David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 02/06/2026Trump wants our 250th to be a celebration of his monarchy. And appropriately, he’s getting pushback. But just as critical, there is also quiet resistance: From Americans who keep their heads downs, ignore the noise, and just do the work of democracy. hypertext.niskanencenter.org/p/residual-r... 000
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 26/05/2026This is exactly the insight the Founders were groping toward and Van Buren ultimately articulated as the first modern parties emerged in the United States. 010
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 26/05/2026The anti-monopoly folks have ironically consolidated two distinct strands of American political thought and claimed exclusive title to them. One is hostility to artificial privileges; the other is vigilance against corruption. 1/5 100
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 26/05/2026The old system of federal funding to nonprofits is not coming back from Trump’s hatchet job, says Daniel Stid. Notably, it was coming under withering critique not just from the right, but also from the left for quite a while now. 1/1 hypertext.niskanencenter.org/p/for-nonpro... 100
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 22/05/2026Running a nonprofit? I have good news - you can expense a meal at Chez Panisse. Because, says Eboo Patel, the restaurant is a perfect model for how to run your org. hypertext.niskanencenter.org/p/the-alice-... 010
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 20/05/2026An unpopular president is making more absurd power grabs like the "weaponization" fund. Civil society may feel obliged to speak out. But Greg Berman says nonprofits should think long and hard. hypertext.niskanencenter.org/p/nonprofits... 1/3hypertext.niskanencenter.orgNonprofits should resist politicization firstPublic trust is their most precious commodity, and politics erodes it. 100
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 18/05/2026Much of the nonprofit sector is reeling from indiscriminate disruptions to the federal funds that support so many of its organizations. But there's a deeper problem below the sabotage. Nonprofits at large are less trusted than business. So how should they navigate this moment? 100
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 08/03/2026The future we feared is already here, but we can still change it. @gabemenchaca.bsky.social explains what the Anthropic mess tells us about contracting in the age of AI; browse around for all of our essays on the Fourth Industrial Revolution. hypertext.niskanencenter.org/p/hegseths-w...hypertext.niskanencenter.orgHegseth’s war on Anthropic is the wrong answer to the right questionThe government is too reliant on private software vendors for core mission work and AI will make this much worse. Forcing companies to work at gunpoint won’t fix things. 001
Reposted by David DaganThe Niskanen Center @niskanencenter.bsky.social · 11/02/2026To what extent was the U.S. already in crisis before the rise in populism we've seen over the past few years? It's a serious debate among defenders of the liberal-democratic order. Recent responses to Brink Lindsey's new book have brought it to the forefront. ⬇️ 111
Reposted by David DaganThe Niskanen Center @niskanencenter.bsky.social · 29/01/2026Can we create a digital economy that strengthens democracy instead of eroding it? This week in Hypertext ⤵️ 121
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 25/01/2026Incredible courage from these witnesses, whose fear of retaliatory or preemptive violence is 100% justified. 000
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 25/01/2026The logic of the escalating violence & rhetoric is to force max number of R's and nonattentive folks into the pro-paramilitary corner because they either like what they see or just believe the lies, and/or to set off a confrontation w/ local/state authorities that provides pretext for worse. 1/2 100
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 12/01/2026But if you listen to Goldsmith and Bauer today, it becomes clear just how much of an own goal this will be. He is in a loss-overreach spiral that will badly wound us but exposes the limits of his power, and thereby degrades it. 020
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 09/01/2026The demagogic response to the ICE killing is the domestic side of Stephen Millerism. This administration cannot recognize the category of “victim” in regard to its policies or the agents carrying them out; any victim must be immediately converted into an enemy. 1/4 120
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 06/01/2026I am thankful for the heroes of Jan. 6 and all who worked so hard for accountability. Their America will outlast the mob and its leader. 010
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 03/01/2026Domestically, this may prove Trump's biggest blunder. How will MAGA isolationists take his plans to occupy Venezuela? A cowardly Congress refused to pass a law that would have prevented this intervention, but if Venezuela's new leader refuses to play ball, will they support a bloodbath? 1/3 110
Reposted by David DaganWalter Olson @walterolson.bsky.social · 03/01/2026Statement from Cato VP Clark Neily: Courts probably won't rule against the rendition. Yet Trump has chosen to bypass the constitutional provisions designed to cabin the president's powers in using force against other countries. And an indictment does not supply him with those powers. 8425157
