NOTE: Brian Laline isn’t warning Staten Island about tyranny—he’s warning us about irrelevance. His own. After decades posing as a neutral referee, he finally admits he’s just another activist with a byline, mistaking panic for principle and hysteria for insight. Calling ICE “the Gestapo” and elections “dangerous” isn’t courage; it’s collapse. America isn’t dismantling—institutions are working, courts are intervening, and voters are deciding. What is crumbling is the credibility of legacy media figures who can’t accept that the public keeps rejecting their narrative. Fear is Laline’s last argument. Facts are mine. This piece is “Brian Laline’s Subversion Narrative Exposed,” first available on NYNewsPress.com.
By Richard Luthmann
Hi there, Staten Island and beyond. I just read Brian Laline’s latest “Letter from the Editor,” and let me tell you, it’s a doozy. After 50 years masquerading as a neutral newsman (to some), he’s finally showing his true colors as a partisan hack.
His piece drips with fearmongering and Trump-derangement, peddling a narrative of “democracy dismantled” that ignores facts and context.
Well, Brian, you asked if we’re scared. I’ll tell you what we should be scared of: so-called journalists like you torching truth to stoke hysteria. Allow me to torch your phony narrative with facts.
Brian Laline’s Subversion Narrative Exposed: Not an Editorial – Propaganda
Laline’s screed reads like a political hit job, not a responsible editorial. He sees fire everywhere except where it’s actually burning. According to him, one “wannabe-dictator” (we know who he means) is single-handedly “dismantling the greatest nation on earth.”
![Staten Island District Attorney Michael E. McMahon [L] and Brian Laline [R] at an event at the Richmond County Country Club.](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!fM7q!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fd328952e-efe4-4964-b1a3-dd7792c9e865_486x495.jpeg "Staten Island District Attorney Michael E. McMahon [L] and Brian Laline [R] at an event at the Richmond County Country Club.")
That hyperbole might win applause in some MSDNC echo chamber, but it collapses under scrutiny. Our nation’s institutions are alive and kicking: courts are checking executive actions, Congress is holding hearings, the press (yes, even the Advance) is free to publish wild accusations.
If this were a true dictatorship, Laline wouldn’t be freely ranting in print – he’d be muzzled. Instead, he’s enjoying First Amendment freedoms to accuse the president of burning the Constitution. The irony is rich.
Let’s examine who’s really subverting democracy. Laline ignores that his own allies have engaged in questionable tactics. For instance, the Democratic legal machine (hello, Marc Elias and co.) has been trying to toss out election maps and voters’ choices through lawsuits and “lawfare.” On Staten Island, we see an attempt to gerrymander NY-11 and erase the borough’s voice in Congress through the courts, under the guise of “fairness.”
Laline cheered that on as a matter of “civil rights,” even when it meant disenfranchising Staten Island voters using veiled racism. Talk about subverting democracy!
Laline sees dictatorship only when it suits his narrative. His “Letter” is pure propaganda – a case study in muscle-memory bias formed by decades in a one-party newsroom.
Brian Laline’s Subversion Narrative Exposed: Crying ‘Dictator’ – Yet Checks and Balances Abound
According to Laline, President Trump “doesn’t believe in democracy” and has “gifted himself limitless power.”
Really?
Last I checked, Trump was elected in 2024 by tens of millions of Americans in a lawful election – that is democracy, Brian. He’s operating within the powers of the presidency (yes, sometimes aggressively so), but hardly “limitless.”
Don’t take my word for it: look at the pushback he’s gotten.
When Trump’s Justice Department brought cases against former FBI Director James Comey and New York AG Letitia James – whom Laline calls “targets” of Trump’s vengeance – what happened? The judiciary intervened. A federal judge dismissed those indictments, ruling that the prosecutor’s appointment was invalid.
Civil libertarians were right to raise alarms. But here’s the part Laline omits: a federal judge tossed the indictment because the prosecutor was improperly appointed. That’s not dictatorship—that’s the judiciary doing its job. Comey may never face trial, but a grand jury found probable cause. Former FBI directors aren’t immune from the law.
Same story with Letitia James. She campaigned on “getting Trump,” sued him, then found herself indicted over a disputed mortgage filing. Political payback? Almost certainly. But again, the courts stepped in and dismissed the case on procedural grounds. Laline claims Trump controls the system while ignoring the fact that the system stopped him.
