Weekly Member Update - August 31, 2026

Written By Indivisible Albany Team

It’s all just so mind-numbingly stupid. Childish. Petulant. Absurd. Pathetic. Cringe. And unimaginative to boot.

Our Mad Orange King — surrounded as he is by an impenetrable bubble of sycophants and yes-men who feed him a steady diet of misinformation and slop to feed his insatiable narcissism and reinforce his prejudices — decided this week to “rename” an international body of water by Sharpie decree. This was all to punish Canada, you see, because America’s closest friend, neighbor and ally had the temerity to reject his “trade deal” that would have given the US veto power over Canada’s ability to trade with other nations and impaired the French-speaking aspects of Canada’s own cultural heritage. Because Trump is so painfully ignorant and uninformed, he probably doesn’t even realize that, as Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney explained, the Great Lake has been Ontario for centuries before America and Canada even existed; the Canadian province was named after the Lake, not vice-versa. Quick, somebody tell Donald about (Republican-leaning) Ontario County, New York.

At the end of the day, of course, the imbroglio over a hydronym won’t matter because, increasingly, no one actually gives a crap what Donald Trump says. The City Council of Rochester, the largest American city on Lake Ontario, has already rejected the name change, as has New York State writ large. Mapquest says it isn’t changing the name and, as of this writing, Apple Maps still reads Lake Ontario. Google Maps seems to have caved, of course, but perhaps they’ll next tell us that the world is flat. House Democrats plan to introduce legislation this week to override Trump’s inanity, and the next Democratic President (God-willing) will surely restore the Lake (and the Gulf of Mexico) to its rightful moniker on January 20, 2029 as one of the first steps in the herculean task of de-Trumpifying the federal government. Donald Trump’s renaming escapade will ultimately be a just another embarrassing footnote in history books.

But what is real and lasting is the impacts that Trump’s trade war of choice with our Canadian friends will have on all of us, no matter which side of the border you find yourself. As the BBC reports, the dumbest trade war in US history will impact car prices, and used car prices in particular, as well as the cost of home construction materials and a whole host of consumer products. Toilet paper prices could escalate by as much as 50%. And, with the midterms now only 64 days away, the impact of Trump’s trade war will disproportionately impact the states and Congressional districts that will be crucial to deciding who controls the House and Senate for the final two years of Trump’s Presidency. Much to Susan Collins’s dismay, retaliatory Canadian tariffs will negatively impact Maine’s seafood exports. In Iowa, which has competitive races for both US Senate and Governor, the heavily integrated nature of US and Canadian agricultural sectors will mean increased uncertainty for farmers. In Michigan, where Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers supports Trump’s trade policies, the average Michigander already pays more than $3,200 in tariff costs, with more pain on the horizon. Even closer to home, in New York’s 21st Congressional District, Trumpian Republican candidate Anthony Constantino will be carrying a tariff lodestone around his neck, as the North Country faces far-reaching consequences from the trade war with Canada.

We suppose that is the silver lining to the derecho cloud of Trump’s trade wars (and the Iran War, and the war on immigrants). As Trump’s policies punish American pocketbooks and psyches more by the day, Trump looks to make the midterms all about him and Republicans everywhere lack the spine, inclination or fortitude to disassociate themselves from him. Republican candidates can’t afford to lose the dwindling far-right Trumpian base that will never desert him and yet, by embracing the disastrous Trump regime, Republicans alienate the independents and disaffected voters they need to get them over the finish line. Odysseus is not the only one to find himself between a rock and hard place this Summer it seems.

As we all swallow the bitterest societal conditions of our lifetimes — a toxic stew of unimaginable cruelty to our neighbors, unprecedented corruption and wealth inequality, and tyrannical authoritarianism fed by an ever-expanding surveillance state — those of us on the side of pluralistic and multicultural democracy have no choice over the next several months. We need to embrace this torturous moment for the (one final) opportunity that it is. This Fall is not just a midterm like any other; it can’t just be your average quadrennial pendulum swing, it must be that and more. The repulsive Trump presidency affords us the opportunity to drive a stake through the heart of MAGA and remind the electorate what many of us have understood for generations, that Republican rule, especially at the federal level, always ends in disaster. But even stomping Republicans electorally is not enough, we need to walk and chew gum. We need to defeat Republicans everywhere AND present a new, progressive, anti-corporatist and anti-corruption vision with a promise of accountability for the villains and broad structural reform to make sure that the authoritarians don’t rise from the grave in a few years. Contrary to what the political consultants believe, this is not 1992 or even 2008, the time for moderation is gone or, at least, it is time to reorient the idea of “moderation” to embody what the majority of Americans want instead of what the corporations and the politicians who love them deem acceptable. Candidates wrapping themselves in the gauze of centrist, middle-of-road moderation might win on occasion, but candidates running on bold, transformative policies that have widespread popular support — universal healthcare, economic justice, abolishing ICE, Supreme Court reform, fair and orderly immigration policy, expanded suffrage and electoral reform, new and charismatic leadership (not you Hakeem) — are not just electable, they also have the potential to build durable majorities if they actually deliver on what they promise. So, as the calendar turns to Fall, we all need to do what we can; sign up to be a poll worker, donate to individual candidates who move you, canvass where it will make a difference, help someone register to vote for the first time, persuade a Republican to vote in their personal self-interest for once, prepare to take to the streets if and when the GOP tries to steal it, whatever it takes. Don’t wake up on November 4 regretting that you didn’t do enough.

