Religious leaders shot with pepper balls and noxious gas. A nurse nearly blinded by tear gas. Protestors trapped, struggling to breathe.<a href="[link removed]><img src="[link removed]" alt="" border="0" /></a>

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The Big Story
November 25, 2025 · View in browser <[link removed]>

In today’s newsletter: How Trump’s immigration forces misuse “less lethal” weapons <[link removed]>; the Indian Health Service is flagging vaccine-related speech <[link removed]>; Louisiana is paroling prisoners in order to deport them <[link removed]>.

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Trump’s Immigration Forces Deploy “Less Lethal” Weapons in Dangerous Ways, Skirting Rules and Maiming Protesters <[link removed]>

Civil rights and weapons experts cite the consequences of federal agents’ use of crowd control weapons: religious leaders shot with pepper balls and noxious chemicals. A nurse nearly blinded by tear gas. Protestors trapped, struggling to breathe.

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Quoted

 

 
“I can't keep people safe.”

 
— A physician who said the new Indian Health Service restrictions on vaccine-related speech factored into her decision to leave the agency this year.

As Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a vaccine critic, has put his stamp on federal immunization policy, the Indian Health Service’s public messaging on vaccines has taken a stark turn.

In internal emails obtained by ProPublica, IHS officials have flagged terms such as “immunizations” and “vaccines” for additional scrutiny, deeming them risky “buzzwords” that require approval from agency public information officers to be used in social media posts, pamphlets and presentations for patients.

Current and former IHS clinicians told ProPublica the changes threaten vaccine uptake in Navajo communities and have left medical practitioners who serve this population feeling censored.

In a statement, an HHS spokesperson said the redrafting of IHS’ public messaging materials was designed to encourage “shared decision-making” between patients and their health care providers. The statement didn’t address questions about what prompted the revamped messaging or concerns raised by doctors about its potential effect.

“The Indian Health Service continues to provide accurate, evidence-based information on vaccines and infectious-disease prevention,” the statement said. “Our focus remains ensuring Tribal communities have clear, trusted guidance and access to the care they choose.”

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Louisiana

 
Louisiana Made It Nearly Impossible to Get Parole. Now It’s Releasing Prisoners to Deport Them. <[link removed]>

In a 2021 closed-door speech <[link removed]> for young conservatives, Donald Trump’s recently chosen vice presidential running mate, J.D. Vance, said he believes the “devil is real” and praised Alex Jones of InfoWars as a truth-teller.

Watch this exclusive footage, reported on by ProPublica and Documented, of Vance speaking to a secretive conservative group called the Teneo Network. In it, Vance says things like, “If they believe some crazy things on the side, that’s fine. We need to be OK with nonconventional people.”

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