We know what's next after this: they start using intel to blackmail activists into silence. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COINTELPRO) Worked for the SS, worked for the KGB, worked for the FBI, it'll work for ICE.
We’ve seen it documented before that they do indeed have a facial recognition database. Good news is it doesn’t seem all that reliable so who knows who is being labelled.
The right complains that "fascist" gets thrown around on by the left so much the terms loses meaning, but soon you'll be able to say the same about "domestic terrorist".
Who is a "terrorist" in the eyes of the US gov't has always been their political enemies, never themselves or their allies.
At this point, it's simply an empty accusation that has been so ingrained into the American psychy over generations, that it can cheaply be used to justify incredible violence against enemies of the state. Even justify invading entire countries even on faked evidence, remember the "war on terror", "weapons of mass destruction", calling Maduro a "narcoterrorist"? It's a term of propaganda, same as it ever was. Only difference now is it's more obvious as this administration doesn't seem to care if the mask is slipping.
ICE tells legal observer, 'We have a database, now you're a domestic terrorist'
(reason.com)179 points by heavyset_go 26 January 2026 | 24 comments
Comments
https://reason.com/2026/01/23/ice-tells-legal-observer-we-ha...
https://github.com/lerna/lerna/pull/1616
At this point, it's simply an empty accusation that has been so ingrained into the American psychy over generations, that it can cheaply be used to justify incredible violence against enemies of the state. Even justify invading entire countries even on faked evidence, remember the "war on terror", "weapons of mass destruction", calling Maduro a "narcoterrorist"? It's a term of propaganda, same as it ever was. Only difference now is it's more obvious as this administration doesn't seem to care if the mask is slipping.