Frederick Clarkson
@fredclarkson.bsky.social
Senior Research Analyst at Political Research Associates. Writer about religion & politics for four decades. Author. Editor. Public speaker. Occasional commentator. Former caregiver to my late parents.
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse at VA hospital in Minneapolis, was killed by officers of the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol last month. He is being memorialized nationwide, but chaplains at VA facilities in MA have been barred from mentioning his name -- or even counseling nurses.
bit.ly/SilencingVAc...
bit.ly/SilencingVAc...
VA Chaplains in Massachusetts Told Not to Mention Slain Nurse Alex Pretti
Alex Pretti is being memorialized nationwide, but chaplains at Veterans Affairs facilities in Massachusetts have been barred from mentioning his name.
bit.ly
February 3, 2026 at 9:03 PM
Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse at VA hospital in Minneapolis, was killed by officers of the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol last month. He is being memorialized nationwide, but chaplains at VA facilities in MA have been barred from mentioning his name -- or even counseling nurses.
bit.ly/SilencingVAc...
bit.ly/SilencingVAc...
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
Frederick Clarkson: #AlexPretti is being memorialized nationwide, but chaplains at Veterans Affairs facilities in Massachusetts have been barred from mentioning his name.
Read more: ow.ly/2l6b50Y8n1u
Read more: ow.ly/2l6b50Y8n1u
VA Chaplains in Massachusetts Told Not to Mention Slain Nurse Alex Pretti
Alex Pretti is being memorialized nationwide, but chaplains at Veterans Affairs facilities in Massachusetts have been barred from mentioning his name.
ow.ly
February 3, 2026 at 7:35 PM
Frederick Clarkson: #AlexPretti is being memorialized nationwide, but chaplains at Veterans Affairs facilities in Massachusetts have been barred from mentioning his name.
Read more: ow.ly/2l6b50Y8n1u
Read more: ow.ly/2l6b50Y8n1u
Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse at VA hospital in Minneapolis, was killed by officers of the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol last month. He is being memorialized nationwide, but chaplains at VA facilities in MA have been barred from mentioning his name -- or even counseling nurses.
bit.ly/SilencingVAc...
bit.ly/SilencingVAc...
VA Chaplains in Massachusetts Told Not to Mention Slain Nurse Alex Pretti
Alex Pretti is being memorialized nationwide, but chaplains at Veterans Affairs facilities in Massachusetts have been barred from mentioning his name.
bit.ly
February 3, 2026 at 9:03 PM
Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse at VA hospital in Minneapolis, was killed by officers of the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol last month. He is being memorialized nationwide, but chaplains at VA facilities in MA have been barred from mentioning his name -- or even counseling nurses.
bit.ly/SilencingVAc...
bit.ly/SilencingVAc...
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
And NOW they release a video with they lyrics. Definitely worth another 20 listens or so youtu.be/GDaPdpwA4Iw
Bruce Springsteen - Streets Of Minneapolis (Official Lyric Video)
YouTube video by Bruce Springsteen
youtu.be
January 29, 2026 at 11:22 PM
And NOW they release a video with they lyrics. Definitely worth another 20 listens or so youtu.be/GDaPdpwA4Iw
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
In 2020, I wrote @religiondispatches.org about a prominent MN Christian Right operative who foreshadowed recent events when he agreed with a commenter on Facebook that Rep. Ilhan Omar “needs to be Hung” adding that “I can think of other treasonous persons who can join that parade.” bit.ly/45ATG9Q
State Director of Christian Right Legislative Group, 'Project Blitz,' Calls for Lynching of Rep. Ilhan Omar (Updated)
UPDATE, July 27, 2020: Rev. Dale Witherington recently returned to the scene of his Facebook crime and wrote that he would be taking time away from Facebook and deleting his app. This was three days a...
bit.ly
January 29, 2026 at 12:09 AM
In 2020, I wrote @religiondispatches.org about a prominent MN Christian Right operative who foreshadowed recent events when he agreed with a commenter on Facebook that Rep. Ilhan Omar “needs to be Hung” adding that “I can think of other treasonous persons who can join that parade.” bit.ly/45ATG9Q
In 2020, I wrote @religiondispatches.org about a prominent MN Christian Right operative who foreshadowed recent events when he agreed with a commenter on Facebook that Rep. Ilhan Omar “needs to be Hung” adding that “I can think of other treasonous persons who can join that parade.” bit.ly/45ATG9Q
State Director of Christian Right Legislative Group, 'Project Blitz,' Calls for Lynching of Rep. Ilhan Omar (Updated)
UPDATE, July 27, 2020: Rev. Dale Witherington recently returned to the scene of his Facebook crime and wrote that he would be taking time away from Facebook and deleting his app. This was three days a...
bit.ly
January 29, 2026 at 12:09 AM
In 2020, I wrote @religiondispatches.org about a prominent MN Christian Right operative who foreshadowed recent events when he agreed with a commenter on Facebook that Rep. Ilhan Omar “needs to be Hung” adding that “I can think of other treasonous persons who can join that parade.” bit.ly/45ATG9Q
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
[gravelly MAHA voice] the butter better not be pasteurized
At $12.99 they're practically giving it away.
