Matt Johnson
@mattjj89.bsky.social
đ€ 255
đ„ 20
đ 53
Writer
reposted by
Matt Johnson
Shikha Dalmia
14 days ago
The diabolical nature of this stroke of Millerian evil cannot be overstated.
www.nytimes.com/2026/05/22/u...
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Green Card Seekers Must Leave U.S. to Apply, Trump Administration Says
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/22/us/politics/green-card-changes-trump.html?smid=bs-share
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
Shikha Dalmia
13 days ago
No piece has resulted in as many cancelled readers for
@theunpopulist.net
as this one by
@mattjj89.bsky.social
, which is just fine. You want people to read you for the right reasons.
open.substack.com/pub/theunpop...
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Hasan Piker Is Following in Candace Owens's Footsteps
Responsible liberals must curb him now, before he's uncontrollableânot exploit him to beat Trump
https://open.substack.com/pub/theunpopulist/p/hasan-piker-is-following-in-candace?r=6jqoy&utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
18 days ago
Ryan Holidayâs MAGA critics seem to assume that Stoicism preaches political quietism, but this isnât true. Holiday is showing how nonpolitical influencers can find their anti-authoritarian voice. Matt Johnson on Holiday and Ivanka Trump's pseudo-philosophy:
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Ivanka Trump Doesnât Understand Her Favorite Philosophy
Author Ryan Holiday slammed Trumpâs daughter for reducing Stoicism to a bauble, showing along the way how nonpolitical influencers can find their anti-authoritarian voice.
https://lnk.thebulwark.com/4eWf7aR
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
about 1 month ago
Itâs insulting to suggest that Americans are indifferent to the spectacle of a sitting president laying siege to their democracyâespecially when the evidence of Americansâ awareness and alarm is greater than ever.
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Hungary Proved That Liberalism Can Win
Péter Magyar ran against authoritarianism, not the price of eggs.
https://lnk.thebulwark.com/4mNMDlF
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
about 1 month ago
The American pro-democracy coalition "must recognize the power of building a political movement around a commitment to fundamental liberal principlesâwhich means recovering the radical and inspiring political vision of liberalism."
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Hungary Proved That Liberalism Can Win
Péter Magyar ran against authoritarianism, not the price of eggs.
https://lnk.thebulwark.com/4mNMDlF
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
about 1 month ago
Make no mistake: The defeat of OrbĂĄn is a major victory for liberalismâand not just in Hungary. Now it's time for us to learn from Hungary's victory over corrupt authoritarianism. New from Matt Johnson:
lnk.thebulwark.com/4mNMDlF
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
John Bonifaz
about 2 months ago
"At this stage, impeachment is not merely about accountability for a rogue president, but an assertion of our own moral limitsâa reminder to ourselves that some things should still remain beyond the pale." Thank you
@mattjj89.bsky.social
.
@fsfp.bsky.social
open.substack.com/pub/theunpop...
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America Needs to Impeach Trump For its Own Moral Health
Even an unsuccessful effort will show that many Americans reject threats of genocide to win a war
https://open.substack.com/pub/theunpopulist/p/america-needs-to-impeach-trump-for?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
Shikha Dalmia
about 2 months ago
We cannot minimize and normalize genocidal rhetoric as "some colorful language." It'll numb and inure us, undermining our capacity to make proper moral distinctions, engage in moral reasoning itself.
@mattjj89.bsky.social
at
@theunpopulist.net
open.substack.com/pub/theunpop...
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America Needs to Impeach Trump For its Own Moral Health
Even an unsuccessful effort will show that many Americans reject threats of genocide to win a war
https://open.substack.com/pub/theunpopulist/p/america-needs-to-impeach-trump-for?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
Berny Belvedere
about 2 months ago
Man, this is so goodâand morally urgentâfrom
@mattjj89.bsky.social
in
@theunpopulist.net
Share this one widely
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America Needs to Impeach Trump For its Own Moral Health
Even an unsuccessful effort will show that many Americans reject threats of genocide to win a war
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/america-needs-to-impeach-trump-for
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Where is Congress? âA whole civilization will dieâ? This is genocidal rhetoric. Enough
about 2 months ago
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
2 months ago
"With all this exploring, building, and pioneering to do, thereâs little time for introspection. This is why itâs no surprise that several prominent Silicon Valley types are attracted to Donald Trump."
lnk.thebulwark.com/40REkuQ
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Why Tech Titans Love Trump and Hate âIntrospectionâ
Silicon Valleyâs âbuildersâ love the president whoâs destroying everything.
https://lnk.thebulwark.com/40REkuQ
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
2 months ago
"Andreessen later cited Marcus Aureliusâs advice to 'stop talking about what the good man is like, and just be one' to support his case, apparently indifferent to the fact that this line comes from Aureliusâs Meditations."
lnk.thebulwark.com/40REkuQ
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
2 months ago
"More fundamentally, the Trump era will serve as a historic warning....Weâre overdue for some national introspection."
