Weekend Quotables
Mark Ruffalo...Alaina Hampton...Marco Rubio...Pedro Sánchez
I’m holding off on assessing the Morocco-Spain immigrant border incident until the dust settles. My instinct tells me that when destabilizing events happen in this part of the world, there’s an invisible hand pushing them. But so far there’s no evidence of Israeli or CIA direct involvement.
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez blames human trafficking networks, who he says misled migrants about how easy it would be to remain in Spanish territory or get to mainland Europe, while the right blames Sánchez on account of his relatively liberal policies.
Meanwhile, Spanish residents rallied against a planned far-right, anti-migrant demonstration, forcing organizers to cancel it.
Quotables
A young Palestinian girl in Gaza, Layan, stood beside a mural of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez painted on the shattered wall of a bombed building. The mural was created as a gesture of gratitude for Spain’s recognition of Palestine and its humanitarian stance.
Layan recorded a short video addressed to Spain, explaining who she was and why she had painted the mural. The video went viral — and reached Sánchez himself.
Sánchez’s response
Sánchez posted a 53‑second Instagram video, speaking directly to Layan by name. His message included: “España os quiere y no os olvida” — Spain loves you and does not forget you. A hope that Gaza’s children will soon return to school, paint without fear, and live in peace. A closing “enorme abrazo.”
Sec. of State Marco Rubio
Rubio threatened to deny visas to “foreign nationals from coming to the United States to foment hatred against our Jewish community.” Rubio argued in the same speech that there is “no nuanced separation of hatred of Israel and hatred of the Jewish people,” which critics say can be easily interpreted as denial of visas from critics of Israel. — State Department statement
Alaina Hampton, former Madigan Campaign staffer
Madigan’s departure was thought to have marked the end of an era. But electing new leadership without changing the culture allows the same system to persist under a different name. When Emanuel “Chris” Welch was elected speaker of the Illinois House, lawmakers elevated someone who had never fully answered serious questions about his own treatment of women. — Chicago Tribune
*Alaina Hampton first blew the whistle on machine boss Mike Madigan. She now works as a national Democratic Party strategist. She’s been a guest on my Hitting Left show, which you can listen to here.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore
Gov. Moore, in an interview as he became chair of the National Governors Association, the potential 2028 Democratic presidential contender ticked through Trump's efforts to restrict voting by mail, obtain voter information from states and possibly deploy federal troops or agents to polling places.
"I don't think that the president is trying to hide the ball on this," Moore said. "It's not even, ‘Am I concerned about what the president could do? I'm concerned about what he's already doing in broad daylight." — Yahoo Movies
Actor Mark Ruffalo
Ruffalo has strongly criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after the latter welcomed the dismissal of International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Karim Khan.
“Just because you lobbied to have the man who issued the war crimes taken down doesn’t mean the war crimes disappear or your guilt is assuaged. You will not outrun justice. You will not lobby history. You are a murderous maniac, Benjamin Netanyahu. You will always be remembered as such.” — Middle East Monitor
Ami Gandhi
A federal judge has rejected an effort by Trump’s administration to obtain full access to Illinois’ voter registration database, including sensitive personal data on more than 8 million residents statewide.
Ami Gandhi, director of the Midwest Voting Rights Program with Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, called it “a critical victory for the privacy rights of every Illinois voter.”
“The federal government’s attempt to seize sensitive personal records was an unprecedented overreach designed to intimidate voters and fuel false narratives about our election systems,” Gandhi said in a statement. “By rejecting this demand, the court has sent a clear message that our democratic process will not be weaponized to harass or suppress Illinois voters, particularly naturalized citizens and people returning home from incarceration who are disproportionately targeted by these efforts.” — Sun-Times