Movies Theaters Will Sell a Melania Trump Popcorn Bucket This Weekend
What a world.
gizmodo.com
January 28, 2026 at 10:34 PM
[gravelly MAHA voice] the butter better not be pasteurized
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
I wrote this song on Saturday, recorded it yesterday and released it to you today in response to the state terror being visited on the city of Minneapolis. It’s dedicated to the people of Minneapolis, our innocent immigrant neighbors and in memory of Alex Pretti and Renee Good.
Stay free
Stay free
Bruce Springsteen - Streets Of Minneapolis (Official Audio)
YouTube video by Bruce Springsteen
youtu.be
January 28, 2026 at 5:02 PM
I wrote this song on Saturday, recorded it yesterday and released it to you today in response to the state terror being visited on the city of Minneapolis. It’s dedicated to the people of Minneapolis, our innocent immigrant neighbors and in memory of Alex Pretti and Renee Good.
Stay free
Stay free
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
After being held in two of them as a boy, I fought for decades urging America to never again build concentration camps and put human beings in them. It breaks my heart to watch this happen twice now in my own lifetime.
January 27, 2026 at 9:30 PM
After being held in two of them as a boy, I fought for decades urging America to never again build concentration camps and put human beings in them. It breaks my heart to watch this happen twice now in my own lifetime.
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
Does Pam Bondi have any red lines? The attorney general doesn’t say no to Trump, Stephanie McCrummen reports. Arguably, the future of the MAGA movement and the sanctity of the U.S. Constitution depend on what she’s willing to do next.
The Attorney General Who Won’t Say No
Does Pam Bondi have any red lines?
bit.ly
January 22, 2026 at 4:20 PM
Does Pam Bondi have any red lines? The attorney general doesn’t say no to Trump, Stephanie McCrummen reports. Arguably, the future of the MAGA movement and the sanctity of the U.S. Constitution depend on what she’s willing to do next.
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
welp
When I showed this panel to the extremely mainstream audience for the Berryman Award ceremony, there were audible gasps from the side of the room with the Washington Post table.
January 26, 2026 at 9:14 PM
welp
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
Also, may I say that I don’t agree with people saying ICE and CBP need “more training.” They’re doing exactly what this administration has trained them to—impose a reign of fear in blue cities. They don’t need more training. They need to be ripped up root and branch.
January 24, 2026 at 11:01 PM
Also, may I say that I don’t agree with people saying ICE and CBP need “more training.” They’re doing exactly what this administration has trained them to—impose a reign of fear in blue cities. They don’t need more training. They need to be ripped up root and branch.
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
‘An American Pastoral’ Documentary Explores Christian Nationalism and the Political Divide in a Pennsylvania School District | Cast members from Elizabethtown Area School District shared how their lives and community have changed since the film at a recent screening.
‘An American Pastoral’ Documentary Explores Christian Nationalism and the Political Divide in a Pennsylvania School District - Bucks County Beacon
Cast members from Elizabethtown Area School District shared how their lives and community have changed since the film at a recent screening.
buckscountybeacon.com
January 23, 2026 at 2:01 PM
‘An American Pastoral’ Documentary Explores Christian Nationalism and the Political Divide in a Pennsylvania School District | Cast members from Elizabethtown Area School District shared how their lives and community have changed since the film at a recent screening.
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
In is speech, Trump said:
'We should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military. America is under invasion from within... no different than a foreign enemy, but more difficult in many ways, because they don’t wear uniforms.'" barnraisingmedia.com/five-seismic...
'We should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military. America is under invasion from within... no different than a foreign enemy, but more difficult in many ways, because they don’t wear uniforms.'" barnraisingmedia.com/five-seismic...
Five Seismic Shocks to the Military in 2025
Today’s military is more diverse than ever. A year into the Trump administration, service members say they are facing more threats to their freedoms than ever.
barnraisingmedia.com
January 22, 2026 at 5:31 PM
In is speech, Trump said:
'We should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military. America is under invasion from within... no different than a foreign enemy, but more difficult in many ways, because they don’t wear uniforms.'" barnraisingmedia.com/five-seismic...
'We should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military. America is under invasion from within... no different than a foreign enemy, but more difficult in many ways, because they don’t wear uniforms.'" barnraisingmedia.com/five-seismic...
In is speech, Trump said:
'We should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military. America is under invasion from within... no different than a foreign enemy, but more difficult in many ways, because they don’t wear uniforms.'" barnraisingmedia.com/five-seismic...
