Prosecutors Resign Over ICE Investigation, and Israel Is Still Demolishing Gaza

Summary

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Podcast Summary: The Headlines — "Prosecutors Resign Over ICE Investigation, and Israel Is Still Demolishing Gaza"

Host: Tracy Mumford, The New York Times
Date: January 14, 2026

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Overview

This episode provides a comprehensive update on major national and international stories: the mass resignation of federal prosecutors in Minnesota over a DOJ investigation into a deadly ICE shooting; aggressive ICE activity in Minneapolis; U.S. foreign policy developments concerning Greenland and Gaza; China's trade response to Trump-era tariffs; a controversial proposed billionaire tax in California; and the death and legacy of civil rights pioneer Claudette Colvin.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

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DOJ, ICE, and Resignations in Minnesota

[00:33–02:26]

• Resignations Sparked by Federal Handling of Shooting:

  • Six federal prosecutors resigned over the Justice Department's refusal to investigate whether a federal agent unlawfully killed Renee Good during an ICE operation in Minneapolis.
  • Instead, the DOJ focused its criminal investigation on Good's widow and potential activist ties.
  • Joseph Thompson, the second-in-command at the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Minnesota, was the most senior figure to resign; he had tried to work with state officials, but DOJ blocked those efforts.
  • Thompson previously led a significant welfare fraud inquiry in the Somali community, used by the Trump administration as justification for increased federal presence in Minnesota.
  • The Minneapolis police chief warned that losing Thompson is a "major blow" to the fraud investigation.

• Escalating Tensions and Enforcement Tactics:

  • ICE agents have conducted aggressive operations — videos confirmed by the Times show officers smashing cars, deploying tear gas, and detaining U.S. citizens.
  • There are reports of racial and ethnic profiling during these "immigration checks."
  • Dozens of Somali refugees, including children, lawfully admitted to the U.S., have been arrested and flown to detention centers in Texas.

  “Residents say they've been profiling people based on their race or ethnicity: ‘We're doing an immigration check, we're doing a citizen check, and we're asking you–’”
  — Tracy Mumford (01:55)

• Federal Response and Future Plans:

  • The Trump administration has stated an intention to re-examine refugee statuses nationally.
  • Federal officials declined to comment for this segment.

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Foreign Policy: Greenland & Gaza

[03:00–04:15]

• Greenland Tensions:

  • Vice President J.D. Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are meeting with Danish and Greenlandic leaders as the U.S. escalates interest in the territory.
  • Greenland’s PM reaffirms "Greenland is not for sale, does not want to be governed by the USA, and will not be part of the USA."

• Palestinian Administration Proposal in Gaza:

  • The U.S. may announce a Palestinian committee to manage daily life in Gaza, aiming for apolitical service provision under a "Board of Peace" led by President Trump and unnamed world leaders.
  • The initiative seeks to erode Hamas control but faces massive rebuilding challenges.

• Continued Israeli Demolitions Despite Ceasefire:

  • Satellite imagery shows Israeli forces demolished over 2,500 Gaza buildings, including greenhouses and farmland.

  • Israel claims to target tunnels and demilitarize; however, a former Israeli commander voiced skepticism:

    “It's not selective destruction, it's everything.”
    — Unnamed former Israeli military commander (approx. 04:38)

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China’s Trade in Response to Tariffs

[05:05–05:45]

• Tariffs' Mixed Results:
  • Trump’s tariffs cut China’s trade surplus with the U.S. by 22% in the past year.
  • Despite this, China posted the largest global surplus in history, aided by expanding non-U.S. markets and domestic pressures leading factories to export more abroad.

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California’s Proposed Billionaire Tax

[05:45–07:41]

• Progressive Wealth Tax Initiative:

  • Health care workers' union is pushing a one-time, 5% tax on assets of Californians worth over $1 billion, applied retroactively to residents as of January 1st.

  • Gavin Newsom, governor, opposes the initiative, citing fears of driving wealthy residents out and hampering state innovation:

    “It would be one thing if the tax was national, but it's another when you're competing against 49 other states. The founders of Google have started cutting ties to California. So has the venture capitalist Peter Thiel.”
    — Tracy Mumford (07:00)

• Divided Billionaire Reaction:

  • Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang says he's “perfectly fine” with the tax:

    “We chose to live in Silicon Valley, and whatever taxes I guess they would like to apply, so be it.”
    — Jensen Huang (07:33)

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Remembering Claudette Colvin

[07:50–08:43]

• A Civil Rights Pioneer Passes:

  • Claudette Colvin, who at 15 refused to give up her bus seat before Rosa Parks, has died at 86.
  • Her act predated and prefigured Parks', but civil rights leaders did not initially make her the movement's national symbol, in part due to her youth, poverty, and dark skin.
  • Ultimately, Colvin became a key legal witness helping end segregated transit.

  “People ask me, say, why didn't you get up? I say, you know what? History had me glued to the seat.”
  — Claudette Colvin (08:21)

  “It felt as though Harriet Tubman's hand was pushing me down on one shoulder, and Sojourner Truth's hand was pushing me down on another.”
  — Claudette Colvin (08:32)

  • Colvin began sharing her story years later, recognizing the importance for younger generations to understand the reality and complexity of the civil rights struggle.

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Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On Prosecutor Resignations:

  “Joseph Thompson’s resignation will deal a major blow to that fraud investigation.”
  — Tracy Mumford (01:31)

• On ICE Checks:

  “We're doing an immigration check, we're doing a citizen check, and we're asking you–”
  — Tracy Mumford (01:55)

• Greenland’s Rebuff of the U.S.:

  “Greenland does not want to be owned by the USA. Greenland does not want to be governed by the USA. Greenland will not be part of the USA.”
  — Greenland’s Prime Minister, paraphrased by Tracy Mumford (03:39)

• Critique of Israeli Operations:

  "It's not selective destruction, it's everything."
  — Former Israeli military commander (approx. 04:38)

• On Exiting Billionaires:

  “The founders of Google have started cutting ties to California. So has the venture capitalist Peter Thiel. But at least one billionaire says he's not bothered by it.”
  — Tracy Mumford (07:15)

• Jensen Huang’s Perspective:

  “We chose to live in Silicon Valley, and whatever taxes I guess they would like to apply, so be it.”
  — Jensen Huang (07:33)

• Claudette Colvin's Defiance:

  “History had me glued to the seat.”
  — Claudette Colvin (08:21)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Prosecutors Resign Over ICE Investigation: 00:33–02:26
• Aggressive ICE Operations in Minneapolis: 01:31–02:26
• US Foreign Policy: Greenland and Gaza: 03:00–04:15
• Israeli Demolitions Continue in Gaza: 04:15–05:05
• China’s Trade Surplus & Tariff Effects: 05:05–05:45
• California Billionaire Tax Debate: 05:45–07:41
• Jensen Huang’s Interview on Tax: 07:23–07:41
• Tribute to Claudette Colvin: 07:50–08:43

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This episode delivers crucial insights into U.S. legal battles, immigration enforcement, international politics, economic policy, and civil rights memory, weaving together authoritative reporting and poignant voices from the past and present.

Transcript

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[Tracy Mumford]

From the New York Times, it's the Headlines. I'm Tracy Mumford. Today's Wednesday, January 14th. Here's what we're covering. In Minnesota, six federal prosecutors have resigned over how the Justice Department is handling the investigation into the deadly ICE shooting in Minneapolis last week. Sources tell the Times that after Renee Good was killed in her car by a federal agent, the head of the DOJ's civil rights division, who was appointed by President Trump, told her staff they would not investigate whether the agent had violated federal law. Instead, the department pressed for a criminal investigation into the actions of Good's widow and her potential connections to local activist groups opposed to Trump's immigration crackdown. The most senior figure to resign was the second in command at the U S. Attorney's office in Minnesota, Joseph Thompson. People familiar with his decision say he had also objected to the fact that the DOJ blocked his efforts to work with state officials to investigate the killing. Before the shooting, Thompson had been overseeing the complex investigation into welfare fraud in the Somali community there. The Trump administration has pointed to that fraud as the reason for its surge of federal agents to the state. The Minneapolis police chief said Thompson's resignation will deal a major blow to that fraud investigation. Meanwhile, Tensions are still high on the streets in Minneapolis, where federal immigration agents have continued to carry out aggressive operations. Videos verified by the Times show them smashing car windows, deploying tear gas and detaining U.S. citizens. Residents say they've been profiling people based on their race or ethnicity. We're doing an immigration check, we're doing a citizen check, and we're asking you.

[Dr. Horton Sales Representative]

Where you were born.

[Claudette Colvin]

This is where I belong.

[Tracy Mumford]

This is. As part of the crackdown, agents have arrested dozens of refugees who entered the country lawfully, according to lawyers and immigration rights advocates. The group is mainly from Somalia and includes children. As part of their immigration process, they'd previously passed extensive security screenings and background checks. Most of the detainees have now been flown from Minnesota to facilities in Texas. Federal officials did not respond to a request for comment, but the Trump administration has vowed to re examine the status of thousands of refugees. Now three quick updates on the Trump administration's foreign policy today at the White House, Vice President J.D. vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio will sit down with the foreign ministers of Greenland and Denmark. The as the administration has ramped up its threats to take over the territory.

