Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Timothy Snyder @timothysnyder.bsky.social · 6h

Our authoritarianism is run on clichés borrowed from the Eastern Europe of twenty years ago. Paid protestors, disloyal cities, evil Soros, vast conspiracies — it was all tiresome then and there, and now it’s pathetic.

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 7h

Trump: "They're, like, insurrectionists, they're terrible people. But you really wonder why. Why are they doing it? What are they gaining? Other than they're obviously paid. They're paid a lot of money."

130 850 2.8K

Simon Rosenberg @simonwdc.bsky.social · 6h

Thaank you Susan!

Susan Morgan @susanemorgan.bsky.social · 6h

Ballot arrived today! Marked YES, signed the envelope, put in a nearby postbox. Easy peasy. Did you know that voting ASAP helps the YES on 50 campaign operate more efficiently? Plus it will take you off the list for calls and door knocks. Win/win. And speaking of winning, let’s DO IT Californians!

3 31 120

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Bill Kristol @billkristolbulwark.bsky.social · 6h

I prefer governments that don’t try to “take the freedom of speech away.”

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 8h

Trump: "We took the freedom of speech away because that's been through the courts and the courts said you have freedom of speech, but what has happened is when they burn a flag it agitates and irritates crowds."

30 160 840

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Andy Craig @andycraig.bsky.social · 6h

Posobiec isn't a nazi in some generic rhetorical sense of having fascistic impulses or simply being far-right. He is a full-blown Hitler-loving Jew-hating mask-off literal capital-N Nazi, with a longstanding public record to match.

Matt Novak @paleofuture.bsky.social · 7h

"Antifa has been around in various iterations for almost 100 years in some instances, going back to the Weimar Republic in Germany."

- Jack Posobiec at Trump's roundtable on antifa

16 260 740

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Mueller, She Wrote @muellershewrote.com · 6h

NEW: The 9th Circuit has lifted Judge Immergut’s FIRST restraining order, but NOT her second one. So the national Guard still can’t be deployed to Portland despite this 9th circuit administrative stay because the SECOND TRO is still in place.

21 270 930

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Timothy Snyder @timothysnyder.bsky.social · 14h

More good work by Greg Sargent

Greg Sargent @gregsargent.bsky.social · 16h

JB Pritzker and Gavin Newsom are doing something new and important: They understand Stephen Miller's theory of fascist power politics, and they've developed a theory on how to combat it. More Dems need to reckon with Miller's understanding of the moment.

New from me:
newrepublic.com/article/2014...

Inside Stephen Miller’s Secret Plan to Normalize Trump’s Dictator Rule

He wants to supercharge searing civil tensions to get low-information voters to embrace their inner authoritarian. Exactly two Democrats appear to fully grasp this.

newrepublic.com

31 360 1.1K

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 7h

Trump's mouth starts drooping as he struggles to stay awake during this antifa roundtable

220 360 1.4K

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Dean Obeidallah @deanobeidallah.bsky.social · 7h

Please understand that This is Trump regime explaining how they will use the government to prosecute Democrats. Page 1 of the fascist playbook is imprison political opponents so that the fascist has one party rule.

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 7h

Bondi: "Bondi: "Just like we did with cartels, we are going to take the same approach, President Trump, with antifa -- destroy the entire organization from top to bottom. We are going to take them apart."

21 91 200

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Catherine Rampell @crampell.bsky.social · 8h

White House officials have held increasingly serious discussions in recent days about President Donald Trump invoking the Insurrection Act, a rarely used 19th century law that gives the president the power to deploy active-duty troops inside the U.S. for law enforcement purposes

Trump administration officials seriously discussing invoking Insurrection Act, sources say

A decision is not expected to be imminent, one source said, but debate within the administration has shifted recently to more deeply exploring how and when the act might be invoked.

www.nbcnews.com

43 81 200

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Scott Horton @robertscotthorton.bsky.social · 1d

The uncensored version of this book revealed Jeffrey Epstein's long relationship with Melania, his introduction of Melania to Trump, and Trump (and then Epstein) having intercourse with Melania in the back of a limo. bsky.app/profile/ronf...

Ron Filipkowski @ronfilipkowski.bsky.social · 1d

The original version of the book said that Epstein was involved in introducing Melania to her beloved husband.

22 180 430

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Charlotte Clymer @charlotteclymer.bsky.social · 1d

"So, Democrats have three words for this: no fucking way. It's literally life or death. We will not let Republicans blow up our health care system."

This is, hands down, the best comms work Chuck Schumer has done in YEARS. Surprisingly good.

180 1.9K 5.9K

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Nicholas Grossman @nicholasgrossman.bsky.social · 1d

The First Amendment explicitly guarantees:

-the right of the people peaceably to assemble
-to petition the Government for a redress of grievances
-the free exercise of religion
-freedom of speech

If this priest had also been press, ICE would have violated all five 1A freedoms at once.