'We should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military. America is under invasion from within... no different than a foreign enemy, but more difficult in many ways, because they don’t wear uniforms.'" barnraisingmedia.com/five-seismic...
Five Seismic Shocks to the Military in 2025
Today’s military is more diverse than ever. A year into the Trump administration, service members say they are facing more threats to their freedoms than ever.
barnraisingmedia.com
January 22, 2026 at 5:31 PM
In is speech, Trump said:
'We should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military. America is under invasion from within... no different than a foreign enemy, but more difficult in many ways, because they don’t wear uniforms.'" barnraisingmedia.com/five-seismic...
'We should use some of these dangerous cities as training grounds for our military. America is under invasion from within... no different than a foreign enemy, but more difficult in many ways, because they don’t wear uniforms.'" barnraisingmedia.com/five-seismic...
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
5 Seismic shocks to the military marked 2025.
Mikey Weinstein, founder of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation makes sense of a chaotic year of attacks as Christian nationalists attempt total takeover.
"It feels like December 30, 1933, in Germany." 1/13
barnraisingmedia.com/five-seismic...
Mikey Weinstein, founder of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation makes sense of a chaotic year of attacks as Christian nationalists attempt total takeover.
"It feels like December 30, 1933, in Germany." 1/13
barnraisingmedia.com/five-seismic...
Five Seismic Shocks to Religious Freedom in the Military
Today’s military is more diverse than ever. A year into the Trump administration, service members say they are facing more threats to their freedoms than ever.
barnraisingmedia.com
January 22, 2026 at 2:00 PM
5 Seismic shocks to the military marked 2025.
Mikey Weinstein, founder of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation makes sense of a chaotic year of attacks as Christian nationalists attempt total takeover.
"It feels like December 30, 1933, in Germany." 1/13
barnraisingmedia.com/five-seismic...
Mikey Weinstein, founder of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation makes sense of a chaotic year of attacks as Christian nationalists attempt total takeover.
"It feels like December 30, 1933, in Germany." 1/13
barnraisingmedia.com/five-seismic...
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
"The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue but upon probable cause...and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."
BREAKING: Immigration officers are asserting sweeping power to enter homes without a judge’s warrant, a memo obtained by AP says.
Immigration officers assert sweeping power to enter homes without a judge's warrant, memo says
An Immigration and Customs Enforcement memo obtained by The Associated Press reveals that the agency allows immigration officers to forcibly enter homes to make arrests without a judicial warrant.
bit.ly
January 21, 2026 at 11:02 PM
"The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue but upon probable cause...and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
👇👇👇👇👇👇
"Two members of Elon Musk’s DOGE team at the Social Security Administration were secretly in touch with a group seeking to 'overturn election results in certain states,' and one signed an agreement that may have involved using Social Security data..."
www.politico.com/news/2026/01...
"Two members of Elon Musk’s DOGE team at the Social Security Administration were secretly in touch with a group seeking to 'overturn election results in certain states,' and one signed an agreement that may have involved using Social Security data..."
www.politico.com/news/2026/01...
Trump administration concedes DOGE team may have misused Social Security data
Some DOGE personnel had more access to data than previously acknowledged, according to a court filing.
www.politico.com
January 20, 2026 at 9:03 PM
👇👇👇👇👇👇
"Two members of Elon Musk’s DOGE team at the Social Security Administration were secretly in touch with a group seeking to 'overturn election results in certain states,' and one signed an agreement that may have involved using Social Security data..."
www.politico.com/news/2026/01...
"Two members of Elon Musk’s DOGE team at the Social Security Administration were secretly in touch with a group seeking to 'overturn election results in certain states,' and one signed an agreement that may have involved using Social Security data..."
www.politico.com/news/2026/01...
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
it's more or less impossible to find issues that poll this badly and he's decided to make it a major, public priority www.cbsnews.com/news/ice-tru...
January 18, 2026 at 2:48 PM
it's more or less impossible to find issues that poll this badly and he's decided to make it a major, public priority www.cbsnews.com/news/ice-tru...
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
I’m not part of polite society and most real writers aren’t because we tell the truth, which people can think is impolite if it’s inconvenient. If you do this shit for real, you’re gonna be kicked out of those circles. Stephen King made that point.
January 16, 2026 at 7:21 AM
I’m not part of polite society and most real writers aren’t because we tell the truth, which people can think is impolite if it’s inconvenient. If you do this shit for real, you’re gonna be kicked out of those circles. Stephen King made that point.
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
2025 was a financially rough year.
If you value my voice and work and can afford to do so, please take out a paid subscription to The Bugbear Dispatch (now on Ghost!).
If you can’t afford it, I get it. I can’t afford all the subscriptions I want either!
Sharing is also a big help. Thanks!