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 03/01/2026The guy who ran against the Iraq War is offering us Iraq on steroids. The congressional abdication. The thin pretext. The myopia about the potential for a bloodbath. All caricatures of 23 years ago. And the caricature of 2003 - the oil play - is now real. 000
Reposted by David DaganThe Niskanen Center @niskanencenter.bsky.social · 23/12/2025Earlier this month, Ross Douthat argued that “the liberal order can’t heal itself.” The next day, @jvl.bsky.social told liberals to stop the masochism. But the answer is neither despair nor restoration, but a liberal reconstruction. hypertext.niskanencenter.org/p/lets-bake-...hypertext.niskanencenter.orgLet’s bake the liberal sourdoughYes, Jonathan V. Last, liberalism needs to revisit its recipe. No, Ross Douthat, we should not give up on the starter. 041
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 18/12/2025Examining how our elite went wrong is not masochism and New Right flirtation. The question is precisely how our leadership class wound up allowing these people anywhere close to power, and caving repeatedly to the predations of the Trump administration in recent months. 1/2 110
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 30/11/2025Joining the Black Friday Amazon boycott this weekend led me to rediscover @kanopy.com! Double-win! @awscloud.bsky.social 000
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 20/11/2025You don't have to be a genius to understand why DOGE was a disaster. But even serious people can get government reform badly wrong. To do it right, we need to study the pitfalls - and I'm jazzed about this Hypertext issue doing just that. 000
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 19/09/2025ABC has joined the slackjaw club, dismayed at being called on its proclaimed principles, incapable of retort. It joins law firms, broadcasters, and Fortune 500 corporations that have all been exposed as suffering from an advanced stage of moral rot. Trump sensed that spinelessness and pushed. 1/2 131
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 12/09/2025One of the most baffling points in the @ezraklein.bsky.social piece on Kirk: "We can live with losing an election because we believe in the promise of the next election." But Kirk didn't! And yet Ezra concludes: "We were on the same side on the continued possibility of American politics." 040
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 12/09/2025I mourn Kirk's killing. I admire his charisma, organizing genius, & commitment to debate. THAT was right about his way. I also believe he used his talents to promote lies that damaged our democracy and bigotry that divides us. THAT was wrong about his way. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...motherjones.comNo, Charlie Kirk was not practicing politics the right wayHis assassination deserves full condemnation; his full impact should not be sidestepped. 130
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 28/08/2025It can be a trap if you make it a trap. It's a gift if you make it a gift. The line is: We have a big crime problem and we'd love more cops to help solve it. But Trump is cutting money for cops and sending troops because he isn't coming after criminals - he's coming after democracy. 100
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 28/08/2025Big new paper from Steve Teles @niskanencenter.bsky.social today niskanencenter.org/abundance-va.... Steve outlines six types of “abundance” thinking he predicts will shape US politics. As in the Progressive Era, broad principles will attach to distinct cultural and political economic projects.niskanencenter.orgVarieties of Abundance - Niskanen CenterWe will know that abundance has succeeded when there is a proliferation of “abundances,” different governing projects attached to previously existing ideologies, interests, and parties. 131
Reposted by David DaganGreg Sargent @gregsargent.bsky.social · 22/08/2025This is getting very bad: *FBI raids top Trump critic's home *Trump loyalist gins up "mortgage fraud" pretexts for DOJ probes of Schiff, Letitia James, Lisa Cook *Bannon says ICE will monitor 2026 voting *DHS memo vows LA operations "for years to come" New from me: newrepublic.com/article/1994...newrepublic.comTrump’s FBI Raid of John Bolton’s Home Looks Like a “Five Alarm Fire”Thus far little is known about Friday’s law enforcement action against a top Trump critic. But we’re seeing an escalation of authoritarian power on many fronts that has grown unmistakable. 17133051500
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 08/08/2025I spent a lot of time trying to level-set on how we reached the point of starvation in Gaza. First of several posts: daviddagan.substack.com/p/why-are-ga... 010
Reposted by David DaganDavid J. Bier @davidjbier.bsky.social · 05/08/2025Some racial profiling was happening from the start, but the operation was supercharged in mid-May when the White House ordered ICE to stop using warrants, targeted operations, and just "go out on the streets" and arrest people. These arrests shot from 500/week to 1,500/week 29644
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 04/08/2025The BLS firing is one of Trump's most chilling moves yet. He is demanding that we be lied to about the most material facts of most Americans' lives - how they earn a living. And it will come at the expense of that living, because it destroys the foundations for investing in the United States. 000
Reposted by David DaganDavid Roberts @volts.wtf · 24/07/2025I want to enthusiastically endorse this piece from @cselmendorf.bsky.social & @profschleich.bsky.social. Thus far YIMBY has been almost entirely focused on More Housing, but ultimately, if you want people to accept density, you have to make it *nice*, and that means more than just housing.hypertext.niskanencenter.orgYIMBYism started as a single-issue movement. It's time to think bigger.New research shows that voters who like cities back denser housing. To make cities more likeable, YIMBYs need to act more like a party. 1825958
