A Supreme Court Coup d'Etat in Brazil
El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele has fashioned his own version of chavismo. He fired and replaced all members of the country's highest constitutional court in 2021. Due process, free speech and freedom of assembly are no more. Mr. Bukele now controls the electoral tribunal. In 2024 it certified congressional elections, although they were marred by irregularities and lacked transparency. Last month Congress, under a long shadow of doubt about its legitimacy, changed the constitution to allow indefinite presidential re-election. RIP Salvadoran democracy.
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Fast Company
2 hours ago
- Fast Company
Trump to take over D.C. police and deploy the National Guard. Here's what to know
President Donald Trump said Monday that he's deploying the National Guard across Washington and taking over the city's police department in the hopes of reducing crime, even as the city's mayor has noted that crime is falling in the nation's capital. The Republican president, who said he was formally declaring a public safety emergency, compared crime in the American capital with that in other major cities, saying Washington performs poorly on safety relative to the capitals of Iraq, Brazil and Colombia, among others. Trump also said at his news briefing that his administration has started removing homeless encampments 'from all over our parks, our beautiful, beautiful parks.' 'We're getting rid of the slums, too,' Trump said, adding that the U.S. would not lose its cities and that Washington was just a start. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi will be taking over responsibility for Washington's metro police department, he said, while also complaining about potholes and graffiti in the city and calling them 'embarrassing.' For Trump, the effort to take over public safety in Washington reflects a next step in his law enforcement agenda after his aggressive push to stop illegal border crossings. But the move involves at least 500 federal law enforcement officials as well as the National Guard, raising fundamental questions about how an increasingly emboldened federal government will interact with its state and local counterparts. Combating crime The president has used his social media and White House megaphones to message that his administration is tough on crime, yet his ability to shape policy might be limited outside of Washington, which has a unique status as a congressionally established federal district. Nor is it clear how his push would address the root causes of homelessness and crime. Trump said he is invoking Section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act to deploy members of the National Guard. About 500 federal law enforcement officers are being tasked with deploying throughout the nation's capital as part of the Trump administration's effort to combat crime, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press on Monday. More than 100 FBI agents and about 40 agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are among federal law enforcement personnel being assigned to patrols in Washington, the person briefed on the plans said. The Drug Enforcement Administration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Marshals Service are also contributing officers. The person was not authorized to publicly discuss personnel matters and spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity. The Justice Department didn't immediately have a comment Monday morning. The National Guard Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, questioned the effectiveness of using the Guard to enforce city laws and said the federal government could be far more helpful by funding more prosecutors or filling the 15 vacancies on the D.C. Superior Court, some of which have been open for years. Bowser cannot activate the National Guard herself, but she can submit a request to the Pentagon. 'I just think that's not the most efficient use of our Guard,' she said Sunday on MSNBC's 'The Weekend,' acknowledging it is 'the president's call about how to deploy the Guard.' Bowser was making her first public comments since Trump started posting about crime in Washington last week. She noted that violent crime in Washington has decreased since a rise in 2023. Trump's weekend posts depicted the district as 'one of the most dangerous cities anywhere in the World.' For Bowser, 'Any comparison to a war-torn country is hyperbolic and false.' Focusing on homelessness Trump in a Sunday social media post had emphasized the removal of Washington's homeless population, though it was unclear where the thousands of people would go. 'The Homeless have to move out, IMMEDIATELY,' Trump wrote Sunday. 'We will give you places to stay, but FAR from the Capital. The Criminals, you don't have to move out. We're going to put you in jail where you belong.' Last week, the Republican president directed federal law enforcement agencies to increase their presence in Washington for seven days, with the option 'to extend as needed.' On Friday night, federal agencies including the Secret Service, the FBI and the U.S. Marshals Service assigned more than 120 officers and agents to assist in Washington. Trump said last week that he was considering ways for the federal government to seize control of Washington, asserting that crime was 'ridiculous' and the city was 'unsafe,' after the recent assault of a high-profile member of the Department of Government Efficiency. Crime statistics Police statistics show homicides, robberies and burglaries are down this year when compared with this time in 2024. Overall, violent crime is down 26% compared with this time a year ago. Trump offered no details in Truth Social posts over the weekend about possible new actions to address crime levels he argues are dangerous for citizens, tourists and workers alike. The White House declined to offer additional details about Monday's announcement. The police department and the mayor's office did not respond to questions about what Trump might do next. The president criticized the district as full of 'tents, squalor, filth, and Crime,' and he seems to have been set off by the attack on Edward Coristine, among the most visible figures of the bureaucracy-cutting effort known as DOGE. Police arrested two 15-year-olds in the attempted carjacking and said they were looking for others. 'This has to be the best run place in the country, not the worst run place in the country,' Trump said Wednesday. He called Bowser 'a good person who has tried, but she has been given many chances.' Trump has repeatedly suggested that the rule of Washington could be returned to federal authorities. Doing so would require a repeal of the Home Rule Act of 1973 in Congress, a step Trump said lawyers are examining. It could face steep pushback. Bowser acknowledged that the law allows the president to take more control over the city's police, but only if certain conditions are met. 'None of those conditions exist in our city right now,' she said. 'We are not experiencing a spike in crime. In fact, we're watching our crime numbers go down.'
