Amy Fried
@asfried.bsky.social
Political scientist, kayaker
Emeritus, UMaine
Political Sightlines at https://amyfried.substack.com/
Books on how U.S. conservatives weaponized distrust, New England politics, professionalizing polling, and perceptions of public opinion as a resource
Emeritus, UMaine
Political Sightlines at https://amyfried.substack.com/
Books on how U.S. conservatives weaponized distrust, New England politics, professionalizing polling, and perceptions of public opinion as a resource
Pinned
Amy Fried
@asfried.bsky.social
· Nov 12
Blueskyers, I’m a retired political scientist, still actively writing and doing more real politics, whose core research has been on the history and political uses of public opinion. But I've done research other topics, too! My 1st pub was on abortion politics, the latest on ranked choice voting. 1/5
Reposted by Amy Fried
The headline should be, "DHS to keep 2,000 immigration officers in Minnesota."
Instead, it seems the entirety of the traditional media went with, "DHS to withdraw 700 immigration officers from Minnesota."
This presser worked like a charm.
Instead, it seems the entirety of the traditional media went with, "DHS to withdraw 700 immigration officers from Minnesota."
This presser worked like a charm.
Homan in Minneapolis: "Effective immediately, we will draw down 700 people effective today."
February 4, 2026 at 3:43 PM
The headline should be, "DHS to keep 2,000 immigration officers in Minnesota."
Instead, it seems the entirety of the traditional media went with, "DHS to withdraw 700 immigration officers from Minnesota."
This presser worked like a charm.
Instead, it seems the entirety of the traditional media went with, "DHS to withdraw 700 immigration officers from Minnesota."
This presser worked like a charm.
Reposted by Amy Fried
always bears repeating that this is NOT a financial decision. jeff bezos is worth over 250 billion dollars. he can afford to lose many millions and never even notice it. this is, at its core, a political and personal decision by bezos to destroy the post
WASHINGTON (AP) — Washington Post says one-third of its staff across all departments, not just the newsroom, is being laid off.
February 4, 2026 at 3:04 PM
always bears repeating that this is NOT a financial decision. jeff bezos is worth over 250 billion dollars. he can afford to lose many millions and never even notice it. this is, at its core, a political and personal decision by bezos to destroy the post
Reposted by Amy Fried
This isn’t some anonymous tip. This is sworn testimony, under penalty of perjury, from someone who said Trump threatened to kill her if she exposed Epstein’s sexual abuse.
February 3, 2026 at 5:04 PM
This isn’t some anonymous tip. This is sworn testimony, under penalty of perjury, from someone who said Trump threatened to kill her if she exposed Epstein’s sexual abuse.
This is excellent piece and #mepolitics folks should note the mentions of Jared Golden.
www.bostonreview.net/forum/how-no...
www.bostonreview.net/forum/how-no...
Democrats can’t simply react to polls. They must lead.
Adam Bonica and Jake Grumbach reply to their critics.
www.bostonreview.net
February 4, 2026 at 3:02 PM
This is excellent piece and #mepolitics folks should note the mentions of Jared Golden.
www.bostonreview.net/forum/how-no...
www.bostonreview.net/forum/how-no...
As a Jew, I gotta say, Johnson’s interpretive chops are pathetic.
Speaking on behalf of a religion that actively sought to spread itself to every country in the world whether invited or not, Speaker Johnson would like to share with you the Biblical case for strong borders.
February 4, 2026 at 12:13 PM
As a Jew, I gotta say, Johnson’s interpretive chops are pathetic.
ICE is demanding the employment records at a Maine jail after a sheriff openly criticized immigration agents for arresting one of his guards
ICE demanded Maine sheriff’s employment records following his criticism of arrest
The subpoena came a day after Cumberland County Sheriff Kevin Joyce blasted immigration agents for arresting one of his guards.
www.bangordailynews.com
February 4, 2026 at 1:48 AM
Reposted by Amy Fried
This is a mask *very* specifically associated with Atomwaffen and Nazi Terrorgram (as OP notes downthread)
Fucking surreal that people dressed like this and carrying assault rifles are permitted to kidnap people off our streets
February 4, 2026 at 1:09 AM
This is a mask *very* specifically associated with Atomwaffen and Nazi Terrorgram (as OP notes downthread)
Reposted by Amy Fried
Remember the incident where DHS claimed officers shot a guy because he attacked them with a snow shovel?
