🚨 Update on ICE’s BOMBSHELL “database”

I'm joined now by US Senate candidate in. Maine, Graham Platner. Graham, thanks. for joining me again. >> Hey, of course, Brian. Thanks for having. me. >> So, we've got yet more bad news, this. time out of Minnesota where it looks. like a second uh person was shot and. killed by ICE agents. And I want to talk. about that in a moment. But first, I I. do want to point to your state of Maine. because there was an incident just a few. days ago in Portland where an ICE agent. had come forward uh where there was a. woman filming in the street, which she's. 100% allowed to do, and the ICE agent. approached her, called her a domestic.

terrorist, and said that she would be. added to this little database that they. have. So, can I have your reaction uh to. to that update from your own state? >> Yeah, I mean, it's it's horrifying and. also unsurprising. I mean, it's fairly. clear at this point that ICE is using uh. digital tools to track activists um and. to then threaten them uh with, you know, being put on a list uh which I sounds to. be about the most unamerican thing that. we can say. But here we find ourselves.

Um yeah, I mean what's actually wild. about that video is that she's. videotaping him and he's videotaping her. license plate and she's she's saying. like, "I'm allowed to be out here. I'm. allowed to videotape. There's nothing. against that. There's nothing against. the law for videotaping. He's like, there isn't, which is why I'm like doing. it, too. Uh, and then he said, you know, we've got a nice little database we're. putting together. You're going in it and. you're going to be a domestic terrorist. So, I mean, this is just.

ICE is using that as a threat, right? I. mean, that's all this is. This is this. is threatening activists with being. turned into domestic terrorists. We know. what this country does with people it. deems as terrorists, right? I mean, we. we've been doing that for a long time, >> right? >> So, I mean, there's really no. equivocating about what is going on. here. Uh, ISIS is using tactics of of uh.

tactics to threaten, tactics to bully, tactics to scare. I mean, all of this is. really just to cow anyone who's going to. be willing to stand up. I mean, they're. going to be sorely sorely mistaken that. people are going to take this line down. Uh much like the woman in that video who. then promptly shared it and now we've. all seen it. So, she she's courageous. and frankly, we need a lot of people to. stand up and show the same kind of. courage she did. >> Right now, the issue of funding ICE is. in Congress. It passed the House with.

the help of a few Democrats, I believe. seven Democrats, but now it's up to the. Senate uh to to get to reach that 60. vote threshold. Can I have your reaction. to to the the prospect of in the face of. all of this stuff happening, ICE. possibly being or or DHS more broadly, but ICE as a as a subsidiary of that. being um being funded in light of what. we're seeing right now? >> Yeah, it's insane. I mean, there's no. question that Democrats in the Senate.

need to be the ball work against. increasing funding to ICE while it very. clearly has turned itself or is act is. acting in an unconstitutional and. illegal manner and it's murdering. American citizens in the street. So, I. mean it there is. people who are still pulling this whole. like well if we don't fund it then it. can still like I don't care. I'm sorry. I mean, we an agency that acts in this. way should not be funded. Period. And.

Democrats in the Senate need to use what. power they have. And I mean, this is. honestly one of the whole things I've. been talking about in my campaign is we. need to re-engage with understanding the. power that these positions come with. They can use that right now to make sure. that this does not pass. I've heard some. rumblings out of DC that it's beginning. to look like it won't be able to make. it. Um that the the backlash from the.

Democratic base uh to legis to to. senators specifically uh has been so. great that a a lot of senators are are. sounding like they're they're not going. to vote for it, which would be good. Um, it's what I'd like to see, but uh, but. the idea that an agency acting in the. way it is it is currently acting is. deserving of more funding uh, is it just. goes to show how broken frankly the.

system that we have is um, that this is. even a question. And I would add too, even the the fact that we're having this. conversation about continuing funding to. ICE when that funding from ICE doesn't. just come in a vacuum. Like that is. money that was taken away from Americans. healthcare, from Americans food. assistance, which would be bad enough. unto itself, but happening at the hands. of an administration that that. campaigned on helping the little guy. So. you have an administration that claimed. that they understood the struggles of. regular Americans who then who who were.

contending with high prices. They make. those high prices even worse because now. they don't have healthcare coverage. Now. they don't have food assistance. Now. prices are going up because of this. trade war. All of that bad enough unto. itself. And then you give that money to. a rogue secret police agency that's. serving as judge, jury, and executioner. against American citizens in the streets. is just is insane. >> It's insane. But I got to say like. that's their answer to all those other. problems. like like the administration.

the answer to the fact that they like. they know that their policies that only. help the rich and powerful are not. actually going to improve people's. lives. They know that. They know what. they're doing. They know that they're. robbing the American working class. blind. They know that they are just. allowing for the consolidation of more. wealth and more power. That's who they. serve. Hell, I mean, that's who they are. for God's sake. Some of these people are. just I mean the Trump ad people in the. Trump administration have made money off.

