FOCUS on some great journalism
- Mother Jones
- ProPublica
- The New Republic
- The Atlantic Monthly
PBS newshour and NPR
A leading member of the Epstein class, Jeff Bezos, destroys the storied Washington Post. We will need to rely more and more on independent journalists for truth.
Find one listing here
alphabetical listing
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| Source: The New Republic latest page on Feb 4, 2026. Look at all these important articles. TNR focuses on short and packed articles. Miller's Crossing Trump’s New “Prison Camp” Threat Unleashes Fury Even in MAGA CountryThe next phase of ICE’s big ramp-up: a nationwide network of vast detention facilities. But guess what? Even parts of Red America are saying no. |
Face coverings may work less to protect federal agents from danger than to make it easier for them to do unconstitutional [unspeakable] things.
Trump’s Crypto Defenses Aren’t Reassuring
An Abu Dhabi royal seems to have gotten what he paid for, according to a Wall Street Journal report.
Countdown to an Arms Race
The last significant nuclear-arms-control treaty is about to expire, and Trump isn’t putting anything in its place.
The Real Reason ICE Agents Wear Masks
Face coverings may work less to protect federal agents from danger than to make it easier for them to do unconstitutional things.
Politics
Volunteers help to load boxes filled with groceries at Dios Habla Hoy Church in Minneapolis on January 21.Madison Swart
George Floyd’s aunt, Angela Harrison, sits in her car down the block from Renée Good’s memorial, warming her hands against the heater. Outside, two women walk toward the memorial in face masks and ski goggles, the snow squeaking under their boots, to join the dozens in puffy jackets and face masks who are already there.
It’s a bright Friday morning, negative-13 degrees outside. That afternoon, tens of thousands of protesters will gather downtown to protest ICE. A day later, immigration officials will kill Alex Pretti.
Propublica has led to much better policy with their reporting.
Two CBP Agents Identified in Alex Pretti Shooting
The two federal immigration agents who fired on Minneapolis protester Alex Pretti are identified in government records as Border Patrol agent Jesus Ochoa and Customs and Border Protection officer Raymundo Gutierrez.
The records viewed by ProPublica list Ochoa, 43, and Gutierrez, 35, as the shooters during the deadly encounter last weekend that left Pretti dead and ignited massive protests and calls for criminal investigations.
Both men were assigned to Operation Metro Surge, an immigration enforcement dragnet launched in December that sent scores of armed and masked agents across the city.
CBP, which employs both men, has so far refused to release their names and has disclosed few other facts about the deadly incident, which came days after a different immigration agent shot and killed another Minneapolis protester, a 37-year-old mother of three named Renee Good.
Pretti’s killing, and the subsequent secrecy surrounding the agents involved, comes as the country confronts the consequences of President Donald Trump’s aggressive immigration crackdown. The sweeps in cities across the country have been marked by scenes of violence, against immigrants and U.S. citizens, by agents allowed to hide their identities with masks — an almost unheard of practice in law enforcement. As a result, the public has been kept from one of the chief ways it has to hold officers involved in such altercations accountable: their identity.
Both Democratic and Republican lawmakers have called for a transparent investigation into the killing of Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care unit nurse working at a Department of Veterans Affairs hospital.
“We must have a transparent, independent investigation into the Minnesota shooting, and those responsible—no matter their title—must be held accountable,” Republican Sen. John Curtis of Utah wrote on X on Monday.
The agency sent a notice to some members of Congress on Tuesday acknowledging that two agents fired Glock pistols during the altercation that left Pretti dead. That notice does not include the agents’ names. A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees CBP, said the agents had been placed on leave after the Jan. 24 shooting. And after a week of protests and calls from lawmakers for a review, the Justice Department said Friday that its Civil Rights Division is investigating the shooting. A DOJ spokesperson did not answer questions, including whether DHS has shared materials, such as body-camera footage, with its investigators.
Ochoa is a Border Patrol agent who joined CBP in 2018. Gutierrez joined in 2014 and works for CBP’s Office of Field Operations. He is assigned to a special response team, which conducts high-risk operations like those of police SWAT units. Records show both men are from South Texas.
SNIP
“The other agent could have said ‘don’t interfere’ or ‘stand back,’” Kerlikowske said. “Rather than move immediately to pepper spray, you can arrest the person.” It’s part of a pattern, he said, of federal officers jumping straight to use of force in situations that could have been de-escalated but instead create danger for both agents and their targets.
Pretti’s death, and the federal government’s characterization of the event, sparked immediate protests, spurring thousands of people to go out into frigid conditions in Minneapolis and other American cities. The shooting has also drawn intense criticism from political leaders, including Walz, who has promised his state’s law enforcement will conduct its own criminal investigation.
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