“We’ve kind of forgotten about how big a behemoth the government has become as a surveiller of its populace.”

Our top story: Unpacking the millions spent on #AI-based surveillance of the border ... and how the state's gaze has expanded well beyond the edges of our nation. https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-dps-surveillance-arsenal-artificial-intelligence-lege/

"Tonight, Trump signed a memorandum to the secretaries of defense, interior, agriculture, and homeland security calling for a 'Military Mission for Sealing the Southern Border of the United States and Repelling Invasions.'"

~ Heather Cox Richardson

#Trump #fascism #immigrants #military #border #InsurrectionAct #HomelandSecurity
/1

https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/april-11-2025 [heathercoxrichardson.substack.com]

Earlier: While “restoring the rule of law” to the U.S.-Mexico border has been a resonant and repeated talking point for successive administrations, it is the border walls that they have built, not the border itself, that are lawless. https://www.texasobserver.org/the-lawless-border-wall/

From Lollapalooza to Detention Camps: Meet the Tent Company Making a Fortune Off Trump’s Deportation Plans
—

The privately held company Deployed Resources has made billions running tent detention facilities to hold immigrants entering the U.S. at the border. Now it's cashing in again on Trump’s plan to hold immigrants before deportation.
https://www.propublica.org/article/trump-deportations-deployed-resources-tent-company?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=mastodon-post

Our top story: “Many of these technologies are eroding that reasonable expectation of privacy that people have, and [are] kind of leading to this police #surveillance state, where the government ends up having … information about people without having to get a warrant.” https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-dps-surveillance-arsenal-artificial-intelligence-lege/

Our top story: Over the past several years, the #Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) has quietly built out an expansive #surveillance apparatus—one that’s increasingly powered by artificial intelligence. Can the legislature pass new protections for our privacy? https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-dps-surveillance-arsenal-artificial-intelligence-lege/

“They Don’t Care About Civil Rights”: Trump’s Shuttering of DHS Oversight Arm Freezes 600 Cases, Imperils Human Rights
—

The closure of the 150-person office, which protected the civil rights of both immigrants and U.S. citizens, strips Homeland Security of its internal guardrails as the Trump administration turns DHS into a mass-deportation machine, analysts say.

https://www.propublica.org/article/homeland-security-crcl-civil-rights-immigration-border-patrol-trump-kristi-noem?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=mastodon-post

According to a new book edited by Andréanne Bissonnette and Élisabeth Vallet, while “restoring the rule of law” to the U.S.-Mexico #border has been a repeated talking point for successive administrations, it is the border walls themselves which are lawless. https://www.texasobserver.org/the-lawless-border-wall/

Our top story: Operation Lone Star has turbocharged DPS’ #surveillance capabilities. Lawmakers say they want to prevent Texas from becoming a police state but have filed only modest legislation to regulate use of #AI https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-dps-surveillance-arsenal-artificial-intelligence-lege/

In books: While “restoring the rule of law” to the U.S.-Mexico border has been a resonant and repeated talking point for successive administrations, it is the #border walls that they have built, not the border itself, that are lawless.
https://www.texasobserver.org/the-lawless-border-wall/

What To Do If #Border Police Ask To Search Your Phone

https://reason.com/2025/04/04/what-to-do-if-border-police-ask-to-search-your-phone/

The #US #border #surveillance expansion has global implications

https://privacyinternational.org/news-analysis/5552/us-border-surveillance-expansion-has-global-implications