Jonathan Alter
@jonathanalter.bsky.social
📤 5778
📥 49
📝 49
Journalist, historian, documentary filmmaker
reposted by
Jonathan Alter
Wen Z
about 2 months ago
"No Kings is brilliant because it's so capacious": You need only believe in America's founding principles to be a part of it. — Historian
@jonathanalter.bsky.social
, discussing
#NoKings
with
@jenrubin.bsky.social
and
@normeisen.bsky.social
of
@contrariannews.org
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Here’s the final chapter of the wildest story I’ve ever written. “Nick Rockefeller,” who died with his secret intact, may be the most successful imposter in US history.
share.google/K0qYhyU1HbbM...
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Nicholas Rockefeller's 40-Year Con: Part III
Beneath the “wonderful man” described by a Yale Law School classmate lurked a dark, abusive Mr. Hyde.
https://share.google/K0qYhyU1HbbMdd5h7
2 months ago
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Hey,
@susanchumsky.bsky.social
you may be right! But my people were in the Pale of Settlement then.
add a skeleton here at some point
2 months ago
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Here's Part II of the most bizarre story I've ever written.
airmail.news/issues/2025-...
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Nicholas Rockefeller's 40-Year Con: Part II
After faking his way into Harvard Law School—twice—Spiro Pavlovich turns up at Yale Law School with a new name: Nicholas Rockefeller.
https://airmail.news/issues/2025-9-27/the-40-year-con-part-ii
2 months ago
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I'm so saddened by the death of Bob Barnett, who represented me (for 27 years) and so many others on both sides in politics and journalism. It's cool to deride "insiders" and "elitists" and they have their faults. But they (we) have brought continuity and decency to the system. RIP, Bob.
3 months ago
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They're swimming in the Chicago River! This is the fulfillment of the vision of my late mother, Joanne Alter, who in 1972 was elected to the Sanitary District on a "Clean Water" platform. Thanks to all who helped her.
www.nytimes.com/card/2025/09...
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Chicagoans Avoided Their ‘Filthy’ River for Years. On Sunday, They Swam in It.
Decades of work to clean the Chicago River culminated with the first swim in almost 100 years. It was the latest sign of how the city’s relationship with its river has changed.
https://www.nytimes.com/card/2025/09/21/us/chicago-river-swim
3 months ago
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Bill Pulte, wo has been sliming the Fed's Lisa Cook, should look inside his own family. His parents have committed what he calls "mortgage fraud."
www.reuters.com/world/us/bil...
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https://www.reuters.com/world/us/bill-pulte-accused-fed-governor-lisa-cook-fraud-his-relatives-filed-housing-2025-09-05/?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
3 months ago
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Vance lied. The very conservative Cato Institute reports that since 1975 (excluding 9/11), 10 percent of political murders have been from the left, 23 percent from Islamicists, and 63 percent from the right. My latest Old Goats. Please subscribe--free or paid.
oldgoats.substack.com/p/can-spence...
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Can Spencer Cox Prevent a Civil War?
Amid all the hypocrisy and projection, focusing on social media might help us avoid becoming the Donner Party
https://oldgoats.substack.com/p/can-spencer-cox-prevent-a-civil-war
3 months ago
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My take on shutdown: Clinton-Era Lessons for Democrats Confronting Trump
www.nytimes.com/2025/09/12/o...
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Opinion | Clinton-Era Lessons for Democrats Confronting Trump
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/12/opinion/clinton-era-democrats-trump.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
3 months ago
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Please read
@marcelias.bsky.social
here for a fuller understanding of the thugs, creeps and liars now running our government.
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I’m not panicking. I’m outraged.
https://newsletters.democracydocket.com/im-not-panicking.-im-outraged?ecid=ACsprvvlUj1ndoMplSGl3T1U-nzPBaxrN1r2rVgujPZBUF2S2o51j4VcmOROLhkwnnJS9KmIsdMq
4 months ago
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Then and Now: Right-Wing Conspiracy Politics We discuss the John Birch Society, Dr. Strangelove and how much worse and more mainstream conspiracy theories are today. Five minutes only! Please subscribe to Old Goats, free or paid.
open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats...
