This week's guest is TAJ SMITH, the president of the Washington County Maryland NAACP Chapter. https://www.instagram.com/washconaacp7030b/

On March 17, 2026, Taj was kicked out of the Washington County Board of County Commissioners' legally required public comment meeting because she had the nerve to mention the infrastructure impact and lack of tax revenue caused by ICE/DHS buying an enormous warehouse to use as a detention center is going to have ripple effects across the budget of the community. Click for audio and video from that day: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DV_uuq...

In February the same BOCC passed a unanimous "we think ICE and detention centers rock!" statement, after weeks earlier it was discovered that the country had made a glide path for DHS/ICE to buy the detention center despite a lack of legally required impact tests on local water, sewage, roadway and other infrastructure and more.  The community does not share the enthusiasm of the BOCC for ICE, which may be why they've been quite secretive about how this deal came to pass, their role in facilitating it, why certain laws weren't abiding by and more.

Taj is now running as an Independent candidate for the Washington County Board of County Commissioners to bring more transparency and focus on the citizens to her home.  https://washco4tajsmith.com/meet-taj-smith

REMEMBER TO LIKE! SHARE! LEAVE A NICE REVIEW! Follow us on socials at @catladiesforamerica & go to www.catladiesforamerica.com to start or join a local chapter, join our monthly CATTY CHAT LIVE! episodes, sign up for the next CATLADYPALOOZA on Sept. 13, 2026 and more! (it's all FREE!!!)

🚨THIS IS NOT A DRILL ‼️
They want us scared, powerless and alone. Too bad — we’ve got cats.

Cat Ladies for America fur-vently invites you to our virtual 2026 learning, lean-in and scratch back virtual event: CATLADYPALOOZA! LIVE on YouTube — Sunday, April 19 7p, National Cat Lady Day.

We’re activating cat ladies, cat daddies, cat folks & un-catted allies around the country so they’re ready to both take care of each other now, and come out scratching into the midterms with an event separated into four equal parts:
1st Amendment, Due Process & voting rights training (LEGAL)

mutual aid education & community organizing (ACTION)

protecting each other under the DHS (ICE)

using comedy, art and absurdity as resistance (CATTINESS)

Confirmed participants include:
Amanda McGonigal - founder of Cats On a Couch social media  @catsonacouch

Eliza Orlins: NYC Public Defender, legal content creator, “Survivor,” “Greatest Race” alum (Legal)  @eorlins

Robby Roadsteamer: musical comedy activist  @robbyroadsteamer

Dara Jones: lawyer, Maryland ACLU  @ACLUMaryland

Anne, Smitten Kitten MN: Minneapolis adult store and mass mutual aid & other action hub during ICE occupation (& for years prior) (ACTION)  @smittenkittenmn

Bre Gurosko: Co-Founder Project Saltbox (ICE)

Mohini Tangri: Civil & Immigrant Rights Attorney, legal content creator/activist (Legal)

Eva Chavez Lopez: First Mexican American elected to Salt Lake City Council, progressive candidate for U.S. House of Representatives (ICE)

Zachary Mallory: Award Winning advocate for mental health and suicide prevention; founder of Rise Above Justice Movement. (ACTION)  @RiseAboveJusticeMovement

GriefCat: Musical comedy duo (Cattiness)  @griefcat

Comrade Tripp: Minneapolis comedian, host of The Performative Mayor Pageant (Cattiness)  @comradetrippcomedy  

Gemma Smith: Our Hiss-tress of Cere-meow-nies, creator of NYC Cat-baret Variety Show (Host)

Welcome to Catty Chats: claws-out interviews with people trying to make things suck less in new and different ways.

I am thrilled that I get to share with you my conversation with Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen.

He's had a long political career in the Maryland Statehouse, the U.S. House of Representatives, and most recently the U.S. Senate since 2017.

I always thought of him as smart, and capable, and doing and saying all the right things on issues I cared about.  And also, I didn't really think about him THAT much.  I wasn't worried about what he'd do on this or that vote.  

He wasn't a flashy guy.  He wasn't a spotlight hog.  To me his vibe was "I'm the guy doing my job, you must be the other guy" (shout out to Markie Mark in "The Departed").   

And that was GREAT, by the way.  Gold stars.

