Connor Kopchick
@connorkopchick.bsky.social
Assistant Professor of Poli Sci at Auburn | Ph.D. via UMD | Transnational Repression, Diasporas, Authoritarianism | Views are mine but should be everyone’s
By Alito’s logic, no one born to an immigrant parent, documented or undocumented, with a foreign passport would ever be given U.S. citizenship at birth.
June 30, 2026 at 11:02 PM
By Alito’s logic, no one born to an immigrant parent, documented or undocumented, with a foreign passport would ever be given U.S. citizenship at birth.
Iranian judiciary claims to be working to identify Iranians in the diaspora collaborating or sympathizing with the U.S. and Israel’s war on the country, after earlier pledging to seize their assets.
Iran vows ‘eye for an eye’ warfare if US, Israel hit infrastructure
US-Israeli strikes on Tehran continue as Iranian counterattacks target Bahrain, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
aje.news
March 10, 2026 at 5:57 PM
Iranian judiciary claims to be working to identify Iranians in the diaspora collaborating or sympathizing with the U.S. and Israel’s war on the country, after earlier pledging to seize their assets.
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
The difference between how European states respond to these attacks (and Venezuela) compared to Greenland are telling about the hypocrisy involved.
A willingness to tolerate - or enable - illegal war when it happens "out there."
A willingness to tolerate - or enable - illegal war when it happens "out there."
February 28, 2026 at 10:03 PM
The difference between how European states respond to these attacks (and Venezuela) compared to Greenland are telling about the hypocrisy involved.
A willingness to tolerate - or enable - illegal war when it happens "out there."
A willingness to tolerate - or enable - illegal war when it happens "out there."
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
Quick reactions after learning that no, nobody could stop him. 1/ goodauthority.org/news/trump-m... 1/
Trump might start a war with Iran. Can anyone stop him?
Trump might start a war with Iran. Can anyone stop him? Congress, public opinion, and administration insiders aren’t reliable constraints on Trump’s foreign policy decisions.
goodauthority.org
February 28, 2026 at 11:54 AM
Quick reactions after learning that no, nobody could stop him. 1/ goodauthority.org/news/trump-m... 1/
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
Dozens of U.S. strikes on Iran. Dunno what to say now other than my thoughts are with the Iranian civilians under fire. What a nightmare.
“Dozens of U.S. strikes are being carried out by attack planes based at bases around the Middle East and from one or more aircraft carriers, a U.S. official said.”
February 28, 2026 at 7:22 AM
Dozens of U.S. strikes on Iran. Dunno what to say now other than my thoughts are with the Iranian civilians under fire. What a nightmare.
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
Is exile a dead end – or a launching pad for opposition?
New research finds that exile prolongs and escalates revolutions.
Read the latest from @isadesisto.bsky.social & @ernugent.bsky.social: goodauthority.org/news/is-exil...
New research finds that exile prolongs and escalates revolutions.
Read the latest from @isadesisto.bsky.social & @ernugent.bsky.social: goodauthority.org/news/is-exil...
Is exile a dead end – or a launching pad for opposition?
A recent New York Times investigation offers a glimpse into the life of former Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad. After losing […]
goodauthority.org
February 26, 2026 at 2:06 PM
Is exile a dead end – or a launching pad for opposition?
New research finds that exile prolongs and escalates revolutions.
Read the latest from @isadesisto.bsky.social & @ernugent.bsky.social: goodauthority.org/news/is-exil...
New research finds that exile prolongs and escalates revolutions.
Read the latest from @isadesisto.bsky.social & @ernugent.bsky.social: goodauthority.org/news/is-exil...
180-200 Russian asylum seekers deported by ICE back to Russia via Egypt.
A good statement here by the Law and Democracy Support Foundation on the "outsourced transnational repression" of transferring Russians detained in the US to Russia via Egypt. This is clearly refoulement. ldsf.info/blog/2026/02...
LDSF Condemns Transforming Cairo International Airport into a "Forced Transit Hub" for Deporting Russian Dissidents - Law and Democracy Support Foundation e.V.
