Greatly looking forward to this ! Your interviews are always thoughtful and genial! Two questions for Joyce - The Presidential Immunity that Trump is always flaunting, the I-can-shoot- anybody-on Fifth Avenue variety🙄Is it constitutional and will it be revoked once Trump is gone ? Will future presidents be able to loose anarchy on the world in the name of the American people? And secondly, will every woman in this country be given the freedom and the choice to make decisions regarding her gynaec health? How long will white male Republicans be telling us what to do ? Thanks Andy 💕
For my fellow Alabamian: Does giving money really help, and if so, how? I am hit on for donations multiple times each day, and I confess I have no clue how it is used to restore our democracy.
Sam, I agree with you! Sometimes it feels like they think of us like ATM machines. I’d rather pay money here and have my say. Know what I think would work well? Suppose instead of asking for money, some politician or group challenged us to send 50,000 emails to the Whitehouse. Elaborate on that.
The pleas reporting that Musk just gave 250 million to a republican and my ten dollars is needed desperately are indicative of the larger question you pose Denis.
Okay, but think of it this way. We don’t need all of those who can be swayed by money dominated stunts. We need 50% plus 1. The other side is loud and over reported, our side is more numerous but poorly organized. Organization doesn’t come from the top, it comes from here, from us trying to figure it out.
I'm sorry to say this, but money works. When I walked one of my first precincts, I knocked on a door and a woman answered. She said she hadn't decided whom to vote for yet. "How are you going to decided?"
"I'm going to look at my mail and see who I like best."
The mailers? The ones that make the opposing candidate look silly with color pixillated coin grey? Oh, dear.
The money provides TV ads, mailers, rallies. It was the $25 million spent that defeated Jamaal Bowman. It's so hard to beat them. Mamdani did--with 90,000 volunteers. But it takes that much, and that many. Good luck to us!
So if you don't have the money, go on a candadate's website and instead of hitting the "donate" button, hit the "volunteer" button. Time, energy, courage, yes. But some great rewards. (Mark Kelly was one of the people I made phone calls for with the Sunrise Movement.)
Volunteered many election cycles including writing postcards. Of all the actions, my most favorite is door-to-door knocking .you get to talk to real people in real world . New Hampshire is a dangerous place for a democratic volunteer. People literally point guns at you …..😉🕊️
I'm so sorry that this happened to you. How frightening! I hope you weren't in your own neighborhood! Still. That shouldn't happen to anyone. Makes me angry.
I live in Massachusetts which is already a Tip O’ Neal/ Ted Kennedy democratic country ! So, We campaign in New Hampshire for presidential elections . In the past, Gov. Duval, Congressman Joe Kennedy lll and/or Attorney General ( now Gov) Maura Healy used to join us
Yikes is right, but door-to-door talking to people works. I've seen it happen. They appreciate the candidate (or volunteer) taking their time to do that.
This is so true. I once knocked on a woman's door who was about to vote Republican. But I noticed a surfboard by the front door. So I asked if she was in favor of a clean ocean. She changed her choice. Yes, you brave the barking dogs, the slammed doors and windows, but it's so worth it. I learned, also, that the poor feel that nobody is on their side. They are knowledeable but feel hopeless.
So far no guns. Sheesh. I'm sorry this has happened to you!
Marcia, thank you! I want to clarify that I was only expressing a desire to know how donations are used primarily. Your explication is really helpful; I wish candidates were as considerate. It also helps me understand why our being so outspent by the Republican party hurts us! Thanks!
Q. What's the best path to get money out of politics? I believe it's the root of so many evils for both Republicans and Democrats! Could we follow Vermont's example with financial limits?
Yes, there aren’t enough opportunities to volunteer. But I’d go further. Every person who reads these spaces and all who write are making significant contributions.
Denis, great idea! It’s so interesting to me that there is no articulation of how the money is used. Heck, you get far more info off a Go Fund Me ad. Surely our alleged representatives have some semblance of a war chest already, but I don’t see how it has helped a damn bit.