Yeah. It didn't happen. They shot him through the door of his own home. And then arrested him. And then lied about it. Again.
And they almost shot some kids in the process.
Yeah. It didn't happen. They shot him through the door of his own home. And then arrested him. And then lied about it. Again.
And they almost shot some kids in the process.
They just blindly shot through the fucking door.
"Additional photographs show damage consistent with a bullet fragment lodged in a bedroom wall down the hallway — suggesting it traveled between a mattress and a portable crib in a room where several small children sleep."
"Additional photographs show damage consistent with a bullet fragment lodged in a bedroom wall down the hallway — suggesting it traveled between a mattress and a portable crib in a room where several small children sleep."
"Photographic evidence from the shooting scene of a Venezuelan man by federal agents last month in Minneapolis supports the account of witnesses there – and appears to undercut the narrative provided by federal officials." www.startribune.com/ice-raids-mi...
February 3, 2026 at 11:33 PM
Remember the incident where DHS claimed officers shot a guy because he attacked them with a snow shovel?
Yeah. It didn't happen. They shot him through the door of his own home. And then arrested him. And then lied about it. Again.
And they almost shot some kids in the process.
Yeah. It didn't happen. They shot him through the door of his own home. And then arrested him. And then lied about it. Again.
And they almost shot some kids in the process.
Reposted by Amy Fried
Top Trump ally Brian Kilmeade says on the radio that Trump "wants Susan Collins to win" and they paused the ICE surge there to "help Susan Collins" with her re-election.
They're not even pretending any more.
#mesen #mepolitics
They're not even pretending any more.
#mesen #mepolitics
February 3, 2026 at 7:51 PM
Top Trump ally Brian Kilmeade says on the radio that Trump "wants Susan Collins to win" and they paused the ICE surge there to "help Susan Collins" with her re-election.
They're not even pretending any more.
#mesen #mepolitics
They're not even pretending any more.
#mesen #mepolitics
Reposted by Amy Fried
Standouts from today's Maine Republican press conference:
Claims that tipped workers represent a significant group in Maine - in fact it's abt 2% of workers
Plans to spend 2 years of revenue for 1 year of tax cuts
$300 only buys you a meal at a fancy restaurant #mepolitics
Claims that tipped workers represent a significant group in Maine - in fact it's abt 2% of workers
Plans to spend 2 years of revenue for 1 year of tax cuts
$300 only buys you a meal at a fancy restaurant #mepolitics
February 3, 2026 at 8:58 PM
Standouts from today's Maine Republican press conference:
Claims that tipped workers represent a significant group in Maine - in fact it's abt 2% of workers
Plans to spend 2 years of revenue for 1 year of tax cuts
$300 only buys you a meal at a fancy restaurant #mepolitics
Claims that tipped workers represent a significant group in Maine - in fact it's abt 2% of workers
Plans to spend 2 years of revenue for 1 year of tax cuts
$300 only buys you a meal at a fancy restaurant #mepolitics
Just a reminder that "A database maintained by the right-wing Heritage Foundation found "fewer than 100 examples of non-citizens voting between 2002 and 2022, amid more than 1 billion lawfully cast ballots."
via @juddlegum.bsky.social
via @juddlegum.bsky.social
Hundreds of citizens wrongly stripped of voting rights in botched effort to legitimize Trump's conspiracy theory
One of the central narratives that former President Donald Trump and his allies are pushing is that Democrats are planning to steal the election by using undocumented immigrants to pad their vote tota...
popular.info
February 3, 2026 at 2:15 PM
Reposted by Amy Fried
Reposted by Amy Fried
This is absolutely insane: DHS claims the right to subpoena your emails and to send investigators to your house. In this case, because a retiree sent the mildest possible criticism to a prosecutor. No judges involved.
www.washingtonpost.com/investigatio...
www.washingtonpost.com/investigatio...
Homeland Security is targeting Americans with this secretive legal weapon
Under Trump, the Department of Homeland Security has weaponized administrative subpoenas to attack free speech, according to privacy and civil rights groups.
www.washingtonpost.com
February 3, 2026 at 12:41 PM
This is absolutely insane: DHS claims the right to subpoena your emails and to send investigators to your house. In this case, because a retiree sent the mildest possible criticism to a prosecutor. No judges involved.
www.washingtonpost.com/investigatio...
www.washingtonpost.com/investigatio...
This is a great example of national Dems having no clue about Maine. Swalwell is a good guy and he and/or his staff likely personally know Wood, Katie Porter’s former CoS and connected fundraiser. But Wood is the weakest option to take on LePage in ME-2, as local folks would know. #mepolitics
Grateful to have Eric Swalwell's endorsement in this campaign. He understands our campaign has what it takes to fight for Maine’s 2nd district — and win this tough race.
#mepolitics
#mepolitics
February 3, 2026 at 12:49 PM
This is a great example of national Dems having no clue about Maine. Swalwell is a good guy and he and/or his staff likely personally know Wood, Katie Porter’s former CoS and connected fundraiser. But Wood is the weakest option to take on LePage in ME-2, as local folks would know. #mepolitics
Mine: Antisemitism and poverty.
Genuinely curious: If your family is American, what brought them here?
Mine: religious nuttery & primogeniture
Mine: religious nuttery & primogeniture
February 3, 2026 at 12:32 PM
Mine: Antisemitism and poverty.
This is so repulsive in so many ways.
I read this, and I almost regret it. What do you even do with the knowledge that Epstein wanted and was trying to engineer societal breakdown via far right populism bc he thought it would benefit his sex trafficking business?
I read thousands of pages of Epstein files this weekend trying to understand what he wanted out of his meeting with 4chan's Christopher Poole. Here's everything we know about Epstein's plans to dismantle the internet and, eventually, democracy.
www.garbageday.email/p/here-s-how...
www.garbageday.email/p/here-s-how...
February 3, 2026 at 12:27 PM
This is so repulsive in so many ways.
Reposted by Amy Fried
This is legitimately the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen in the New York Post, which is saying something. This makes their incessant astrological coverage seem studied and informative.
nypost.com/2026/02/03/u...
nypost.com/2026/02/03/u...
!["My team's best judgement is that it's the Neville Singham network that is most active [in Minnesota], partly because that's the most crazy network. But they aren't alone," Scott Walter, president of Capital Research and an expert on dark money outfits, told
The Post.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:rogqxhzq6vy54nbuy4n6rwyd/bafkreiayxnv6ztirzmxkpbxpph4jjmxj6vtokrdusqx2h6n4blc4d7in74@jpeg)
February 3, 2026 at 12:05 PM
This is legitimately the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen in the New York Post, which is saying something. This makes their incessant astrological coverage seem studied and informative.
nypost.com/2026/02/03/u...
nypost.com/2026/02/03/u...
Reposted by Amy Fried
Yes, the demand here in Minneapolis is not for total war against police, or for revolution. It is that ICE, which is ruining this city, leave immediately, so we can go back to our lives.
That’s the reason for the scale of the opposition and its unanimity. The problem is simple; so is the solution.
That’s the reason for the scale of the opposition and its unanimity. The problem is simple; so is the solution.
I think this post really exemplifies the liberal mindset.
The liberals see the evil actions of the state and want it to stop affecting them and their community.
They want to return to the days of regular police with judicial warrants disappearing these people, not the disappearing apparatus gone.
The liberals see the evil actions of the state and want it to stop affecting them and their community.
They want to return to the days of regular police with judicial warrants disappearing these people, not the disappearing apparatus gone.
This is an extremely clarifying comment: these people think that this is somehow their war and they’re mad that regular folks are fighting it. That’s not what’s happening. Minnesotans are rallying to ensure their neighbors can’t be stolen in secret. It’s not even ideological.
February 3, 2026 at 12:09 PM
Yes, the demand here in Minneapolis is not for total war against police, or for revolution. It is that ICE, which is ruining this city, leave immediately, so we can go back to our lives.
That’s the reason for the scale of the opposition and its unanimity. The problem is simple; so is the solution.
That’s the reason for the scale of the opposition and its unanimity. The problem is simple; so is the solution.
