Michael Albertus
@mikealbertus.bsky.social
Professor @UChicago Political Science | Democracy, dictatorship, conflict, property, the Americas | Author of Land Power
Pinned
Very excited to announce the release of my new book today, Land Power! Based on 15 years of work, it tells the story of how land shapes societies, from racial hierarchy to inequality, development, gender & the environment.
In hardcover/eBook/audiobook. More in 🧵
In hardcover/eBook/audiobook. More in 🧵
Excited to share that my newsletter – The Good Society – has surpassed 1,000 subscribers! My latest post on Trump's new Board of Peace, which will erase and transform #Gaza and could refashion international relations as he seeks to replace the UN 👇
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/trumps-new...
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/trumps-new...
Trump's New Board of Peace
What began with rebuilding Gaza from scratch could rewire global cooperation
michaelalbertus.substack.com
February 5, 2026 at 9:41 PM
Excited to share that my newsletter – The Good Society – has surpassed 1,000 subscribers! My latest post on Trump's new Board of Peace, which will erase and transform #Gaza and could refashion international relations as he seeks to replace the UN 👇
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/trumps-new...
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/trumps-new...
Research shows that repression sometimes backfires, driving spiraling cycles of protest and violence. Excessive federal force, widespread images and videos of ICE abuse, and indiscriminate and mistaken targeting are doing just that in #Minneapolis. 👇
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/research-o...
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/research-o...
Research on Protests and Repression Foretold the Violence in Minneapolis
Excessive federal force, widespread images and videos of ICE abuse, and indiscriminate and mistaken targeting are driving a repetitive repression/backlash cycle
michaelalbertus.substack.com
January 29, 2026 at 7:51 PM
Research shows that repression sometimes backfires, driving spiraling cycles of protest and violence. Excessive federal force, widespread images and videos of ICE abuse, and indiscriminate and mistaken targeting are doing just that in #Minneapolis. 👇
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/research-o...
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/research-o...
Great article @financialtimes.com on American land grabs, which shares my conversation with @simonkuper.bsky.social on the power and unceasing allure of land
www.ft.com/content/d59c...
www.ft.com/content/d59c...
How Trump turned international relations into a real-estate game
With his Greenland obsession, the US president is reviving a national tradition: expansion via land grabs
www.ft.com
January 24, 2026 at 3:25 PM
Great article @financialtimes.com on American land grabs, which shares my conversation with @simonkuper.bsky.social on the power and unceasing allure of land
www.ft.com/content/d59c...
www.ft.com/content/d59c...
#Minneapolis is more than just part of a supercharged deportation campaign: it's a legal and social testing ground for the Trump administration. My latest post 👇
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/the-explos...
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/the-explos...
As ICE Turns Minneapolis Into a Battle Ground, Even More is At Stake
More than just part of a supercharged deportation campaign, Minneapolis is a legal and social testing ground for the Trump administration
michaelalbertus.substack.com
January 22, 2026 at 7:50 PM
#Minneapolis is more than just part of a supercharged deportation campaign: it's a legal and social testing ground for the Trump administration. My latest post 👇
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/the-explos...
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/the-explos...
After the US intervention in Venezuela, Trump's threats to other countries have accelerated. Who's next on the hit list? My latest post 👇
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/whos-next-...
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/whos-next-...
Who's Next After Venezuela?
Iran and Cuba are on the Trump administration's hit list. Greenland and Colombia are on its wish list.
michaelalbertus.substack.com
January 15, 2026 at 9:48 PM
After the US intervention in Venezuela, Trump's threats to other countries have accelerated. Who's next on the hit list? My latest post 👇
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/whos-next-...
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/whos-next-...