[Dr. Horton Sales Representative]

Greenland does not want to be owned by the usa. Greenland does not want to be governed by the usa. Greenland will not be part of the usa.

[Tracy Mumford]

Ahead of the meeting, Greenland's prime minister reiterated that the island is not for sale and said his people want to stick with Denmark, which currently oversees the territory and the European Union. Also in Gaza, as soon as today the US could announce a committee of Palestinians who will be put in charge of running daily life there under the U S plan for Gaza. That committee would be apolitical and mostly focused on providing public services. It will be overseen by a so called Board of Peace led by President Trump, along with other world leaders who haven't been announced yet. U.S. officials hope that setting up the new panel will weaken the grip that Hamas still has on the territory, though experts say they will face enormous challenges in rebuilding Gaza. Many of the territory's 2 million residents are still living in tents or half destroyed houses, and the Times has found that despite the ongoing ceasefire, Israeli forces have continued to demolish structures there. Satellite imagery shows Israel has destroyed more than 2,500 buildings in the last few months, along with greenhouses and swaths of farmland. Israel says it's destroying underground tunnels and demilitarizing the areas, though one former Israeli military commander questioned the scope, saying, quote, it's not selective destruction, it's everything. And trade data released by the Chinese government yesterday offers a new look at the impact of Trump's tariffs. The data shows that the tariffs reduced China's trade surplus with the US by 22% last year. But overall, China still managed to have the largest global trade surplus in world history. It exported a trillion plus more dollars of goods and services than it imported. There are several factors at play there. Chinese companies have been able to more than make up for lost sales to the US by finding new international customers. Also, Beijing has made a big push to rely more on domestic production, and many Chinese consumers have been strapped for cash with the country's economic woes leaving them struggling to afford the flood of goods coming out of Chinese factories. So those factories have shipped them abroad instead. In California, there's a major push underway to get a new billionaire tax on the ballot, but the state's governor, Gavin Newsom is already vowing to stop it. The proposed initiative would require Californians with a net worth of over a billion dollars to pay a one time tax equal to 5% of their assets. It would apply retroactively to anyone who was living in the state as of January 1st. It's being pushed by a large union of health care workers who say the tax is necessary to make up for the deep funding cuts President Trump signed into law, like reductions in Medicaid. Supporters are working to gather the nearly 900,000 signatures they will need to put it to a vote in November. Newsom, however, told the Times he's working relentlessly behind the scenes to keep that from happening. He has long been opposed to a wealth tax because of concerns that it would stifle innovation in his state. He's also worried that billionaires will simply leave, leading to longer term tax losses. He said it would be one thing if the tax was national, but, quote, it's another when you're competing against 49 other states. The founders of Google have started cutting ties to California. So has the venture capitalist Peter Thiel. But at least one billionaire says he's not bothered by it.

[Dr. Horton Sales Representative]

I haven't thought about it even once.

[Tracy Mumford]

Jensen Huang, the chief executive of Nvidia and one of the world's wealthiest people, was asked about the potential wealth tax on Bloomberg Television this month.

[Dr. Horton Sales Representative]

We chose to live in Silicon Valley and whatever taxes I guess they would like to apply, so be it.

[Tracy Mumford]

He said he was perfectly fine with the proposal.

[Claudette Colvin]

And finally this traffic patrolman came on the bus to the back door and asked me to get up and give this one white lady a seat. And I said no.

[Tracy Mumford]

Claudette Colvin, who refused to give up her seat on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama, months before Rosa Parks, did the same galvanizing the civil rights movement, has died. At 86, Colvin was just 15 years old in 1955 when she defied repeated orders to move on the segregated bus.

[Claudette Colvin]

People ask me, say, why didn't you get up? I say, you know what? History had me glued to the seat.

[Tracy Mumford]

She described the moment a few years ago in an interview with Michelle Norris.

[Claudette Colvin]

I said, well, it felt as though Harriet Tubman hand would push me down on one shoulder and Sojourner Truth hand will push me down on another, okay?

[Tracy Mumford]

Colvin was arrested quickly, convicted in juvenile court, and given a fine and probation. While her case made headlines, local civil rights leaders decided not to make Colvin their symbol of discrimination. Instead, they waited and rallied around parks. When she was arrested for taking a similar stand. Colvin later said it was because she was too dark skinned and too poor to win the support of Montgomery's black middle class. Colvin went on to become a star witness in a crucial court case that paved the way for the end of segregation on public transit across the entire US she kept relatively quiet about her own story until years after it happened. She told the Times she changed her mind after she realized she could potentially help kids better understand the civil rights movement. Young people think Rosa Parks just sat down on a bus and ended segregation. But that wasn't the case at all. Those are the headlines. I'm Tracey Mumford. We'll be back tomorrow.