Inland Empire Progressive

Apparently, the  Supreme Court  decided ICE agents weren’t harassing enough people. Because in 2025, the gravest threat to American liberty isn’t corporate monopolies or political corruption—it’s the horrifying possibility that federal agents might not have free rein to stop every brown person within a 20-mile radius of San Bernardino. Crisis averted. In their latest stunt, the justices blessed Trump’s immigration raids, giving ICE the authority to stop people for the crime of being brown on a Saturday night.  That’s not exaggeration—that’s the standard they just endorsed. For them, racial profiling is less a constitutional violation and more of a nostalgic throwback to the good ole Bracero days. ICE agents can now storm into job sites, grocery stores, bus stops, or even schools, and point to someone’s language or skin color as justification. Parents dropping their kids off at elementary school now live with the gnawing fear that a routine morning could end in detention a...

In 1994, California Republicans thought they’d found the perfect wedge issue: Proposition 187. The ballot measure promised to strip undocumented immigrants of health care, education, and other basic services. It was Pete Wilson’s cynical ploy to save his career, and for a moment, it worked. But in the long run, Prop 187 backfired spectacularly—it radicalized a generation of Latino and immigrant voters, turned California deep blue, and buried the state GOP in a grave of its own making. Enter Rep. Jay Obernolte, dusting off that same failed playbook and pretending it’s fresh. He wraps himself in MAGA’s flag and cheers on Trump’s war against immigrants: militarizing the border, cheering family separations, backing bans on asylum, and defending the grotesque spectacle of children in cages. He even backs Trump’s fantasy of mass deportations—a scheme so cruel and so costly it would make Prop 187 look like a bad dress rehearsal. Let’s be clear: Obernolte isn’t standing up for taxpayers. He is...

  There was a time when conservatives like Rep. Jay Obernolte wrapped themselves in the flag, preached about “peace through strength,” and warned that weakness abroad invited danger at home. That era is over. Today’s conservatives aren’t defending America’s global leadership—they’re destroying it. By coddling Russia, equivocating on Israel, sneering at NATO, and abandoning the very idea of soft power, the right is appeasing our enemies and leaving the United States exposed. Take Donald Trump’s latest  excuse-making . After Russian drones violated Polish airspace—an unmistakable challenge to NATO. Trump does what he always does...chicken out, suggesting it “may have been a mistake.”  A mistake? This isn’t a toddler spilling milk—it’s a nuclear-armed authoritarian power testing NATO’s resolve. To wave it away is not just naïve—it’s appeasement. It tells Vladimir Putin he can push further without consequence, that America no longer has the will to defend its allies. Instead ...

                                                                 Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash Every democracy relies on trust in the courts. Without it, laws mean little more than the whims of whoever happens to be in power. But in America today, that trust is being shredded by conservative activist judges who have decided that restraint is optional, precedent is disposable, and conservative ideology is the law of the land. Politico  recently reported that a powerful immigration appeals court just declared anyone in deportation proceedings who entered the U.S. without authorization is automatically barred from even asking for bond. Translation: immigrants can now be locked up indefinitely with no chance to argue for release, even if they have jobs, families, or strong legal claims t...

Photo by Karsten Winegeart on Unsplash Rep. Jay Obernolte lack of oversight of  ICE  detention facilities in our district threatens those facilities to become the Auschwitz of Adelanto and Dachau of Desert in California City. The reopening of California City Correctional Facility (CCCF) as an ICE detention center, operated by the private prison company CoreCivic, is a troubling development that demands oversight.  CCCF was once slated for closure as part of Governor Newsom’s broader effort to reduce California’s prison population. But with the federal government ramping up deportations under the Trump administration, the facility has been repurposed to detain immigrants—many of whom have no criminal record and are simply seeking a better life. Representative Obernolte has stated otherwise in a Facebook post when he visited the facility but provided no concrete evidence except to trust his word.   Economic gain should never come at the expense of human dignity. ...

                                                                      Photo by Nils Huenerfuerst on Unsplash Democrats need to hold a Mid-Term Convention. Given the stakes, that’s not just a good idea, it may become essential. During this fucked-up timeline that we are all living in, Democrats need to think creatively and always be on offense, instead of constantly reacting to what Republicans. I'm tired of Democrats being a day late and a dollar short. A convention provides a platform to unify around a coherent theme. Democrats can similarly use a midterm convention to frame what’s at stake in 2026 (Congressional control; protecting democratic institutions; defending rights) and focus on the future. A large, visible gathering can generate energy: fundraising, media attention, vo...

Photo by Lea Kobal on Unsplash Something ugly is happening in our district: we are becoming a two-tier economy. The top earners are roaring ahead with inflated asset values, low mortgages rates, and strong returns on investments — while the bottom is sliding into stagflation! Make no mistake, the conservative economic policies supported by Representative Jay Obernolte and his MAGA republican allies failing the district.  The data paint a stark picture: Wage growth for the bottom third of earners is doing almost nothing, only 0.9% in August 2025. That’s the smallest gain since 2016. The top third saw 3.6% growth in the same period. That’s a huge divergence, and it’s only getting worse.  Spending patterns mirror this gap. The higher earners are spending more; the lower earners are cutting back, squeezed by higher housing costs, inflation, limited wage growth, and tougher job prospects.  These trends aren’t just statistics. They translate into households that can’t make end...

Shane Shifflett from Bay Citizen has reported on debt that local school districts have indebted the taxpayers with and it ain't pretty. SBVC had to retrofit buildings that were built on fault lines back in the day and the campus looks very modern and professional. If only Capital Appreciation Bonds can be renegotiated, leaving the taxpayers on the hook for half a billion dollars in debt just seems criminal. Just look at these interest payments! We need to replace that caps that were in place pre-2009 as Shifflett reports: "Ohio, for instance, prohibits the type of ballooning debt structures found in many California deals by requiring bonds to maintain a flat debt service. That means the annual payment amount must remain roughly the same each year. California removed its flat debt service requirement on long-term bonds in 2009 with the passage of AB 1388. The bill was sponsored by the California Public Securities Association, which lobbies state lawmakers on behalf ...

With the recent release of portions of Jeffrey Epstein’s “birthday book” the public deserves a full accounting of what the FBI is hiding and why over terabytes of documents, videos, and recording remain withheld by Jay Obernolte and the Trump administration. Jay Obernolte's reluctance to sign the Discharge Petition by Reps. Thomas Massie and Ro Khanna is a lesson in cowardice. The release of these files is about justice for the victims, the rule of law, and restoring trust in institutions that are meant to protect the vulnerable. However, Rep. Jay Obernolte continues to side with the pedophiles by protecting the powerful. According to the discharge petition direct the Department of Justice to publicly disclose all records pertaining to the investigation of Jeffery Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.  This would include unclassified records referring or relating to Epstein's detention and death; flight logs of aircraft owned or used by  Epstein ,  individuals named in conn...

  Fight the Oligarch! Eat the Rich! While I agree with the sentiment, I just do not see the policies that channel this anger into policy action. While the moderates, such as Third Way and Center for American Progress are steadily building their power by making policies that can be sold, I do not see the same planning going or work from the Progressive side.   If anyone knows of an organization working on these issues let me know. What I'm looking for is a deep dive into the policy weeds on how to leverage government to enact our vision for the world. A Project 2025, but for the Left that lets us change government on Day One. Progressives believe in government to solve problems and be the bulwark against powerful business interests. I do not believe that the current representation of Progressives is a building the foundation necessary to achieve long term results.  The one thing that I have to thank President Trump for is that he has thrown out the norms and shown wha...