I might say reactionary centrism but same idea.

Yes.

Women should have jobs, but Ross Douthat shouldn’t.

It’s so goofy to think of this as a news publication rather than a propaganda/marketing site

"People just want to know: Are you on the take? Are you taking this corporate money or not? Are you going to fight for me? Are you going to stand up against the status quo and the oligarchs? The people that are able to have one-word answers to those questions are able to command those crowds."

"There is a hunger for a third space in American politics anchored to the interest of everyday people, labor unions, grassroots organizations, and activists coming from the grassroots," says @mauricewfp.bsky.social, explaining how Mamdani built his coalition. www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLyc...

There are two lessons from last noght, a local and a national. Nationwide, we see a mobilization of the Dem base and a rebuke of Trump’s vision. In New York—really a Dem-on-Dem race!—we see something more specific: the emergence of a new vision that contradicts the preferences of Dem leadership.

Note to all the Democratic politicians with aspirations who are coming out with statements, emails congratulating Democrats across the country for their well deserved victories but leaving out a big name from NYC - we see what you are doing. It's petty, pathetic and we will remember.

"Mamdani’s victory, above all, is a rebuke to the conventional strategies of the Democratic party. Democratic congressional leadership seems to have replaced the work of politics with a sort of learned helplessness," writes @moiradonegan.bsky.social. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

"Mamdani is not a warning shot; he is a sign of things to come. Dem voters everywhere want transformative change. They’re furious at party’s leaders and suspicious of candidates backed by an establishment that gets everything wrong," writes @alexshephard.bsky.social. newrepublic.com/article/2027...

so what you're saying is the centrist brunchlord substack punditry's claims that Dems have to shift further right to win is complete bullshit

like yes, a lot of this is just pendulum swing and fascism driving turnout but it's still just foundationally false that dems need to shift right (stop supporting trans people, embrace mindless corporate deregulation to spark "abundance," back off civil rights) to win. It's bullshit.

Nov 5, 2024 was terrible. But it's not Nov 2024 anymore. Trump is much more unpopular. He, not Biden, is getting blamed for affordability challenges. Democratic voters are much more activated. The "racial realignment" didn't even last a year. newrepublic.com/article/2026...

Big win for wokeness.

Waiting for all the breathless coverage about the all the people of color shifting blue in this election, since the shift to Trump a year ago was treated like a colossal re-ordering of the electorate that signaled the end of wokeness and progressive politics.

ah, perhaps instead of pumping millions into endless factional infighting Dem donors could invest in making local Dem organizations genuine civic spaces that can reach people during and between elections

Well said.

Mamdani's victory wasn't only a repudiation of an old and exhausted political establishment in the city, it was also a triumph over the framing power of the political press, and none more so than the New York Times, whose coverage and editorials worked relentlessly to dampen his appeal.

Embarrassing.

Why the WashPost, WSJ, and NYT all hate Mamdani. Excellent piece from @hamiltonnolan.bsky.social. www.cjr.org/analysis/leg...

Ezra klein endorsed

It is worth saying that putting “Africana studies” in scare quotes as if it’s a ridiculous concept is not a political argument. It’s just racism. “Africa is not worthy of a major” is the implication. Yeah dude you’re just racist. (From Gerard Baker at the WSJ today) www.wsj.com/opinion/mamd...

i'm a very biased party here but pretty much everything about the Mamdani campaign and the discourse around it thus far is a pretty thorough vindication of Africana Studies

It’s always democracy that must sacrifice in the direction of autocracy to prevent (?) autocracy from being implemented. And when this clownish scheme inevitably fails, it is only ever the fault of democracy.

He can go fuck himself and I can't wait to watch him lose but I am so smug that he's read the room and realized the wishcasted D pivot isn't happening and he can't win a MA senate seat as a transphobe. I do not regret to inform you that we are going to win.

ProPublica is hiring a reporter to join our amazing investigative unit with The Texas Tribune. APPLY HERE ➡️ propub.li/4qvyjzw

This was really clever and actually informative.

