Jon Rauch
@jonrauch.bsky.social
📤 6209
📥 298
📝 589
Journalist, writer, unlicensed epistemologist. Brookings and The Atlantic. Please be sane, BlueSky.
www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/07/c...
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Steve Chapman: The lawless president launches a lawless war
What sets Donald Trump’s second presidency apart is his refusal to let any laws, domestic or international, stand in his way.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/07/column-donald-trump-lawlessness-venezuela-chapman/?share=7sneeatvpimsscntmhb1
1 day ago
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Must-read from Larry Diamond: "We are left with the worst of all possible worlds. Maduro is gone but his predatory dictatorship lives on. There is no sign of a plan to induce this awful regime to negotiate a transfer of power to the democratic coalition."
www.theunpopulist.net/p/trumps-bet...
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Trump’s Betrayal of Venezuela’s Democracy Movement Is Hard to Overstate
If he continues to snub María Corina Machado, the heroine of the opposition, America will bear responsiblity for the country’s next tragic chapter
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/trumps-betrayal-of-venezuelas-democracy?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=461280&post_id=183584570&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=ewt91&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email
3 days ago
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Why what's been achieved in Gaza is a ceasefire, not a peace deal. There is only one genocidal party to the conflict, and it's Hamas.
www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/202...
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https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2026/01/04/hamas_quest_to_destroy_israel_thwarts_trump_peace_plan_153673.html
4 days ago
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Frank Fukuyama's incisive analysis of Venezuela. Explains why legality is a side issue (and a dead end for Dems)
open.substack.com/pub/persuasi...
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Trump Is Going For Regime Change in Venezuela
Sadly, it's unlikely to end well.
https://open.substack.com/pub/persuasion1/p/what-history-doesand-doesntteach?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=i5o9
5 days ago
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Here's a brilliant and also moving analysis of the U.S. shift toward authoritarianism...and the importance of individual acts of resistance.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FeO...
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“Life During a Constitutional Crisis” - Professor Bernard Harcourt
YouTube video by University of Miami School of Law
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FeOb182P9A&t=16s
12 days ago
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"Next year Europe will have to change its approach and start copying China. It needs to punch back to deter an increasingly hostile America."
open.substack.com/pub/billemmo...
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We need deterrence against America too
English original of article published in Italian this morning by La Stampa. The footnote has been added [and is meant to be whimsical...]
https://open.substack.com/pub/billemmott/p/we-need-deterrence-against-america?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=i5o9
12 days ago
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"As for Trump, the only things that can be predicted with confidence is that he will continue to call for peace and continue to collude with Putin."
open.substack.com/pub/billemmo...
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An important counter to the Putin-Trump narrative
English original of article on the EU's big loan to Ukraine published in Italian this morning by La Stampa
https://open.substack.com/pub/billemmott/p/an-important-counter-to-the-putin?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=i5o9
19 days ago
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Trump's gift to Putin. 73 percent of Germans say relations with the US are "bad."
www.pewresearch.org/global/2025/...
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German Views of the U.S.-Germany Relationship Turn Sharply Negative
Nearly three-quarters of German adults say relations with the United States are bad, while only 24% of U.S adults say the same of relations with Germany.
https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2025/11/24/german-views-of-the-u-s-germany-relationship-turn-sharply-negative/?utm_source=Pew+Research+Center&utm_campaign=36f0c4951e-Global_Newsletter_2025_12_12_04_36&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-36f0c4951e-400857301
24 days ago
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Bill Emmott: "Europe offends Trump in much the same way as Democratic Ukraine offends Putin."
billemmott.substack.com/p/trumps-hat...
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Trump’s hatred demonstrates Europe’s importance
From now on, we must act as if the transatlantic alliance does not exist, because under Trump-Vance it doesn’t. English original of column published in Italian today by La Stampa [with minor updates]
https://billemmott.substack.com/p/trumps-hatred-demonstrates-europes?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=258217&post_id=181685116&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=i5o9&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email
24 days ago
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At RDI's conference in DC, I just heard a retired federal judge, Mark Wolf, say Trump might declare martial law to impede the 2026 elections. He's not predicting, but no one thinks he's crazy to raise it.
rdi.org/2025-frontli...
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2025 Frontlines of Freedom Conference – RDI
2025 Frontlines of Freedom Conference December 9-10, 2025 | Washington, DC Registration RDI’s Frontlines of Freedom Conference (FOFCON) is the premier US event focused on fostering a culture of freedo...
https://rdi.org/2025-frontlines-of-freedom-conference/
about 1 month ago
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Tim Mak has it about right.
www.counteroffensive.news/p/trumps-str...