With today's prices in everything going up, I feel politicians aren't looking at the real picture when they constantly bombard us for donations. I too wonder where the money goes. I have to be selective on who will get my donation(s). I have bills to pay too.
It may be the problem and not the solution, but it's the reality. It's the way candidates get their message out. There are only so many doors that a candidate can knock. Every text, every mass email, every palm card, costs $$. The best we can do is funnel our funds to the candidates who need them most, like those in swing districts or those in local races who can turn around MAGA majority voting blocks.
P.S. Money in elections is an evil, but it's a necessary evil, especially since United Citizens. We have to fight money with money. It's the world we live in, not the world we wish we lived in.
I don't disagree. It's up to the party, then, to determine where funds are most needed and when you donate to political organizations, you have to trust their discretion. I usually direct my dollars to individual candidates that I've researched. I also donate to alternative media (ie some Substacks that I believe are worthy). Doesn't mean that many more are worthy, but I'm guessing that most of us have limited funds to disburse.
I, too, get swamped with fundraising asks. Andy had the best idea. Pick a candidate who really has a chance of winning for your donation. Even though I live in Tennessee, I chose Georgia’s Jon Ossoff. Georgis’s Red Bunker finally cracked. Tennessee’s never will.
Simon Rosenberg’s Hopium Chronicles bundles donations to direct toward candidates who he believes have a chance of winning in the next cycle. You can give to one or all of them with one donation. In 2024, his group donated $1,000,000 to the NC Democratic Party, and they managed to flip some legislative seats and I think there is no longer a super majority in the legislature there. You will probably still get donation requests, but you can ignore them, knowing that you have done your part to target your donation effectively. It works for me, anyway.
The problem with donations is once you comply they send you more and more emails.asking again and again. And unsubscribe triggers them to change numbers….apparantly
I have called the offices of a handful of candidates to ask how to donate WITHOUT using Act Blue. Once you make a donation through Act Blue, there's a deluge of other requests.
I donate my time, energy and money locally. I have a few local non profits I give to annually (non political) and they do not bother me with constant solicitation.
I work as an election judge and volunteer with my local democratic party. After the primaries when candidates become qualified for the November ballot I will send targeted donations nationally where it seems it will make a difference.
Well, Sam Popkin, regarding your quetion about being hit up for donations multiple times a day by politicians, I have a theory on this question. I believe almost ALL donations by politicians go into pockets. I am not certain that the pockets they choose to deposit the money in are the same ones I would have chosen.
Give directly to someone who is rescuing dogs or cats directly (not an organization) or help a kid with problems who needs a friend and someone to talk to, or go look in on a fragile old person shut in at home, and buy them some groceries. This way you know what happens with your kind donation, it seems to me.
Yes, there are honest and honorable causes-political for which good, straightforward people volunteer, and they do a lot of good. And yes, money IS needed to fight back the political forces of the would-be-fascist-authoritarian takeover artists now pushing us all around. The trouble is, it isnt always easy to tell which is which, in my experience.
After many years, I have decided to run for public office. I’ve been knocking on doors for a year, going to court to defend canvassing in my community. Also running to be a delegate to the state Democratic convention. There are lots of things you can do that don’t require a donation or just making cold calls. Look around, consider the possibilities.
I give to those whom I know will do what needs doing. Pick a few; legal, environmental, social and get acquainted with their missions. I only have so much $$ to spread around.
Bingo...multiple times a day by the same people as well .... Here's what I want to state: 1.) Who needs help in the primaries? I'll help 2.) Don't even ask me for money before April, preferrably, May.... the 24/7/365 constant elections have got to stop....
When democrats take over the House and Senate in 26, what are the chances that that they’ll stop Trump’s agenda and can we expect select prosecutions of illegalities?
I'm afraid the rest of the world has decided. We might be forgiven, again—eventually—but the trust bucket is drained. Whose to say we won't elect another Trump someday?
