Between photos of ICE dragging a disabled American citizen from her car because on her way to her doctor, she turned onto a street and found herself in the midst of an ICE action in Minneapolis, and the faces of Greenland and Danish officials as they left a D.C. meeting, there are the less visible events that should make us ask what is going on here in our country.
Take the ICE recruitment ads that use music from Neo-Nazi groups, or the quote on the podium used by Kristi Noem: “One of ours, all of yours” used in the 1942 destruction of Lidice. Then there’s the admission that before swooping in on Maduro, oil executives but not Congress had been notified.
Even less visible are the attacks on our electoral system. This past week the Supreme Court upheld the right of three losing candidates to challenge mail-in ballots that were stamped prior to election day but arrived late. So now the postal system’s late delivery could possibly overturn an election. Coupled with attacks on voters standing in line, we need to think about how 2026 elections can be subverted.
Prayer for the Day
Disturbed by the events in our Nation, we come to you, O God,
Looking for ways to build community, not destroy it;
Concerned by the lack of common understanding of our heritage,
We look for ways to build trust within our disparate Nation.
We pray for wisdom to build common ground again,
And to move beyond the fears that seem to overtake us.
In the name of the One who reached out to all,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.
Thoughts for the Day
Governments at all levels — local, state, and federal — must strengthen their capacity to confront the impacts of AI. State and local governments should establish advisory councils to obtain a baseline understanding of AI risks and opportunities to better serve the public.
Brennan Center Report on safeguarding elections
New executive orders and other novel threats to election administration and the seating of victorious House candidates are creating confusion as to whether the 2026 election will be run under the same rules as its predecessors.
Nate Persily, Stanford Law School
Rise up, O Lord; God. Do not forget the oppressed.
Why do the wicked renounce God, and say in their hearts,
You will not call us to account”?
Psalm 10: 12-13