User:SontaranStratagems

🔗 Sources, Documentation Just some links to supporting docs re: sub posts or things that might come up on stream.

⭐️

1. Federal Reserve: Policy Issues in the 119th Congress, 01/14/2026
2. FY2025 Immigration Court Data: Case Outcomes, 01/12/2026
3. Federal Role in U.S. Campaigns and Elections: An Overview, 12/19/2025

Judiciary 🧑‍⚖️

Legal Opinions: New or Topical

Case No. 25-cv-03899 (APM) CITY OF SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA v. Wright, DOE Secretary. Filed 01/12/26. Opinion & Order, against 🍊 cancellation of grants violated 5th Amendment.

OMB Director, Russell Vought, bragged that nearly “$8 billion in Green NewScam funding to fuel the Left’s climate agenda is being cancelled,” then listed only states that did not vote for Trump. Meanwhile on Truth Social, Trump confirmed he met with Vought to “determine which of the many Democrat Agencies, most of which are a political SCAM, he recommends to be cut” during the shutdown.

On Monday, US District Judge Amit Mehta wrote in his opinion that the case was “unique” because ordinarily “the mere presence of political considerations in an agency action” does not mean that officials have run “afoul of the Fifth Amendment’s guarantee of equal protection.”

But in this case, Trump “freely” admitted that he made grant termination decisions “primarily—if not exclusively—based on whether the awardee resided in a state whose citizens voted for President Trump in 2024.” And that classification had “no rational relationship” to the government’s supposed interest in cutting off funding, Mehta found, which was that projects were not “economically viable” or didn’t advance the administration’s energy goals. In fact, Mehta noted that similar projects in red states continued to receive funding.

Immigration & Customs Enforcement

Why "Abolishing ICE" is a bad idea.

If ICE were eliminated...

• No federal agency has the combined customs law and immigration law authority to go after cartels, human trafficking rings, and cyber criminals across borders.
• Economic protection: unchecked, counterfeit, imports, fraud, and illicit finance would cost US businesses billions annually. In FY23, seized $10.4 million in counterfeit goods and $25.86 million in general merchandise.
• International cooperation: disruption of joint investigations, weakened partnerships; the fact that we have 16 partner nations shows ICE diplomatic leverage in fighting crime globally.
• There is no centralized body to enforce human detention practices leading to greater legal exposure in human rights criticism.
• Workforce expertise: just like with DOGE and some of my related criticisms (e.g. where Elon went after workforce with a sledgehammer not a scalpel), 20,000 of the highly trained, good ice agents would be gone with the wind; Losing institutional memory and specialized skill sets, primarily because of its unique mandate, which includes immigration, customs enforcement, and specified investigative techniques. (It's hard to replace from elsewhere.)

• The majority of ICE discretionary core enforcement resources are in HSI (Homeland security investigations) – recall Tiny poking fun at the jackets of the DHS agents in MN after the Shirley/Somali investigations… they were HSI.
• Only ~15% (of discretionary core enforcement spend) are for Enforcement and removal operations (ERO).

ICE Quick Reference

What does ICE do besides the current activities under 🍊 47?

FIVE CORE PROGRAMMATIC FUNCTIONS

1. Enforcement and removal operations (ERO) - detain and remove non-citizens who pose a threat (e.g. terrorists, gang members, war criminals). Note: of the approximately 1.2 million removals in 2023, 600,000 were voluntary fill the legal obligations under the Immigration and Nationality Act.

2. HSI - human trafficking, child, exploitation, cyber crime, financial crime, narcotics, counterfeit goods, weapons, illicit opioids supply chain

3. Customs and trade enforcement - import/export compliance, seizing contraband, protecting intellectual property; forfeiture proceeds, go back into law enforcement

4. Detention standards and oversight - akin to internal affairs. Sets national detention standards, inspect facilities, handles misconduct complaints.

5. International partnerships - joint task forces, extends the US reach in law-enforcement/investigations, shares intelligence, and builds the US capacity abroad; as of FY 23, 16 partner countries.

Authority to Arrest, Prosecute

While ERO primarily conducts administrative arrests for violations of US immigration law it also has the authority to make criminal arrests and initiate prosecution cases for immigration-related offenses, primarily under Title 8, but also under Title 18 of the U.S. Code. Using this authority, ERO Criminal Prosecution teams work with AUSA offices to pursue violations of the U.S. Criminal Code that come to light during enforcement actions. Noncitizens who are convicted generally complete their criminal sentences. The noncitizens are subsequently taken into ICE custody for administrative immigration violations and placed into removal proceedings after completing their criminal sentences.

Statutory Authority

Pub. L. 119–1, §1, Jan. 29, 2025, 139 Stat. 3 The Laken Riley Act. 8 USC 1101 note.

Immigration and Nationality Act, as codified, U.S. Code – Title 8 (Aliens and Nationality)

• Gives ICE four distinct enforcement mandates (removal, criminal investigations, customs enforcement, and immigration adjudication).
• Non‑Immigration Powers – Sections § 1152 (employment visas) and § 1159 (refugee admissions) empower ICE to protect the labor market and national security beyond “cracking down on undocumented folks.”
• Congressional Intent – The act was crafted to balance openness (visa categories) with protection (inadmissibility grounds) so stripping ICE would upset that equilibrium and force Congress to rewrite huge swaths of law.

