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The Week That Was: Gators, Gatsby, and Gaza

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Joshua Powell
Jul 06, 2025
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What a week it's been in the land of the free and the home of the deranged. Let's dive into the fetid waters of American politics, shall we?

When Alcatraz Meets Animal Planet

Our reality-TV-president-turned-reality-TV-president-again gave us his latest spectacle: "Alligator Alcatraz," a migrant detention center that sounds like something dreamed up by a particularly sadistic game show producer. Picture this: Trump touring a facility in Florida's Everglades where migrants are housed in tents, surrounded by nature's own security system of alligators and pythons.

It's like "Survivor" meets "Orange Is the New Black," except the immunity challenges involve actual immunity from deportation. Polls show Americans aren't buying this Jurassic Park approach to immigration, but when has public opinion ever stopped our Mar-a-Lago monarch from doubling down on his latest obsession?

The optics are as subtle as a gator's bite: Democratic lawmakers were denied entry when they tried to visit, because nothi…

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