The UnPopulist

The UnPopulist

Home
Notes
U.S.
World
Podcast
Video
Book Reviews
Executive Watch
Liberalism & Religion
Fireproofing the Presidency
Archive
About
Brazil Rejects Trump’s Bullying and Convicts His Ally Bolsonaro for Insurrection
It is beginning to regard the U.S. as a threat to its sovereignty and is strengthening ties with China
 • 
David De Vilhena Roque Cohen
2
Other Presidents Tried to Heal America After Political Violence—Trump Is Dividing It
The contrast between their and his behavior is a measure of America's moral descent
 • 
Berny Belvedere
25
Is the Lack of ‘Friction’ in Our Virtual World Leading to Liberalism’s Decline?
Our rapid-fire communication technologies may be overwhelming our capacity to deliberate and empathize, two new books suggest
 • 
J. L. Wall
3
Trump’s State Terrorism Against Venezuela Will Endanger American Lives
If the champion of the rules-based international order turns to violence as a first resort, so will other countries
 • 
Steve Chapman
6
Trump Is Already Exploiting the Heinous Killing of Charlie Kirk
The president’s appalling statement warned of reprisals and crackdowns against his political enemies
 • 
Robert Tracinski
31
India's Modi Is Even More Barbaric Toward 'Migrants' Than Trump
Prime Minister Modi’s Hindu nationalist regime is using the presence of 'Bangladeshi immigrants' as a pretext to remake the citizenry
 • 
Debasish Roy Chowdhury
6
Trump Is Using Fake Emergencies to Grab More Power than King George III
He has complete contempt for the legal and statutory limits to his authority so more laws will not constrain him
 • 
Chris Edelson
4
The Anti-War President Blows Up 11 People in the Caribbean: An Executive Watch Roundup
Our early-September selection of the president's latest and greatest assaults on the rule of law
 • 
Robert Tracinski
23
Trump’s Leaked Plan to Deploy the Texas National Guard Against Illinois Will Tear Apart the Union
If it goes forward, it will plunge the country into an unprecedented constitutional crisis
 • 
Andy Craig
28
A Trump Appointee Slaps Down Pam Bondi’s Malign Lawsuit Against Maryland Judges
Her attempt to weaponize the DOJ and intimidate them for upholding basic due process for vulnerable migrants failed
 • 
Walter Olson
3
Can Liberal Democracies Control Immigration Without a Massive Loss of Freedom? Bill Kristol Moderates a Debate Between Chandran Kukathas and…
Stopping immigration requires draconian enforcement but not stopping it fuels populist demagogues
6
49:30
How Should We Respond to the MAGA Right's Embrace of the Cult of Cruelty? A Conversation With Radley Balko and Charlie Sykes
A combination of appealing to the rank and file's better angles and social ostracism for the pundits glorifying state violence might restore decency in…
 • 
Aaron Ross Powell
17
Liberals Cannot Stop Authoritarianism by Compromising With It
They should heed Russian dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza's warning at LibCon2025 to not fall for the false narratives that authoritarians use to…
 • 
Radley Balko
37
What Is the Glue Binding the New Right's Disparate Factions? Zack Beauchamp's Conversation with Laura Field
The political theorist says that nationalism and a nostalgia for old gender norms are part of the answer
 • 
Zack Beauchamp
12
Platforms
Bluesky
@theunpopulist.net
Threads
@UnPopulistMag
YouTube
@TheUnPopulist
TikTok
@TheUnPopulist
Instagram
@UnPopulistMag
Facebook
TheUnPopulist
X
@UnPopulistMag
Institute for the Study of Modern Authoritarianism
Homepage
Bluesky
X
The latest from
Berny Belvedere
Other Presidents Tried to Heal America After Political Violence—Trump Is Dividing It
User's avatar
Aaron Ross Powell
How Should We Respond to the MAGA Right's Embrace of the Cult of Cruelty? A Conversation With Radley Balko and Charlie Sykes
User's avatar
Shikha Dalmia
Liberals Need Moral Clarity, Not Moral Purity, in Their Struggle Against Authoritarianism
User's avatar
Birch Smith
We Are Well on the Road to an Immigration Police State
User's avatar
Landry Ayres
The Right's Project to Rewrite History Along MAGA Lines: A Video Roundup
User's avatar
Thomas Shull
The UnPopulist Staff’s 2024 Holiday Recommendations
User's avatar

