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Nathan Kalmoe (he/him)

@nathankalmoe.bsky.social

12K followers 3.4K following 610 posts

PoliSci/Comm @ UW-Madison via UMich. Views mine, ~90% right. US democracy, votes, violence, history, psych. Post-post-post-post doc. Dad w/ jokes. Unlapsed 🧙🏻. 🥏⛳🏆. Avid 🧗. Congress said I have "tremendous sway over SM platforms" 😂 nathankalmoe.com .. more

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Political science 44%

Sociology 21%

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Reposted by Nathan P. Kalmoe

Hakeem Jefferson @hakeemjefferson.bsky.social · 27m

So proud of our Stanford colleague Will Tarpeh, newly named a 2025 MacArthur Fellow! Will is a brilliant and innovative scientist and a deeply committed community builder who helped launch a support network for junior Black faculty at Stanford. We’re all beaming!

news.stanford.edu/stories/2025...

Stanford Professor William Tarpeh receives MacArthur Fellowship

The chemical engineering professor was recognized for his advances in recovering valuable materials from wastewater. “This award is a testament to my community,” he says.

news.stanford.edu

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Nathan Kalmoe (he/him) @nathankalmoe.bsky.social · 2h

"Yes, but I didn't inhale" vibes.

Reposted by Kim L. Scheppele, Lisa W. Fazio, David R. Miller , and 1 more Kim L. Scheppele, Lisa W. Fazio, David R. Miller, Nathan P. Kalmoe

Brendan Nyhan @brendannyhan.bsky.social · 2h

Every targeted institution (my own very much included) should cut and paste this letter onto their letterhead.

Kathleen Clark @kathleenclark.bsky.social · 3h

A master class from MIT in responding to authoritarian overreach:

Your “premise … is inconsistent with our core belief that scientific funding should be based on scientific merit alone.
… America’s leadership in science & innovation depends on independent thinking & open competition for excellence.

Dear Madam Secretary,
I write in response to your letter of October 1, inviting MIT to review a "Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education." I acknowledge the vital importance of these matters.
I appreciated the chance to meet with you earlier this year to discuss the priorities we share for American higher education.
As we discussed, the Institute's mission of service to the nation directs us to advance knowledge, educate students and bring knowledge to bear on the world's great challenges.
We do that in line with a clear set of values, with excellence above all. Some practical examples:
• MIT prides itself on rewarding merit. Students, faculty and staff succeed here based on the strength of their talent, ideas and hard work. For instance, the Institute was the first to reinstate the SAT/ACT requirement after the pandemic. And MIT has never had legacy preferences in admissions.
• MIT opens its doors to the most talented students regardless of their family's finances. Admissions are need-blind. Incoming undergraduates whose families earn less than $200,000 a year pay no tuition. Nearly 88% of our last graduating class left MIT with no debt for their education. We make a wealth of free courses and low-cost certificates available to any American with an internet connection. Of the undergraduate degrees we award, 94% are in STEM fields. And in service to the nation, we cap enrollment of international undergraduates at roughly 10%.

source:
https://orgchart.mit.edu/letters/regarding-compact

• We value free expression, as clearly described in the MIT Statement on Freedom of Expression and Academic Freedom. We must hear facts and opinions we don't like - and engage respectfully with those with whom we disagree.
These values and other MIT practices meet or exceed many standards outlined in the document you sent. We freely choose these values because they're right, and we live by them because they support our mission - work of immense value to the prosperity, competitiveness, health and security of the United States. And of course, MIT abides by the law.
The document also includes principles with which we disagree, including those that would restrict freedom of expression and our independence as an institution. And fundamentally, the premise of the document is inconsistent with our core belief that scientific funding should be based on scientific merit alone.
In our view, America's leadership in science and innovation depends on independent thinking and open competition for excellence. In that free marketplace of ideas, the people of MIT gladly compete with the very best, without preferences. Therefore, with respect, we cannot support the proposed approach to addressing the issues facing higher education.
As you know, MIT's record of service to the nation is long and enduring. Eight decades ago, MIT leaders helped invent a scientific partnership between America's research universities and the U.S. government that has delivered extraordinary benefits for the American people. We continue to believe in the power of this partnership to serve the nation.
Sincerely,
Sally Kornbluth

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Nathan Kalmoe (he/him) @nathankalmoe.bsky.social · 3h

And the international students paying full tuition subsidize much lower tuition for in-state folks, increasing affordability & student body size.

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Reposted by Nathan P. Kalmoe

Melissa R. Michelson @melissamichelson.bsky.social · 3h

This will make for great intro to US politics fodder; thanks, @torrespolisci.bsky.social!

#Polarization affects everyone & everything!

Nathan Kalmoe (he/him) @nathankalmoe.bsky.social · 4h

I've wondered about this for a long time but never studied it directly...

www.frontiersin.org/journals/pol...