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Iowa City finalizes housing-focused revenue for proposed local option sales tax
Iowa City is asking residents to vote on a possible local option sales tax in November, producing revenue that will address the city's housing needs while funding additional road and sidewalk repairs. The vote is part of an area-wide push to establish a local option sales tax and provide additional budgetary flexibility in Iowa City, Coralville and North Liberty. A simple majority of voters is needed to approve the ballot measure. If approved, the Iowa City's 1% tax will take effect on July 1, 2026. More: Coralville follows North Liberty's lead by drafting broad local option sales tax language Here's what to know: What does Iowa City's local option sales tax ballot language say? Iowa law requires 50% of local option sales tax revenue to be used for "property tax relief." Cities are free to use the remaining 50% in revenue as they see fit. Iowa City's ballot language reads: "The specific purposes for which the revenues shall otherwise be expended are: 25% to preserve existing affordable housing stock, increase shelter, transitional, and permanent housing supports, and increase access to and the supply of affordable housing for households with low incomes. 10% for maintenance and construction of public streets, sidewalks, trails, parks, and facilities as designated by City Council. 15% for community partnerships, including, but not limited to, partnerships that support intergovernmental, economic development, arts and culture, and social service priorities as designated by City Council." Does a local option sales tax apply to every purchase? No. "Life necessities" including groceries, rent or mortgages, utilities, vehicle purchases, gas, motels or hotels, prescription drugs and other health products would be exempt from the 1% surcharge. How much revenue would a sales tax create for Iowa City? City staff estimate that Iowa City generates between $800 million and $1 billion in eligible purchases each year, which would equate to between $8-10 million in revenue. Since state law requires the city to use half on property tax relief, the remaining 50% would equal $4-5 million. Iowa City's adopted Fiscal 2026 budget includes about $76.3 million in revenues, meaning the additional cash flow from a local option sales tax would add an estimated 5-6.5% to the city's budget. More: Prosecutors say ex-UI student would have killed woman, awaits attempted murder verdict Based on staff estimates, the sales tax would annually create an additional $2-2.5 million for housing, $1.2-1.5 million for community partnerships and $800,000 to $1 million for public infrastructure improvements. Iowa City City Council supports LOST with a bit of pause The seven-member Iowa City City Council unanimously approved the LOST ballot language despite a bit of concern. Mayor Pro Tempore Mazahir Salih and several of her colleagues acknowledged that the local option sales tax is "regressive," meaning it creates a greater burden for lower-income people. "I think this is going to affect the most vulnerable people in the community if we add the sales tax," Salih said, though she voted in favor of the proposed ballot language. "We cannot just tax the poor to fix property." Salih has been largely against the tax since it was first discussed in early summer. More: Regents encourage 'free flow of ideas' by removing references to DEI, CRT in new course policy Councilor Megan Alter referenced University of Iowa gamedays, festivals and other events that bring in large crowds from outside of Iowa City. "We will be able to benefit from outside dollars that will stay in our community," Alter said. Mayor Bruce Teague also said the council should "call it like it is," acknowledging the regressive nature of the tax, but referenced the city's "increasingly tight" budget as a possible concern. "It does have large benefits for the most vulnerable in our community," Teague said. "And let's face it, funding is being reduced all around and this is one way that we can help to keep the services that we currently have, as well as enhance opportunities for more services for those most in need." Ryan Hansen covers local government and crime for the Press-Citizen. He can be reached at rhansen@ or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @ryanhansen01. This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: What to know about Iowa City's local option sales tax propsal Solve the daily Crossword
Bloomberg
5 hours ago
- Bloomberg
Newsom Says He'll Halt State Redistricting If Trump Backs Down
California Governor Gavin Newsom urged President Donald Trump to call on the Texas governor and leaders of other Republican-led states to halt efforts to redraw congressional maps, saying the most populous US state will stand down if they do. 'You are playing with fire, risking the destabilization of our democracy, while knowing that California can neutralize any gains you hope to make,' Newsom wrote to the president on Monday. 'If the other states call off their redistricting efforts, we will happily do the same.'