Liberalism & Religion

View all
Yoram Hazony’s National Conservatism Wants to Abandon Liberal Democracy so that the Jewish People Maintain Hegemony in Israel
He wants to give Protestant America the right to disempower other faiths and ethnic groups so that Israel can do the same
 • 
Michael G. Holzman
67
Authoritarian Rulers Are Co-Opting the Sphere of the Sacred to Consolidate Control
China’s attempt to designate the new Dalai Lama in violation of longstanding Tibetan tradition is the most visible example of this trend
 • 
Amal Chandra
10
1:00:46
A Revival of True Christianity Would Also Revive American Liberal Democracy: A Conversation with Jonathan Rauch
The turn away from Jesus and lust for power is ruining the Protestant faith and the polity
 • 
Berny Belvedere
6
We Need to Restore a Healthy Protestantism to Save American Liberalism
An incisive book by an atheist convincingly shows how both major strands of this faith tradition lost their way
 • 
Berny Belvedere
9
Bishop Budde Wasn’t Breaching Her Clerical Charge by Speaking Truth to Trump from the Pulpit
Her choice of the prophetic role drew on a long tradition in American democracy and it was the right call
 • 
Michael G. Holzman
10
Moses Can Lead Israelis and Palestinians Out of Their Bloody Conflict
The prophet revered by Jews and Muslims can help them overcome their ‘darkest hour,’ Mustafa Akyol's historical account shows
 • 
J. L. Wall
5
The Faithless Are the More Reliable Liberals
Enlightenment rationalists who rejected revealed dogma in favor of scientific inquiry paved the way for open, tolerant societies
 • 
Robert Tracinski
41
Contrary to Western Understanding, Islam Is a Liberal Faith
No religion can be properly understood based on its most extreme proponents
 • 
Hassan Abbas
 and 
Zahra Hassan
42

Fireproofing the Presidency

View all
An Effective Resistance Strategy Against Trump’s Constitutional Assaults Needs to Mobilize Both Courts and Public Opinion
History shows that the two work in tandem and we shouldn’t pick one or the other
 • 
Ilya Somin
The Supreme Court Should Resist Handing Sweeping Removal Powers to this President in the Name of Constitutional Purity
If an authoritarian weren’t in the White House, conservative justices could have justified doing so
 • 
Corbin K. Barthold
3
Will Trump Convince the Supreme Court to Embrace an Expansive Unitary Executive Theory and Grab More Power?
The president is counting on that to get away with taking over independent agencies and installing loyalists to advance his crooked plans
 • 
Peter M. Shane
11
Trump’s Mass Firing of Inspectors General Bulldozed the Way for Elon Musk’s Unaccountable Shadow Government
A functional Congress would have impeached the president for deliberately flouting the law
 • 
Paul Matzko
6
America Desperately Needs a National Anti-SLAPP Law to Stop Censorship by Bad Political Actors
It’ll help prevent the weaponization of frivolous lawsuits against critics and opponents
 • 
Ken White
12
State Constitutions Are Far Better at Constraining Executive Power and Defending Rights than the Federal One
Committed liberals should look to them for guidance on structural reforms to stop Uncle Sam’s attacks on American liberties
 • 
Anthony Sanders
Trump Will Drive His Dubious Appointments Through the Vacancies Act's Many Loopholes
Congress and courts can still plug some of them to prevent him from stacking the federal government with deep partisans and loyalists
 • 
Thomas A. Berry
2
The Senate Can Thwart Trump's Power Grab to Install His Cabinet During a Recess
It can simply stay in session and fulfill its constitutional obligations without feeling obliged to rubber stamp his ridiculous picks
 • 
Andy Craig
10

World

View all
Brazil Rejects Trump’s Bullying and Convicts His Ally Bolsonaro for Insurrection
It is beginning to regard the U.S. as a threat to its sovereignty and is strengthening ties with China
 • 
David De Vilhena Roque Cohen
2
Trump’s State Terrorism Against Venezuela Will Endanger American Lives
If the champion of the rules-based international order turns to violence as a first resort, so will other countries
 • 
Steve Chapman
6
India's Modi Is Even More Barbaric Toward 'Migrants' Than Trump
Prime Minister Modi’s Hindu nationalist regime is using the presence of 'Bangladeshi immigrants' as a pretext to remake the citizenry
 • 
Debasish Roy Chowdhury
6
Can Liberal Democracies Control Immigration Without a Massive Loss of Freedom? Bill Kristol Moderates a Debate Between Chandran Kukathas and…
Stopping immigration requires draconian enforcement but not stopping it fuels populist demagogues
6
Yoram Hazony’s National Conservatism Wants to Abandon Liberal Democracy so that the Jewish People Maintain Hegemony in Israel
He wants to give Protestant America the right to disempower other faiths and ethnic groups so that Israel can do the same
 • 
Michael G. Holzman
67
Never Again Should a Sole Superpower Anchor the Liberal International Order
We need a confederation of liberal democracies across continents to uphold a multilateral, rights-based global system
 • 
Shikha Dalmia
12
Authoritarian Rulers Are Co-Opting the Sphere of the Sacred to Consolidate Control
China’s attempt to designate the new Dalai Lama in violation of longstanding Tibetan tradition is the most visible example of this trend
 • 
Amal Chandra
10
Can an Israeli State Poised for Constant Violence Deliver True Peace to Jews?
The Israeli and U.S. strikes on Iran might be a military success but the deteriorating plight of the Palestinians may well produce more future conflict
 • 
Michael G. Holzman
26
© 2025 The UnPopulist
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture