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Stephanie Mencimer

@smencimer.bsky.social
11K followers 228 following 372 posts

Senior reporter Mother Jones. Utah native. Send me tips at smencimer@motherjones.com or securely on Signal at smencimer.48 or smencimer@proton.me

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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 10h
One teen told ICE officers he lived with his dad down the block, but that his dad was deaf. They didn’t try to contact the father before deeming the boy “unaccompanied” and detaining him. “They’re kidnapping people’s kids,” a former Biden official told us. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
“You kidnapped my son”
ICE is now separating children from their parents and deeming them “unaccompanied.”
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
I was in Utah last month when Gov. Spencer Cox's new book on political depolarization came out. He wasn't doing any promo events in the state--off doing the Daily Show. So I spoke to some locals who explained why the self-described peacemaker is pretty polarizing at home. youtube.com/shorts/-eAA9...
youtube.com
Book-Banning Utah Governor: Buy My Book!
YouTube video by Mother Jones
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Book-banning GOP governor wants you to buy his book www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
Book-banning GOP governor wants you to buy his book
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox is promoting himself as a "peacemaker."
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Reposted by Stephanie Mencimer
Liberal Currents @liberalcurrents.com · 02/10/2026
Half the Answer #106: Donald Trump is changing the landscape of Washington, and everything he touches turns to plaster and adhesive gold-colored filigree. All the while, D.C. is still under occupation by National Guard out-of-towners. Mother Jones reporter Stephanie Mencimer tells us what it's like.
liberalcurrents.com
Everything's 'National Security' in Trump's Washington (Half the Answer #106, with Stephanie Mencimer)
Donald Trump is changing the landscape of D.C., from East Potomac Park to the Kennedy Center to the 'Arc de Trump.'
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Ian Gordon @idgordon.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
“The problem here is not the fact the Trumps are affiliated with a bank. It’s the fact that Donald Trump can fire the bank regulator if the bank regulator doesn’t do what he says.” Latest from @russchoma.bsky.social:
motherjones.com
Why Trump’s crypto business wants to become a bank
Sen. Elizabeth Warren decries the first family’s latest crypto play as a “clear conflict of interest and corruption.”
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Kiera Butler @kieraevebutler.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
New from me: Hegseth's new Pentagon initiative is weirdly obsessed with...homeschooling?
motherjones.com
What to know about Hegseth’s new office of religious affairs
"Our department is, you might say, putting on the full armor of God."
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
DC-area residents are used to the occasional military flyover. But the onslaught of war machines flying over DC since Trump took office last year is a whole new level of torture. I crunched some numbers: www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
From birthday celebrations to murderous dictators, Trump brings out the jets
The President's military flyovers are torturing DC-area residents.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
From birthday celebrations to murderous dictators, Trump brings out the jets www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
From birthday celebrations to murderous dictators, Trump brings out the jets
The President's military flyovers are torturing DC-area residents.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
While the Trump ads paid for by the taxpayers are shocking, his abuse of federal resources for campaign activity is nothing new. Just a little louder and more obvious. www.motherjones.com/politics/201...
motherjones.com
In another break from norms, Trump is using the White House as a campaign backdrop
"We’re in unorthodox times.”
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Oh no. www.washingtonpost.com/climate-envi...
washingtonpost.com
Trump administration considers building baseball park in Grand Teton National Park
Major League Baseball contacted the administration about hosting a game in a national park, with an agency official scouting Grand Teton as a possible location.
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derek guy @dieworkwear.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
some pilots are part of the furry community
An illustration of the Ralph Lauren Polo bear dressed up as a pilot and standing in front of a red airplane. The text says "Polo Aviator by Ralph Lauren."
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Why Trump May Not Serve Out His Presidency newrepublic.com/article/2156... via @newrepublic.com
newrepublic.com
Why Trump May Not Serve Out His Presidency
He will only get crazier, and at some point Republicans will cut their losses.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Please analyze @dieworkwear.bsky.social
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Spent some time with the protesters at the Kennedy Center Friday after the Trump admin officially closed the building.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Bo French sent a tweet so racist, his own party finally took notice. It's just the tip of the iceberg. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
Bo French sent a tweet so racist, his own party finally took notice. It's just the tip of the iceberg.
How a regulatory agency you've never heard of became a test case for Republican extremism.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
First Cory Mills' career imploded—then his grenade factory exploded www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
First Cory Mills' career imploded—then his grenade factory exploded
No one was harmed in the massive explosion, which could reportedly be felt for miles.
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Andrew Beaujon @abeaujon.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
If Trump really wants to tear down the Kennedy Center, one expert says, “there’s only so much that lawyers can do.”
washingtonian.com
If Trump Demolishes the Kennedy Center, We Have Problems - Washingtonian
Is the US actually barreling toward a constitutional crisis over the lettering on an arts complex's façade?
