Trump’s America: Political Violence & a Livestreamed Execution | Robert Pape
Wajahat Ali
VIDEO:
Wajahat Ali
VIDEO:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rzWmE7liwE
October 8, 2026
#RobertPape #WajahatAli #Trump
What does it mean for American politics when a military execution is scheduled to be livestreamed for the public? Robert Pape joins Wajahat Ali to discuss Trump, political violence, military power, public executions, the death penalty and the consequences of normalizing violence in American public life. On October 8, the Pentagon confirmed that it plans to livestream the scheduled December 3 firing-squad execution of Nidal Malik Hasan, who was convicted of killing 13 people and injuring 32 in the 2009 Fort Hood shooting. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the public should be able to watch the execution, arguing that people need to understand the consequences of serious crimes. President Donald Trump approved the firing-squad method earlier in the week. The planned broadcast has prompted questions about the purpose of making an execution a public spectacle, the ethics of state punishment and the legal issues surrounding the unprecedented livestream. Hasan may still pursue legal challenges that could delay the scheduled date. Pape, a University of Chicago political scientist who studies military strategy and escalation, also examines how the use of force can create consequences leaders do not anticipate. In his analysis of the Iran war, he has warned that initial military successes can trigger further escalation rather than produce the intended political outcome. How should Americans understand the relationship between political rhetoric, military power and state-sanctioned violence? And what are the risks when violence becomes a tool of public messaging? Robert Pape and Wajahat Ali explore American political violence, the death penalty, Trump’s military policies, escalation and the future of U.S. democracy.
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Wajahat Ali Calls Out Tim Miller & The Bulwark | The Vanguard
Wajahat Ali
October 9, 2026
VIDEO:
#WajahatAli #TheVanguard #TimMiller
Wajahat Ali joins The Vanguard for a candid discussion about Tim Miller, The Bulwark, Never Trump Republicans, and the influence of centrist political consultants on the Democratic Party. In this conversation, Wajahat challenges the role of former Republicans and establishment figures in shaping Democratic strategy, arguing that party leaders risk alienating their own voters when they move to the right on issues including Palestine, immigration, economic policy, and civil liberties. The discussion examines the tensions between progressives and Never Trump conservatives, the debate over who speaks for the Democratic base, and the questions surrounding The Bulwark’s relationship with Democratic leaders and donors. Topics include: Tim Miller and The Bulwark Never Trump Republicans and Democratic strategy Corporate centrists and political consultants Progressive Democrats and the party’s direction Palestine, ICE, and the issues shaping the Democratic base The debate over whether Democrats should move to the center or reconnect with progressive voters Watch Wajahat Ali on The Vanguard and join the conversation about the future of the Democratic Party.
#WajahatAli #TheVanguard #TimMiller #TheBulwark #Democrats #Progressives #NeverTrump #USPolitics #PoliticalCommentary
https://zeteo.com/p/donald-trump-is-trying-to-start-a?publication
First Draft
Donald Trump Is Trying to Start a Race War to Win the Midterms
The president’s attacks on Abdul El-Sayed and Somali Americans are appalling and show the dangerous path he is on. A U.S. diplomat in Israel, meanwhile, was shown to be working in Israel’s interest.
by Martin Pengelly
October 9, 2026
Zeteo
A quick note to say there will be no ‘First Draft’ on Monday, as Zeteo observes the Indigenous Peoples’ Day holiday. Enjoy your long weekend – and normal service will resume first thing Tuesday morning.
Good morning. Martin here again, delighted to be bringing you the news that matters for your Friday morning. Rejoice, for a long weekend is nearly here.
In today’s ‘First Draft,’ we look at an outburst from Donald Trump that was vile and dangerous even by his wretched standards, a broadside against Somali immigrants in Minnesota and a call for “the people of Minnesota” to “fight back.” When calls for violence are coming from inside the (White) House, America is really in trouble. Trump also spouted vile Islamophobic abuse at Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic candidate for Senate in Michigan, who duly faced similar bile from Mike Rogers, his GOP opponent, on the debate stage in Grand Rapids.
Then we’ll look at a bombshell report from the New York Times, about how a close aide to Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee is co-opting embassy practice to his own, openly pro-Israel ends. There was also a Senate debate in Georgia, and the Nobel Peace Prize goes to someone who has called out Israel’s genocide in Gaza. Let’s read in.
‘Fight Back, Minnesota’
Donald Trump during his “Golden Age of American Innovation Summit” in Washington, DC, on Oct. 8, 2026. Photo: Kent Nishimura/AFP via Getty Images.