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Then and Now: Right-Wing Conspiracy Politics
Julian Zelizer and I discuss the John Birch Society calling Ike a commie and Trump’s conspiracies boomeranging.
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/then-and-now-right-wing-conspiracy?r=3ljtf&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
5 months ago
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As Congress gets set to approve THE BIG UGLY BILL, it's essential that it be called that in EVERY reference to it--over and over again through the midterms. Americans are already overwhelmingly against THE BIG UGLY BILL, but need to call it by one name so the stigma sticks.
6 months ago
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The Police State is the Point. We're headed for one. Believe it.
open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats...
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The Police State is the Point
We’re rapidly moving toward one. Believe it.
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/the-police-state-is-the-point?r=3ljtf&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
6 months ago
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CBS Prez George Cheeks can resign and be an American hero—or be condemned by history. What’ll it be, George?
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Shari Redstone Might Be Headed for Jail
If Paramount's heiress chief settles with Trump, it will be seen as extortion and bribery. Plus: A new "Past and Presidency" video on Elon Musk and Joe McCarthy.
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/shari-redstone-might-be-headed-for?r=3ljtf
6 months ago
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Watch “Past and Presidency” with me and Prof. Julian Zelizer today at 11 am est. We’ll discuss the Big Ugly Bill.
7 months ago
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reposted by
Jonathan Alter
TeeZee
7 months ago
@jonathanalter.bsky.social
a 21 year survivor of a stage 4 cancer, says Biden’s cancer prognosis is 30% at 5 years. He says “someone has to be in the good percentages It might as well be Joe Biden. He’s a man of great decency & integrity & an awful lot of people in this country are rooting for him”❤️
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Tank vs. Tesla
x.com/SethAbramson...
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Seth Abramson on X: "RETWEET https://t.co/FPkrnlXIeT" / X
RETWEET https://t.co/FPkrnlXIeT
https://x.com/SethAbramson/status/1920185775389356293
7 months ago
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Our new show debuts: Past and Presidency with Jonathan Alter and Julian Zelizer
open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats...
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Past and Presidency with Jonathan Alter and Julian Zelizer
A recording from Jonathan Alter and Julian Zelizer's live video
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/past-and-presidency-with-jonathan?r=3ljtf&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
7 months ago
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Good news! Bezos backed off his idea to break out tariffs on Amazon products but the cat is out of the bag. When the toys parents buy (almost all from China) are more than twice as expensive, they will know to blame Trump
open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats...
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Good News! Bezos Screws Trump
Even though he backed off on breaking out the Trump Tariff on Amazon products, the cat is out of the bag
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/good-news-bezos-screws-trump?r=3ljtf
8 months ago
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FDR calmed and unified the country; Trump has terrified and further divided us
8 months ago
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open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats...
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Hey, TV, Don’t Bend the Knee!
The producer of 60 Minutes and the Evening News resigned today because he wouldn’t apologize for an accurate story.
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/hey-tv-dont-bend-the-knee?r=3ljtf
8 months ago
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Why’s that
@gastropoda.bsky.social
? There’s a lot of new stuff in my book after the Reagan victory—including his entire post -presidency.
add a skeleton here at some point
8 months ago
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It was his brother Billy, an alcoholic, who mismanaged Carter’s Warehouse but he also faced poor market conditions.
add a skeleton here at some point
8 months ago
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reposted by
Jonathan Alter
Alan Frady
8 months ago
Must read from
@jonathanalter.bsky.social
on
#FFELON
tariff exemption process. "This lawlessness makes it clear that he wants the “black hole” on tariff exemptions (and other key decisions) to be as dark as possible as soon as possible."
oldgoats.substack.com/p/trumps-hug...
