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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade

@ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social
56 followers 80 following 38 posts

30 years in strategic comms. Now tracking structural collapse in real time. Former operative. Current translator. Teach @ USC + LMU.

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Reposted by Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade
ghost malone ergo propter bones @proptermalone.bsky.social · 02/06/2024
picking a fight with liberal young women in a red state is like picking a fight with a dude with cauliflower ears
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Reposted by Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade
Four Legs Good @4legsrgood.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
I think Canada is at the “drop the gloves, empty the bench” portion of the game.
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Reposted by Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade
darth™️ @darthbluesky.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
the funniest thing is jeffries being surprised jared leaked the meeting lol
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Reposted by Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade
Digital Brain @yourdigitalbrain.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
Why a viral apology from a Japanese volleyball player reveals something profound about their culture
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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade @ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
substack.com/@stevecaplan... Absolutely chilling story in today’s NYT comparing the Trump Administration’s immigration efforts with US nativist policy in the 1920’s. Our nation needs deep repair. It will take at least a generation. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/13/u...
substack.com
Steve Caplan (@stevecaplan1)
Absolutely chilling story in today’s NYT comparing the Trump Administration’s immigration efforts with US nativist policy in the 1920’s. My grandfather arrived from Lithuania at Ellis Island in 1920...
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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade @ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social · 08/07/2026
open.substack.com/pub/controla...
open.substack.com
The Right Quit Democracy. The Left Quit Capitalism.
The Fourth of July weekend is behind us and if you spend any time in the corner of the internet I do, you watched the same thing I did: a flood of good, earnest writing about the gap between what 1776...
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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade @ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
Technocrats think they can fix a fractured superpower by adjusting tax credits and environmental permits. They think people want cheaper consumer goods but you can’t fix a crisis of faith with a policy paper. They want a reckoning. My latest on Substack. open.substack.com/pub/controla...
open.substack.com
The Right Quit Democracy. The Left Quit Capitalism.
The Fourth of July weekend is behind us and if you spend any time in the corner of the internet I do, you watched the same thing I did: a flood of good, earnest writing about the gap between what 1776...
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Reposted by Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade
Josh Gerstein @joshgerstein.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
NEW: #SCOTUS, in 6-3 ruling, OKs denying entry to asylumseekers at US-Mexico border. Sotomayor dissents, raising US history turning away Jewish refugees during Holocaust www.politico.com/news/2026/06...
politico.com
Supreme Court allows immigration officials to turn away asylum seekers at the border
The justices greenlit a “metering” policy devised under the Obama administration and expanded during Trump’s first term.
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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade @ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social · 19/06/2026
This is JJ Cafaro's mugshot. Who is JJ? The guy who gave Trump at least $350k and got a no-bid contract for the reflecting pool scam. He also pled guilty to bribing a member of Congress. I thought I saw some shit during my time in Philly politics. Wrong. www.newsweek.com/who-is-john-...
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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade @ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social · 07/06/2026
@axios.com on the "patriot philanthropist" whose marriage was officiated by John Roberts. They also report this was "the best-kept wedding secret of the year." 😂😂😂 Clearly you people need to get out of DC. www.axios.com/2026/06/07/d...
axios.com
David Rubenstein weds Caryn Zucker, with chief justice officiating
The couple have been together for 4½ years.
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Reposted by Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade
Freddy Tran Nager @professorfreddy.bsky.social · 05/06/2026
OMG, Nike's 2026 World Cup commercial is epic. Part of the fun is trying to identify all the celebs in it... youtu.be/IyZ1WIua_1s?... #advertising #soccer #WorldCup #TedLasso
youtu.be
Rip The Script | Nike Football
YouTube video by Nike Football
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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade @ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
Turned down the green room this cycle and watched the returns from my phone. Spencer Pratt got 30% with AI ads, a Musk retweet, and zero campaign infrastructure. open.substack.com/pub/controla...
open.substack.com
The View From Outside the Green Room
Yesterday I dropped my official ballot at my local library and then went for dinner with my wife and daughter at an Italian spot in the Marina.
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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade @ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
I wrote about a trip to my daughter's graduation, Ben Sasse, and the Pope. Check it out. open.substack.com/pub/controla...
open.substack.com
