Rick Stengel
@rickstengel.bsky.social
Former Under Secretary of State in Obama admin & Editor of TIME. Author of “Information Wars: How We Lost the Battle Against Disinformation” & the audiobook, “Mandela: The Lost Tapes.” Analyst @MSNOW
The alleged shooter was granted asylum this year by the Trump administration.
National Guard shooting suspect to face murder charges, Trump to freeze 'Third World' migration
The Afghan man accused of shooting two National Guard members will face first-degree murder charges for an attack that prompted President Donald Trump to declare he would freeze migration from "Third ...
www.reuters.com
November 28, 2025 at 10:23 PM
The alleged shooter was granted asylum this year by the Trump administration.
Apart from the outright offensiveness of much of this post, Trump says "hundreds of thousands of refugees from Somalia" are "taking over" Minnesota. Census statistics show that there are fewer than 100,000 people in the entire United States of Somali ancestry, and Minnesota has 50-70,000.
November 28, 2025 at 10:18 PM
Apart from the outright offensiveness of much of this post, Trump says "hundreds of thousands of refugees from Somalia" are "taking over" Minnesota. Census statistics show that there are fewer than 100,000 people in the entire United States of Somali ancestry, and Minnesota has 50-70,000.
Because of tariffs and uncertainty, operating margins for small retailers with total assets less than $50 million have plunged to negative 20.7%, leaving 36% of them at a high risk of bankruptcy.
www.reuters.com
November 26, 2025 at 2:58 PM
Because of tariffs and uncertainty, operating margins for small retailers with total assets less than $50 million have plunged to negative 20.7%, leaving 36% of them at a high risk of bankruptcy.
The recent revelations by the location label on X that many maga accounts are from abroad & not-American shows why the marketplace model of speech is broken. The perverse incentives of social media monetization de-incentivize truth. That's not a fair market, as I write below.
The Marketplace of Ideas Isn't Working
Americans' freedom of speech is predicated on the theory of a marketplace of ideas. But this model needs to be updated.
time.com
November 25, 2025 at 3:55 PM
The recent revelations by the location label on X that many maga accounts are from abroad & not-American shows why the marketplace model of speech is broken. The perverse incentives of social media monetization de-incentivize truth. That's not a fair market, as I write below.
Not sure what's so complicated about this. Obeying an "illegal" order is itself illegal. This is a tenet of almost every legal or moral system, including the U.S. military.
Pentagon says it's investigating Sen. Mark Kelly over video urging troops to defy 'illegal orders'
The Pentagon says it's investigating Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona over possible breaches of military law after the former Navy pilot joined a handful of other lawmakers in a video that called...
apnews.com
November 24, 2025 at 10:27 PM
Not sure what's so complicated about this. Obeying an "illegal" order is itself illegal. This is a tenet of almost every legal or moral system, including the U.S. military.
Venality plus incompetence is a powerful combination.
BREAKING: A federal judge has thrown out the criminal indictment of James Comey, ruling that Trump-installed prosecutor Lindsey Halligan was illegally appointed and had no lawful authority to bring the case. The court found her actions violated federal law and the Constitution’s Appointments Clause.
November 24, 2025 at 8:58 PM
Venality plus incompetence is a powerful combination.
The "28-point" plan is not a peace plan but a subjugation of Ukraine plan, along the lines Putin has always desired. Why give Russia a victory at the negotiating table that they did not win on the battlefield?
November 24, 2025 at 4:48 PM
The "28-point" plan is not a peace plan but a subjugation of Ukraine plan, along the lines Putin has always desired. Why give Russia a victory at the negotiating table that they did not win on the battlefield?
The marketplace of ideas is the basis for the First Amendment's protection of free speech. It's being distorted by the platform companies, algorithms, and the global firehose of falsehood. This piece is adapted from the Feingold Lecture at CCNY. time.com/7335763/auto...
The Marketplace of Ideas Isn't Working
Americans' freedom of speech is predicated on the theory of a marketplace of ideas. But this model needs to be updated.
time.com
November 24, 2025 at 1:05 PM
The marketplace of ideas is the basis for the First Amendment's protection of free speech. It's being distorted by the platform companies, algorithms, and the global firehose of falsehood. This piece is adapted from the Feingold Lecture at CCNY. time.com/7335763/auto...
