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Reposted by Jonathan Bernstein

Daniel Drezner @dandrezner.bsky.social · 28m

Not a sign of insecurity! You‘re the one who’s insecure!

Prem Thakker ツ @premthakker.bsky.social · 2h

NEW: Pentagon officials are forcing staff to watch Pete Hegseth's "Warrior" speech he forced generals to listen to.

Officials are even "testing" staff to see if they watched — and are threatening consequences if they lie about watching it or if they mock it, sources tell @swin24.bsky.social and I.

The Pentagon Is Ordering Staff to Watch Hegseth’s ‘MAGA Garbage’ Speech… Or Else

Defense Department sources tell Zeteo that staff have been warned that if they don’t watch or read the speech, or if they speak negatively of it, they could face severe consequences.

zeteo.com

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 5h

Just this week: Colleges are not signing his "compact"; journalists were not signing his Defense Department gag rules. We can't know, but odds are that would be very different if he was at 55% approval.

/ok I'll shut up now

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 5h

And yeah, any particular piece of it only matters at the margins; there's no magic bullet. But the margins are really, really, important. And can add up over time. Trump at 42% approval gets his way a lot less than Trump at 48% approval did; if he gets down to 35% approval, even less.

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 5h

The good news - as we see in the underlying article, and in practically every time Trump opens his mouth - is that they make it easy! Or at least easier. But that alas doesn't end it. The only way to make the case is to just keep making the case. Keep amplifying. Keep asking people to look.

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 5h

Some of it breaks through; that accounts for Trump's unpopularity. But it's a constant struggle against the tendency to discount rhetoric and to not pay attention, and the solution is to just keep pointing to what is happening and who these people are.

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 5h

And, you know, it's understandable and probably good that people are skeptical. Partisans are always making harsh accusations; it's healthy and in most cases functional to discount it. Just not in this particular case.

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 5h

Full endorse. Also: The evidence is that it *does* matter. Trump is unpopular! Which is part of why he loses so often!

Most people don't like bigots and Nazi-lovers, but they also don't pay much attention to politics and are not inclined to believe stuff like this. So seeing hard evidence matters.

Ana Marie Cox @anamariecox.bsky.social · 6h

To everyone who says, "But this won't matter": *MAKE IT MATTER.*

You have that power! This is not inside baseball and your friends and neighbors will likely be appalled. And if they're *not* appalled, don't be cynical yourself. Take the lead, give the cue.

Politico @politico.com · 10h

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👇

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Reposted by Jonathan Bernstein

Ana Marie Cox @anamariecox.bsky.social · 6h

To everyone who says, "But this won't matter": *MAKE IT MATTER.*

You have that power! This is not inside baseball and your friends and neighbors will likely be appalled. And if they're *not* appalled, don't be cynical yourself. Take the lead, give the cue.

Politico @politico.com · 10h

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👇

‘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.

www.politico.com

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Reposted by Jonathan Bernstein

Tom Pepinsky @tompepinsky.com · 7h

If the U.S. has all these extra soybeans, might as well make cooking oil out of them. But that would compete with other vegetables oils, harming those U.S. farmers. Could always make more margarine and Crisco, but those compete with Big Dairy and Big Hog

In conclusion, stupid tariff wars are stupid

Bloomberg News @bloomberg.com · 7h

US President Donald Trump said he might stop trade in cooking oil with China, injecting fresh tensions into the trade relationship between the world’s two largest economies

Trump Threatens China Cooking Oil Trade as Retaliation for Soybean Boycott

US President Donald Trump said he might stop trade in cooking oil with China, injecting fresh tensions into the trade relationship between the world’s two largest economies.

bloom.bg

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Reposted by Jonathan Bernstein

Sarah Posner @sarahposner.bsky.social · 8h

Don't do this. Be shocked. Promote the story. I mean, come on, if you say it's old news, then people shrug.

Seth Cotlar @sethcotlar.bsky.social · 9h

Amanda Moore (@noturtlesoup17.bsky.social) has been on this "far right extremists taking over the Young Republicans" beat for quite a while now. The Politico story adds new facts to the story, but it's hardly a new revelation. www.thenation.com/article/poli...

The War Within the Young Republican Party

At the Young Republican National Convention, far-right figures made few inroads—but they did read my Nation investigation.

www.thenation.com

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Reposted by Jonathan Bernstein

Christina Wolbrecht @cwolbrecht.bsky.social · 7h

oh goodie more locker room talk

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 6h

Sitting at tables seems to be one of her key responsibilities. I'm sure there's something else, but it sure doesn't appear to extend to, say, making sure that people don't get fired by mistake and have to be hired back. Or that those who screw up layoffs suffer consequences.