Joyce, as an avid knitter, would you speak to the current controversy in the knitting community over the relevance, importance of "craftivism"? Currently thousands of knitters are making "Melt the Ice" hats based on Norwegian red resistance hats from WWII (knitting as form of protest from Mme DeFarge to pussy hats). Are we making an impact with this type of protest or is it just "virtue signaling"? Thank you for all YOU and Andy Borowitz do!!!
I don’t know if it’s virtue signaling or making a point but I think it’s pretty cool to be doing something like that and I would definitely lift my hand up in solidarity to someone who had the hat on.
As an experienced activist, I can advise (sorry to butt in with an opinion ahead of the interview) that anything you do to build community is extremely important. We've found that communities who are already connected with activities and fun are up to 400% more effective when coming together for a cultural or political purpose. Love the hats. Have also seen rogue knitbombs, like signs knit into freeway fences and around light poles. Knit away!!
Joyce > With the way it led by Trump and his servile acolytes, do you think DHS is being groomed to play a role in another January 6th seige after the 2028 election?
Please explain the scope of a State’s power to arrest and prosecute Federal agents for committing State crimes. I thought qualified immunity protected them from civil rights suits, not criminal prosecution. If ICE agents opened fire on protesters Kent State fashion, it’s hard to believe that Minneapolis police wouldn’t arrest them. So, why aren’t the police arresting agents for kidnapping, assault, destruction of property, reckless endangerment, harassment, child endangerment, child abuse, murder, etcetera?
As long as our way of life is under siege, and probably beyond, I will continue to support the Borowitz report. I live in the Trumpiest
part of the Trumpiest county in the Trumpiest state in the union. I believe we will survive this. Maybe not the Republican Party but it clearly deserves to die. I tended to vote Republican most of the time the exception being of course whenever someone like Trump was running on the Republican ticket. Which has really only happened thrice. Being when Trump was running on the Republican ticket. I will no longer vote for Republican senators or representatives at the federal level. I plan to vote for Scott Colom who is running against Roger Wicker. I probably will not vote for another republican for governor. I’ll have to wait and see on that. My litmus test will likely be. Are you now or have you ever been a supporter of Donald Trump? If you ever were a supporter of Donald Trump and are not now when did you make your mind up? And if it was after January 6, 2021, that’s a dealbreaker.
The sad thing is that anyone living in a Trumpy state probably thinks theirs is the Trumpiest state in the union. Even sadder is to realize all those Trumpies were discovered by Trump. He did not create them. I attend church with some who when he rose to power in 2016 said he’s just like us. I said to them you maybe but not me. I think they still feel that way as they have done nothing or said nothing to disabuse me of it. We are still friendly to one another. The reason it’s sad though is because people like that will always be around. They will be waiting for the next Trump to come along
"He's just like us"? Every Trumpist has his or her own fantasy of King Maga, which is invariably a savior figure quite far from the real day-in day-out Trump: egomaniacal, bigoted, vengeful, mercurial, infantile, willfully ignorant. Some evangelists even claim he's the Second Coming. Trump is not a mirror image of the tens of millions who voted for him. He's a chimera inside a delusion of his making—his chief talent is salesmanship, after all—with profoundly dangerous ambitions he has the power to initiate, as it would seem he has started to do.
Here's a question for Ms Vance: The wealth gap in the US is the greatest it has ever been since the Federal reserve started measuring it in 1989. The top 1% have 31.7% of wealth. As this pattern only increases, what impact does this have on the possibility of preserving democracy in this country? Let's be real. consumer corporate capitalism, which has brought us to this point, is frankly incompatible with Democracy and also, seemingly paradoxically, free markets (Amazon anyone? Everyone?)
I just received my copy of her book. Now, if I can just get past what Trump‘s done to my concentration level, maybe I’ll get back to you with a report soon.
