Lobbying

Trump Took Over the Kennedy Center, but Silencing the Arts Will Not Be So Easy

Trump Took Over the Kennedy Center, but Silencing the Arts Will Not Be So Easy Trump Took Over the Kennedy Center, but Silencing the Arts Will Not Be So Easy

Our last best hope for sharing, shaping, and wrangling over independent ideas may turn out to be America’s scrappy and disparate arts spaces—if they can hang on financially.

Mar 18, 2025 / Alisa Solomon

South African farmer Tewie Wessels addresses a group of white South Africans supporting US President Donald Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk during a demonstration in Pretoria, on February 15, 2025.

Why Trump Is Threatened by South Africa Why Trump Is Threatened by South Africa

The country’s Constitution gives its citizens more than a right to the pursuit of happiness. But attempts to redeem that commitment to justice have enraged American reactionaries....

Mar 14, 2025 / Susan Neiman

Elon Musk at the first Trump cabinet meeting.

The Cossacks Work for the Czar—and Musk Works for Trump The Cossacks Work for the Czar—and Musk Works for Trump

The president’s narcissistic management style is at the root of cabinet infighting.

Mar 10, 2025 / Jeet Heer

A protester holds a poster with an image of Elon Musk that reads “I Am Stealing From You” at the US Department of Education in Washington, DC, on February 14, 2025.

Why Hasn’t Trump Already Closed the Department of Education? Why Hasn’t Trump Already Closed the Department of Education?

Maybe because its support for students is popular with Republicans as well as Democrats. And because cutting that funding would blow a big hole in the budgets of red states.

Feb 21, 2025 / Jack Schneider

Gwynne Wilcox in front of American flag.

How Donald Trump Dismantled a Worker Protection Agency With One Late-Night E-Mail How Donald Trump Dismantled a Worker Protection Agency With One Late-Night E-Mail

By firing Gwynne Wilcox, Trump is hoping the Supreme Court will overrule 90 years of legal precedent and give him the authority to fire members of independent boards.

Feb 19, 2025 / Lynn Rhinehart

Florida resident Ann Richter holds antisemitic flyers she found on her lawn.

Some Inconvenient Truths About Antisemitism and the Left Some Inconvenient Truths About Antisemitism and the Left

By ceding the space on antisemitism—responding when we are accused of it, but not taking up the fight against it as our cause—we’ve created a strategic opportunity for the right.

Feb 14, 2025 / Rachel Shabi

A man protests Trump’s effort to strangle the Affordable Care Act in 2017.

The Battle to Protect Healthcare Will Define the Second Trump Era The Battle to Protect Healthcare Will Define the Second Trump Era

Behind the language of “spending offsets” lies a stark reality: over $3 trillion in cuts that would reshape Americans’ access to healthcare.

Feb 12, 2025 / Pat Dennis

Demonstrators protest federal layoffs and demand the termination of Elon Musk from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in Washington, DC, on February 7, 2025.

The Democrats’ Choice: Fight Trump’s Oligarchy or Keep Groveling to Billionaire Donors The Democrats’ Choice: Fight Trump’s Oligarchy or Keep Groveling to Billionaire Donors

Elon Musk’s power grab is finally energizing a resistance. But it’s already being undermined by the party elite’s dependency on Silicon Valley.

Feb 10, 2025 / Jeet Heer

A woman with a ponytail walks through a door.

Trump’s Phony Trade Wars Are Evidence of American Imperial Decline Trump’s Phony Trade Wars Are Evidence of American Imperial Decline

President’s bullying of allies yields symbolic results—but betrays substantive weakness.

Feb 5, 2025 / Jeet Heer

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk gestures as he speaks during the inaugural parade in Washington, DC, on January 20, 2025.

Who Will Stop Elon Musk’s Coup? Who Will Stop Elon Musk’s Coup?

The world’s richest man now has the power to override congressional spending decisions and access to private information about every US taxpayer.

Feb 3, 2025 / Jeet Heer

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