David S. Bernstein @dbernstein.bsky.social · 7h

… My apologies; apparently if the table is long enough, Susie Wiles gets to sit at it.

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 6h

Sarah I can't believe you're defending that umpire.

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 6h

Wrote about the Hatch Act and why I'm not a fan...but also about breaking the Hatch Act, which I'm not big on, and openly blatantly breaking the law, which is very bad news. Also why it's likely to backfire anyway. At GP/BP. goodpoliticsbadpolitics.substack.com/p/noem-unhat...

Noem, Unhatched

Boss Tweed would not have approved.

goodpoliticsbadpolitics.substack.com

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Reposted by Jonathan Bernstein

Dare Obasanjo @carnage4life.bsky.social · 7h

I’d been thinking for a while that it seems like a startling number of rappers have died in their mid-40s to mid-50s from natural causes but it didn’t really feel like an epidemic until I saw this list. 😦

Deaths of Hip-Hop Artists Reveal the Alarming State of Black Men’s Health

Neo-soul singer D'Angelo joins growing list of Gen X Black male performers who are dying relatively young.

capitalbnews.org

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 8h

Yeah. It's not a huge surprise, but it's nevertheless unfortunate that the kinds of damage Trump and the current GOP do to the republic don't seem to be within the scope of what voters punish. Mostly. At least not so far.

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 9h

That's not what I was talking about - I was talking about if they had followed up on their votes - but as it was, conviction was only 10 votes short. It's not crazy to think McConnell might have voted the other way (see his speech!), or that he could have brought 9 more with him.

Reposted by Jonathan Bernstein

🎃🪦 BLOODSUGARSETHMASKET 🪦🎃 @smotus.bsky.social · 14h

@jonathanbernstein.bsky.social: TSA is responsible for the safety of travelers and it’s probably bad if their bosses are ordering them to overtly break federal law
open.substack.com/pub/goodpoli...

Noem, Unhatched

Boss Tweed would not have approved.

open.substack.com

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 1d

No idea about what China is up to but I'm pretty sure that alienating all of the US's trading partners and allies while also trying hard to revive 20th c. industries and shut down 21st c. industries is not an optimal response.

Justin Mikulka @justinmikulka.bsky.social · 1d

“You get this sense of a change, where China’s competitiveness has gone from being about government subsidies and low wages to a tremendous number of highly skilled, educated engineers who are innovating like mad.”

headline: western executives who visit China are coming back terrified

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 1d

Sometimes the old saw about seeing something new every time you watch a ballgame requires cutting it a little fine. And sometimes...it doesn't.

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Reposted by Jonathan Bernstein

Keith Law @keithlaw.bsky.social · 1d

not sure my favorite part of this play but I love all of it

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 1d

Procrastinating? Yup:
Human Sexual Response, Cool Jerk
Stray Cats, Can't Hurry Love
Flying Lizards, Sex Machine
Jody & the Germs, Another Girl Another Planet
Bangles, September Gurls
Donnas, Da Doo Ron Ron
Girl in a Coma, Femme Fatale
Jam, Batman
Regrettes, Teenager in Love
Las Otras, Judy's a Punk

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 1d

More? More!
Elvis C, Leave that Kitten Alone
Catbite, Sneaky Feelings
Amy, Valerie
Bettye LaVette, Don't Fall Apart...
Siouxsie & the Banshees, Dear Prudence
Breeders, Theme from Buffy
Belly, Trust in Me
Los Lobos, Jockey Full of Bourbon
Clash, Brand New Cadillac
Cécile McLorin Salvant, Brick House

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 1d

Favorite? Dunno. Some I like:
Husker Du, Eight Miles High
Brothers Johnson, S'berry Letter 23
Ramones, Needles & Pins
Pretenders, Stop Your Sobbing
Beatles, Boys
Dollyrots, High School Never Ends
Bananarama, No Feelings
Bite Me Bambi, When You Were Mine
D'Angelo, Cruisin'
Save Ferris, Come on Eileen

Sophia_Nyx 🏳️‍⚧️ @sophianyx.bsky.social · 1d

Without saying Hurt, fav Cover Song?

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Jonathan Bernstein @jonathanbernstein.bsky.social · 1d

Ah so I actually have to make progress on this big stack of books to read. Fair.