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Weird day to be receiving emails from the Kennedy Center, like everything is normal.
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Tim Murphy @timothypmurphy.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
"The brief supports OpenAI, saying it’s a vital national interest for AI companies not to have to pay for content" www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
ChatGPT took our stories. We’re suing.
Guess whose side he's on?
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
The devastation just never stops.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
"I met him in a gay bar."--Meet the FL GOP congressional candidate and January 6 participant who is campaigning to bring back "Judeo-Christian values" and has crusaded against LGBT Pride events because he says they promote "deviant sexual behaviors.” www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
The international underwear model who stormed the Capitol is now running for Congress
Florida’s most crowded GOP primary has two Trump-pardoned felons. John Strand is one of them.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
Florida congressional candidate and J6er John Strand says the "pride movement" promotes "deviant sexual behaviors." But back in his West Hollywood days, he worked at the Equinox booth at the Pride festival and modeled underwear targeted at gay men. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
The international underwear model who stormed the Capitol is now running for Congress
Florida's most crowded GOP primary has two Trump-pardoned felons. John Strand is one of them.
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Team Talarico @teamtalaricohq.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
NEW AD: 14 years ago today, Ken Paxton stole someone's $1,000 pen. Today, Ken Paxton’s pen victim is endorsing James Talarico.
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Mother Jones @motherjones.com · 11/08/2026
Trump’s track-record on DC renovation projects has been nothing short of disastrous. Just look at the Reflecting Pool. So, will his DC golf course renovation work out any better? To bring you the answer, @smencimer.bsky.social did some rainboots-on-the-ground reporting.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
If you thought the Reflecting Pool was a disaster, just wait until Trump starts renovating this DC golf course (which he says will happen Sept. 1) www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
Fore! Trump's DC golf course is already in the rough
If you thought the Reflecting Pool was a disaster, wait until they try to build this.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
what happens when you spend millions on renovating a DC park but fire all the people who should be maintaining it www.popville.com/2026/07/mean...
popville.com
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
Why Trump’s 250 Grand Prix Is a Really Bad Idea newrepublic.com/article/2137... via @newrepublic.com
newrepublic.com
Why Trump’s 250 Grand Prix Is a Really Bad Idea
It isn’t smart to host an Indy 500 race that roars past six museums and a sculpture garden.
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Clara Jeffery @clarajeffery.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Missed payments. Slashed staffing. Broken security. A patient who froze to death on a hospital roof. @h-lev.bsky.social & @acleek.bsky.social investigate American Healthcare System, the company driving hospitals around the country to financial chaos. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
A for-profit hospital slashed costs. Then a patient froze to death on its roof.
A little-known company grew on promises to save distressed hospitals. Instead, it sunk them into financial chaos.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
IRS CEO Frank Bisignano says the Trump admin is proving that the agency can have "less people and better results." But over the last month, I spent hours on hold with the IRS trying to fix a tax problem the agency caused--and no one ever answered. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
The IRS is imploding. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
The IRS is imploding.
The CEO says the agency is proving it's possible to have “less people and better results.”
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Andrew Beaujon @abeaujon.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
“I’d take you upstairs, but there’s a lot of underwear on the floor": A date with Lindsey Graham in the mid-'90s. (The writer also went on a date with Mark Foley.) washingtonian.com/2013/06/14/f...
washingtonian.com
From the Archives: How To Date a Congressman - Washingtonian
Election Night 1994: The nation's voters control my future tonight. I sit in front of the television watching the returns. Pen in hand, I update my candidate checklist as percentages flash across the ...
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
Is It Mitch McConnell Or Your Own Sense Of Possibility That Has Been Dead For Weeks? - defector.com/is-it-mitch-...
defector.com
Is It Mitch McConnell Or Your Own Sense Of Possibility That Has Been Dead For Weeks? | Defector
Nobody has seen Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell in public in a while. Is that because the 84-year-old former majority leader is dead? Well, now that is an interesting question. What is death? A man w...
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More Perfect Union @moreperfectunion.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
Meta’s AI data-center in Cheyenne, Wyoming, has been caught infecting the town’s water supply with deadly bacteria. Officials say wastewater from Meta’s AI data-center flooded the town’s pipes with the bacterium Cupriavidus gilardii, and they found the company violated industrial waste regulations.
tomshardware.com
Meta data center water discharges suspended after contaminating the city's reclamation water supply with bacterium — system offline for months for cleaning, closed-loop cooling system purge spread rar...
The city has revoked the Meta contractor's discharge privileges.
