One of the best things about radio is getting to hear directly from someone at the heart of the news: the measured choice of words, the voice rising to punctuate a point, the sudden sigh.
In a pair of meetings this year with the former student activist Mahmoud Khalil, my colleague Ximena Bustillo and I did just that. Our sometimes emotional conversations spanned everything from his multiple legal battles across the federal courts and immigration court system to the careful way he lives now.
Stephanie Keith/Getty Images
Khalil came to national attention when he helped negotiate with Columbia University administrators during massive pro-Palestinian protests that rocked the campus. Protesters set up encampments in the heart of Columbia’s campus in 2024, during the war in Gaza, calling for the university to divest from Israel.
Then he became the story after the Trump administration took him into custody a year ago and moved to deport him. Secretary of State Marco Rubio used a little-known 1952 law to declare his presence in the U.S. could have potentially serious foreign policy consequences.
Khalil spent 104 days in detention, mostly far away from his home in the New York area. Now free, the green-card holder is fighting to stay in the country alongside his wife and young son.
These days, he’s devoting most of his energy to court filings, which he views as part of his full-time job. Khalil knows his legal challenges could reverberate far beyond his personal experience and set important precedent for immigrants’ free speech rights.
"This case is not just about me; it's about whether the government can detain a lawful resident for political speech,” he said.
He also shared more about what lifehas been like at the center of the storm, since his release from a crowded immigration center in Louisiana.
He won’t walk outside alone with his son or take him to the park, for fear he could be detained anew by immigration officers. He looks behind his shoulder as he walks down the street, wears a baseball cap pulled low over his brow and chooses his seat on the subway carefully.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani recently raised Khalil’s case to President Trump. But it’s not clear what will come of that advocacy.
Khalil isn’t taking anything for granted. It’s up in the air whether he and his wife will plan a big first birthday party for their son in April. He’s watching and waiting for the courts to determine his fate.
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➡️ This year, the Democratic Senate primary in Texas recorded its highest-ever turnout for any primary for statewide office in the state’s history. More than 2.3 million votes were cast. It's a promising sign for Democrats during a midterm election year. Texas Democrats saw a large shift in their favor in counties with large Latino populations. Trump won a record number of Latino voters for a Republican candidate in 2024, and his win included many heavily Latino counties in South Texas.
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➡️ As global interest in deep-sea mining grows, the International Seabed Authority is developing rules for countries to lease and commercially mine internationally. The U.S. has opted out of the process and is forging ahead on its own. In January, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said it would expedite permits to mine in international waters. The announcement alarmed conservation groups, who expressed concern about cuts to the environmental review process. Rebecca Loomis, staff attorney at the Natural Resources Defense Council. Says it's "exponentially more risky to cut off opportunities for analysis and public input" in this "brand-new industry."
➡️ Easy-to-install solar panels that plug into regular outlets are gaining popularity as Americans worry about rising energy costs. These plug-in or balcony solar panels can reduce a homeowner's or renter's utility bill right away. To make them more widely available in the U.S., state lawmakers are proposing bills to eliminate complicated utility connection agreements. These are often required for larger solar rooftop installations, and most utilities say they should apply to plug-in solar too. But some legislators have delayed votes on these bills after electric utilities have raised safety concerns, primarily about lineworker safety during outages. Advocates for plug-in solar say concerns about the new technology have been addressed, and utilities are actually worried about losing business.
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