Can state attorneys general arrest and indict federal officials for illegal and unconstitutional actions in their states? I’m wondering why someone doesn’t arrest and charge Noem, Miller, Bovino, etc.. Their daily crimes certainly are outside the purview of their federal “duties,” aren’t they.
Pete Buttigieg is encouraging us to look to the future when this regime is gone. I fear that at 72, I’ll be dead before I see the country rebuilt and don’t have a lot of hope that there will be fundamental change. America is all about capitalism and people will fight tooth and nail to keep it that way. I don’t object to capitalism, but unfettered capitalism is what got us here. We are ruled by corporations who keep consolidating because capitalism is about crushing your competition so the only ones who benefit are the investors. Our healthcare system is failing not because there is too much demand and too little supply but because single corporations have control of multiple parts from doctors, to clinics, to hospitals, to pharmacies, to PBMs, to insurance companies. Just look at CVS which owns Aetna, pharmacies, PBMs, and clinics within their pharmacies. We pay high prices because of these consolidations. I’m with Bernie, it’s the wealthy in this country who are destroying it.
Joyce and her book are both great! I’m looking forward to sharing your questions with her.
Greatly looking forward to this ! Your interviews are always thoughtful and genial! Two questions for Joyce - The Presidential Immunity that Trump is always flaunting, the I-can-shoot- anybody-on Fifth Avenue variety🙄Is it constitutional and will it be revoked once Trump is gone ? Will future presidents be able to loose anarchy on the world in the name of the American people? And secondly, will every woman in this country be given the freedom and the choice to make decisions regarding her gynaec health? How long will white male Republicans be telling us what to do ? Thanks Andy 💕
Great questions, Pradnya! Looking forward to Joyce’s answers…
What would she write today in an addendum to her book? So much more has happened since it was published!
For my fellow Alabamian: Does giving money really help, and if so, how? I am hit on for donations multiple times each day, and I confess I have no clue how it is used to restore our democracy.
Sam, I agree with you! Sometimes it feels like they think of us like ATM machines. I’d rather pay money here and have my say. Know what I think would work well? Suppose instead of asking for money, some politician or group challenged us to send 50,000 emails to the Whitehouse. Elaborate on that.
The pleas reporting that Musk just gave 250 million to a republican and my ten dollars is needed desperately are indicative of the larger question you pose Denis.
Okay, but think of it this way. We don’t need all of those who can be swayed by money dominated stunts. We need 50% plus 1. The other side is loud and over reported, our side is more numerous but poorly organized. Organization doesn’t come from the top, it comes from here, from us trying to figure it out.
I'm sorry to say this, but money works. When I walked one of my first precincts, I knocked on a door and a woman answered. She said she hadn't decided whom to vote for yet. "How are you going to decided?"
"I'm going to look at my mail and see who I like best."
The mailers? The ones that make the opposing candidate look silly with color pixillated coin grey? Oh, dear.
The money provides TV ads, mailers, rallies. It was the $25 million spent that defeated Jamaal Bowman. It's so hard to beat them. Mamdani did--with 90,000 volunteers. But it takes that much, and that many. Good luck to us!
So if you don't have the money, go on a candadate's website and instead of hitting the "donate" button, hit the "volunteer" button. Time, energy, courage, yes. But some great rewards. (Mark Kelly was one of the people I made phone calls for with the Sunrise Movement.)
Volunteered many election cycles including writing postcards. Of all the actions, my most favorite is door-to-door knocking .you get to talk to real people in real world . New Hampshire is a dangerous place for a democratic volunteer. People literally point guns at you …..😉🕊️
Yikes!! 🙀
I'm so sorry that this happened to you. How frightening! I hope you weren't in your own neighborhood! Still. That shouldn't happen to anyone. Makes me angry.
I live in Massachusetts which is already a Tip O’ Neal/ Ted Kennedy democratic country ! So, We campaign in New Hampshire for presidential elections . In the past, Gov. Duval, Congressman Joe Kennedy lll and/or Attorney General ( now Gov) Maura Healy used to join us
Yikes is right, but door-to-door talking to people works. I've seen it happen. They appreciate the candidate (or volunteer) taking their time to do that.
