The UnPopulist
@theunpopulist.net
Defending liberal democracy against authoritarianism in the U.S. and around the world.
https://www.theunpopulist.net
https://www.theunpopulist.net
From Pat Buchanan to "The Camp of the Saints," @gregsargent.bsky.social masterfully traces the dark ideological lineage behind Stephen Miller's anti-immigrant extremism.
The Dark Ideology Behind Stephen Miller's Immigration Crusade: Part II
He believes immigration threatens Western civilization itself, echoing the same xenophobia once directed at his own ancestors
www.theunpopulist.net
January 26, 2026 at 7:00 PM
From Pat Buchanan to "The Camp of the Saints," @gregsargent.bsky.social masterfully traces the dark ideological lineage behind Stephen Miller's anti-immigrant extremism.
Reposted by The UnPopulist
The administration immediately rushed to brand him a violent domestic terrorist. No investigation. No pause. Just immediate defamation from the highest levels—a disinformation machine revved up and deployed before most Americans even saw the video.
In Trump's 'Dual State,' Dissenters Face Extrajudicial Executions, Loyalists Enjoy Protections
America's system of justice has fundamentally broken because the regime believes it can justify attacks on citizens via lies rather than in a court of law
www.theunpopulist.net
January 26, 2026 at 4:43 PM
The administration immediately rushed to brand him a violent domestic terrorist. No investigation. No pause. Just immediate defamation from the highest levels—a disinformation machine revved up and deployed before most Americans even saw the video.
Tina Peters' crime wasn't victimless. Mesa County had to replace all compromised voting equipment at taxpayer expense. Election interference forces communities to pay to rebuild trustworthy elections.
@andycraig.bsky.social
@andycraig.bsky.social
The Colorado Governor Should Reject Trump’s Demand to Pardon a Convicted Election Saboteur
Jared Polis will jeopardize our democracy by freeing Tina Peters
www.theunpopulist.net
January 26, 2026 at 6:00 PM
Tina Peters' crime wasn't victimless. Mesa County had to replace all compromised voting equipment at taxpayer expense. Election interference forces communities to pay to rebuild trustworthy elections.
@andycraig.bsky.social
@andycraig.bsky.social
Reposted by The UnPopulist
Two supersmart dudes duke it out on whether America's problem is that it doesn't have a functional bureaucracy. At @theunpopulist.net. This was envisioned as a friendly discussion but it turned into a duel :)
open.substack.com/pub/theunpop...
open.substack.com/pub/theunpop...
Does America Need a Deeper State to Save It? A Conversation with Tyler Cowen and Francis Fukuyama
Two of the foremost thinkers of our time debate whether America has enough 'state capacity' for effective governance
open.substack.com
January 26, 2026 at 4:40 PM
Two supersmart dudes duke it out on whether America's problem is that it doesn't have a functional bureaucracy. At @theunpopulist.net. This was envisioned as a friendly discussion but it turned into a duel :)
open.substack.com/pub/theunpop...
open.substack.com/pub/theunpop...
Alex Pretti was an ICU nurse who cared for veterans. On Saturday, he rushed to assist a woman shoved by a federal agent. His last words were: "Are you okay?" Border Patrol beat him and shot him dead while he held only his phone.
In Trump's 'Dual State,' Dissenters Face Extrajudicial Executions, Loyalists Enjoy Protections
America's system of justice has fundamentally broken because the regime believes it can justify attacks on citizens via lies rather than in a court of law
www.theunpopulist.net
January 26, 2026 at 4:41 PM
Alex Pretti was an ICU nurse who cared for veterans. On Saturday, he rushed to assist a woman shoved by a federal agent. His last words were: "Are you okay?" Border Patrol beat him and shot him dead while he held only his phone.
In the early 1900s, nativists claimed people like Miller's ancestors suffered from "social degeneracy" that threatened American civilization. Miller now makes identical claims about today's immigrants.
Stephen Miller’s Assault on America’s Immigrant Legacy: Part I
The man whose Russian Jewish ancestors fled persecution now oversees a sweeping deportation machine designed to terrorize immigrant families
www.theunpopulist.net
January 26, 2026 at 4:00 PM
In the early 1900s, nativists claimed people like Miller's ancestors suffered from "social degeneracy" that threatened American civilization. Miller now makes identical claims about today's immigrants.
