Josh Marshall on X - "Harvard sociologist/polisci Theda Skocpol explains how the vast expansion of ICE in BBB may be Trump's secret weapon to overcome the barriers of federalism and complete his autocratic takeover of the American state. (History from Germany & Hungary in 20s/30s.)"
Thread by @dilanesper on Thread Reader App – Thread Reader App - "Prediction: there will not be an autocratic takeover of the American state in the next 3 years, and when it doesn't happen the academics like Skocpol who predicted it will face no loss of standing in elite discourse, just like foreign policy pundits who supported the Iraq War. There's a whole Cry Wolf Caucus in academia who are constantly telling us we meet, e.g., 16 of the 17 signs of Hitler taking over. In an ideal society this sort of thing-- which is CLEARLY politically motivated and careerist-- would cost people credibility when it doesn't happen. At any rate we have very strong institutions against any sort of Hitler-style takeover. There's a lot of stuff the Trump Administration is doing that I think is very bad, including, for instance, the Medicaid cuts he just signed or the immigration policies. But American democracy will survive. There will be free elections in 2026 and 2028 and most likely the Republicans will not do well in them. And while President Trump will have a lot of power to do damage in the area of immigration, Presidents have always had lots of power over immigration (Joe Biden did too) and it is inaccurate to label that an autocratic takeover and destruction of federalism."
Sam Roberts on X - "This has been Marshall’s schtick for over 20 years now. Go back and read his old blogs from the Bush 43 years. It was things like, “Gore Vidal Explains How the Bush Regime Will Declare Martial Law and Cancel the Midterm Elections.” And then those elections happened freely and fairly and Dems did very well!"
Or, just look at all the hysterical predictions from before and during Trump's first term. There's nothing new under the sun
mike bski on X - "Dear Fellow Americans Who Love Calling Trump "Literally Hitler," So you want to play the Hitler comparison game? Alright, let's do this. But fair warning, you're probably not gonna like where this goes. I find it fascinating that folks throw around "literally Hitler" like confetti at a parade without ever cracking open a history book. So let me walk you through how Hitler ACTUALLY rose to power, and then we can compare notes on which American president's rise looks more like that playbook. Buckle up. Hitler's rise depended on a few key things. First, media control and propaganda. Goebbels created a machine that flooded Germany with pro-Nazi messaging while crushing opposition voices. They used newspapers, radio, and film to build the "Hitler Myth" where he was portrayed as some kind of messiah who would save Germany. Second, Hitler demonized his political opponents. He didn't just say "I disagree with you." No, he called them ENEMIES of the German people who needed to be destroyed. The rhetoric escalated from "political opponent" to "existential threat to the nation." Third, he weaponized government agencies against his political enemies. And fourth, he exploited a grassroots movement during economic disaster, the Great Depression, with promises to fundamentally transform the country. Sound familiar yet? Now let's talk about Obama's rise. In 2008, Pew Research found that 37% of Americans believed media coverage was biased IN FAVOR of Obama. Only 8% thought it favored his opponents. That's not me saying it, that's Pew Research. The 2008 election got dubbed "The Facebook Election" because Obama's team revolutionized how to manipulate media and bypass traditional journalism entirely. One strategist bragged about it. They created celebrity endorsements, http://will.i.am 's "Yes We Can" video, murals... Chris Matthews said he got "a thrill going up my leg" listening to Obama speak. That's not political coverage, that's worship. And about demonizing opponents? Obama LITERALLY called Republicans "ENEMIES" in a 2010 Univision interview. His exact words were telling Latino voters to "punish our enemies." Not opponents. ENEMIES. When he got called out, he backtracked and said he meant "opponents." Sure you did, buddy. This was the FIRST time a modern president used "enemies" to describe fellow Americans who disagreed with him. You have to go back to the Civil War to find that kind of language from a president. Here's the kicker though. Under Obama, the IRS systematically targeted Tea Party groups and conservative organizations. Anyone with "patriot" or "9/12" or "Tea Party" in their name got flagged for extra scrutiny. Their applications got delayed for YEARS while liberal groups sailed through. The IRS later APOLOGIZED and settled lawsuits admitting they wrongly used "heightened scrutiny and inordinate delays." A Harvard Kennedy School study concluded this targeting cost