This is so true. I once knocked on a woman's door who was about to vote Republican. But I noticed a surfboard by the front door. So I asked if she was in favor of a clean ocean. She changed her choice. Yes, you brave the barking dogs, the slammed doors and windows, but it's so worth it. I learned, also, that the poor feel that nobody is on their side. They are knowledeable but feel hopeless.
So far no guns. Sheesh. I'm sorry this has happened to you!
Marcia, thank you! I want to clarify that I was only expressing a desire to know how donations are used primarily. Your explication is really helpful; I wish candidates were as considerate. It also helps me understand why our being so outspent by the Republican party hurts us! Thanks!
Q. What's the best path to get money out of politics? I believe it's the root of so many evils for both Republicans and Democrats! Could we follow Vermont's example with financial limits?
Yes, there aren’t enough opportunities to volunteer. But I’d go further. Every person who reads these spaces and all who write are making significant contributions.
Denis, great idea! It’s so interesting to me that there is no articulation of how the money is used. Heck, you get far more info off a Go Fund Me ad. Surely our alleged representatives have some semblance of a war chest already, but I don’t see how it has helped a damn bit.
Let’s start that group here.
6179012072
With today's prices in everything going up, I feel politicians aren't looking at the real picture when they constantly bombard us for donations. I too wonder where the money goes. I have to be selective on who will get my donation(s). I have bills to pay too.
Money is the PROBLEM. Not the solution.
It may be the problem and not the solution, but it's the reality. It's the way candidates get their message out. There are only so many doors that a candidate can knock. Every text, every mass email, every palm card, costs $$. The best we can do is funnel our funds to the candidates who need them most, like those in swing districts or those in local races who can turn around MAGA majority voting blocks.
But giving a check to just the Democratic party, you have no idea where that money goes.....
P.S. Money in elections is an evil, but it's a necessary evil, especially since United Citizens. We have to fight money with money. It's the world we live in, not the world we wish we lived in.
I don't disagree. It's up to the party, then, to determine where funds are most needed and when you donate to political organizations, you have to trust their discretion. I usually direct my dollars to individual candidates that I've researched. I also donate to alternative media (ie some Substacks that I believe are worthy). Doesn't mean that many more are worthy, but I'm guessing that most of us have limited funds to disburse.
I, too, get swamped with fundraising asks. Andy had the best idea. Pick a candidate who really has a chance of winning for your donation. Even though I live in Tennessee, I chose Georgia’s Jon Ossoff. Georgis’s Red Bunker finally cracked. Tennessee’s never will.
Simon Rosenberg’s Hopium Chronicles bundles donations to direct toward candidates who he believes have a chance of winning in the next cycle. You can give to one or all of them with one donation. In 2024, his group donated $1,000,000 to the NC Democratic Party, and they managed to flip some legislative seats and I think there is no longer a super majority in the legislature there. You will probably still get donation requests, but you can ignore them, knowing that you have done your part to target your donation effectively. It works for me, anyway.
Same with Emily's List.
Chose Ossoff too for a small monthly donation :)
The problem with donations is once you comply they send you more and more emails.asking again and again. And unsubscribe triggers them to change numbers….apparantly
I have called the offices of a handful of candidates to ask how to donate WITHOUT using Act Blue. Once you make a donation through Act Blue, there's a deluge of other requests.
Sam I agree and have donated a lot but seems like when done it just adds to a whole new set of text and email requests.
It’s frustrating. If you’re a known contributor who gave an inch, they come back and collectively ask for a mile. It gets to feeling intrusive to me.
I get dozens of texts and emails daily asking for money. I just assume they’re all scams and delete them.
I donate my time, energy and money locally. I have a few local non profits I give to annually (non political) and they do not bother me with constant solicitation.
