Sara Libby

ICE arrested an Oregon shop owner who had her green card in her pocket: ‘They didn’t care’ Juanita Avila later helped expose ICE’s ‘arrest first, justify later’ tactics in a lawsuit that won a major victory for immigrants’ rights

NEW: ICE tackled + arrested Juanita Avila, an Oregon shop owner who is a legal permanent resident and had her green card in her pocket.

When she asked through sobs why they didn't believe her, one masked agent replied: “Because they lie all the time.”

Video + interview with her and her daughter:

DOD appears to be using AI slop to discuss the death of troops in Iran. "DOW Identifies An Army Believed to Be Casualty" www.war.gov/News/Release...

Bay Area mom arrested by ICE with her two young kids. Her attorneys can’t find them Attorneys were scrambling to find a mother and her two young children after they were arrested by federal immigration officers in San Francisco this week, an attorney said.

Immigration attorneys were scrambling Thursday to find a Bay Area mother and her two young children, one of whom has severe disabilities, after she were arrested by federal immigration officers in San Francisco this week. www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/arti...

Newsom says S.F. is among the worst counties for implementing CARE Court Gov. Gavin Newsom told the Chronicle Monday he's talked multiple times with Mayor Daniel Lurie about the county’s low performance.

Gov. Gavin Newsom named San Francisco County’s CARE Court program as one of the lowest-performing in California on Monday, as part of a new effort to bolster his signature mental health care program www.sfchronicle.com/politics/art...

Seems pretty clear from this that the very famous writer commissioned to do this book review let AI write it for her. You expect corporations to be looking for this sort of shortcut; it’s sad to see actual writers so contemptuous of their own craft. Or maybe I should say former writers.

Trump takes credit for lower egg prices as he sues California over rising costs Republicans keep taking credit for falling egg prices, even as President Trump’s Department of Justice sued California for what it says is a policy responsible for rising egg prices.

Since Trump keeps touting the price of eggs supposedly plummeting, remember the DOJ is currently suing California for supposedly making eggs unaffordable. www.sfchronicle.com/politics/joe...

One lawyer could take down California’s abortion shield. His star client is a convicted abuser Prominent conservative attorney Jonathan Mitchell wants to build a national abortion ban through California. His client is a convicted abuser of women.

Incredible reporting here laying out the extent to which the case attempting to overturn California's abortion shield law relies on a serial abuser of women. www.sfchronicle.com/california/a...

Exclusive: CBP asked a California county for info on all of its property owners Customs and Border Protection has requested information on every parcel in a Southern California county, including who owns each one.

Via: @sfchronicle.com: Customs and Border Protection wants ownership details and other information on every parcel in San Diego County, according to an official who handles county property data.

The mystery shocked San Francisco. What led to the death of a girl found in a driveway Jázmin sought care in California's for-profit psychiatric hospitals. But rather than help, they subjected her to chaotic conditions.

Congrats to 2026 Shadid Award finalists Joaquin Palomino and Cynthia Dizikes for their @sfchronicle.com investigation of for-profit mental health hospitals in California:
www.sfchronicle.com/projects/202...

under questioning by Rand Paul, ICE officials confirm that yelling at officers is not assault and recording officers is not a crime

I'd say Varsity Blues was a movie, not a show, but that's not quite right either. It was *cinema* bsky.app/profile/wash...

Tom Steyer wants to convince Californians he’s the ultimate unicorn: A billionaire populist In running for governor, Tom Steyer’s gambit is that Californians believe a billionaire can be a savior — a real populist who actually can help working people.

Tom Steyer is trying to convince California voters he's the ultimate unicorn: a billionaire populist. www.sfchronicle.com/politics/joe...

Bay Area congressman who viewed unredacted Epstein files says at least 6 men are implicated Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie complained Monday that many of the files they looked at were still redacted.

Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie complained Monday that many of the files they looked at were still redacted.

She begged CARE Court to help her son. He died 10 days after it dismissed his case CARE Court was Gavin Newsom’s big mental health care initiative. In San Francisco, fewer than 11 people have completed the program.

A sad story from @sophiabollag.bsky.social about one mother who received a cruel lesson in the limitations of CARE Court and began to wonder who the program could possibly help: www.sfchronicle.com/politics/art...

halftime show

what a shot

Supreme Court leaves California's Prop 50 maps in place for 2026 midterms The Supreme Court rejected an effort to block implementation of Prop 50 by the California Republican Party and the Trump administration, leaving the new maps in effect for 2026.