The president of the United States is trying to start a race war in Minnesota. This is not hyperbole. This is what he posted on Thursday:
“The once Great State of Minnesota is being taken over by Somali Immigrants. There is Violence, Murder, and Mayhem all over the State. The people of Minnesota must fight back. You have been robbed, and abandoned by your State Government. Your Governor is an incompetent thief who doesn’t want to get involved. He just wants to get out of town with as much as he can steal, and then, lead a quiet life. The Somalians should not be allowed to get away with what they are doing. They view you as weak and stupid people. Fight back Minnesota, fight back! If you need, the Federal Government will come to your rescue. Governor Tim Walz, and Mayor of Minneapolis, Jacob Frey, must immediately ask for Federal help — and leave the rest to us! President DONALD J. TRUMP”
Doubtless, defenders and apologists for the fascist in the White House will claim that when he writes “fight” he really means “vote,” that he is merely using typical exaggeration to encourage Minnesota voters to kick Democrats out of congressional office and reject Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan for Senate and Amy Klobuchar for governor next month.
If so, rubbish. Trump knows Republicans are losing and he is taking action accordingly. Remember Jan. 6, 2021? That dreadful day, speaking to his supporters outside the White House, Trump told the mob to “fight like hell” to block certification of his conclusive defeat by Joe Biden in the 2020 election. Nine deaths were linked to the riot that followed. Trump already has blood on his hands.
That concerned a presidential election. He has form when it comes to midterms too.
https://www.nyc.gov/mayors-office/news/2026/10/mayor-zohran-kwame-mamdani-releases-statement-on-ice-shooting-
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Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani Releases Statement on ICE Shooting
October 8, 2026
NEW YORK – Today, Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani released the following statement after a New Yorker was shot by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent:
This afternoon in Marble Hill, a New Yorker was shot by an ICE agent in a residential neighborhood. Early reports indicate agents surrounded him and a 5-year-old child in his car before firing multiple rounds. We believe the child was physically unharmed.
This is an unconscionable and incredibly serious situation. I have called the President; when we speak I will demand that he ends all ICE enforcement actions in our city. I will not stand by while ICE agents terrorize our communities.
Our thoughts are with the injured New Yorker and his family tonight. We are praying for his recovery. Get ICE out of our neighborhoods. Get ICE out of our hospitals. Get ICE off our streets. Get ICE away from our children.
Abolish ICE.
Media Contact
pressoffice@cityhall.nyc.gov
https://www.nyc.gov/mayors-office/news/2026/10/transcript--mayor-mamdani-holds-press-conference-on-ice-shooting
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Transcript: Mayor Mamdani Holds Press Conference on Ice Shooting in Marble Hill
October 8, 2026
Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani: Good evening, everyone. Around 4 p.m. this afternoon, a New Yorker was shot by ICE agents in Marble Hill. Many of the facts surrounding this shooting are still unclear, but here's what we know. ICE agents surrounded the man's vehicle before opening fire. They wore construction vests and masks that concealed their faces. There was no reasonable way to identify them as ICE agents.
School had just gotten out. The street was crowded with families and children. When ICE agents opened fire, a 5-year-old child — a 5-year-old child — was in the back seat of the car. Thank God that child is physically unharmed.
For the past two hours, I have been on the phone with President Trump and Secretary Mullin negotiating the release of the man ICE agents shot. Those negotiations were unsuccessful. Just moments ago, ICE put the man in an unmarked vehicle and whisked him away.
Let me say this plainly: What happened today was an outrage. Tonight, a 5-year-old child sits traumatized and terrified. Tonight, millions of our neighbors are wondering whether they will be safe on our streets, in our schools, at their work sites. Tonight, New Yorkers across the five boroughs are asking whether their civil liberties will be respected, whether law and order is supposed to look like a man carrying a long gun, wearing a mask.
We know that ICE is rotten to its core. Today's shooting is only further devastating confirmation of what we have long known: that ICE operates with impunity, that they sow chaos and terror across our country, that they have killed far more of our neighbors than they could ever have claimed to save.
I also want to say something on a personal note. I stand here not just as the mayor of our city, but as someone who is proud to be an immigrant in our city. And I know that these kinds of raids, this kind of terrorizing of this city, leave the 3 million immigrants of this city asking if they are safe here, if they belong here, if this, too, can be their home.
We will not normalize ICE's viciousness. We will not accept its cruelty. We know, and I've said this directly, whether to the president or to the public, ICE undermines public safety. It makes us less safe.