I work as an election judge and volunteer with my local democratic party. After the primaries when candidates become qualified for the November ballot I will send targeted donations nationally where it seems it will make a difference.
Well, Sam Popkin, regarding your quetion about being hit up for donations multiple times a day by politicians, I have a theory on this question. I believe almost ALL donations by politicians go into pockets. I am not certain that the pockets they choose to deposit the money in are the same ones I would have chosen.
Give directly to someone who is rescuing dogs or cats directly (not an organization) or help a kid with problems who needs a friend and someone to talk to, or go look in on a fragile old person shut in at home, and buy them some groceries. This way you know what happens with your kind donation, it seems to me.
Yes, there are honest and honorable causes-political for which good, straightforward people volunteer, and they do a lot of good. And yes, money IS needed to fight back the political forces of the would-be-fascist-authoritarian takeover artists now pushing us all around. The trouble is, it isnt always easy to tell which is which, in my experience.
After many years, I have decided to run for public office. I’ve been knocking on doors for a year, going to court to defend canvassing in my community. Also running to be a delegate to the state Democratic convention. There are lots of things you can do that don’t require a donation or just making cold calls. Look around, consider the possibilities.
I give to those whom I know will do what needs doing. Pick a few; legal, environmental, social and get acquainted with their missions. I only have so much $$ to spread around.
Bingo...multiple times a day by the same people as well .... Here's what I want to state: 1.) Who needs help in the primaries? I'll help 2.) Don't even ask me for money before April, preferrably, May.... the 24/7/365 constant elections have got to stop....
Will we ever be able to get all the brain power fired by Musk back in time to resuurect our culture?
Great question!
When democrats take over the House and Senate in 26, what are the chances that that they’ll stop Trump’s agenda and can we expect select prosecutions of illegalities?
I call solitary confinement for life!
EXPECT I certainly do!!!!
And what about the brain drain happening as our best and brightest head to Europe where their research will be funded?
One can never go back. We can only move forward.
How long and what will it take for the rest of the world to forgive us and trust us again? We elected Trump twice!
I'm afraid the rest of the world has decided. We might be forgiven, again—eventually—but the trust bucket is drained. Whose to say we won't elect another Trump someday?
I don’t trust us, why should they?
Bingo!
Joyce, as an avid knitter, would you speak to the current controversy in the knitting community over the relevance, importance of "craftivism"? Currently thousands of knitters are making "Melt the Ice" hats based on Norwegian red resistance hats from WWII (knitting as form of protest from Mme DeFarge to pussy hats). Are we making an impact with this type of protest or is it just "virtue signaling"? Thank you for all YOU and Andy Borowitz do!!!
I don’t know if it’s virtue signaling or making a point but I think it’s pretty cool to be doing something like that and I would definitely lift my hand up in solidarity to someone who had the hat on.
As an experienced activist, I can advise (sorry to butt in with an opinion ahead of the interview) that anything you do to build community is extremely important. We've found that communities who are already connected with activities and fun are up to 400% more effective when coming together for a cultural or political purpose. Love the hats. Have also seen rogue knitbombs, like signs knit into freeway fences and around light poles. Knit away!!
Thank you, you make some really important points!
Not fond of hats but I'm in for one(not red)
Joyce > With the way it led by Trump and his servile acolytes, do you think DHS is being groomed to play a role in another January 6th seige after the 2028 election?
Questions for Joyce:
1. Which of your chickens do you suspect of being a MAGA?
2. Is it true that Justa Dick Vance stole your last name, among the many he has assumed?
3. Would you be willing to allow the VP to borrow your eye liner pencil? Please?
How do we stay positive and hopeful?
NEVER NEVER EVER GIVE UP!
Joyce,
Please explain the scope of a State’s power to arrest and prosecute Federal agents for committing State crimes. I thought qualified immunity protected them from civil rights suits, not criminal prosecution. If ICE agents opened fire on protesters Kent State fashion, it’s hard to believe that Minneapolis police wouldn’t arrest them. So, why aren’t the police arresting agents for kidnapping, assault, destruction of property, reckless endangerment, harassment, child endangerment, child abuse, murder, etcetera?
