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May 12, 2026

9 entries on this date.

Pentagon plans to rename Iran war 'Sledgehammer' to restart the War Powers 60-day clock

On May 12, 2026, NBC News reported — citing two U.S. officials and a White House official — that the Pentagon is preparing to officially rename the U.S. war with Iran from "Operation Epic Fury" to "Operation Sledgehammer" if the current ceasefire collapses and President Trump orders the resumption of major combat operations. The White House official told NBC that any renewed campaign would be conducted under a new name and that, from the administration's perspective, this would effectively restart the 60-day clock under the 1973 War Powers Resolution that requires congressional authorization for sustained hostilities. The maneuver layers onto the administration's existing position that the early-April ceasefire paused the statutory clock — which expired May 1 by Antiwar.com's count — even as the United States has continued to enforce a blockade of Iran.

Judge found ICE materially violated Colorado injunction restricting warrantless immigration arrests

U.S. District Judge R. Brooke Jackson ruled May 12, 2026, that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Colorado materially violated a November 2025 preliminary injunction in Ramirez Ovando v. Noem that barred warrantless arrests without an individualized, pre-arrest flight-risk determination. The judge's 60-page order, issued after a two-day evidentiary hearing, found ICE continued warrantless arrests -- including of people with no criminal history, longtime residents, asylum seekers, and U.S. citizens' children -- while obtaining "field warrants" after the fact and providing training she found insufficient. She ordered ICE to retrain officers, bar untrained agents from warrantless arrests, and pay the plaintiffs' attorney fees.

Dominican Republic reversed refusal, agreed to accept US third-country deportees

The Dominican Republic's Foreign Ministry announced on May 12, 2026 that it had signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding with the United States to temporarily accept a limited number of third-country nationals — reversing President Luis Abinader's prior public refusal to take anyone but Dominican citizens. The agreement, part of the administration's "Shield of the Americas" initiative, excludes Haitian nationals and unaccompanied minors and had produced no confirmed transfers as of this filing.

ICE barred Reps. Mike Levin and Sara Jacobs from interviewing detainees during unannounced Otay Mesa oversight visit

On May 12, 2026, ICE refused to let U.S. Reps. Mike Levin and Sara Jacobs interview detained immigrants during their unannounced oversight visit to the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego, applying a new agency policy requiring members of Congress to identify detainees by name and obtain signed consent forms in advance. The lawmakers were allowed to tour the facility but blocked from speaking with the people held there, the second consecutive visit at which they were barred from detainee conversations. Beyond the memo, which called such visits "disruptive and resource-intensive," ICE did not respond to requests for comment.

Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons issued nationwide memo requiring 48-hour notice and named-detainee ID for congressional oversight visits

On May 12, 2026, Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons issued a nationwide policy memo requiring members of Congress to identify detainees by name and submit signed consent forms at least two business days before interviewing them during oversight visits to ICE detention facilities. Lawmakers learned of the policy when California Representatives Mike Levin and Sara Jacobs made a surprise oversight visit to San Diego's Otay Mesa Detention Center and were handed the memo after asking to speak with detainees. Because lawmakers cannot learn who is held before they arrive, the rule effectively limits oversight visits to inspections of physical infrastructure.

Transportation Secretary Duffy appeared in a reality series funded by DOT-regulated companies

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, his wife Rachel Campos-Duffy, and their nine children are the on-camera centerpiece of a five-part reality series, "The Great American Road Trip," produced at no personal cost to the family by a nonprofit, The Great American Road Trip Inc. The nonprofit's sponsors are dominated by companies the Department of Transportation regulates — including Boeing, Toyota, United Airlines, Shell, and Royal Caribbean — and a pitch deck reported by Politico offered higher-paying sponsors on-screen logo placement and speaking roles. The watchdog group CREW asked the DOT Inspector General to investigate possible gift- and travel-rule violations, and Senate Democrats pressed Duffy on the arrangement at a May 19, 2026 Appropriations subcommittee hearing.

Pima County Sheriff Nanos allegedly provided false sworn statements about his police background; supervisors referred perjury to the Arizona AG

On May 12, 2026, the Pima County Board of Supervisors voted not to remove Sheriff Chris Nanos from office but referred allegations of potential perjury to the Arizona Attorney General's Office after concluding that his sworn statements about his employment history may have contained false information. Nanos had been compelled in April 2026 to submit sworn reports regarding his 1977–1982 tenure with the El Paso Police Department, where supervisors alleged he had concealed disciplinary records in his official background disclosures. The board took no position on whether perjury was committed but directed the county administrator to forward the perjury allegations to the AG for investigation.

Oklahoma Gov. Stitt signed SB904 barring Medicaid and public funds for gender-transition procedures

On May 12, 2026, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signed Senate Bill 904, prohibiting the state Medicaid program from reimbursing gender-transition procedures and barring the use of any public funds, state property, or state facilities for such procedures for transgender residents of any age. The law carries an emergency clause taking effect immediately on signing and creates a criminal penalty for violations. It cleared the state Senate 39-8 in March 2026 and the House 77-14 in May before reaching the governor's desk.

Tennessee House Speaker strips entire Democratic caucus of all committee assignments in retaliation for May 7 floor protest of anti-Black gerrymander

On May 12, 2026, Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R) removed every member of the state House Democratic caucus from every standing committee and subcommittee assignment. The stated reason was the caucus's conduct during the May 7 special session, where Democrats protested the passage of a new congressional map eliminating Memphis's majority-Black 9th district. The blanket scope of the action — caucus-wide rather than targeting individual members for specific procedural violations — is what makes this distinct from routine legislative discipline and an exercise of institutional power against the minority party itself.