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Reposted by Molly Molloy

Aaron Reichlin-Melnick

@reichlinmelnick.bsky.social

NEW: @aclu.org obtained ICE's "Alien Enemies Act Validation Guide," confirming all it takes to be sent to rot in prison in El Salvador is being Venezuelan and 1) having a tattoo an ICE officer says is a "gang tattoo" and 2) displaying "logos," "symbols" or clothes an ICE officer says are gang signs.

ALIEN ENEMIES ACT:
ALIEN ENEMY VALIDATION GUIDE
In the case of: ________________________________ A-File No:__________________
1. The person named above is fourteen years or older:
2. The person named above is not a citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United
States:
3. The person named above is a citizen of Venezuela:
If any of these three requirements are not satisfied, the person named above shall not
be ordered removed under the Alien Enemies Act (AEA). In such a case, you should consult
your supervisor and the Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA), U.S. Immigration and
Customs Enforcement, and, where applicable, initiate removal proceedings under the
Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).
4. The person named above is validated as a member of Tren de Aragua (TDA), as
determined by reference to the following evaluation form:
Instructions: Complete the following validation evaluation form for each suspected
alien targeted for removal under the AEA, or, following apprehension, for each alien
potentially subject to an AEA removal.
After accounting for the two comments below, aliens scoring 8 points and higher are
validated as members of TDA; you should proceed with issuing Form AEA-21B, titled, “Notice
and Warrant of Apprehension and Removal under the Alien Enemies Act.” Aliens scoring 6 or
7 points may be validated as members of TDA; you should consult with a supervisor and
OPLA, reviewing the totality of the facts, before making that determination; if you determine
an alien should not be validated at this time as a member of TDA, when available, you should
initiate removal proceedings under the INA. Alien scoring 5 points or less should not be
validated at this time as member of TDA; when available, you should initiate removal
proceedings under the INA.

The following alt-text is excerpted of a larger checklist, as the whole page doesn't fit within alt-text character limits.

Comment 2: For purposes of validating an alien as a member of TDA, at least one
scoring category must involve conduct occurring, or information received, within the past five
years.
Valuation Explanation
Category Definition Explanation Points
Judicial
Outcomes and
Official
Documents
a. Subject has been convicted of violating Title 18, United States Code,
Section 521 or any other federal or state law criminalizing or imposing
civil penalties for activity related to TDA
10
b. Court records (e.g., indictments, criminal complaints, sentencing
memorandums) identifying the subject as a member of TDA, describing
specific activity of TDA
5
Self-Admission
a. Subject self-identifies as a member or associate of TDA verbally or in
writing to law enforcement officer, even if that self identification to a
law enforcement officer is unwitting, e.g., through lawful interception of
communications.
10
Criminal
Conduct and
Information
a. Subject participates in criminal activity (e.g., narcotics trafficking,
human smuggling, etc.) with other members of TDA, including
preparatory meetings and significant incidents directly attributed to TDA
6
b. Law enforcement or intelligence reporting identifying subject as a
member of TDA, to include Bureau of Prisons validations and reliable
foreign partner information.
4
c. Credible testimonies/statements from victims, community members, or
informants that affirm the subject’s membership in or allegiance to TDA. 3
d. Detailed open-source media (e.g., newspapers, investigative journalism
reports) that describe arrest, prosecution, or operations of a subject as a
member of TDA
2
e. Subject conducts and/or facilitates business with TDA (e.g., money
laundering, mule, service provider) 2
Documents and
Communications

Final page: Association
a. Surveillance documentation that a subject is frequently observed closely
associating with known leaders and members of TDA 2
b. Subject part of group photos with two or more known members of TDA 2
c. Subject presently resides with known members of TDA 2
Total Points
VALIDATION DETERMINATION
Note: If any of the four requirements are not satisfied, do not
complete this validation determination.
Based on the validation guide and instructions above, including Comments 1 and 2, I find
that the person named above, _______________________________________________:
1. Is fourteen years or older;
2. Is not a citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United States;
3. Is a citizen of Venezuela; and
4. Is a member of Tren de Aragua.
Accordingly, the above-named person is validated as an Alien Enemy.
_____________________ _________________________ __________________
Name of Agent/officer Signature of agent/officer Date
completing the form completing the form
______________________ _________________________ ____________________
Name of Supervisor Signature of Supervisor Date

March 30, 2025 at 4:37 PM

Molly Molloy

@mollymolloy.bsky.social

This kind of says it all...does anyone call this "normal..."?
www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

March 20, 2025 at 2:58 PM

Reposted by Molly Molloy

Democracy Forward

@democracyforward.org

After the president’s unlawful and unprecedented invocation of the Alien Enemies Act, a judge issued a nationwide temporary restraining order in Democracy Forward's case with our partners at @aclu.org & @aclu-dc.bsky.social. Full statement to follow.

Quote: "Today was a horrific day in the history of the nation, when the President publicized that he was seeking to invoke extraordinary wartime powers in the absence of a war or invasion and claiming virtually unlimited authority to remove people from the country.
But, tonight the rule of law prevailed. The government has been forced to turn planes around and our lawsuit — filed in the very early hours this morning - has resulted in broad relief. I am immensely proud of the quick work of our team and our partners at the American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of the District of Columbia. Democracy Forward is committed to using every legal tool available to protect our nation's values and its people."
- Skye Perryman, President & CEO, Democracy

March 16, 2025 at 12:13 AM

Reposted by Molly Molloy

Kim

@kim4thebabies.bsky.social

February 7, 2025 at 7:03 PM

Reposted by Molly Molloy

WIRED

@wired.com

SCOOP: A US Treasury threat intelligence analysis has designated DOGE staff an ‘insider threat'. An internal email reviewed by WIRED calls DOGE staff's access to federal payments systems “the single biggest insider threat risk the Bureau of the Fiscal Service has ever faced.”

A US Treasury Threat Intelligence Analysis Designates DOGE Staff as ‘Insider Threat’

An internal email reviewed by WIRED calls DOGE staff's access to federal payments systems “the single biggest insider threat risk the Bureau of the Fiscal Service has ever faced.”

wrd.cm

February 7, 2025 at 7:47 PM

Molly Molloy

@mollymolloy.bsky.social

And so more jeopardy for the records of the United States...
www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/int...

February 8, 2025 at 3:31 PM

Reposted by Molly Molloy

Kara Swisher

@karaswisher.bsky.social

This by Ezra Klein is really spot on: “You never want a power grab to look like a power grab.” It looks like a power grab. www.nytimes.com/2025/02/02/o...

Opinion | Don’t Believe Him

Look closely at the first two weeks of Donald Trump’s second term and you’ll see something very different than what he wants you to see.

www.nytimes.com

February 3, 2025 at 9:55 AM

Reposted by Molly Molloy

Anne Applebaum

@anneapplebaum.bsky.social

Preparing mass layoffs of civil servants in order to replace them with loyalists is another move from the authoritarian playbook

www.politico.com/news/2025/01...

‘I am terrified’: Workers describe the dark mood inside federal agencies

“I would love to leave, but I don't know where I'd go," said one staffer.

www.politico.com

January 26, 2025 at 4:28 AM

Molly Molloy

@mollymolloy.bsky.social

I hope @karaswisher.bsky.social is right, but there will be more attempts to erase the record. I hope there are multiple backups to www.govinfo.gov/collection/j...

Necessary reading: archive.org/details/insi...

January 26, 2025 at 3:18 PM