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Ken Budd

@kenbudd.bsky.social
527 followers 219 following 19 posts

Writer on travel, health, and other cool stuff. Bylines: Washington Post, The Atlantic, Nat Geo, NYT, Best American Travel Writing. Author of the memoir, The Voluntourist. Co-host, @upstartcrowpod.bsky.social.

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Ken Budd @kenbudd.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Happy to share my piece for Fodor's on why solo travel isn’t nearly as cool as Stanley Tucci and others make it seem. This was a fun one to write. I haven’t flexed my snark muscles in a story for a while. #travel
fodors.com
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Ken Budd @kenbudd.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Had a blast writing this story! #observatories #colleges #universities
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The Saturday Evening Post @satevepost.bsky.social · 24/02/2026
A leukemia survivor creates the books she wishes she’d had when she was a child.
saturdayeveningpost.com
Survivor Stories: Helping Children Fight Cancer with Books | The Saturday Evening Post
A leukemia survivor uses the power of books to inspire kids fighting their own battles with cancer.
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George Conway ⚖️🇺🇸 @gtconway.bsky.social · 29/03/2026
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Ben Collins @bencollins.bsky.social · 26/02/2026
Now that CNN and WBD are set to become state media in a sale to Paramount/Oracle/TikTok, it is especially important to support independent media. Off the top of my head: www.thehandbasket.co 404media.co www.garbageday.email Add your favorites in the replies. Fuck state-backed media monopolies.
thehandbasket.co
The Handbasket
100% independent journalism by Marisa Kabas
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ProPublica @propublica.org · 25/02/2026
“I miss my school and my friends I feel bad since when I came here to this Place, because I have been here too long,” wrote 9-year-old Susej, who said she had been held at Dilley detention center for more than 50 days.
propublica.org
“I Have Been Here Too Long”: Read Letters from the Children Detained at ICE’s Dilley Facility
Hundreds of children are currently being held with their parents at an immigration detention center in Dilley, Texas. In letters and drawings, eight kids convey the pain of feeling trapped with no end...
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The Bulwark @thebulwark.com · 22/02/2026
"You now live in a country where volunteers deliver babies at home, in secret, off the books, because mothers fear that if they go to the hospital, they will be abducted by masked, armed agents of the state while giving birth. This is not a hypothetical."
lnk.thebulwark.com
Special Saturday Triad: What I Saw at the Battle of Minneapolis
The national media has moved on. Minnesota is still under siege.
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Marisa Kabas @marisakabas.bsky.social · 17/02/2026
one of those things you need to watch if for no other reason than the trump administration doesn't want you to:
youtube.com
Rep. James Talarico On Confronting Christian Nationalism, And Strange Days In The Texas Legislature
YouTube video by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
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ProPublica @propublica.org · 16/02/2026
ProPublica received eight handwritten letters from children who have been held at the detention center that 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos was recently released from. We'll let their words speak for themselves.
propublica.org
“I Have Been Here Too Long”: Read Letters from the Children Detained at ICE’s Dilley Facility
Hundreds of children are currently being held with their parents at an immigration detention center in Dilley, Texas. In letters and drawings, eight kids convey the pain of feeling trapped with no end...
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ProPublica @propublica.org · 10/02/2026
In Kenya, American funds had helped feed hundreds of thousands of refugees. When it was cut, children starved. In South Sudan, U.S. aid had been helping to stave off a cholera epidemic. Then the disease came roaring back. Tomorrow at 4 pm ET, join us for a discussion about the gutting of USAID:
events.propublica.org
ProPublica Event: Inside the Destruction of the U.S. Agency for International Development
Join ProPublica journalists for a conversation about the dismantling of U.S. foreign aid worldwide.
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ProPublica @propublica.org · 09/02/2026
“There was zero plan, except causing pain,” said one U.N. official about the Trump administration’s decision to stop funding the group with no notice or communication. “And that is not forgivable.” (Published Dec. 2025)
propublica.org
After Trump Officials Cut Food Aid to Kenya, Children Starved to Death
“Brutal and traumatizing”: Interviews and a trove of internal documents show government officials and aid workers desperately tried to warn Trump advisers about impending disaster and death.