Trump has taken the nation’s central authority for federal law enforcement and repurposed it as a weapon for ideological combat and an instrument of presidential retribution.
Trump Has Hollowed, Weaponized, and Perverted the Department of Justice
Its Civil Rights Division is now protecting gun owners instead of disadvantaged minorities facing discrimination
www.theunpopulist.net
January 26, 2026 at 3:00 PM
Trump has taken the nation’s central authority for federal law enforcement and repurposed it as a weapon for ideological combat and an instrument of presidential retribution.
To protest Trump’s bewildering campaign to absorb Greenland, thousands in Copenhagen and Greenland hit the streets, wearing red hats that say "Make America Go Away."
Trump’s Attempted Greenland Grab Has Turned America Into a Predatory Power
His bid might have been thwarted for now, but America will be regarded as a global threat going forward
www.theunpopulist.net
January 26, 2026 at 2:00 PM
To protest Trump’s bewildering campaign to absorb Greenland, thousands in Copenhagen and Greenland hit the streets, wearing red hats that say "Make America Go Away."
Reposted by The UnPopulist
"They insist that the killers are the good guys, that they are public servants and they are owed respect and deference. Such claims are not credible to those who have seen video of the killings, and Americans should decline to participate in this fantasy."
In Trump's 'Dual State,' Dissenters Face Extrajudicial Executions, Loyalists Enjoy Protections
America's system of justice has fundamentally broken because the regime believes it can justify attacks on citizens via lies rather than in a court of law
www.theunpopulist.net
January 25, 2026 at 8:08 PM
"They insist that the killers are the good guys, that they are public servants and they are owed respect and deference. Such claims are not credible to those who have seen video of the killings, and Americans should decline to participate in this fantasy."
Reposted by The UnPopulist
“The notion that these masked enforcers are legitimate law enforcement is a fiction. They are paramilitary operatives. They are thugs in the service of a regime.”
A must read
A must read
“Fraenkel describes a system where on one side is the Normative State—that handles the routine business of a nation. But coexisting within that shell is the Prerogative State, a domain of absolute executive power that operates with unlimited arbitrariness…”
www.theunpopulist.net/p/in-trumps-...
www.theunpopulist.net/p/in-trumps-...
In Trump's 'Dual State,' Dissenters Face Extrajudicial Executions, Loyalists Enjoy Protections
America's system of justice has fundamentally broken because the regime believes it can justify attacks on citizens via lies rather than in a court of law
www.theunpopulist.net
January 25, 2026 at 10:12 PM
“The notion that these masked enforcers are legitimate law enforcement is a fiction. They are paramilitary operatives. They are thugs in the service of a regime.”
A must read
A must read
Reposted by The UnPopulist
“Fraenkel describes a system where on one side is the Normative State—that handles the routine business of a nation. But coexisting within that shell is the Prerogative State, a domain of absolute executive power that operates with unlimited arbitrariness…”
www.theunpopulist.net/p/in-trumps-...
www.theunpopulist.net/p/in-trumps-...
In Trump's 'Dual State,' Dissenters Face Extrajudicial Executions, Loyalists Enjoy Protections
America's system of justice has fundamentally broken because the regime believes it can justify attacks on citizens via lies rather than in a court of law
www.theunpopulist.net
January 25, 2026 at 9:04 PM
“Fraenkel describes a system where on one side is the Normative State—that handles the routine business of a nation. But coexisting within that shell is the Prerogative State, a domain of absolute executive power that operates with unlimited arbitrariness…”
www.theunpopulist.net/p/in-trumps-...
www.theunpopulist.net/p/in-trumps-...
Reposted by The UnPopulist
By "reflexively defending these shooters before the blood is dry, the administration is signaling a new American reality.... In a functioning democracy, a state-involved killing [occasions a] moment of forensic neutrality [pending investigation].... In a regime state, this pause is nonexistent."
In Trump's 'Dual State,' Dissenters Face Extrajudicial Executions, Loyalists Enjoy Protections
America's system of justice has fundamentally broken because the regime believes it can justify attacks on citizens via lies rather than in a court of law
www.theunpopulist.net
January 25, 2026 at 11:32 PM
By "reflexively defending these shooters before the blood is dry, the administration is signaling a new American reality.... In a functioning democracy, a state-involved killing [occasions a] moment of forensic neutrality [pending investigation].... In a regime state, this pause is nonexistent."
