Carrah e-mailed to note a recipe for 15-Minute Black Bean and Corn Salsa:
Ingredients
1 can black beans
1 can yellow corn, or yellow and white corn
1 can of Rotel
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
about 3 tbsp freshly chopped cilantro
a dash of lime juice (or squeeze one lime)
Directions
Open can of black beans, place in strainer and rinse off excess "juice". dump in bowl.
open can of corn, place in strainer to drain off excess water, then dump in bowl with beans.
Open can of rotel and add to beans and corn.
Add onions and cilantro and stir. Add lime juice to your taste.
Anniversary comes as the Trump Administration plans to shut down the LGBTQ+ youth services effective July 17
WASHINGTON, D.C. – On the third anniversary of the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) is slamming the Trump Administration’s dangerous decision to cut services for at-risk children. Baldwin, who first created the three-digit hotline in 2020 with her Republican colleague, has worked to successfully fund the lifeline in annual appropriations bills and expand its reach to serve more people in crisis. Despite the hotline’s enormous success, including receiving more than 16.5 million contacts via calls, texts, and chats, the Trump Administration is working to dismantle one of its key programs that provides specialized services for LGBTQ+ youth. The program has received over 1.2 million crisis contacts since 2022, with an increasing number of contacts each year.
“Three years later, I am just filled with so much pride to have passed legislation and made getting help that much easier. More and more people are facing tough times, and more and more people are turning to this three-digit lifeline. I have no doubt that the people answering these calls, texts, and chats are saving lives,” said Senator Tammy Baldwin. “And just one day after the anniversary, the Trump Administration is dismantling a key part of it and cutting off specialized services for gay, lesbian, bi, and trans children. This outrageous and cruel attack on LGBTQ+ youth comes at a time when we should be building on the success of this lifesaving service, not turning suicide prevention into a partisan issue. I’ll fight tooth and nail to stop this administration from taking away this precious lifeline, and I call on my Republican colleagues who have long supported this program to fight for these kids, too.”
In May, reports surfaced that President Trump’s proposed budget would eliminate 988’s LGBTQ+ Youth Specialized Services program, prompting Senator Baldwin to call on Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. to reconsider the proposal and support continued funding for the program.
Senator Baldwin wrote the legislation to create the three-digit 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline and fought to stand up a pilot program for LGBTQ+ youth to address higher rates of suicide and mental health challenges among this population. As chair of the appropriations subcommittee that funds 988, Senator Baldwin led the effort to ensure 988 was adequately funded, including providing funding for specialized services for LGBTQ+ youth. That funding has ultimately been included in appropriations bills that have passed with overwhelmingly bipartisan support. Recognizing the overwhelming need for these services, Congress expanded the program beyond a pilot in fiscal year 2023.
Since the lifeline launched, it has received nearly 16.5 million contacts, including 11.1 million calls, 2.9 million texts, and 2.4 million chats. In 2025, the answer rate hit its highest point since inception, 92 percent, but cutting funding for specialized services puts that in jeopardy.
The Trevor Project found that nearly 40 percent of LGBTQ+ young people seriously considered attempting suicide in the previous year, and 12 percent of LGBTQ+ young people attempted suicide, rates much higher than those present among non-LGBTQ+ youth. These specialized services connect LGBTQ+ youth with specially trained crisis counselors, similar to other dedicated programs for veterans and service members.
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This is C.I.'s "The Snapshot" for Wednesday:
Wednesday, July 16, 2025. Inflation increases under Chump, the effects of the tariffs begin to be felt, ICE agents need to hide behind masks while ICE attorneys hide their names from the courthouse records, Mark Cuban wants Democrats to co-sign on Chump's gestapo immigration war, and much more.
Inflation was addressed at the top of THE 11TH HOUR WITH STEPHANIE RUHLE last night on MSNBC.
Chump campaigned on ending inflation on day one. As Stephanie noted, Tuesday was day 177 of the Chump administration. No, that's not day one.
Inflation continues to increase.
Question: Do you think he might have done a better job if he and his administration had focused on the economy instead of trying to micro manage college universities -- not really a presidential duty -- or a hundred and one of his other pet causes?
If he'd focused on the actual job, would the economy be as bad as it is? Because it is bad and its going to get worse. Each month it already has. Walmart, for example? Keesha e-mailed to note that the plain label canned chick noodle soup? Great Value is the brand. It's not at 70 cents a can and, under Joe, it was 50 cents a can. Last month, Keesha notes, she paid 70 cents an avocado and this week the price jumped to 90 cents.
And as if inflation isn't bad enough for the average American, Chump's 'big' 'beatiful' bill is about to really steal from the middle class, the working class and the poor to give huge tax breaks to te extremely wealthy.
Stephanie noted and quoted the banking institution's reaction to the inflation increase:
Bank of America: Today's report provides ample evidence that tariffs are being passed onto consumers.
