On the morning of the critical midterm elections, President Donald Trump said that the U.S. is going to end its annual funding to Israel of roughly $4 billion a year starting in 2027 — a move Trump said was made at the direct request of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has been pushing for an even deeper, more secretive collaboration between the two countries.
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In this episode of Rattling the Bars, Mansa Musa speaks with independent journalist Victoria Valenzuela, who reports for a wide range of news outlets on incarceration in California and Louisiana. Victoria’s recent articles shed light on the inhumane conditions at California City Detention Center—specifically its no-contact visitation policy, making it the only detention center in California to enact such a rule. CCDC is operated by the for-profit corporation CoreCivic (formerly Corrections Corporation of America), an organization with a history marred by systemic violence that is currently capitalizing on Trump’s mass deportation policies to expand its detention contracts.
In the second half of the conversation, Mansa and Victoria discuss the circumstances of incarcerated women domestic violence survivors in California and the potential for prison abolition. They note that the state’s incarcerated women population has decreased from roughly 11,000 to 3,700 over two decades.
Related link:
Families Are Fighting Draconian No-Contact-Visit Policy at California ICE Jail via Truthout
Victoria Valenzuela’s Substack
Credits:
Production/Post-production: Cameron Granadino
Transcript
The following is a rushed transcript and may contain errors. It will be updated.
Mansa Musa:
Welcome to this edition of Rattling the Bars. I’m your host, Mansa Musa. Today I’m speaking with reporter Victoria Valenzuela about a recent reporting on incarceration in California. Thank you for joining me, Victoria. Please introduce yourself to our audience.
Victoria Valenzuela:
Hi, I’m Victoria. Thank you so much for having me. I’m an independent journalist. I’ve been reporting on families and individuals impacted by incarceration for five years. I’ve been published in a variety of news outlets, about 30 now, and that includes The Guardian, Truth Out, Prism, The Real News Network, Buzzfeed News, USA Today, documented a bunch of different
A high-ranking member of the Democratic congressional conference who previously had reservations about the idea of impeaching President Donald Trump has changed his mind, describing impeachment as imperative should Democrats win control of one or both houses in the midterm elections. Rep. Adam Smith (D-Washington) declined to commit to the idea of impeachment back in May…
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Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* While Donald Trump has been willing to invest his time in the midterm elections, speaking at a series of campaign rallies, he has been unwilling to invest his money. The Washington Sun reviewed Federal Election Commission records that indicated the incumbent president “hasn’t donated to any candidate committee, national party committee or super PAC during the 2026 election cycle, through Oct. 14.”
“There’s no public indication that Trump, who’s grown significantly richer during his second presidential term, has contributed his own money since then, either.”
This runs counter to claims the Republican made in early September, when he vowed, “I’m going to be making contributions to various campaigns and people that I think are good, Republicans that I think are good, people that I think are going to win, or can win, or are close to winning.”
That said, Trump’s super PAC, called MAGA Inc., has spent heavily in support of Republicans this year, even if the president kept his personal wallet closed for reasons he hasn’t explained.
* Speaking of campaign contributions, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg invested an additional $36 million in support of Democratic candidates in the election cycle’s closing weeks, on top of a previously reported $80 million in donations.
Among the beneficiaries were Keisha Lance Bottoms’ gubernatorial campaign in Georgia, Adam Hamilton’s Senate campaign in Kansas, and, in Texas, James Talarico’s Senate campaign and Gina Hinojosa’s gubernatorial campaign.
* Speaking of Lance Bottoms’ candidacy, the former Atlanta mayor launched an 11th-hour campaign ad from former President Bill Clinton. As Politico reported, “With Clinton’s election eve endorsement, Bottoms has achieved
Today is Election Day, and voting rights advocates are encouraging voters to assert their rights and go to the polls with confidence if they have not already cast a ballot. Meanwhile, Republicans continue to play defense after a surge in early voting, particularly among Black and Latino voters who were the targets of gerrymandering and voter suppression efforts. In addition to promoting…
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