Reposted by The UnPopulist
Reposted by The UnPopulist
"If you import the Third World, you become the Third World" — Stephen Miller
His extremism is borne of a dark ideology that views migrants as existential threats to Western civilization itself.
@gregsargent.bsky.social
His extremism is borne of a dark ideology that views migrants as existential threats to Western civilization itself.
@gregsargent.bsky.social
The Dark Ideology Behind Stephen Miller's Immigration Crusade: Part II
He believes immigration threatens Western civilization itself, echoing the same xenophobia once directed at his own ancestors
www.theunpopulist.net
January 25, 2026 at 10:00 PM
"If you import the Third World, you become the Third World" — Stephen Miller
His extremism is borne of a dark ideology that views migrants as existential threats to Western civilization itself.
@gregsargent.bsky.social
His extremism is borne of a dark ideology that views migrants as existential threats to Western civilization itself.
@gregsargent.bsky.social
Miller demands 3,000 arrests per day. To hit those numbers, ICE must arrest people who aren't criminals, diverting resources from actual public safety threats.
Stephen Miller’s Assault on America’s Immigrant Legacy: Part I
The man whose Russian Jewish ancestors fled persecution now oversees a sweeping deportation machine designed to terrorize immigrant families
www.theunpopulist.net
January 26, 2026 at 2:00 AM
Miller demands 3,000 arrests per day. To hit those numbers, ICE must arrest people who aren't criminals, diverting resources from actual public safety threats.
It would be difficult to determine which executive agency, aside from the presidency itself, Donald Trump has most distorted or disfigured. That said, the Department of Justice has a strong case. Read this and weep.
@rosenzweigp.bsky.social
@rosenzweigp.bsky.social
Trump Has Hollowed, Weaponized, and Perverted the Department of Justice
Its Civil Rights Division is now protecting gun owners instead of disadvantaged minorities facing discrimination
www.theunpopulist.net
January 26, 2026 at 12:00 AM
It would be difficult to determine which executive agency, aside from the presidency itself, Donald Trump has most distorted or disfigured. That said, the Department of Justice has a strong case. Read this and weep.
@rosenzweigp.bsky.social
@rosenzweigp.bsky.social
"If you import the Third World, you become the Third World" — Stephen Miller
His extremism is borne of a dark ideology that views migrants as existential threats to Western civilization itself.
@gregsargent.bsky.social
His extremism is borne of a dark ideology that views migrants as existential threats to Western civilization itself.
@gregsargent.bsky.social
The Dark Ideology Behind Stephen Miller's Immigration Crusade: Part II
He believes immigration threatens Western civilization itself, echoing the same xenophobia once directed at his own ancestors
www.theunpopulist.net
January 25, 2026 at 10:00 PM
"If you import the Third World, you become the Third World" — Stephen Miller
His extremism is borne of a dark ideology that views migrants as existential threats to Western civilization itself.
@gregsargent.bsky.social
His extremism is borne of a dark ideology that views migrants as existential threats to Western civilization itself.
@gregsargent.bsky.social
Reposted by The UnPopulist
For my friends, everything; for my enemies, the law
“Fraenkel describes a system where on one side is the Normative State—that handles the routine business of a nation. But coexisting within that shell is the Prerogative State, a domain of absolute executive power that operates with unlimited arbitrariness…”
www.theunpopulist.net/p/in-trumps-...
www.theunpopulist.net/p/in-trumps-...
In Trump's 'Dual State,' Dissenters Face Extrajudicial Executions, Loyalists Enjoy Protections
America's system of justice has fundamentally broken because the regime believes it can justify attacks on citizens via lies rather than in a court of law
www.theunpopulist.net
January 25, 2026 at 9:05 PM
For my friends, everything; for my enemies, the law
Reposted by The UnPopulist
A must read - prescient analysis of our present moment. The government executes dissenters in plain sight, then engages in posthumous defamation to justify its actions. This is a police state. www.theunpopulist.net/p/in-trumps-...
In Trump's 'Dual State,' Dissenters Face Extrajudicial Executions, Loyalists Enjoy Protections
America's system of justice has fundamentally broken because the regime believes it can justify attacks on citizens via lies rather than in a court of law
www.theunpopulist.net
January 25, 2026 at 9:10 PM
A must read - prescient analysis of our present moment. The government executes dissenters in plain sight, then engages in posthumous defamation to justify its actions. This is a police state. www.theunpopulist.net/p/in-trumps-...