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Spooky Back From The Dead Lazarus @jlazarus.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
I'm gonna keep posting the fact that only $9 million (inflation adjusted) changed hands in Teapot Dome and it was the worst scandal in American history prior to Watergate until it stops being relevant.
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Jesse Hawken @jessehawken.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
Every day Sean Duffy doesn’t have to preside over a mass casualty event in the skies thanks to his mismanagement of the transportation department, the odds get better that he will have to
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PoPville @popville.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
“DPR Aquatic’s Mismanagement is Threatening the Future of DC Wave” www.popville.com/2026/06/dpr-...
popville.com
“DPR Aquatic’s Mismanagement is Threatening the Future of DC Wave” - PoPville
photo by Kyle "Dear PoPville, I am a parent of a DC Wave swimmer and a member of the team's Booster Club. I want to raise awareness of an issue facing the District's long-standing swim club, DC Wave, ...
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
In Utah's 3rd district, voters will choose between a candidate Trump endorsed and one he pardoned, who is also an election fraud conspiracy theorist. Both have ties to rogue Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy. One will go to Congress for sure. And it might be close!! www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
In this Utah primary, Trump endorsed one candidate, pardoned the other
And both have ties to rogue Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 23/06/2026
Today is the Utah primary. And it will be interesting! The red state will probably nominate a Democrat who will win in November now that it has eliminated partisan gerrymandering. That vote could help determine which party controls Congress. www.motherjones.com/politics/202... 1/
motherjones.com
Utah voters finally got a fair map. Republicans are making sure it never happens again.
The GOP has a veto-proof supermajority, even though the state’s demographics have changed dramatically.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
In this Utah primary, Trump endorsed one candidate, pardoned the other--and they both have ties to rogue Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy and his clan www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
In this Utah primary, Trump endorsed one candidate, pardoned the other
And both have ties to rogue Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy.
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Abby Vesoulis @abbyvesoulis.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
Scoop with @dfriedman.bsky.social: Trump brought a statue of a slave owner out of storage & hired a contractor to build it a new pedestal in DC. Installing it took ONE day & cost $527K. The Gov't justified the high price tag w/ urgent need to finish by July 4. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
Trump resurrected the statue of a slave owner. Its pedestal cost taxpayers $527k.
Contracting documents obtained by Mother Jones indicate the price was nearly double the government's estimate.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
Billionaires know just how they want Supreme Court justices to rule—and are spending big to tell them www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
Billionaires know just how they want Supreme Court justices to rule—and are spending big to tell them
How “friend of the court” filings became a cog in the right’s push to control the law.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
My mom used to do this. Of course, she lived in memory care.
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Hannah Levintova @h-lev.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
Given the news that Trump has just appointed Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence, it feels timely to revisit the three different episodes of financial impropriety by Pulte that I’ve reported on in the just last six months! Let’s recap:/1
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
In light of Ivanka's news today: Jared Kushner's ambition threatens one of Europe's last pristine ecosystems www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
Jared Kushner's ambition threatens one of Europe's last pristine ecosystems
Albania's unspoiled—and vital—Vjosë River delta is under siege by resort developers.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
The Kennedy Center was part of DC life. Trump destroyed it--but a federal judge today said that he at least has to take his name off the place. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
The Kennedy Center was part of DC life. Trump destroyed it.
It was never the city's most daring arts venue. It was something better: all ours.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
The maximum TANF benefit for a poor family of is $215 a month.
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Radley Balko @radleybalko.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
I'm neither a transportation expert nor a reality TV star. But I am the resident of a red state whose capital city airport regularly experiences 2+-hour traffic jams and has had to ground flights due to insufficient ATC staffing. Please spare us your "boon."
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The New York Review of Books @nybooks.com · 29/05/2026
“Is there not still reason to study how Americans, from within their infinite chorus of difference and pluralism, have understood their nation as a whole? If historians don’t, advocates of ‘patriotic’ history will do that for us.” —@dblight.bsky.social
nybooks.com
Dreams of Our Nation | David W. Blight
Historians must not cede the study of how Americans understand their cacophonous nation to advocates of “patriotic” history.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
For those of us who live in DC, the Kennedy Center wasn't just another white-marbled monument. It was part of our community life--until Trump destroyed it. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
The Kennedy Center was part of DC life. Trump destroyed it.
It was never the city's most daring arts venue. It was something better: all ours.
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Stephanie Mencimer @smencimer.bsky.social · 20/05/2026
Massie was literally given the hook while he was speaking to the Oldham County republicans the night I went to their Lincoln Day dinner. So it might be unwise to read too much into his race as a gauge of Trump's popularity. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
motherjones.com
Thomas Massie has always been a pain in the ass
Can the Kentucky Republican—inventor, farmer, gadfly, genius—survive standing up to Trump?
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