The ICE Crackdown Everyone Sees-And the Reason Congress Won’t Touch It

It’s not ideology. It’s not politics. It’s something uglier.

The ICE Crackdown Everyone Sees-And the Reason Congress Won’t Touch It

It’s not ideology. It’s not politics. It’s something uglier.

The Jack Hopkins Now Newsletter #734: Thursday, January 15th, 2026.

Let’s get something straight right out of the gate…because apparently we still need to.

Congress is not sitting around in a smoke-filled room…stroking cats…twirling mustaches…whispering, “Okay boys… how do we screw the American people today for Exxon and Goldman Sachs?”

That’s the cartoon version people cling to so they don’t have to understand the real one.

The real version is worse.

Because it’s legal.
Because it’s normalized.
And because it’s boring as hell…which is exactly why it works.

And once you actually see how this thing functions, you’ll never be able to listen to another campaign speech without wanting to throw something at the TV.

So let’s skip the law-school gibberish.
Skip the cable-news “both sides” nonsense.
Skip the smug “well actually” crowd.

Here’s how it actually works…in language you don’t need a think tank to translate.

First: Congress Is a Sales Job, Not a Governing Job

Most people still believe members of Congress spend their days:

• Reading bills
• Debating policy
• Studying issues
• Representing voters

That belief is adorable.

And completely wrong.

Here’s the truth nobody in Washington wants printed in plain English:

A member of Congress is a full-time fundraiser who votes part-time.

That’s the job.

House members? Two-year election cycles.
Senators? Six years…but don’t kid yourself, the money chase never stops.

And…the money sure as hell doesn’t come from bake sales and $25 grassroots donations.

It comes from:

• Corporate PACs
• Industry executives
• Lobbyist “bundlers”
• Dark-money groups with patriotic names and zero transparency

So from Day One, the message is clear:

“Raise money… or you’re gone.”

That’s not corruption.

That’s the business model.

Second: Whoever Pays the Bills Gets the Phone Calls Returned

Here’s a rule of human behavior so basic it shouldn’t need explaining:

You pay attention to whoever keeps your lights on.

Now apply that to Congress.

A voter sends an email?
It gets logged. Maybe skimmed. Probably ignored.

A donor calls?
They get a meeting.

A lobbyist walks in with a check and pre-written “policy language”?
They get a chair. Coffee. And a staffer taking notes.

No bribes required.
No threats needed.
No envelopes stuffed with cash.

Just incentives.

Congress isn’t evil.
It’s incentive-driven.

And the incentives are screaming.

Third: Lobbyists Write More Laws Than You Think

Here’s something that shocks people the first time they hear it…

..mostly because no one ever says it plainly:

Most members of Congress do not write most legislation.

They don’t have the time.
They don’t have the staff.
They don’t have the expertise.

So who fills the vacuum?

Lobbyists.
Industry lawyers.
Trade groups.
“Think tanks” funded by…you guessed it…corporations.

They show up with:

• Pre-written bill language
• Talking points
• Cherry-picked “studies”
• Convenient summaries that just happen to favor their client

And exhausted congressional staffers…making $50–70k while juggling impossible workloads…say:

“Great, thanks, this helps a lot.”

That’s not bribery.

That’s outsourcing.

Fourth: The Revolving Door Is the Real Payday

This is the part everyone pretends not to understand because it sounds “too cynical.”

Too bad. It’s also true.

Congress doesn’t pay that well.

But what comes after Congress does.

Here’s the unspoken deal everyone in Washington understands without it ever being written down:

“Don’t make enemies. Don’t rock the boat. Play ball.
And when you’re done…there’s a seven-figure ‘consulting’ job waiting.”

Former members become:

• Lobbyists
• Corporate board members
• “Advisors” who advise nothing
• Cable-news talking heads

Former staffers become:

• Industry lobbyists
• Corporate government-relations directors
• Policy consultants

No brown envelopes.
No back-alley deals.

Just career math.

Fifth: Why Oil, Defense, Pharma, and Big Finance Clean Up

Some industries are especially good at this game.

Oil and gas.
Defense contractors.
Pharmaceutical companies.
Big banks.

Why?

Because they:

• Have massive profit margins
• Live and die by government policy
• Can afford long-term influence
• Wrap their interests in words like “national security” and “economic stability”

Oil companies don’t say,
“Let us pollute more.”

They say,
“Energy independence.”

Defense contractors don’t say,
“We want more war.”

They say,
“Jobs in your district.”

Banks don’t say,
“Let us gamble with the economy again.”

They say,
“Financial stability.”

Same goal.
Better packaging.

Sixth: Why Voters Always Come Last

Political scientists have studied this to death.

Here’s the blunt version:

• If voters want something and donors don’t → it usually dies
• If donors want something and voters don’t → it often passes
• If both want it → wow, look, democracy!

This isn’t because members of Congress hate voters.

It’s because voters don’t fund campaigns.

Money doesn’t guarantee a vote.

But lack of money guarantees you don’t matter.

Seventh: This Is Not a Conspiracy (Stop Saying That)

Read this carefully.

This is not a secret cabal.
Not mind control.
Not a single puppet master.

It’s a system.

A system where:

• Fundraising equals survival
• Lobbyists provide the tools
• Career incentives reward obedience
• Punishment is quiet but effective

Nobody has to be evil. (Though plenty are)

They just have to behave rationally inside a rigged incentive structure.

And…many do.

Eighth: Why Congress Looks Broken…but Works Perfectly for Corporations

People love to ask:

“Why can’t Congress get anything done?”

Wrong question.

Congress gets plenty done…just not for you.

