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constitutional rights
'Listen to His Message': Jailed Mohsen Mahdawi Speaks on Core Constitutional Rights and Empathy
"I wanted to become a citizen of this country because I believe in the principles of this country," Mahdawi told a U.S. senator.
Apr 22, 2025
In an interview with Sen. Peter Welch on Monday, Columbia University student organizer Mohsen Mahdawi described how his arrest by immigration agents earlier this month took place right as he was preparing to answer questions on a citizenship test about the bedrock principles and rights afforded to everyone in the U.S.—particularly freedom of speech.
"I wanted to become a citizen of this country because I believe in the principles of this country," Mahdawi told the Vermont Democratic senator during a visit to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center where he has been held for more than a week. "The most important rights [are in] the Bill of Rights, which includes free speech on the top of these rights, freedom of assembly, freedom of press, freedom of having religion or not having religion at all."
Welch visited Mahdawi as Columbia students chained themselves to a fence at the Ivy League school, demanding his release along with that of Mahmoud Khalil, another leader of pro-Palestinian campus protests who was detained last month and is being held at a detention facility in Jena, Louisiana with the Trump administration pursuing his deportation.
Mahdawi, a green-card holder for the past 10 years, arrived at an immigration office in Colchester, Vermont last week to finalize his application to become a naturalized citizen—only to be handcuffed and arrested by armed, plainclothes federal agents wearing masks.
Welch noted in his talk with Mahdawi that Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote in a memo that as a student speaking out against Israel's U.S.-backed war on Gaza and the West Bank, Mahdawi could "potentially undermine" the Middle East peace process. Mahdawi is one of several student activists who have been detained for protesting in solidarity with Palestine, and hundreds have had their visas revoked as the Trump administration claims to be fighting antisemitism.
On Friday, a federal judge in Georgia's Northern District ordered ICE to restore the legal status of 133 of the students who had had their F-1 visas revoked.
"The Constitution protects everyone on American soil, so the Trump administration cannot ignore due process to unjustifiably threaten students with the loss of immigration status, and arrest and deportation," said Akiva Freidlin, senior staff attorney at the ACLU-Georgia, which had filed a lawsuit over the visa revocations.
Rubio also invoked the Immigration and Nationality Act in the administration's effort to deport Khalil; a provision within the law allows the government to initiate the deportation of lawful permanent residents by claiming they threaten U.S. foreign policy.
"Basically, he is describing being anti-war as antisemitic," said Mahdawi. "How could that be possible when my partners, most of my partners at Columbia's campus and beyond, are Jews and Israelis. My work has been centered on peacemaking, and all I am doing, I am being a human."
Posting a video of his talk with Mohsen on social media, Welch urged Americans to "listen to his message" of empathy, which the organizer said extends to Jewish people in the U.S. and Israel.
"My empathy," he said, "extends beyond the Palestinian people... And my hope and my dream is to see this conflict, if one might say, to see an end to the war, an end to the killing, to see a peaceful resolution between Palestinians and Israelis."
"How could this be a threat to anybody except the war machine that is feeding this?" said Mahdawi.
Mahdawi urged his supporters "to continue working for the democracy of this country and for humanity," and said, "The war must stop."
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'This Guy Is Toxic': Susan Crawford Defeats World's Richest Man Elon Musk in Wisconsin
"As a result of your strong grassroots organizing, you have defeated the wealthiest person on earth," said Sen. Bernie Sanders to the state's voters after the Supreme Court race was called. "You have set an example for the rest of the country."
Apr 01, 2025
The battle over a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court was settled decisively on Tuesday night as the Democratic favorite Susan Crawford dispatched with far-right favorite Brad Schimel, a candidate backed by tens of millions of dollars in outside money and corporate interests, including an estimated $20 million or more from President Donald Trump sycophant and world's wealthiest individual Elon Musk.
As of this writing, Crawford, a Dane County Judge, was enjoying "an unexpectedly easy" win with 55.5% of the vote compared to the 44.5% received by Schimel, the state's former Republican attorney general. Numerous decision desks called the race in her favor shortly after polls closed, and the returns were clear.