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The Bulwark @thebulwark.com · 07/02/2026
Bezos wasn't like this during Trump's first term. Trump, at least not to this extent, wasn't either. The Post needs someone who can stand up to Trump in his second term.
lnk.thebulwark.com
Jeff Bezos Must Sell the Washington Post
Mass layoffs undermine his promises to protect a great American institution.
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Sherrilyn Ifill @sifill.bsky.social · 30/01/2026
The arrests of journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort are a test for every MSM member with a platform. If you are not voicing your outrage at this blatant violation of the First Amendment, you are utterly discredited as a journalist.
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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 29/01/2026
Ossoff: "This is a seismic event. This should have people across the country absolutely shook. This is a huge deal. This is an FBI raid on the Fulton County Elections office ... This is a shot across the bow at the midterm elections. He tried to steal power when he lost it in 2020."
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Barack Obama @barackobama.bsky.social · 28/01/2026
In Minneapolis and many other communities across the country, we're seeing people come together to peacefully protest and support their neighbors. If you're looking to get involved, here are some ways to help:
vox.com
How to help the resistance to ICE in Minnesota — and beyond
What Minnesota’s immigrant communities need from you now.
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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 25/01/2026
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara: "People have had enough. This is the third shooting in less than 3 weeks. The MPD went the entire year last year recovering about 900 guns from the street, arresting hundreds of violent offenders, and we didn't shoot anyone ... this is not sustainable."
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MeidasTouch @meidastouch.com · 25/01/2026
Alex Pretti was an American hero. He saved lives. He protected people. He cared deeply about his community, unlike the murderous thugs who killed him. The very last thing he did was try to help a woman who had been pepper-sprayed and violently shoved to the ground by ICE. 1/
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Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
New, from me: Defenders of police abuses will sometimes talk about “bad apples” spoiling the barrel. This is the wrong metaphor for ICE and CBP. The barrel itself is rotten. 🧵 donmoynihan.substack.com/p/past-the-b...
donmoynihan.substack.com
Past the breaking point
The violent occupation of an American city is more than a warning
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Matt Oswalt @mattoswaltva.bsky.social · 23/01/2026
no matter how hard Greg Bovino tries to exude rugged masculinity he always comes off like Don Knotts in a Portlandia sketch
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Andrew Stroehlein @andrewstroehlein.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
"The lies this administration is telling about Ms. Good aren’t those you deploy as part of a cover-up. They’re those you use when you want to show you can get away with anything." www.nytimes.com/2026/01/21/o...
nytimes.com
Opinion | I’ve Covered Police Abuse for 20 Years. What ICE Is Doing Is Different.
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Barry Yeoman @barryyeoman.com · 21/01/2026
In the aftermath of 9/11, Denmark lost more soldiers per capita than the United States did in Afghanistan. @isaacstanleybecker.bsky.social introduces us to the mother of the first Danish woman ever to die in combat, and explains why Danes feel such a sense of betrayal. @theatlantic.com
theatlantic.com
The Sacrifice of the Danes
After September 11, Denmark fought alongside its ally. The families of fallen soldiers have a message for Trump.
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The Saturday Evening Post @satevepost.bsky.social · 09/12/2025
Founded by corrections-officer-turned- restaurateur Teresa Goines, the Old Skool supper club steers youths away from a cycle of gangs and jail by teaching them job skills (and life skills), nurturing their talents, and building their self-esteem.
saturdayeveningpost.com
Serving Skills for Trouble Youth | The Saturday Evening Post
Teresa Goines’s jazz-fueled supper club provides teens with jobs, love, and an escape from gangs.
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Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 16/10/2025
There are so many obvious constitutional violations in this story. It is enraging. There is no war, there is no foreign invasion, there is nothing that justify it. This is a choice to create a military presence that will brutalize residents of cities that do not support the President.
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Politico @politico.com · 14/10/2025
EXCLUSIVE: Thousands of leaked messages show leaders of Young Republican groups joking about gas chambers, slavery and rape in a private Telegram chat. Inside rising GOP leaders’ racist chats — obtained by POLITICO and spanning more than 7 months👇
politico.com
‘I love Hitler’: Leaked messages expose Young Republicans’ racist chat
Thousands of private messages reveal young GOP leaders joking about gas chambers, slavery and rape.
