Companies Assisting Trump in Immigration Crackdown Experience “Extraordinary” Profits

The companies involved in technology, surveillance, and private prison services that are supporting Donald Trump’s vast escalation and militarization of immigration enforcement are celebrating after announcing their recent financial performance.

Palantir, a tech firm alongside Geo Group and CoreCivic—both private prison and surveillance providers—reported this week that their earnings exceeded Wall Street’s forecasts, driven by the administration’s aggressive immigration policies.

“As usual, I was advised to temper my enthusiasm regarding our impressive numbers,” stated Alex Karp, CEO of Palantir, earlier this week. He then praised the company’s “remarkable numbers” and expressed his “immense pride” in its achievements.

Executives from private prison companies did not hesitate to highlight the chance for “unprecedented growth” in the immigration detention sector during their financial discussions.

Palantir reported that revenues from US government contracts exceeded $1 billion in the second quarter of 2025, a significant rise compared to the same period last year. Analysts had predicted revenue of $939.4 million.

Firms that aggregate and analyze various data sets, enabling clients to leverage that information for product development, will derive a substantial portion of their income from government deals. The largest customer in the US is the Department of Defense, which houses the US Army and recently announced a $10 billion contract with Palantir. Additionally, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has enhanced its partnership with Palantir since the Trump administration commenced, maintaining a collaboration that dates back to 2011. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) primarily focuses on the apprehension, detention, and deportation of immigrants.

“We provide safety and uphold values, so Palantir may face backlash simply because we help improve this nation,” Karp remarked. “The fact that we can succeed while holding a distinct viewpoint ought to provoke some jealousy and discomfort, given our perceptions of those we deem less desirable.”

While Palantir facilitates immigration enforcement, private prison companies Geo Group and CoreCivic have reported higher-than-expected earnings. Geo Group posted revenue of $636.2 million for the quarter, surpassing analysts’ forecasts of $623.4 million, while CoreCivic announced $5.382 million for the second quarter of this year, marking a 9.8% increase from the same period last year. George Zoley, CEO of Geo Group, noted that detention centers are fuller than ever, utilizing 20,000 beds across 21 Geo Group facilities and approximately one-third of the 57,000 available beds in ICE detention centers nationwide. Zoley also mentioned in a call that he is investigating detention centers on US military sites, one of the many “unprecedented growth opportunities” he discussed during the call.

Awaiting the Surveillance Boom

Though Geo Group’s detention sector has experienced a significant uplift, the growth of its monitoring division has not yet materialized as anticipated by executives earlier this year.

Executives anticipate that the Intensive Supervision Emergency Program (ISAP), an immigration monitoring initiative managed for the past 20 years by its subsidiary Bi Inc, will exceed its previous high of 370,000 monitored immigrants. Recent months have seen the number remain around 183,000 individuals.

“[ICE hasn’t] communicated any ISAP expansion at this time,” Zoley explained during an investor call.

Nevertheless, the company expects ISAP figures to rise next year, aiming to “maximize detention capacity.” The Trump administration has expressed interest in increasing the number of immigrants under surveillance through ankle monitors. Many immigrants have described ISAP surveillance as invasive and at times physically uncomfortable and ineffective.

In a discussion with investors, CoreCivic executives shared that they are offering ICE around 30,000 beds for detaining immigrants across their national network.

ICE Expansion Signals Future Financial Gains

A significant funding bill passed by Congress and signed by Trump last month has facilitated a substantial influx of funds into DHS. ICE received $45 billion to expand its detention infrastructure.

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Currently, ICE has approximately 41,500 beds available, while detaining around 57,000 individuals across its network. This funding influx could lead agents to detain thousands more, making it advantageous for private prison contractors.

“Our business is perfectly aligned with the demands of this moment,” stated CoreCivic CEO Damon T. Hininger during an investor call on Thursday. “We are in a unique situation, witnessing a rapid escalation of federal detention requirements nationwide, along with a continual need for our solutions.”

Management and budget offices are financially primed due to the spending package, allowing private prison firms to act swiftly in offering services to immigration officials.