An explainer on the US intervention in Venezuela: what's happening, how the US could "run" it, and what could happen next. Top questions that journalists have asked me about the situation, and my answers
January 8, 2026 at 5:53 PM
An explainer on the US intervention in Venezuela: what's happening, how the US could "run" it, and what could happen next. Top questions that journalists have asked me about the situation, and my answers
The opposition in #Venezuela has a choice: It could take Trump's snub and lie low, waiting for another inflection point—or return to protests and organizing in hopes of backing Trump or Rodríguez into a corner and forcing elections. My piece at @theatlantic.com
www.theatlantic.com/internationa...
www.theatlantic.com/internationa...
The Venezuelan Opposition Has a Choice
As bad as things look, the country’s democratic forces broke through a similar jam in 1958.
www.theatlantic.com
January 7, 2026 at 3:14 PM
The opposition in #Venezuela has a choice: It could take Trump's snub and lie low, waiting for another inflection point—or return to protests and organizing in hopes of backing Trump or Rodríguez into a corner and forcing elections. My piece at @theatlantic.com
www.theatlantic.com/internationa...
www.theatlantic.com/internationa...
Our results highlight the importance of distinguishing state-building from state strength. Greater state capacity may stabilize society, but the building process itself can disrupt local social structures and be contested for decades.
👉Broadstreet post: www.broadstreet.blog/p/when-state...
👉Broadstreet post: www.broadstreet.blog/p/when-state...
When State-Building Disrupts Rather Than Stabilizes: French Rebellion in the Run-Up to the Revolution
by Mike Albertus and Victor Gay
www.broadstreet.blog
January 5, 2026 at 8:43 PM
Our results highlight the importance of distinguishing state-building from state strength. Greater state capacity may stabilize society, but the building process itself can disrupt local social structures and be contested for decades.
👉Broadstreet post: www.broadstreet.blog/p/when-state...
👉Broadstreet post: www.broadstreet.blog/p/when-state...
We find that new horse-post relays caused more local rebellions in subsequent decades. This was due to the material consequences of state penetration, as the horse post spurred rebellions against agents with coercive powers to enforce order: the military, the police, and the judiciary.
January 5, 2026 at 8:43 PM
We find that new horse-post relays caused more local rebellions in subsequent decades. This was due to the material consequences of state penetration, as the horse post spurred rebellions against agents with coercive powers to enforce order: the military, the police, and the judiciary.
We use a staggered DiD design at the parish level that compares changes in rebellion in parishes that received a horse-post relay to nearby parishes that would later receive one. We argue that the local configuration of relays between regional nodes was plausibly exogenous.
January 5, 2026 at 8:43 PM
We use a staggered DiD design at the parish level that compares changes in rebellion in parishes that received a horse-post relay to nearby parishes that would later receive one. We argue that the local configuration of relays between regional nodes was plausibly exogenous.
We test this hypothesis by combining archival data on the horse-post relay network over the eighteenth century from the Liste des Postes and a database of 6,000 rebellions in pre-Revolutionary France from the Jean Nicolas survey.
👉 On the JN survey : doi.org/10.46298/dc....
👉 On the JN survey : doi.org/10.46298/dc....
January 5, 2026 at 8:43 PM
We test this hypothesis by combining archival data on the horse-post relay network over the eighteenth century from the Liste des Postes and a database of 6,000 rebellions in pre-Revolutionary France from the Jean Nicolas survey.
👉 On the JN survey : doi.org/10.46298/dc....
👉 On the JN survey : doi.org/10.46298/dc....
This system was central to the monarchy’s infrastructural capacity, strengthening its ability to penetrate society—enforce taxes, the rule of law, and conscription. It also crowded out private interests and activities, potentially generating resentment and resistance.
January 5, 2026 at 8:43 PM
This system was central to the monarchy’s infrastructural capacity, strengthening its ability to penetrate society—enforce taxes, the rule of law, and conscription. It also crowded out private interests and activities, potentially generating resentment and resistance.
