Friday’s Mini-Report, 10.9.26

Play Bodycam footage showing aftermath of NYC ICE shooting released October 9, 2026 / 08:01 By  Steve Benen Oct. 9, 2026, 5:30 PM EDT Today’s edition of quick hits.

* Along the Gulf Coast: “Isaias has strengthened into a powerful, Category 3 hurricane as it barrels toward the U.S. Gulf Coast. Isaias’ maximum winds increased to 120 mph on Friday, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center reported, surpassing the 111 mph threshold for a Category 3. A storm of that strength or greater is considered a major hurricane.”

* On a related note, it’s worth emphasizing that Hurricane Isaias represents, among other things, a test for the Federal Emergency Management Agency: This is the first major storm to hit the United States since the Trump administration made major cuts at FEMA.

* The overnight shooting in New York: “Federal immigration agents shot and wounded a Dominican man while arresting him in New York City on Thursday, in what the Department of Homeland Security called a ‘targeted enforcement operation.’ Protesters decried it as an example of the dangers of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. The man survived and is being treated at a hospital, the agency said.”

* An important ruling: “A U.S. judge ruled on Friday that the Justice Department’s push to obtain state voter rolls and check them against a federal immigration database in order to demand that states remove voters it deemed ineligible was unlawful. US District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan’s decision marked the latest setback for President Donald Trump’s push to expand federal control over election administration ahead of the November 3 midterms, with his Republican Party battling to hold majorities in both houses of Congress.”

* The fact that the honor went to someone from South Africa is likely to enrage a certain someone even more: “The South African-born jurist and former U.N. human rights chief Navi Pillay, who is currently an ad hoc judge at the International Court of Justice, won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for her efforts to promote peace and international law.”

* This story is definitely worth keeping an eye on: “President Donald Trump touted a tranche of corporate funding for Freedom 250’s private-public partnership to celebrate the semiquincentennial of the nation’s founding. But records obtained and released Thursday by a watchdog group show that taxpayers apparently were who largely supported this summer’s celebrations — raising questions about where tens of millions in private donations ended up.”

* Karoline Leavitt’s successor: “President Donald Trump has tapped conservative commentator Katie Zacharia as his new White House press secretary, filling a key administration role left vacant following Karoline Leavitt’s departure, the White House confirmed Friday. Zacharia, who briefly worked at the Department of Homeland Security earlier this year, will take over one of the administration’s most prominent public-facing roles as Trump’s chief spokesperson.”

Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."

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