Law and Democracy Support Foundation (LDSF) condemns the escalating pattern of mass forced deportations carried out by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) against Russian asylum seekers...
ldsf.info
February 25, 2026 at 5:19 PM
180-200 Russian asylum seekers deported by ICE back to Russia via Egypt.
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
🟧 NEW TNR WATCH: In a landmark ruling, a British court ordered the Saudi government to pay $4 million+ in damages to London-based activist Ghanem al-Masarir after it was found responsible for infecting his phone with Pegasus spyware and directing an assault on him freedomhouse.org/article/tnr-...
February 11, 2026 at 4:32 PM
🟧 NEW TNR WATCH: In a landmark ruling, a British court ordered the Saudi government to pay $4 million+ in damages to London-based activist Ghanem al-Masarir after it was found responsible for infecting his phone with Pegasus spyware and directing an assault on him freedomhouse.org/article/tnr-...
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
Some thoughts on what Trump has done in Venezuela and what it might mean for US national security. Caveat: not a Latin America scholar so this is focused on US policy. Clearly huge consequences for Venezuela that others can address.
First, despite the buildup, I didn't think Trump would do it.
1/
First, despite the buildup, I didn't think Trump would do it.
1/
January 3, 2026 at 2:37 PM
Some thoughts on what Trump has done in Venezuela and what it might mean for US national security. Caveat: not a Latin America scholar so this is focused on US policy. Clearly huge consequences for Venezuela that others can address.
First, despite the buildup, I didn't think Trump would do it.
1/
First, despite the buildup, I didn't think Trump would do it.
1/
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
A deluge of work on regime change after the 2003 invasion of Iraq yielded strong (and rare) agreement in IR: it doesn't work & has terrible consequences. @profdownes.bsky.social's book Catastrophic Success lays it out, but it's right there in the title. www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9781501...
January 3, 2026 at 1:41 PM
A deluge of work on regime change after the 2003 invasion of Iraq yielded strong (and rare) agreement in IR: it doesn't work & has terrible consequences. @profdownes.bsky.social's book Catastrophic Success lays it out, but it's right there in the title. www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9781501...
Which types of repression are more likely to elicit foreign sympathy and support for victims? @kgcunnin.bsky.social and I find that US respondents are more sympathetic and supportive of those facing religious and language rights violations, but that these effects are not felt uniformly by partisans.
Rights violations and international public opinion
Victims of human rights violations and their activist allies often attempt to rally external solidarity for aggrieved groups in order to end repression. We conduct a nation-wide survey experiment t...
www.tandfonline.com
September 11, 2025 at 5:26 PM
Which types of repression are more likely to elicit foreign sympathy and support for victims? @kgcunnin.bsky.social and I find that US respondents are more sympathetic and supportive of those facing religious and language rights violations, but that these effects are not felt uniformly by partisans.
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
My mom and stepdad are from the same diaspora group as Zohran Mamdani’s dad (same like “my stepdad was kicked out of the same town and knows some of his classmates”) and apparently the New York Times doesn’t understand how diaspora works, so I am going to tell you a little about my mom’s people!
July 3, 2025 at 11:25 PM
My mom and stepdad are from the same diaspora group as Zohran Mamdani’s dad (same like “my stepdad was kicked out of the same town and knows some of his classmates”) and apparently the New York Times doesn’t understand how diaspora works, so I am going to tell you a little about my mom’s people!
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
Scorching and effective summary by @nateschenkkan.bsky.social of how the Trump Administration has undone policy progress made by the prior administration around transnational repression.
Trump Is Undermining Policies Against Transnational Repression
The Biden administration made policies to protect exiles and diasporas a priority. Trump 2.0 has already undercut these efforts.
www.lawfaremedia.org
July 2, 2025 at 3:40 PM
Scorching and effective summary by @nateschenkkan.bsky.social of how the Trump Administration has undone policy progress made by the prior administration around transnational repression.
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
"For the child born this summer in Texas, whose parents receive no documents, whose name never appears in any system, and who grows up asking why she can’t go on field trips, apply for scholarships, or open a bank account, the consequences are not legal theory. They are her life."