Cites

ICE Annual Reports – general overview of the agency’s mission, ERO priorities, and OPR oversight

1. FY 2023 press release that breaks out the HSI statistics (arrests, narcotics seizures, counterfeit goods, child‑exploitation victims, etc.)
2. “2023 Year‑in‑Review” feature – details on the Transnational Criminal Investigative Units (TCIUs) expansion to 16 partner countries and other FY 2023 highlights
3. PDF of the FY 2023 Annual Report (full tables, seizure totals, arrest counts, etc.)
4. PDF of the FY 2024 Annual Report (latest seizure numbers, operational updates, and emerging priorities)

🍊 Tariffs

Summary of U.S. Executive Tariff Actions (Jan 20–Dec 31, 2025)

Table 1. Summary of U.S. Executive Tariff Actions

Description	Affected Nation	Current Tariff Rate / Status
Actions under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA, Table 2)
Fentanyl-related	Canada	35% on most goods; 10% on potash and Canadian energy; United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) exemption.
Fentanyl & Migration	Mexico	25% on most goods; 10% on potash; USMCA exemption.
Fentanyl-related	China	10% on all goods; ended de minimis duty-free treatment.
Example	Example	Example
Venezuelan Oil	Designated	25% on all goods from countries designated by the Sec. of State.
Trade Deficit/	Reciprocal Global	10%-41%, by country of origin, on most goods (with exceptions); Paused: 125% on China.
Ending De Minimis Treatment	Global	Ended de minimis duty-free treatment.
Brazil's Government Policies	Brazil	40% on select goods (with exceptions).
Importing Russian Oil	India	25% on most goods (with exceptions).
Actions under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 (Section 232, Table 3 and Table 4)
Steel	Global	50% globally; 25% on imports from the United Kingdom (UK).
Aluminum	Global	50% globally; 25% on imports from the UK.
Automobiles & Parts	Global	25% globally; 10% for UK;* 15% for Japan, South Korea, and EU;* some USMCA exceptions.
Copper	Global	50% globally on semi-finished copper products.
Timber/Lumber	Global	10%-25% globally; 10% for UK;* 15% for Japan, South Korea, and EU.*
Trucks and Buses	Global	10% on buses globally; 25% on trucks and truck parts globally; some USMCA exceptions.
Semiconductors	TBD	Investigation initiated (April 2025).
Pharmaceuticals	TBD	Investigation initiated (April 2025).
Critical Minerals	TBD	Investigation initiated (April 2025).
Aircraft	TBD	Investigation initiated (May 2025).
Drones	TBD	Investigation initiated (July 2025).
Polysilicon	TBD	Investigation initiated (July 2025).
Wind Turbines	TBD	Investigation initiated (August 2025).
Robotics	TBD	Investigation initiated (September 2025).
Medical Equipment	TBD	Investigation initiated (September 2025).
Actions under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 (Section 301, Table 5)
China's Semiconductor Policies	China	Investigation completed. China's policies found actionable. U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) proposed no additional tariffs in 2026, and a potential rate increase in June 2027.
China's Shipping Industries	China	Investigation completed. Action of port fees and tariffs suspended.
Nicaragua's Labor Rights	Nicaragua	Investigation completed. USTR proposes tariffs beginning in 2027.
Brazil's Trade Practices	Brazil	Investigation initiated (July 2025).
China's Phase One Agreement Compliance	China	Investigation initiated (October 2025).
Foreign Digital Services Taxes	TBD	President directed USTR to consider renewing past investigation.
International Seafood	TBD	President directed USTR to consider a new investigation.

Source: CRS, compiled from official U.S. government documents. See report and tables for additional details. Notes: TBD = to be determined. EU = European Union. Many 2025 tariff actions, with exceptions, are cumulative. Details may change due to bilateral trade deals not yet implemented or other policy changes. *For UK, EU, South Korea, and Japan, auto and timber rates include most-favored nation tariffs. UK auto rates include tariff-rate quota for vehicles.

Current as of --SontaranStratagems (talk) 09:02, 15 January 2026 (UTC)

On the Hill 🏛️

Committee Reports, EC's 📌

01/07/2026 — EXECUTIVE AND OTHER COMMUNICATIONS; Congressional Record Vol. 172, No. 4. SENATE EC's 2417, and 2415. A communication from the Acting Deputy Division Chief, Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of Homeland Security, transmitting, pursuant to law, the report of a rule entitled "Security Bars and Processing; Confirmation of Effective Date; Partial Withdrawal" ((RIN1615-AC57)(RIN1125-AB08)) received in the Office of the President of the Senate on January 5, 2026; to the Committee on the Judiciary.

• A communication from the Acting Deputy Division Chief, Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of Homeland Security, transmitting, pursuant to law, the report of a rule entitled "Weighted Selection Process for Registrants and Petitioners Seeking to File Cap-Subject H-1B Petitions" (RIN1615-AD01) received in the Office of the President of the Senate on January 5, 2026; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
• H. Rept. 119-198 — 119th Congress (2025-2026) — Accompanies: H.R.1327 H.R.1327 - Syria Terrorism Threat Assessment Act This bill requires the Department of Homeland Security to provide Congress with an assessment of terrorist threats to the United States posed by individuals in Syria affiliated with either a foreign terrorist organization or a specially designated global terrorist organization.

[Note, Devon authorized my requested use of this wiki page. Blesstiny. :D]