"Magnifica Humanitas" and the Open Road
I just got back from a road trip.
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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade @ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
Had the experience of working with this guy for a moment in a previous life. He wanted to play politics with Dems. As dreadful as you would expect. www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio...
theguardian.com
Stephen Colbert’s Late Show replacement is a depressing sign of the times | Andrew Lawrence
After the politically incisive late-night host said his final goodnight last week, Byron Allen’s Comics Unleashed offered a grim look at where TV is heading
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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade @ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
Talked to @theguardian.com about the intersection of AI and the LA mayoral race. ​Political consultants are flocking to AI for the speed, (more AI slop, hooray) but using it in a town that's lost tens of thousands of production jobs is... a choice. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
theguardian.com
LA mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt reposts scathing AI-generated ad
Viral video launches a day before Pratt is set to debate mayor Karen Bass and city council member Nithya Raman
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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade @ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
Two billionaires in court fighting over who owns the AI future. One 'stole a charity.' The other is trying to burn it down to win a market. Either way, you weren't in the room. Welcome to the age of Houses. #NameTheHouses More at controlaltpersuade.substack.com
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Reposted by Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade
The Tennessee Holler @thetnholler.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
HAPPENING NOW… marching on the Capitol…. #NewJimCrow @GovBillLee
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Reposted by Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade
The Verge @theverge.com · 04/05/2026
New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez won a historic sum of $375 million in a landmark child safety case against Meta earlier this year. The next stage of the fight begins today, and it could be even more consequential for Meta and the social media industry at large.
theverge.com
Meta’s historic loss in court could cost a lot more than $375 million
The state previously won a $375 million jury award against Meta.
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Reposted by Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade
Molly Jong-Fast @mollyjongfast.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
Someday soon people like Jeff Bezos will pretend they never supported Trump, that they were against this the whole time ——- NEW: Generic ballot 2026 among independents: 🔵Democratic: 52% 🔴Republican: 32% Washington Post/Ipsos poll | April 24-28
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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade @ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
Hello @bsky.app My latest on the week that was. open.substack.com/pub/controla...
open.substack.com
The Center Was Not Holding
Didion opened Slouching Towards Bethlehem with a line she borrowed from Yeats.
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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade @ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social · 19/02/2026
Why does every Whole Foods have ASPCA and Doctors Without Borders soliciting in front of store? Dems are pounding donors and supporters with direct mail and missing a very real chance to just SHOW UP! Tactics can matter.
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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade @ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social · 19/02/2026
Every time I hear dems talk "norms" or "abundance" can't help but think about Allen Iverson's famous press conference. "We talkin' about practice." Dems still use 20th-century vocabulary to describe a 21st-century architecture. open.substack.com/pub/controla...
open.substack.com
Dead Words
Why Your Political Vocabulary Is Obsolete
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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade @ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social · 11/02/2026
Nate Silver did the "don't worry, be happy" move by claiming concerns about our democracy are overstated. I put his theory to the test in a way that he would understand - putting it to the betting markets. open.substack.com/pub/controla...
open.substack.com
Always Look on the Bright Side of Life
I Asked Three AIs to Bet Against Nate Silver's Democracy Optimism. Here's What Happened.
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Reposted by Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade
derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 04/02/2026
one of my strongest beliefs is that we're in our situation right now bc some of the most prominent talking heads (e.g. joe rogan, andrew schulz) are learning about politics in their 40s and 50s, instead of their teens and early 20s, and we have to go along for the ride as they learn basic things
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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade @ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social · 04/02/2026
open.substack.com/pub/controla...
open.substack.com
The Message Doesn’t Matter Anymore
What happens when you find a winning message and realize it's already too late
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Steve Caplan | ctrl+alt+persuade @ctrlaltpersuade.bsky.social · 04/02/2026
We still talk about politics like persuasion drives outcomes but Increasingly, power looks like it runs on proximity, loyalty, and transactional protection instead. That shift changes everything about strategy, media, and governance. open.substack.com/pub/controla...
open.substack.com
It's Not Corruption. It's Tribute.
Power, speed, and the changing architecture of authority
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