The United States Is About to Embark on a Terrifying Experiment in Mass Statelessness
This scenario, until recently, might have read like a dystopian projection. But after the court’s decision on Friday, it is no longer hypothetical.
slate.com
June 27, 2025 at 8:16 PM
"For the child born this summer in Texas, whose parents receive no documents, whose name never appears in any system, and who grows up asking why she can’t go on field trips, apply for scholarships, or open a bank account, the consequences are not legal theory. They are her life."
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
Denaturalization (in order to subsequently deport) has long been used as a tool of political repression to suppress dissent.
See Chapters 2, 3, 4, & 5 of "Threat of Dissent" 🗃️
See Chapters 2, 3, 4, & 5 of "Threat of Dissent" 🗃️
Rep. Andy Ogles, a Republican from Tennessee, has sent a letter to Pam Bondi calling for Zohran Mamdani to be stripped of his citizenship and deported.
June 26, 2025 at 10:24 PM
Denaturalization (in order to subsequently deport) has long been used as a tool of political repression to suppress dissent.
See Chapters 2, 3, 4, & 5 of "Threat of Dissent" 🗃️
See Chapters 2, 3, 4, & 5 of "Threat of Dissent" 🗃️
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
Early US intel assessment suggests strikes on Iran did not destroy nuclear sites, sources say, and likely only set it back "months" (while also possibly empowering hardliners and radicalizing the regime and sparking a rally-around-the-flag effect and)
Exclusive: Early US intel assessment suggests strikes on Iran did not destroy nuclear sites, sources say | CNN Politics
The US military strikes on three of Iran’s nuclear facilities last weekend did not destroy the core components of the country’s nuclear program and likely only set it back by months, according to an e...
www.cnn.com
June 24, 2025 at 6:59 PM
Early US intel assessment suggests strikes on Iran did not destroy nuclear sites, sources say, and likely only set it back "months" (while also possibly empowering hardliners and radicalizing the regime and sparking a rally-around-the-flag effect and)
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
Why am I so unimpressed by these strikes? Israel and the US have failed to target significant elements of Iran's nuclear materials and production infrastructure. RISING LION and MIDNIGHT HAMMER are tactically brilliant, but may turn out to be strategic failures. 🧵 1/17
June 23, 2025 at 1:27 AM
Why am I so unimpressed by these strikes? Israel and the US have failed to target significant elements of Iran's nuclear materials and production infrastructure. RISING LION and MIDNIGHT HAMMER are tactically brilliant, but may turn out to be strategic failures. 🧵 1/17
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
The Supreme Court hastened to add that the decision does not apply to members of the Federal Reserve
www.npr.org/2025/06/23/g...
www.npr.org/2025/06/23/g...
U.S. Supreme Court allows -- for now -- third-country deportations
A federal judge had previously said people must get at least 15 days to challenge their deportations to countries they're not originally from.
www.npr.org
June 24, 2025 at 12:31 AM
The Supreme Court hastened to add that the decision does not apply to members of the Federal Reserve
www.npr.org/2025/06/23/g...
www.npr.org/2025/06/23/g...
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
Every one of these petty, ideologically driven visa denials is an assault on *our* freedom of association, our right to hear, and our ability to learn about the world around us. They are meant to make us stupider, more susceptible to manipulation, and less free. www.nytimes.com/2025/06/19/w...
French Lawmaker Says He Was Denied Entry Into the United States
www.nytimes.com
June 20, 2025 at 11:16 AM
Every one of these petty, ideologically driven visa denials is an assault on *our* freedom of association, our right to hear, and our ability to learn about the world around us. They are meant to make us stupider, more susceptible to manipulation, and less free. www.nytimes.com/2025/06/19/w...
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
"An Australian man who was detained upon arrival at Los Angeles airport and deported back to Melbourne says United States border officials told him it was due to his writing on pro-Palestine protests by university students"
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...
Australian deported from US says he was ‘targeted’ due to writing on pro-Palestine student protests
Alistair Kitchen says he was detained and questioned about views on Israel and Palestine before being deported from LA to Melbourne
www.theguardian.com
June 15, 2025 at 8:26 AM
"An Australian man who was detained upon arrival at Los Angeles airport and deported back to Melbourne says United States border officials told him it was due to his writing on pro-Palestine protests by university students"
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...
www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
🚨🚨 ⬇️
A judge has ordered that Mohsen Mahdawi, the Columbia University student who was arrested two weeks ago by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents following his citizenship interview, be released from detention while his case proceeds.
abcnews.go.com/US/lawyers-c...
