Today’s Lineup
The rise of threats to American democracy, Trump is warning us about his authoritarian plans, using impeachment to overturn elections, our Christian Nationalist Speaker of the House, Sir Keir Starmer is the Prime Minister in Waiting, abortion rights wins more elections, the history of fragile men stupidly refusing to support women’s sports, and a belated thank you to one of the people who helped the world survive the Cold War’s nuclear standoff.
#1
Threats to American Democracy Ahead of an Unprecedented Presidential Election (Public Religion Research Institute in partnership with the Brookings Institution)
Disturbingly, support for political violence has increased over the last two years. Today, nearly a quarter of Americans (23%) agree that “because things have gotten so far off track, true American patriots may have to resort to violence in order to save our country,” up from 15% in 2021. PRRI has asked this question in eight separate surveys since March 2021. This is the first-time support for political violence has risen above 20% in the general population.
Fully one-third of Republicans (33%) today believe that true American patriots may have to resort to violence to save the country, compared with 22% of independents and 13% of Democrats. Those percentages have increased across the board since 2021, when 28% of Republicans, 13% of independents, and 7% of Democrats held this belief. Nearly one-third of white evangelical Protestants (31%) also believe patriots may have to resort to political violence to save the country, significantly higher than any other religious group.
WHY I FIND IT INTERESTING:
The Public Religion Research Institute’s 14th Annual American Values Survey contains many disturbing findings about the state of our nation’s democratic experiment. The fear of political violence should be something our political leaders and reporters address daily. Democracy cannot survive if the public accepts that resolving conflicts with violence instead of ballots is okay. The survey’s results also reveal that 38 percent agreed with the statement, “Because things have gotten so far off track in this country, we need a leader who is willing to break some rules if that’s what it takes to set things right.” Those who support this statement aren’t just supporters of former President Donald Trump—while 48 percent of Republicans agreed, so did 38 percent of independents and 29 percent of Democrats. I expected Republicans to feel this way, but three in ten Democrats? Democracies are fragile institutions. Once they fail, they can be gone for generations. These dynamics should be major stories going into the 2024 elections. They are a big part of what is at stake.
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#2
Trump and allies plot revenge, Justice Department control in a second term (Isaac Arnsdorf, Josh Dawsey, and Devlin Barrett, The Washington Post)
Donald Trump and his allies have begun mapping out specific plans for using the federal government to punish critics and opponents should he win a second term, with the former president naming individuals he wants to investigate or prosecute and his associates drafting plans to potentially invoke the Insurrection Act on his first day in office to allow him to deploy the military against civil demonstrations.
In private, Trump has told advisers and friends in recent months that he wants the Justice Department to investigate onetime officials and allies who have become critical of his time in office, including his former chief of staff, John F. Kelly, and former attorney general William P. Barr, as well as his ex-attorney Ty Cobb and former Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Gen. Mark A. Milley, according to people who have talked to him, who, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations. Trump has also talked of prosecuting officials at the FBI and Justice Department, a person familiar with the matter said.
WHY I FIND IT INTERESTING:
The scholar of authoritarianism, Ruth Ben-Ghiat, has often cautioned, “Authoritarians always tell you what they are going to do as a kind of challenge and as a warning, and people don’t listen until it’s too late.” Here’s another example of the Trump party telling us how they plan to dismantle our democratic institutions should they win another term in the White House. The former president is many things, but subtle is not one of them. I hope we’ll listen. The survival of our nation’s experiment in democracy is on the line in 2024, and the Biden/Harris campaign should make this issue one of its priorities during the campaign (along with reproductive health care rights). These are the stakes. I hope we are clear about this fact.
#3
Impeachments and forced removals from office emerge as partisan weapons in the states (Gary Fields and Scott Bauer, The Associated Press)
Republicans in Wisconsin are threatening to impeach a recently elected state Supreme Court justice and raised the possibility of doing the same to the state’s election director.
A Georgia Republican called for impeaching the Fulton County prosecutor who brought racketeering charges against former President Donald Trump. Republicans in the Pennsylvania House have already impeached the top prosecutor in Philadelphia.
None of the targets met the bar traditionally set for impeachment — credible allegations of committing a crime while in office. Their offense: staking out positions legislative Republicans didn’t like.
As Republicans in Congress begin their impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden, the process is calling attention to the increasing use of impeachment in the states as a partisan political weapon rather than as a step of last resort for officeholders believed to have committed a serious offense.
WHY I FIND IT INTERESTING:
The misuse of the impeachment power is another signal that far too many Republican leaders are unwilling to accept the outcome of elections they don’t win. We can add this to the list that includes denying the results of presidential elections, extreme partisan gerrymanders, attempts to keep abortion rights propositions off of ballots (or then trying to ignore the decision of voters), censures of legislators, and moves to strip Democratic statewide officers of powers before they take office. As How Democracies Die authors Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt explain: “Democracy requires that parties know how to lose. Politicians who lose elections must be willing to accept defeat, go home, and get ready to play again the next day.” Far too many MAGA Republicans believe that only they have the right to rule. We are perilously close to becoming an illiberal democracy like Hungary—a nation that may hold elections, but ones where the outcome is not in doubt.
#4
‘The Embodiment of White Christian Nationalism in a Tailored Suit’ (Thomas Edsall, The New York Times)
Robert Jones, the president and founder of the Public Religion Research Institute, described [Speaker of the House Mike] Johnson in an email as “the embodiment of white Christian nationalism in a tailored suit.”
