From @gelliottmorris.com: Americans oppose spending $1 billion on White House ballroom 68% to 21% open.substack.com/pub/gelliott...

Americans oppose spending $1 billion on White House ballroom 68% to 21%

A preview from our May Strength In Numbers/Verasight poll

open.substack.com

Joe Sudbay@joesudbay.bsky.social · 4d ago

Without meaning to, of course, the Republicans on the court are giving Dems an assist by keeping the ballroom front and center as we head to the midterms Reminds voters that Trump cares way more about this than them - and he'll keep talking about it nonstop too

What if the best way to create the Democratic party we want to see is to elect a whole bunch of Democrats and actually hold some power? Then we can hold them to account. Great piece from @joanwalsh.bsky.social urging us to follow our candidates' leads and knock it off.

Joan Walsh@joanwalsh.bsky.social · last wk.

Meanwhile, the New York Times can't stop calling the Democratic left "divisive." www.thenation.com/article/poli...

Old enough to remember when it was considered unpresidential that Obama worse a tan suit or saluted with a coffee in his hand. www.the-independent.com/news/world/a...

Trump posts AI video of ‘Lake America’ being protected by an army of ‘Donald Ducks’

The post came after the president signed an executive order renaming Lake Ontario ‘Lake America’ amid a bitter tariff war with Canada

the-independent.com

Rising costs and the latest inflation numbers are the definition of a problem problem, not just a comms problem. And THIS is the definition of how to fumble the response.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · last wk.

Holy shit — the purpose of this Trump event is to announce that he’s changing the name of Lake Ontario to “Lake America.” It will be interesting to see which if any institutions and companies go along with this

This is right from @creynoldsnc.bsky.social on the pod: Dems have a big opening to point out that Trump's trade war with Canada was purely the result of his own deranged choice. The message: Donald Trump did this to you. And Republicans won't stop him. Listen: newrepublic.com/article/2147...

Trump’s Fury at Canada Takes Unhinged Turn—and Backfires Badly for Him

As Trump’s deranged trade war creates fresh problems for the GOP, a Democratic strategist who works on midterms explains how her party can better exploit this fiasco in the fall.

newrepublic.com

Fox finds Trump's favorability ratings absolutely cratering in states he won: Ohio -14 Texas -9 Iowa -13 NC -19 Folks, in several of these states he’s at least 50 points underwater with independents. I'm not kidding. It's that bad. newrepublic.com/article/2143...

This is Cliffs Notes, isn't it? Did they just "invent" Cliffs Notes.

Brandon Friedman@brandonfriedman.bsky.social · 3w ago

Axios writer: I melted my brain with AI. Not only can I no longer read, but I don't even understand the purpose of reading anymore. Here's how you can also do this. www.axios.com/2026/08/11/r...

If I hadn't been reliably assured by the fine gentlemen of the Supreme Court that nothing Donald Trump does as president can possibly be illegal I'd be pretty sure he's gonna break a whole bunch of laws before this dumb saga is over.

Greg Sargent@gregsargent.bsky.social · 3w ago

This is insane: Trump's rage and humiliation over the Reflecting Pool now has the White House urging DOJ to undertake new prosecutions *even though the government itself has already determined the person in question is innocent.*

I voted, Minnesota! Have you? This race is about a choice: Do we want our leaders to serve the many, or the money? Make your voice heard and cast your ballot by 8PM: MNVotes.org

And another example of good news from @ariellaelm.com, on the Democrats getting more paid leave through in North Carolina.

Ariella Elm@ariellaelm.com · 4w ago

North Carolina 3/

If, like me, you need to hear some good news or want to remind people of what we're out here fighting for, I highly recommend following @ariellaelm.com. Here are a couple of great examples--the first is from the Presbyterians, who voted to specifically reject white nationalism.

Ariella Elm@ariellaelm.com · 4w ago

Milwaukee, WI 2/

And I sincerely believe that candidates should make a point of saying Republicans want to spend all their time looking in your daughter's underpants and giving tax breaks to billionaires instead of making sure families can eat and afford a place to live.

Everyone's going through something. This week, grief hit me through a sweet dog on the internet. Wrote about it here: substack.com/home/post/p-...

Grief

Or why a dog I never met did me in this week.

substack.com

Question for @normeisen.bsky.social: At an official event paid for with public dollars, Donald Trump just introduced two candidates who do not hold office right now. Is there a way to at least make them pay for this event?

100 days until Election Day. Which candidate are you working to elect and why will they make a difference? I'll start: @peggyflanagan.bsky.social has a great record of accomplishments and will be the first Native woman elected to the Senate. She's also just a great human.

Related: New Fox poll finds Dems +1 over GOP on which party would do a better job on immigration. Somehow this happened without any big Sister Souljah moments or any performative contrition about Biden/border. Quick, commission 100 NYT opinion and Atlantic essays to explain this!