A judge has ordered that Mohsen Mahdawi, the Columbia University student who was arrested two weeks ago by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents following his citizenship interview, be released from detention while his case proceeds.
abcnews.go.com/US/lawyers-c...
Judge orders release of Columbia University student detained by ICE
Columbia University student Mohsen Mahdawi, who was arrested by ICE agents following his citizenship interview, has been ordered released while his case proceeds.
abcnews.go.com
April 30, 2025 at 2:44 PM
🚨🚨 ⬇️
A judge has ordered that Mohsen Mahdawi, the Columbia University student who was arrested two weeks ago by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents following his citizenship interview, be released from detention while his case proceeds.
abcnews.go.com/US/lawyers-c...
A judge has ordered that Mohsen Mahdawi, the Columbia University student who was arrested two weeks ago by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents following his citizenship interview, be released from detention while his case proceeds.
abcnews.go.com/US/lawyers-c...
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
From the Chinese Exclusion Act to pro-Palestinian activists: The evolution of politically motivated deportations
@us.theconversation.com
Rick Baldoz
theconversation.com/from-the-chi...
@us.theconversation.com
Rick Baldoz
theconversation.com/from-the-chi...
From the Chinese Exclusion Act to pro-Palestinian activists: The evolution of politically motivated deportations
An immigration historian says removal orders targeting student activists echo America’s long past of jailing and expelling immigrants because of their race, what they say or believe – or all three.
theconversation.com
April 30, 2025 at 3:33 PM
From the Chinese Exclusion Act to pro-Palestinian activists: The evolution of politically motivated deportations
@us.theconversation.com
Rick Baldoz
theconversation.com/from-the-chi...
@us.theconversation.com
Rick Baldoz
theconversation.com/from-the-chi...
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
Reminder that words matter. You can’t “deport” a US citizen. You might be kidnapping, disappearing, exiling, expelling, illegally removing, etc., but you’re not “deporting” a US citizen.
ACLU says another three US citizen children were disappeared from their own country today: www.aclu.org/press-releas...
ICE Deports 3 U.S. Citizen Children Held Incommunicado Prior to the Deportation | American Civil Liberties Union
Families disappeared and isolated without legal access; one child with cancer deported without medication and pregnant mother deported as well
www.aclu.org
April 26, 2025 at 1:29 AM
Reminder that words matter. You can’t “deport” a US citizen. You might be kidnapping, disappearing, exiling, expelling, illegally removing, etc., but you’re not “deporting” a US citizen.
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
Even established authoritarian regimes consider arresting defiant judges an extreme tactic—a serious escalation usually reserved for after one-party rule is firmly entrenched. Seeing a judge arrested in the US today should alarm everyone who values democratic governance. This cannot be allowed. 🧵
April 25, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Even established authoritarian regimes consider arresting defiant judges an extreme tactic—a serious escalation usually reserved for after one-party rule is firmly entrenched. Seeing a judge arrested in the US today should alarm everyone who values democratic governance. This cannot be allowed. 🧵
Reposted by Connor Kopchick
BREAKING: In a sudden about-face, a DOJ attorney saiys ICE will be RESTORING the status of thousands of foreign students whose SEVIS records were terminated w/o notice earlier this month.
The move comes amid mounting losses in courts around the country.
www.wusa9.com/article/news...
The move comes amid mounting losses in courts around the country.
www.wusa9.com/article/news...
ICE backs down, says it will restore status of thousands of foreign students
Hundreds of foreign students in the U.S. on F-1 visas said they were informed their SEVIS records were suddenly terminated by DHS.
www.wusa9.com
April 25, 2025 at 3:21 PM
BREAKING: In a sudden about-face, a DOJ attorney saiys ICE will be RESTORING the status of thousands of foreign students whose SEVIS records were terminated w/o notice earlier this month.
The move comes amid mounting losses in courts around the country.
www.wusa9.com/article/news...
The move comes amid mounting losses in courts around the country.
www.wusa9.com/article/news...