Wells Fargo: One of the top questions we get these days involves when will we see the impact of tariffs on consumer spending and in the retail sector. The time is now.
Ben covers the economy this morning on MEIDASTOUCH NEWS.
Ben notes, "But the only prices that are going down? Airfare, hotel and motel prices. These are recession indicators, folks."
Chump's tariffs are destroying the economy and so is his war on immigration. Martín Macías, Jr. (LOS ANGELES PUBLIC PRESS) reports:
Over the last month, Jorge, an Inglewood resident and a cook at a restaurant, has scanned social media each morning to check for ICE activity near his home or along the route to work. If federal immigration agents are around, he stays inside, which he said means risking the loss of a job that sustains his family of four.
“I leave home not knowing whether [ICE agents] will arrest me or not,” said Jorge, whose last name LA Public Press has agreed to withhold to protect his identity as an undocumented person. “I don’t go to work when I hear that [ICE is] near my home.”
Jorge, who said he’s lived in the United States for 24 years and is married to a U.S. citizen, said he’s missed at least eight days of work in recent weeks due to the fear of arrest by ICE.
“I can’t miss many more days of work,” Jorge said. “Money isn’t going as far as it once did.”
Though ICE hasn’t targeted his workplace, Jorge said he’s distributed red cards explaining the legal rights of immigrants to his coworkers so they’re more prepared in case agents show up.
Jorge’s story reflects a broader crisis across Los Angeles County’s restaurant industry, where some establishments have seen revenue drop by as much as 25% since immigration raids began in June, according to industry leaders, forcing owners to cut staff and reduce hours.
Since June 6, undocumented restaurant workers like Jorge have been targeted for arrest by federal immigration agents across Los Angeles County, where one in three residents is an immigrant. About 1.8 million California residents work in restaurants and food service, making it the largest private employer in the state, according to the National Restaurant Association. Nationwide in 2025, at least 20% of restaurant workers are immigrants.
Across Southern California over the last month, at least 1,600 immigrants have been arrested by ICE in raids at sites including factories, car washes and Home Depot parking lots. The operations have made immigrants fearful of leaving home for daily errands and forced businesses such as auto shops to close, costing thousands of dollars in lost wages and revenue.
An ICE spokesperson didn’t respond by time of publication to a request for comment on the impact that federal immigration operations are having on restaurants.
The restaurants where immigrants work and eat have also reported that they’re struggling to remain open as ICE operations continue to sweep across the region.
Tricia La Belle, president of the Greater LA Hospitality Association and a restaurant owner for more than 30 years, told the LA Public Press that her five establishments have seen a 25% drop in revenue since ICE launched raids in June.
The loss of business has forced her to cut staff, she said.
“We’ve cut down to the bare bones,” La Belle said about her establishments, which include Boardner’s nightclub in Hollywood and the Bon Vivant restaurant in Atwater Village. “You can’t provide the same quality of service when you don’t have a bus boy, barbacks and floor maintenance crews. You just don’t have those bells and whistles anymore.”
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement will now be the biggest federal law enforcement agency, by far. Its budget will exceed that of the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, and U.S. Marshals Service combined. (It even has a bigger budget than the militaries of Brazil, Italy, and Israel.)
It will require a crash hiring spree for new ICE agents, with little training and oversight. Federal and local law enforcement officials will be pulled off their core duties in massive numbers to play the unfamiliar role of immigration enforcer. All this for an agency whose agents wear masks to avoid identification while grabbing people off the street, arresting political leaders, and choosing to sow terror.
And for all the claims that only the “worst of the worst” will be targeted, enforcement seems increasingly to be focused more on construction workers and landscapers with no criminal history than on drug traffickers or sex offenders.
Then there is the troublesome role for private prisons. Many of the new facilities will be built and run by private firms. Eisen is the author of the definitive book, Inside Private Prisons. She reports, “In May, the CEO of private prison company CoreCivic told investors, ‘Never in our 42-year company history have we had so much activity and demand for our services as we are seeing right now.’ This budget bill will solidify that vision for CoreCivic, GEO Group, and other firms that manage and own immigrant detention centers and transportation subsidiaries.”
The administration has rebuffed oversight by Congress. Federal law says that members of Congress and their staffs must be permitted to “enter[], for the purpose of conducting oversight, any facility operated by or for the Department of Homeland Security used to detain or otherwise house aliens.” ICE is throwing up barriers and in some cases denying access outright.
And of course, the Brennan Center has documented the ways this current crackdown is being pursued in violation of the law. The misuse of the Alien Enemies Act, a discredited wartime statute the administration has used to deport migrants, is a vivid example.
Let's stay with legal issues for a moment. ICE agents? As weve noted, if they don't quit their jobs their future is one of two paths: Suicide or drug addiction to self-medicate. You can't do what they're doing and not tear apart your soul. The same is true of the the attorneys working for ICE.
