French scientist denied US entry after critical phone messages found

[JPie]

A French scientist was denied entry to the US this month after immigration officers at an airport searched his phone and found messages in which he had expressed criticism of the Trump administration, said a French minister.

“I learned with concern that a French researcher who was traveling to a conference near Houston was denied entry to the United States before being expelled,” Philippe Baptiste, France’s minister of higher education and research, said in a statement on Monday to Agence France-Presse published by Le Monde.

Article: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/19/trump-musk-french-scientist-detained

 

[JPie]

I hope it’s not against forum policy to post a PSA to all members: if you have messages on your phone that are critical of this presidency, you may want to consider a burner phone and leaving your laptop home when you travel.

 

[LightBright]

Horrifying. Thank you for updating us on what’s going on.

I voted for reforms from the political targeting that went on during the B Administration. I expected this 47 Admin to get it because so many of his supporters were thought policed before.

IMO these recent revelations show thought policing on steroids - invasion of privacy where phone monitoring looks to me like illegal entry and illegal monitoring without warrant, as well as indiscriminate and baseless targeting of people who apparently have no civil rights.

This must be exposed and stopped. Where is the ACLU?

 

[ItsMainelyYou]

Will second.
Take the warning. This is not a drill. It applies to us all.

 

[Mreader]

I read that story. I hate what is happening.

 

[JPie]

Horrifying. Thank you for updating us on what’s going on.

I voted for reforms from the political targeting that went on during the B Administration. I expected this 47 Admin to get it because so many of his supporters were thought policed before.

IMO these recent revelations show thought policing on steroids - invasion of privacy where phone monitoring looks to me like illegal entry and illegal monitoring without warrant, as well as indiscriminate and baseless targeting of people who apparently have no civil rights.

This must be exposed and stopped. Where is the ACLU?

I don’t think we can count on the ACLU to help us because we’ve seen that court orders mean nothing to those in charge.

Personally, I am looking to community organizing as my rock. I’ve been volunteering to feed the homeless community that’s been attacked relentlessly and I also try to contribute to mutual aid.

I think anything we can do to support each other and not rely on government agencies or non-profits dependent on government grants would ultimately set us up to weather the coming storm, and help us build the kind of community we want to be part of after the storm.

 

[LightBright]

Michael Shellenberger on Twitter has an interesting pinned post today related to this issue. I think the calm and reasonable voices, speaking to our shared values on personal liberty, are essential and will help us prevail. All conscientious Americans, not the left or right but all of us, should see this newly exposed exceptional treatment of non citizens as a breakdown.

 

[kenny]

Thank you 77.3 million Americans.

 

[JPie]

Thank you 77.3 million Americans.

I’m angry at the people who lied to those 77.3M Americans.

 

[kenny]

I’m angry at the people who lied to those 77.3M Americans.

But why did 77.3 million not recognize the lies, as others did?

I'm angry at:

1. The revered and tax exempt organizations that destroy critical thinking ... starting in Sunday school.

2. The trillionaires who designed social media to addict people and nourish the most unsavory side of our psychology.

 

[JPie]

But why did 77.3 million not recognize the lies, as others did?

I'm angry at:

1. The revered and tax exempt organizations that destroy critical thinking ... starting in Sunday school.

2. The trillionaires who designed social media to addict people and nourish the most unsavory side of our psychology.

That’s a great question. If I had to guess, I’d say:

Agree on your first and second points, plus those same forces have been distracting and dividing us with non-stop culture wars.

On top of that, public education has been underfunded for decades, and the result is a large population of people lacking in critical thinking skills.

Edited to add: I bought into the culture wars and other divisive rhetoric full stop, so I direct this criticism at myself as much as anyone else.

I’ve come to the conclusion that with the exception of the obscenely wealthy who’ve been pulling the strings, the rest of us are fundamentally more alike than we are different. I think every person is more concerned about affordable food, health care, and good education for the children than they are about what bathroom their neighbor uses and who they marry.

 

[dk168]

Not planning to set foot in US soil until 2029 as soon as the results were in.

DK

 

[Karl_K]

I think and have thought for a long time that the cell phone searches are bs and should be illegal.
However its been used a lot.

There are cases working though the system but for now warrentless searches at the border are legal.