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Why Tech Titans Love Trump and Hate âIntrospectionâ
Silicon Valleyâs âbuildersâ love the president whoâs destroying everything.
https://lnk.thebulwark.com/40REkuQ
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
2 months ago
If Trump's Silicon Valley friends would take a moment to reflect on the long-term consequences of empowering an authoritarian to "just do things," they would see that many of Trumpâs achievements are a dangerous mirage. Matt Johnson on the tech titans:
lnk.thebulwark.com/40REkuQ
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Why Tech Titans Love Trump and Hate âIntrospectionâ
Silicon Valleyâs âbuildersâ love the president whoâs destroying everything.
https://lnk.thebulwark.com/40REkuQ
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The UnPopulist
3 months ago
RFK Jr. promised to keep the CDC's statement that vaccines don't cause autism on the website. He kept itâbut directly contravened it by adding a line saying that studies supporting a link "have been ignored by health authorities."
@mattjj89.bsky.social
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RFK Jr. Lied His Way Into Office and American Health Is the Victim
He is pushing quackery as science as health secretary
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/rfk-jr-lied-his-way-into-office-and
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The United Statesâ allies worried that Trump would inaugurate a new era of American isolationism, but the reality turned out to be much worse. They must now find a way to navigate a world in which American hostility is a new global threat. My latest, no paywall
open.substack.com/pub/mattjj/p...
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Trump has left America's friends with no good options
What's even worse than American isolationism?
https://open.substack.com/pub/mattjj/p/trump-has-left-americas-friends-with?r=1auol&utm_medium=ios
3 months ago
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
Berny Belvedere
3 months ago
âCongratulations are in order for Donald Trump: His attack on Iran is the most unpopular American war in modern history.â â
@gregsargent.bsky.social
in
@newrepublic.com
Greg is essential reading for understanding MAGAâs ongoing reception in society.
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How Trumpâs War on Iran Is Hastening the Coming MAGA Crack-Up
Another Middle East war is exactly what the young voters and voters of color who flocked to Trump in 2024 did not sign up for.
https://newrepublic.com/article/207604/trump-iran-maga-crack-up
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
3 months ago
"While the U.S. military can plan an air campaign, itâs up to the civilian leadership to set strategy and determine which ends Americaâs mighty means are working toward." You can't have one without the other. (Well, you can, and you might get disaster.)
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Trump Is Repeating Putinâs Blunder
Both men thought they could start easy, quick regime-change wars at minimal cost.
https://lnk.thebulwark.com/4s2dLin
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
Sarah Longwell
3 months ago
"To TACO or not to TACO, that is Donald Trumpâs question. I think we know how itâs likely to be resolved."
@billkristolbulwark.bsky.social
,
@eggerdc.bsky.social
, and
@markhertling.bsky.social
in Morning Shots, only
@thebulwark.com
:
www.thebulwark.com/p/tacos-with...
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TACOs With a Side of War Porn
Despite his callous bluster, Trump is seemingly retreating.
https://www.thebulwark.com/p/tacos-with-a-side-of-war-porn-trump-hegseth-iran-attack
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
3 months ago
"Without taking into account the particular personalities of two major world leaders, itâs hard to explain two of the most important international events of the last five years." One of them could have learned from the other. New from Matt Johnson:
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Trump Is Repeating Putinâs Blunder
Both men thought they could start easy, quick regime-change wars at minimal cost.
https://lnk.thebulwark.com/4s2dLin
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
Andy Craig
3 months ago
You could make a case for Hegseth, but really RFK is at the top of the list for worst Senate confirmation of the bunch. He was a dedicated lifelong crackpot, nothing he has done is remotely surprising and the stuff he said to secure confirmation was transparently dishonest. Cassidy has no excuse.
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RFK Jr. Lied His Way Into Office and American Health Is the Victim
He is pushing quackery as science as health secretary
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/rfk-jr-lied-his-way-into-office-and
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The UnPopulist
3 months ago
South Carolina is in its largest measles outbreak in decades. Nearly 1,000 infected. The man running U.S. public health spent years arguing the MMR vaccine causes autism. This is what that looks like in practice.
