One of the strange things about the argument made by Ezra Klein, Adam Jentleson, Matt Yglesias and others that Dems need to moderate their policies and expand the Senate map is that it oddly ignores how remarkably successful Dems are in winning statewide races in swing states 🧵

Donald Trump is deeply unpopular. It's the single most important development in American politics today truthandcons.substack.com/p/our-deeply...

The political conventional wisdom is that violence on the streets of LA will provide a political boost for President Trump. Here’s why the conventional wisdom is probably wrong. truthandcons.substack.com/p/los-angele...

OPINION by @speechboy71.bsky.social: Michael highlights a new report suggesting a simple reason for the Democrats’ 2024 loss. “Female support for the Democratic ticket was constant throughout these four elections; only male support for Democrats fluctuated.” READ MORE:

this was a great conversation between @gregsargent.bsky.social and @speechboy71.bsky.social about the role of Stephen Miller This was on full display last night during the interview with Terry Moran. Trump made it clear he's not in control and just repeats the lies he's fed

Indeed, something odd going on here. Read @gregsargent.bsky.social exchange with @speechboy71.bsky.social⤵️ Note: DOJ has completely mischaracterized (and even misquoted) the Supreme Court order in filings before district court in Abrego Garcia's case. And here's the Q&A with President Trump:

This convo bw @gregsargent.bsky.social & @speechboy71.bsky.social gets at the imp dynamic we explained in our @msnbc.com piece, and the prominent role Stephen Miller is playing in this mess DOJ’s filings after Miller’s comments become more recalcitrant and misleading www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...

On The Daily Blast, @gregsargent.bsky.social talks to @speechboy71.bsky.social. He explains how we know Trump’s aides are keeping him in a state of delusion, and why that’s heading to an alarming place. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

Donald Trump’s recent interview with Time magazine suggests that he is doing the policy bidding of Stephen Miller and is simply unaware that his administration is breaking the law in the Kilmar Abrego Garcia deportation case. truthandcons.substack.com/p/is-stephen...

If we're going to have a constitutional crisis let's have a proper one where none of the principals are confused about what's happening!

Donald Trump’s recent interview with Time magazine suggests that he is doing the policy bidding of Stephen Miller and is simply unaware that his administration is breaking the law in the Kilmar Abrego Garcia deportation case. truthandcons.substack.com/p/is-stephen...

OPINION by @speechboy71.bsky.social: Michael writes that while Republicans define themselves as conservatives, they have ‘discarded any notion of actual conservatism.’ “The GOP is the party of Trump — and defined not by ideology, but rather clownish cultism.” READ MORE:

Lots of people are trying to convince themselves that Trump is imposing tariffs as an opening volley in trade negotiations. But it's simply not true. Trump wants to end trade deficits, and he's too stupid to realize that his plan won't work ... truthandcons.substack.com/p/trump-does...

The Latest for Truth and Consequences: I've long thought Prohibition was America's stupidest moment ... but in the past week, Trump may have topped that idiocy truthandcons.substack.com/p/americas-d...

The Latest for Truth and Consequences: I've long thought Prohibition was America's stupidest moment ... but in the past week, Trump may have topped that idiocy truthandcons.substack.com/p/americas-d...

THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A “TRADE DEFICIT”—IT’S JUST CALLED “BUYING THINGS.” YOU DO NOT HAVE A TRADE DEFICIT WITH YOUR DENTIST JUST BECAUSE HE NEVER BUYS ANYTHING FROM YOU.

I think it’s probably true many Trump voters “didn’t vote for this.” But if so, then they voted either without knowing or without thinking seriously about policies he constantly insisted he was going to implement, which is also pretty culpable. If you’re that uninformed or unreflective, stay home.

The question of if a country could fuck itself harder than the UK did with Brexit has today been answered.

This was….five months ago

We simply had to intentionally destroy the world’s strongest economy while dismantling our scientific and educational infrastructure to ensure that a team with a trans girl would never finish second place in the Mountain West volleyball standings again

OPINION by @speechboy71.bsky.social: “How many times can Trump say he’s considering using the U.S. military to seize Greenland before we start taking him seriously?” READ MORE: www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...

For Truth and Consequences: Democrats are in trouble, but their supposedly dismal long-term prospects are dramatically overstated.https://truthandcons.substack.com/p/how-dead-are-democrats

For Truth and Consequences: I don't agree with Chuck Schumer, but his decision to keep the government funded is not just defensible but it shows why he's a good Senate leader ... truthandcons.substack.com/p/in-defense...

