SCOOP: 'Tommy' from the now-viral exchange with Abdul El-Sayed is Thomas Teepell, a former staffer for Republican Senator Josh Hawley with close ties to Christian Nationalist Sean Feucht. He's the son of a former Bobby Jindal staffer whose consultant work was instrumental in getting Hawley elected.

'Tommy' from viral El-Sayed video is former Sen. Hawley staffer with Christian nationalist ties

Thomas Teepell is the son of a former long-time Bobby Jindal staffer who's close to Sean Feucht.

thehandbasket.co

This is Tommy. Tommy had a question about my allegiances. Listen to the end to hear about his.

There may be periods where this country was more brutal, racist or even evil, but when it comes to pure, unadulterated meanness, this might be the greatest America has ever been

Meanest Country Ever

Public executions, concentration camps and outright racism are just byproducts of America’s “mean girl era.”

dlvr.it

I spoke to @kattenbarge.bsky.social about the media coverage of “inconsistencies” in Jane Doe’s case, as well as my own experience with USA Today misusing my words in a story smearing her. As always, Kat understands the way victims are punished from coming forward. This article is a must-read.

Debunking the smear campaign against the Cornell Jane Doe

Authorities, media outlets, and pundits are lying about this woman. But only her credibility is getting judged.

spitfirenews.com

The government *still* isn’t tracking how often immigration agents detain U.S. citizens. We are. 500+ Americans have been handcuffed, held at gunpoint or held against their will in Trump’s second term. Our tally is almost certainly an undercount. THREAD (content warning: violence) ⬇️

4/ Fernando Vasquez, an 18-year-old citizen, was on break from work when agents chased and handcuffed him, then put him in their truck. After realizing their mistake, the agents left the teen alone in the woods, with no way to get home. Then they threw his ID out of the truck.

You guys want to hear a short but adorable story that happened right in front of me at the baggage claim in NYC yesterday? I wasn't part of it and there are bits I didn't catch but holy crap, I can't stop thinking about it.

You wouldn't know it from reading the headlines, but the president's downward mental health spiral is the biggest story in America right now We won't salvage democracy unless the media and pols start speaking the truth about Trump's damaged mind My new column www.inquirer.com/opinion/trum...

We need to find the words for Trump’s madness before things blow up | Will Bunch

The media and politicians haven’t pinned down anything resembling a suitable description for a president’s downward spiral or the looming battle for U.S. democracy.

inquirer.com

I knew the second I saw that viral clip of the mom and dad at the baseball game that the internet’s insane parasocial contextless gut reaction to it was going to end up being wildly wrong. I really really hate how people just don’t give a shit about being kind or thoughtful anymore on the internet.

If an internationally-wanted war criminal (whose forces have killed Americans) comes to US soil, attacks Americans (including the mayor of the largest city), and then says "Remember the beepers" in reference to a terrorist attack he committed — how can that be taken as anything other than a threat?

Justin Baragona@justinbaragona.bsky.social · 3w ago

Bibi Netanyahu at the UNGA, in front of a half-empty chamber: "Do you remember the beepers? Remember? Remember them?!" [pulls out a beeper from his pocket] "Well, I can tell you this. Hezbollah certainly remembers them!"

For my newsletter, I wrote about Democrats coming out against "trans surgery for kids" (which do not happen) and how the myth took over our politics. www.burnsnotice.com/the-trans-ki...

The "Trans Kid Surgery" Myth

The big lie worked because it played on your protective instincts

burnsnotice.com

this is a bit of an obsession of mine especially here in charlottesville. the cost of commercial real estate is prohibitive if you want to experiment and the city seems categorically opposed to small lots and small units that could allow people to start businesses without a huge capital investment

Republican Governor Jim Pillen has been a champion of Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. But at least 20 of his family farms employed undocumented immigrants, according to a new investigation by the Flatwater Free Press and The New York Times. youtu.be/5RZgrR1_7Dc?...

This GOP governor said ‘illegal aliens’ have ‘invaded.’ His family farms EMPLOYED them, report finds

YouTube video by MS NOW

youtu.be

This is the most masculine video on the internet right now

Very nice to hear a sane voice from Piddington. Serious respect to this woman, who is apparently already being othered by more bigoted villagers.

I asked AT&T Stadium about the Rolling Stone report about how they objected to Macklemore coming to Arlington next month. They didn't comment, but as I've noted they're still hosting Kanye West in November: www.chron.com/culture/arti...