This is the saddest, most disappointing, most immoral thing imaginable. It will take decades to repair the mess these people will leave. www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
U.S. Coast Guard will no longer classify swastikas, nooses as hate symbols
The military service, which falls under the Department of Homeland Security, has drafted a new policy that classifies such items “potentially divisive.”
www.washingtonpost.com
November 20, 2025 at 7:37 PM
This is the saddest, most disappointing, most immoral thing imaginable. It will take decades to repair the mess these people will leave. www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
Department of Defense Law of War Manual (2015), § 18.3.3.
“A service member has a duty to disobey a manifestly unlawful order.”
“A service member has a duty to disobey a manifestly unlawful order.”
Trump calls for Democratic lawmakers to face trial for ‘seditious behavior’
“SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!” he wrote on Truth Social.
www.politico.com
November 20, 2025 at 7:14 PM
Department of Defense Law of War Manual (2015), § 18.3.3.
“A service member has a duty to disobey a manifestly unlawful order.”
“A service member has a duty to disobey a manifestly unlawful order.”
"Things happen," the president of the United States said of the cold-blooded murder and dismemberment of a Saudi-American Washington Post journalist at the hands of Saudi officials. "A lot of people didn't like that gentleman," he said. Only autocrats did not like him.
November 18, 2025 at 8:37 PM
"Things happen," the president of the United States said of the cold-blooded murder and dismemberment of a Saudi-American Washington Post journalist at the hands of Saudi officials. "A lot of people didn't like that gentleman," he said. Only autocrats did not like him.
My dad fought in WWII. He didn’t talk about it. He grew up in Brooklyn, the son of an immigrant father. He served with men from all over the country. His service made him an American; made him believe in the American dream. I think his generation would say this is not the country they fought for.
November 11, 2025 at 4:53 PM
My dad fought in WWII. He didn’t talk about it. He grew up in Brooklyn, the son of an immigrant father. He served with men from all over the country. His service made him an American; made him believe in the American dream. I think his generation would say this is not the country they fought for.
-->"What Nixon did episodically and covertly, knowing it was illegal or improper, Trump now does routinely and overtly."
Why I Am Resigning
A federal judge explains his reasoning for leaving the bench.
www.theatlantic.com
November 11, 2025 at 3:19 PM
-->"What Nixon did episodically and covertly, knowing it was illegal or improper, Trump now does routinely and overtly."
Nothing more like a Mafia presidency than preemptively pardoning your co-conspirators in a gigantic crime.
The Mafia Presidency
Trump is saying, essentially, If you don’t want to get hurt, you’ll do what I say.
www.theatlantic.com
November 10, 2025 at 1:25 PM
Nothing more like a Mafia presidency than preemptively pardoning your co-conspirators in a gigantic crime.
If this were a metaphor or a satire, it would be spot on. But of course, it's not. Even Caesar had his image on only one side. But his coin did have the legend, CAESAR DICT PERPETVO (“Caesar, dictator in perpetuity”)
A Two-Headed Coin That Always Comes Up ‘Trump’
www.nytimes.com
November 9, 2025 at 2:41 PM
If this were a metaphor or a satire, it would be spot on. But of course, it's not. Even Caesar had his image on only one side. But his coin did have the legend, CAESAR DICT PERPETVO (“Caesar, dictator in perpetuity”)
As ever, it is not either/or but both/and. The Democratic party should be a big tent containing progressives and moderates—heck, that's what a party is! No internecine warfare!
Where Democrats Will Duel Next for the Party’s Future
www.nytimes.com
November 9, 2025 at 1:33 PM
As ever, it is not either/or but both/and. The Democratic party should be a big tent containing progressives and moderates—heck, that's what a party is! No internecine warfare!
As Atul Gawande writes, "There are valid criticisms of USAID. It sometimes fostered dependency..Yet no agency of the US gov't has saved more lives per dollar." The documentary shows how many of those lives will be lost.
The Shutdown of U.S.A.I.D. Has Already Killed Hundreds of Thousands
The short documentary “Rovina’s Choice” tells the story of what goes when aid goes.
www.newyorker.com
November 8, 2025 at 11:56 AM
As Atul Gawande writes, "There are valid criticisms of USAID. It sometimes fostered dependency..Yet no agency of the US gov't has saved more lives per dollar." The documentary shows how many of those lives will be lost.
Reposted by Rick Stengel
As a lawyer who advised and represented international financial institutions making loans and guarantees on major investment projects in Uzbekistan for 15 years, I can say with 100% certainty that Uzbekistan does not have $135 billion to invest in the US, or anywhere else outside of Uzbekistan.