Debbie Nathan (INTERCEPT) reports:
Inside a federal immigration courtroom in New York City last month, a judge took an exceedingly unusual step: declining to state the name of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement attorney pressing to deport asylum seekers.
“We’re not really doing names publicly,” said Judge ShaSha Xu — after stating her own name and those of the immigrants and their lawyers. It was the first of two separate instances The Intercept identified in which judges chose to withhold the identities of the attorneys representing the Trump administration’s deportation regime.
As ICE agents across the country wear masks to raid workplaces and detain immigrants, government attorneys need not cover their faces to shield their identities. Legal experts who spoke to The Intercept agreed the practice of concealing the lawyers’ identities was both novel and concerning.
“I’ve never heard of someone in open court not being identified,” said Elissa Steglich, a law professor and co-director of the Immigration Clinic at the University of Texas at Austin. “Part of the court’s ethical obligation is transparency, including clear identification of the parties. Not identifying an attorney for the government means if there are unethical or professional concerns regarding [the Department of Homeland Security], the individual cannot be held accountable. And it makes the judge appear partial to the government.”
Why not identify themselves? Because they're rightly ashamed of themselves. And they can hide all they want from the public -- or try to -- but they can't escape the voice inside them that knows what they're doing is wrong, the voice that will nag them until the day that they die. Too late, they'll grasp that there's not enough money in the world to justify selling your soul.
And as G. Elliott Morris points out, the detailed polling suggests overwhelming disapproval of Trump’s immigration policies. Notably, voters are twice as likely to support giving illegal immigrants a path to citizenship than they are to support deporting them. By the way, in 2023 Congress seemed likely to enact bipartisan legislation that would have opened such a path. But Trump killed it.
What’s going on? Why were cynical, seemingly savvy takes on the politics of immigration so wrong?
Part of the answer is that there is almost always a “thermostatic backlash” against the policies pursued by a party that has recently gained power. Pundits who imagined that Trump’s war on immigrants would become more, not less popular once it began were assuming that he could defy all historical precedent.
But, like Morris, I think there’s more going on here than just the thermostat.
First, it’s important to understand that the call for mass deportations and/or imprisonment was based on a lie — the claim that America is facing a huge immigrant crime wave. “They’re not a city of immigrants, they’re a city of criminals,” declared Kristi Noem about Los Angeles last month. Last week city officials reported that LA is on track to have the fewest homicides in 60 years.
It's true that many Americans have remained willing to believe that big cities like LA and NYC are scary urban hellscapes, even though they’re quite safe these days.
An aside: There was a period in the 1970s and 1980s when New York, in particular, actually was the kind of scary place people like Trump and Noem claim it still is. As it happens, that sort-of hellscape period coincided with an era when New York had fewer immigrants than at any time before or since:
In any case, however, it seems to me that the lie is beginning to unravel as it becomes clear that ICE is having a really hard time finding violent immigrants to arrest.
According to the Miami Herald, only around a third of the people being held in “Alligator Alcatraz” — a cute name, but it’s a concentration camp, pure and simple — have any kind of criminal conviction.
Why aren’t they rounding up more undocumented criminals? Because that would be hard work, and anyway there aren’t that many of them. Morris did a back-of-the-envelope calculation suggesting that there may in total be only around 78,000 undocumented immigrants with criminal records, and 14,000 convicted of violent crimes. Meanwhile, Stephen Miller is demanding that ICE arrest 3,000 people a day. Do the math, and you see why they’re grabbing farm workers and chasing day laborers in Home Depot parking lots.
So Americans may be turning on Trump’s immigration policies in part because they’re starting to realize that they’ve been lied to. But an even more important factor may be that more native-born Americans are beginning to see what our immigrants are really like, rather than thinking of them as scary figures lurking in the shadows.
It’s a familiar point that views of immigration tend to be most negative in places with very few immigrants and most positive in places where there are already many foreign-born residents. You can get fancy about why that’s true, but I would simply say that if you live in a place like New York, where you’re constantly interacting with immigrants, they start to seem like … people.
And the Trumpies — for whom, as Adam Serwer famously observed, the cruelty is the point — are inadvertently humanizing immigrants for Americans who don’t have that kind of daily experience. The nightmarish ordeal of Kilmar Abrego Garcia has probably done more to highlight the humanity of immigrants, documented or not, than any number of charts and tables. And while some Americans are instinctively cruel, most are, I believe, instinctively decent.
Mark Cuban wants us to 'meet in the middle' on this hideous program. He wants Democrats to co-sign off on it, thereby giving Republicans cover and the ability to claim both parties supported this evil plan. No. This needs to be fought and people across America grasp and see what Mark Cuban can't or won't.
Let's wind down with this from Senator Patty Murray's office:
Isaiah's THE WORLD TODAY JUST NUTS "Pam Tries Another Lie" went up yesterday. The following sites updated: