A Minnesota judge has issued a temporary restraining order against the Department of Homeland Security prohibiting it from destroying evidence pertaining to the killing of Alex Pretti.

U.S. District Court Judge Eric Tostrud granted a temporary restraining order against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Saturday, barring the department from altering or destroying evidence connected to Pretti's killing.

How about a restraining order banning ICE from conducting enforcement operations in Minnesota?

The Wall St. Journal (free link here) says the videos don't support the claims of law enforcement. I'm not surprised, are you?

This is an open thread, all topics welcome.

There's a lot to break down, from the Golden Globes to Venezuela and its Oil to Minnesota, ICE, Iran, Colombia, Greenland, and the Trump family's unstoppable (so far) greed, sticking its dirty, small fingers in every pie it can get a slice of.

And all the Trump aider and abettors.

Have at it, this is an open thread, all topics welcome.

P.S. "Dead Flowers" is from the Stones album "Sticky Fingers". One of my top three favorite Rolling Stones song ever.

Happy New Year to all! Photos of the celebrations around the world are pretty awesome.

Still, the world is not a happy place today. America has watched in disbelief as Donald Trump has chipped away bit by bit at the very core of our democracy. Even prominent hard-core MAGA supporters are scratching their heads at his latest actions, and refusing to stay silent.

Trump's primary game plan has always been deflection. Change the subject, provide false facts, promote conspiracy theories and juxtapose the victim and aggressor.

Since it worked for him the first time around, he's been back at it every day during his second term. How do we encourage more of his MAGA supporters to jump ship, and also remain engaged and vote for Democrats in the mid-term elections?

How do we turn Trump's deflection game on its head? Democrats Abroad has some ideas. I'll just quote one section: [More...]

Christmas Eve is the single, quietest night of the year. The world seems to shut down, from stores to movie theaters to restaurants and even food delivery services.

I've tuned out Trump and the Epstein files drama and already started cooking tomorrow's lasagna.

Wishing all of you a very Merry Christmas Eve, this is an open thread for everyone, celebrating or not.

Donald Trump was not invited to Dick Cheney's funeral.

He did, however, sign the Epstein bill.

This is an open thread, all topics welcome.

Don't forget to turn your clocks back today. Daylight Savings Time ended at 2:00 a.m.

If we really could turn back time, what year would you go back to? While you are thinking, I'll give my answer: Anytime before January 20, 2025, when our country began its downward spiral away from democracy and into authoritarian madness with a Manichaeistic despot at the helm, who appears more often than not to me to either be loony-tunes batsh*t delusional, or so narcissistic that he thinks he owns the world.

This is an open thread, all topics welcome.

R.I.P. Diane Keaton. The incredibly accomplished and uniquely gifted actor, interior designer, photographer, fashion icon, and single mother of two, who shared so many of her boundless talents and interests with us, passed away unexpectedly this weekend at age 79. According to the obituaries, her health took a sudden downturn a few months ago. Condolences to her children, Dexter and Duke, and to all who knew and loved her.

There aren't many movies I've watched more than once or twice, even those I loved. These are my favorite Diane Keaton movies, each of which I've watched more than five times during my life:

• Lovers and Other Strangers (1970, her first movie, with a stellar cast, including Bea Arthur, Bonnie Bedelia, Michael Brandon, Anne Meara, Cloris Leachman, Richard Castellano, Gig Young. (free streaming link)
• Reds (1981, Warren Beatty and Jack Nicholson)
• Looking for Mr. Goodbar ( 1977, Tuesday Weld, Richard Gere)
• Annie Hall (Woody Allen) (1977, Oscar)
• Play it Again Sam (Woody Allen)
• Somthing's Gotta Give (2003, Jack Nicholson)

IMMB has a slideshow with 712 photos of Diane Keaton. The Hollywood Reporter has some excellent coverage of her life, career, the tributes to her pouring in, and of course, her iconic style.

Jane Fonda posted this great photo. (So did Goldie Hawn).

R.I.P. Diane. Your memory will be a blessing forever to so many.

Our last open thread is filling up fast.
Here's a new one, all topics welcome.

I turned on the TV coverage of CNN for Tyler Robinson's court appearance. Laura Coates is unwatchable in my opinion. I remembered from the Sean Diddy Combs verdict watch that she was so prosecutor-oriented, I had to turn it off. Same thing happened today. She was a live guest on the coverage and started out with how the state didn't need to prove anything other than probable cause and what a low burden that is. Of course, that's true, but why lead with that? One of CNN's correspondents was on just before her and he was completely impartial and just gave facts. For example, he said Robinson is not going to be in the courtroom, but he'll appear by video from the jail. He explained the evidence the state might introduce. All in a neutral stance. I think it's fine to take sides when there are two analysts on at the same time with opposing viewpoints, but when you are on alone, you should be neutral. At least that's how I viewed it during my 12 years as a TV analyst.

Again, this is an open thread, all topics welcome. And no speaking ill of the recently departed, including their character, views or politics. Thanks everyone.

Bad Bunny, who is finishing up a two month residency in Puerto Rico where he sold out 30 shows, is about to embark on a world tour of Latin America, Europe, Asia and Oceania. He excluded concerts in the U.S. on the tour, as he explains, because of ICE raids. He explains inin a recent interview: [More...]

Our last open thread is full. Here's a new one, all topics welcome.

What I'm following: Marco Rubio in Mexico, and his comments at a press conference after announcing yet another "task force" will be formed to fight drug traffickers. This one will include Mexican and American officials. Rubio calls it an "implementation force" -- a force that will act to fulfill Donald Trump's plan to murder suspected gang members who are believed to be involved with importing drugs or chemicals to the U.S.

Trump and Mario think it's legal to order the U.S. military to blow up a boat in international waters because intelligence sources said there were gang members and drugs aboard, headed to the U.S. Mario says: [More...]

Everything about Donald Trump this week has been an "ick".

The media is all over his health issues. The Irish Star has been unrelenting.

• The ick spots on his hands may be from IV needles. Since they have now been seen on both hands, clearly the bruises are not from handshaking.
• Another ick: His swollen hand and ankles (edema)
• Ick: His orange makeup observed on his shirt collar as he was filmed on TV
• Ick: His thinning hair and gaunt-looking face (they could signal disease or maybe he's just taking a GLP-1 drug like Ozempic). Here is his face in 2019.

[More...]

Time fo a new open thread. The floor is yours, you pick the topics. All topic welcome.