First Thing: Number of people in ICE detention hits record high

Administration has arrested 328,000 and deported 327,000 people. Plus, Bethlehem in the Israeli-occupied West Bank celebrates Christmas again

Good morning.

The number of people in immigration detention in the US has hit an all-time high, according to data published by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

What are the demographics of people the administration is targeting for deportation? In one of the biggest changes in immigration enforcement policies, immigrants with no criminal record continue to make up the largest group in US immigration detention, despite the administration’s rhetoric about focusing its anti-immigration efforts on “the worst of the worst” criminals. (Being undocumented in the US is a civil not a criminal infraction.)

How are ordinary people fighting back? As Trump carries out his mass deportation operation, Julia Carrie Wong reports on how residents are banding together to block raids and distribute groceries.

What did Trump say about Clinton? “I like Bill Clinton,” Trump said after he featured prominently in Friday’s cache of photos. “I hate to see photos come out of him but this is what the Democrats – mostly Democrats and a couple of bad Republicans – are asking for, so they’re giving their photos of me too.”

Meanwhile, what’s happening on the Hill? The Senate Democratic leader, Chuck Schumer, said yesterday he will introduce a resolution directing the Senate to take legal action against the justice department – over its incomplete release of files.

Continue reading…

Source: www.theguardian.com

Read full article