If you value my voice and work and can afford to do so, please take out a paid subscription to The Bugbear Dispatch (now on Ghost!).
If you can’t afford it, I get it. I can’t afford all the subscriptions I want either!
Sharing is also a big help. Thanks!
The Bugbear Dispatch is back to help us American bugbears navigate 2026!
If you had to describe the first two weeks of this year in one word, which would you pick?
For me, the word is surreal. Here I discuss the situation and my thoughts on how to cope:
www.bugbeardispatch.com/fighting-the...
If you had to describe the first two weeks of this year in one word, which would you pick?
For me, the word is surreal. Here I discuss the situation and my thoughts on how to cope:
www.bugbeardispatch.com/fighting-the...
Fighting the Demoralizing Power of American Surreality
My fellow bugbears, I want to wish you all a happy New Year, but the phrase feels a bit awkward given how off the rails the illegitimate American regime has been since the beginning of the year.
If y...
www.bugbeardispatch.com
January 14, 2026 at 8:45 PM
2025 was a financially rough year.
If you value my voice and work and can afford to do so, please take out a paid subscription to The Bugbear Dispatch (now on Ghost!).
If you can’t afford it, I get it. I can’t afford all the subscriptions I want either!
Sharing is also a big help. Thanks!
If you value my voice and work and can afford to do so, please take out a paid subscription to The Bugbear Dispatch (now on Ghost!).
If you can’t afford it, I get it. I can’t afford all the subscriptions I want either!
Sharing is also a big help. Thanks!
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
Republican South Carolina state Rep. RJ May sentenced to 17.5 years in federal prison today.
5 counts of distributing child sex abuse material.
He shared hundreds of images of kids, including pictures of adults raping seven-year-olds.
Moms of Liberty had named him its Legislator of the Year.
5 counts of distributing child sex abuse material.
He shared hundreds of images of kids, including pictures of adults raping seven-year-olds.
Moms of Liberty had named him its Legislator of the Year.
GOP lawmaker said trans people “harm” children. Now he's going to prison for child porn. - LGBTQ Nation
He was caught sharing hundreds of images of kids, including pictures of adults raping seven-year-olds.
www.lgbtqnation.com
January 15, 2026 at 3:00 AM
Republican South Carolina state Rep. RJ May sentenced to 17.5 years in federal prison today.
5 counts of distributing child sex abuse material.
He shared hundreds of images of kids, including pictures of adults raping seven-year-olds.
Moms of Liberty had named him its Legislator of the Year.
5 counts of distributing child sex abuse material.
He shared hundreds of images of kids, including pictures of adults raping seven-year-olds.
Moms of Liberty had named him its Legislator of the Year.
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
In his article for @barnraiser.bsky.social, @paulrosenberg.bsky.social highlights PRA's podcast “The Insurgence: Sheriffs,” co-produced by Cuentero Productions. The piece explores the rise and growing mainstream influence of the Constitutional Sheriffs movement. Read the full article here ↓
The Myth of the Constitutional Sheriff
How Richard Mack led the rise off the constitutional sheriff movement, one of the most serious threats to American democracy since the Civil War.
barnraisingmedia.com
December 10, 2025 at 7:36 PM
In his article for @barnraiser.bsky.social, @paulrosenberg.bsky.social highlights PRA's podcast “The Insurgence: Sheriffs,” co-produced by Cuentero Productions. The piece explores the rise and growing mainstream influence of the Constitutional Sheriffs movement. Read the full article here ↓
Reposted by Frederick Clarkson
Suspect arrested in predawn fire that left parts of Mississippi’s largest synagogue in charred ruins
A fire heavily damaged Jackson’s only synagogue before dawn Saturday – the same house of worship that was firebombed by the Ku Klux Klan in 1967 because the rabbi had been an advocate for civil…
A fire heavily damaged Jackson’s only synagogue before dawn Saturday – the same house of worship that was firebombed by the Ku Klux Klan in 1967 because the rabbi had been an advocate for civil…
Suspect arrested in predawn fire that left parts of Mississippi’s largest synagogue in charred ruins
A fire heavily damaged Jackson’s only synagogue before dawn Saturday – the same house of worship that was firebombed by the Ku Klux Klan in 1967 because the rabbi had been an advocate for civil rights.
mississippitoday.org
January 11, 2026 at 3:07 AM
Suspect arrested in predawn fire that left parts of Mississippi’s largest synagogue in charred ruins
A fire heavily damaged Jackson’s only synagogue before dawn Saturday – the same house of worship that was firebombed by the Ku Klux Klan in 1967 because the rabbi had been an advocate for civil…
A fire heavily damaged Jackson’s only synagogue before dawn Saturday – the same house of worship that was firebombed by the Ku Klux Klan in 1967 because the rabbi had been an advocate for civil…