Border Line Disorder
Plus: MAHA replaces sugar with sugar, the release of the MLK files & and the bitter custody dispute over a cat.
The Trump administration is expanding the role of Border Patrol and is now making arrests of immigrants at courthouses, day-labor sites, public parks, and farms in cities and towns hundreds of miles from the U.S.-Mexico border. But what is a border, really? WaPo has a map. This magnificent work of art from the Washington Post makes clear for visual learners what constitutes a border, specifically the 100-mile distance within which federal agencies have historically operated.
The problem that this map may have distracted readers from is that within those zones, Border Patrol has broad authority wherein they can search vehicles without a warrant or probable cause. And I'm told that roughly two-thirds of the U.S. population lives within that shaded area, but I'm thinking that can't possibly be true. What are we, Australia?
This is also starting to affect other areas in the delicate ecosystem of law enforcement. Former CBP commissioner Gil Kerlikowske told WaPo that deploying border agents elsewhere could disrupt human trafficking investigations because Border Patrol has databases most local law enforcement agencies don't have access to.
The Trump administration is also expanding other departments into immigration enforcement. For example, USCIS, the department managing visas, green cards, and work permits, has dramatically expanded its enforcement role, steering applicants into deportation proceedings and collaborating closely with ICE. This has immigrants fearing arrest at routine appointments to update their status or renew their visas—not exactly a way to encourage legal migration.
Welcome to the Gist List—a news roundup, things you should know, and my thoughts leading up to today’s podcast episode.
Here’s what’s on my mind:
🗃️ The Trump administration releases the MLK files.
🥤 MAHA wins and replaces the sugar in Coke with different sugar.
⚖️ Officer sentenced to 33 months, not one day, in Breonna Taylor case.
🗽 Trump withdraws from UNESCO… again.
🐈 The bitter custody battle over a cat.
The Gist List
Trump Administration Releases Trove of Files on Martin Luther King Jr. Assassination (NPR)
The Jeffrey Epstein case can take a back seat. (Pam Bondi PROMISES to take a look at those files once she has cleaned out her spam folder.) Instead, the National Archives has released over 230,000 newly digitized documents on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1968 assassination. This is part of President Trump’s executive order requiring full declassification of records related to the assassinations of MLK, JFK, RFK, and JAG.
King’s family has long disputed James Earl Ray’s conviction for the murder, adding via a statement that King was "relentlessly targeted by an invasive, predatory, and deeply disturbing disinformation and surveillance campaign orchestrated by J. Edgar Hoover through the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).” They also cautioned and urged readers to view the records with historical context in mind. So far, historians have said there’s not much information contained within that’s new.
As for the president, this is the best day ever for his administration. He has upended the work of scholars, appeased his conspiratorially inclined base (for now), and angered some Black people.
Coke Confirms Cane Sugar Change. RFK Jr. Calls It a 'MAHA Win.' Is It? (Washington Post)
Yes.
It is our solemn vow to the readers of the Gist List that whenever an article’s headline includes a rhetorical question, we’ll just answer it for you to save you the trouble of actually reading it. For more dumb headlines ending in questions, you should read Dog Shirt Daily with Ben Wittes. Here’s one I like because they supplied a totally expected answer. In fact, it's the only answer ever to the question Has A (Complex and Sprawling) System Gotten Worse?
But in all seriousness, if you want to be technical, it is a win for MAHA. They campaigned on this, and now they are getting their way. To be fair, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ALSO declared that “sugar is poison,” and experts are of the opinion that high fructose corn syrup and sugar have no material difference when it comes to your health. I’ll leave it up to you to decide how much of a win this is.
Ex-Officer in Fatal Breonna Taylor Raid Sentenced to 33 Months (Axios)
A former Louisville police detective, Brett Hankison, was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison for using excessive force when he fired ten rounds into Breonna Taylor’s apartment. If you have been following this story, you might be scratching your head because just yesterday the story was that the DOJ was recommending that he serve just one day—an unusually lenient sentence for a civil rights conviction like this.
The whole idea behind this lenient sentence was to send the message that the Trump administration was abandoning its efforts in addressing racial disparities in policing, but Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings, a Trump appointee, took issue with it and instead went with almost three years.
Trump Withdraws US from 'Woke' UNESCO for Second Time (Politico)
President Trump has ordered America's exit from UNESCO… again. This happened back in 2019 (until the Biden administration rejoined) as well, citing concerns about an anti-Israel bias, which is also one of the chief complaints this time around.
This is a concrete blow for symbolism. Sure, we have roughly a couple dozen UNESCO sites around the nation, but withdrawal doesn't strip us of these designations. But we also have left and rejoined a number of times already over several different administrations (again, over concerns about Israel). Overall, the U.S. might save a paltry $80 million per year and lose a little bit of the soft power that comes with being the contributor of 8% of UNESCO's budget.
Judge Rules NYC Woman Gets Custody of Cat After 2-Year Legal Fight (Gothamist)
A New York woman is finally getting sole custody of her 15-year-old cat, Liza, not after an ugly divorce, not from a former lover—but from her EX-friend, who was supposed to be babysitting her furbaby, but instead decided that she was going to keep it. Maria Senichkina, the frenemy, insisted that Aliya Zaydullina gifted her the cat while she went home to visit Russia for a few months.
The case went to court, and the judge found no evidence that Zaydullina gifted Senichkina the cat. Under New York state law, animals are considered property, and thus, the judge ruled that the cat must be returned. There is a big HOWEVER, however. The judge in this case also considered the welfare of the animal, and New York laws and cases are increasingly recognizing pets’ emotional bonds with their humans, similarly to how a custody dispute might play out in a divorce case.
Senichkina is appealing the decision. The judge also suggested that the catnapper/caregiver “remain a part of the cat’s life in some capacity” out of deference to the deep bonds the cat may have formed, thus calling into question if she understands cats at all.
Yesterday on The Show: The Dangerous Charisma of RFK Jr.
Historian Daniel Immerwahr eviscerates RFK Jr. as a master of glib misinformation—"profoundly informed," yet wielding that knowledge in bad faith to undermine truth and public trust. Kennedy is the conductor of an orchestra of error. Also discussed: how science became political dogma during COVID, how Fauci's certainty helped fuel backlash, and why a provocateur like Kennedy thrives in epistemological gray zones.
This newsletter was put together in collaboration with Kathleen Sykes. All mistakes belong to Mike Pesca.
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Have a story you want us to talk about or an opinion you want to share? Email us at thegist@mikepesca.com or share your thoughts in the comments. We might give you a shoutout in our next newsletter or on the air.
Trading global soft power for pocket change — America’s UNESCO misstep.
With every withdrawal, the U.S. signals that influence is optional and that global goodwill can be traded for a headline and a minor budget cut. UNESCO’s sites might stay, but America’s presence in the conversation keeps evaporating.
📌 Saving dollars is easy; rebuilding influence is the hard part.
⬖ Tallying up soft power losses at Frequency of Reason: bit.ly/4jTVv69
Thank you, Mike. This article is what I have been searching for, concerning the authority of Border Patrol agents. I thought that I remembered the 100 air mile limitation on their authority but was uncertain where to look. I live in an interior agricultural of Southern Oregon/Northern California, which is clearly outside of their extra authority area. I now have a better understanding of options. I would suggest perhaps a deeper discussion of the issue with one of the legal experts you have access to. Again, Thank you.