The Ancient Roots of ICE’s Tactics

Monday, January 26, 2026

This past weekend was a claustrophobic, almost nihilistic experience. I, like many Americans, was trapped inside by a raging (literal) storm with nothing to do but read the news out of Minneapolis. It was utterly overwhelming to watch the videos. To listen to the press conferences. To try to weather the hot takes. This morning, Charles P. Pierce cut through the noise. By reaching back 2,400 years, all the way to the Ancient Greeks, he provides clarity about what exactly is happening: An aggressor state is pursuing nothing less than subjugation. In today's newsletter, you can read that piece, as well as more of Pierce's incisive coverage of the ICE deployment in Minnesota.

– Kevin Dupzyk, contributing editor

Plus:

Pam Bondi Has Borrowed a Warmongering Tactic from Ancient Greece

In a letter to Minnesota governor Tim Walz, the attorney general laid out ridiculous stipulations in order to remove ICE from Minneapolis.

This was inevitable, I guess, since everything is inevitable these days, but we seem to have entered the extortionate portion of the proceedings. Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote a letter to Governor Tim Walz offering terms by which the administration might remove its death squads from the streets of Minneapolis.

READ THE STORY

The murder of Alex Pretti is too infuriating for words. Charles P. Pierce lets a witness's sworn affidavit convey the deep injustice of ICE's second civilian shooting in January. >>
Trump couldn't have picked worse. Border czar Tom Homan is on tap to handle immigration enforcement in Minnesota. Charles P. Pierce explains why this will surely go poorly. >>

The 22 Most Anticipated Books of 2026

I hope you've got plenty of shelf-space set aside this year, because many of the biggest names in books have new titles on the way in 2026. Over the next few months of winter and spring, that includes heavyweights like George Saunders, Louise Erdrich, and Yann Martel. Over the summer, we'll be blessed with new novels by Ann Patchett, Colson Whitehead, and Andrew Sean Greer. And what's that, looming around the corner this fall? None other than Min Jin Lee and Emily St. John Mandel.

Of course, we've already seen plenty of great work this year. Daniyal Mueenuddin returned with This Is Where the Serpent Lives, a masterful debut novel set in Pakistan. It begins in 1955 with an orphaned tea seller in the Rawalpindi bazaar, and expands to follow the "upstairs, downstairs" lives of a wealthy family and the men and women who work for them. It is a startling and breathtaking work of fiction that will be remembered as a classic multigenerational epic. Meanwhile, Chuck Klosterman's Football—an investigation of the socio-cultural layers of college football in places like Texas and the Southeast—is another masterwork from one of our greatest minds.

By Adam Morgan

The 5 Types of Winter Boots Every Man Needs

Snowdrifts. Black ice. Sidewalks covered in slush and salt. Winter has no shortage of annoyances and obstacles to throw at you as you make your way from point A to point B. The best defense is a proper pair of winter boots to keep your feet comfy and dry in the face of the elemental onslaught. You'll want to look out for things like waterproof membranes, grippy outsoles that won't slip, maybe even some insulation (or an assortment of thick, woolly socks).

But those are just the basics. After that, it gets a little more complicated depending on the occasion and location. Are you tromping through a snowy field with the family on the way to a sledding hill? Or are you dodging puddles and pedestrians on the way to the office? Is it sleeting? Snowing? Raining? (All three?!)

The answers to these questions will help determine the right winter boots for the job. Luckily, when it comes to cold-weather footwear, options abound. There are big, burly snow boots that'll keep your toes toasty all day long. There are tough work boots that are perfect for days when precipitation isn't a problem. There are even weather-ready Chelsea boots so sleek that they barely look like winter boots at all. We've broken it down to five essential categories, all of which deserve your consideration—and maybe a place in your closet.

By Jonathan Evans