Romney between 5 and 8.5 million votes in 2012. Obama won by about 5 million. You do the math. Weaponizing the IRS against political opponents during an election year? Gee, where have I heard that tactic before... Now compare that to Trump. The media didn't carry water for Trump. They attacked him relentlessly. Studies showed 90%+ negative coverage. That's the OPPOSITE of what happened with Hitler's propaganda machine. The FBI was weaponized against HIM, not by him. Remember Crossfire Hurricane? The Russia hoax? These weren't Trump weaponizing agencies against opponents. This was agencies being weaponized against Trump. And here's where your Hitler comparison really falls apart. Hitler exterminated 6 million Jews. Trump has Jewish grandchildren. Trump moved the US Embassy to Jerusalem. Trump created the Abraham Accords bringing peace between Israel and Arab nations. Trump made expanding Israeli peace deals his "personal legacy issue." Trump threatens Iran to PROTECT Israel. Real Hitler move there, right? Brokering peace for the Jewish state and having your daughter convert to Judaism. Let me spell it out real simple. The ACTUAL Hitler targeted Jews, destroyed Jewish businesses, built concentration camps, started World War II, and murdered millions. Trump pressures Arab nations to recognize Israel, makes Israeli peace deals his personal legacy, threatens Iran over their nuclear program because of Israel's security, and has Jewish grandchildren he adores. Which one sounds more like Hitler to you? Quinn's Third Law says "Liberalism must always conceal its true purpose." You don't call Trump "Hitler" because the comparison makes any historical sense. You do it because it dehumanizes your political opponent and justifies treating him and his supporters as subhuman threats who deserve whatever happens to them. That's LITERALLY the tactic Hitler used against Jews. You've become the thing you claim to hate. But what do I know? I'm just someone who actually studied history instead of getting my political analysis from TikTok and late-night comedy shows. The 6 million victims of the ACTUAL Hitler deserve better than your lazy political hyperbole used to score cheap points against a guy who champions the Jewish state."
“I just can’t do it”, Wife cancels thanksgiving and christmas with her husband’s family because they all voted for trump
Proof that Trump supporters are intolerant and hateful
Melissa Chen on X - "🇺🇸America has withdrawn from the World Health Organization (WHO)🇺🇸 If you're unsure of how to feel about it, let me remind you of this incident from the hellish covid year of 2020 that shows how utterly captured and corrupt the WHO is: When this reporter asked senior WHO official Dr. Bruce Aylward to comment on how Taiwan 🇹🇼 handled the covid pandemic (the answer is VERY WELL), he pretended that he couldn’t hear her question, then accidentally cancels the Skype call and refuses to answer when she calls back. This is important because the WHO has done nothing short of sycophantically praising China's handling of the crisis since Day 1. When she presses him, he then kowtows and says "well all of China has done a good job" before abruptly ending the interview. By the way, as early as Dec 31 2019, Taiwan's health authorities emailed WHO alerting them to reports of "atypical pneumonia" cases in Wuhan, China, noting that patients were being isolated - a detail implying possible human-to-human transmission Because Taiwan is excluded from the WHO (they gave Taiwan's seat to the Peoples' Republic of China) and therefore lacked direct access to WHO's formal reporting mechanisms, the alert was ignored. Instead, WHO publicly echoed China's assurances that there was NOTHING TO SEE HERE for at least another month. Meanwhile, China arrested and jailed their OWN DOCTORS for reporting what they SAW and NOTICED with their OWN eyes. This delay was a major reason that the virus spread unchecked in its early stages, with global cases exploding shortly. I want to also emphasize that besides doctors, citizen journalists who reported the truth about covid in China were also arrested and charged for "spreading rumors and disrupting the social order." Many were jailed and some have disappeared - to this day we have no idea what happened to them. It's time to let go of the nostalgia for the supranational organizations that supposedly underpinned the liberal world order - they have long surpassed their utility thanks to corruption. If you're wondering why Trump is leaving the order and "ceding" it to China, this is why. They already run it."
Meme - William E. Donnelly @Tulsabill55: "There is not a single major issue that Trump is right about."
Byron York: "The global elite lament: Trump is terrible, an authoritarian, mentally ill, Hitler, a know-nothing, but on the really big issues it turns out he's...right. Can one admit that and stay in the club? Maybe if we call the Greenland move a 'putsch'..."
