Break It Down!
As I sat and considered what to write about for today’s post, several options came to mind, including multiple variations of the Epstein saga…
President Trump’s last gasp reversal (because it was going to pass in the House anyway)
The House passing the measure 427-1
The Senate passing the measure by unanimous consent
Trump and Mike Johnson having fought tooth and nail to keep the bill from being voted on
The rift between Rep. Marjorie Taylor Green (MTG) and President Trump, due to her dauntless insistence on her support for bringing the question of releasing the so-called Epstein Files to a vote in the House of Representatives, which culminated with Trump calling her Marjorie “Trader” Green
The survivors of Epstein’s crimes, and their victory.
The latest episode of the on again-off again spat between Marjorie Taylor Green and Rep. Jasmine Crockett
Trump calling a reporter from Bloomberg Piggy, and telling her to be quiet
The President hosting Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) at the White House. This was his first visit since before 2018, when the CIA under the first Trump administration concluded the Prince was responsible for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi journalist who worked for the Washington Post.
Trump suggesting ABC News should lose its broadcast license because one of its reporters asked MBS a question about Khashoggi’s murder
Each of those 10 matters was an option worthy of consideration. However, at the end of the day, I decided to address an issue much closer to home (for me). Since last Friday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been conducting what it has dubbed Operation Charlotte’s Web in my town, Charlotte, North Carolina. According to DHS, the operational focus is, targeting undocumented immigrants with criminal charges or convictions.
And yet, at least one analysis found that two-thirds of the individuals targeted by DHS or stopped and harassed (my characterization, not theirs) by United States Border Patrol (USBP) were not undocumented, and/or had no charges or convictions. Moreover, as in many of the other cities where DHS, USBP, and the National Guard have been sent by the Trump administration, local officials, with the notable exception of Charlotte-Mecklenburg’s Police Union, believe these agencies are actually implementing hostile and unnecessary incursions. The Mayor, Police Chief, and Sheriff were not commiserated with, in the lead up to “sending in the troops.”
This is not a comparative analysis, but I have an idea about why Charlotte was an inevitable target. More about that later.
Trump likes to boast that these forays are about fighting crime.
Really?
In Charlotte, profiling and intimidation seem to be leading bases for what, by most appearances, look more like assaults than interdiction.
Consider a few data points about the erstwhile rampant crime in Charlotte:
Key statistics for 2025 (first nine months)
Overall crime: Down 8%
Violent crime: Down 20%
Homicides: Down 24% (from 82 to 62)
Aggravated assaults: Down 19%
Robberies: Down over 20%
Property crime: Down 5%
The above data certainty does not suggest crime is nonexistent. It does, however, make it clear that basic crime measurables are trending in a way that even conservatives would laud in a blind study.
“North Carolina is home to two of the safest cities in the country, a new report finds. Charlotte ranks No. 9 and Raleigh, No.10 on a list of places boasting lower rates of violent crime, traffic deaths and other dangers in comparison to other major cities, according to results updated on Sep 15, 2025”
So why, you may ask, was Charlotte inevitably deemed a prime target for a Trump-style DHS operation? As Shakespeare might have said, let me count the ways.
Consider the following about Charlotte:
Black
Mayor
County Commission Chair
Sheriff
Police Chief
District Attorney
School Board Chairman
Democrats
City Council Members – All but 1
County Commissioners – All
Charlotte Mecklenburg School Board – All
Given the demographic and political profile of our fair city, and this administration’s avowed war on woke, DEI, CRT, affirmative action, voting rights, and civil rights, it was preordained that Charlotte would appear on the hit list, sooner, rather than later. The only real question, if ever there was one, is, what took so long?
The local and national news have been hooked on and reporting about the theater of Operation Charlotte’s Web for the better part of a week now. Businesses, schools, and life in general have been significantly altered. School absences appreciably up, business traffic, especially retail and restaurants, markedly down. Needless to say, many immigrants, some with the encouragement of their employers, are staying home.
Charlotte is resilient. We will survive this unwanted, most would say, uncalled for, intrusion. Team Trump will get extensive video featuring human cruelly that it will label success. They will move on to whatever locale they believe next most warrants the pleasure (and from the local’s perspective, pain) of their company.
Reports are they’ve already gravitated to Raleigh and Durham, two other North Carolina communities, both with Democratic Mayors, one female, the other Black, respectively. I have friends and family in both cities. I pray they will be minimally inconvenienced, or otherwise impacted, by the operations in their towns. Meanwhile, we’re going through something over here…”Operation Charlotte’s Web: The 704 Is On The Clock!”
I’m done; holla back!
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BREAK IT DOWN! 