This week, Power Courier goes deep on the stories that matter most to our communities right now. A sitting president walked into the Supreme Court for the first time in history to argue that the 14th Amendment does not mean what it has meant for 150 years — and the justices pushed back hard. Border encounters are at a 50 year low, but the human cost of how we got there demands an honest conversation. Two million Americans are quietly living full lives in Mexico and nobody in Washington seems to notice. One of the sharpest political minds in the country, Jim Messina, shares why the 20 point collapse in Trump's Hispanic approval means nothing unless Democrats act right now. And a basketball clinic coming to Phoenix on May 2 and 3 is about to change the trajectory of 150 young lives — and we need your help to make it happen.

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On Wednesday, something happened at the United States Supreme Court that has never occurred in the history of this republic. A sitting president walked into the nation's highest courtroom and watched as justices considered whether to upend a constitutional guarantee that has defined American identity for more than 150 years.

President Trump became the first sitting president ever to attend his own Supreme Court oral arguments. He stayed about 90 minutes, then left before the opposing side finished. On his way out he posted: "We are the only Country in the World STUPID enough to allow Birthright Citizenship." That statement is factually wrong. Nearly 33 countries offer it, including Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina.

What happened inside that courtroom told a very different story. Justice after justice — including Trump's own appointees — expressed deep skepticism. Chief Justice John Roberts delivered the sharpest line of the morning: "It's the same Constitution." Justices Barrett and Gorsuch, both Trump picks, pressed the administration's lawyer hard on its core arguments.

The administration's position is that the 14th Amendment only guarantees citizenship to children born to parents permanently domiciled in the United States — stripping birthright citizenship from children of undocumented immigrants and those here on temporary visas.

For the Latino community, this is not abstract. It is personal. Millions of Latino families have children who are American citizens by birth. The 14th Amendment was written precisely to put citizenship beyond the reach of any president or political moment. That was not an accident. It was a lesson written in history.

A decision is expected by end of June. Based on Wednesday's arguments, the Court appears likely to uphold birthright citizenship.

Who gets to be American should never be answered by executive order.

By nearly every measurable statistic, the U.S. Mexico border is as quiet as it has been in more than 50 years. Border Patrol recorded fewer than 10,000 migrant encounters per month since February 2025, down from a record 2.2 million encounters in fiscal year 2022. The administration has deported roughly 675,000 people and claims 2.2 million self-deportations on top of that. The numbers, on their face, tell a story of mission accomplished.

But numbers never tell the whole story.

Behind that headline statistic sits a very different set of numbers. Fourteen people have died in ICE detention centers so far in 2026 — one every six days — amid mounting reports of neglectful and abusive conditions in contractor run facilities. At least 11,000 U.S. citizen children had a parent arrested or deported during the administration's first seven months. At least 363 pregnant, postpartum, or nursing mothers were detained and deported in the first 13 months. And nearly 74% of the 68,000 people currently held in ICE detention have no criminal conviction of any kind.

Even the administration appears to be rethinking its tone. The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump himself has grown concerned that some deportation policies have gone too far, and that his chief of staff believes the "mass deportation" framing has become a liability heading into the midterms.

Here is what I have always believed and will keep saying. Border security matters. Enforcement of immigration law is legitimate and necessary. But security without humanity is not a policy. It is a posture.

The border is quieter. The question worth asking is: at what cost, and to whom?

When the conversation turns to the U.S. Mexico border, it almost always flows in one direction. Who is crossing north. How many. What to do about it.

Nobody talks about the 2 million Americans living in Mexico.

That is right. Mexico is home to the largest American expat community in the world, a number that has grown 75% since 2019 as rising costs of housing, healthcare, and daily life in the United States have pushed Americans south in search of something more affordable, more vibrant, and frankly more livable. From San Miguel de Allende to Puerto Vallarta, from Mexico City to the shores of Lake Chapala, Americans are building full lives in Mexico — raising families, launching businesses, retiring comfortably, and working remotely.

