Cathy Gellis
@cathygellis.bsky.social
Lawyer, writer, all-around-great person
I mostly post about technology, law, and civil liberties (especially free speech), and how they intersect. And mostly at Techdirt: https://www.techdirt.com/user/cathy/
I also post silly things too.
I mostly post about technology, law, and civil liberties (especially free speech), and how they intersect. And mostly at Techdirt: https://www.techdirt.com/user/cathy/
I also post silly things too.
Pinned
Cathy Gellis
@cathygellis.bsky.social
· Jan 3
Oaths Of Office, And How Everyone Not Moving To Impeach Trump Is Violating Their Own
Until very recently the only member of Congress excused from not having moved to impeach Trump was Rep. Grijalva, because until someone swore her in there was nothing she could officially do. But f…
www.techdirt.com
A reminder: any member of Congress not impeaching is violating their own oath of office.
It's not optional.
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/26/o...
It's not optional.
www.techdirt.com/2025/11/26/o...
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
NEW: The top Trump-appointed proseutor in MN says his office is dropping "pressing priorities" to manage crushing immigration workload.
His short-staffed office is doing constant overtime and bouncing between contempt hearings.
The bleak assessment:
www.politico.com/news/2026/02...
His short-staffed office is doing constant overtime and bouncing between contempt hearings.
The bleak assessment:
www.politico.com/news/2026/02...
February 5, 2026 at 2:29 PM
NEW: The top Trump-appointed proseutor in MN says his office is dropping "pressing priorities" to manage crushing immigration workload.
His short-staffed office is doing constant overtime and bouncing between contempt hearings.
The bleak assessment:
www.politico.com/news/2026/02...
His short-staffed office is doing constant overtime and bouncing between contempt hearings.
The bleak assessment:
www.politico.com/news/2026/02...
I think Gabriel is right that this is the vector of attack to defend against if the goal is to disrupt elections and not just terrorize.
But because there are so many differences in how elections are run, there's also not one sure way for them to be attacked.
But because there are so many differences in how elections are run, there's also not one sure way for them to be attacked.
That's what we have to guard against again: Trump goons making it impossible to count votes from places they think they're losing or trying to mess up the EC votes.
February 5, 2026 at 2:29 PM
I think Gabriel is right that this is the vector of attack to defend against if the goal is to disrupt elections and not just terrorize.
But because there are so many differences in how elections are run, there's also not one sure way for them to be attacked.
But because there are so many differences in how elections are run, there's also not one sure way for them to be attacked.
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
I’m on the scene at Franklin and 1st. A convoy of about a couple dozen ICE/HSI agents broke the entryway into an apartment building at 6am. No warrant presented. Less than 24 hours ago, Tom Homan announced the end of large convoys in Minnesota… Bullshit.
February 5, 2026 at 12:49 PM
I’m on the scene at Franklin and 1st. A convoy of about a couple dozen ICE/HSI agents broke the entryway into an apartment building at 6am. No warrant presented. Less than 24 hours ago, Tom Homan announced the end of large convoys in Minnesota… Bullshit.
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
NEW: It doesn’t happen often, but local law enforcement can arrest and charge federal agents.
Legal experts say there’s a moral obligation to at least try to hold federal immigration officers accountable when they violate the Constitution and the law.
Legal experts say there’s a moral obligation to at least try to hold federal immigration officers accountable when they violate the Constitution and the law.
“You’re Not Going to Investigate a Federal Officer”
It doesn’t happen often, but local law enforcement can arrest and charge federal agents. Legal experts say there’s a moral obligation to at least try to hold federal immigration officers accountable w...
www.propublica.org
February 5, 2026 at 1:00 PM
NEW: It doesn’t happen often, but local law enforcement can arrest and charge federal agents.
Legal experts say there’s a moral obligation to at least try to hold federal immigration officers accountable when they violate the Constitution and the law.
Legal experts say there’s a moral obligation to at least try to hold federal immigration officers accountable when they violate the Constitution and the law.
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
‘One officer told me that I "had no chance of returning to Minnesota" and that "the best thing for (me] is self-deportation." …
She offered me $2600 to self-deport.
I refused.
