by Taylor Griggs

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Good morning, Portland! It's going to be chilly today, with a high of about 43 degrees. More on the local weather below, so let's skip the drawn out intro and. get to the news.

IN LOCAL NEWS:

• Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield is helping a group of protesters and journalists strengthen their case against the Department of Homeland Security. Rayfield's office submitted supporting evidence and legal arguments in a class-action lawsuit filed by the ACLU of Oregon on behalf of protesters and media. The lawsuit alleges federal agents used excessive force and violated the First Amendment rights of people demonstrating and recording at the ICE facility in Portland. You may remember a judge issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) in this lawsuit a couple of weeks ago, heavily restricting the use of tear gas by federal agents. That TRO expires today, so Rayfield wants the court to keep those restrictions in place.

• Once again, Portland police are testifying about excessive force by federal agents outside the city's ICE building. In a new court statement, Portland police Commander Craig Dobson called the feds' response to a January 31 labor-organized protest “excessive and disproportionate to the threat posed." Another officer called the federal response "unpredictable" in ways that have impacted Portland police's ability to respond. Understandably, Portland police don't want to get tear gassed. Guess what? The crowd of thousands of peaceful protesters, including elderly people, children, and, ahem, journalists, didn't want to get gassed either. The police testimony may help in ongoing cases alleging federal officers have used excessive force against protesters in Portland.

Lawyers for the city and state are seeking friend-of-the-court status in the suit filed by protesters and freelance journalists against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

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— The Oregonian (@oregonian.com) February 17, 2026 at 9:00 AM

• Avel Gordly, the first Black woman elected to Oregon's state Senate, died yesterday at the age of 79. Gordly was born in 1947 and grew up in Portland's historically Black Albina district, which she saw transform over her lifetime. In 1991, she was elected to the Oregon House of Representatives, following a career in advocacy (including fighting against apartheid in South Africa from here in Oregon). In 1996, she was elected to the Oregon Senate, where she stayed until 2009. Here's how her legislative colleague Karen Minnis described her: “She was a woman of influence, [who had] an impact, in every area of her life.” She touched many more lives, too.

• As predicted, snow is coming! The mountains have already gotten some snow, which is forecast to continue through the week (a winter weather advisory is in place for Oregon’s Cascades through Friday morning ). There’s a lot more uncertainty about whether or not the flakes will fall in low altitudes, too. We could see flurries in Portland today, but the snow is unlikely to stick. Stay tuned and expect the unexpected! At the very least, you can be relatively certain it’ll be cold and wet here in Portland, at least for the next few days and hopefully longer. False spring has lasted long enough.

• This week's Do This, Do That casts a wide net and drags in all sorts of sensorial good stuff: concerts (Cardi B, Julianna Barwick and Mary Lattimore, Visible Cloaks), vegan paczki and beignets, and a horny ass film festival called HUMP! Plus, Alexander Skarsgård is a leather dom biker in Pillion, and Lan Su Chinese Garden celebrates the Year of the Horse in the most Merc-approved way (with mini-horse meet-and-greets). Read up!

IN NATIONAL/WORLD NEWS:

• The Rev. Jesse Jackson died today at the age of 84. Jackson was an iconic and influential civil rights leader who helped reshape American politics with his two presidential campaigns in the 1980s. Jackson spent his whole life fighting for civil rights. As a college freshman in 1960, Jackson held a sit-in at a white-only library in his hometown of Greenville, South Carolina. He and other protesters were arrested for their civil disobedience, and the incident kicked off a lifetime of activism on Jackson's part. During the 1960s, Jackson befriended and became a close ally of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., witnessing King's assassination in 1968. In 1983, Jackson announced his first presidential run. He was the second Black person to ever run for president, following Shirley Chisholm's run a decade prior. Jackson placed third in the Democratic primary, with Walter Mondale clinching the nomination to run against President Ronald Reagan, who completely trounced Mondale. He ran again in 1988, and this time came in second to Michael Dukakis. Even though he never officially got the nomination, Jackson paved the way for Barack Obama's historic 2008 win. He also changed our country's culture and discourse in many other ways, helping create conditions where Americans would speak more openly about systemic racism and the disparities that continue to impact Black Americans and other people of color. Jackson's death comes after several years of living with various health issues, including Parkinson's disease. Rest in peace, Rev. Jackson.

• Stephen Colbert may have had his network contract cancelled, but his show is still on CBS (which, under Bari Weiss' leadership, has become the place to "see BS" news) for the next few months. The network seems to be creating more and more problems for the late-night host (and American freedom of speech at large), with Colbert alleging yesterday that CBS lawyers prevented him from airing an interview with Texas state Representative James Talarico, who has proven a galvanizing candidate for US Senate. Colbert said he was told to quietly scrap the interview. Instead, he brought it up on air. Remember, this is what happens when David Ellison is in charge. Ellison's company, Skydance (now merged with Paramount) also wants to purchase Warner Brothers, which would include news networks like CNN. Look at what years of unfettered media consolidation has done to our so-called democracy!!!

• Democrats in Congress have yet to reach a compromise that would reinstate funding for the Department of Homeland Security. Lawmakers want DHS to require federal agents to wear body cameras, clearly identify themselves, and ditch the masks during enforcement operations (the same standards most other law enforcement agencies across the US are held to). Tom Homan, the White House’s border czar, says agents “have to protect themselves” by wearing masks. A partial government shutdown began Saturday when Democrats couldn’t reach a deal with the Trump administration, though, as the AP reports, the work of agencies like ICE, Customs & Border Protection, and the Transportation Security Administration will mostly continue because Trump sent billions of extra funding to DHS through his tax cut and spending law in 2025. Congress is recessed until February 23. COURTNEY VAUGHN

• Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin is said to be leaving the Trump administration. Great! Now who is going to send us very loud but unverifiable comments anytime we publish a story about federal overreach? McLaughlin is expected to tell staff on Tuesday that she is leaving, which comes amid a congressional funding battle (see above) over how to abolish the agency, or rather, force officers to wear body cameras and badges when they beat up...