In other words, our independent courts checked the executive branch, exactly as designed. The cases were tossed without prejudice (meaning they could be refiled) due to a technicality in the appointment of the U.S. Attorney, not because Comey and James were innocent angels.
But the key point is: if Trump were a dictator “weaponizing” the DOJ without oversight, judges wouldn’t dare throw out his prosecutions. But they did, and the Justice Department is appealing through proper legal channels. This is called the rule of law – messy, slow, but still very much intact.
Laline wails about “one man” dismantling America, yet in the next breath, he lists institution after institution that stood up to that man. Universities resisted his directives (more on that soon), companies pushed back, and even members of Trump’s own party have spoken out when concerned.
After the controversial Minneapolis incidents that Laline highlights (we’ll delve into those), Republican lawmakers joined Democrats in demanding transparency and investigations. GOP Senator Thom Tillis called for a “thorough and impartial investigation” of the shootings; Sen. Bill Cassidy urged a joint federal-state inquiry, calling events “incredibly disturbing”. A half-dozen other Republican Senators – from Ted Cruz to Susan Collins – publicly insisted on credible, independent reviews.
Does that sound like blind obedience to a dictator? No – it sounds like American democracy working as it should, with leaders of both parties insisting that no one is above scrutiny.
Laline’s Chicken Little routine (“the sky is falling, fascism is here!”) simply isn’t borne out by the facts. We have plenty of watchdogs still watching.
Brian Laline’s Subversion Narrative Exposed: Enforcing the Law Isn’t “Dismantling” the Nation
Campus Anti-Semitism
Laline claims Trump has “forced institutions of higher learning to change policies to suit his whims, extorting money from them so federal grants would be reinstated,” citing Columbia University’s $200 million payment. He frames it as a shakedown. Here’s the fuller story he omitted: Columbia (my alma mater) was embroiled in controversy over massive pro-Palestinian campus protests in late 2024 that targeted Jewish students.
The Trump administration, back in office, took a hard line against what it saw as Columbia’s inaction on campus antisemitism. In March 2025, the Department of Education suspended $400 million in federal funding to Columbia, citing the university’s failure to protect students from harassment.
That’s right – this wasn’t about Trump’s “whims,” it was about enforcing civil rights laws (Title VI) that prohibit antisemitic harassment.
Facing the loss of research grants, Columbia entered negotiations. By July 2025, they had settled: Columbia agreed to major policy changes and a $200 million payment over three years to restore its funding.
What “whims” did Columbia have to bow to? Not exactly what Brian implies. They had to start disciplining students who violently disrupt campus, reform their faculty governance, ensure viewpoint diversity in Middle Eastern studies, eliminate racial preferences in hiring/admissions, and end all DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion) programs that had been instituting ideological litmus tests.
Yes, Trump’s Education Secretary, Linda McMahon, proudly stated that Columbia will “bring viewpoint diversity” and “end DEI programs” as part of the deal.
Is that subversion of America?
Many would call it a restoration of merit and true diversity of thought on campus. Columbia’s autonomy over academics was preserved – what changed was that taxpayers would no longer subsidize a university that tolerated antisemitic hate and one-sided indoctrination. Columbia chose to pay up and implement changes rather than continue losing funding.
Framed as “extortion,” it was actually accountability. If a university takes federal dollars, it had better ensure a safe, non-discriminatory environment for all students. Columbia didn’t, and got called to the carpet. That’s not the sky falling; that’s consequences for one of our elite institutions. By the way, Columbia’s president himself said the deal “preserved our autonomy” while complying with reasonable terms.
Ending Discrimination and DEI
Laline also bemoans that Trump “coerced companies, with threats, to drop diversity programs” and even “stripped every federal department website of any mention of diversity.”
He’s referring to President Trump’s Day 1 executive orders in 2025 rolling back the sprawling DEI bureaucracy. Yes, Trump unapologetically vowed to “terminate every diversity, equity, and inclusion program across the entire federal government.”
This was not a secret – it was a campaign promise, and he delivered, signing orders like Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity on Jan 20, 2025. Those orders eliminated all federal DEI initiatives and training programs imbued with critical race theory, which the administration argued were themselves discriminatory or wasteful. Agencies removed or reworded web content to comply, focusing on equal opportunity for individuals rather than group identity slots.
