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The UnPopulist

@theunpopulist.net
9.9K followers 5 following 2.4K posts

Defending liberal democracy against authoritarianism in the U.S. and around the world. www.theunpopulist.net

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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 2h
"First, liberalism captured the institutions, and then the institutions captured liberalism." — Ezra Klein Ezra Klein and Danielle Allen, at LibCon2026 during their closing fireside chat, on the nature of freedom and what liberalism has lost. Full video and transcript inside.
theunpopulist.net
Liberal Freedom Requires Agency But Also Self Mastery: Ezra Klein and Danielle Allen at LibCon2026
Liberal societies need not just good institutions but also a clearer vision of their ends
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 4h
A Putin-linked Russian oligarch covered hundreds of thousands of dollars in costs for Donald Trump Jr.'s wedding, and he wants the president's help with the Olympics.
theunpopulist.net
The Trumps Keep Cashing In on the Presidency With a Putin-Linked Oligarch Paying for Donald Trump Jr.’s Wedding: An Executive Watch Roundup
Our early-October selection of the president’s latest and greatest assaults on the rule of law
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 6h
Postliberal Catholic theologian Chad Pecknold has taken leave from Catholic University to become a spokesman for DHS, essentially putting his faith in the service of an objectively ruthless mass deportation campaign.
theunpopulist.net
A Catholic Theologian Signs Up for Mass Cruelty
Yet another thinker puts his faith in the service of monstrous deportation policies
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Ellen K 🪡 @datagoodies.bsky.social · 10h
Barbaric
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 8h
Taxpayers are paying for TV ads praising Trump ahead of the midterms. The roughly $20 million came out of border security funds, and Trump personally pushed to find it.
theunpopulist.net
The Trumps Keep Cashing In on the Presidency With a Putin-Linked Oligarch Paying for Donald Trump Jr.’s Wedding: An Executive Watch Roundup
Our early-October selection of the president’s latest and greatest assaults on the rule of law
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 10h
Radley Balko warns that ICE partnerships could spread a militarized culture into local policing. #Immigration
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 10h
For the third time, the Supreme Court has let the Trump administration deport migrants to countries where they have no ties, with little notice and no meaningful chance to object. That should shock the conscience.
theunpopulist.net
The Supreme Court Just Consigned Migrants to Cruelty Far Beyond Their Crimes
Letting the administration deport them for now to nasty third-country dictatorships should shock our conscience
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Some Random Susan @anysusan.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Ooh I kinda love this idea
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K. Kruchten @kmkruchten.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
One of the best ideas I’ve seen in some time.
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Drew Kadel @drewkadel.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
This really is a realistic and workable proposal which might actually succeed in removing Trump. All it takes is Senators having the courage to vote for this rule when Democrats take the Senate.
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whetstone @whetstone.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
somehow seeing this concept for the first time and it’s *so obviously* essential
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Mike Fragassi @refrag.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
oooooh, I *like* this
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Julian Sanchez @normative.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
I sort of question how this works in practice. Every Senator will be under irresistible pressure to say how they voted. If they tell the truth, it’s no different from a public ballot. If they lie, the result looks illegitimate & there’s enormous pressure to reveal the roll call.
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ℂ𝕙𝕣𝕚𝕤 𝕎𝕖𝕒𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕣𝕝𝕪 @chrisweatherly.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
This needs to happen
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crimsoncor @nowrench.com · 06/10/2026
This is brilliant
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Deth Veggie @dethveggie.bsky.social · 12h
This is an excellent idea.
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John Connor (he/him) 🏳️‍🌈🚲🏙️ @therealjohnconnor.bsky.social · 12h
 This absolutely needs to happen.
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Mo ⚓ 🧶☘️ @maurscode.bsky.social · 14h
This should be one of the first changes.
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Mike J @mikejason.bsky.social · 15h
Fully concur. It's a vote of conscience based on evidence.
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Kai Kronfield @kaikronfield.bsky.social · 23h
I’d like whoever does socials for @schiff.senate.gov and @padilla.senate.gov to print this out and give it to them, my Senators. I want to hear them explicitly say that they support this obvious rule change, or to explain to me why not, like I’m 5. I’ll be calling to ask each of y’all this too.
