Saturday Covfefe: World Cup Goals and Kennedy Center Victories

Power, politics, flamingos, and a reminder that some things are worth fighting for.

Congratulations to the U.S. Men’s National Team on their 4–1 World Cup victory over Paraguay!

And kudos to everyone who tuned in, showed up, or stayed awake into the early morning hours to witness history as Trump’s name came off the Kennedy Center and the institution was restored to its original name. Special thanks to my friend Jim Acosta, who live-streamed from the scene for more than 12 hours!

The Kennedy Center was never meant to honor one politician. It was built to honor President John F. Kennedy and the ideals of public service, arts, culture, and civic life that continue to inspire generations.

Now, pour the coffee, I might need it to be extra strong…

1. Democracy, Meet the Search Warrant

The FBI raided not a cybercriminal ring or an international money laundering operation, but the offices of a voter registration organization in Ohio this week.

Federal agents reportedly seized phones, computers, and electronic devices from the Ohio Organizing Collaborative, a grassroots group that works to register voters and increase civic participation. Agents also reportedly visited the homes of people affiliated with the organization across the state.

According to the group, investigators appeared to be examining allegations related to the 2024 election. What exactly they’re looking for remains unclear. The timing, however, is hard to ignore. Just weeks ago, the Department of Justice leadership instructed prosecutors to prioritize voter fraud cases. At the same time, federal investigators have reportedly been collecting voter records in multiple Ohio counties.

To be clear: if there is credible evidence of wrongdoing, it should be investigated. But when federal law enforcement shows up at the offices of organizations whose primary mission is helping people vote, transparency matters. A lot.

The concern here isn’t just about one organization in Ohio. It’s about the message. If you’re a community group helping people register to vote, are you now wondering whether you’ll be next? If you’re a volunteer knocking on doors or helping someone fill out a registration form, do you think twice? That’s how chilling effects work. Nobody has to tell you to stop. You just start looking over your shoulder.

The midterms are only months away, and suddenly the people registering voters are the ones answering questions from federal agents.

🗳️ Register Voters, Get Raided (The Guardian)

2. The Court Filing Said the Quiet Part Out Loud

Energy Secretary Chris Wright told Congress this week that claims the administration targeted clean energy projects in Democratic states were, and I quote, "bullshit."

Across town, government lawyers were telling a federal judge something very different. According to court filings, attorneys representing the administration acknowledged that a primary reason certain grants were terminated was because they were located in blue states. The grants were part of programs created under the Inflation Reduction Act and Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and the administration has been aggressively trying to unwind many of them. That’s a legitimate policy fight. Elections have consequences, and administrations are allowed to change priorities.

What they’re generally not supposed to do is decide that a project is good or bad based on whether it sits in a county that voted for the right candidate.

The result?

A federal judge ordered the restoration of another 11 grants after concluding the projects had been targeted based on geography and politics rather than merit.

It’s a remarkable story for a simple reason. Most administrations spend enormous amounts of time crafting legal justifications that avoid saying the quiet part out loud. This one apparently filed the quiet part with the court.

Whatever your views on clean energy policy, federal funding decisions should be based on the merits of the projects, not the presidential election map.

🔵 It’s Not Political. Also, We Targeted Blue States.(WaPo)

3. Government by Loophole

I witnessed this firsthand during Trump 1.0. There were moments when the law wasn’t viewed as a guardrail. It was viewed as something far more malleable—a Gumby-like obstacle to be stretched, bent, and worked around until it produced the desired outcome.

That’s what makes this essay worth reading. The authors argue that many of the administration’s most consequential actions aren’t necessarily about breaking laws. They’re about identifying loopholes, ambiguities, and powers that were never intended to be pushed to their limits.

Whether it’s emergency authorities, acting appointments, executive power, or simply running out the clock through endless legal maneuvering, the piece argues that some of the biggest challenges facing our democracy aren’t happening outside the system. They’re happening within it.

Our system relies on more than laws. It relies on norms, restraint, and people acting in good faith. America’s founders designed checks and balances. They didn’t anticipate a president who would treat the rulebook like a puzzle to solve rather than a principle to uphold.

🕳️ The Fine Print Presidency (Time)

4. Jared Kushner vs. The Flamingos

If you had told me a year ago that one of the most interesting protest movements in the world would involve flamingos, I would have assumed you had started drinking before breakfast. Yet, here we are.

Thousands of protesters have taken to the streets of Albania over a proposed luxury resort project linked to Jared Kushner that would be built near a protected coastal ecosystem home to flamingos, sea turtles, monk seals, and hundreds of migratory bird species.

The result?

The flamingo has become the unlikely mascot of a growing grassroots movement. Protesters are carrying giant flamingo cutouts through the streets, social media has embraced the bird as a symbol of resistance, and the movement has even adopted a name: “The Flamingo Revolution.”

What began as an environmental dispute is increasingly becoming something larger. Many Albanians see it as a fight over who gets to decide the future of their country and who benefits from major development projects.

History has taught us that sometimes the most powerful symbols are the ones nobody sees coming.

🦩 The Flamingo Revolution (Politico Europe)

5. The Influencer, the Empire, and the Allegations

Every generation gets a con artist. Ours got one with a Bugatti, a podcast microphone, and hundreds of millions of social media views.

This week, The New Yorker published a devastating investigation into Andrew Tate’s business empire and the allegations surrounding how it was built. As I read it, I kept more and more nauseous and I also kept thinking about another name.

Jeffrey Epstein.

Not because the allegations are identical. They’re not. But because the reporting describes a familiar pattern: the cultivation of power, the manipulation of vulnerable women, the creation of systems that allegedly benefited from exploitation, and the belief that wealth, influence, and celebrity place someone beyond accountability. Millions of young men were taught to see him not as a warning sign, but as a role model.

That’s what makes this story bigger than Andrew Tate. The question isn’t whether one influencer abused his platform. It’s why so many people were willing to celebrate him while he did it. Because if we don’t answer that question, someone else will eventually fill the algorithm.

🚩 Andrew Tate and the Lost Boys (The New Yorker)

⚽ One Thing for Your Soul: A Goal Six Years in the Making

You probably know by now that I’m a huge soccer fan and an unapologetic supporter of El Tri.

Like so many Mexico fans, I found myself emotional watching Raúl Jiménez score in Mexico’s opening World Cup match. Not just because it sealed the win, but because of everything it took to get there. In 2020, Jiménez suffered a devastating skull fracture. There were serious questions about whether he would survive, let alone play again. Six years later, at age 35, he scored his first-ever World Cup goal in Mexico’s 2-0 victory over South Africa. Through tears, before his own country’s home crowd, he looked to the sky, remembering his father, who passed away earlier this year.

We spend so much time talking about what divides us. Sports remind us of something else: resilience, second chances, and the joy of seeing someone get back up after life knocks them down.

🇲🇽 The Miracle of Raúl Jiménez (The Athletic)

Mom and I had a wonderful time cheering on El Tri in the World Cup opener.

Thank you to everyone who came out and helped us support Latino and immigrant families in Northern Virginia. The World Cup is ultimately about more than soccer. It’s about community, culture, and the connections that bring us together. I wrote about this: HERE.

See you in Los Angeles this coming week!

-Olivia