Argument
Trump’s Intelligence Power Grab
The incoming Trump administration wants to subordinate and remake America’s intelligence agencies. Without these organizations operating as objective windows on reality, decision-making in the White House will suffer, and the checks and balances on both executive power and the reach of the agencies may be tested.
The Face of Defeat
Naim Qassem, the face Hezbollah chose to put on to address the world in the wake of the killing of its leader, is a frightened face. It sweats. It is uncharismatic and clumsy. It is boring to listen to and painful to watch.
A Reality-Based Election Reckoning
It is always tempting to believe that your candidate lost for the reasons you care about most. But as the Democratic Party rakes over its defeat, certain takes from the left are failing to see the bigger picture.
The Former East Germany Is Fertile Ground for the Far Right
The German far right is strongest in the country’s formerly communist eastern states. Tracing the Cold War legacies of East Germany shows how a movement that is rising across Europe also feeds on unique national and regional histories.
Trump Is Not an Aberration
Trump is no aberration — he is 100% made in America, and stands in a tradition of self-proclaimed patriots who have taken inspiration from the country’s founders just like those who sought to expand the reach of liberty.
The Threat Trump Poses Is Real, but Democrats Must Learn Through Defeat
For various reasons, Trump’s second presidency poses a greater threat to the country’s political structures and norms than the first. But voters had other priorities, and Democrats will have to learn lessons in defeat.
In the World of His Supporters, Trump Has Already Won
Many of Trump’s supporters are beholden to a fantasy that he remains the legitimate president and find the idea of his defeat impossible to countenance. To change that situation, its underlying conditions must be addressed.