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Trump’s Huge Tariff Exemption Grift
The latest shakedown makes Tammany Hall and the Daley Machine look like the League of Women Voters
https://oldgoats.substack.com/p/trumps-huge-tariff-exemption-grift?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=340335&post_id=161259454&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=9qtak&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email
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Please subscribe.
open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats...
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Wisconsin Watershed Will Shape Midterms
Musk is now an albatross around the neck of MAGA candidates and Trump knows it.
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/wisconsin-watershed-will-shape-midterms?r=3ljtf
8 months ago
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reposted by
Jonathan Alter
Harry Litman
9 months ago
HERE YOU HAVE IT, an ALL-NEW
@talkingfeds.bsky.social
w/ a killer panel of
@jonathanalter.bsky.social
,
#AlisynCamerota
, &
@davidfrenchjag.bsky.social
. The Signal-Gate debacle + coverup; more good news from the courts; & an overall assessment of where we are on the road to ruin. Link:
bit.ly/SignalTF
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reposted by
Jonathan Alter
Talking Feds with Harry Litman
9 months ago
In “Hegsethive Pride,”
@jonathanalter.bsky.social
,
#AlisynCamerota
&
@davidfrenchjag.bsky.social
joins Harry to assess the colossal screwup & brazen coverup of Signal-Gate before moving to legal developments and an overall assessment of the state of the Republic. Don’t miss it! Link:
bit.ly/SignalTF
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Please subscribe—free or paid
open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats...
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The Character Test of Our Time
We’ll all have to explain our choices to our grandchildren
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/the-character-test-of-our-time?r=3ljtf
8 months ago
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reposted by
Jonathan Alter
Frank
9 months ago
@jonathanalter.bsky.social
just read today's email from you. You closed with an allusion to the phrase I keep telling my wife about Trump - "he who sows the wind, shall reap the whirlwind". Hopefully, Trump will reap it - November 2026 cannot get here too soon.
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reposted by
Jonathan Alter
Joan Eisenstodt
9 months ago
Very much worth subscribing to this great substack.
add a skeleton here at some point
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Please subscribe to Old Goats on Substack
open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats...
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A Constitutional Crisis is Already Underway
Trump’s defiance of Judge Boasberg’s court order crossed a scary line
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/a-constitutional-crisis-is-already?r=3ljtf
9 months ago
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Please subscribe—free or paid
open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats...
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Will Trump Reap the Whirlwind?
The Orange Menace and his flunkies think a recession would be 'worth it.' They're right about that.
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/will-trump-reap-the-whirlwind?r=3ljtf
9 months ago
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Do you like this idea for the Democrats? Subscribe and let me know.
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Let’s Create “Town Hall Night in America”
It’s time for Democrats to institutionalize our oldest form of democracy
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/lets-create-town-hall-night-in-america?r=3ljtf
9 months ago
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reposted by
Jonathan Alter
Alan Cantor
10 months ago
An excellent, heartfelt synopsis by
@jonathanalter.bsky.social
of the disgusting scene in the Oval office today. Jon puts into words why this was so horrendous on every level.
oldgoats.substack.com/p/a-low-poin...
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Join our Cloud HD Video Meeting
Zoom is the leader in modern enterprise video communications, with an easy, reliable cloud platform for video and audio conferencing, chat, and webinars across mobile, desktop, and room systems. Zoom ...
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6606597478
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Caesar, Napoleon, Nixon—and Trump.
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Tsar Trump Thinks He’s the State
As he tries to wreck everything, a little history and hope to tide us over
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/tsar-trump-thinks-hes-the-state?r=3ljtf
10 months ago
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Terrific piece on “Trump’s Medicaid Raid.” Make sure to call it that in the weeks ahead
mailchi.mp/e3ea4c6e38a0...
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My New Op-Ed: Beware Republicans Claiming Massive but “Painless” Medicaid Cuts
https://mailchi.mp/e3ea4c6e38a0/my-new-op-ed-beware-republicans-claiming-massive-but-painless-medicaid-cuts?e=af7cc51e10
10 months ago
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Terrific Sam Harris piece on Musk on Substack
samharris.substack.com/p/perhaps-th...