November 8, 2025 at 2:05 AM
As a lawyer who advised and represented international financial institutions making loans and guarantees on major investment projects in Uzbekistan for 15 years, I can say with 100% certainty that Uzbekistan does not have $135 billion to invest in the US, or anywhere else outside of Uzbekistan.
Seems pretty clear that:
1. Tariffs are a tax, and only Congress can impose a tax.
2. There is no emergency to justify using emergency powers.
3. The IEEPA legislation was designed to constrain the president's powers, not increase them.
www.cnn.com/2025/11/05/p...
1. Tariffs are a tax, and only Congress can impose a tax.
2. There is no emergency to justify using emergency powers.
3. The IEEPA legislation was designed to constrain the president's powers, not increase them.
www.cnn.com/2025/11/05/p...
Takeaways from Trump’s rocky Supreme Court arguments over global tariffs | CNN Politics
The Supreme Court appeared deeply concerned Wednesday with President Donald Trump’s reliance on a vague federal law to impose global tariffs, with several members of the court’s conservative wing pick...
www.cnn.com
November 6, 2025 at 1:05 AM
Seems pretty clear that:
1. Tariffs are a tax, and only Congress can impose a tax.
2. There is no emergency to justify using emergency powers.
3. The IEEPA legislation was designed to constrain the president's powers, not increase them.
www.cnn.com/2025/11/05/p...
1. Tariffs are a tax, and only Congress can impose a tax.
2. There is no emergency to justify using emergency powers.
3. The IEEPA legislation was designed to constrain the president's powers, not increase them.
www.cnn.com/2025/11/05/p...
"If tonight teaches us anything, it's that convention has held us back. We have bowed at the altar of caution, and we've paid a mighty price. Too many working people cannot recognize themselves in our party, and too many among us have turned to the right for answers to why they’ve been left behind."
The Full Transcript of Zohran Mamdani’s Victory Speech
www.nytimes.com
November 5, 2025 at 4:40 PM
"If tonight teaches us anything, it's that convention has held us back. We have bowed at the altar of caution, and we've paid a mighty price. Too many working people cannot recognize themselves in our party, and too many among us have turned to the right for answers to why they’ve been left behind."
Memories are short. (A) We forget how deeply unpopular Trump I was and (B) that every election is about the economy. Voters rejected Trump II and the bad economy and embraced sanity and competence. On to the midterms.
November 5, 2025 at 12:20 PM
Memories are short. (A) We forget how deeply unpopular Trump I was and (B) that every election is about the economy. Voters rejected Trump II and the bad economy and embraced sanity and competence. On to the midterms.
In any other administration, a president pardoning a billionaire felon who was enriching his own family would be a scandal that could topple the presidency.
Trump Pardons Founder of the Crypto Exchange Binance
www.nytimes.com
November 4, 2025 at 12:01 AM
In any other administration, a president pardoning a billionaire felon who was enriching his own family would be a scandal that could topple the presidency.
I'll relieve you from having to watch the 60 Minutes interview. Here it is in its entirety: "DEMOCRATS: BAD! ME: GREAT! BETTER THAN ANYONE IN HISTORY!"
November 3, 2025 at 1:33 PM
I'll relieve you from having to watch the 60 Minutes interview. Here it is in its entirety: "DEMOCRATS: BAD! ME: GREAT! BETTER THAN ANYONE IN HISTORY!"
"America has lost its moral bearings; as a result, it has also lost its moral standing in the world."
Trump’s Plan Is Now Out in the Open
It’s getting ever harder to avoid connecting the authoritarian dots.
www.theatlantic.com
November 3, 2025 at 1:27 PM
"America has lost its moral bearings; as a result, it has also lost its moral standing in the world."
He said the meeting with Xi was a 12 on a 1-10 scale. Let's say at the start of his presidency, the relationship with China was a 5 on a 1-10 scale. His erratic non-strategic tariffs and behavior took it back to a 1. Now he's managed to eke out a 3. So, yes, it's a 12 on a 1-30 scale.
October 30, 2025 at 4:38 PM
He said the meeting with Xi was a 12 on a 1-10 scale. Let's say at the start of his presidency, the relationship with China was a 5 on a 1-10 scale. His erratic non-strategic tariffs and behavior took it back to a 1. Now he's managed to eke out a 3. So, yes, it's a 12 on a 1-30 scale.