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RFK Jr. Lied His Way Into Office and American Health Is the Victim
He is pushing quackery as science as health secretary
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/rfk-jr-lied-his-way-into-office-and
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
Berny Belvedere
3 months ago
"At a time when America desperately needed a champion for vaccination, it got the precise oppositeâa lifelong anti-vaccine crusader running the nationâs public health apparatus." Must-read from
@mattjj89.bsky.social
in
@theunpopulist.net
on the disaster that is RFK Jr.
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RFK Jr. Lied His Way Into Office and American Health Is the Victim
He is pushing quackery as science as health secretary
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/rfk-jr-lied-his-way-into-office-and
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
Anthony L. Fisher
4 months ago
Weird. I tried to warn libertarians about Trump
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
4 months ago
"The Postâs inability to make money covering a second Trump administration is a business catastrophe. It is also evidence of a moral collapse."
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Jeff Bezos Must Sell the Washington Post
Mass layoffs undermine his promises to protect a great American institution.
https://lnk.thebulwark.com/4tkLJ2P
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
Adam Keiper
4 months ago
"Itâs now impossible for Democrats to change the subject from the United Statesâ descent into authoritarianism, and they shouldnât want to"âno matter how often they are advised to focus on the price of eggs or are cautioned against criticizing law enforcement. From
@mattjj89.bsky.social
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Itâs the Democracy, Stupid
It turns out voters care about rights and freedoms after all.
https://www.thebulwark.com/p/its-the-democracy-stupid
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
4 months ago
Itâs now impossible for Democrats to change the subject from the United Statesâ descent into authoritarianism, and they shouldnât want to. Voters do care about the state of our democracy. New from Matt Johnson:
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Itâs the Democracy, Stupid
It turns out voters care about rights and freedoms after all.
https://lnk.thebulwark.com/4ry65nB
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Wow, must have been rough to be stuck in a restaurant for awhile. I heard a crazy story that an ICU nurse was executed for exercising his First and Second Amendment rights
4 months ago
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
Francis Fukuyama
5 months ago
Donât Back Down, Europe
open.substack.com/pub/persuasi...
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Donât Back Down, Europe
Trumpâs tariff threats against allies should be the last straw.
https://open.substack.com/pub/persuasion1/p/dont-back-down-europe?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web
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25th Amendment
5 months ago
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âWe have done so much for America.â â The mother of a Danish soldier who died in Afghanistan. What a shameful day for the United States.
www.theatlantic.com/national-sec...
5 months ago
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Surreal. This is the most dangerous moment of the long Trump decade. A madman with a childâs temper is consciously and single-handedly destroying the most important military alliance in history. Simply unbelievable that weâve fallen this far.
5 months ago
0
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0
reposted by
Matt Johnson
The UnPopulist
5 months ago
The effort to force 340 million diverse Americans to accept a narrow, postliberal-approved definition of the "common good" would be terrifyingly oppressive if it wasn't fundamentally unworkable.
@mattjj89.bsky.social
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Patrick Deneen's Bullshit Case Against Liberalism
He distorts everything about this governing system and offers a scary 'aristopopulist' authoritarianism as an alternative
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/patrick-deneens-bullshit-case-against
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The UnPopulist
5 months ago
The vice president who dismissed outrage over Nazi chat logs as "pearl clutching" draws inspiration from a theorist who thinks liberalism is "more insidious than fascism."
@mattjj89.bsky.social
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Patrick Deneen's Bullshit Case Against Liberalism
He distorts everything about this governing system and offers a scary 'aristopopulist' authoritarianism as an alternative
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/patrick-deneens-bullshit-case-against
0
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
Anne Applebaum
5 months ago
Now the Venezuelan regime has issued an emergency order telling police to âimmediately search and captureâ anyone who supports âthe armed attack by the United Statesâ
www.nytimes.com/live/2026/01...
add a skeleton here at some point
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
5 months ago
"Itâs easier to dislodge a tinpot dictator in Venezuela than to deter great powers....But this raises the biggest question at the heart of the 'Donroe Doctrine': Does Trump even want to deter those powers? Or does he want to carve up the world with them?"
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Trumpâs Obsession With Latin America Is a Strategic Calamity
While Trump gloats about Venezuela, he ignores the real risks to American security.
https://lnk.thebulwark.com/4aHNPmz
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
Anne Applebaum
5 months ago
Is this what Trump meant when he said we are "running" Venezuela?
add a skeleton here at some point
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
5 months ago
The Trump administration has decided to prioritize the Western Hemisphere over Europe and East Asia, a decision that empowers the United Statesâ two most powerful geopolitical rivals. Nothing about that could go wrong!
lnk.thebulwark.com/4aHNPmz
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Trump is serious about the âDonroe Doctrine,â and he will continue to prioritize hegemony, imperialism, and unilateralism over the liberal international order the United States has maintained for the past 80 years. My latest for
@ms.now
www.ms.now/opinion/trum...