“As we understand, the budget reflects moral priorities, and last month Congress decided to fully fund actions targeting the immigrant community at the cost of crucial programs benefiting all Americans.” “Since last November, private prison companies have been eagerly eyeing the potential for profit at the expense of everyone else.”

Since Trump’s re-inauguration this year, CoreCivic has amended, extended, or signed new contracts to detain immigrants at eight different facilities, as per the company’s financial reports. Geo Group has done similarly at five facilities.

Both firms expect to generate revenues amid increasing scrutiny from immigration rights and human rights organizations regarding conditions in immigration detention facilities across the nation.

Setareh remarked that the benefits from private prisons arise from “the devastation of human lives, orchestrated by the Trump administration, and made feasible by a complicit Congress.”

Cibola Correctional Facility, a facility in New Mexico housing both immigrants and federal prisoners, is currently facing investigation from the FBI for alleged drug trafficking activities. Since 2018, at least 15 individuals have died in the facility.

Last September, the company promoted Cibola as an ideal location for detaining additional migrants.

Source: www.theguardian.com

Innovative Approach to Assisting Parkinson’s Patients with Walking

Parkinson's disease is a neurodegenerative disease that makes it difficult for people to regulate their voluntary movements. Parkinson's disease affects about 500,000 Americans and causes symptoms such as stiffness, slowness of movement, and a hunched back. For this reason, the way the patient walks; How to walkis one of the main ways doctors determine the quality of life of Parkinson's disease patients. Doctors have developed a variety of treatments for Parkinson's disease, but few have been able to help patients walk.

Scientists have discovered that walking problems in Parkinson's disease patients are related to brain overactivity. This hyperactivity is caused by brain wave patterns. beta bandIt is located in a specific area of ​​the brain that regulates movement, known as the . subthalamic nucleusor STN. Researchers have developed treatments that modulate STN activity, but it is not known whether changing the associated brain wave patterns can help patients walk more easily.

Previous researchers have shown that electrical stimulation of a patient's skin in different areas can stimulate nerves that regulate muscle tone and other bodily functions. vagus nerve. Scientists in Italy and the United Kingdom recently discovered that a form of electrical stimulation Transauricular vagus nerve stimulation taVNS may help people with Parkinson's disease walk.

To perform taVNS, researchers placed electrodes in the outer ears of Parkinson's disease patients to stimulate the vagus nerve. Scientists had two main questions. Does taVNS reduce STN beta-band wave activity, and does this reduction in activity allow Parkinson's disease patients to walk more easily?

Researchers enrolled 10 people with Parkinson's disease in the study. Each patient was treated with a different type of electrical stimulation to the STN. They asked participants to stop taking traditional Parkinson's medications the night before the taVNS test and turned off electrical stimulation an hour before the test.

During the taVNS test, scientists applied two types of stimulation to each patient. One stimulated the vagus nerve through the ear, and the other stimulated another area that did not affect the brain. imitative stimulus. They ran each type of simulation on the patient four times for two minutes, with one minute in between.

The researchers also measured the patients' involuntary side-to-side movements while walking. swaythe time it took to change direction mid-test, or Rotation timemeasure the total number of steps, step length variability, total walking time, and walking speed, and compare the effects of real and imitation treatments on patients. Finally, each patient's quality of life was physically assessed using the Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale Part III.

The scientists found that during taVNS, patients' STN beta-band waves were 7% weaker on the right side than during mimic stimulation. They also found that taVNS improved patients' step length variability, total walking time, and walking speed. The researchers also used statistical tests to show that participants with less active STN beta-band brainwave patterns walked faster. However, there was no significant improvement in patients' quality of life based on rating scale scores.

The researchers concluded that taVNS could help Parkinson's patients walk faster, perhaps by altering brain waves in the STN beta band. They also pointed out that taVNS is a non-invasive treatment, meaning it does not require surgery or implantation into the body, and is much more affordable than invasive treatments. The scientists acknowledged that their study was small, and future researchers will look to do more research to further understand how STN beta-band waves are related to gait in Parkinson's disease. He emphasized the need to conduct trials in large patient groups.


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Source: sciworthy.com