Went back to the history of the Sicilian Mafia to illustrate something obvious but worth stating explicitly: The Trump administration behaves like an organized crime syndicate running a protection racket, not a representative government www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2025/1...

oh so these people do pay attention to who politicians follow on social media, they just don’t care that the vice president follows a bunch of actual neo-nazis

My latest at @flux.community: With so many rich and powerful Americans leaning into self-preservation or even the benefits of authoritarian rule, the U.S. will need a cultural and economic reset as well as a political one. 1/ plus.flux.community/p/as-elite-c...

Many non-Trumpist elites have been willing to accede to his power grabs because ultimately they are anti-democratic as well. They differ from Trump only in their legalism, @jtccarroll.bsky.social writes at @flux.community plus.flux.community/p/as-elite-c...

A nuanced assessment of the limited but important impact of No Kings protests and of what it means that "a staunchly authoritarian movement is in power but [hasn't] been able to install a consolidated autocracy yet." Worth reading by @thomaszimmer.bsky.social: tinyurl.com/42mxk7j4

A Constant Torrent of Authoritarian Arrogance, Corruption, and Complicity   American politics is an exasperating, frenzied, and acutely dangerous mess. Let’s sort through the events of the past week to separate what matters from what does not.   New piece:

Sunday Reading: A Constant Torrent of Authoritarian Arrogance, Corruption, and Complicity American politics is an exasperating, frenzied, and acutely dangerous mess. Let’s sort through the events of the past week to separate what matters from what does not.   Some thoughts from my new piece:

This is several days old. But amidst so much else id missed it. That’s a stunning number. No wonder they about-faced. Reminder of the power of consumers in oligarch era, not subject to the same kind of targeting.

My latest @flux.community: The No Kings protests show that many millions understand that the aim must be to delegitimize MAGA authoritarianism, not just beat it - even as the GOP moves in countervailing fashion to delegitimize democracy itself. 1/ plus.flux.community/p/no-kings-p...

So whether or not your city gets invaded by federal troops hinges on whether it contains a billionaire friend of the president who can call off the dogs. Totally absolutely not authoritarian or corrupt at all. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/23/u...

My latest @flux.community: Not only has the Trump regime severely curtailed refugee admissions to the U.S., it's constructing new rules that assert only whites can be real citizens. 1/ plus.flux.community/p/privilegin...

Trump apparently ordering his appointees to get him a check for about a quarter billion of US taxpayer dollars www.nytimes.com/2025/10/21/u...

Reminder: We spent YEARS reading thousands and thousands of articles on the Tea Party and how it was a true expression of the American people's will, and it never mounted anything nearly as big as Saturday's No Kings rallies. [1/3]

Good round-up of the massive displays of patriotism and defiance this weekend's No Kings demonstrations brought to cities around the nation from @brettwilkins.bsky.social @commondreams.org @flux.community. Big takeaway for me: Leading Dems showed up, too. plus.flux.community/p/millions-t...

Unless and until some kind of compelling legal and moral argument is presented as to why this is a legitimate use of deadly force, this is just…mass murder.

They are pursing a "strategy of tension" but there's no red brigades to help them out. bsky.app/profile/sjsh...

My latest at @flux.community: There is no beating the president and MAGA without a strategy for defeating the political violence they are inflicting on American society. 1/x plus.flux.community/p/democrats-...

Democrats must make Trump's violence central to their case against him There is no beating the president and MAGA without a strategy for defeating the political violence they are inflicting on American society Via @jtccarroll.bsky.social: plus.flux.community/p/democrats-...

This one featuring @karenattiah.bsky.social discusses how the broader center-to-left has failed to understand power, at both personal and organizational levels. We have to seek power and use it in order to protect our beliefs.

George was just trying to get to work. ICE pepper-sprayed him, dragged him from his car, locked him in a detention center, and placed him on suicide watch. He even missed his young daughter’s birthday in the process. This man is a veteran and American citizen. Don't look away.

@vermontgmg.bsky.social on vital context re gov shutdown that most Dems in Congress seem to ignore: "These budget negotiations and the shutdown must be seen against the backdrop of the entire year of presidential overreach and constitutional violations." 1/ www.doomsdayscenario.co/p/there-is-n...

This powerful JB Pritzker response to Trump's lawless threats is another reminder of what I tried to argue this morning: Pritzker understands Stephen Miller's theory of this moment, and he's responding accordingly: newrepublic.com/article/2014...

Must read from @willbunch.bsky.social @inquirer.com “Defeating fascism requires a very different type of posture-both politically and morally-than might an old-fashioned political quarrel between liberals and conservatives…we must declare ourselves anti-fascists.” www.inquirer.com/opinion/trum...

Thank God the feds have finally shown up to protect us Oregonians from the octogenarian veterans and their wives! Those people have been running roughshod over the community for long enough!!!

"This Week in Democracy – Week 37: Trump Goes Full Fascist and Denounces 'Enemy From Within'" Another week of Zeteo's project to document the growth of authoritarianism in Trump's second term.

