Over the past year, Sam Berger, Sophie Jacobson, and I have been thinking about how a federal rebuilding must center power-shifting, building civil society power for democracy. In @donmoyn.bsky.social's Substack we wrote up our lessons; we're excited to share what we're learning! 1/

Henry Farrell@himself.bsky.social · 5d ago

I remember seeing someone (very reasonably) complaining here a few days ago that there seems to be next to no visible thinking on left and center about how to join the dots on administration and democracy. This is the beginnings of an answer to that complaint donmoynihan.substack.com/p/rebuilding...

Plans to close the U.S. Consulate in Winnipeg mean the United States will "lose touch with a broad swath of Canada," a former employee says. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

U.S. to close Winnipeg consulate as cost-saving measure, Trump administration says | CBC News

Plans to close the U.S. Consulate in Winnipeg mean the United States will "lose touch with a broad swath of Canada," a former employee says.

cbc.ca

The New York attorney general on Friday sued Kalshi, accusing the company of operating illegally and in defiance of laws aimed at curbing unregulated gambling. The suit is the latest effort by U.S. states to crack down on an industry that critics have called predatory.

New York Sues Kalshi in Latest Bid to Regulate Prediction Markets

The suit is the latest effort by states to crack down on an industry that critics have called predatory. At least 15 states have introduced legislation this year to regulate the markets.

nyti.ms

I’m 📝 the 📝 big 📝 buck 📝 of 📝 this 📝 lick 📝

Seva@seva.bsky.social · 5d ago

biggest surprise from the Lincoln bio I'm reading. The dude just loved to get into fistfights. He's cornered by a gang after beating their leader and yells: “I’m the big buck of this lick!” And they back down! Who knew the great emancipator had a little WWE in him?

✨ punitive federalism ✨

Steve Benen@stevebenen.com · 2w ago

We’re talking about a White House that withholds federal resources from states based on voters casting ballots in ways the president doesn’t like. Not to put too fine a point on this, but that kind of corruption sounds an awful lot like an impeachable offense. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/...

What we know about the typical Polymarket user

The typical Polymarket user placed a total of 46 trades across 10 active trading days during our study period.

pewresearch.org

New YouGov survey of seven countries: how the world sees the U.S., global power, threats, and alliances Which country is the biggest threat to world peace? 37% of Canadians and 30% of Australians name the U.S. yougov.com/en-us/articl...

Dissertation update: I'm now at the "this version of Through The Fire on repeat" part of dissertation writing. www.youtube.com/watch?v=HiEz...

Chaka Khan - Through The Fire | A COLORS SHOW

YouTube video by COLORS

youtube.com

Ash Splawinski@splawinski.bsky.social · 3w ago

Dissertation update: I've retreated to a cabin and I'm at the "listening to a lot of Anne Murray" part of dissertation writing.

Nice to see someone with Jamelle's prominence say this. youtu.be/SPs9MNl5QTg

It is time to stop treating Donald Trump's anti-Canada rhetoric like a joke

YouTube video by Takes™ by Jamelle Bouie

youtu.be

President Donald Trump on Monday imposed 50% tariffs on most Canadian goods, declaring that Canada has unfairly discriminated against American autos, alcohol and dairy products. n.pr/45b2q5U

Trump imposes 50% tariffs on Canadian goods

President Donald Trump on Monday imposed 50% tariffs on most Canadian goods, declaring that Canada has unfairly discriminated against American autos, alcohol and dairy products.

n.pr

Even when it comes to limits on who can trade, different legislation says different things - the Senate res only covers Senators. Other measures cover members of Congress, their spouses and children, etc. Brings up the question: who counts as an insider? How do we know?

Don Moynihan@donmoyn.bsky.social · 2w ago

Congress has considered 20 pieces of legislation on prediction markets. The only one that has taken effect is a Senate resolution that limits Senators, officers, and staff from trading on prediction markets. A fundamental problems is the bills don’t agree on what they’re regulating.

On any given day we hear about how prediction markets are generating perverse behavior, like Trump's teleprompter guy making bets. The Wall St. Journal recently found that online influencers were being paid by companies to generate fake videos about them winning easy money on these markets.

Amid scandals ranging from insider trading to death markets, Congress has introduced 20+ pieces of legislation on prediction markets. I wrote about how there’s still little consensus on what they even are. 🧵/1

Don Moynihan@donmoyn.bsky.social · 2w ago

New, from @splawinski.bsky.social at Can We Still Govern? The more we learn about how prediction markets operate, the clearer the need for regulation. So whats happening? Congress seems unable to act, while the Trump admin is blocking states from doing so. donmoynihan.substack.com/p/the-only-t...

Dissertation update: I've retreated to a cabin and I'm at the "listening to a lot of Anne Murray" part of dissertation writing.

“omg guys, I’m totally not sports betting, I just let you bet on which team wins and then pay out when they do.”