Byron York on X - "As concerns Europe, I think there are four:
1) Trump told Europe: You're killing yourself with mass migration. Stop.
2) Trump told NATO: You've got to spend more on your own defense.
3) Trump told the EU: You're hurting yourselves with draconian regulations.
4) Trump told Merkel and others: Don't build Nord Stream 2. It's a terrible idea to depend on Putin's Russia for your energy.
I think Trump was right about all of those things."
aerodawg on X - "Those 4 things are the majority of the reason the euros are so ticked off. One of the uppity peasants told em they were being stupid and was right"
America vs. the World - The Atlantic - "Some pundits who welcome a post-American world and the return of multipolarity suggest that most of the benefits of the American order for the U.S. can be retained. America just needs to learn to restrain itself, give up utopian efforts to shape the world, and accommodate “the reality” that other countries “seek to establish their own international orders governed by their own rules,” as Harvard’s Graham Allison put it. Indeed, Allison and others argue, Americans’ insistence on predominance had caused most conflicts with Russia and China. Americans should embrace multipolarity as more peaceful and less burdensome. Recently, Trump’s boosters among the foreign-policy elite have even started pointing to the early-19th-century Concert of Europe as a model for the future, suggesting that skillful diplomacy among the great powers can preserve peace more effectively than the U.S.-led system did in the unipolar world. As a purely historical matter, this is delusional. Even the most well-managed multipolar orders were significantly more brutal and prone to war than the world that Americans have known these past 80 years. To take one example, during what some call the “long peace” in Europe, from 1815 to 1914, the great powers (including Russia and the Ottoman empire) fought dozens of wars with one another and with smaller states to defend or acquire strategic advantage, resources, and spheres of interest. These were not skirmishes but full-scale conflicts, usually costing tens—sometimes hundreds—of thousands of lives. Roughly half a million people died in the Crimean War (1853–56); the Franco-Prussian War (1870–71) resulted in about 180,000 military and up to 250,000 civilian deaths in less than a year of fighting. Almost every decade from 1815 to 1914 included at least one war involving two or more great powers. Today’s equivalent of 19th-century multipolarity would be a world in which China, Russia, the United States, Germany, Japan, and other large states fought a major war in some combination at least once a decade—redrawing national boundaries, displacing populations, disrupting international commerce, and risking global conflict on a devastating scale. That was the world as it existed for centuries prior to 1945. To believe that such a world can never return would seem to be the height of utopianism. Precisely to escape this cycle of conflict, the generations of Americans who lived through two world wars laid the foundations of the American-led liberal world order. They were the true realists, because they had no illusions about multipolarity. They had lived their entire lives with its horrific consequences. After 1945, instead of reestablishing a multipolar system, they transformed the United States into a global force, with responsibility for preserving not just its own security but the world’s. Doing so meant checking the rise of regional hegemons, especially in Europe and East Asia. They did this not because they wanted to re-create the world in America’s image, but because they had learned that the modern world was interconnected in ways that would ultimately draw the United States into the great-power conflicts of Eurasia anyway. No country had ever before played the role that the traditionally aloof United States took on after 1945. That is partly because no other power had enjoyed America’s unique circumstances—largely invulnerable to foreign invasion, because of its strength and its distance from the other great powers, and thus able to deploy force thousands of miles from home without leaving itself at risk. This combination of geography and reach allowed the United States after World War II to bring peace and security to Europe and East Asia. Nations scarred by war poured their energies into becoming economic powerhouses. That made global prosperity and international cooperation possible. Perhaps more extraordinary than America’s ability and willingness to play the dominant role was the readiness of most other great powers to embrace and legitimize its dominance—even at the expense of their own potency... This was truly aberrant behavior and defied all theories of international relations as well as historical precedent. The normal response to the rise of a newly predominant power was for others to balance against it... This was the grand bargain of the American order after 1945. And it was what allowed for the extraordinary peace and stability of the subsequent decades, even during the Cold War. The American order established harmony among the great powers within it, and left those outside it, Russia and China, relatively isolated and insecure—unhappy with the global arrangement but limited in their ability to change it.