As long as our way of life is under siege, and probably beyond, I will continue to support the Borowitz report. I live in the Trumpiest
part of the Trumpiest county in the Trumpiest state in the union. I believe we will survive this. Maybe not the Republican Party but it clearly deserves to die. I tended to vote Republican most of the time the exception being of course whenever someone like Trump was running on the Republican ticket. Which has really only happened thrice. Being when Trump was running on the Republican ticket. I will no longer vote for Republican senators or representatives at the federal level. I plan to vote for Scott Colom who is running against Roger Wicker. I probably will not vote for another republican for governor. I’ll have to wait and see on that. My litmus test will likely be. Are you now or have you ever been a supporter of Donald Trump? If you ever were a supporter of Donald Trump and are not now when did you make your mind up? And if it was after January 6, 2021, that’s a dealbreaker.
Hey, we (Missouri) are trying to out-Trump you Mississippians! Keep watching your rear-view mirror.
The sad thing is that anyone living in a Trumpy state probably thinks theirs is the Trumpiest state in the union. Even sadder is to realize all those Trumpies were discovered by Trump. He did not create them. I attend church with some who when he rose to power in 2016 said he’s just like us. I said to them you maybe but not me. I think they still feel that way as they have done nothing or said nothing to disabuse me of it. We are still friendly to one another. The reason it’s sad though is because people like that will always be around. They will be waiting for the next Trump to come along
"He's just like us"? Every Trumpist has his or her own fantasy of King Maga, which is invariably a savior figure quite far from the real day-in day-out Trump: egomaniacal, bigoted, vengeful, mercurial, infantile, willfully ignorant. Some evangelists even claim he's the Second Coming. Trump is not a mirror image of the tens of millions who voted for him. He's a chimera inside a delusion of his making—his chief talent is salesmanship, after all—with profoundly dangerous ambitions he has the power to initiate, as it would seem he has started to do.
I hope you don’t succeed. Not that I like being in the Trumpiest state of the union, but I would hate to see one get any Trumpier.
My question: Where on earth do you find more than 24 hours a day to do all you do?
Love her.
Here's a question for Ms Vance: The wealth gap in the US is the greatest it has ever been since the Federal reserve started measuring it in 1989. The top 1% have 31.7% of wealth. As this pattern only increases, what impact does this have on the possibility of preserving democracy in this country? Let's be real. consumer corporate capitalism, which has brought us to this point, is frankly incompatible with Democracy and also, seemingly paradoxically, free markets (Amazon anyone? Everyone?)
I just received my copy of her book. Now, if I can just get past what Trump‘s done to my concentration level, maybe I’ll get back to you with a report soon.
Yes. Exactly.
Can state attorneys general arrest and indict federal officials for illegal and unconstitutional actions in their states? I’m wondering why someone doesn’t arrest and charge Noem, Miller, Bovino, etc.. Their daily crimes certainly are outside the purview of their federal “duties,” aren’t they.
Pete Buttigieg is encouraging us to look to the future when this regime is gone. I fear that at 72, I’ll be dead before I see the country rebuilt and don’t have a lot of hope that there will be fundamental change. America is all about capitalism and people will fight tooth and nail to keep it that way. I don’t object to capitalism, but unfettered capitalism is what got us here. We are ruled by corporations who keep consolidating because capitalism is about crushing your competition so the only ones who benefit are the investors. Our healthcare system is failing not because there is too much demand and too little supply but because single corporations have control of multiple parts from doctors, to clinics, to hospitals, to pharmacies, to PBMs, to insurance companies. Just look at CVS which owns Aetna, pharmacies, PBMs, and clinics within their pharmacies. We pay high prices because of these consolidations. I’m with Bernie, it’s the wealthy in this country who are destroying it.