NPR@npr.org · 3w ago

The betting site Kalshi emerged as a dominant sports betting platform during the World Cup. But the company avoids billions of dollars in taxes by insisting it is not a sports gambling operator. n.pr/4foSwm3

Toronto Star@thestar.com · 3w ago

#Breaking Donald Trump threatens to raise tariffs on Canada over wildfire smoke

Today in prediction markets: "President Donald Trump's longtime teleprompter operator is believed to have made tens of thousands of dollars by placing bets on more than a dozen of Trump's speeches on the prediction market Kalshi..." abcnews.com/US/white-hou...

White House teleprompter operator made more than $100K betting on Trump's speeches: Sources

President Trump's longtime teleprompter operator is believed to have made tens of thousands of dollars by placing bets on the contents of Trump's speeches, sources say.

abcnews.com

This is the situation in Armstrong, Ontario (northwestern Ontario). If you'd like to know the state of wildfires across the country, check out the Canadian Wildland Fire Information System. They track and monitor fire conditions and occurrences across Canada. cwfis.cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/en/

Jules Sherred (he/him)@geekyjules.julessherred.com · 3w ago

Kid1, who is both an conductor and engineer for CN and has driven trains through SK wildfires himself, just sent me this video from Ontario. When I tell you they arent paid enough!!! vt.tiktok.com/ZSXkuEadE/

Toronto is sepia-toned and smells like a campfire today. Be safe out there. "Residents may experience mild and common symptoms such as eye, nose and throat irritation, headaches or a mild cough. Less common symptoms include wheezing, chest pains or severe cough." www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...

Toronto ranked among worst air quality in the world as smoke, extreme heat warnings continue | CBC News

Environment Canada's poor air quality warning in Toronto due to wildfire smoke could stick around until the end of the week, said a meteorologist.

cbc.ca

New w @pamherd.bsky.social: Mamdani just announced PIT Crew — an NYC tech unit that will build digital public products. Takeaway: Mamdani is reclaiming a vision of tech in govt for progressives, one not driven by consultants and which solves real problems. 🧵 donmoynihan.substack.com/p/mamdani-in...

Mamdani invests in tech capacity to “solve real problems”

What PIT Crew says about how he is governing, and tech in government

donmoynihan.substack.com

Yeah, I’m following the *looks at smudged notes* Nigel Farage and “intergalactic space alien” who goes by Count Binface byelection… www.cbc.ca/radio/asitha...

Nigel Farage's only by-election challenger is self-proclaimed space alien Count Binface | CBC Radio

Nigel Farage, leader of Britain's populist Reform party, says he stepped down from his parliamentary seat so he could trigger a by-election and take on "the establishment." But, so far, his only chall...

cbc.ca

Cities as sites of innovation. Cool! Also a real-world exercise in admin burden-shifting, moving compliance costs (and maybe others) off citizens and onto firms and the state. They say they "will be able to move from idea to implementation in a matter of months." Wonder what the process is.

Adam Gurri@adamgurri.liberalcurrents.com · 3w ago

Strongly suspect this will end up having a bigger long run impact on the average New Yorker than the more sexy headline grabbing campaign promises www.nyc.gov/mayors-offic...

This is called fertility fraud. Typically when people think of “fertility fraud” they think of “misusing” or mixing up gametes. But false marketing claims count, too. 🧵/1

The Economist@economist.com · 4w ago

Fertility clinics offer a long list of tests and procedures purported to boost their customers’ chances of conceiving. But a review found no convincing evidence that most are helpful

This is a really good explainer about the mortality estimates around USAID. One big point is that dismantling USAID also dismantled one of the main sources of mortality data in some of these regions. Early indicators of mortality are very worrying.

The New Yorker@newyorker.com · 3w ago

Elon Musk’s cuts to U.S.A.I.D. led to some 700,000 deaths, Atul Gawande says. www.newyorker.com/news/the-new...

"What to know about the cyclosporiasis outbreak hitting more than half of U.S. states" www.npr.org/2026/07/12/n... What to know is that "Trump’s CDC Stopped Monitoring Explosive Diarrhea Parasite Before Outbreak." www.newsweek.com/donald-trump...

What to know about the cyclosporiasis outbreak hitting more than half of U.S. states

A surge of cases of the intestinal illness that causes diarrhea and nausea has been detected in 31 states, according to federal health authorities, but the source is still under investigation.

npr.org

In a “multipolar” world, argue the leaders of Canada and Finland, middle powers “must form calibrated alliances, integrating deeply with those countries that share our values, and remain open-eyed with those that do not”

Prepare for a world of ad hoc coalitions

Neither wishful multilateralism nor cold realpolitik will do. Mark Carney and Alexander Stubb suggest a third way

bit.ly

6 in 10 Americans now believe the military operation in Iran hasn’t been worth it, a 10-point increase since April. (Navigator Research) More, via Opinion Today: opiniontoday.substack.com/p/260708

I love this app.

Max Berger@maxberger.bsky.social · 4w ago

That’s what happens when you get rid of the department of defense

Really appreciating the sports to politics ratio on here. Both appear to be delivering chaos.