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Authoritarianism With American Characteristics
America’s backsliding democracy has its own unique causes and manner, making it hard to draw comparisons or lessons from other countries
Dolly Parton Was a Class Act Who Deserves a National Statue
Tennessee should nominate her for the Statuary Collection to replace President Andrew Jackson or its first Governor John Sevier, both problematic…
 • Eli Lehrer
The Resistance Is a Noble Crusade
Trump’s authoritarianism has been worse than expected, but the opposition to him has been stronger than anticipated
From Spectral Evidence to Self-Evident Truths
One man’s remarkable life and the invention of progress
 • Andy Craig
What Will Come of Trump's Radical Remaking of the Presidency?
Whether his expansion of the executive proves permanent will partly depend on what his successors do with it
 • Francis Fukuyama

Recent posts

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Liberal Democracy Is Not Self-Sustaining
It endures only as long as its advocates can make a compelling case for it, as exiled Hong Kong dissident Nathan Law argued at LibCon2026
 • Nathan Law
Liberalism Is the Underdog Now, and it's Time to Act Like It
Trumpism is the only real 'establishment' in American politics
 • Andy Craig
A New American Reconstruction Is the World's Best Hope
If liberal democracy isn't rebuilt in the land of its birth, it will struggle to survive anywhere else
 • Shikha Dalmia
The Case for a Liberalism That Dares Again
The tradition that dismantled hereditary rule and slavery can topple the authoritarianisms of today
 • Joshua Reed Eakle
35:34
Is Trump's Populist Coalition Shrinking?: Zooming In With Andy Craig and Tom Shull
ISMA's new survey suggests that the president's use of extralegal power is losing its appeal to even his most committed supporters
 • Andy Craig and Thomas Shull
Trump's Griftathon Rolls On as He Sells Traders Early Access to His Market-Moving Social Media Posts: An Executive Watch Roundup
Our early-August selection of the president’s latest and greatest assaults on the rule of law
 • Executive Watch
Germany's AfD Is Closer Than Ever to Power
How a country shaped by its fascist past is on the verge of watching the far-right party close in on control
 • Tim Ganser
Is Gen Z Really More Radical Than Older Generations? A LibCon2026 Panel Discussion
Not really—but liberals haven't yet built the media ecosystem to correct the record compellingly
Congress Must Rein In the Anti-Democratic Roberts Court Enabling Trump's Power Grabs
A mutually enforcing court-presidency doom loop is eroding the rule of law and making each branch less accountable
 • Justin Florence and Erica Newland
Americans Hate the Two-Party System But Don’t Know What Should Replace It, ISMA Populism Survey Finds
Voters overwhelmingly want something different, but don’t know or understand the reform options on the table
 • Andy Craig
India's Gen Z—aka Cockroaches—Brings Strongman Modi to Heel
But whether the mass youth movement can win the battle against his authoritarian misrule and nasty sectarianism remains to be seen
 • Debasish Roy Chowdhury
Britain's New Prime Minister Sees Proportional Representation as a Cure to Polarization
America needs a leader to champion similar electoral reforms in this country
 • Grant Tudor
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Andy Craig
From Spectral Evidence to Self-Evident Truths
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Shikha Dalmia
A New American Reconstruction Is the World's Best Hope
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Berny Belvedere
LibCon2026 Is Receiving Rave Reviews
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Landry Ayres
The Revolution Is Dead, God Save King Trump: A Video Roundup
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Birch Smith
Has the Trump Administration Crossed the Rubicon When Lawlessness Makes Lawful Transition Impossible?
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The UnPopulist Presents:

The UnPopulist
The UnPopulist
Defending liberal democracy against authoritarianism in the U.S. and around the world.

Reconstruction Agenda

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49:42
Fixing America's Negative Polarization With Proportional Representation: A Conversation With Lee Drutman
Presidentialism plus single-member districts is a bad combination that incentivizes leaders to consolidate power by fueling division.
 • Andy Craig
29:16
A Bloated Executive and a Starved Congress Is a Bad Combination: A Conversation with Kevin Kosar
It distorts our scheme of checks and balances and undermines our ability to self-govern
 • Andy Craig
31:56
Americans Have Never Had Less Recourse for the US Government Violating Rights: A Conversation With Steve Vladeck
Accountability under both state and federal law faces high hurdles, but Congress could fix that
 • Andy Craig
Robust State Constitutionalism Can Protect Rights and Resist Authoritarianism
We need a movement to fully unlock the potential for resistance by states
 • Kathrina Szymborski Wolfkot
Americans Need Legal Remedies Restored Now to Protect Themselves Against Reckless ICE Agents
Congress, state legislatures, and courts can take steps to reopen avenues for litigation unduly closed off
 • Anya A. Bidwell and Marie Miller
All-Party Primaries Can Release Us From Our Partisan Doom-Loop Trap
Our republic is being destroyed by an electoral system that ignores the vast majority of the voting public
 • Danielle Allen
Trump’s Bogus Rationale for Invading Venezuela Is an Impeachable Offense
The Framers would have regarded this president as an out-of-control lunatic in desperate need of reining in by Congress
 • Andy Craig
50:39
What Tools Does Congress Still Retain to Control a Recalcitrant Executive? A Conversation with Josh Chafetz
Eventually, though, Congress needs to fix itself to effectively rein in the president
 • Andy Craig