Far from some dark subversion, this was an openly touted policy. You can disagree with it (the ACLU and others certainly did), but let’s not pretend it was done in the dead of night.
As for “coercing companies,” The administration did issue warnings to federal contractors and even law firms. In fact, Trump signed EOs targeting big law firms that were, in his view, undermining national security or abusing the legal system to harass him.
Stripping Security Clearances from Lawfare Lawyers
One highly publicized move in March 2025 was terminating the security clearances of two prominent law firms that had represented his political opponents. These firms employed attorneys who cycled in and out of government, possibly retaining access to sensitive information. The White House justified it under an order titled Preventing Abuses of the Legal System, arguing that lawyers who spearheaded what Trump calls “lawfare” (meritless political litigation like we are now seeing with the anti-white NY-11 Congressional District ruling) shouldn’t enjoy special federal perks.
Over 500 law firms sued over these orders, calling them retaliation. But ask yourself: didn’t President Biden’s White House also quietly encourage firms not to represent certain clients (remember the pressure on lawyers during the Mueller probe and second impeachment)?
The difference is that Trump made it an explicit policy – arguably heavy-handed, yes, but not without rationale. If a law firm were effectively a Democratic operative hub (like Perkins Coie, involved in concocting the Steele Dossier smear), is it a “dictatorship” for the President to say that firm’s security clearances and federal contracts are revoked?
Or is it protecting the Executive Branch from sabotage?
Reasonable people can debate it. What Laline does is distort it. He’d have you think any attempt by Trump to counter his legal tormentors is an attack on the rule of law. Yet when Trump was the target of endless investigations (some based on flimsy or falsified evidence), did Laline ever lament “weaponization”? Spoiler: he did not. It was all “accountability” then.
In short, Trump’s actions on universities, DEI, and even law firms were aggressive policies aimed at what he and his voters saw as ideological capture of American institutions. You can call that overreach or applaud it, but it’s not the cartoonish “subversion of the nation” Laline portrays.
It’s a policy fight – one that’s being fought in courts, Congress, and the court of public opinion right now. Democracy, not dictatorship.
Brian Laline’s Subversion Narrative Exposed: ICE Is Not the Gestapo – Context Matters
The most reckless line in Brian Laline’s letter is his comparison of Immigration and Customs Enforcement to “the Gestapo.” That’s not rhetoric—it’s slander. ICE is not a Nazi secret police force rounding people up for race or ideology. It is a federal law enforcement agency executing immigration warrants under U.S. law. You can criticize tactics without abandoning reality.
The current surge of federal agents didn’t happen in a vacuum. DHS launched Operation Metro Surge, deploying roughly 2,000 agents to Minnesota after state leaders openly refused to cooperate with immigration enforcement under sanctuary policies. When local authorities block detainers and refuse cooperation, the federal government has two choices: either surrender to the law or enforce it directly. Trump chose enforcement.
Aggressive? Yes.
Controversial? Absolutely.
Gestapo? No.
ICE agents are not randomly targeting people for “looking foreign.” They pursue named subjects tied to warrants—often individuals with prior removal orders or criminal histories. That doesn’t mean mistakes can’t happen. It does mean Laline’s caricature is dishonest. When dramatic encounters occur—like the St. Paul gas-station arrest—context matters: a surveillance zone, a refusal to identify, escalation under legal authority. It looks ugly, but ugly is not the same as fascism.
The deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti are real tragedies and demand accountability. But as we conduct the post-mortem, it appears more and more that Good and Pretti only have themselves to blame.
Newly released footage in the Renee Good shooting from the ICE agent’s own cellphone actually corroborates that the officer felt endangered and fired in self-defense. In the video, agents had ordered Good out of her SUV; instead, she reversed and then accelerated forward, turning the steering wheel sharply as the agent stood near the car.
The ICE agent (Jonathan Ross) can be heard yelling “Whoa!” right before firing three shots. An earlier bystander video suggests the SUV may have made contact with Ross as it lurched forward. DHS officials maintain that Good “weaponized her vehicle” in an attempt to harm officers, and that the agent reasonably feared for his life.
This is not a baseless lie, but an account supported by video evidence. In fact, the same footage shows Good and her passenger taunting the agent (“Come at us, big boy!”) moments prior and defying commands.