AT&T Stadium, which will host Ye this fall, objected to Macklemore

The Seattle rapper was dropped from Ed Sheeran's stadium tour bill.

chron.com

New: Macklemore says Robert Kraft — who owns Gillette Stadium, where Macklemore & Ed Sheeran were to perform later this month — called Sheeran. Kraft rallied other owners together behind an ultimatum for Sheeran: if Macklemore stays on the tour, you won't be allowed in our venues.

I made this video *just for you*...here's a link to read the compact and if you scroll down you'll see the button to click to email your university leadership! www.standupforscience.net/sufs-compact...

Don Jr. is compromised by the Russian government—something you could have guessed, but is now fully confirmed by this ProPublica investigation about an oligarch who helped pay for his wedding.

Donald Trump Jr.’s Wedding Bankrolled by Putin-Linked Russian Oligarch

The oligarch, Umar Kremlev, spent hundreds of thousands on expenses like renting out a private island. He appears to have met Trump Jr. only recently, but he attended the intimate wedding with a large...

propublica.org

I just saw someone admonishing someone trans to shut up about trans rights because there are concentration camps in the US, and you know who I see overwhelmingly and disproportionately on the front lines standing up against concentration camps? Trans people.

My latest for Jewschool: "What is really galling here is not simply that the signatories got the law wrong, but that they know the moral vocabulary and are using it backward."

We Knew Better Once · Jewschool

There are names on the “Reject the Lie” letter who should know better. That is the first thing to say, and the last thing too.

jewschool.com

It’s excellent getting to say to a group of students, We’re gonna read X & we’re gonna spend 75 minutes talking about it, & ideally the way you think about the world & yourself is gonna be a bit more nuanced, complex, & satisfying, & that’s today’s “product.” Or, as @cnygren.bsky.social & I said:

wingnut centrists have been accusing el-sayed of "debasing the memory of 9/11" because he compared 9/11 to covid and called for a commensurate response. set aside the rank islamophobia of the accusation: it would be impossible to debase the memory of 9/11 more than it already has been.

After September

The grief lingers, and the mistakes cannot be overturned, and the dead do not return from their graves.

liberalcurrents.com

Random Dangling Mystery@sidslang.bsky.social · 2y ago

This is my vote for the most classic 9/11 tweet

I’m a Texan trans kid who almost died because of Ken Paxton. The world should know what he’s done. This was very difficult for me to write, but given what's at stake, I cannot bear to stay silent about what I went through at Paxton's hands. He must not be rewarded for what he's done to trans kids.

I’m a Texan Trans Kid Who Almost Died Because of Ken Paxton. The World Should Know What He’s Done.

Regardless of Talarico’s recent statements on trans people, Paxton cannot be rewarded for the extreme suffering he’s inflicted on me and tens of thousands of Texan trans kids.

transiticsnews.com

People of All Genders Empowered to Maintain Delusion That They Have A Chance With Gillian Anderson

NOH8 Campaign@noh8campaign.bsky.social · last mo.

Gillian Anderson shared that she identifies as pansexual, saying in a new interview, “Pan, as in pansexual, as in attracted to all genders.” Anderson has spoken openly about her attraction to women and sexual fluidity for years, and now says pansexual is the label that fits her #NOH8

It's always a good time to share this.

I wrote this story for Slate 3 years ago. It's an as-told-to perspective from the mom of a trans boy who accessed top surgery in Texas at 14 years old. This is the kind of Texas family who Talarico wants to ban from seeking healthcare. slate.com/technology/2...

We’ve Been in Texas for Generations. Our Trans Kid Is Being Treated Here. It’s Getting Dark.

His doctors agree that this care is right for him.

slate.com

I cannot stress enough how bad the situation is for the people ICE expelled to Equatorial Guinea right now. Grateful to Ahmed Soliman for talking with me despite the retaliation against him every time he goes on the record. prospect.org/2026/09/09/s...

‘Shoot Him!’: Police Threaten Third-Country Nationals Imprisoned in African Hotel - The American Prospect

‘I’m fighting for my life,’ said Ahmed Soliman after the latest in a string of abusive incidents in Equatorial Guinea, where ICE expelled him five months ago.

prospect.org

just put up a video on this youtu.be/COUIZyAZtkA

The media double-standard that lets the GOP get away with taking millions from a white supremacist

YouTube video by Takes™ by Jamelle Bouie

youtu.be

Max Kennerly@maxkennerly.bsky.social · last mo.

If only the media had as much interest in the world's richest person, the primary funder of the Republican Party, who spoke at Trump's Inauguration and gave a Sieg Heil, once again declaring his belief "white solidarity is the only way to survive" as they do some Twitch streamer.