New York City will not stand by while ICE agents shoot New Yorkers. And we will not back down from the demand that so many, including myself, have put forward time and again. This is an agency that must be abolished. Thank you.
With that, I am now going to turn it over to our Police Commissioner, Jessica Tisch.
Police Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch: Thank you, sir. I'm here to brief you on an incident that occurred earlier today involving ICE agents in Marble Hill, right behind me. The information I'm about to provide is preliminary, and it is subject to change.
At 4:04 p.m., the NYPD received two 911 calls reporting a person shot and shots fired in the vicinity of 2 Marble Hill Avenue. At the same time, a federal agent called 911 requesting the Fire Department and then asked for the NYPD.
According to our preliminary investigation, federal immigration agents were conducting a targeted enforcement operation in an effort to take an individual into immigration custody. At the time, that individual was inside a gray Honda CR-V with a 5-year-old boy whom we believe to be his son.
NYPD Argus cameras captured the victim backing into a parking spot in front of a fire hydrant right behind me. At that time, one plainclothes federal law enforcement officer approaches the driver's side window with his gun drawn. Another plainclothes officer also approaches the vehicle by the driver's side headlight. The vehicle then starts to move forward and goes out of camera view. The Argus cameras do not capture the discharge.
Based on evidence collected at the scene, we know that at least one ICE agent discharged seven rounds, striking the driver in the neck below his left ear.
Members of the NYPD's 50th Precinct Conditions Team were responding to an unrelated call nearby when they heard the report of shots fired, and they responded to that scene. When they arrived, they encountered several men in various forms of attire, including some in construction-style vests, face masks and at least one carrying a long gun.
Our officers also encountered the injured individual, handcuffed and seated on the ground. Our officers immediately placed him into an NYPD vehicle and rendered aid. They transported him to New York-Presbyterian Allen Hospital, where he arrived in stable condition. Our officers' actions were captured on body-worn camera.
I want to be clear: The NYPD had no involvement in the federal operation prior to the shooting, and no members of the NYPD were on scene at the time of the shooting.
Additional NYPD officers arrived and secured the scene for the purpose of preserving evidence. At least seven shell casings were recovered at the scene, along with the victim's vehicle, which had ballistic damage to the front windshield. The back window of the car was also shattered. That vehicle was positioned perpendicular to the road.
An ICE vehicle, which is a gray four-door sedan, had damage to the left front panel, and the lower panel was fully disconnected.
With respect to the child who was inside the vehicle: Pursuant to a wellness check, the NYPD located the child safe and in the care of a family member.
The individual who was shot has been identified as 28-year-old Oscar Belgal. He has two prior arrests in New York City: one for robbery in 2023, in which he pleaded guilty to fourth-degree grand larceny and received five years' probation, and one for criminal sale of a controlled substance in 2025, which is still pending.
At this time, federal agents have exercised their authority to take over the investigation. I will now turn it over to our attorney general.
Question: [Inaudible.]
Mayor Mamdani: There is no explanation for these tactics. There is no explanation for federal officers firing this many rounds into a car that has a 5-year-old in the car. There is no explanation.
We are standing here, so close to the site where this actually took place, and look at how many people live right here. This is a residential neighborhood. We are right here by a subway, and the pretext of ICE is, in their words, to keep this country safe. How is it keeping anyone safe to have, as you just heard from the police commissioner, individuals wearing construction vests and masks with long guns?
Residents have no idea if these are law enforcement agents or if they are simply attacking someone on the street. And when it comes to ICE, it begs the question: What's the difference? There is no explanation for this.
Question: [Inaudible.]
Mayor Mamdani: Now, I made clear to the president, to the secretary, our request that ICE agents leave the scene entirely, as well as the demand that ICE stop its enforcement actions in New York City. These actions are making the city less safe. They are making New Yorkers terrified.
You are hearing from New Yorkers right now — anguish, pain, anger — at the fact that here in this city, the world's city, immigrants have to wake up every morning and not know if they can live the lives that they should be able to live and help to build this city.
I'm proud to stand here alongside our public advocate, our attorney general, assembly members, City Council members, state senators and elected officials at all levels, united in the belief that there is no justification for what we have seen today. And we know that what we've seen today is but a microcosm of what ICE does on a daily basis across this country.
How can that be how we describe public safety? It can't be. And I've shared that with the president. I've shared that with the secretary.
This city wants ICE out. We want ICE out of our city, ICE out of our schools, ICE out of our hospitals, ICE out of our streets, ICE away from our kids. We want that because we want to keep the city safe. We do not need them to do so. All they do is terrorize this city.
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