Left wingers keep hating on America and demanding a multipolar world, yet they get upset when the US doesn't want to totally subsidise the "rules-based international order" anymore. And they will still blame the US when they get what they want and it intervenes less
The author has a... particular reading of World War I that just blames Germany
🐬 🇬🇱 #FreeTylerRobinson on X - "Rightoids always speak as if they have zero agency, it's so stupid. One of their most popular sentiments is that rightoidism is just some unrelated phenomenon that came to being because libtards existed. They don't want to be seen as individuals with choices."
wanye on X - "This is the line you always get in response to this, but all it does is demonstrate an inability to understand the actual point.
* I mostly want Republican policies
* Democrats say that the *man* who represents those policies is so bad that I should instead choose the party whose policies I do not want
* So I’m already in a bad position, because I don’t want *your* policies. You’ve gotta give me a good reason to believe that I’d be smart to tolerate them, anyway.
* Instead, Democrats did the opposite and got *way more extreme*
I *do* have agency. I’m using that agency to *reject* you. Imagine how bad you think Trump is. Well I like you even less than that."
Meme - Duffyevsky: "Like 2 weeks into this administration libtards like Kyle Kulinski would be like "how are those egg prices?? Eh? Did they go down?" Humiliating."
Barchart: "BREAKING: Eggs. Egg Prices have now plunged 95% over the last 10 months"
Left wingers don't care, and just continue the gish gallop
Meme - Minocqua Brewing Company: "Apparently Fox News wants to interview us about our upcoming "celebration of life" party, in which we promised free beer for the whole day when he finally dies. Here's our response. If you'd also like to send Lindsay Kornick a quote that she can use for her upcoming state propaganda article, you now have her email and work phone."
"Our official response is: "Lindsay Kornick and Andre Kugle, funny you ask. you'd like to come to our party celebrating the impending death of a twice-impeached convicted felon covering up for the largest child sex ring in the history of the United States-someone who has enabled his contemporary American Gestapo to brutally murder two American protesters in a matter of weeks, then we'll invite you and any FOX news colleagues of your on one condition... ..No red hats allowed." Give your bosses at Faux News my best, Kirk Bangstad, Owner, Minocqua Brewing Company"
From the side of "coexist" and "love" who are against "hate"
Meme - *Luigi Mangione*
Democrat Soyjak: "Thank you for standing up to the Big Pharma and healthcare industry"
Donald Trump: "For many years the World has wondered why Prescription Drugs and Pharmaceuticals in the United States States of America were SO MUCH HIGHER IN PRICE THAN THEY WERE IN ANY OTHER NATION, SOMETIMES BEING FIVE TO TEN TIMES MORE EXPENSIVE THAN THE SAME DRUG, MANUFACTURED IN THE EXACT SAME LABORATORY OR PLANT, BY THE SAME COMPANY??? It was always difficult to explain and very embarrassing because, in fact, there was no correct or rightful answer. The Pharmaceutical/Drug Companies would say, for years, that it was Research and Development Costs, and that all of these costs were, and would be, for no reason whatsoever, borne by the “suckers” of America, ALONE. Campaign Contributions can do wonders, but not with me, and not with the Republican Party. We are going to do the right thing, something that the Democrats have fought for many years. Therefore, I am pleased to announce that Tomorrow morning, in the White House, at 9:00 A.M., I will be signing one of the most consequential Executive Orders in our Country’s history. Prescription Drug and Pharmaceutical prices will be REDUCED, almost immediately, by 30% to 80%. They will rise throughout the World in order to equalize and, for the first time in many years, bring FAIRNESS TO AMERICA! I will be instituting a MOST FAVORED NATION’S POLICY whereby the United States will pay the same price as the Nation that pays the lowest price anywhere in the World. Our Country will finally be treated fairly, and our citizens Healthcare Costs will be reduced by numbers never even thought of before. Additionally, on top of everything else, the United States will save TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS. Thank you for your attention to this matter. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!"
Democrat Soyjak: *upset*"
Meme - Megan Basham @megbasham: "Oh my gosh I went on Threads and ppl there are NOT okay."
tudors_reimagined: "Recently I found out a very good friend of mine and someone I've collaborated with for years was a secret MAGA. It happened when I came across a post she "liked" on IG. Then I went down her follower list and saw more horrific things she had "liked". Every single day since I told her off and blocked her, new Trump atrocities have come out. And every day I'm more and more happy I made the decision to punt her friendship to the curb. These people have told us who they are. I believe them."
polwoggy: "Yes- the final straw for me was noticing a former cousin-in-law was laughing at posts with people offering to deliver food for neighbors afraid to leave their homes. On her page she tried to appear neutral- because she's a realtor. But the magaisms kept leaking out- more by her posts on community pages. I realized she was hateful and unreachable."