ICE Watch

The Week in Flock

  • The heat on punchable Flock surveillance CEO Garrett Langley, who previously confessed to thinking that police were “perfect,” is not letting up. This week, he pleaded with Americans to compromise their privacy in exchange for a just little more safety. Ben Franklin would like a word. Poor Garrett has apparently now also been doxxed in direct response to his call for folks to give up some of their privacy to help Flock’s bottom line.

  • In news that surely isn’t going to help Garrett Langley’s anxiety, Texas Governor Greg Abbott, of all people, has ordered all Texas state agencies to pause funding for Flock cameras. Not to worry, Texans, because Abbott’s office reassured Fox News that most Flock funding in Texas comes from the federal government. Abbott’s move also reeks of political opportunism; Democratic gubernatorial candidate Rep. Gina Hinojosa — who polling has within five points in her race against Abbott — released an ad this past week blaming Abbott for the spread of Flock cameras across the state.

  • The lovely and bucolic Columbia County became only the second local municipality, joining Saratoga Springs, to publish a transparency portal via Flock surveillance. Now, be forewarned, not every Flock transparency portal is the same and municipalities can design their portals in myriad ways. To that end, the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office transparency portal is designed to be a paragon of Flockaganda, with feel-good “Featured Success Stories” from Columbia County and beyond heavily featured. For Saratoga Springs, at least you can see which outside agencies are accessing the cameras on Saratoga’s streets — the Alabama Department of Corrections, for instance — and which far-away places Saratoga users are spying on, but Columbia County doesn’t even give you that. All told, given that Columbia County’s contract with Flock is the subject of some controversy, the complete lack of transparency on their “transparency portal” is an especially bad look. If you plan to lobby your own town’s elected officials to set up a transparency portal, be sure that they don’t follow the example of the Columbia County Sheriff.

  • The City of Buffalo has no interest in Flock surveillance, or any ALPRs for that matter. Go Bills!

  • The City of Tempe, Arizona has also turned off its Flock surveillance system, and will not be replacing Flock with some other camera system.

  • Add Pflugerville, Texas to the Get the Flock Out list.

  • Milford, Connecticut too. Sorta.

  • You can also add Hubbard, Ohio, outside of Youngstown, to the GTFO list, but with a twist. The City had attempted to end its contract back in June, but Flock told the City it would still be on the hook for $35,000 regardless, so the cameras were slated to stay up until the contract ended in late 2028. Meanwhile, someone stole four of the City’s six cameras a few weeks ago, prompting the City to take the last two down this week before they too were stolen.

  • Vigilantes who destroy Flock cameras are achieving American folk hero status, according The Verge. Meanwhile, a grand jury outside of Cincinnati refused to indict one man who was literally caught on camera destroying a Flock.

  • In the Atlanta suburb of Alpharetta, a cop has resigned after being caught using Flocks to track two other police officers — his ex-girlfriend and a third officer whom the ex had been spending time with — 85 times over a two-month span.

  • The 2025 Florida “Deputy of the Year” resigned recently after using Flocks to track his ex-girlfriend. Well, to be fair, he also put a gun in the ex-girlfriend’s mouth and pointed it at the back of her head while having sex with her, and appeared to perform a “Nazi salute” in a photograph showing him with a Hitler mustache, so there’s that.

  • Cops misusing Flock cameras is nothing new, but here is a new variation on that theme. A Wisconsin man filed a citizen complaint after police had pulled him over and taken him into custody without probable cause to do so. In response, the police used Flock surveillance to track the man more than 100 times, presumably in an attempt to find something to undermine his credibility. What was once a mere citizen complaint is now a federal lawsuit.

Lori Van Buren, Albany Times Union

Data Center Deliberations

  • We appreciated the appearance in Albany this past week by State Senator Kristen Gonzalez, the Democratic Socialist who served as the primary sponsor of the Responsible Data Center Development Act (RDCDA), as part of her New York Fights AI Data Centers statewide tour. The Times Union, Spectrum News and WRGB all had reporting on the Thursday press conference, and one message was abundantly clear, Governor Hochul needs to sign the RDCDA into law yesterday. Still crickets from our elected local leaders, however, on the City of Albany Common Council passing its own moratorium in order to hit the pause button on the proposed Kenwood Data Center proposal.

  • As the movement against data center proliferation continues to gather steam nationwide, Trump’s EPA, under the feckless leadership of New York’s own Lee Zeldin, has moved to eliminate a federal requirement requiring states to publicize and solicit public input on air pollution permits for new data centers and the power plants needed to run them. As a result, the citizens of some states may not even know about new data centers in their communities until construction begins. The RDCDA would insure that never occurs in New York, if only Governor Hochul would sign it, since the RDCDA requires a public hearing before the Department of Environmental Conservation issues any new data center permit.

  • A growing number of candidates across the Country — including Nebraska independent Senate candidate Dan Osborn, Tennessee Democratic Congressional candidate Justin Pearson and Will Lawrence, the Sunrise Movement co-founder who is the Democratic nominee for Congress in Michigan-CD7 — have signed on to the AI Pact, a regulatory framework for both data centers and AI itself.

Odds & Ends

Finally, we’re going to take a rare week off in honor of our union brothers and sisters and celebrate Labor Day. We’ll be back at it on Monday, September 14; just imagine how many cops will be busted misusing Flock cameras between now and then!

Indivisible Albany Team
Next

Weekly Member Update - August 24, 2026