Kurt @flglchicago.bsky.social · 1d

Here’s video of the incident

28 590 1.6K

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

MeidasTouch @meidastouch.com · 1d

Wow 👇

Denise Wheeler @denisedwheeler.bsky.social · 1d

Reuters photographer Jonathan Ernst noticed that Bondi flipped open a file during the Senate hearing and he zoomed in.

Inside were her crib notes for attacking the senators.

The GOP now practicing Cliff's Notes Fascism

In other words, under oath Bondi was purely a performance.

Bondi senate hearing had a folder full of notes for attacking the senators

270 1.7K 4.2K

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Tim Fullerton - Host of the Find Out Podcast @timfullerton.bsky.social · 1d

This is very good.

Chuck Schumer @schumer.senate.gov · 1d

The government is shut down because Trump and the Republicans are hellbent on taking health care away from you.

And they won’t even come to the table to talk to us about it.

This is not about politics. It's about people.

Let’s break it down:

20 80 290

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Ron Filipkowski @ronfilipkowski.bsky.social · 1d

Greg Abbott sends the elite Meal Team 6 from the Texas National Guard into Illinois.

2.9K 3.8K 16K

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Ron Filipkowski @ronfilipkowski.bsky.social · 1d

Kristi Noem confronts enemy combatants in the Portland war zone today.

4.8K 8.1K 26K

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Joe Sudbay @joesudbay.bsky.social · 1d

You know it has to be really, really, really extremely bad Republican disarray if even Politico admits it

Aaron Fritschner @fritschner.bsky.social · 1d

Disarray!
www.politico.com/news/2025/10...

Politico: Republicans are in disarray 1 week into the shutdown

5 51 250

Simon Rosenberg @simonwdc.bsky.social · 1d

Every court has determined the tariffs are illegal; they are taxation without representation, not passed by Congress; and now they are using these ill-gotten monies to illegally, unconstitutionally fund other programs.

How again can the Ds do a budget deal with Trump when he acts so lawlessly?

southpaw @nycsouthpaw.bsky.social · 1d

“No money shall be drawn from the treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law.”

George Pearkes @peark.es · 1d

Well that's not how appropriations work at all

*WHITE HOUSE TO TRANSFER TARIFF REVENUE TO FUND WIC: LEAVITT

9 81 220

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

redrum scare(d) corncob (no one said it made sense) @inquiline.myatproto.social · 1d

Faculty show support for USC to reject the federal government’s "Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education"... the USC @aaup.org chapter sent a petition rallying for USC to reject the compact

www.uscannenbergmedia.com/2025/10/06/r...

‘Reject the Compact’ petition urges USC not to sign Trump’s contract

Faculty show support for USC to reject the federal government’s Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education.

www.uscannenbergmedia.com

3 39 150

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Simon Rosenberg @simonwdc.bsky.social · 1d

In Economist/You Gov weekly tracking poll Trump's job approval drops 3 pts, now 39%-56% (-17)
- Only 37% support military in cities
- 33% support his handling of shutdown
- Rs lose 2 pts in generic ballot, Ds now up 44-39 w/RVs
Lots of not winning here for Trump/Rs
today.yougov.com/topics/polit...

11 68 190

Simon Rosenberg @simonwdc.bsky.social · 1d

The disrespect and contempt they show for Democrats in Congress is illiberal, authoritarian and just stunning.

Aaron Rupar @atrupar.com · 1d

DURBIN: You won't even say whether you talked to the WH about this?

BONDI: I'm not going to discuss any internal conversations with you

D: They're going to transfer TX Guard troops to the state of Illinois. What's the rationale?

B: I wish you loved Chicago as much as you hate President Trump

30 91 250

Simon Rosenberg @simonwdc.bsky.social · 1d

In Economist/You Gov weekly tracking poll Trump's job approval drops 3 pts, now 39%-56% (-17)
- Only 37% support military in cities
- 33% support his handling of shutdown
- Rs lose 2 pts in generic ballot, Ds now up 44-39 w/RVs
Lots of not winning here for Trump/Rs
today.yougov.com/topics/polit...

11 68 190

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Edward Luce @edwardluce.bsky.social · 1d

"None — repeat none — of America’s fentanyl has been found to originate from Venezuela. Yet Trump and Pete Hegseth, his compulsively strutting “secretary of war”, insist that the country is fuelling America’s opioid epidemic." Me on Trump's wag the dog script. www.ft.com/content/5b3e...

Venezuela is Trump’s useful enemy

Despite the president’s claims, the South American country is nowhere close to being the US’s biggest drug supplier

www.ft.com

13 180 410

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Jeremy Berg @jeremymberg.bsky.social · 1d

My quote of the day

In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

25 500 1.8K

Reposted by Simon Rosenberg

Sanho Tree @sanho.bsky.social · 1d

Any wonder why they wear masks?

👣COCA👣 🇺🇦 @nortygirl.bsky.social · 1d

Chicago October 2025.......

9 79 190