I wanted to talk to my attorney.
They didn't tell me the judge had already ordered my release and return to Minnesota.’
She offered me $2600 to self-deport.
I refused.
I wanted to talk to my attorney.
They didn't tell me the judge had already ordered my release and return to Minnesota.’
![…
25. This Cibola jail was horrible. It was cramped. I was chained up again.
The officers mocked
me and called me their enemy. They laughed at me. I was kept at the jail for what felt like around three hours. I wasn't given an explanation for why I was there.
26. Security
guards then put me on a bus. I think it was around January 27.
No one said
anything about where I was going. I was handcuffed. It felt like the middle of the night. It was freezing cold in the bus because the driver had the AC on. We had no jackets. The bus eventually took me back to El Paso in the carly morning of Tuesday, January 27th.
27. I was put in a cold cell where I had to sleep on the bare cement floor. Around 10 in the morning my cellmate asked to speak to an ICE officer. Three officers came into the cell so I had a chance to speak to them too. One officer told me that I "had no chance of returning to Minnesota" and that "the best thing for (me] is self-deportation." She told me that if I fought my case, I would spend two to three more months here in El Paso. She offered me $2600 to self-deport. I refused. I wanted to talk to my attorney. They didn't tell me the judge had already ordered my release and return to Minnesota. If I hadn't managed to talk to my attorney who told me a while back that I was ordered released. I might have given up at this point and signed the self-deportation forms because the conditions were so unbearable.
…
30. When I was taken back to the detention center from the airport, after missing the flight, I overheard an ICE officer saying in English, "the judge in Minnesota wants this one back." I was put in a cold jail cell again until early next morning (January 28). But again no one had told me directly that a judge had ordered my release
…
32. When I arrived in Minneapolis, I was handed off to ICE
… I had to sign lots of papers saying that I wasn't going to be a part of any "groups." I didn't know what they meant by "groups." They never told me why I was detained](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:5cn3kbi4g5blrtahon34xbu4/bafkreiccqxmfncofjqinoveiqscwale2ox5xpiqt46veqjdh3jmimkrxhq@jpeg)
February 5, 2026 at 6:04 AM
‘One officer told me that I "had no chance of returning to Minnesota" and that "the best thing for (me] is self-deportation." …
She offered me $2600 to self-deport.
I refused.
I wanted to talk to my attorney.
They didn't tell me the judge had already ordered my release and return to Minnesota.’
She offered me $2600 to self-deport.
I refused.
I wanted to talk to my attorney.
They didn't tell me the judge had already ordered my release and return to Minnesota.’
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
I have no financial or personal interest in @51st.news, but for those interested in keeping up with local DC issues, consider subscribing. They have @maustermuhle.bsky.social on the beat (frmr WAMU and DCist) and are absolutely punching above their weight. The Post is dead, time to move on.
The morning after mass layoffs, The Washington Post publishes this as their lead editorial. The owner and publisher clearly have no idea why they are losing subscribers. Meanwhile they have destroyed a storied brand.
Support independent media. hubs.ly/Q03M8rql0
Support independent media. hubs.ly/Q03M8rql0
February 5, 2026 at 1:47 PM
I have no financial or personal interest in @51st.news, but for those interested in keeping up with local DC issues, consider subscribing. They have @maustermuhle.bsky.social on the beat (frmr WAMU and DCist) and are absolutely punching above their weight. The Post is dead, time to move on.
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
"Although the law is clear, deep-state actors in the federal government have for decades" thwarted me, I will write in my next brief.
As far as I know, this is DHS's first effort to explain their position that I-205 forms allow entry into the home. They rely on the dicta in the 1960 Abel case (before Payton) and re-imagine the plurality opinion in Lucas as if it were the majority (and then overrely on it).
February 5, 2026 at 1:48 PM
"Although the law is clear, deep-state actors in the federal government have for decades" thwarted me, I will write in my next brief.
Speaking of things backfiring... (Hiring that editorial board...)
The morning after mass layoffs, The Washington Post publishes this as their lead editorial. The owner and publisher clearly have no idea why they are losing subscribers. Meanwhile they have destroyed a storied brand.
