Dean Blobaum
@dblobaum.bsky.social
I try to keep the facts straight at https://chicago68.com and https://medium.com/@dblobaum
Read the BP playbook, per US District Judge Sara Ellis:
"While [BP] would like people to believe Chicago is overrun by violent rioters & agitators, to justify their 'unprecedented swath of indiscriminate uses of force ... That narrative simply is untrue.'”
chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/...
"While [BP] would like people to believe Chicago is overrun by violent rioters & agitators, to justify their 'unprecedented swath of indiscriminate uses of force ... That narrative simply is untrue.'”
chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/...
Judge hands down critical review of federal immigration agents' 'unprecedented' use of force
U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis found examples of federal agents enthusiastically deploying tear gas and using ChatGPT to write use-of-force reports, during their aggressive deportation campaign throug...
chicago.suntimes.com
November 22, 2025 at 7:26 PM
Read the BP playbook, per US District Judge Sara Ellis:
"While [BP] would like people to believe Chicago is overrun by violent rioters & agitators, to justify their 'unprecedented swath of indiscriminate uses of force ... That narrative simply is untrue.'”
chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/...
"While [BP] would like people to believe Chicago is overrun by violent rioters & agitators, to justify their 'unprecedented swath of indiscriminate uses of force ... That narrative simply is untrue.'”
chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/...
Supporting the president means you've committed no crime. Even if you're an accused sex trafficker.
www.propublica.org/article/andr...
www.propublica.org/article/andr...
The White House Intervened on Behalf of Accused Sex Trafficker Andrew Tate During a Federal Investigation
Federal authorities were chided for seizing electronic devices from Tate and his brother, and told to return them, records and interviews show. Experts said the intervention was highly inappropriate.
www.propublica.org
November 20, 2025 at 8:52 PM
Supporting the president means you've committed no crime. Even if you're an accused sex trafficker.
www.propublica.org/article/andr...
www.propublica.org/article/andr...
If it quacks like a lame duck, it is a lame duck. Trump could not dissuade Republican representatives from voting to release the Epstein files, so he acquiesced to his loss.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Trump urges Republicans to vote for release of Epstein files in surprise U-turn
US president says he backs efforts to release documents related to late sex offender because ‘we have nothing to hide’
www.theguardian.com
November 17, 2025 at 6:00 PM
If it quacks like a lame duck, it is a lame duck. Trump could not dissuade Republican representatives from voting to release the Epstein files, so he acquiesced to his loss.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Every Christian needs to ask themselves whether they are willing to allow their religion to be put in service to an autocracy.
And if not, to speak up
The question is not just going to go away.
And if not, to speak up
The question is not just going to go away.
A reminder that when Christian Nationalists in the Republican Party lecture you about the importance of "religious freedom," they are not talking about YOUR religion or YOUR freedom. They are talking about THEIR freedom to impose THEIR religion on you.
November 17, 2025 at 2:18 AM
Every Christian needs to ask themselves whether they are willing to allow their religion to be put in service to an autocracy.
And if not, to speak up
The question is not just going to go away.
And if not, to speak up
The question is not just going to go away.
Here's the Green New Deal of investments around the world. Investments made by China.
adamtooze.substack.com/p/chartbook-...
adamtooze.substack.com/p/chartbook-...
November 17, 2025 at 2:12 AM
Here's the Green New Deal of investments around the world. Investments made by China.
adamtooze.substack.com/p/chartbook-...
adamtooze.substack.com/p/chartbook-...
Yes, of course. Anti-racism is the problem. Just like anti- fascism is the problem.
November 16, 2025 at 6:42 PM
Yes, of course. Anti-racism is the problem. Just like anti- fascism is the problem.
Reposted by Dean Blobaum
Basically saying "if you do crime for me, I won't only pardon you--I'll give you millions of dollars of public money." Truly unprecedented level of corruption
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Michael Flynn, DOJ in Settlement Talks Over $50 Million Claim
The Justice Department has been discussing settlements with two former officials from Donald Trump’s first term who — like the president — claim they’re owed major payouts from the US government as vi...
www.bloomberg.com
November 14, 2025 at 7:04 PM
Basically saying "if you do crime for me, I won't only pardon you--I'll give you millions of dollars of public money." Truly unprecedented level of corruption
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Why does Greg Bovino still have a job? He vastly under-performed arrest goals for Chicago, 100s of arrests have not stuck, he generated a ton a bad press, & BP acts drew multiple lawsuits. Also people killed, injured & terrorized. Bovino is clearly incompetent.
chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdog...
chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdog...