We dont actually know what was on the phone just a totally biased report.

Federal Judge Makes History in Holding That Border Searches of Cell Phones Require a Warrant

With United States v. Smith (S.D.N.Y. May 11, 2023), a district court judge in New York made history by being the first court to rule that a warrant is required for a cell phone search at the border, “absent exigent circumstances” (although other district courts have wanted to do so).EFF is...

www.eff.org

.......
For a century, the Supreme Court has recognized a border search exception to the Fourth Amendment’s warrant requirement, allowing not only warrantless but also often suspicionless searches of luggage and other items crossing the border.

The number of warrantless device searches at the border and the significant invasion of privacy they represent is only increasing. In Fiscal Year 2022, CBP conducted an all-time high of 45,499 device searches......
Who was president in 2022?

 

[kenny]

I recommend people stop 'living' on their phone.

Delete all apps.
Don't use any cloud service.
Don't use a telephone to do anything on the Internet that is not absolutely essential.
Better yet, wait till you're home and do it on your desktop or laptop - those are not in your pocket or purse all day.
Be smart; just use your phone as a telephone ... even then, as seldom as possible.

Don't be merely smart.
Be better, be genius.
Replace your "smartphone" with a new "genius no phone".

You don't need it.
You'll be fine.
Proof: we were fine before they started taking over our lives.
Actually, we were better than fine.

 

[Avondale]

I’m angry at the people who lied to those 77.3M Americans.

In order for a lie to get hold, you need the person hearing it to believe it. And, frankly, there's no excuse for believing some of the lies I heard and read during the past year.

If you willingly shut your eyes and refuse to acknowledge reality, you can't really blame it on being lied to because you were an equally active participant in the deception.

 

[Bron357]

How bizarre, surely US Border Force should be focused on, you know, illegal drugs, undeclared foodstuffs that pose a quarantine risk, a bag full of blood diamonds, a suitcase of money and not a random comment on some foreign travelers phone.
Big brother is definitely watching and he’s mean, nasty and out to get you.
A burner phone won’t help, your internet footprint follows you regardless.

 

[Lookinagain]

"The researcher was reportedly then accused of writings “that reflect hatred toward XXX and can be described as terrorism”.

Really? So now not liking someone is terrorism?

 

[JPie]

In order for a lie to get hold, you need the person hearing it to believe it. And, frankly, there's no excuse for believing some of the lies I heard and read during the past year.

If you willingly shut your eyes and refuse to acknowledge reality, you can't really blame it on being lied to because you were an equally active participant in the deception.

If this were 2016, I would have wholeheartedly agreed with what you wrote.

Of the stories I’ve seen about people who feel lied to and betrayed, their surprise felt genuine to me. If I refuse to show them grace, I worry that the alternative is to let anger and resentment prevent me from seeing their humanity. Dehumanizing and “othering” large groups of people tend to not end well for any of us.

I also ask myself who benefits from that anger and resentment, and the answer seems to be the oligarchs running the show.

That’s been my journey and I know everyone has their own.

 

[Avondale]

If this were 2016, I would have wholeheartedly agreed with what you wrote.

Of the stories I’ve seen about people who feel lied to and betrayed, their surprise felt genuine to me. If I refuse to show them grace, I worry that the alternative is to let anger and resentment prevent me from seeing their humanity. Dehumanizing and “othering” large groups of people tend to not end well for any of us.

I also ask myself who benefits from that anger and resentment, and the answer seems to be the oligarchs running the show.

That’s been my journey and I know everyone has their own.

I agree that anger and resentment are not productive emotions in this situation.

But I also believe there is a spectrum, a range between showing grace and experiencing resentment. It's not limited to these two emotions.

Society is often complacent when it comes to lack of knowledge, understanding, and desire to be well informed. We say "oh, they didn't know any better" and designate the person to the group of people who bear no responsibility for the events and are merely victims of the circumstances.

And I believe this is the wrong approach. I believe society should hold its members accountable when they choose ignorance in matters of such great importance.

Nowadays, when almost anyone in the western world has a portable computer in their pocket and unlimited access to the internet, there is no longer an excuse to not know even the basic stuff. When you have the ability to ask literally hundreds of millions of people through the different social medias, when you can read all sorts of materials on the subject of interest - from articles written to explain the concepts in the most basic and easy to understand manner, all the way to academic research and papers, you have absolutely no excuse to believe the blatant lies a small group of people keep repeating on media.

If you choose to believe rather than check the information yourself, you're choosing ignorance and you're responsible for that choice.

Because in the end everything comes down to making a well informed decision. It may be the wrong decision in hindsight. Or it may be that you put your best effort in, but you were still left confused because the subject at hand was too difficult to understand and way outside of your scope.

But as long as you're able to say "I was informed (or I tried to my best ability to be informed) and I chose this option rather than the other because I believed the former to be more reasonable, and the latter to be worse and inferior", then you're taking agency. Which means you're also able to take responsibility, and, in case you were wrong - to admit it, analyse where you went wrong, learn and adapt in the future.

None of this is possible if you instead say "I was lied to. It was not my fault, they lied to me, I was mislead." And when that approach of absolving oneself of responsibility is so widely accepted in society as it is today, it stifles the possibility for development, for improvement, and for becoming better.

 

[missy]

I hesitate to post here but for the sake of more than one viewpoint I will
I will ignore any rude and nasty posts just fyi
I welcome a civil conversation

https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/20/europe/french-researcher-expelled-trump-intl-latam/index.html

"Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement Thursday that “any claim that his removal was based on political beliefs is blatantly false.

“The French researcher in question was in possession of confidential information on his electronic device from Los Alamos National Laboratory — in violation of a non-disclosure agreement — something he admitted to taking without permission and attempted to conceal,” she said.

"


Do I (or you) know which story is true? No
None of us do
Time will tell
As with everything

Do any of us truly know yet what really happened here?
NO
Do I trust mainstream media
NO
Let's see how this plays out
Let the facts (the true facts) come to light


And as for all of you who are writing about lack of knowledge and poor choices there are more than two sides to each story and for the reasons people voted the way they did. Feel free to go ahead and vilify all who don't agree with everything you believe. If you think sheer force and/or bullying will get you anywhere you are sadly mistaken.

Many of you here have closed minds and will never veer from what you believe now.
So much so that you won't open your minds to any facts that disagree with your narrative.
I say this with all due respect.

That’s been my journey and I know everyone has their own.

Thank you and I agree. We all have our own journey and we all have valid reasons for feeling the way we do
Rarely is anything truly black and white
I will not defend this current administration
Just as I could not defend the prior administration
I voted for Biden in 2020
I felt that was the best choice at the time
In hindsight did I regret that choice?
Yes and no. I couldn't have voted differently in 2020 because I voted for whom I felt was the best candidate
Just as I voted this election


Do I wish things were different?
Yes
Did I wish things were different over the past 17 months?
Hell Yes!!!

It is in very large part due to the past administrations that we are in this pickle
Agree or not
This is how I (and many others) feel
You can discredit how we feel and why we feel the way we do but it won't change the facts

the rest of us are fundamentally more alike than we are different. I think every person is more concerned about affordable food, health care, and good education for the children than they are about what bathroom their neighbor uses and who they marry.

100% agree

If you choose to believe rather than check the information yourself, you're choosing ignorance and you're responsible for that choice.

100% right back at ya




Wishing for peace for us all
No clue how to get there
But fervently wishing for better days ahead
For us all

 

[missy]

 

[Rockdiamond]

Detentions of European tourists at US borders spark fears of traveling to America

U.S. authorities have arrested and detained Canadian and European travelers at U.S. borders in recent weeks.

apnews.com

I’ve traveled internationally more times than I could count. Never has my country phone been searched.
Anyone else have their phone searched?
Sadly, the spokespeople for our government have a horrible relationship with the truth.
There’s many news reports about travelers being arrested for minor paperwork issues and spending weeks in deplorable conditions.
At this point it’s way beyond “blaming” people for who they voted for.
What we’ve known as America is gone. Done. Put a fork in it.
Who in their right mind would risk traveling here for vacation?
In a few short months we’ve alienated all our closest allies. And it’s been done in a way that will take decades to repair. If ever.
American products are being shunned all over the world.
The economy will tank as tariffs spike inflation.
It really doesn’t matter who anyone voted for at this point.
The consequences are coming for all of us.
Maybe the election didn’t even matter. Maybe this would have all happened anyway. It’s just so sad. For all of us.