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Perhaps the Message is the Message
There are two, irreconcilable accounts of what is happening in (and to) the U.S.
https://samharris.substack.com/p/perhaps-the-message-is-the-message?utm_campaign=posts-open-in-app&r=3ljtf
10 months ago
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open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats...
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Confronting Chaos, Corruption, Cruelty and Cowardice
Four ways to hold the line on Trump and the Muskrats
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/confronting-chaos-corruption-cruelty?r=3ljtf
10 months ago
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Some good news…..
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Why RFK Jr. Might Bite the Dust
Bill Cassidy, Caroline Kennedy and how his lies could catch up with him
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/why-rfk-jr-might-bite-the-dust?r=3ljtf
10 months ago
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How to prioritize our worries
open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats...
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Springtime for Broligarchs
Divine rights, impunity, imperialism and other lowlights of Trump’s execrable inaugural
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/springtime-for-broligarchs?r=3ljtf
11 months ago
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A great edition of @HarryLitman great podcast with Norm Eisen and Jen Rubin of the Contrarian. Glad to be included.
art19.com/shows/talkin...
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A Cold Day in Hell
Published on the day of Trump’s inauguration, this episode takes brief stock of Biden’s unusual farewell address before pivoting to the perilous future. A great roundtable of Talking Feds stalwarts--J...
https://art19.com/shows/talking-feds/episodes/741b8b7f-51a2-46c1-8a80-85d37968eb56
11 months ago
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Yep. And his late father’s business was bankrupt.
add a skeleton here at some point
11 months ago
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Carter and Trump: Polar opposites
open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats...
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A Life Sentence of Disgrace
The unCarter, the unTrump and the Creation of a Usable Past
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/a-life-sentence-of-disgrace?r=3ljtf
11 months ago
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Thanks. Yes, I know,
@ericodell.bsky.social
I discuss their long relationship in my Carter biography, HIS VERY BEST.
add a skeleton here at some point
11 months ago
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reposted by
Jonathan Alter
Hark Audio
11 months ago
HARK DAILY: Today's best podcast moments in one playlist, featuring: - Meta goes MAGA
@jasonkoebler.bsky.social
- Reassessing Jimmy Carter's presidency
@jonathanalter.bsky.social
- How Dry January could improve your life all year round
@anamariecox.bsky.social
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January 9, 2025
https://share.harkaudio.com/wXe6xEGfD1Un6mRt8
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In case you missed this…..https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/his-very-best-1924-2024?r=3ljtf
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His Very Best (1924-2024)
A little of my experience as Carter's biographer
https://open.substack.com/pub/oldgoats/p/his-very-best-1924-2024?r=3ljtf
11 months ago
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ABC News’ sad day. Plus: Why liberals should sue Trump (yes, it’s permitted even though he’s president), Kash Patel, Elon Musk, Steve Bannon and others.
oldgoats.substack.com/p/four-ways-...
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Four Ways to Unbend the Media’s Knee
Disney/ABC News' cave to Trump shows the dangers of ‘anticipatory obedience.’
https://oldgoats.substack.com/p/four-ways-to-unbend-the-medias-knee
12 months ago
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My review of the Big Dog’s book
www.washingtonpost.com/books/2024/1...
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Review | In ‘Citizen,’ Bill Clinton gives his side of the story
The former president’s memoir aims to set the record straight, with varying results.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/books/2024/12/15/bill-clinton-citizen-memoir-review/
12 months ago
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My NYT take on "Constitutional Republicans" :
www.nytimes.com/2024/12/04/o...
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Opinion | Will ‘Constitutional Republicans’ Save the Senate?
Only a handful of Republicans are needed to stand up for the Senate’s right to advise and consent on nominations.
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/04/opinion/senate-republicans-nominations-trump.html
about 1 year ago
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