Then something shifted in 2025.  And he became a loud and out-in-front advocate at the most important time.  When others who had wanted the spotlight BEFORE started to shy away from the spotlight - for their own careers, or their own convenience, or to avoid hearing angry questions from constituents.  

Chris Van Hollen was out in front for Kilmar Abrego Garcia; for ICE detainees and anti-ICE protestors; to people who were trying to bring just for the illegality and immorality of ICE and DHS, which continues to this very day.  He was and is out in front of all of that, and so much more.

We discuss all things ICE: how we got into the position that we're in; how we can fight; what he has seen in ICE that has changed; what might be coming down the pike; how to be ready; AND WHY IT'S GOOD TO HOLD ONTO THE ANGER.

...he's also pretty funny!  

Despite being far more in the spotlight over the last year or more, he's still the guy just doing his job, and if you're asking "who does he think he is?" you must be the other guy.

When you go to check out the proposed new DHS mega detention center before ICE moves in... but turns out you're late.

Part 1: I meet Claire from Hagerstown Rapid Response in front of the new would-be ICE detention center outside Hagerstown to discuss the the sloppiness in execution, the harm being done to our who are vulnerable neighbors as well as all of Washington County, and the ramp up in ICE on-site staffing and build out of the camp that we would see in the coming 12-72 hours.

Part 2: After Part 1 was interrupted by a couple of ICE agents who were there earlier than the 12-72 hours we expected, Claire and I finish our interview in an on line discussion about how DHS, the Washington County Maryland Board of Commissioners may have been lying to Marylanders for months, the impact of housing 1,500+ detainees in a town of 2,000 residents and how everyone can help fight back.

As DHS & ICE continue to rampage cities across the U.S. the “document research nerds” of Project Saltbox teach us how they uncover news that the mainstream media has missed.

We discuss what they look for to uncover ICE’s next moves, and what they’re seeing for the future in Minneapolis, Maryland and beyond including alarming new tools and dangerous procedures every U.S. community needs to know about about.

We also discuss how ordinary people can help do extraordinary things, community, and what gives us each hope.

EDITOR'S NOTE: In the last third my mic imploded and I switch to different mic, so you may notice a change in sound from this host.

CAT LADY'S NOTE: BRE OF PROJECT SALTBOX HAS 8 CATS!!!

Key Bookmarks (afer :

2:46: How they are, what are their backgrounds and why are they qualified to figure out and predict all things ICE and DHS from seemingly boring and buried documents

8:21: How they knew ICE was drawing down from Chicago before it happened

8:53: Americans are being purposely misled about the ICE “drawdown” in Minneapolis

14:27: what is WEXMAC TITUS and how DHS, DOD and ICE are trying to use this contracting tool to hide their plans from Americans, hoping by the time we figure things out it will be “too late” to do anything

18:30: The dangerous, sloppy or non existent new ICE/DHS  “procedures”  and how they threaten lives, health and economies of cities, counties of states wherever new “ICE Warehouses” & mass detention centers are built 

26:14 NEW “drone lending library” for rank and file ICE agents?

29:47: What are cell simulators and how DHS/ICE are tracking citizens doing regular, legal things to try to intimidate them

35:23: What’s going on in Maryland and how/why did the detention warehouse plans for Hagerstown/Washington County Maryland blow a story wide open and mobilize citizens across the country?

39:59: HOW PEOPLE CAN FIGHT BACK one thing in your wheelhouse at a time

49:38: WHAT GIVES USE EACH HOPE!

Kate Barr tried running as democrat in a gerrymandered AF district in North Carolina.  But nobody pays attention to the Dem primary there.  

So THIS time she ran as a Republican in the Republican primary, being very open about switching parties and why, in a lot of ways, it shouldn’t matter.  Either you like what she thinks should be done for the people of her district in Congress, or you don’t.

This was taped the day before the Super Bowl so in addition to discussing her top priorities for her district - NC CD 14 - we play a catty few rounds of super bowl halftime show trivia and with a little Devil Wears Prada thrown in.

In this episode we’re talking to Maryland Governor WES MOORE about Maryland’s role in fighting for democracy, Maryland redistricting & Donald Trump being, like, totally OBSESSED with him.

Cat Ladies for America is launching the audio-only version of its podcast "CATTY CHATS": Interview with people making things suck less in new and different ways. CLAWS OUT.