These guys really suck at negotiating

Schumer is acceding to the GOP’s plan to blow up D.C.’s budget by prohibiting us from spending a billion dollars *of our own money,* forcing devastating cuts to vital services out of pure spite toward our city and its residents. And he doesn’t bother defending his decision to throw us under the bus.

The absolute devastation that @chuckschumer.com is about to inflict on D.C. by supporting the GOP’s continuing resolution is hard to overstate. Massive cuts to schools and law enforcement. Teachers laid off en masse. Basic city services may grind to a halt because we *cannot spend our own money.*

I have to say: Chuck Schumer is a weak man and a fool. This was the one cudgel Dems had. Now it's up to the courts which we new from the beginning were at best going to slow some things down. There's 18 hours left to somehow bring additional pressure to bear. It will be really hard to do that.

I think it's obvious Senate Democrats should oppose this spending bill, but I will say in their defense this is hardly an easy decision for the reasons Gillibrand spells out here ... Trump will use the shutdown as an opportunity to do even more damage to the country

The institutional Democratic Party is guided by an almost pathological level of conflict avoidance in almost every direction. “What can we do to make the least number of people mad?” is just a bankrupt way to operate.

I get that Senate Dems are in a tough spot here but allowing this CR to pass means not only handing Trump a blank check but also legitimizing his assault on the federal government and surrendering the only leverage Dems have to stop him. It's political malpractice if they go through with this.

There's no grand strategy behind Trump's push to make Canada the 51st state ... it's all about ego and Trump's desire for a legacy accomplishment truthandcons.substack.com/p/trumps-mos...

I'm honestly running out of words I can use on the air to describe what's happening in and to this economy

There's no grand strategy behind Trump's push to make Canada the 51st state ... it's all about ego and Trump's desire for a legacy accomplishment truthandcons.substack.com/p/trumps-mos...

OPINION: “How can Canadians end these trade tensions if the reason Trump is slapping tariffs on their country keeps changing?” @speechboy71.bsky.social notes how Trump’s economic war on Canada looks like a first step toward annexation. READ MORE: www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...

This is exactly right:

Senate Democrats are in a tough spot, but with a government shutdown looming, they only have one option ... Shut It Down! open.substack.com/pub/truthand...

Musk claims Social Security is a "gigantic magnet to attract illegal immigrants." In fact, immigrants here illegally do not collect Social Security. But they pay $25.7 billion a year into it, a recent study found, so these undocumented workers are actually subsidizing Americans.

OPINION: “Canada’s fight with Trump is about more than just the personality of the country’s next leader.” @speechboy71.bsky.social on how Trump’s presidency completely upended Canada’s election. READ MORE: www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...

A Theory On Donald Trump's Recent Madness: He wants attention and doesn't care how he gets it. truthandcons.substack.com/p/a-theory-o...

Everybody's upset abt this or that thing Dems did or didn't do at the faux-SOTU. Poor messaging, poor this, bad that. Very few of those things matter much or will be things we'll remember in a couple months. What they do on the CR really does matter. A LOT. That shld be 10x more focus anything else.

A Theory On Donald Trump's Recent Madness: He wants attention and doesn't care how he gets it. truthandcons.substack.com/p/a-theory-o...

What's been missing from the discussion about Trump's Ukraine policy? US national security interests. It's hard to find any good explanation for how abandoning Ukraine, empowering Russia, or even quickly ending the war makes America safer truthandcons.substack.com/p/trumps-ukr...

There’s a rule of thumb I’ve heard from game designers & screenwriters more politicians should adopt: Pay close attention when the audience tells you there’s a problem, but ignore them when they tell you what they affirmatively want, because they have no idea.

What's been missing from the discussion about Trump's Ukraine policy? US national security interests. It's hard to find any good explanation for how abandoning Ukraine, empowering Russia, or even quickly ending the war makes America safer truthandcons.substack.com/p/trumps-ukr...

Hard agree w/Chris. This woman is 24. She was a teenager during the first Trump administration. It's not shocking that she believed some of his claims on the campaign trail last year. At the same time, there's no easy solution to the problem of voters completely disconnected from political debates

imagine doing this scene after already winning an Oscar for "The French Connection." that's Hackman to me

This is disgusting. www.washingtonpost.com/entertainmen...

The looming government shutdown is the only chance Democrats have to rein in Trump and Musk's excesses ... so why the hell are they negotiating with Republicans to keep the government funded? truthandcons.substack.com/p/what-the-h...

OPINION: “...now the president and the richest man in the world are essentially telling America’s would-be civil servants that they don’t respect them or their work.” @speechboy71.bsky.social writes about DOGE’s mass firings READ MORE: www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnb...