The Illegality and Injustice of ICE’s Minnesota Occupation

Melissa, Kate, and Leah break down the various legal cases arising from ICE’s occupation of Minnesota, including a bid to end DHS’s Operation Metro Surge and a case from citizens seeking to block the abusive use of tear gas and pepper spray. Then, the hosts welcome Crooked’s Tommy Vietor to talk about all things foreign policy: Trump's blatant disdain for international law, the so-called “DonRoe Doctrine,” the President’s wildly incoherent and pointless tariffs, and why Trump’s claim that he’s ended eight wars is beyond laughable. Finally, a deeply concerning FBI raid on the Fulton County elections office supervised by Hawaii's least favorite daughter, Tulsi Gabbard.
Favorite things:

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Leah: Streets Of Minneapolis (youtube.com/watch?v=wWKSoxG1K7w), Bruce Springsteen; The Blood-and-Soil Nationalism That Killed Alex Pretti and Renee Good (vanityfair.com/news/story/tanehisi-coates-home…), Ta-Nehisi Coates (Vanity Fair); Minnesota Proved MAGA Wrong (theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/01/the-neighbors-de…), Adam Serwer (The Atlantic); Chris Hayes’ reporting from MN (youtube.com/watch?v=Z7uLeIlC1LE)

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Kate: This May Be the Only Path to Accountability for the Minneapolis Shootings (nytimes.com/2026/01/26/opinion/minneapolis-sho…), Barry Friedman and Stephen I. Vladeck (NYT); Who Gave ICE Permission to Trample the Constitution? (slate.com/podcasts/amicus/2026/01/in-minneapol…) Amicus (Slate); JVN Hair (jvnhair.com/?srsltid=AfmBOopxXSxPMca2Ny5TxthUp…); Migrations (bookshop.org/p/books/migrations-a-novel-charlo…), Charlotte McConaghy

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Melissa: His and Hers (netflix.com/title/81662954?source=35&fromW…), Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model (netflix.com/title/81928842) (Netflix); King of the North (bookshop.org/p/books/king-of-the-north-martin-…)

• Martin Luther King Jr.'s Life of Struggle Outside the South (bookshop.org/p/books/king-of-the-north-martin-…), Jeanne Theoharis

Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE – The Bad Decisions Tour 2026!

• 3/6/26 – San Francisco

• 3/7/26 – Los Angeles

Learn more:crooked.com/eventsPreorder Melissa’s book, The U.S. Constitution: A Comprehensive and Annotated Guide for the Modern Reader (bookshop.org/p/books/the-constitution-annotate…;)Buy Leah's book,Lawless: How the Supreme Court Runs on Conservative Grievance, Fringe Theories, and Bad Vibes (simonandschuster.com/books/Lawless/Leah-Litman…)Follow us onInstagram (instagram.com/strictscrutinypodcast/?hl=en),Threads (threads.net/@strictscrutinypodcast), andBluesky (bsky.app/profile/strictscrutiny.bsky.social)