Posting Through It 076: Angry About ICE? Trump Might Have You on a Watchlist feat. Ken Klippenstein
10 snips
Feb 2, 2026 
Ken Klippenstein, investigative national security reporter known for exposing secret surveillance programs, breaks down hidden ICE watchlists and databases. He discusses how agencies collect protester data, the tech and AI making surveillance more powerful, and how these programs fit into America’s history of domestic spying. The conversation also touches on concerns about recent FBI leadership and political narratives.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
ICE Maintains Secret Protester Databases
- ICE agents openly discussed keeping a "nice little database" of protesters and labeling some as domestic terrorists.
- Public denials by DHS contrast with on-the-ground directives and intel collection forms revealing organized data collection.
Multiple Classified Watchlists Exist
- Ken found dozens of internal DHS watchlists with classified codenames like Blue Key and Grapevine used to track protesters.
- These systems are nascent, often classified, and built as part of a larger domestic counterinsurgency effort.
Border Patrol Directive To Collect Filmmaker Data
- A Border Patrol source described a directive to collect IDs and photos of people filming agents and hand them to Intel for "run ups."
- The field office handled the initial grab while Intelligence performed deeper checks like warrants and biometrics.