"Thank you," Crawford said in a victory speech from the city of Madison shortly after 9:30 pm local time. "Alright, Wisconsin—we did it!"
Crawford said she had just received a concession phone call from Schimel—describing him as "gracious" in defeat—as she thanked the people of Wisconsin for delivering a hard-fought victory in what has been documented as the "most expensive judicial race ever" in U.S. history.
"Tonight, the grassroots have risen up to defeat Musk and the MAGA authoritarianism he's funding."
"Thank you for trusting me to serve you on the Wisconsin Supreme Court," she told the audience of supporters and national television cameras. "I'm so grateful to have earned the trust and support of voters across this great state." She explained that she got into this race—like how she had spent her life—"to do what's right, to protect the rights and fundamental freedoms of all Wisconites."
Crediting her career success to the values learned in the small Wisconsin town of Chippewa Falls—"where people watched out for each other" and people respected the ability to "tell right from wrong"—Crawford said that growing up she never imagined she would ultimately "be taking on the richest man in the world" in a political fight that has gained national attention and was widely seen as a political referendum on the first two months of the Trump administration's policies.
The battle, she said, was "over justice in Wisconsin—and we won!"
Musk has become a key factor in the race over recent weeks by spending millions of his own money backing Schimel. One gimmick he used over the recent weekend was handing out $1 million checks to people, according to critics, to purchase their support and vote.
Progressive lawmakers were among those chiming in with applause Tuesday night.
"Elon Musk spent MILLIONS to defeat Susan Crawford in Wisconsin—and it was an epic fail," declared Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) after announcing her victory. "Voters saw through his schemes, and our country is better off for it. Thank you, Wisconsinites."
Joseph Geevarghese, executive director of the progressive advocacy group Our Revolution, was among those celebrating Crawford's win as an apparent rebuke to Musk and President Trump.
"Despite pouring over $20 million into this race—including handing out million-dollar checks to voters—the world's wealthiest man has failed to secure a conservative majority on the Wisconsin Supreme Court," said Geevarghese. "Crawford's victory is a decisive win for protecting abortion access and workers' rights in Wisconsin. It also serves as a crucial safeguard against Donald Trump's ongoing attempts to subvert American democracy and erode judicial independence."
While the resounding defeat of Schimel by voters will be "viewed as a critical referendum on Trump and Musk’s dangerous, lawless agenda," he added, the amount of money spent during the race "also stands as a stark warning about the deep corruption within our broken campaign finance system. With spending exceeding $100 million, this election has become the most expensive state Supreme Court race in U.S. history, with billionaire donations flooding in on both sides."
"Tonight, the grassroots have risen up to defeat Musk and the MAGA authoritarianism he's funding," Geevarghese said. "But the fight to eliminate dark money from our political system is far from over. Continued inaction poses an urgent, looming threat to our democracy and way of life."
American Bridge, a research and rapid response group with close ties to the Democratic Party, feasted on Schimel's loss by deriding the GOP favorite as the "biggest loser in Wisconsin history."
"Wisconsinites have spoken, and together their votes decided that Wisconsin needs leaders who will protect our freedoms while rejecting the politics of fear and division."
Schimel, said the group's spokesperson Monica Venzke, "clearly can’t take a hint, but hopefully this time it sticks—Wisconsin wants nothing to do with him. Not even his out-of-state billionaire supporter could buy him this one. Imagine spending over $18 million and still losing."
According to Venzke, the defeat of Schimel despite the tens of millions spent by corporate forces "is just a preview of how voters are rejecting Trump's agenda of folding to billionaires. Republicans around the country have a choice: stand up to Trump, or lose."
Lucy Ripp, communications director for Better Wisconsin Together, which represents progressives' concerns in the state, also credited the work of the state's grassroots, which she suggested was a model for people nationwide.
"Wisconsinites have spoken, and together their votes decided that Wisconsin needs leaders who will protect our freedoms while rejecting the politics of fear and division," said Ripp. "Wisconsin voters chose common sense, progress, and freedom over a radical, right-wing partisan agenda that thrives on dividing our communities and leaving working families behind in service of billionaires and special interests."