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Kellum Dander @kellumdander.bsky.social · 20h
THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING I HAVE READ IN YEARS
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Shikha Dalmia @shikhadalmia.bsky.social · 13h
LibCon2026 highlights! If you attended, maybe you are in the reel. Meanwhile, @theunpopulist.net turned 5! Celebrate with us tmrw with our team and special guests @billkristolbulwark.bsky.social @jonrauch.bsky.social @walterolson.bsky.social. Write to berny@theunpopulist.net for details
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 12h
Rome's republic was dying long before Caesar crossed the Rubicon. Its slow collapse says a lot about the precedents being set in Washington now. @andycraig.bsky.social
theunpopulist.net
America Can Pull Back From the Slippery Slope to Rome
The decline of the rule of law and our republic is not inevitable
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 14h
Andy Craig (@andycraig.bsky.social) proposes an impeachment fix that needs no constitutional amendment: senators vote on conviction by secret ballot, with each vote recorded in the Senate Journal and sealed for 10 or 20 years.
theunpopulist.net
A Democratic Senate Should Adopt Secret Impeachment Ballots on a Priority Basis
Such a change, requiring no constitutional amendment, would free senators to vote their judgment instead of their fears
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 14h
Trump's IRS wants churches to be able to endorse candidates. Meanwhile, another IRS rule would revoke tax-exempt status from private schools and universities offering targeted support to minority students. This is Trump's way: punish institutions it sees as hostile; reward ones it sees as friendly.
theunpopulist.net
Trump Is Reshaping IRS Rules to Defund Minority Programs and Empower Churches
His motto is to use state power against his enemies and help his friends in the nonprofit world
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Evan Hurst @evanhurst.substack.com · 05/10/2026
Do it. Whoever is keeping The LIst of all the things we have to do, put it on there.
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Aaron Huertas @aaronhuertas.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
This is extremely interesting from an anti-autocracy / anti-retribution perspective. Obviously, you can pressure loyalists to say publicly they won’t convict, but you just need a few defections for them to give each other cover.
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Nathan Tankus @nathantankus.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
This piece highlights something that doesn't get talked enough: Progressives should put forward a proposed set of rules for a new congress to facilitate defeating the far right and actually legislate.
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Ben Raderstorf @raders.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
This is such a good and important idea from @andycraig.bsky.social.
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Walter Olson @walterolson.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
"South Korea has already run the experiment. Its law requires the National Assembly to vote on presidential impeachment by anonymous ballot, and that rule has now removed two presidents." [@andycraig.bsky.social]
theunpopulist.net
A Democratic Senate Should Adopt Secret Impeachment Ballots on a Priority Basis
Such a change, requiring no constitutional amendment, would free senators to vote their judgment instead of their fears
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Andy Craig @andycraig.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
The Constitution allows it. South Korea has proven it works. If you want to make impeachment viable—and so much else is pointless if you don't—then it can be done by a simple majority adopting a simple rules change: vote on the verdict by secret ballot.
theunpopulist.net
A Democratic Senate Should Adopt Secret Impeachment Ballots on a Priority Basis
Such a change, requiring no constitutional amendment, would free senators to vote their judgment instead of their fears
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 05/10/2026
A Democratic Senate Should Adopt Secret Impeachment Ballots on a Priority Basis Such a change, requiring no constitutional amendment, would free senators to vote their judgment instead of their fears By Andy Craig www.theunpopulist.net/p/a-democrati…
theunpopulist.net
A Democratic Senate Should Adopt Secret Impeachment Ballots on a Priority Basis
Such a change, requiring no constitutional amendment, would free senators to vote their judgment instead of their fears
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 05/10/2026
How do we defend liberal democracy? Speakers call for limits on presidential power, a stronger Congress, and rebuilt institutions.
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 05/10/2026
Liberal Freedom Requires Agency But Also Self Mastery: Ezra Klein and Danielle Allen at LibCon2026 Liberal societies need not just good institutions but also a clearer vision of their ends www.theunpopulist.net/p/liberal-fre…
theunpopulist.net
Liberal Freedom Requires Agency But Also Self Mastery: Ezra Klein and Danielle Allen at LibCon2026
Liberal societies need not just good institutions but also a clearer vision of their ends
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Shitocracy @shitocracy.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Every time we think there's no way this administration can do anything more ridiculous, they find their way to a deeper place in the abyss of the absurd. www.theunpopulist.net/p/trumps-bot...
theunpopulist.net
Trump’s Botched Shuttering of Voice of America Means That Taxpayers Are Paying $1.6 Million a Week for Its Staff to Sit at Home
In March 2025, Trump moved to shut down Voice of America’s parent agency, and most of its staff were put on paid leave.
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 04/10/2026
The Trumps Keep Cashing In on the Presidency With a Putin-Linked Oligarch Paying for Donald Trump Jr.’s Wedding: An Executive Watch Roundup By Executive Watch www.theunpopulist.net/p/the-trumps-…
theunpopulist.net
The Trumps Keep Cashing In on the Presidency With a Putin-Linked Oligarch Paying for Donald Trump Jr.’s Wedding: An Executive Watch Roundup
Our early-October selection of the president’s latest and greatest assaults on the rule of law
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 04/10/2026
Radley Balko argues that political control of immigration judges and appeals undermines due process, leaving people at risk of deportation before a federal court can hear their case. Recorded September 2026.
