As any regular reader of this newsletter is well aware, I've been appalled at the trajectory of events in Minneapolis over the past few weeks'enough so that in my last few posts I abandoned my characteristic quest for empathy and understanding and embraced an impassioned militancy in its place. I certainly wasn't alone in that, as we can see from a wide range of polls. Trump's approval is sharply down, as are his party's prospects in November's midterm elections. And support for ICE has cratered, too, as Americans of most ideological stripes (aside from the most fascist-adjacent precincts of MAGA world) have recoiled from the news out of Minnesota. Suspicion of overweening state power is woven into the fabric of American civic life and easily activated by such images and stories. It's good to be reminded of that. Very good indeed. Yet I still feel on edge. It's been a week without a single overarching story to unify the news cycle, and the blend of medium-sized stories has given us...
learn more