Condé Nast finally achieved its dream of wrecking Teen Vogue and killing its politics section. www.thecut.com/article/teen...

In contemporary authoritarian regimes, they don’t ban dissenting voices—they have regime affiliated oligarchs buy up the big outlets and force out opposition voices. Anyway:

This is terrible news. Teen Vogue has done tremendous political journalism in the Trump era. More outlets could learn from their courage and clear-eyed coverage.

Let's be more clear: they took politics seriously too. Also rare.

This is one of those inconvenient truths: it’s a lot easier for various well-paid strategists and pundits to advise “stop saying Latinx” (a non-issue) versus “substantively change the media environment and people’s online consumption habits”

"Schumer’s abstention only serves as yet another illustration of how detached Democratic leadership has become from the desires of their base, who crave drastic change." newrepublic.com/post/202554/...

"If you’re wondering what is causing the media to fall down on the job, it’s akin to Dem senators voting for Trump’s appointments: an act of desperation; a need to suggest that our democratic institutions are still working," @dceiver.bsky.social. Great piece. newrepublic.com/post/202475/...

"The reality — as any radical, socialist, or even progressive mayor has learned — is that winning City Hall does not grant its occupant the reins of power. The landlord and corporate class still hold most of them," writes Hadis Thier. Excellent piece. hammerandhope.org/article/mamd...

Ezra Klein is out of ideas and he has to keep writing as his job and that must be excruciating...

Polls can be useful in letting you know what some people think about particular things at a specific point in time. That's really it.

I would like for national political reporters to place a moratorium on “But what will voters in the rest of America think about New York City’s socialist mayor?” We don’t care! Red states are notably full of psycho politicians yet rarely do you see pundits asking Brooklyn people about them.

I find this distraction discourse unhelpful. Trump's video was appalling and significant and should be analyzed and denounced, and part of the work of politics is to turn it into a major controversy in its own right, as a symbol of Trump's autocratic disdain for the people.

Mr. Obama sir we tried to tell you that you were running with a bad crowd (billionaires), they’re bad news www.cnn.com/2025/10/31/p...

The Democratic Party can't ignore its base: "So you might call these the well-educated but financially struggling set. And I think that’s a lot more people than is commonly understood.” newrepublic.com/article/2024...

"The failure of Democratic Party politics to stop Trump’s election … it’s like, OK, now we see that the government can move fast. It can do some really bad things really fast. So why can’t it be some good things?" Terrific piece from @monicapotts.bsky.social. newrepublic.com/article/2024...

Zohran is not the only non-establishment Democratic running for mayor on a pledge to prioritize average people instead of donors and corporations. Great @monicapotts.bsky.social piece on @wilsonforseattle.bsky.social. newrepublic.com/article/2024...

"This is so much bigger than one election campaign, one candidate in New York. There is something roiling the waters of the Democratic Party. People angry that we blew last year's election. My party has not heeded the pitchfork antipathy about the party itself," says Dem operative Patrick Gaspard.

"If not for his clarity on Gaza, for his condemnation of that collective punishment and the use of U.S. resources to punish Palestinians, he doesn't have thousands of young people turning to him, volunteering on his behalf," says longtime Dem operative Patrick Gaspard, who is advising Mamdani.

"I"m super-enthusiastic about Mamdani. What I love about him is that he is not just anti-Cuomo. He’s proposing something that has obviously really excited a bunch of people. And we need to do more of that," says @smith.senate.gov. newrepublic.com/article/2024...

@perrybaconjr.bsky.social interviewed MN Sen. Tina Smith: so worth the watch: newrepublic.substack.com/p/shutdown-s...

"Too many people think that they're the only one. That's a conceit that happens when you've been in the Senate for a long time. It's not just about age. It's about your willingness to challenge the conventional thinking and make systemic change," says @smith.senate.gov.

"It isn't about age so much as it is about your willingness to challenge the status quo, not be part of the establishment. Neither Bernie nor Elizabeth are part of the establishment. The establishment protects itself. And that's not what they're about," says @smith.senate.gov.