of being in the Trump administration. They're stealing from us. They know. that. And because they know that, for. them, the way that you fix the the. repercussions of that are a secret. police force that is going to act as. judge, jury, and executioner, cuz that's. how you're going to tamp down whatever. resistance comes out of the fact that. people's lives are going to continue to. get materially worse. I mean, I I hate. to say it, but this is a this is really.

an example of when you have an economic. system and a politics that is entirely. uninterested in improving the lives of. people, it is going to use state force. and state violence to protect itself. from whatever the backlash is going to. be, >> right? Not unlike any other autocratic. regime that we've seen all throughout. history. We are we are not in a unique moment. I. hate to say it. >> Yeah. I. >> I know it seems to a lot of Americans.

that what we're going through right now. is is something almost like. unbelievable, but a pretty like frankly shallow. reading of history just goes just shows. exactly what's occurring right now. The. plenty of other places have been where. we are now and we know what the outcome. is. Uh, which that's the part that's. most frustrating for me is that we're. seeing this and yet there is still an. element in supposedly the opposition who.

still cannot grasp the gravity of the. situation and is operating as if we're. >> we're still just doing politics like we. used to be doing it and we're. >> we've moved into a new era. >> Graham, you come from a state that is. not not not particularly liberal. I. mean, you know, not not the way that we. think of the other northeastern states, especially. And so I'm curious from the. folks that you've spoken with because. conservatives have built up this this. worldview where they have to protect. from a tyrannical government, you know,

the kind of government that might oh, I. don't know, come in and ask for your. papers or murder people on the streets. or not face any accountability for their. actions. Uh not not have to identify. themselves, cover their faces, on and on. and on. What is is is there no. acknowledgement even from the folks who. have, you know, pushed back against the. prospect of this happening that it is. now happening and it's happening at the. hands of the party that warned about. this happening at the hands of the left. >> Yeah. I mean, I certainly, as someone.

that's I've been very much in the gun. world for most of my adult life, fire. instructor, competitive shooter, all. that kind of stuff, >> I uh I will never again take at face. value uh the this this claim uh that a. lot of conservatives who are pro-. firearm are doing it because they want. to fight a tyrannical government. >> Right. This is this is this is your. time. >> It's here. We're doing like it's here. We're looking at it. They're doing the. thing. They're they're secret masked.

secret police are executing American. citizens in the street. That's. happening. So I if if you can't see that. then I don't know. I will say look. there's going to be an element of the. quote [snorts] unquote conservative base. that is going to justify all of this. forever and there's nothing we're going. to be able to do about that. Thing is. they are not a majority. So we don't. have to convince them. We just have to. beat them. There are however a lot of. people who I think actually did believe.

that story and while they might be. conservative they are seeing with their. own eyes uh the thing that they've been. told we're supposed to resist when it. comes I mean I just I'm going to point. this out. Tucker Carlson. has been very open about the fact that. he thinks conservatives are completely. missing reality in this moment. Tucker. Carlson. Yeah. >> Who I mean I I don't think you and I. have a lot that we agree with Tucker. Carlson.

>> Not Not exactly a crunchy liberal. >> Not exactly a crunchy liberal. And yet. and yet at the moment he's being like, "No, I mean this is the thing. I mean. like you can't." And so it's. there are going to be people who are. never going to get it. But I do think I. mean I've experienced this firsthand. here in Maine. Uh I know a lot of. conservatives who are horrified by all. of this. >> Yeah. Um and and and that's those are. the people that we need to be open to. re-engaging with and and and recognizing.

that they in many ways we've all been. divided and split uh in order for when. this day came we wouldn't be able to. mobilize and fight back. Um and it's I. wish it was as easy as saying, "Oh, look. how obvious it is. People are just going. to get it there." Some of them aren't. >> Yeah. But uh but many of them are or at. least really starting to question the. foundations of what they thought was. going on. >> Yeah. I mean Elliot Morris uh who who. has a great Substack and and analyzes. all kinds of numbers has even said that.

this has turned into a 3070 issue um. favoring Democrats. I mean, the the fact. that that the Trump administration is. leaning on this when they have. threequarters of the country opposing. them, you know, is a testament to either. um their their delusion or or um just. how obstinate they are uh against the. fact that Americans are hate what. they're seeing right now. What I hate to. say is I don't necessarily think I think. what. I think they know a thing that I we need. to start learning which is that when you.

have power and you wield it and no one. has the ability to stop you. >> Yeah. >> Then you just have that power. >> Right. I I I I honestly and look, there's no surprise to me that this is. happening now in uh in states that very. much could be like that like like in. Maine uh in play come fall uh for the. midterm election. You know, this is a. this has nothing to do with law. This.