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Trump's strategy for diminished America
The White House just put out a National Security Strategy, laying out its principle of “flexible realism”: a dwindling and darker role for America in the world.
https://www.counteroffensive.news/p/trumps-strategy-for-diminished-america?utm_source=substack&utm_campaign=posts-open-in-app&utm_medium=email&r=i5o9&triedRedirect=true
about 1 month ago
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This is a stunning indictment...not of Letitia James but of DOJ and the Trump administration. Serious prosecutors and lawyers would be hanging their heads in shame.
www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
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Grand jury refuses to reindict Letitia James in mortgage fraud case
Before a Virginia grand jury’s ruling Thursday, a judge had dismissed an earlier indictment after finding that the prosecutor had been unlawfully appointed.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/12/04/letitia-james-reindictment-trump/
about 1 month ago
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Rob Shapiro: Trump has made the affordability crisis worse, and opened the door wide for Democrats to mount a populist campaign from the left.
washingtonmonthly.com/2025/12/02/a...
about 1 month ago
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Tom Nichols states the obvious...but let's please not forget that the first boat strike, which targeted civilians posing no imminent threat or hostility to the US, was probably as illegal as the second.
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...
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Pete Hegseth Needs to Go—Now
A man with such contempt for the military should not run the Pentagon.
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/12/pete-hegseth-pentagon-department-defense/685098/
about 1 month ago
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"Conspiracy theories define what it means to be a conservative in America today. It used to be the Reaganite agenda of low taxes, deregulation, individual freedom. But it really is whether you believe in these weird theories that partake of a different reality."
www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GDA...
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Why Populism Is Winning (w/ Francis Fukuyama)
YouTube video by The Bulwark
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GDAEzuHn1U
about 2 months ago
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DOGE unleashed chaos in federal agencies. Many are rehiring after firing; key talent is gone.
www.brookings.edu/articles/how...
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How many people can the federal government lose before it crashes? | Brookings
An in-depth look at how sweeping federal workforce cuts under Trump are straining government services and risking operational failures.
https://www.brookings.edu/articles/how-many-people-can-the-federal-government-lose-before-it-crashes/?utm_campaign=Brookings%20Brief&utm_medium=email&utm_content=391128268&utm_source=hs_email
about 2 months ago
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"The serious way in which to understand this American “peace plan” is that it shows that Trump is the weakest president to occupy the White House for 100 years."
open.substack.com/pub/billemmo...
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The weakest US president in the past 100 years
English original of article published in Italian by La Stampa this morning, on Trump's capitulation to America's old enemy, Russia, and Europe's moment of destiny
https://open.substack.com/pub/billemmott/p/the-weakest-us-president-in-the-past?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=i5o9
about 2 months ago
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I warmly recommend Josh Szeps's detailed analysis of why Tucker Carlson is the most talented and dangerous rhetorician on the right.
youtube.com/watch?v=CURq...
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How Tucker Carlson Manipulates An Argument
YouTube video by Josh Szeps
https://youtube.com/watch?v=CURquKUrK0E&si=87fq4FGctPwO7lR5
about 2 months ago
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This is what it looks like to be laughed out of court. Humiliating for DOJ lawyers--the creme de la creme--to be treated this way.
www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
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Federal judge blasts potential ‘government misconduct’ in Comey case
A federal magistrate judge excoriated the government’s handling of the case against former FBI director James B. Comey.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/11/17/comey-james-cook-trump-prosecutions-misconduct/
about 2 months ago
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Worth your time.
www.execfunctions.org/p/what-are-w...
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What Are We Living Through?
Three ways to understand the Trump administration
https://www.execfunctions.org/p/what-are-we-living-through
about 2 months ago
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Would someone like to tell me why the Algorithm God is showing me ads for butt-enhancing pants? Better yet...don't.
about 2 months ago
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A social issue I never thought about...but should have. Land hoarding!
open.substack.com/pub/kenilgun...
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Who owns America?
Plus, utopian ideas for a fairer future
https://open.substack.com/pub/kenilgunas/p/who-owns-america?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=i5o9
about 2 months ago
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It's ironic that gays are called upon to make the case against polygamy, a standard heterosexual concept. Matt Vines does it brilliantly.
youtu.be/ZzDh4XfFVN4?...
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Matthew Vines: Why Monogamy Matters
YouTube video by The Reformation Project
https://youtu.be/ZzDh4XfFVN4?si=IabNFwvT5UkPp_vy
about 2 months ago
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New poll from Buckley Institute finds the plurality of students support Cuban and Russian style socialism.
about 2 months ago
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Good question. "How about asking Trump to stop spreading antisemitism via his associations and appointments?"
www.thebulwark.com/p/right-wing...