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Fall for the Book @fallforthebook.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
Congratulations to @shubhasunder.bsky.social for winning the 8th Annual Institute for Immigration Research New American Voices Award for Optional Practical Training: A Novel, from @graywolfpress.bsky.social! Read more: fallforthebook.org/shubhasunder...
fallforthebook.org
Shubha Sunder Wins New American Voices Award - Fall for the Book Festival
Shubha Sunder's Optional Practical Training wins 8th New American Voices Award, a post publication book prize celebrating immigrant writers.
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The Daily Show @thedailyshow.com · 09/10/2025
The following is REAL footage from Portland, 2025. Viewer discretion is advised.
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Benjamin Dreyer @bcdreyer.social · 04/10/2025
If you like yelling about misuse of the passive voice, THIS IS IT.
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Fall for the Book @fallforthebook.bsky.social · 10/09/2025
Exciting news: Ariel Lawhon will be headlining Fall for the Book on Wednesday, October 8 at 7:30 p.m.! Free tickets go live soon. Thank you to the Friends of the Reston Regional Library & Friends of the City of Fairfax Library for your support! www.eventbrite.com/e/frozen-riv...
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NPR @npr.org · 03/09/2025
The president and his sons made $5 billion on paper as their cryptocurrency started trading — highlighting the extraordinary degree to which they are personally profiting from Trump's return to the Oval Office.
n.pr
How Trump's latest crypto launch enriches his family
The president and his sons made $5 billion on paper as their cryptocurrency started trading — highlighting the extraordinary degree to which they are personally profiting from Trump's return to the Oval Office.
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Prof Christina Pagel @chrischirp.bsky.social · 28/08/2025
yup. I wrote something similar last week christinapagel.substack.com/p/grand-desi... "the very word “America” conjures up the celebrated ideal of “America the free”. But “America the free” are just words and they are rapidly losing all meaning."
christinapagel.substack.com
Grand Designs: the loss of American freedom
Exactly seven months into Trump's second term, we have reached 1000 authoritarian actions. Here I lay out the enormity of what has happened.
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Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 28/08/2025
New, from me: America is no longer a functioning democracy. It is a competitive authoritarian system, hurtling rapidly toward authoritarianism. This was a hard piece to write but we can't move forward if we don’t acknowledge where we are. donmoynihan.substack.com/p/the-author...
donmoynihan.substack.com
The authoritarian checklist
It is time to admit that America is no longer a functioning democracy
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Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 28/08/2025
Authoritarians who unwind democracy are similar in one respect. They seek to take control of centers of power and dissent in society. Call it the authoritarian checklist. Trump’s second term is best understood by his systemic checking off of this checklist. donmoynihan.substack.com/p/the-author...
an image of a handwritten checklist that says control government bureaucracy, the military, internal security, the legal system, civil society, higher education, the media, elections
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Sarah Longwell @sarahlongwell25.bsky.social · 27/08/2025
@adriancarrasquillo.bsky.social: "Trump’s deployment of 2,300 National Guard troops and 500 federal law enforcement agents has hurt foot traffic, chilled business, and made people cancel trips and nights out. It is slowly choking the life out of Washington, D.C." www.thebulwark.com/p/trump-is-s...
thebulwark.com
Trump Is Strangling the Life Out of D.C.’s Restaurants
“We’re back to a very pandemic-feeling city.”
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Joe Walsh @walshfreedom.bsky.social · 27/08/2025
It’s always so easy to laugh at this, but it’s not funny. For 3hrs today, grown men & women all took turns getting down on their knees, fellating their dear leader. In front of the cameras. It’s sad. It’s gross. It’s North Korea. It shouldn’t happen here.
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Amanda Carpenter @amandacarpenter.bsky.social · 26/08/2025
Don’t let them tell you he’s joking. He’s putting armed troops in the streets. Not a joke. Not a drill.