These context details, which Laline omits, underscore that this was a chaotic confrontation – not a cold-blooded execution of a peaceful protester. Calling ICE agents “Gestapo” because a traffic-blocking protest turned deadly is abhorrent.
No one likes to see a life lost, but Good’s own actions – blocking traffic, refusing orders, then driving toward officers – directly contributed to the outcome. That’s a far cry from Laline’s one-sided tale of a woman “shot in the face” for no reason.
Laline then describes another Minneapolis protester, a man with a licensed pistol, who was pepper-sprayed, knocked down, and fatally shot while allegedly only brandishing a cellphone. He asserts that Trump smeared this man, Alex Pretti, as a “domestic terrorist” within hours. This is a serious matter, so let’s look at what actually happened.
According to a detailed video forensics analysis by The Washington Post, Pretti was armed with a 9mm handgun during the altercation (he had a carry permit). Bystander videos show Pretti initially filming agents with his phone and yelling – but when another protester was tackled, Pretti intervened and physically engaged the officers. He was pepper-sprayed and wrestled to the ground by as many as 8 agents.
Crucially, one agent successfully disarmed Pretti, removing his gun from his waistband while he struggled on the ground. Seconds later, another agent opened fire, not realizing Pretti had been disarmed, hitting Pretti with multiple shots.
Pretti died at the scene.
This sequence – corroborated on video – suggests a tragic split-second confusion: officers knew Pretti was armed and resisting, one got the gun away, but others may have still perceived an imminent threat and reacted with force. In other words, it was a chaotic melee, not a summary execution.
The videos raise questions about whether Pretti was truly a deadly threat. But let’s be clear: Pretti was armed, he interfered in an arrest, and he grappled with federal agents. He was not a passive bystander shot for filming; he was an active participant in a volatile confrontation.
Laline labeling him a blameless victim is clearly false.
The proper response is an objective investigation (which is underway), not Laline’s fevered claim that Trump’s jackboots are murdering people in the streets.
In both Minneapolis cases, Laline insists “law enforcement lies,” and the administration is covering up murders. The evidence paints a different picture: tense, dangerous situations arising from confrontations that spiraled out of control.
But here’s the part Laline ignores: public outrage worked. Investigations followed. Officials were reassigned. The operation was scaled back. Lawsuits are pending. Pressure came not just from the left, but from conservatives, gun-rights advocates, and members of Congress. That is not authoritarianism. That is accountability.
None of these excuses for misconduct. But calling ICE “the Gestapo” isn’t moral clarity—it’s hysteria. America can enforce immigration law and punish abuses. It’s not either/or.
Brian Laline’s Subversion Narrative Exposed: Facts Over Fear
Brian Laline ends his rant, warning that if Americans don’t “wake up,” we might get President J.D. Vance in 2029—as if elections themselves are now a threat. That’s the tell. Laline’s problem isn’t that democracy is dying; it’s that his side keeps losing at it.
When voters reject progressive chaos, the response isn’t reflection—it’s panic. So populists get branded Nazis, dictators, or existential threats. That way, Laline never has to ask why so many Americans keep voting against his worldview.
We deserve better than Laline’s bombastic fiction. Yes, our nation faces challenges and sharp divisions – but no, we are not living under the Third Reich 2.0. Your 401 (k) will survive. ICE agents are not coming to knock on random doors. The year 2026 is not 1936.
Brian Laline’s letter is an insult to readers’ intelligence and a disgrace to the journalistic standards he pretends to uphold.
The real question is why anyone lets Laline’s nonsense slide. He’s crying, “The sky is falling,” while ignoring the real storms around us. My job here is to torch his phony narrative with facts, and I trust I’ve done that. The next time Laline tries to masquerade as a neutral observer while spewing DNC talking points, remember this rebuttal.
Laline’s dystopian prophecy belongs in the fiction aisle. Reality paints a far brighter picture of America – a nation that is still free, still strong, and still guided by We the People, not any one man. Don’t let partisan propagandists like him scare you into thinking otherwise.