BREAKING: SCOTUS leaves California's Prop 50 in place for 2026, rejecting Republican efforts to block new redistricting maps. www.sfchronicle.com/politics/art...

From kneepads to Grindr, Newsom’s latest Trump-inspired insults have gotten downright sexual The kneepad jokes are not intended to be sexual, a Gavin Newsom spokesperson says. But a lot of people, from online commentators to scholars who study political rhetoric, aren’t buying that.

A truly great read in which Newsom's spox tells @sophiabollag.bsky.social that the gov's ongoing kneepads bit is "not about a blowjob" www.sfchronicle.com/politics/art...

Tommy Tuberville says he placed his assets in a blind trust. There’s no record that he did Tuberville hasn't filed the paperwork with the Senate Ethics Committee, and a blind trust isn't listed in his Alabama Ethics Commission filing.

Tommy Tuberville says he placed his assets in a blind trust. There’s no record that he did www.al.com/politics/202...

California Supreme Court strikes down Huntington Beach voter ID law The California Supreme Court refused Wednesday to allow a city to require voters to show photo identification at the polls. But California voters might soon weigh in on the issue.

BREAKING: The California Supreme Court has struck down Huntington Beach's voter ID law, leaving in place an appellate court ruling against the measure. www.sfchronicle.com/politics/art...

Teamsters California endorses proposed billionaires tax Teamsters California, with 250,000 members statewide, becomes the largest union to back the proposed November ballot measure to enact a onetime billionaires tax.

NEW: Teamsters California becomes the largest union to endorse the proposed billionaires tax. www.sfchronicle.com/politics/joe...

Minnesota Proved MAGA Wrong The pushback against ICE exposed a series of mistaken assumptions.

The full piece: www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...

@adamserwer.bsky.social has a unique ability to drill down into the heart of a political dispute, and this is it:

Giants outfielder Jung Hoo Lee detained at Los Angeles International Airport San Francisco Giants outfielder Jung Hoo Lee was detained Wednesday evening at Los Angeles International Airport, his agent Scott Boras told the Chronicle.

BREAKING: San Francisco Giants star Jung Hoo Lee has been detained by CBP at LAX. Pelosi's office says she is working to secure his release. www.sfchronicle.com/sports/giant...

Minnesota: "School officials say the [5-year-old] child was used as bait. They say [ICE] agents made little Liam knock on the door to ask to be let in in order to see if anyone else was home."

Immigration officers assert sweeping power to enter homes without a judge's warrant, memo says An Immigration and Customs Enforcement memo obtained by The Associated Press reveals that the agency allows immigration officers to forcibly enter homes to make arrests without a judicial warrant.

BREAKING: Immigration officers are asserting sweeping power to enter homes without a judge’s warrant, a memo obtained by AP says.

California's Prop. 50 Case is Heading to SCOTUS After Majority of District Court Rejects Republicans' Motion for an Injunction Pending Appeal #ELB You can find the order at this link. Next stop for Republicans is the Supreme Court, where they have already filed an appeal.

California’s Prop. 50 Case is Heading to SCOTUS After Majority of District Court Rejects Republicans’ Motion for an Injunction Pending Appeal electionlawblog.org?p=153886

Court rejects Trump lawsuit seeking California voters' sensitive data A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Trump administration that would have forced California to turn over personal information on millions of voters.

NEW: A federal judge just dismissed the Trump administration's attempt to force California to give up sensitive voter data. www.sfchronicle.com/politics/art...

Court greenlights Prop 50 for 2026 election, denying GOP bid to block new maps he majority cited the Supreme Court’s Dec. 4 decision allowing Texas Republicans to redraw their districts in order to gain five House seats this year

BREAKING: In a fiery order, federal judges reject Republicans' claims that California's Prop 50 was an illegal race-based gerrymander, letting Prop 50 stay in place for the 2026 midterms. www.sfchronicle.com/politics/art...

In the last 4 days:

-- Elise Slotkin says she's being criminally investigated by DOJ
-- ICE illegally goes "door to door" in Minneapolis
-- FBI raids the home of a WP journalist
-- DHS illegally arrests, detains 100+ Somalians with legal refugee status

3 Prosecutors Quit After Push to Investigate ICE Shooting Victim’s Widow

3 Prosecutors Quit After Push to Investigate ICE Shooting Victim’s Widow www.nytimes.com/2026/01/13/u...