The monarchy’s communication network was the horse-post: a series of relays every 10–15km where state messengers could lodge & get fresh horses for faster travel. On these roads, the state held a monopoly over the gallop, horse rentals, and night travel. It expanded throughout the 18th century
January 5, 2026 at 8:43 PM
The monarchy’s communication network was the horse-post: a series of relays every 10–15km where state messengers could lodge & get fresh horses for faster travel. On these roads, the state held a monopoly over the gallop, horse rentals, and night travel. It expanded throughout the 18th century
Can state-building disrupt rather than stabilize society? In a new @apsrjournal.bsky.social article, @victorgayeco.bsky.social and I show that the expansion of state communication networks spurred rebellion for decades in France before the Revolution
👉 Article: doi.org/10.1017/S000...
🧵1/X
👉 Article: doi.org/10.1017/S000...
🧵1/X
January 5, 2026 at 8:43 PM
Can state-building disrupt rather than stabilize society? In a new @apsrjournal.bsky.social article, @victorgayeco.bsky.social and I show that the expansion of state communication networks spurred rebellion for decades in France before the Revolution
👉 Article: doi.org/10.1017/S000...
🧵1/X
👉 Article: doi.org/10.1017/S000...
🧵1/X
The US capture of Nicolás Maduro is a historic turn that repositions the US as openly interventionist in Latin America. But rebuilding Venezuela will be a far harder task. My piece at @theatlantic.com
www.theatlantic.com/internationa...
www.theatlantic.com/internationa...
What Democracy in Venezuela Would Require
Toppling a dictatorship is easier than building a functional state to take its place.
www.theatlantic.com
January 3, 2026 at 2:49 PM
The US capture of Nicolás Maduro is a historic turn that repositions the US as openly interventionist in Latin America. But rebuilding Venezuela will be a far harder task. My piece at @theatlantic.com
www.theatlantic.com/internationa...
www.theatlantic.com/internationa...
Publication brought lots of unexpected surprises: reviews in places like @thenewyorker.bsky.social & @wsj.com, podcasts, and plenty of rich conversations on everything from US land grabbing in Greenland to the housing crisis & property rights on the moon. Here's to a 2026 that measures up!
December 30, 2025 at 10:09 PM
Publication brought lots of unexpected surprises: reviews in places like @thenewyorker.bsky.social & @wsj.com, podcasts, and plenty of rich conversations on everything from US land grabbing in Greenland to the housing crisis & property rights on the moon. Here's to a 2026 that measures up!
As 2025 clocks out, my biggest professional thrill this year was my new book Land Power! 🥳🎉 It tells how land became power, how it shapes power, and how who holds that power determines the fundamental social problems that societies grapple with. 🧵 @basicbooksgroup.bsky.social
December 30, 2025 at 10:09 PM
As 2025 clocks out, my biggest professional thrill this year was my new book Land Power! 🥳🎉 It tells how land became power, how it shapes power, and how who holds that power determines the fundamental social problems that societies grapple with. 🧵 @basicbooksgroup.bsky.social
Reposted by Michael Albertus
#3: Land Displacement & the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians with @mikealbertus.bsky.social
Land Displacement & the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians
Land Displacement & the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians page for UNSUNG HISTORY
www.unsunghistorypodcast.com
December 26, 2025 at 2:06 PM
#3: Land Displacement & the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians with @mikealbertus.bsky.social
The Arctic is ground zero for the colliding threats of climate change and geopolitical competition between the US, Russia, China, and EU countries. My interview with @klausdodds.bsky.social on his new book Unfrozen
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/unfrozen-t...
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/unfrozen-t...
Unfrozen: The Fight for the Future of the Arctic
An interview with RAND Europe geopolitical analyst Klaus Dodds on his new book on the thawing Arctic and what that means for global politics
michaelalbertus.substack.com
December 18, 2025 at 2:31 PM
The Arctic is ground zero for the colliding threats of climate change and geopolitical competition between the US, Russia, China, and EU countries. My interview with @klausdodds.bsky.social on his new book Unfrozen
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/unfrozen-t...
