In a new story at NBC News, Steve Kornacki says there is a new GOP uprising underway leading into the 2018 election. It is a replay or the next stage of similar eruptions in 2010 and 2012 and to a lesser extent in 2014. We know the pattern: establishment Republicans get picked off by increasingly radical or simply crazy ‘grassroots’ conservatives. Many end up losing races to Democrats which a more conventional Republican could have won. But some or most get through. Read More
A top Saudi education official lost his job this week after he oversaw the creation of a new Saudi high school history textbook which had a picture of then-Prince and later King Faisal signing the UN Charter in 1945 with Yoda sitting next to him. And we should all be grateful to be alive in a day when such an amazing story came to pass.
One component of the President’s tax cut plan is eliminating the inheritance tax. This is a huge mistake, both for society and the economy. You may be confused because you know about it as the ‘estate tax’ or after years of conservative yakking ‘the death tax.’ But it is actually a tax on inheritances. And though it is far from sufficient, a robust tax on inheritances is a critical part not only of combating wealth inequality but also creating a productive economy. Read More
Racist activists working to put together a replay of Charlottesville tiki fest, this time in Charlotte.
Here is some news which is altogether of the moment but which I had missed. In fact, from what I can tell it’s received relatively little news attention at all beyond Richmond – and not terribly much even there. A state commission in Virginia is planning an anti-slavery monument which will be built in downtown Richmond, specifically on Brown’s Island. So far, nothing terribly remarkable. But one of the 10 figures to be honored in the monument is Nat Turner, who led the largest and deadliest slave rebellion in United States’ history in 1831. Read More
I’ve mentioned in several posts over recent weeks and months that we’re going to be experimenting with some new ways to cover the news, provide guidance in following the news and breaking down what I’ve called the ‘fourth wall’ of news. We’re going to start with what we’re calling ‘Editor’s Briefs’. Read More
We are just 36 25 Prime members shy of 23,000 members. It’s a key milestone and gets us close to our goal for all 2017. It’s important. Make today the day to join us and click right here. Thank you.
Yesterday I wrote about what I called President Trump’s ‘weaponization of military sacrifice,’ how he transmutes the guilt, admiration and vicarious horror of loss into rage at dissenters. I focused on a tweet Trump RT’d with a photograph of a Marine veteran who’d lost his legs in combat. Allegra Kirkland found retired Marine Staff Sgt. John Jones, the man in the photograph, and asked his reactions to being pulled into President Trump’s attacks on the NFL and players who protest.
Jon Chait has a new article about the definition of ‘white supremacy’. It caught my attention when I saw Chait and Adam Serwer of The Atlantic debating Chait’s argument on Twitter.
I wanted to share a few thoughts on the question. Read More
The German election, like the earlier election in the United Kingdom, leaves the country without a clear direction or mandate. Most of the post-election stories have highlighted the showing of the Alternative fur Deutschland, the rightwing populist party that by winning 13 percent has become Germany’s third largest party. That’s certainly worrisome, but I’d give equal billing to the revival of the Free Democrats (FDP), which could doom any prospect for economic reform in Europe.