Podcasts

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35:34
Is Trump's Populist Coalition Shrinking?: Zooming In With Andy Craig and Tom Shull
ISMA's new survey suggests that the president's use of extralegal power is losing its appeal to even his most committed supporters
 • Andy Craig and Thomas Shull
1:09:06
Dismantling the Legacies of Illiberalism Haunting the US: Zooming In With Jamelle Bouie, David French, Danielle Allen
'Is a utopian liberalism possible?' A LibCon2026 podcast
 • Aaron Ross Powell
49:42
Fixing America's Negative Polarization With Proportional Representation: A Conversation With Lee Drutman
Presidentialism plus single-member districts is a bad combination that incentivizes leaders to consolidate power by fueling division.
 • Andy Craig
58:01
Trump Has Not Turned Americans Against Immigrants: A Conversation with Greg Sargent
The administration’s cruelty has deeply disturbed the country, opening the door for reforms with more legal pathways
 • Shikha Dalmia
48:43
The Trump Administration's Anti-Foreigner Animus Is a Betrayal of the World Cup—the Most Cosmopolitan Sport on Earth
Its visa and deportation policies have cast a pall on the game, but fans are finding ways to watch and celebrate despite the fear
 • Berny Belvedere
49:07
The Disarray of Protestant Churches Is Bad News for American Liberal Democracy: A Conversation with Raymond R. Roberts
It has led to MAGA idolatry on the one hand and shallow do-goodism on the other
 • Berny Belvedere
Podcasts
Logo for Zooming In at The UnPopulist
Zooming In at The UnPopulist
Is Trump's Populist Coalition Shrinking?: Zooming In With Andy Craig and Tom Shull
Logo for Reconstruction Agenda
Reconstruction Agenda
Fixing America's Negative Polarization With Proportional Representation: A Conversation With Lee Drutman
Recommendations
View all 24
Arc Digital
Arc Digital
Arc Digital
To the Contrary
To the Contrary
Charlie Sykes
Slow Boring
Slow Boring
Matthew Yglesias
State Court Report with Alicia Bannon
State Court Report with Alicia Bannon
Brennan Center
Open Letters, from Anne Applebaum
Open Letters, from Anne Applebaum
Anne Applebaum
Top posts

Book Reviews

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Liberal Societies Need Grand Stories About Themselves
An interesting new book by a former Economist writer says that would jolt individuals out of their ennui
 • Jonathan Rauch
Does Immigration Lead to ‘Democratic Drain’ and Illiberalism in Native Countries?
A fascinating book by a political scientist says yes—but, in fact, there is strong evidence for the opposite case, too
 • Stan Veuger
Universities' Best Defense Against Censorship in the Public Square Is Free Inquiry
In their otherwise valuable new book, two prominent professors acknowledge the need for diverse viewpoints on campuses but don't offer a cure for…
 • Jonathan Marks
How the Chinese Immigrant Experience Shaped Birthright Citizenship
Reviving this history is vital to understanding the 14th Amendment's true intention
 • J. L. Wall
The Constitution's Sweeping Pardon Power Is Its Achilles' Heel for Checking an Imperial President
Worse, there are no good fixes in our polarized times for stopping the abuse of this dangerous tool
 • Gabriel Schoenfeld
Dear Liberals: Don’t Forget to Brag About Liberalism
Critical self-appraisals are fine so long as they don’t validate bad-faith attacks on the liberal order
 • Jonathan Rauch

World

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Germany's AfD Is Closer Than Ever to Power
How a country shaped by its fascist past is on the verge of watching the far-right party close in on control
 • Tim Ganser
India's Gen Z—aka Cockroaches—Brings Strongman Modi to Heel
But whether the mass youth movement can win the battle against his authoritarian misrule and nasty sectarianism remains to be seen
 • Debasish Roy Chowdhury
Britain's New Prime Minister Sees Proportional Representation as a Cure to Polarization
America needs a leader to champion similar electoral reforms in this country
 • Grant Tudor
The Iran War Might End Fossil Fuel Dependence
The world is poised to pivot to alternatives in a big way because its energy needs cannot be held hostage to the whims of a rogue president and a…
 • Tibita Kaneene
Armenia Rejects Populism and Chooses Democracy Despite a Devastating Military Defeat
In fact, voters handed a mandate to the man who lost territory
 • Alexander Kaffka
Mindless Middleness Was Keir Starmer’s Undoing
The UK prime minister was forced out because he failed to offer his own vision and played on the right’s turf
 • Berny Belvedere
Does Immigration Lead to ‘Democratic Drain’ and Illiberalism in Native Countries?
A fascinating book by a political scientist says yes—but, in fact, there is strong evidence for the opposite case, too
 • Stan Veuger
Hindu Supremacists ❤️ Laura Loomer Despite Her Racist Anti-Indian Tirades Because She Hates Muslims
Islamophobia is forging a troubling new geopolitical alliance between the Indian, Israeli, and American far right
 • Debasish Roy Chowdhury
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