It passes:

• Tax advantages
• Subsidies
• Regulatory loopholes
• Massive military budgets
• Bailouts

It stalls on:

• Healthcare
• Wages
• Climate
• Housing
• Antitrust

That’s not dysfunction.

That’s prioritization.

Ninth: Why “Corporate Front” Is the Wrong Phrase

Is Congress literally a corporate front organization?

No.

But…is it structurally dependent on corporate money?

Absolutely.

A better way to say it is this:

Congress doesn’t belong to corporations…
it’s permanently rented by them.

And renters don’t burn the house down.

They just rearrange the furniture to suit themselves.

Tenth: Why This Keeps Getting Worse

Every election costs more.
Every media market gets pricier.
Every race becomes more nationalized.

Which means:

• More dependence on big donors
• Less dependence on local voters
• More power for corporations that can play the long game

That’s why reform always “dies in committee.”

You’re asking people to vote against…the system that keeps them employed.

Good luck.

Final Truth (The One That Actually Matters)

Here it is, stripped naked:

Congress does not wake up asking,
“What do the people want?”

It wakes up asking,

“Who do I need to keep happy to survive?”

Until that changes…everything else is theater.

Campaign promises.
Cable-news outrage.
Performative hearings.
Angry tweets.

Noise.

The real decisions happen quietly…legally…and predictably…right where money… power…and incentives meet.

And once you see it?

You don’t unsee it.

Why Congress Isn’t Stepping In as Trump Escalates ICE Force Against Americans

Now let’s talk about the question everyone’s dancing around…

…while pretending not to see what’s right in front of them.

If Congress has all this power…
If this behavior is so obviously dangerous…
If civil liberties are clearly being shoved into a wood chipper…

Why isn’t Congress stepping in to shut Trump down as ICE’s use of force escalates…including against American citizens?

Short answer:

Because too many powerful interests do not want Congress touching this issue with a ten-foot pole.

Long answer? Buckle up.

First: “Law and Order” Is Big Business

Immigration enforcement isn’t just policy.
It’s an industry.

A very profitable one.

You’ve got:

• Private prison companies
• Detention center operators
• Surveillance and biometric tech firms
• Defense contractors repurposing “battlefield” tools
• Data brokers and facial recognition vendors
• Transportation and logistics contractors

Every raid…detention…deportation….or “expanded authority” moment feeds a supply chain.

This is not theory.
This is revenue.

And Congress knows exactly which donors light up…when enforcement budgets expand instead of shrink.

Second: Defense Contractors Love “Domestic Application”

Here’s an ugly truth no one on Capitol Hill wants to say out loud:

What gets normalized abroad eventually comes home.

Military contractors don’t care where force is used…only that:

• Budgets grow
• Tools are deployed
• Contracts renew
• “Threat environments” expand

When ICE starts acting more like a paramilitary force…that’s not a bug for defense contractors.

That’s a product demo.

Drones.
Surveillance software.
Non-lethal weapons.
Command-and-control systems.

Once Congress intervenes and draws a hard line?

That gravy train slows down.

Third: Big Agriculture, Construction, and Hospitality Don’t Want the Spotlight

Here’s the hypocrisy layer nobody likes to examine.

Industries that rely on immigrant labor love enforcement theater…but hate real reform.

Why?

Because fear is leverage.

A workforce living under threat:

• Complains less
• Organizes less
• Demands less
• Accepts worse conditions

Congress stepping in to confront ICE abuse opens a door lawmakers do not want opened:

“Okay…now let’s talk about who benefits from this system.”

And…suddenly donors get nervous.

Very nervous.

Fourth: Tech Companies Don’t Want Their Tools Examined

ICE doesn’t operate alone.

It relies on:

• Databases
• Data-sharing agreements
• Location tracking
• AI-assisted targeting
• Facial recognition

A serious congressional intervention means oversight.

Oversight means hearings.
Hearings mean emails.
Emails mean subpoenas.

And tech companies that sell “neutral tools”…don’t want those tools discussed in the context of domestic force against citizens.

So…Congress looks away.

Fifth: Politicians Fear the “Weak on Security” Label More Than the Constitution

This is the cowardice layer.

Intervening means:

• Fox News clips
• Attack ads
• “Soft on crime” accusations
• Primary challenges funded by…you guessed it…donors

Standing up to ICE under Trump requires political courage.

Courage does not poll well.
And…it does not raise money.

Sixth: The Quiet Agreement No One Admits Exists

Here’s the real reason Congress freezes:

Once force is normalized against one group…no one wants to be the next test case.

Today it’s immigrants.
Tomorrow it’s protesters.
Then journalists.
Then political opponents.

Congress understands this on some level.

But intervening….means admitting the system has crossed a line.

And once you admit that?

You’re responsible for fixing it.

That’s expensive.
That’s messy.
That’s politically dangerous.

So…instead…they do what this system trains them to do best:

They stall.
They issue statements.
They hold symbolic hearings.
They wait it out.

Bottom Line (Don’t Miss This)

Congress isn’t inactive because it’s powerless.

It’s inactive because too many industries benefit from escalation…ambiguity..and fear…and those industries write checks.

ICE didn’t grow teeth in a vacuum.

It grew them in a system where:

• Enforcement equals profit
• Oversight equals risk
• And silence is rewarded

And until those incentives change?

Don’t expect Congress to suddenly find its spine.

They’re not confused.

They’re complicit by design.

#HoldFast

Back soon,

-Jack

Jack Hopkins

P.S.
If this irritated you, good. That means you’re finally looking at the machine…instead of the mascot. The system doesn’t fear outrage. It fears people who understand how it actually works.