Support independent media. hubs.ly/Q03M8rql0
Support independent media. hubs.ly/Q03M8rql0
February 5, 2026 at 2:14 PM
Speaking of things backfiring... (Hiring that editorial board...)
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
This is something much worse than contempt of court.
They're denying phone calls and refusing release so they can coerce them into giving up their rights.
They're denying phone calls and refusing release so they can coerce them into giving up their rights.
‘One officer told me that I "had no chance of returning to Minnesota" and that "the best thing for (me] is self-deportation." …
She offered me $2600 to self-deport.
I refused.
I wanted to talk to my attorney.
They didn't tell me the judge had already ordered my release and return to Minnesota.’
She offered me $2600 to self-deport.
I refused.
I wanted to talk to my attorney.
They didn't tell me the judge had already ordered my release and return to Minnesota.’
February 5, 2026 at 2:07 PM
This is something much worse than contempt of court.
They're denying phone calls and refusing release so they can coerce them into giving up their rights.
They're denying phone calls and refusing release so they can coerce them into giving up their rights.
That's probably a bigger danger than suppressing the polls, if Trump really wants to disrupt the election, and something to prepare for.
That's what we have to guard against again: Trump goons making it impossible to count votes from places they think they're losing or trying to mess up the EC votes.
February 5, 2026 at 2:04 PM
That's probably a bigger danger than suppressing the polls, if Trump really wants to disrupt the election, and something to prepare for.
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
Sometime when I have an abundance of free time (not today) I will mark this up. But know that there are a lot of other issues that are wrong here beyond what Orin mentions below. For example, simply having an order of removal and still being present in the US does not make you a fugitive per se.
As far as I know, this is DHS's first effort to explain their position that I-205 forms allow entry into the home. They rely on the dicta in the 1960 Abel case (before Payton) and re-imagine the plurality opinion in Lucas as if it were the majority (and then overrely on it).
February 5, 2026 at 1:53 PM
Sometime when I have an abundance of free time (not today) I will mark this up. But know that there are a lot of other issues that are wrong here beyond what Orin mentions below. For example, simply having an order of removal and still being present in the US does not make you a fugitive per se.
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
This is Jerry Lawson. He invented the video game cartridge for the Fairchild Channel F system. Because of his invention, many consoles had cartridges and CD formats and would become the norm.
The Atari 2600, NES, Genesis, and many consoles wouldn't exist without him.
Happy Black History Month.
The Atari 2600, NES, Genesis, and many consoles wouldn't exist without him.
Happy Black History Month.
February 1, 2025 at 11:04 PM
This is Jerry Lawson. He invented the video game cartridge for the Fairchild Channel F system. Because of his invention, many consoles had cartridges and CD formats and would become the norm.
The Atari 2600, NES, Genesis, and many consoles wouldn't exist without him.
Happy Black History Month.
The Atari 2600, NES, Genesis, and many consoles wouldn't exist without him.
Happy Black History Month.
The thing to do, though, is fix laws that have made us more vulnerable to this nonsense, esp. like in AZ, where there probably are the votes for it:
- Ensure early voting
- Allow drop boxes and help voting
- Allow poll monitors (including by out-of-state observers, even if just lawyers, etc.)
- Ensure early voting
- Allow drop boxes and help voting
- Allow poll monitors (including by out-of-state observers, even if just lawyers, etc.)
My expectation for this is they'll make a big show of rolling out the goon squad outside a handful of locations, the states will seek and likely get emergency injunctions, and meanwhile the whole spectacle will only motivate way more people to show up and vote in defiance than are scared away.
I understand folks are scared but I want you to think about the mechanics of this.
There are more polling places (>100k) than ICE and CBP agents combined, so they can only pick a few districts to try to intimidate.
Now what happens when cell phone footage of that goes online in the early morning?
There are more polling places (>100k) than ICE and CBP agents combined, so they can only pick a few districts to try to intimidate.
Now what happens when cell phone footage of that goes online in the early morning?
February 5, 2026 at 1:44 PM
The thing to do, though, is fix laws that have made us more vulnerable to this nonsense, esp. like in AZ, where there probably are the votes for it:
- Ensure early voting
- Allow drop boxes and help voting
- Allow poll monitors (including by out-of-state observers, even if just lawyers, etc.)