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Right-Wing Critics of Antisemitism Keep Weirdly Mum About Trump
But this fish rots from the head.
https://www.thebulwark.com/p/right-wing-critics-of-antisemitism-fuentes-carlson-roberts-trump
about 2 months ago
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This is sick, if accurate (The Counteroffensive is a reputable outlet). Russians are using drones to "safari hunt" civilians in Ukraine.
www.counteroffensive.news/p/russias-di...
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Russia’s disturbing human ‘safaris’
Violating the laws of war, Russians have created a sick game of hunting civilians with FPV drones near the frontline. We take you behind the scenes, to the people most affected.
https://www.counteroffensive.news/p/russias-disturbing-human-safaris?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=1547592&post_id=178500371&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=false&r=i5o9&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email
about 2 months ago
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"The president and vice president should explain to backers and all citizens that the Republican Party has no place for bigots, purveyors of vile conspiracy theories, and sycophants of blood-stained anti-American dictators." Yes, they should. Any minute now.
www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/202...
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https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2025/11/09/right-wing_antisemitism_new_right_and_buckley_blend_153506.html
2 months ago
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Here are some of the people being summarily executed at sea by the Trump Admin. They're mostly ordinary folks running drugs (to Europe, not the US) as a side gig. Their deaths will have zero effect on drug availability.
apnews.com/article/trum...
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Trump has accused boat crews of being narco-terrorists. The truth, AP found, is more nuanced
One was a fisherman struggling to eke out a living on $100 a month. Another was a career criminal. A third was a former military cadet.
https://apnews.com/article/trump-venezuela-boat-strikes-drugs-cocaine-trafficking-95b54a3a5efec74f12f82396a79617ea
2 months ago
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Congress loses another good member. It's disgraceful that the problem of threats to MCs and judges isn't taken more seriously.
leedrutman.substack.com/p/politics-k...
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Politics Keeps Driving Out the People Who Want to Reform It
Jared Golden is the latest problem-solving politician to decide Congress isn’t worth the cost. And so the doom loop takes another turn.
https://leedrutman.substack.com/p/politics-keeps-driving-out-the-people?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=546682&post_id=178262431&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=ewt91&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email
2 months ago
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Gov. Pritzker to Trump and DOJ: "Come and get me."
www.theunpopulist.net/p/jb-pritzke...
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JB Pritzker Might Become the Face of America’s Resistance by Taking on Trump’s Authoritarianism
By targeting Illinois, the president might have created his nemesis even as the national Democratic Party flails around for an effective message
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/jb-pritzker-might-become-the-face
2 months ago
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What are Trump and MAGA doing to our government? A rollicking discussion with two top political scientists. Short answer: it's patrimonialism, stupid.
www.wbur.org/onpoint/2025...
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Is Trumpism what you think it is?
President Trump's supporters say he’s a heaven-sent savior, cracking down on bloated government and unauthorized immigrants. Critics call him authoritarian – targeting political opponents and using th...
https://www.wbur.org/onpoint/2025/11/05/trumpism-politics-what-is-it
2 months ago
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An urgent plea. The hour is late.
www.theatlantic.com/politics/arc...
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Trump’s Plan Is Now Out in the Open
It’s getting ever harder to avoid connecting the authoritarian dots.
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2025/10/trump-authoritarianism/684773/
2 months ago
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This is welcome news. Hopefully breaks US curse of one-off nuclear projects that fail to sustain expertise and supply chains. Cost comes down only thru repeatability, and S.K. and China are already building in bulk.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/28/b...
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Trump Administration Backs Plan for New Nuclear Plants
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/28/business/energy-environment/trump-nuclear-westinghouse-deal.html?smid=url-share
2 months ago
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Let's not lose sight of how abnormal it is for a federal judge to feel that she has to behave this way with a US official. Just amazing.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/28/u...
2 months ago
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The case for viewpoint diversity in academia is stronger than ever...despite claims that it's a "MAGA plot."
www.insidehighered.com/opinion/view...
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You Can’t Pursue Truth Without Viewpoint Diversity (opinion)
This is what we wish critics of the concept on both the left and right would understand.
https://www.insidehighered.com/opinion/views/2025/10/29/you-cant-pursue-truth-without-viewpoint-diversity-opinion
2 months ago
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"This week Trump announced new sanctions that were supposedly aimed at hurting the oil exports that are financing Russia’s war effort, yet they were actually much less potent than Trump claimed."
open.substack.com/pub/billemmo...