Greg Sargent@gregsargent.bsky.social · last mo.

The recent NYT poll finds Trump badly underwater on immigration among Maine voters by 42-56. Among independents this is a stunning 39-61. So there's a real opening here to reach the middle by condemning Collins's support for ICE. newrepublic.com/article/2133...

Here's the short version of why I think the idea that Dems can only salvage their brand with moderation is mostly bullshit. Check out this exchange with @creynoldsnc.bsky.social on this: newrepublic.com/article/2132...

"I don't think it's proper for Congress to do its most important job."

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 2mo ago

Q: The war w/Iran is 5 months in & the death toll has surpassed withdrawal from Afghanistan. At what point are you willing to put an AUMF on the floor? JOHNSON: The administration is working very hard to bring this to a resolution. We're closely watching. I don't think an AUMF is in order right now

Trump's numbers are remarkably bad. But we need to be fighting for a Democratic win, not just a Republican loss. I talked to @gregsargent.bsky.social about how we do that.

Greg Sargent@gregsargent.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Trump cratering in latest national polls, per new CNN analysis: *Average overall approval 22 points underwater, worse than Obama/Bush in 2nd terms *Among independents he's minus 45, worse than Nixon On the pod, @creynoldsnc.bsky.social on how Dems must capitalize: newrepublic.com/article/2132...

As we debate the merits of the internet's latest favorite candidates, I wish we would ask more why those candidates are so rarely women and what we can do about that. substack.com/home/post/p-...

Why are the internet’s favorite candidates so rarely women?

As a political communicator and lifelong student of campaigns, I spend a lot of time thinking about how candidates communicate and what actually breaks through.

substack.com

Women denied in Texas abortions say they're ready to make it an issue in the state's tight Senate race. So are national reproductive rights groups. So are state anti-abortion orgs. All say that if elected, Ken Paxton would be among our most anti-abortion Senators. 19thnews.org/2026/07/ken-...

Why everyone will bring Ken Paxton’s abortion record up in his Senate race

Neither Senate candidate in Texas is emphasizing abortion on the campaign trail. But their staunch stances could influence the close race.

19thnews.org

Yet again, we need to examine how we define electability and why, when we expand that definition, it often still excludes women and candidates of color.

Faith Smith@faithsm.bsky.social · 2mo ago

The stunning implosion of Platner's campaign has shaken the Democratic Party and left Maine Democrats scrambling to find a replacement — and feeds into an existential debate as to how Democrats should campaign on a vision of masculinity. @gracepanetta.bsky.social @19thnews.org

I love a good online debate as much as the next person on social media, but there are so many races we need to win. A few thoughts on how to stay win in November: substack.com/home/post/p-...

Democrats have a real opportunity in 2026. If we can get out of our own way.

It's time to decide what's more important: winning the debate or winning the election.

substack.com

A death certificate shows an Afghan national who fought alongside U.S. forces died from an allergic reaction while in the custody of ICE, one day after he was detained.

Afghan ally died in ICE custody from allergic reaction to unidentified substance, certificate says

A death certificate shows an Afghan national who fought alongside U.S. forces died from an allergic reaction while in the custody of ICE, one day after he was detained.

scrippsnews.com

I’m not a Maine voter or expert, but I am fascinated by the fact that I keep seeing folks online talking about potential Platner replacements and skipping over the guy who placed second in the Gov primary. Why is that?

Today is another good day to remind people that if your state elects its supreme court, you need to be engaged in those elections. And in North Carolina, it's CRITICAL that we re-elect Anita Earls. earls4justice.com

Re-Elect Justice Anita Earls

Justice Anita Earls is an Associate Justice on the North Carolina Supreme Court and a proven fighter for the rights of ALL North Carolinians. Join the campaign to re-elect Justice Earls to the NC Supr...

earls4justice.com

The Supreme Court today addressed one of the most pressing threats to the nation today: banning this high school sophomore from playing school sports with her friends 🫡🫠🙃

Y'all. Bless their hearts.

Justin Baragona@justinbaragona.bsky.social · 2mo ago

TMZ DC with perhaps the most brutal video from Trump's Great American State Fair, showing Dr. Oz on stage bragging to Dean Cain about how big the crowd is, only for the reporter to pan around and show absolutely nobody is there. Original post: x.com/i/status/207...

Earlier this month, I used priority mail to send a birthday card and a document from NC to VT. It took 10 days. We may not be able to get mail in a timely manner, but votes should still count if people voted when they were supposed to. Glad the Supreme Court agrees.

There's so much that causes legitimate outrage, but a reminder that when we post just our outrage and they post positive, if false, content on what they're doing, we are sending a message to voters that we don't have our own agenda, our own beliefs (beyond not being them) or our own accomplishments.