Reposted by Amy Fried
I was a White House ethics lawyer.
I used to advise people not to even accept a free cup of coffee from someone who had interests before them. And staff followed those rules.
I can’t even find the words to describe the scale of Trump’s corruption here.
I used to advise people not to even accept a free cup of coffee from someone who had interests before them. And staff followed those rules.
I can’t even find the words to describe the scale of Trump’s corruption here.
Foreign countries are bribing our president to sell out the American people.
Trump family businesses made $187 MILLION from this deal, and just months later he gave the UAE some of our most top-secret AI tech.
They are selling our national security to the highest bidder.
Trump family businesses made $187 MILLION from this deal, and just months later he gave the UAE some of our most top-secret AI tech.
They are selling our national security to the highest bidder.
February 2, 2026 at 7:28 AM
I was a White House ethics lawyer.
I used to advise people not to even accept a free cup of coffee from someone who had interests before them. And staff followed those rules.
I can’t even find the words to describe the scale of Trump’s corruption here.
I used to advise people not to even accept a free cup of coffee from someone who had interests before them. And staff followed those rules.
I can’t even find the words to describe the scale of Trump’s corruption here.
Reposted by Amy Fried
Pretty strange to say it, but Rand Paul (of all people) is displaying more basic honesty than Susan Collins.
Collins seems happy to believe any Noem tells her to believe.
#mepolitics
Collins seems happy to believe any Noem tells her to believe.
#mepolitics
Last night, GOP Senator Rand Paul went on national TV to flatly reject DHS's lies about the Pretti execution:
"My advice to [DHS], if they're watching:
If you come into [our hearing] and try to justify that [Pretti] was assaulting a police officer, that cannot be acceptable."
"My advice to [DHS], if they're watching:
If you come into [our hearing] and try to justify that [Pretti] was assaulting a police officer, that cannot be acceptable."
February 3, 2026 at 2:59 AM
Pretty strange to say it, but Rand Paul (of all people) is displaying more basic honesty than Susan Collins.
Collins seems happy to believe any Noem tells her to believe.
#mepolitics
Collins seems happy to believe any Noem tells her to believe.
#mepolitics
Normally you see evidence before making charging decisions!
SCOOP: More federal prosecutors in Minnesota have resigned or are preparing to, in part because the administration has asked them to file charges against protesters without appropriate evidence, according to multiple people with knowledge of the situation. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
February 3, 2026 at 2:35 AM
Normally you see evidence before making charging decisions!
Reposted by Amy Fried
This afternoon, federal agents returned to Powderhorn Park. There were 4 ICE vehicles staging at Powderhorn Park Recreation Center lot. This is a clear violation of city and park board policy. 1/
February 2, 2026 at 7:01 PM
This afternoon, federal agents returned to Powderhorn Park. There were 4 ICE vehicles staging at Powderhorn Park Recreation Center lot. This is a clear violation of city and park board policy. 1/
Reposted by Amy Fried
The entire minnesota delegation needs to be at Whipple by lunch.
BREAKING: Judge Jia Cobb issues a TRO blocking DHS Sec Noem's Jan 8 memo purporting to require 7-day notices by members of Congress to perform oversight visits to immigration detention facilities.
The effect is that congressional oversight visits are allowed on request, as is required by Sec. 527.
The effect is that congressional oversight visits are allowed on request, as is required by Sec. 527.
February 2, 2026 at 5:06 PM
The entire minnesota delegation needs to be at Whipple by lunch.
Reposted by Amy Fried
You can tell it's AI because they're not masked
February 2, 2026 at 4:54 PM
You can tell it's AI because they're not masked
Reposted by Amy Fried
Here's How I would think about this: If it's D+8 environment in Nov, Collins has to beat the partisan baseline in the state by 16 points. Doable, but unlikely. Again, that's IF we get a big blue environment
As a political scientist who’s lived in Maine since 1997, gotta say Collins keeps beating the GOP baseline. Hard to know if that will happen this year.
February 2, 2026 at 4:59 PM
Here's How I would think about this: If it's D+8 environment in Nov, Collins has to beat the partisan baseline in the state by 16 points. Doable, but unlikely. Again, that's IF we get a big blue environment