Frontiers | How do drivers react to partisan bumper stickers? Understanding polarization in apolitical settings

IntroductionThe impact of political polarization is no longer confined to the voting booth, and partisan identity can shape behavior even in seemingly apolit...

www.frontiersin.org

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Reposted by Jacob T. Levy, Nathan P. Kalmoe

Seth Cotlar @sethcotlar.bsky.social · 3h

Altoona, PA’s Sinclair-owned TV station with the perfect framing. Donald Trump is “once again denied the Nobel Prize.”

LOWTAJ
YOUR NEMS LEADER
WTAJ #
• Follow
47m •
... X
Trump has once again been denied the Nobel Peace Prize. FULL STORY: https://www.wtaj.com... See more
NATIONAL NEWS
OWTAJ.com
White House responds after Trump misses out on Peace
Prize again: 'Politics over peace'
189
104 comments 6 shares

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Reposted by Nathan P. Kalmoe

Debbie Schildkraut @debbiejsr.bsky.social · 3h

Let’s do this.
@juliaazari.bsky.social

Photo of title page: Backlash Presidents: From Transformative to Reactionary Leaders in American History
By Julia R. Azari

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Reposted by Janet Murray, Rebecca Tushnet, David R. Miller , and 5 more Janet Murray, Rebecca Tushnet, David R. Miller, Scott A. Imberman, Brian Keegan, Stuart White, Nathan P. Kalmoe, David Darmofal

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 3h

Emmer: "This is about one thing and one thing alone -- to score political points with the terrorist wing of their party, which is set to hold a hate America rally in DC next week."

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Nathan Kalmoe (he/him) @nathankalmoe.bsky.social · 3h

🥳 Well done! Sorry for not tagging you!

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Reposted by Kim L. Scheppele, Jennifer A. Richeson, Rosemary A. Joyce , and 8 more Kim L. Scheppele, Jennifer A. Richeson, Rosemary A. Joyce, Anders Nilsson, Juan Cole, Alan Richardson, David R. Miller, Brian Keegan, Greg Linden, Olúfẹ́mi Táíwò, Nathan P. Kalmoe

Oliver Darcy @oliverdarcy.bsky.social · 3h

News: Bari Weiss just sent a memo to staffers at CBS News asking them to produce a memo explaining "how you spend your working hours—and ideally, what you've made (or are making) that you're most proud of."

One CBS News staffer puts it like this to me: "We just got Elon Musked."

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Reposted by Gavin A. Schmidt, Juan Cole, Nathan P. Kalmoe

Dominique Baker @bakerdphd.bsky.social · 3h

Here's a snippet from the MIT president's letter to ED

Screenshot from link that reads: The document also includes principles with which we disagree, including those that would restrict freedom of expression and our independence as an institution. And fundamentally, the premise of the document is inconsistent with our core belief that scientific funding should be based on scientific merit alone.

In our view, America’s leadership in science and innovation depends on independent thinking and open competition for excellence. In that free marketplace of ideas, the people of MIT gladly compete with the very best, without preferences. Therefore, with respect, we cannot support the proposed approach to addressing the issues facing higher education.

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Reposted by Nathan P. Kalmoe

Jay D. Aronson @jaydaronson.bsky.social · 4h

MIT rejects "the Compact"
orgchart.mit.edu/letters/rega...

Regarding the Compact | MIT Organization Chart

orgchart.mit.edu

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Reposted by Kim L. Scheppele, Rosemary A. Joyce, Nathan P. Kalmoe

Roger Parloff @rparloff.bsky.social · 4h

At 11am I will try to live-blog, for @lawfaremedia.org , the hearing in Abrego Garcia’s civil (habeas corpus) case in federal court in Greenbelt MD. Abrego is seeking release from detention under a SCOTUS precedent called Zadvydas v Davis (2001). ...
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tile.loc.gov/storage-serv...

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Nathan Kalmoe (he/him) @nathankalmoe.bsky.social · 4h

This is a much better way to frame "affordability,"
@democrats.org.

It centers corruption, condemns the unfair economic system that produces, connects those to harms to ordinary people, & doesn't ignore Trump's authoritarianism nor his racist attacks on immigrants & their supporters.

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 4h

Mamdani: "Trump ran on 3 promises - punishment of his political enemies, easing cost of living crisis, & mass deportation. It's that second promise that brought so many to his campaign. And yet he's unable & unwilling to deliver bc he's beholden to the very billionaires that are profiting off of it"

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Reposted by Nathan P. Kalmoe

Indivisible Chicago Alliance ❌👑 @indivisiblechicago.bsky.social · 4h

Our city is under siege. Not from foreign forces [but] from... confederate apologists and antebellum fanboys. It is our responsibility to speak with moral clarity and a spiritual rooting... Faith over fear! ~ Pastor Otis Moss, Trinity United Church of Christ, Chicago www.facebook.com/share/r/1BBW...