Tear gas, car crashes, rubber bullets: Risky tactics have driven Trump’s Chicago deportation ‘blitz’
Law enforcement experts say federal agents have displayed a lack of training and restraint. “They’re out of control,” ex-police Supt. Garry McCarthy says.
chicago.suntimes.com
November 14, 2025 at 6:06 PM
Why does Greg Bovino still have a job? He vastly under-performed arrest goals for Chicago, 100s of arrests have not stuck, he generated a ton a bad press, & BP acts drew multiple lawsuits. Also people killed, injured & terrorized. Bovino is clearly incompetent.
chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdog...
chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdog...
Working in Trump's DOJ is not a good career move.
crimjj.wordpress.com/2025/11/10/d...
crimjj.wordpress.com/2025/11/10/d...
Department Of Justice Short-Staffed As Thousands Quit Or Were Fired
he Justice Department has lost thousands of experienced attorneys since the start of the Trump administration and has backfilled a small fraction of the open jobs, with the process snarled by a lac…
crimjj.wordpress.com
November 14, 2025 at 3:35 PM
Working in Trump's DOJ is not a good career move.
crimjj.wordpress.com/2025/11/10/d...
crimjj.wordpress.com/2025/11/10/d...
That Border Patrol raid in Chicago on an apartment house supposedly controlled by Tren de Aragua? Great TikTok video. No charges ever filed. This is your government when it cares more about how it appears on social media than it cares about the law.
www.propublica.org/article/chic...
www.propublica.org/article/chic...
“I Lost Everything”: Venezuelans Were Rounded Up in a Dramatic Midnight Raid but Never Charged With a Crime
Authorities said Tren de Aragua “terrorists” had taken over the building. A ProPublica investigation found little evidence to back up the government’s claims. For the first time, the Venezuelans arres...
www.propublica.org
November 13, 2025 at 10:37 PM
That Border Patrol raid in Chicago on an apartment house supposedly controlled by Tren de Aragua? Great TikTok video. No charges ever filed. This is your government when it cares more about how it appears on social media than it cares about the law.
www.propublica.org/article/chic...
www.propublica.org/article/chic...
"This is just not what any of us signed up for, and it's so out of the scope of normal operations," says J, a member of the Ohio National Guard.
www.npr.org/2025/11/10/n...
www.npr.org/2025/11/10/n...
In an encrypted group chat, National Guard members question Trump deployments
As President Trump's call for National Guard deployments rings out across the U.S., a small contingent of Ohio guard members is quietly expressing concern in an encrypted group chat.
www.npr.org
November 11, 2025 at 2:40 AM
"This is just not what any of us signed up for, and it's so out of the scope of normal operations," says J, a member of the Ohio National Guard.
www.npr.org/2025/11/10/n...
www.npr.org/2025/11/10/n...
Every person in every city needs to understand what ICE is doing in Chicago. You need understand how ICE may treat you or your neighbors. ICE is not a police force, it is a military force, using military tactics, with military definitions of appropriate force.
aphyr.com/posts/397-i-...
aphyr.com/posts/397-i-...
I Want You to Understand Chicago
aphyr.com
November 10, 2025 at 10:11 PM
Every person in every city needs to understand what ICE is doing in Chicago. You need understand how ICE may treat you or your neighbors. ICE is not a police force, it is a military force, using military tactics, with military definitions of appropriate force.
aphyr.com/posts/397-i-...
aphyr.com/posts/397-i-...
Can't report on what doesn't exist.
“'How come you never report on the work we do to improve the community?' Greg Bovino inquired," while posing for an Instagram post.
Border Patrol Agents Pose At The Bean For Apparent Photo Op blockclubchicago.org/2025/11/10/b...
“'How come you never report on the work we do to improve the community?' Greg Bovino inquired," while posing for an Instagram post.
Border Patrol Agents Pose At The Bean For Apparent Photo Op blockclubchicago.org/2025/11/10/b...
Border Patrol Agents Pose At The Bean For Apparent Photo Op
The photo op came after agents tear-gassed a Little Village street and were spotted in the area numerous times. At the Bean, one agent shouted, "Everyone say, 'Little Village!'"
blockclubchicago.org
November 10, 2025 at 9:38 PM
Can't report on what doesn't exist.
“'How come you never report on the work we do to improve the community?' Greg Bovino inquired," while posing for an Instagram post.
Border Patrol Agents Pose At The Bean For Apparent Photo Op blockclubchicago.org/2025/11/10/b...
“'How come you never report on the work we do to improve the community?' Greg Bovino inquired," while posing for an Instagram post.
Border Patrol Agents Pose At The Bean For Apparent Photo Op blockclubchicago.org/2025/11/10/b...