- Ensure early voting
- Allow drop boxes and help voting
- Allow poll monitors (including by out-of-state observers, even if just lawyers, etc.)
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
My expectation for this is they'll make a big show of rolling out the goon squad outside a handful of locations, the states will seek and likely get emergency injunctions, and meanwhile the whole spectacle will only motivate way more people to show up and vote in defiance than are scared away.
I understand folks are scared but I want you to think about the mechanics of this.
There are more polling places (>100k) than ICE and CBP agents combined, so they can only pick a few districts to try to intimidate.
Now what happens when cell phone footage of that goes online in the early morning?
There are more polling places (>100k) than ICE and CBP agents combined, so they can only pick a few districts to try to intimidate.
Now what happens when cell phone footage of that goes online in the early morning?
i think people should consider the extent to which bannon, a known bullshit artist, knows that you will see this and panic. www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...
February 5, 2026 at 5:04 AM
My expectation for this is they'll make a big show of rolling out the goon squad outside a handful of locations, the states will seek and likely get emergency injunctions, and meanwhile the whole spectacle will only motivate way more people to show up and vote in defiance than are scared away.
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
NEW: The Justice Department unit responsible for pursuing potential wrongdoing by law enforcement, including during the crackdown in Minneapolis, has lost two-thirds of its prosecutors and is under orders to scale back its investigations of excessive force.
www.reuters.com/world/justic...
www.reuters.com/world/justic...
February 5, 2026 at 12:36 PM
NEW: The Justice Department unit responsible for pursuing potential wrongdoing by law enforcement, including during the crackdown in Minneapolis, has lost two-thirds of its prosecutors and is under orders to scale back its investigations of excessive force.
www.reuters.com/world/justic...
www.reuters.com/world/justic...
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
It was also the property of the American public, and they trashed it.
Killing the CIA World Factbook might seem like small potatoes, but it was a touchstone of curated facts in a sea of disinformation.
February 5, 2026 at 12:21 PM
It was also the property of the American public, and they trashed it.
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
Yep. Bannon is a savvy actor. He knows exactly how this will be received and is achieving a desired goal.
i think people should consider the extent to which bannon, a known bullshit artist, knows that you will see this and panic. www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...
Steve Bannon says ICE will ‘surround the polls’ as Trump doubles down on taking over elections
Trump doubled down on his comments to nationalize voting Tuesday during an Oval Office press conference. “If you think about it, a state is an agent for the federal government in elections,” Trump sai...
www.democracydocket.com
February 5, 2026 at 12:04 PM
Yep. Bannon is a savvy actor. He knows exactly how this will be received and is achieving a desired goal.
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
Keir Starmer wonders out loud who the hell has been running Labour
Keir Starmer attacks the racism of Reform and Matt Goodwin but then adds that "Britain has also been let down by a mindset on the left of politics that is too slow to defend core British values"
February 5, 2026 at 11:43 AM
Keir Starmer wonders out loud who the hell has been running Labour
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
NEW: The unfathomable Minnesota transcript that must be read, as it tells the reality of America today.
"I am not white, as you can see," Julie Le — a government lawyer — told a federal judge on Tuesday. "And my family's at risk as any other people that might get picked up too ..."
Law Dork:
"I am not white, as you can see," Julie Le — a government lawyer — told a federal judge on Tuesday. "And my family's at risk as any other people that might get picked up too ..."
Law Dork:
The unfathomable Minnesota transcript that must be read, as it tells the reality of America today
"I am not white, as you can see," Julie Le — a government lawyer — told a federal judge on Tuesday. "And my family's at risk as any other people that might get picked up too ..."
www.lawdork.com
February 5, 2026 at 4:59 AM
NEW: The unfathomable Minnesota transcript that must be read, as it tells the reality of America today.
"I am not white, as you can see," Julie Le — a government lawyer — told a federal judge on Tuesday. "And my family's at risk as any other people that might get picked up too ..."
Law Dork:
"I am not white, as you can see," Julie Le — a government lawyer — told a federal judge on Tuesday. "And my family's at risk as any other people that might get picked up too ..."