has nothing to do with protecting. Americans. This barely has anything to. do with immigration if we're being. honest. Yeah. This is using the age-old. tactic of scapegoating the marginalized. and the atrisisk communities in order to. come up with the excuse of expanding. capacity for state violence and. repression. >> Yeah. >> Uh I think that's what they're doing. I. think they know what they're up to. Um, and it is that to me is the most. concerning thing where I I'm fairly. convinced that this is just building the.

momentum and the power to uh to just. impose their will, hoping that people. aren't going to fight back. >> Right. Right. And frankly, they've. gotten they've had a lot of success at. getting people to capitulate. Whether. it's the ABC Newses of the World, CBS's. of the world, Meta, Washington Post, you. look at a lot of these law firms, you. look at universities, you look at tech. CEOs who've just heaped tons and tons of. money onto Trump and and they've seen. that capitulation. And so all that that. says is look how easy it is to own.

people. Look how easy it is to impose. our will on people. all of these, you. know, supposedly esteemed institutions. and two big like the the free press, the. fourth estate, you have the the. universities, these these billionaire. tech CEOs, all of these people fell like. dominoes. And so if if it was that easy. to to to own those people, think about. how easy it's going to be to just impose. our will on the plebes who live in these. blue states who are taking to the. streets who can who we can just send in. our, you know, secret police and they'll. just quell any violence uh or or.

disscent that occurs. But I think you're. exactly right about this idea of. wielding power when you get it. And I. hope that any Democrats who serve right. now recognize recognize their own. impotence when they think back to these. moments where they've said, "Oh, well, we we want to do what you know what we. want to pass this law, but like the. parliamentarian or norms or or like, you. know, or or we don't we couldn't do what. we're trying to do right now because. they might abuse that process at some. point in the future." When Republicans. have power, they wield it. They wield it. to the nth degree and they abuse it. And.

meanwhile, you've got Democrats more. focused on protecting the sanctity of. the filibuster than actually getting. something done. >> I mean, you this is this is why I'm. running for Senate. Like you you that's. literally the reason I'm doing this. I I. have a I have a reading of American. history in which if I think if you look. at American history honestly, you. realize that many of the best things we. got did not come from the institutions. working flawlessly in finding middle.

ground. >> Yeah, >> they came from when power was wielded. the we ended slavery. and we did so when Abraham Lincoln did. many things that a lot of people at the. time screamed were unconstitutional and. against the law. The 13th amendment was. brought about frankly by a lot of. political threats and some corruption. for God's sake. I mean like it's a you. we need to be the New Deal happened. because Roosevelt didn't care about. norms. >> Yeah. He just implemented policies. And.

that is if anything, if there's any. silver lining to Donald Trump, and I. don't even want to use the word silver. lining because it's not, but if there's. any if we if there's a lesson that we. learn, it is that when we have power. again, we need to be electing people who. are going to wield that power and. understand that we can use it for good. We can use it to bring about a universal. healthare system. We can use it to go. after the ultra rich. We can use it to.

enforce and expand anti- monopoly laws. to go after corporate power. We can do. all of this. Essentially, there's a lack. of imagination uh I think in some. Democratic leaders. It's a lack of imagination that stems. from the fact that they have operated in. the kind of politics that was far more. transactional and less power-based for. their entire careers. and they just. fundamentally do not understand the new. world that we're living in. And once we. have power again, we better goddamn well. use it because if we don't, we're just.

going to be right back here next time. around. >> Couldn't have said it better. Graham, for folks who are looking to support. your campaign, where can they go? >> Uh, grahams.com. Uh, I will just say we're because of my. politics, uh, I'm not taking any money. from corporate packs. I'm not taking. money from, uh, any of the large large. consolidated power groups. We get our. money from from individual donations. Uh. and we could definitely if you like what. you hear, uh please please contribute. But more importantly, we could also use.

people's time and energy. We need. volunteers. Uh if you don't live in the. state of Maine, you can still help. Text. banking, phone banking. We've got a. robust volunteer network. Um and we. would love if people could join us in. this uh in this fight. So, grahams.com. is the place to go to learn about all of. it, including my platform if you're. interested in that, too. >> Great. I'm going to put that link right. here on the screen and also in the post. description of this video. For anybody. who's watching, Maine is going to be. absolutely crucial in retaking the. Senate. Um, and uh and Trump himself.

tweeted that Susan Collins should be uh. should should not be reelected because. she didn't tow the line on some random. issue. And so, you know, take it take it. from Trump. A broken clock's right twice. a day. So again, that link is right here. on the screen and al also in the post. description. Graham, I appreciate the. time. >> Hey, thanks a lot, Brian. I appreciate. it, man. >> [music].