🎃 Halloween Covfefe: The Scariest Headlines Aren't Wearing Costumes

Three days until Election Day, a federal judge steps in and a neighborhood takes a stand.

Hello, friends! ☕️

Nothing like being back home in El Paso, Texas. I spent time there this week covering the James Talarico rally and supporting Texas gubernatorial candidate Gina Hinojosa. To everyone who came up to say hello, you made this hometown girl very happy.

A special shoutout to Congresswoman Veronica Escobar for always showing up for our community, and to my good friend Jim Acosta for making the trip down to cover the rally with me.

It’s Halloween, and frankly, some of this week’s headlines are scarier than anything you’ll find in a haunted house.

Grab your cafecito (and maybe some Halloween candy).☕️ No foam. No filter. Let’s go.

1. 🚨Breaking News: A Federal Judge Just Told Trump’s DOJ to Back Off Election Workers

With Election Day three days away, a federal judge in California has issued an emergency order blocking the Trump administration from threatening election workers with criminal prosecution for lawfully processing and counting ballots.

Before the ruling, the Justice Department had issued federal grand jury subpoenas to California election officials and demanded that the state set aside ballots from roughly 20,000 registered voters it alleged were noncitizens, claims California officials disputed.

The judge found that the administration’s actions likely violated the Voting Rights Act and blocked efforts to remove registered voters or withhold their ballots based solely on those allegations. DOJ must also disclose pending subpoenas and requests for election materials, while officials who received threatening letters must be notified that the court has barred those actions.

Election workers needed a federal court order to protect them from threats of prosecution simply for doing their jobs—three days before Election Day.

The ruling is temporary, but this is a significant win for democracy.

⚖️ Read the Court Order (Protect Democracy)

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2. Trump’s $1.5 Trillion Pentagon Wish List

Pete Hegseth may be the most volatile member of Trump’s Cabinet. Good grief, that’s one hell of a competition.

Now he wants Congress to approve $1.5 trillion for the Pentagon. One small problem: He’s been busy alienating the very lawmakers who control the money.

Members of BOTH parties are fed up with his combative leadership, lack of transparency, and how he treats Congress. One Republican reportedly told Hegseth his chances of getting the budget passed were about as good as his chances of getting confirmed by the Senate again.

Ouch. From his own party.

The Pentagon is trying to replenish weapons and ammunition depleted during eight months of war with Iran. The conflict has already cost more than $47 billion, with military training and maintenance reportedly delayed to cover expenses.

What’s in Trump’s proposed 40% defense spending increase? Billions for his Golden Dome missile defense system and initial funding for a new fleet of Trump-class battleships. Oh, and the Pentagon estimates that rebranding itself as the “Department of War” will cost $52 million.

Because nothing says military readiness quite like naming a battleship after yourself when you’ve never served a day in uniform.

Congress is now deadlocked. Democrats are demanding accountability for a war launched without congressional approval, while Republicans are increasingly criticizing Hegseth’s conduct.

I’ve worked in national security long enough to know that congressional oversight isn’t optional. The defense secretary doesn’t get to treat Congress like an enemy combatant because he doesn’t like being questioned. Our troops could end up paying for his ego.

🪖 Inside Trump’s Pentagon Budget Meltdown (WaPo)

3. DHS Got Doxxed, Foreign Intelligence Services Say Thank You

This week, a hacktivist group calling itself the "Department of Peace" obtained data on more than 41,000 Department of Homeland Security employees and contractors and made it searchable online.

Names. Job titles. Phone numbers. Emails. Internal reporting structures across ICE, CBP, Homeland Security Investigations, and CISA. Yes, the agency responsible for helping protect federal networks.

The exposed information reportedly included undercover personnel and previously undisclosed government operations.

DHS’s response? It’s "aware of a potential breach."

Sips coffee.

I’ve sat in the threat briefings. Here’s what caught my attention: who reports to whom. That’s the intelligence gold.

An organizational chart can tell a foreign intelligence service who’s running sensitive operations, who makes decisions, and who might be worth targeting. Intelligence services spend years and serious money piecing together that kind of information. This time, someone put it in a searchable database.

Consider the irony. This is the same department demanding more and more of YOUR personal information. Voter records. Biometrics. All while expecting Americans to trust it with their data. Yet, DHS can’t even account for how sensitive information about tens of thousands of its own people ended up online.

You want Americans to trust you with their information? Start by demonstrating you can protect your own.

🔓 Inside the DHS Data Dump (CNN)

4. China Built an AI Mosquito Death Ray Because Why Not

If you’ve ever wanted to declare war on mosquitoes, China may have just developed your dream weapon. And yes, it involves lasers.

A Chinese startup called Photon Matrix has developed a $1,000 device that uses artificial intelligence to track mosquitoes midflight and literally burn their wings off with a laser. During a demonstration, mosquitoes dropped from the air with tiny pops and flashes of green and blue light. The technology uses lidar, the same kind of sensing system found in self-driving cars, to locate tiny moving targets. AI-powered cameras are supposed to prevent the laser from firing at people, pets, or reflective surfaces.

But there’s a catch. This thing uses a Class 4 laser, the most powerful safety classification, which can permanently damage someone’s eyesight in less than a second. The company says it has built in multiple safeguards and is seeking regulatory approval.

Here’s where my national security brain kicks in. A machine that can identify, track, and shoot tiny moving targets without a human pulling the trigger? Today, it’s mosquitoes. Tomorrow, similar technology could help target drones. Or worse.

The company says it already has 5,000 prepaid orders, with mass production expected within weeks. So we’ve reached the point where AI can autonomously shoot mosquitoes, but we’re still figuring out how to make sure it doesn’t blind the neighbors.

Welcome to the future. Pass the bug spray.

🦟 The AI Mosquito Death Ray (NYTimes)

5. Meet the Neighbors Who Actually Run Our Elections

With all the talk about election interference and chaos at the polls, let’s not forget who’s actually running our elections. Our neighbors. Teachers. Retirees. Volunteers. Some have pretty great stories.

Meet Sheridan Earle of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. In 2017, she and her husband spotted two election positions on their ballot with no candidates. So they wrote themselves in. Sheridan voted for herself TWICE. Her husband split his votes between them.

Guess who won? Sheridan. Naturally.

Nearly a decade and 20 election cycles later, she’s still serving as a Judge of Election at her local polling place. Her favorite part? Election Day feels like a neighborhood reunion. People catch up, swap stories, and occasionally show up with a lizard on their head. Yes, an actual lizard.

Across America, ordinary people like Sheridan are showing up to make sure their neighbors can vote.

If things get tense at the polls this Tuesday, let’s look out for one another, especially our election workers. They’ve endured enough threats and intimidation. They deserve our support, our respect, and a simple thank-you. Democracy doesn’t run itself. People like Sheridan make it happen.

🇺🇸 The People Behind Your Vote (Forbes)

❤️ One Thing for Your Soul

Last night, my neighbors showed up.

After anti-immigrant flyers appeared in our neighborhood, things got uglier. A week later, someone painted the words “Report to Deport” and an ICE hotline number repeatedly along our walking path.

Our community came together with a message: We will not be intimidated, and we will not let fear divide us.

People showed up for one another. They stood together and reminded everyone what community really looks like.

My mom was so proud. So was I. This is the America I believe in.

Have a wonderful and safe Halloween!

Happy Howl-o-ween from Stevie and Ringo!

-Olivia