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 04/10/2026
The Trumps Keep Cashing In on the Presidency With a Putin-Linked Oligarch Paying for Donald Trump Jr.’s Wedding: An Executive Watch Roundup By Executive Watch www.theunpopulist.net/p/the-trumps-…
theunpopulist.net
The Trumps Keep Cashing In on the Presidency With a Putin-Linked Oligarch Paying for Donald Trump Jr.’s Wedding: An Executive Watch Roundup
Our early-October selection of the president’s latest and greatest assaults on the rule of law
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 04/10/2026
The DOJ Claims the Power to Kill Environmental Lawsuits by Private Citizens, Starting With One Against Trump’s Lackey, Elon Musk In April, the NAACP sued Elon Musk’s xAI under the Clean Air Act. By Executive Watch www.theunpopulist.net/p/the-doj-cla…
theunpopulist.net
The DOJ Claims the Power to Kill Environmental Lawsuits by Private Citizens, Starting With One Against Trump’s Lackey, Elon Musk
In April, the NAACP sued Elon Musk’s xAI under the Clean Air Act.
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 03/10/2026
Trump Personally Pushed to Use Border Security Funds to Pay for Political TV Ads Praising Himself to Influence the Midterms By Executive Watch www.theunpopulist.net/p/trump-perso…
theunpopulist.net
Trump Personally Pushed to Use Border Security Funds to Pay for Political TV Ads Praising Himself to Influence the Midterms
A string of recent TV ads praising Donald Trump carry an unusual disclaimer: “Paid for by the U.S.
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 03/10/2026
Trump Finds Ways Around a Court Order Blocking His Ban on Outlets He Dislikes By Executive Watch www.theunpopulist.net/p/trump-finds…
theunpopulist.net
Trump Finds Ways Around a Court Order Blocking His Ban on Outlets He Dislikes
On September 18, Trump announced that he was banning CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House over their “constant ‘reporting’ FAKE NEWS!,” which he absurdly called “a threat to our National Security.” The next day, their press credentials were deactivated.
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 03/10/2026
Trump’s Botched Shuttering of Voice of America Means That Taxpayers Are Paying $1.6 Million a Week for Its Staff to Sit at Home By Executive Watch www.theunpopulist.net/p/trumps-botc…
theunpopulist.net
Trump’s Botched Shuttering of Voice of America Means That Taxpayers Are Paying $1.6 Million a Week for Its Staff to Sit at Home
In March 2025, Trump moved to shut down Voice of America’s parent agency, and most of its staff were put on paid leave.
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 03/10/2026
Trump Wants to Sell American Arms to China While Using Taiwan as a ‘Negotiating Chip’ to Drive a Better Deal With the Enemy Nation According to David Perdue, the U.S. By Executive Watch www.theunpopulist.net/p/trump-wants…
theunpopulist.net
Trump Wants to Sell American Arms to China While Using Taiwan as a ‘Negotiating Chip’ to Drive a Better Deal With the Enemy Nation
According to David Perdue, the U.S.
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 03/10/2026
Trump Unilaterally Cancels Congressionally Approved Spending on Immigration Services, in Defiance of the Law By Executive Watch www.theunpopulist.net/p/trump-unila…
theunpopulist.net
Trump Unilaterally Cancels Congressionally Approved Spending on Immigration Services, in Defiance of the Law
Last year, Donald Trump canceled $4.9 billion in congressionally approved foreign aid with a “pocket rescission.” The maneuver works by asking Congress to rescind funds so close to the end of the fiscal year that the money expires before lawmakers can act.
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 03/10/2026
White House Launches ‘Trump TV,’ a Propaganda Channel, as It Locks Out Independent Press By Executive Watch www.theunpopulist.net/p/white-house…
theunpopulist.net
White House Launches ‘Trump TV,’ a Propaganda Channel, as It Locks Out Independent Press
On the same day the TV networks suspended pool coverage in solidarity with CNN, the White House rolled out its own replacement.
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 03/10/2026
@shikhadalmia.bsky.social asks how Trump’s deportations differ from Obama’s. Radley Balko argues that targeted investigations have given way to broad raids on immigrant communities. Recorded September 2026.
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 03/10/2026
A Catholic Theologian Signs Up for Mass Cruelty Yet another thinker puts his faith in the service of monstrous deportation policies By Gabriel Schoenfeld www.theunpopulist.net/p/a-catholic-…
theunpopulist.net
A Catholic Theologian Signs Up for Mass Cruelty
Yet another thinker puts his faith in the service of monstrous deportation policies
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Berny Belvedere @bernybelvedere.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Good piece on a bad guy:
theunpopulist.net
A Catholic Theologian Signs Up for Mass Cruelty
Yet another thinker puts his faith in the service of monstrous deportation policies
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 02/10/2026
@shikhadalmia.bsky.social reflects on arriving in Reagan’s America and describes the hostility immigrants face under Trump. Recorded September 2026.
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The UnPopulist @theunpopulist.net · 02/10/2026
We're celebrating our 5th birthday this Wednesday evening in DC. Can you make it? Sign up here or just email (berny @ theunpopulist . net) to RSVP. www.facebook.com/events/14080...
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