My latest @flux.community: Conjuring fantasies of mayhem and anarchy to justify the latest domestic troop deployments, MAGA cites an "enemy within" that turns out to be. . . ordinary Americans just living their lives. 1/ plus.flux.community/p/as-trumps-...

My latest @flux.community: Look below the surface of RFK, Jr.'s insane anti-health policies, and you'll glimpse the basic fact of Donald Trump's urge to dominate the American citizenry however he can. 1/ plus.flux.community/p/triumph-of...

Now pushing no Tylenol for kids. My two small kids recently spiked three fevers in two weeks (Covid, virus, virus). You want me to make them stay up all night sweating and keening rather than give them one safe chewable, drop their temp, and let them go to sleep? You are an actual monster.

Triumph of the ill will: Look below the surface of RFK, Jr.'s insane anti-health policies, and you'll glimpse the basic fact of Donald Trump's urge to dominate the American citizenry however he can Via @jtccarroll.bsky.social plus.flux.community/p/triumph-of...

CNN has identified at least 100 U.S. citizen children who have been separated from their parents after ICE deported them - including newborns. As a parent I cannot imagine the horror of being separated from my child, but that trauma is even more acute for the innocent children left behind.

Not available over the air in Portland due to Sinclair, so I’m one of 1.6 million and counting to have watched it on YouTube.

People of DC: The ABC station in the nation's capital, Sinclair-owned WJLA, was afraid to run this segment tonight. Let them know what you think about this. With minimal online skills can find their contact info.

My latest @flux.community: As the Trump administration declares war on the "radical left," opponents of Trump need to remind their fellow Americans that MAGA includes most of the population in this group. 1/ plus.flux.community/p/proclaimin...

There is no world in which it is normal for the president to publicly call upon his attorney general to hurry up and prosecute his political foes. It’s like the Watergate tapes but posted on social media. Let’s get a grip on what’s happening here.

Oh. My. God. Profoundly twisted framing from @nytimes.com The casual reader of this hed and subhed would have exactly zero inkling that this is likely corrupt or even illegal or unconstitutional. Euphemistic to the point of absurdity.

I don’t think any country in the history of the world has ever done anything as stupidly self destructive as what Trump and RFK jr are doing with vaccines.

The rapidity with which the GOP went from “the government shouldn’t pick winners and losers” to “the President should decide who hosts late night shows” should probably shape how future historians write about the pre-Trump GOP.

My latest at @flux.community: Democrats and other opponents of Trump should not yield an inch in making the case to the American people that the GOP is the party of political violence and authoritarianism. 1/ plus.flux.community/p/to-beat-ma...

The Republican party is a party of violence and blatant corruption. Everyone knows this. We will not stop saying this truth. No president in US history has repeatedly incited violence against citizens as much as Donald Trump. Essential reading from @jtccarroll.bsky.social.

Yep: "To think up-for-grabs voters who rely on Obamacare subsidies will [...] think, “Wow, I’m stoked the Democrats got my subsidies renewed for six months so I don’t have to worry about this until after the midterms!” is comical and absurd." talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/whats...

The president of the United States just declared war, actual military war, not a metaphorical one, on a major American city, and one governed by his political opponents. In any other period, this would be impeachment-worthy.

if i had the opportunity to ask a question of anyone in the administration, given this "war in chicago" messaging, i would ask them how many americans the president intends to kill in his war

The President of the United States is threatening to go to war with an American city. This is not a joke. This is not normal. Donald Trump isn't a strongman, he's a scared man. Illinois won’t be intimidated by a wannabe dictator.

My latest @flux.community: In a speech last week warning Trump off troop deployments in Chicago, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker modeled how to confront a lawless presidency. 1/ plus.flux.community/p/vowing-to-...

ICYMI @flux.community: Democrats and the media need to grasp that supposed majority support for Trump's authoritarian rule was always a figment of their imaginations, and is now discredited by the reality of the president's growing unpopularity. 1/ plus.flux.community/p/leaning-ha...

If we’re going to do this, I guess it’s good to do it early while he’s weak, but it’s surreal. It’s surreal that we were a stable and incredibly wealthy country and we’re going to tear ourselves apart so conservatives don’t have to admit they went insane and elected a criminal madman. Never forgive

That Pritzker press conference was... surreal, and I think marks a significant moment of escalation in the constitutional omni-crisis. This was the governor of a state saying plainly the Union itself is being torn apart and his state is being militarily invaded by an authoritarian regime.

The president is sending the military to control American cities and if you're a reporter who's framing that illegal power grab as "pushing the boundaries of constitutionality" or "acting boldly to fight crime" or whatever, please go find another line of work where you won't get us all killed.

Yep. News orgs should state unabashedly that they are not in the business of amplifying Trump officials’ lies, and any official who feels entitled to such amplification can go stuff it. Let Noem shriek into the MAGA disinformation abyss all she likes. Just say no to this sleazy scam already.

In honor of Labor Day, my latest at @flux.community: for Trump's Cabinet officials, their "work" encompasses performative rituals of humiliation in which they publicly praise the president for his amazing accomplishments. 1/ plus.flux.community/p/at-televis...