But Tesla's CEO is getting $1 trillion compensation.
November 9, 2025 at 2:36 PM
But Tesla's CEO is getting $1 trillion compensation.
One of the most conservative members of SCOTUS made the strongest argument against a Trump autocracy.
fortune.com/2025/11/07/t...
fortune.com/2025/11/07/t...
The most conservative Supreme Court justices will likely join the liberals against Trump's tariffs, analyst says | Fortune
"The more likely scenarios would all have Thomas, Alito, and Gorsuch voting to strike down the IEEPA tariffs or to curtail them, in our view."
fortune.com
November 7, 2025 at 10:30 PM
One of the most conservative members of SCOTUS made the strongest argument against a Trump autocracy.
fortune.com/2025/11/07/t...
fortune.com/2025/11/07/t...
Bannon wants to end the filibuster. "Take a maximalist strategy now, with a sense of urgency, and in doing this seize the institution." So Trump's executive orders can be codified. "If we don't do it now we're going to lose this chance forever, because you're never going to have another Trump."
Steve Bannon: If we lose the midterms and we lose 2028, some in this room are going to prison, myself included.
November 7, 2025 at 3:15 AM
Bannon wants to end the filibuster. "Take a maximalist strategy now, with a sense of urgency, and in doing this seize the institution." So Trump's executive orders can be codified. "If we don't do it now we're going to lose this chance forever, because you're never going to have another Trump."
Justice was served.
"The jury determined that the launching of the 12-inch deli sandwich from what the government described as 'point-blank range' was not an attempt to cause injury."
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/u...
"The jury determined that the launching of the 12-inch deli sandwich from what the government described as 'point-blank range' was not an attempt to cause injury."
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/u...
Jurors Find Sandwich Hurler Not Guilty of Assault
www.nytimes.com
November 6, 2025 at 8:15 PM
Justice was served.
"The jury determined that the launching of the 12-inch deli sandwich from what the government described as 'point-blank range' was not an attempt to cause injury."
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/u...
"The jury determined that the launching of the 12-inch deli sandwich from what the government described as 'point-blank range' was not an attempt to cause injury."
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/u...
Not a bad piece, but the first paragraph lacks evidence. Overt bigots have always had a place in Trumpism. If anything is at issue, it's over how close to the center of the brand bigotry should be.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/u...
November 6, 2025 at 6:35 PM
Not a bad piece, but the first paragraph lacks evidence. Overt bigots have always had a place in Trumpism. If anything is at issue, it's over how close to the center of the brand bigotry should be.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/06/u...
What goes around comes around. Republican post-mortem refuses to acknowledge the orange elephant in the room.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/05/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/05/u...
Republicans Point Fingers After Their Losses, but Not at Trump
www.nytimes.com
November 5, 2025 at 11:36 PM
What goes around comes around. Republican post-mortem refuses to acknowledge the orange elephant in the room.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/05/u...
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/05/u...
Trump Weighs Options, and Risks, for Attacks on Venezuela
www.nytimes.com
November 4, 2025 at 7:27 PM
This man is so completely out of touch with reality. He is a risk to our safety.
November 3, 2025 at 3:55 AM
This man is so completely out of touch with reality. He is a risk to our safety.
Ron DeSantis will climb over dead bodies to reach higher office. Executions in Florida rise and fall with his presidential ambitions.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
DeSantis accused of playing politics as Florida shatters executions record
The state has killed 15 people this year with two more scheduled this month as death penalty in decline across US
www.theguardian.com
November 1, 2025 at 2:53 PM
Ron DeSantis will climb over dead bodies to reach higher office. Executions in Florida rise and fall with his presidential ambitions.
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Reposted by Dean Blobaum
Border Patrol grabbed workers from the front yard of a home in Edison Park this afternoon then took them behind an office building in Niles and passed them off to a prisoner van. Woman came out to MF them and said "you're in the most conservative neighborhood in the city and nobody wants you here."
October 31, 2025 at 7:37 PM
Border Patrol grabbed workers from the front yard of a home in Edison Park this afternoon then took them behind an office building in Niles and passed them off to a prisoner van. Woman came out to MF them and said "you're in the most conservative neighborhood in the city and nobody wants you here."
Imagine how great it would be to live in a country where the president has to declare martial law in order to shut down the legislature.
Mike Johnson says he will not bring the House back in session until the government reopens
November 1, 2025 at 2:04 AM
Imagine how great it would be to live in a country where the president has to declare martial law in order to shut down the legislature.
Reposted by Dean Blobaum
I love how Rep. Joe Neguse reframed this question.
October 31, 2025 at 8:19 AM
I love how Rep. Joe Neguse reframed this question.