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Opinion | Trump's so-called 'Donroe Doctrine' is old-fashioned imperialism
Matt Johnson: Trump's invasion of Venezuela may not be the tidy operation he's hoping for
https://www.ms.now/opinion/trump-venezuela-maduro-donroe-doctrine-oil
5 months ago
0
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
5 months ago
Beyond the question of what's actually going to happen in Venezuela now, the removal of Maduro is the opening move in a reckless new American grand strategy that will be self-defeating in an era of renewed great power conflict. New from Matt Johnson:
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Trumpâs Obsession With Latin America Is a Strategic Calamity
While Trump gloats about Venezuela, he ignores the real risks to American security.
https://lnk.thebulwark.com/4aHNPmz
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
Berny Belvedere
5 months ago
If you missed
@mattjj89.bsky.social
's epic profile of Rogan in
@theunpopulist.net
, please give it a read:
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Joe Rogan: A Conspiracist for the Trump Era
He pretends to be a non-partisan truth-seeker while flooding the zone with MAGA lies
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/joe-rogan-a-conspiracist-for-the
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
Anne Applebaum
5 months ago
Not sure I understand why the Trump administration cares about Christians in Nigeria and not Christians in Ukraine
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Anyone who wants to address the virulent conspiracism and antisemitism on the right shouldnât let Trump, Vance, and the most powerful men in the world get away with acting like craven moral imbeciles. Demand that they break their silence. My latest, no paywall
open.substack.com/pub/mattjj/p...
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Viral antisemitism and the civil war on the American right
The fevered conspiracism in MAGA can't just be pinned on a few rogue podcasters
https://open.substack.com/pub/mattjj/p/viral-antisemitism-and-the-civil?r=1auol&utm_medium=ios
6 months ago
0
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
jamelle
6 months ago
i have never quite understood the praise for deneen's work because he honestly just seems like a crank
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Patrick Deneen's Bullshit Case Against Liberalism
He distorts everything about this governing system and offers a scary 'aristopopulist' authoritarianism as an alternative
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/patrick-deneens-bullshit-case-against
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The UnPopulist
6 months ago
Deneen misrepresents liberalismâs fundamental principles and presents a warped history of liberalism that dismisses its achievements and exaggerates its weaknesses.
@mattjj89.bsky.social
loading . . .
Patrick Deneen's Bullshit Case Against Liberalism
He distorts everything about this governing system and offers a scary 'aristopopulist' authoritarianism as an alternative
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/patrick-deneens-bullshit-case-against
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
Berny Belvedere
6 months ago
Would you consider supporting us at
@theunpopulist.net
? Since our founding, in 2021, we've made available everything we've ever doneâessays, podcasts, videosâfor free to all. That's not changing. But we do need your help to make all that happen. Asking for $80 for the year. Give us a look đ
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Help Us Stand Up to Authoritarianism: Become a Paid Subscriber This Holiday Season
Right-wing extremism is well funded. That means liberals can't afford to hold back if they want to win.
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/help-us-stand-up-to-authoritarianism
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
6 months ago
"It has become increasingly clear what unrestrained Trumpism means for the country: corruption and cruelty at home, incompetence and anarchy abroad." Turns out Americans don't love it.
lnk.thebulwark.com/48TqBqY
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Americans Are Turning Hard Against Trumpism
His insane overreaches are giving Americans a new appreciation for free trade, immigration, and international alliances.
https://lnk.thebulwark.com/48TqBqY
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
6 months ago
The Trump era has forced Americans to reconsider and reaffirm first principles about our republic. The same applies to the public understanding of the liberal international order.
lnk.thebulwark.com/48TqBqY
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Americans Are Turning Hard Against Trumpism
His insane overreaches are giving Americans a new appreciation for free trade, immigration, and international alliances.
https://lnk.thebulwark.com/48TqBqY
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reposted by
Matt Johnson
The Bulwark
6 months ago
Not only is Trump personally unpopular; his shambolic and dangerous presidency is giving Americans a new appreciation for free trade, immigration, and international alliances. New from Matt Johnson:
lnk.thebulwark.com/48TqBqY
loading . . .
Americans Are Turning Hard Against Trumpism
His insane overreaches are giving Americans a new appreciation for free trade, immigration, and international alliances.
https://lnk.thebulwark.com/48TqBqY
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