Tina Peters is serving nine years for compromising voting machines. She is unrepentant. Trump demanded Colorado pardon her. Colorado absolutely shouldn’t. Here's why.
@andycraig.bsky.social
@andycraig.bsky.social
The Colorado Governor Should Reject Trump’s Demand to Pardon a Convicted Election Saboteur
Jared Polis will jeopardize our democracy by freeing Tina Peters
www.theunpopulist.net
January 25, 2026 at 9:00 PM
Tina Peters is serving nine years for compromising voting machines. She is unrepentant. Trump demanded Colorado pardon her. Colorado absolutely shouldn’t. Here's why.
@andycraig.bsky.social
@andycraig.bsky.social
In Minneapolis, the mask has slipped. When a government kills dissidents and signals that the killers are beyond the reach of the law, legitimacy is no longer a property of the system. It is a hollow performance staged for a shrinking audience.
In Trump's 'Dual State,' Dissenters Face Extrajudicial Executions, Loyalists Enjoy Protections
America's system of justice has fundamentally broken because the regime believes it can justify attacks on citizens via lies rather than in a court of law
www.theunpopulist.net
January 25, 2026 at 8:19 PM
In Minneapolis, the mask has slipped. When a government kills dissidents and signals that the killers are beyond the reach of the law, legitimacy is no longer a property of the system. It is a hollow performance staged for a shrinking audience.
Reposted by The UnPopulist
"While agents of the state commit brazen extrajudicial killings, the Trump administration lectures us that these are law enforcement agents protecting American communities. It doesn't matter to them that we can see the killings with our own eyes, from multiple angles, in near-real-time."
🔥🔥🔥
🔥🔥🔥
In Trump's 'Dual State,' Dissenters Face Extrajudicial Executions, Loyalists Enjoy Protections
America's system of justice has fundamentally broken because the regime believes it can justify attacks on citizens via lies rather than in a court of law
www.theunpopulist.net
January 25, 2026 at 8:08 PM
"While agents of the state commit brazen extrajudicial killings, the Trump administration lectures us that these are law enforcement agents protecting American communities. It doesn't matter to them that we can see the killings with our own eyes, from multiple angles, in near-real-time."
🔥🔥🔥
🔥🔥🔥
Reposted by The UnPopulist
This analysis deploying the Fraenkel framework might be single best thing written on the Pretti execution thus far. At @theunpopulist.net. Must must read:
open.substack.com/pub/theunpop...
open.substack.com/pub/theunpop...
In Trump's 'Dual State,' Dissenters Face Extrajudicial Executions, Loyalists Enjoy Protections
America's system of justice has fundamentally broken because the regime believes it can justify attacks on citizens via lies rather than in a court of law
open.substack.com
January 25, 2026 at 7:16 PM
This analysis deploying the Fraenkel framework might be single best thing written on the Pretti execution thus far. At @theunpopulist.net. Must must read:
open.substack.com/pub/theunpop...
open.substack.com/pub/theunpop...
We've built a publication for all who oppose authoritarianism and believe liberal democracy is worth defending.
Subscribe to The UnPopulist
Defending liberal democracy against authoritarianism in the U.S. and around the world. Click to read The UnPopulist, a Substack publication with tens of thousands of subscribers.
www.theunpopulist.net
January 25, 2026 at 8:00 PM
We've built a publication for all who oppose authoritarianism and believe liberal democracy is worth defending.
Trump keeps claiming that his opponents are turning America into a “Third World country.” But he’s the one giving us all the trappings of a tin-pot dictatorship, where the strongman’s rule has to be enforced by soldiers on the streets.
Trump Attacks Minneapolis, Venezuela, and Threatens Greenland: An Executive Watch Roundup
Our mid-January selection of the president's latest and greatest assaults on the rule of law. These two weeks have been a bumper period for abuses since Trump took office.
www.theunpopulist.net
January 25, 2026 at 7:00 PM
Trump keeps claiming that his opponents are turning America into a “Third World country.” But he’s the one giving us all the trappings of a tin-pot dictatorship, where the strongman’s rule has to be enforced by soldiers on the streets.