Try and Stop Us Digest — August 14, 2026

ProPublica: A massive federal law enforcement agency built to fight cartels and human traffickers was redirected to hunt noncitizen voters — and even Trump's own U.S. attorneys called the results “dysfunctional.” An HSI agent's plan to cross-check a 2020 New Jersey voter list found “5,000 high-confidence illegal voters” in a single county — a number local officials called impossible. Real investigators were pulled off an active child exploitation case for months to chase the leads instead. “It's one thing if you're going after Pablo Escobar,” said former DHS general counsel Steve Bunnell. “It's another thing if you're going after some cleaning lady who's been working in the United States for 20 years.” Justice Department career attorneys warned the data-sharing itself violated federal privacy law; most resigned rather than sign off.

The Nation: Grassroots groups across the country are already gaming out how to stop federal agents from disrupting the vote — and some states are building legal firewalls in advance. Arizona's coalition of 20+ voter-protection groups has mapped out how to mobilize quickly if federal agents try to interfere at polling places. Colorado passed laws requiring strict chain-of-custody documentation for ballots and machines specifically so any federal seizure attempt would be forced into the open. “The risk is a power grab,” said Colorado's Jena Griswold. “We're seeing that play out in real time.”

WEMU: Republicans are using a debunked hidden-camera video to push a new voter ID constitutional amendment. The video, from serial hoaxer James O'Keefe, shows someone posing as a noncitizen — not an actual noncitizen voting. “Groups like this have a history of manufacturing shock videos that turn out to be false once the facts come to light,” said Michigan's Secretary of State's office. In-person voter impersonation is itself a felony.

TEXAS — Appeals court revives key parts of Texas voter suppression law found to harm voters with disabilities.: Democracy Docket: A federal appeals court Wednesday overturned a ruling that had blocked key parts of Texas’ sweeping voter suppression law, allowing those provisions to remain in effect despite a lower court’s finding that they violated federal protections for voters with disabilities.