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Europe and America have both just given Putin the gift of time
English original of article published yesterday in Italian by La Stampa
https://open.substack.com/pub/billemmott/p/europe-and-america-have-both-just?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=i5o9
2 months ago
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"Abuses of science, enlightenment, and academic authority discredit the abuser, not the thing abused."
www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/202...
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https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2025/10/26/seven_faulty_theses_against_viewpoint_diversity_153450.html
2 months ago
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Here's a thoughtful and well reported article on what comes after radical gender ideology and medical interventions as first-line treatment for gender dysphoria.
www.thenewatlantis.com/publications...
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What Comes After Gender Affirmation?
A growing group of psychologists wants to restore the therapeutic relationship.
https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/what-comes-after-gender-affirmation
3 months ago
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It's not too late to fix this dangerous law...the closest thing in the US to martial law.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/18/o...
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Opinion | Here’s What Trump Could Unleash by Invoking the Insurrection Act
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/18/opinion/trump-insurrection-act.html
3 months ago
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History will record this moment as a travesty of the law.
www.lawfaremedia.org/article/tria...
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Trial Dispatch: The Arraignment of Letitia James
A view from inside the Eastern District of Virginia courtroom where New York Attorney General Letitia James pleaded not guilty to mortgage fraud.
https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/trial-dispatch--the-arraignment-of-letitia-james
3 months ago
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A research scientist stands up for merit and integrity. May many others follow!
hxstem.substack.com/p/why-i-no-l...
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Why I no longer engage with Nature publishing group
My response to a recent invitation to review a manuscript for Nature Communications
https://hxstem.substack.com/p/why-i-no-longer-engage-with-nature?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=618970&post_id=176982774&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=false&r=ggupy&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email
3 months ago
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These outlets agreed to do only Pentagon-approved interviews. The term "lap dog" comes to mind.
www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...
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Pentagon announces a new right-wing press corps after mass walkout
A new crop of conservative media and influencers signed an agreement with the Pentagon, including the Gateway Pundit, the Post Millennial, Human Events and the National Pulse.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/10/22/pentagon-press-corps-right-wing-media/
3 months ago
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It's not a peace agreement, because Hamas has not agreed. Hamas will not disarm or depart. Israel will go back in. Fighting will resume. Ceasefire is certainly better than alternatives, but celebration of war's end is way premature.
www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/202...
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https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2025/10/19/the_next_phases_of_trump_gaza_plan_get_harder.html
3 months ago
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A third of Republicans favor threatening to deport US citizens who have been critical of Trump. Two-thirds support DOJ investigating his opponents.
www.economist.com/united-state...
3 months ago
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“They [MAGA] don't like America. They don't like the people that live in this country. They don't like our customs. They don't like our laws. They don't like our traditions. They don't like our constitution. They don't pull for us. I truly believe this.” Minute 4:30
www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxkI...
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James Carville on Politics Today, 2026, and 2028
YouTube video by Conversations with Bill Kristol
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxkIxSGZIRQ&t=10s
3 months ago
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In case you needed one more thing to be concerned about...
www.lawfaremedia.org/article/the-...
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The Trump Administration Pushes the Hatch Act to its Limits
But whether those boundaries have been breached may not matter in the end.
https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/the-trump-administration-pushes-the-hatch-act-to-its-limits
3 months ago
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"I’ve never seen an arraignment hearing quite like this one. ... Today the Eastern District of Virginia is already on to Letitia James for a crime she also didn’t commit."
www.lawfaremedia.org/projects-ser...
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The Situation: Three Thoughts on the Comey Arraignment
I’ve never seen an arraignment hearing quite like this one.
https://www.lawfaremedia.org/projects-series/the-situation/the-situation--three-thoughts-on-the-comey-arraignment
3 months ago
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Are we all free speech hypocrites? Is the right worse than the left...or vice versa? Scintillating conversation on The Good Fight podcast.
yaschamounk.substack.com/p/the-good-f...
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The Good Fight Club: Who’s a Hypocrite About Free Speech?
Yascha Mounk is joined by Renée DiResta, Jacob Mchangama, and Jonathan Rauch at the Global Free Speech Summit in Nashville!
https://yaschamounk.substack.com/p/the-good-fight-club-7?utm_campaign=posts-open-in-app&triedRedirect=true
3 months ago
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Hmm...
3 months ago
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reposted by
Jon Rauch
Jacob Grier
3 months ago
Good read from
@theunpopulist.net
on Trump's anti-constitutional deployments to Portland and other cities.
www.theunpopulist.net/p/trump-is-d...
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Trump Is Destroying the U.S. Constitution and Amassing Unprecedented Powers by Sending Federal Troops to Invade American Cities
Lincoln faced a real insurrection and still did not go as far as this president
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/trump-is-destroying-the-us-constitution
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