"By maintaining a strong progressive majority, the Wisconsin Supreme Court will continue as a first line of defense in protecting Wisconsinites' constitutional rights and freedoms," added Ripp, "and a vital check on the Trump and Musk agenda amid the barrage of threats to our rights and livelihoods coming down from the White House."
As of this writing, neither Trump nor Musk had acknowledged Crawford's victory over Schimel on their main social media channels—though each celebrated the approval of a controversial and "regressive" voter I.D. law in the state. To some critics, their twin silence on the Supreme Court race felt like quite a loud statement.
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In Rebuke to Trump, Court Orders Mahmoud Khalil Case Moved to New Jersey
"This is a first step, but we need to continue to demand justice for Mahmoud," said Khalil's wife. "His unlawful and unjust detention cannot stand."
Mar 19, 2025
A federal judge on Wednesday ruled that the case of Mahmoud Khalil, a permanent U.S. resident arrested earlier this month and slated for deportation by immigration authorities over his pro-Palestine activism, should be heard in New Jersey—not Louisiana as sought by the Trump administration—and reaffirmed an order blocking his expulsion from the country pending the outcome of his legal challenge.
Judge Jesse Furman of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York found that since Khalil was detained by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in New Jersey when he lodged a legal challenge to his detention, his case should be transferred to the Garden State. Last week, Furman—an appointee of former President Barack Obama—issued and then
extended an order temporarily barring Khalil's deportation.
"This is a first step, but we need to continue to demand justice for Mahmoud," Khalil's wife, Noor Abdalla, who is eight months pregnant, said in response to Wednesday's ruling. "His unlawful and unjust detention cannot stand. We will not stop fighting until he is home with me."
Khalil, an Algerian citizen of Palestinian descent, last year finished his graduate studies at Columbia University, where he helped lead campus protests against Israel's annihilation of Gaza. He was arrested at his New York home by plainclothes DHS officers on March 8 before being transferred to New Jersey and then Louisiana.
Accused of no crime and widely considered a political prisoner, Khalil was targeted following U.S. President Donald Trump's issuance of an executive order authorizing the deportation of noncitizen students and others who take part in pro-Palestine demonstrations. The Trump administration has also invoked the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, which empowers the secretary of state to expel noncitizens whose presence in the United States is deemed detrimental to U.S. foreign policy interests.
Samah Sisay, a staff attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights and a member of Khalil's legal team, said Wednesday that "the government transferred Mr. Khalil to a remote private prison in Louisiana hours after his arrest and the filing of his original habeas petition—an intentional and retaliatory attempt to silence his speech in support of Palestinian rights and interfere with the jurisdiction of the New York and New Jersey courts."
"Mr. Khalil should be free and home with his wife awaiting the birth of their first child, and we will continue to do everything possible to make that happen," Sisay added.
ACLU senior staff attorney Brett Max Kaufman, who also represents Khalil, said that "this is just the beginning, but it is a moment to celebrate."
"The court's ruling sends a critical message to courts across the country, who are sure to face similar unprecedented challenges to their authority in the days that come, that the judiciary must not shy from its constitutional role," he continued. "And no judicial role is more important than acting as a check on executive abuses the Trump administration has made the defining feature of its first 60 days."
"After this first step, we will eagerly and aggressively seek to get Mahmoud out, bring him home, and then defend his and others' right to speak freely about Palestine or any other issue without fear of detention and deportation," Kaufman added.
Another lawyer for Khalil, Amy Greer, said: "We are ready to fight just as hard for Mr. Khalil in the district of New Jersey. He was taken by plainclothes federal agents, transferred in the middle of the night across state lines, and has been detained for over a week now, all because of his advocacy for Palestinian freedom. We will not stop working until Mr. Khalil is home with his wife."
Democracy defenders have warned that Khalil's arrest—which sparked protests across the nation—is a blatant violation of constitutionally protected free speech rights and a sign of advancing authoritarianism. Trump vowed last week that Khalil was "the first arrest of many to come."
On Tuesday, Khalil released a
letter calling himself a "political prisoner." He called his arrest and detention "a direct consequence of exercising my right to free speech as I advocated for a free Palestine and an end to the genocide in Gaza," and "part of a broader strategy to suppress dissent" from which no one is immune.
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