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Reposted by Simon Lester, Nathan P. Kalmoe

David Dayen @ddayen.bsky.social · 4h

When Pam Bondi tried her hand at insult comedy this week, four Senators asked her about antitrust corruption. It's a real point of vulnerability, and the pressure has led to a few better outcomes. More importantly, states and the public are squarely attuned to fighting corporate power. From me:

How Antimonopoly is Enduring Despite Trumpian Corruption

Public pressure and partisan attacks have yielded some new cases, and citizens are waking up to corporate power’s harms.

prospect.org

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Reposted by Sanford F. Schram, Nathan P. Kalmoe

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 4h

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Reposted by Nathan P. Kalmoe, David Darmofal

Larry Glickman @larryglickman.bsky.social · 4h

Most of this laundry list of "overwhelming evidence" is tendentious. Let's go through them.
1) A big driver of high costs at public universities has been a decrease in state appropriations. Many public schools have been forced to act on a public/private model as a result..../1

The evidence is overwhelming: outrageous costs and prolonged indebtedness for students; poor outcomes, with too many students left unable to find meaningful work after graduating; some talented domestic students and scholars have been crowded out of enrollment and employment opportunities by international students; and a high degree of uniformity of thought among faculty members and administrators, which can result in a hostile environment for students with different ideas.

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Reposted by David R. Miller, Christine Kooi, Nathan P. Kalmoe

Leah McElrath @leahmcelrath.bsky.social · 4h

Machado issues her first statement since being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and makes a thinly-veiled appeal to Trump for US intervention in Venezuela:

María Corina Machado ©
@MariaCorinaYA
Follow
This recognition of the struggle of all Venezuelans is a boost to conclude our task: to conquer Freedom.
We are on the threshold of victory and today, more than ever, we count on President Trump, the people of the United States, the peoples of Latin America, and the democratic nations of the world as our principal allies to achieve Freedom and democracy.
I dedicate this prize to the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his decisive support of our cause!
8:34 AM • 10/10/25 • 30K Views

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Nathan Kalmoe (he/him) @nathankalmoe.bsky.social · 4h

But don't you dare call this "Pritzker's police aiding ICE"!

unraveled @unraveledpress.com · 4h

How it looks when ICE drives past now: between the barricades and these CCSO diverters, their vehicles have a curved path away from protesters as far as they can be.

Reposted by Nathan P. Kalmoe

Alejandra Caraballo @esqueer.net · 4h

This is now the blueprint for men to control trans women. Have sex with them and then threaten to go to police unless they do what he wants. It's ripe for abuse from men who will weaponize their shame. It also builds their narrative of trans women being sexual predators even when the victim.

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Nathan Kalmoe (he/him) @nathankalmoe.bsky.social · 4h

Pritzker's police.

unraveled @unraveledpress.com · 4h

Troopers with batons aggressively shoving crowd back.

Just saw two demonstrators arrested.

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Reposted by Nathan P. Kalmoe

unraveled @unraveledpress.com · 4h

Several Illinois state troopers out here now with pepper ball launchers of their own.

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Nathan Kalmoe (he/him) @nathankalmoe.bsky.social · 4h

The flip side -- families that choose home care over nursing homes from this validated suspicion -- is more care work burdens on families already burdened by the ubiquitous anti-Black discrimination & inequality in all other facets of life.

Trevon Logan @trevondlogan.bsky.social · 4h

Black families tend to have strong preferences against nursing homes, usually driven by concerns of inadequate care. Seeing that Black nursing home patients have significantly worse outcomes, and that they are driven by *within-nursing home* differences in care, confirms this suspicion.

NBER @nber.org · 5h

Nursing home value-added for black patients is 30 percent lower than for white patients, with most of the gap reflecting differences within, rather than across, nursing homes, from Liran Einav, Amy Finkelstein, @nealemahoney.bsky.social, and James C. Okun www.nber.org/papers/w34324

Reposted by Nathan P. Kalmoe

unraveled @unraveledpress.com · 4h

Troopers with batons aggressively shoving crowd back.

Just saw two demonstrators arrested.

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Reposted by Nathan P. Kalmoe

unraveled @unraveledpress.com · 4h

How it looks when ICE drives past now: between the barricades and these CCSO diverters, their vehicles have a curved path away from protesters as far as they can be.

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Nathan Kalmoe (he/him) @nathankalmoe.bsky.social · 4h

"Vulnerable elderly man scammed into all kinds of awful."

(Of course, Trump is all kinds of awful too.)

Greg Sargent @gregsargent.bsky.social · 6h

JB Pritzker has also been emphatically placing Trump's mental decline squarely on the agenda. On our pod, he adds a new element: People around Trump are using his decline to manipulate him, so they're less likely to intervene. More Dems should say this. 1/

newrepublic.com/article/2016...