Sources: The facts cited herein are backed by evidence: Columbia’s settlement addressed antisemitism (not “extortion”); companies adjusted DEI policies after a lawful order; video footage and DHS statements support the agents’ accounts in Minneapolis; and documented incidents of left-wing violence underscore that political extremism is not one-sided. Don’t just take my word for it – read the sources and decide for yourself:
Columbia University / Federal Funding / Antisemitism
Reuters – Columbia University to pay $200M to resolve U.S. antisemitism probe
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/columbia-university-pay-200-million-resolve-us-antisemitism-probe-2025-07-24/U.S. Department of Education (OCR) – Title VI Enforcement Authority
https://www.ed.gov/laws-and-policy/civil-rights-laws/title-vi-civil-rights-act-1964White House Press Release – Administration Statement on Campus Antisemitism
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2025/03/07/statement-on-combating-antisemitism-on-campus/
DEI Rollbacks / Executive Orders
White House – Executive Order: Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity
https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/ending-illegal-discrimination-restoring-merit/Wall Street Journal – Companies Pull Back DEI Programs After Federal Guidance
https://www.wsj.com/business/companies-dei-programs-cutbacks-2025Supreme Court – Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard (Affirmative Action Ruling)
https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/22pdf/20-1199_hgdj.pdf
James Comey
Reuters – Judge dismisses charges against former FBI Director James Comey
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-judge-dismisses-charges-against-ex-fbi-director-james-comey-2025-11-18/DOJ Inspector General Report – Comey Memo Leak Findings
https://oig.justice.gov/reports/2019/o1902.pdf
Letitia James
Reuters – Judge dismisses indictment against New York AG Letitia James
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/judge-dismisses-indictment-against-new-york-attorney-general-letitia-james-2025-12-02/New York Times – Legal Experts Warn of Retaliation Claims in James Case
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/03/us/letitia-james-indictment-analysis.html
Jerome Powell / Federal Reserve
Wall Street Journal – Justice Department Examines Fed Renovation Under Powell
https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/justice-department-federal-reserve-powell-investigation-2025Reuters – Powell says Fed independence will not be deterred
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/fed-chair-powell-says-independence-will-not-be-deterred-2025-12-14/Bloomberg – Treasury Warns DOJ Probe of Fed Could Rattle Markets
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-12-10/treasury-warns-fed-probe-could-spook-markets
Pam Bondi / DOJ Oversight
U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee – Pam Bondi Confirmation Hearing
https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/meetings/confirmation-hearing-for-attorney-general-pam-bondi
ICE / Operation Metro Surge
Department of Homeland Security – Statement on Operation Metro Surge
https://www.dhs.gov/news/2026/01/operation-metro-surge-immigration-enforcementReuters – U.S. deploys 2,000 agents in Minnesota immigration crackdown
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-deploys-2000-agents-minnesota-immigration-crackdown-2026-01-06/
Renee Good Shooting
Reuters – ICE agent cleared in shooting of protester Renee Good
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/ice-agent-cleared-renee-good-shooting-2026-01-10/Associated Press – Video contradicts DHS claims in Minnesota protest shooting
https://apnews.com/article/minnesota-ice-protest-shooting-video
Alex Pretti Shooting
Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump), Truth Social Post, Truth Social (Jan. 29, 2026), https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/115979320622868287 (accessed Jan. 30, 2026).
Reuters – Man killed during ICE protest was armed but not threatening, video shows
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/alex-pretti-ice-protest-shooting-video-analysis-2026-01-25/Washington Post (Video Analysis) – What the videos show in the ICE protest shooting
https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2026/01/25/ice-protest-shooting-video/New York Times – Gun rights groups condemn DHS rhetoric after protester death
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/26/us/ice-protester-gun-rights-reaction.html
Political & Law Enforcement Pushback
Reuters – Republican senators call for independent probe of ICE shootings
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/republicans-call-independent-probe-ice-shootings-2026-01-27/Reuters – Federal prosecutors resign amid Minnesota ICE controversy
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-prosecutors-resign-minneapolis-shooting-2026-01-09/
Weaponization Context / Prior DOJ Abuse
DOJ Inspector General – Crossfire Hurricane / FISA Abuse Report
https://oig.justice.gov/reports/2019/o1912.pdfDurham Special Counsel Final Report
https://www.justice.gov/storage/durhamreport.pdf
Historical Political Violence Context
U.S. DOJ – Congressional Baseball Shooting (2017) Findings
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/virginia-attorney-general-congressional-baseball-shooting-terrorismDepartment of Justice – Arrest of Man Planning to Assassinate Justice Kavanaugh
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/california-man-charged-attempted-murder-supreme-court-justice