The average American couple in Mexico lives well on roughly $2,300 a month. That same lifestyle in a major U.S. city costs more than double. Healthcare is 50 to 80% cheaper. The food is fresher. The weather, in most places, is extraordinary. The U.S. dollar stretches further than it has in years.

And yet this community almost never enters the political conversation about the border. We debate walls and encounters and deportations, but we rarely ask how 2 million of our own citizens are faring in a country that Washington simultaneously treats as both its most important economic partner and a source of national anxiety.

This is the complexity of the U.S. Mexico relationship that rarely makes the headlines. It is not a line on a map. It is not a crisis or a talking point. It is two nations so deeply intertwined that millions of people on both sides have simply decided to live in each other's countries and get on with their lives.

That story deserves more than it gets.

On May 2 and 3, something special is happening in Phoenix that I am proud to be part of.

The Carlos Slim Foundation Acceso Latino Youth Basketball Clinic comes to the Boys and Girls Club of the Valley, Jerry Colangelo Branch — and it is completely free to every family who participates. Up to 150 young people ages 8 to 17 from Phoenix area communities will receive two full days of professional basketball coaching, position training, team building workshops, leadership development, and financial literacy programming through Capacitate para el Empleo.

This is not just a basketball camp. It is the flagship launch of the Liga Frontera de Oportunidades — a binational model designed to turn sport into a structured pathway toward certifications, scholarships, and college degrees. The top participants will advance to a binational youth exchange with finals in Mexico later in 2026. ESPN Take Back Sports will be on site documenting and broadcasting youth success stories to a national audience.

Confirmed partners already include the Phoenix Suns, Chicanos por la Causa, Mesa Community College, the Arizona Board of Regents, and the Arizona Lodging and Tourism Association. Phoenix is just the beginning — expansions to Tucson, Los Angeles, San Antonio and beyond are already planned.

We need sponsors. Opportunities start at $1,000 and go up to $25,000 for founding title naming rights. Every dollar goes directly to programming, equipment, coaching, and transportation for these kids.

If you would like to nominate a young person ages 8 to 17 to participate, or if your organization is interested in becoming a sponsor, contact me directly at [email protected].

"El deporte abre la puerta. La educacion construye el camino."

Sport opens the door. Education builds the road.

Something significant is happening in American politics and it deserves more attention than it is getting.

President Trump's approval among Hispanic voters has collapsed by 20 points since December. That is not a polling blip. That is a political earthquake. And nobody understands what it means for the 2026 midterms better than Jim Messina — the architect of Barack Obama's 2012 reelection campaign and one of the sharpest political strategists in the country.

I asked Jim for his read on this moment. Here is what he told me:

"The 20 point collapse in Trump's approval among Hispanic voters since December is one of the most significant political shifts I have seen in decades. But a number like that only matters if Democrats show up with a real message, real investment, and real respect for Latino communities — not just in October, but starting right now. Hispanic voters are not a monolith and they are not a guaranteed base. They are swing voters who are telling us they are ready to move. The question is whether our candidates are smart enough and disciplined enough to earn them."

Jim is right. And as someone who has spent his career working at the intersection of Latino communities, politics, and the border, I want to add this: the window Jim is describing is real but it is not permanent. Hispanic voters have been taken for granted by Democrats for decades. Assumed. Counted. Then ignored until the next cycle. That pattern is a large part of why Hispanic voter turnout dropped to just 50.6% in 2024 and why Trump made inroads with Latino men that nobody in the Democratic establishment saw coming.

The 20 point shift is an opening, not a guarantee. Earning Latino voters means showing up in their communities with substance — on costs, jobs, housing, immigration, and education — not just Spanish language ads in the final weeks of October.

Jim's full mythbusting series on the 2026 midterms is essential reading for anyone serious about what happens in November. You can find it at The Messina Memo on Substack.

Election Day is 211 days away. The clock is running.

Thanks for reading this edition of my newsletter! I'd love to hear from you. Share your thoughts about what you think are the most critical issues that need to be addressed. Email me at [email protected] or connect with me on social media using the hashtag #Intermestic.

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