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/unfrozen-t...
My conversation with Princeton Professor Rory Truex on the American confrontation with Venezuela: where it's coming from and where it could be headed
Will Maduro hold onto power? Why is Trump so interested in Venezeula? What are the best paths forward for the Venezuelan people? @mikealbertus.bsky.social came on The Civic Forum this week to break down all things Venezuela. Available wherever you get your pods: youtu.be/iHTnb2wO2SA
Trump, Maduro, and the Crisis in Venezuela | Michael Albertus, UChicago
YouTube video by The Civic Forum
youtu.be
December 18, 2025 at 2:30 PM
My conversation with Princeton Professor Rory Truex on the American confrontation with Venezuela: where it's coming from and where it could be headed
Chile's blowout election of Kast gives momentum to right-wing political movements that focus on hard-line immigration and security policy and will further build a growing club of countries turning away from mainstream politics. My op-ed @foreignpolicy.com
foreignpolicy.com/2025/12/15/c...
foreignpolicy.com/2025/12/15/c...
What Chile’s New President Means for the World
José Kast’s right-wing agenda has implications far beyond Chile’s borders.
foreignpolicy.com
December 15, 2025 at 7:37 PM
Chile's blowout election of Kast gives momentum to right-wing political movements that focus on hard-line immigration and security policy and will further build a growing club of countries turning away from mainstream politics. My op-ed @foreignpolicy.com
foreignpolicy.com/2025/12/15/c...
foreignpolicy.com/2025/12/15/c...
If the executive wins authority to intervene in independent agencies like the #FTC simply for partisan reasons, why won't the same logic apply to other government entities and to the civil service more broadly? My post on this power grab & why it matters
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/the-ftc-ca...
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/the-ftc-ca...
The FTC Case Is an Executive Power Grab
A likely Trump administration win in the case will steal power from Congress and have big implications for civil servants throughout government
michaelalbertus.substack.com
December 11, 2025 at 7:22 PM
If the executive wins authority to intervene in independent agencies like the #FTC simply for partisan reasons, why won't the same logic apply to other government entities and to the civil service more broadly? My post on this power grab & why it matters
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/the-ftc-ca...
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/the-ftc-ca...
The recent but growing rural-urban divide in the US is a threat to democracy. My interview with
@cornelluniversity.bsky.social Professor Suzanne Mettler and
Johns Hopkins postdoc Trevor Brown on how it arose and what can be done
@smettler.bsky.social
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/rural-vers...
@cornelluniversity.bsky.social Professor Suzanne Mettler and
Johns Hopkins postdoc Trevor Brown on how it arose and what can be done
@smettler.bsky.social
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/rural-vers...
Rural Versus Urban: The Growing Divide That Threatens Democracy
My interview with Cornell Professor Suzanne Mettler and Johns Hopkins Fellow Trevor Brown on their new book on America's growing rural-urban split
michaelalbertus.substack.com
December 4, 2025 at 2:58 PM
The recent but growing rural-urban divide in the US is a threat to democracy. My interview with
@cornelluniversity.bsky.social Professor Suzanne Mettler and
Johns Hopkins postdoc Trevor Brown on how it arose and what can be done
@smettler.bsky.social
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/rural-vers...
@cornelluniversity.bsky.social Professor Suzanne Mettler and
Johns Hopkins postdoc Trevor Brown on how it arose and what can be done
@smettler.bsky.social
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/rural-vers...
With the American military buildup in #Venezuela, what is the endgame? Plotting out the most likely scenarios in my latest post.
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/plotting-o...
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/plotting-o...
Plotting out the Endgame in Venezuela
Gauging likely scenarios amid the building American threats to Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro
michaelalbertus.substack.com
November 25, 2025 at 8:12 PM
With the American military buildup in #Venezuela, what is the endgame? Plotting out the most likely scenarios in my latest post.
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/plotting-o...
michaelalbertus.substack.com/p/plotting-o...