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Sarah Longwell @sarahlongwell25.bsky.social · 25/08/2025
@billkristolbulwark.bsky.social: It's not backsliding, it's a march to dictatorship. Only @thebulwark.com
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Fall for the Book @fallforthebook.bsky.social · 20/08/2025
Thank you to everyone who has helped us reach our Double Your Dollar goal! We are so grateful to you! Our VIP Ticket raffle is still ON - anyone who gives 25+ during August will be entered in to win 2 VIP tickets to the headliner of their choice. givebutter.com/DYD2025
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Peter Baker @peterbakernyt.bsky.social · 20/08/2025
The places where Trump has sent troops in DC so far tell part of the story, writes Helene Cooper. Most have been seen near the National Mall, large monuments and other tourist-heavy areas rather than where the most violent crime happens. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/19/u...
nytimes.com
National Guard Troops in Washington Stick to Tourist Areas
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George Conway ⚖️🇺🇸 @gtconway.bsky.social · 20/08/2025
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Peter Baker @peterbakernyt.bsky.social · 19/08/2025
Trump claims his militarized takeover of DC has made people feel safer to go out to restaurants, but in fact restaurants in DC have seen the number of diners plummet more than 25% since he sent feds into the street. @jordanonrecord.bsky.social www.wusa9.com/article/news...
wusa9.com
Reservations plunge across DC restaurants after Trump's police takeover
Online reservations dropped more than 25% in the days following President Trump's announcement that he was federalizing DC Police, according to OpenTable data.
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Ken Budd @kenbudd.bsky.social · 13/08/2025
As the new board chair for the @fallforthebook.bsky.social festival, I'm thrilled by our two headliners! I'll be interviewing Erik Larson at the event on October 10. Go to fallforthebook.org for info. #booksky #books
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The New Yorker @newyorker.com · 10/08/2025
Mark Peterson’s black-and-white images of ICE agents evoke film noir and the urban-crime photography of the 1930s and ’40s. “If someone is doing everything right, and then they still get detained, it’s a crime scene,” he said.
newyorker.com
ICE’s Spectacle of Intimidation
Immigrants showing up for court dates in Manhattan must now navigate past rows of masked federal agents.
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Fall for the Book @fallforthebook.bsky.social · 04/08/2025
Fall for the Book’s Double Your Dollar campaign is back. We have lost our funding from the National Endowment for the Arts for 2025. In one swift move, over 10% of our annual budget is gone—now, we’re asking for your help to make up the difference. givebutter.com/DYD2025
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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 28/07/2025
"The lesson for Democrats here is straightforward. Opposing Trump vigorously, even when — or especially when — doing so seems distasteful or risky, can in fact damage Republicans. Damaging Republicans makes resistance easier, which in turn can erode Trump’s standing, and so on."
publicnotice.co
On Epstein, Democrats have Mike Johnson running scared
Resistance doesn’t always work. But failing to resist never does.
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Home of the Brave @ofthebraveusa.bsky.social · 24/07/2025
NEW: South Park showed courage last night, refusing to bow to political intimidation by delivering a fearless, uncompromising, (full) frontal assault on the president's authoritarian agenda. newsletter.ofthebrave.org/p/south-park...
newsletter.ofthebrave.org
South Park Just Did What CBS News Refused to Do
Stand up to Trump and call out Paramount’s cowardice.
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Ken Budd @kenbudd.bsky.social · 23/07/2025
Scott Strode used fitness—from rock climbing to hikes—to overcome his addictions, and now he helps others to do the same. He shared his powerful story for my "Everyday Heroes" column in the @satevepost.bsky.social. www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2025/07/toge...
saturdayeveningpost.com
Together We Rise: A Story of Addiction, Fitness, and The Phoenix | The Saturday Evening Post
Physical fitness helped him overcome his battle with addiction, and now he’s helping others conquer theirs.
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Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 09/07/2025
New, from me: Elon Musk talks about saving our species. But the greatest legacy of his time in government will be to condemn millions to death because he could not discern reality from a paranoid fantasy. How Musk and Trump killed USAID. donmoynihan.substack.com/p/the-death-...
donmoynihan.substack.com
The Death of US AID
The most consequential legacy of DOGE will be human misery on a massive scale
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Ken Budd @kenbudd.bsky.social · 09/07/2025
It was an honor profile Calvin Mackie, who is bringing STEM education to often overlooked kids and at-risk neighborhoods.
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Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 05/07/2025
The fact we have secret police whisking people off the streets doesn’t get enough attention. It ain’t normal and we’re further down the road to authoritarianism than you think.
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