Surviving Trump: Your Essential Guide to His Second Term

Episode 51: The Rise of ICE’s Masked State and What it Means for Democracy


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For immigrant families, the sight of masked agents at the door no longer feels like policing—it feels like war. In this episode, we’ll reveal how ICE’s new masked raids, drones, and secret surveillance are tearing through neighborhoods, emptying courthouses, and leaving families too afraid to seek help. Bella Goode exposes how faceless enforcement erodes trust, fuels impersonations, and turns secrecy into a weapon against democracy itself.


Key Takeaways To Listen For

  • Why ICE agents now deploy in masks, riot gear, and armored vehicles and what that signals to communities
  • The rise of Special Response Teams, once rare, now used for citywide sweeps and workplace raids
  • How spyware contracts, drones, and warrantless traffic stops blur the line between intelligence operations and policing
  • The resistance: lawsuits, proposed “No Secret Police” legislation, and local bans demanding officers show identification
  • What the “masked state” means for immigrant families, democratic norms, and the very idea of transparency in government


Resources Mentioned In This Episode

  • International Association of Chiefs of Police
  • ACLU
  • Knight First Amendment Institute
  • New York City Bar Association
  • Homeland Security (DHS)
  • Paragon Solutions


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Host: Bella Goode

Bella is a former Republican turned democracy advocate raised by middle class parents in Pennsylvania. She is a graduate of Syracuse University and the University of Pennsylvania with a masters of business administration from Wharton and a Masters Degree in Positive Psychology.

Career wise, Bella spent 20 years with American Express in New York and 20 years as an entrepreneur. She started and sold a fitness business that grew to 180 locations worldwide.

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Surviving Trump: Your Essential Guide to His Second TermBy Bella Goode

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