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 28/07/2025The great @henrymjtonks.bsky.social cranked up his time machine and came up with really critical lessons for Democrats. But not only Democrats. 1/2 hypertext.niskanencenter.org/p/lessons-fr... 110
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 28/07/2025As @mattyglesias.bsky.social notes today, certain interest groups certainly built the polarization machine deliberately, but @jmcrosson.bsky.social wrote this great piece for us about how many just got sucked into it, even as single-issue orgs. 1/2 hypertext.niskanencenter.org/p/when-lobby...hypertext.niskanencenter.orgWhen lobbyists have to pick a sidePartisan polarization has sucked in the special interests that long kept Congress pragmatic. 142
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 23/07/2025YIMBYism needs to become more party-like, @cselmendorf.bsky.social and David Schleicher argue in today's Hypertext. Here's why. Shoutout to @dbroockman.bsky.social & @jkalla.bsky.social. 032
Reposted by David DaganThe Niskanen Center @niskanencenter.bsky.social · 18/07/2025Hypertext—Niskanen’s intellectual journal—is turning two! We launched it to tackle one big question: How do we make America’s institutions work for the 21st century? Now we’re sharpening that mission 🧵 112
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 20/06/2025The "TACO" shorthand for thinking about Trump is not just annoying as an acronym - I also think it misreads the moment. I think it grows out of confusion that comes with being in what I'm thinking of as The Warp Zone. 100
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 19/06/2025Iraq and Afghanistan from the beginning were conceived as regime-change invasions involving ground troops. A war goal of destroying Fordow aerially is limited and (I think!) achievable. Whether we should do it hinges on nonpublic intel IMO - but that's the question on the table. 000
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 19/06/2025MAGA's Massive Ordnance Penetrator - thoughts on the American crisis meeting war in the Middle East. daviddagan.substack.com/p/magas-mass...daviddagan.substack.comMAGA's Massive Ordnance PenetratorDonald Trump's coalition and contradictory worldview faces the Iranian moment as Congress ducks its responsibility. What would a reasonable president do? 000
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 16/06/2025Early in the war that began on Oct. 7, a friend said to me: “It’s like Covid, but with bombs.” That's more true than ever now that the fight is directly with Iran. But Israelis know why they are going through this. daviddagan.substack.com/p/what-israe...daviddagan.substack.comWhat Israelis are going through - and whyLike Ukraine, Israel is first in a bully's line of fire - but certainly not last. 000
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 11/06/2025My latest Israel-Gaza post - taking seriously the problem of Hamas diverting aid, and condemning the prolonged blockade that has driven Gazans to the brink. daviddagan.substack.com/p/the-blocka...daviddagan.substack.comThe blockade was a disasterHamas militarizes the aid. Blocking it for so long was still wrong. 000
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 06/06/2025The Trump administration caved on the Abrego Garcia case because the courts did not cower. Now they are using their politicized DOJ to save face with hyperbolic criminal charges. This is at once a big win for the rule of law and a reminder of the danger we still face. 000
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 05/06/2025The travel ban for the administration is a convenient distraction from reconciliation and infighting, but still worth reflecting on. It's a measure of how far we've fallen that in Trump II, this wouldn't even make a top 10 list of abuses. 100
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 04/06/2025I think the smart version of this is not "too much constraint" but "the wrong constraint in the wrong places." But it's hard to be schematic about what those wrong places are - as the well-taken critique of Marc's schema higher in Sam's thread indicates. 110
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 28/05/2025This seems to be getting more traction over at The Bad Place but it really needs to resonate here. The usual story we tell about primaries being the source of our woes has looked deeply flawed for a while: Primary voters are not more "extreme" as a general matter. 1/2 1122
Reposted by David DaganThe Niskanen Center @niskanencenter.bsky.social · 23/05/2025"No president in living memory has attacked the sources of American strength and dynamism in the way that Trump already has done." www.nytimes.com/2025/05/20/o...nytimes.comOpinion | ‘I Even Believe He Is Destroying the American Presidency’Trump’s wanton attacks on institutions and individuals have a specific purpose. 093
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 23/05/2025Today on Hypertext: the long history of American YIMBYism, and what we can learn from it. hypertext.niskanencenter.org/p/yimbyism-i... 000
David Dagan @daviddagan.bsky.social · 22/05/2025My latest thoughts on the depressing Israel-Gaza situation - hard to put into a social media post, and titled "It's still complicated." daviddagan.substack.com/p/its-still-...daviddagan.substack.comIt's still complicated, part IWhy I think more Gaza fighting was probably inevitable - but Israel went about it the wrong way 000