The "coexist", "love" and "empathy" people go absolutely batshit insane bonkers when people disagree with them politically
Jacob M. Wright | Facebook - "No, Trump did not post a video of the Obama’s as apes. Trump posted a screen recording of a video on election fraud and when it ended the feed scrolled to the next video which auto played for a split second which was a video of politicians heads on different animals singing “The Lion Sleeps Tonight.” The video features the Obama’s and Biden as apes, Hillary as a warthog, Hakeem Jeffries as a meercat, Schumer as a giraffe, AOC as a donkey, etc. Trump’s team must’ve failed to review and trim it out. Once he realized what had happened, Trump deleted the post. That’s the context of everyone screaming “racism” today."
This didn't stop the media and left wingers spreading fake news as usual
Facebook - "Notice how the vast majority of the people who are talking about the post that came from Trump’s account being racist are nowhere to be found when white liberals are calling federal agents in Minnesota the N word with the Hard R. The selective outrage is very real..They aren’t principled. They just care about pushing their narrative and winning politically."
Meme - "According to democrats, only two of these photos are offensive *Trump as monkey* *Bush as monkey* *Obamas as monkeys*"
I am Ken on X - "A WALKING, TALKING CONFLICT OF INTEREST: Yesterday, we reported on federal judge Ana C. Reyes, who invented a novel legal theory to explain why she somehow had the authority to block President Trump from ending the “temporary” protected status of 350,000 Haitians granted by Joe Biden. Well, to quote an old catchphrase from “Get Smart,” would you believe, that Reyes is from Uruguay herself? That she got her start as a pro bono attorney for refugees? And that she’s donated thousands of dollars exclusively to Democrats, including $2700 to Hillary Clinton’s campaign against Trump in 2016, two $2800 contributions to Biden’s campaign against Trump in 2020, and $4500 to Kamala Harris’ campaign against Trump in 2024? credit: Huckabee Post"
A Gene Robinson on X - "BREAKING… Remember that No Kings uprising…? This spreadsheet detonates the biggest lie in Democrat politics. There is no grassroots movement. What you’re seeing is a grant-funded uprising…designed, timed, and financed from the top down. Same donor pipelines… Same foundations… Same year… Dozens of “independent” groups… All pushing the same narratives at the same time. That isn’t democracy. That’s orchestration. They sell protests as spontaneous outrage…yet outrage doesn’t come with coordinated budgets, synchronized lawsuits, identical messaging, and fiscal sponsors baked in. This isn’t people rising up. It’s elites pulling strings. And here’s the part they never want spoken plainly… When the same money simultaneously fuels climate chaos, border chaos, court pressure, election agitation, media NGOs, and “No Kings” theatrics, the goal is not reform. The goal is destabilization. Overwhelm institutions… Delegitimize authority… Exhaust the public… Then step in as the “solution.” That’s the playbook. The hypocrisy is staggering. They scream about “dark money” while hiding behind NGOs designed to obscure donors. They rail against oligarchs while depending on them. They invoke “the people” while answering to grant committees. Read it again… Every chant has a budget. Every protest has a sponsor. Every “organic” movement has a funding deadline. This isn’t activism. It’s astroturf revolution. Once people see it…they can’t unsee it. #SilentMajoritySpeaks #AStoneGroove"
Left wingers mock the idea that left wing protesters could be paid, despite the evidence, and claim right wingers just don't understand how people could spend time on a cause - even though right wingers spend more time volunteering than them. Ironic.
Meme - "The president has 5 kids, 3 baby mamas, lives in government housing, and has a mugshot, yet the liberals still hate him."
Meme - Leading Report @LeadingReport: "BREAKING: House has passed a bill to ban noncitizens from acquiring federal business loans."
Seamus (FreedomToons) @seamus_coughlin: "every day since Trump got elected theres another headline like "Illegal Aliens BANNED from accessing nuclear codes" or "MS-13 LOSES diplomatic immunity" and you're like wait they were allowed to do WHAT?
Headline: Trump bans illegal aliens from captaining aircraft carriers
normal people: wait we were letting them WHAT?
liberal: "first they came for the immigrants, and I said nothing...""