 

[missy]

Yes very sad David. On that we can agree
I’ve felt we’ve been living in the twilight zone for the past almost 18 months
That’s the truth
I was horrified at this country’s reaction to the brutal attack on Israel
The only country in the Middle East fighting for everyone’s freedom
But I digress
Just sharing the shock I felt and continue to feel at the lack of not just empathy for Israelis and Jews but how they were and are being dehumanized still

 

[Mreader]

Sorry to thread jack – Is that your arm Missy?

 

[missy]

Sorry to thread jack – Is that your arm Missy?

No lol. The only tattoos I have are on my hands from radiation treatments

Here’s my arm appropriately adorned with a kitty lol

 

[Mreader]

That’s an interesting article on CNN. I have a friend who does work within the gov and I sent it to her to ask her what she thought. It’s kind of a bummer that the person who got deported does not want to be interviewed because of course he would provide insight. This is what she said though - I put her notes in quotes:

“A few things that don’t add up for me about they US Story:

1. Why did they search his phone/electrinic device in the first place? While it’s true that they CAN search devices it’s extremely rare that they would ever do so - I’ve never had it happen to me and none of my colleagues or friends have.

2. The supposedly restricted information was so easy to access that an ICE agent was just able to find it by looking through the device, which would have also all been in French?

3. After realizing he had material in violation of US laws they just sent him away? No detention? No criminal charges? Just denied entry? I’ve held multiple government contracts and the penalty for holding information on a personal device or in a non-secured way is HUGE, like money fines and potential jail time.

So, lots of reasons why I’m questioning this narrative.”

Anyway not to say there’s not a logical explanation but the whole thing seeems odd.

 

[Mreader]

No lol. The only tattoos I have are on my hands from radiation treatments

Ok lol I remember you were talking about getting one. I would have expected a cat so I didn’t think it was yours haha but wasn’t sure.

 

[Rockdiamond]

I divested of all stocks about 2 weeks back. Much less stressful. Especially Fridays.
It seems so clear where we’re heading. Definitely made some nice profits for years. But now it’s all heading one way.
Maybe a stock market collapse might make our rulers change direction. Weird to be “rooting” for the market to fall.
Sorry to be a Debbie downer.

 

[Calliecake]

DH traveled overseas extensively for many years until 2019. His phone was never searched.

With everything that has happened recently nothing would surprise me now.

 

[JPie]

I agree that anger and resentment are not productive emotions in this situation.

But I also believe there is a spectrum, a range between showing grace and experiencing resentment. It's not limited to these two emotions.

Society is often complacent when it comes to lack of knowledge, understanding, and desire to be well informed. We say "oh, they didn't know any better" and designate the person to the group of people who bear no responsibility for the events and are merely victims of the circumstances.

And I believe this is the wrong approach. I believe society should hold its members accountable when they choose ignorance in matters of such great importance.

Nowadays, when almost anyone in the western world has a portable computer in their pocket and unlimited access to the internet, there is no longer an excuse to not know even the basic stuff. When you have the ability to ask literally hundreds of millions of people through the different social medias, when you can read all sorts of materials on the subject of interest - from articles written to explain the concepts in the most basic and easy to understand manner, all the way to academic research and papers, you have absolutely no excuse to believe the blatant lies a small group of people keep repeating on media.

If you choose to believe rather than check the information yourself, you're choosing ignorance and you're responsible for that choice.

Because in the end everything comes down to making a well informed decision. It may be the wrong decision in hindsight. Or it may be that you put your best effort in, but you were still left confused because the subject at hand was too difficult to understand and way outside of your scope.

But as long as you're able to say "I was informed (or I tried to my best ability to be informed) and I chose this option rather than the other because I believed the former to be more reasonable, and the latter to be worse and inferior", then you're taking agency. Which means you're also able to take responsibility, and, in case you were wrong - to admit it, analyse where you went wrong, learn and adapt in the future.

None of this is possible if you instead say "I was lied to. It was not my fault, they lied to me, I was mislead." And when that approach of absolving oneself of responsibility is so widely accepted in society as it is today, it stifles the possibility for development, for improvement, and for becoming better.

What does holding people accountable for their votes look like in your view?