Law Dork:
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
House Republicans don’t understand the separation of powers on things like judicial warrants — or pretend not to, since most of them have only known the Trump era. But Americans (and their party) are more worried about targeting the innocent than missing the guilty.
www.ms.now/opinion/trum...
www.ms.now/opinion/trum...
February 5, 2026 at 4:21 AM
House Republicans don’t understand the separation of powers on things like judicial warrants — or pretend not to, since most of them have only known the Trump era. But Americans (and their party) are more worried about targeting the innocent than missing the guilty.
www.ms.now/opinion/trum...
www.ms.now/opinion/trum...
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
I would add: if a person who is here legally is held for more than half an hour (or whatever is a reasonable amount of time to check), that person shall receive $1000 per extra minute, with the first $10k to come from the detaining officer’s salary and the rest to come from the ICE budget.
in real terms, #7 would give states leverage to put an end to surges, #8 would give states the ability to outright stop construction of new detention facilities, #1 and #6 would slow the rate at which DHS could train and deploy officers, #2 and #10 would likely shrink the pool of recruits
Schumer & Jeffries lay out the Democratic demands for a DHS funding deal in a letter to the top Republican leaders
February 5, 2026 at 4:05 AM
I would add: if a person who is here legally is held for more than half an hour (or whatever is a reasonable amount of time to check), that person shall receive $1000 per extra minute, with the first $10k to come from the detaining officer’s salary and the rest to come from the ICE budget.
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
Normal people are out there doing extraordinary things. My mom's health aide emailed me: ICE took 2 of her neighbors; when she told them they weren't welcome, she was met w/a rifle. Now she's driving a neighbor to work hidden in the back of her car & escorting the neighbor's kids to the bus stop.
“If I am killed doing this, throw my body at the White House, martyr the shit out of me & raise hell. Do not be sad. Do not think I would do anything differently. I would do it over & over again — this is too important to sit down & shut up and not do anything.” www.mprnews.org/story/2026/0...
Pursued by federal agents, suburban ICE observers remain resolved
After a frightening pursuit by federal agents, suburban ICE observers say fear hasn’t stopped them from protecting their communities.
www.mprnews.org
February 4, 2026 at 7:43 PM
Normal people are out there doing extraordinary things. My mom's health aide emailed me: ICE took 2 of her neighbors; when she told them they weren't welcome, she was met w/a rifle. Now she's driving a neighbor to work hidden in the back of her car & escorting the neighbor's kids to the bus stop.
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
Jeff Bezos’s wealth has increased an average of $70 million every day of 2026, meaning that he could have offset The Post’s losses with what he’s made since Monday.
February 5, 2026 at 2:48 AM
Jeff Bezos’s wealth has increased an average of $70 million every day of 2026, meaning that he could have offset The Post’s losses with what he’s made since Monday.
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
A good mix of demands that would have a substantial impact and demands that are so overwhelmingly reasonable and popular that republicans saying no would get their asses chewed out
Also a lot more direct than the press statments by these two, unsurprising bc they're bad at rhetoric
Also a lot more direct than the press statments by these two, unsurprising bc they're bad at rhetoric
Schumer & Jeffries lay out the Democratic demands for a DHS funding deal in a letter to the top Republican leaders
February 5, 2026 at 3:01 AM
A good mix of demands that would have a substantial impact and demands that are so overwhelmingly reasonable and popular that republicans saying no would get their asses chewed out
Also a lot more direct than the press statments by these two, unsurprising bc they're bad at rhetoric
Also a lot more direct than the press statments by these two, unsurprising bc they're bad at rhetoric
Reposted by Cathy Gellis
one of my strongest beliefs is that we're in our situation right now bc some of the most prominent talking heads (e.g. joe rogan, andrew schulz) are learning about politics in their 40s and 50s, instead of their teens and early 20s, and we have to go along for the ride as they learn basic things
February 4, 2026 at 10:10 PM
one of my strongest beliefs is that we're in our situation right now bc some of the most prominent talking heads (e.g. joe rogan, andrew schulz) are learning about politics in their 40s and 50s, instead of their teens and early 20s, and we have to go along for the ride as they learn basic things