICE agent shot and seriously wounded a 28-year-old Venezuelan man in Austin, Texas, during a traffic stop while the man was working as a DoorDash delivery driver. The incident was one of three violent encounters involving federal immigration officers that day and is under investigation.
• ICE agent shoots and wounds Venezuelan DoorDash driver in Austin, Texas — An ICE agent shot and wounded Wilber Rafael Garcés Pérez, a Venezuelan man working as a DoorDash delivery driver, in Austin, Texas on the same day as the Coronado death. The incident is cited as part of a pattern of increasingly aggressive ICE enforcement tactics in support of the Trump administration's immigration crackdown.
• ICE agent shot Venezuelan food delivery driver in Austin — An Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent shot Wilber Rafael Garcés Pérez, a Venezuelan food delivery driver, in the back in Austin, Texas. With a bullet still lodged in his body, he was discharged from a hospital to ICE custody, where he spent the night in pain on a cold floor. The officer was a recent hire who was not wearing a body camera, despite Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin's promise that all ICE agents would wear cameras. Officials took Garcés Pérez back to the hospital on Monday after public outcry. His lawyer said he had a valid work permit and is an asylum seeker, and that the deportation order came because notice of his immigration court hearing was sent to the wrong address.

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• Election officials nationwide preparing for federal intervention in voting systems — Reuters interviewed more than 50 state and local election officials from both parties, including a dozen secretaries of state, who described adopting new strategies to prepare for political interference, cyberattacks, misinformation, and threats of violence. California officials have gamed out federal agents appearing at polling places, and Michigan is advising clerks on how to respond to federal demands for voting machines. More than a dozen officials hired outside attorneys or sought legal training for possible demands involving sensitive voting records or equipment.