New Standing Room Only! Today's excerpt is about what the stupid "raw milk" thing tells us about fascism. Subscribe today! salon.com/newsletter Music by (who else?) Kelis. image
Many folks are facing a hard question this holiday: How can you face Trump-voting relatives? Do you have to? In this deep dive, I interview people who cut off MAGA parents. I also review what the experts, what parents, and what the mainstream media says.
Salon.com
Going no-contact with MAGA parents: Crucial self-care or the β€œunraveling of America”?
Adult children are cutting off their Trump-loving parents β€” and mainstream media is very sad
Elon Musk is a distraction. The goal is not to eliminate federal jobs, but replace them with what the head of Project 2025 called an "army" of Christian nationalists. Pete Hegseth and Pam Bondi are the most prominent examples. But the plan is extensive.
Salon.com
"Go scorched Earth on the satanic bureaucracy": Christian nationalists move to gut the constitution
Trump gave control of the federal budget to a Project 2025 henchman who calls this a "post-constitutional moment"
Both Texas and Georgia are destroying evidence of all maternal mortality, blocking proof that women are dying from abortion bans. This story has a lot more going on than you think. Especially since Republicans are lying about the public cases.
Salon.com
Republicans don't care if women die from abortion bans β€” but they don't want you to know about it
Women will keep dying, but the GOP is working hard to destroy the evidence
The lesson from Gaetz's collapse: Not just that resistance can work, but how to do it in a smart and effective way. Building on prior analysis of authoritarians' weaknesses, I look at why Gaetz imploded and how that can be used going forward.
Salon.com
Resistance is not futile: Gaetz's implosion shows how to use MAGA's own chaos against them
Trump's first nominations reveal the serious fractures in his coalition β€”Β which can be used to weaken him
Mike Johnson is being called a hypocrite for covering for Matt Gaetz. But I argue that, at this point, covering for bad men should be considered a religious tradition for the Christian right.
Salon.com
Why Mike Johnson's Christian "morality" has no problem with underage sex parties
Covering for Matt Gaetz fits with the long religious right tradition of protecting bad men at women's expense
New Standing Room Only! Some final thoughts on women "boycotting" men, which has very little to do with sex. Subscribe today! salon.com/newsletter Music by TLC. image
Trump's insulting nominations are coming fast, but let's take a moment to look at Pete Hegseth, picked because of his chin and his hatred of the U.S. military. The Fox News host is MAGA "manhood" embodied. It pretends to be tough, but is weak and whiny.
Salon.com
Pete Hegseth embodies MAGA's cubic zirconia masculinity
MAGA manhood pretends to be tough, but is brittle and weak on close inspection
Voters backed both Trump and progressive policies like minimum wage hikes and abortion rights. This disconnect is the answer to the "how did this happen" question. A lot of voters are profoundly ignorant. More so than in the past. I explore why.
Salon.com
Why millions voted for both Trump and progressive policies
Trump voters backed abortion, minimum wage, and family leave β€” and don't get that Project 2025 would take it away
Far too many voters think that because Trump is terrible for women, it means he's good for men. But Trump offers men *nothing*. He can tank the economy, dudes, but he can't make your wife come back.
Salon.com
Trump is terrible for women β€”Β but that doesn't mean he's good for men
Trump can ruin the economy, but he can't make your wife come back to you