The Department of Homeland Security is now arresting people with green cards, Donald Trump cares more about revenge than actual Americans, DOGE wants ALL of your info and more

Socialite Life is a lively celebrity and pop culture website that offers a daily dose of divas, drag queens, hot male celebrities, models, and all the latest celebrity news. Given that our democracy is currently in turmoil, we feel compelled to keep everyone informed about the chaotic situation the Trump administration is creating in this country.

In Democracy Watch, we’ll share a roundup of the most alarming and mostly illegal activities that the Trump administration engages in a few times a week, along with some ridiculous things that Donald Trump and co-president Elon Musk are attempting to do.

We’ll also offer some useful resources to keep you informed about current events and guide you on how you can help prevent the United States from becoming the next Russia.

U.S. immigration agents arrested a Palestinian graduate student who has played a prominent role in pro-Palestinian protests at New York’s Columbia University as part of U.S. President Donald Trump’s promised crackdown on some anti-Israel activists. Mahmoud Khalil, a student at the university’s School of International and Public Affairs, was arrested by U.S. Department of Homeland Security agents at his university residence on Saturday evening, the Student Workers of Columbia labor union said in a statement. His wife is a U.S. citizen, eight months pregnant, according to news reports, and he holds a U.S. permanent residency green card, the union said. His arrest was condemned by civil rights groups as an attack on protected political speech. [Reuters]

Secretary of state Marco Rubio has announced that USAid will cancel the majority of its programs, while the rest will be folded into the state department. After a 6 week review we are officially canceling 83% of the programs at USAID. The 5200 contracts that are now canceled spent tens of billions of dollars in ways that did not serve, (and in some cases even harmed), the core national interests of the United States. In consultation with Congress, we intend for the remaining 18% of programs we are keeping (approximately 1000) to now be administered more effectively under the State Department.

President Trump said Monday he will “lead the charge” to oust Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) for his refusal to support Republicans’ government funding bill. A doctrinaire libertarian, Massie has been a persistent thorn in the side for both Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) by defecting on key votes and imperiling major GOP legislation. [Axios]

National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard said Monday she has stripped security clearances from dozens of former national security officials, the Manhattan district attorney who secured a felony conviction against Donald Trump and a lawyer who represented a government whistleblower who triggered the first impeachment case against Trump. I’m sure that is just a coincidence. [NBC News]

Elon Musk‘s team within the Trump regime has sought sweeping access to databases that store personal information on millions and millions of Americans. The General Services Administration, which manages federal real estate, is identifying property to divest, and the agency has abruptly fired more than 1,000 workers and is targeting an overall 63% reduction in headcount at its Public Building Service division. The data collected and maintained by the government isn’t just your name, home address, and Social Security number. Some federal agencies store information that many people don’t share even with their closest friends and family: Medical diagnoses and treatment. Notes from therapy sessions. Whether a person has filed for bankruptcy. Detailed income information. And now, Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, has accessed heavily safeguarded databases that store such personal information, raising deep alarm among federal workers and privacy advocates. [NPR]

Elon Musk said Monday DOGE‘s staff are “pretty much” in every government department and he’s looking to roughly double the number on the cost-cutting team he’s the face of. The Trump administration’s DOGE-driven mass firings of federal workers have faced multiple legal challenges and resistance from some Republican lawmakers who are facing the impacts the department’s cuts will have on their constituents and states. [Axios]

Former Justice Department pardon attorney Elizabeth G. Oyer says she was fired one day after she refused to recommend that actor Mel Gibson have his gun rights restored, according to the New York Times. “This is dangerous. This isn’t political — this is a safety issue,” Oyer told the New York Times. Oyer said that about two weeks ago, she sent a memo recommending that nine candidates who had previously committed crimes have their gun rights restored after careful consideration. After sending her approval, she received the memo back with a request to “add Mel Gibson to this memo,” per the Times. The message included a letter from Gibson’s lawyer to senior Justice Department officials asking for Gibson’s gun rights to be restored. Oyer claims that she was wary of restoring Gibson’s access to guns. He had not been subject to background checks like the other candidates. [Variety]

The Agriculture Department has axed two programs that gave schools and food banks money to buy food from local farms and ranchers, halting more than $1 billion in federal spending. Roughly $660 million that schools and child care facilities were counting on to purchase food from nearby farms through the Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreement Program in 2025 has been canceled, according to the School Nutrition Association. State officials were notified Friday of USDA’s decision to end the LFS program for this year. More than 40 states had signed agreements to participate in previous years, according to SNA and several state agencies. The Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program, which supports food banks and other feeding organizations, has also been cut. USDA notified states that it was unfreezing funds for existing LFPA agreements but did not plan to carry out a second round of funding for fiscal year 2025. [Politico]

President Donald Trump has claimed that the blooming trade war the White House launched this year will spur companies to forgo foreign goods and return manufacturing to American shores. But data suggests that the U.S. economy is not ready for a wholesale shift to manufacturing and that it would take years to ramp up production capabilities. Data shows a fraction of people in the United States are employed by farms and factories compared with decades past, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, with most now in service jobs like software, finance and health care. And experts say focusing on domestic goods production could cost consumers while undermining America’s growing advantage in the knowledge economy. [NBC News]

Now for a little positive news. Katie Porter, the former Democratic congresswoman who rose to prominence by wielding a whiteboard while she grilled corporate executives on Capitol Hill, announced on Tuesday that she would enter the 2026 contest for California governor. Ms. Porter, 51, is the highest-profile Democrat to join the race. But a huge unknown remains: whether former Vice President Kamala Harris will jump in. Gov. Gavin Newsom cannot run for re-election because state law limits governors to two terms. [New York Times – Gifted]

How You Can Help Save Democracy

Join an Indivisible group in your area. The organization strives for an inclusive democracy where everyone has a voice and challenges and replaces right-wing political agendas. Through grassroots organizing, lobbying, media campaigns, and advocacy strategies, activists pressure elected officials to support progressive values.

Check out the new Indivisible Guide: “INDIVISIBLE: A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO DEMOCRACY ON THE BRINK” — Strategies, Tactics, & Tips For How Everyday Americans Can Fight Back Together Wherever We Live