What is Christian nationalism? Christianity Today described it as the “belief that the American nation is defined by Christianity, and that the government should take active steps to keep it that way. Popularly, Christian nationalists assert that America is and must remain a ‘Christian nation’ — not merely as an observation about American history, but as a prescriptive program for what America must continue to be in the future.”
Johnson’s election as speaker, Jones went on to say, “is one more confirmation that the Republican Party — a party that is 68 percent white and Christian in a country that is 42 percent white and Christian — has embraced its role as the party of white Christian nationalism.”
Jones argued that “while Johnson is more polished than other right-wing leaders of the G.O.P. who support this worldview, his record and previous public statements indicate that he’s a near textbook example of white Christian nationalism — the belief that God intended America to be a new promised land for European Christians.”
WHY I FIND IT INTERESTING:
The elevation of Mike Johnson to Speaker of the House is a victory for the Christian Nationalist coalition. He has told us to look to the bible for his worldview. He has conducted seminars promoting the historically inaccurate view that the United States was founded as a Christian nation. He promotes the policy views one would expect from an evangelical Christian: in favor of forced-birth policies, against LGBTQ rights, and opposed to no-fault divorce. Johnson was a key organizer of the legislative efforts to overturn the 2020 election. Greg Olear also outlines the evidence indicating that Johnson believes the Rapture is imminent. Johnson was elevated to Speaker so quickly that everyone is vetting him now rather than before he took over the gavel—and it is crucial that we understand what drives one of the nation’s most powerful elected officials.
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#5
Keir Starmer’s Waiting Game (Alex Bilmes, Esquire)
The Right Honourable Sir Keir Starmer, Leader of the Labour Party and of His Majesty’s Opposition since 2020 and, according to all polls, Britain’s Prime Minister-in-waiting, is a solidly built 61-year-old white man with the purposeful stride and plausible manner of a senior manager. Which is, in a way, exactly what he is. If Starmer in person projects anything you might not catch in his not-always-scintillating media appearances, it’s an intense focus. He’s business-like. He’s competent. He’s on message. To his detractors, this is his curse: he’s too serious and insufficiently charismatic to be Prime Minister. To his boosters, it’s his gift: he is serious, as he should be in his position; he’s dignified, because that’s what’s required. He’s not just here for the photo op. He’s not interested in fame for its own sake. He’s here to fix things, to make a difference. (He’s also here for the photo op.)
WHY I FIND IT INTERESTING:
Alex Bilmes gives Sir Keir Starmer the interview and profile treatment as the United Kingdom prepares for a General Election that must be called by January 28, 2025. The Conservative Party has held power since 2010. The past 13 years have been eventful, to say the least: from Brexit and its debilitating impacts that have contributed to creating a political situation that resulted in the country seeing five Prime Ministers take office in six years. Starmer took over the Labour Party after Jeremy Corbin suffered a decisive loss to former Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Bilmes describes Starmer’s journey from observing his parents confront his mother’s illness, to being a defense attorney known for his pro nono human rights work, to becoming the Director of Public Prosecutions and Head of the Crown Prosecution Service, to joining politics, becoming Labour Party Leader, and now being the favorite to become the next Prime Minister. I think it is essential to spend time trying to get to know the likely next government leader of one of our nation’s closest allies. It’s quite a life. Shame he roots for Arsenal, though.
#6
Fuck You, We Win (Jessica Valenti, Abortion Every Day)
I wish I was the kind of person who wins gracefully. Really, I do. But when you spend a year writing about raped children being denied care and women forced to carry doomed pregnancies to term, you tend to lose your magnanimity.
So to every Republican politician who tried to keep voters from having a say on abortion, and to every anti-choice activist who worked to keep women under the government’s thumb:
Fuck you, we win.
I cannot begin to tell you the amount of joy it brought me to find out a little after midnight last night that Democrats gained control of the Virginia legislature. Because not only did it mean that abortion access would remain relatively safe in the state—but that the multi-million dollar bet anti-abortion groups made on their much-touted strategy failed spectacularly. Remember, it was just over a week ago that Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America president, Marjorie Dannenfelser, said that Virginia is “the clearest bellwether going into 2024.” For the first time, I hope Miss Marjorie is right.
WHY I FIND IT INTERESTING:
Yeah, I agree with this message and its tone given the circumstances. Voters thankfully continue to reject forced birth policies. Republicans, though, are not responding to these elections by moderating their position. Instead, as a part of their anti-democracy initiatives, they have announced their intention to ignore the results (for example, in Ohio). I may be repeating myself, but I think the idea is this important: restoring reproductive health rights—as part of a comprehensive message about the threats to our democracy—should be a Democratic priority during the 2024 campaign.
#7
It’s not capitalism holding women’s sports back. It’s male fragility. (Lindsay Gibbs, Power Plays)
People like to make money, therefore, if there was money to be made off of women’s sports, they would be easily accessible on television and they’d receive a sizable chunk of media coverage and advertising revenue. That’s how it works, right? If something shows potential, then the capitalist market that guides our society will rabidly attempt to suck every dime of potential out of it.
And yes, that often is how it works. With everything except for women’s sports.
In this article, we’ll look at how women’s sports have proved their commercial viability and promise time and time again over the past century; we’ll examine the ways that those invested in upholding our patriarchal system have worked to squash said promise, not stoke it; we’ll also talk about the real reason why women’s sports are being marginalized – fragile masculinity – and examine whether things are starting to change.
WHY I FIND IT INTERESTING:
We have over a century of evidence demonstrating a market for women’s sports in the United States and worldwide. Instead of embracing these opportunities, leaders have repeatedly undermined women’s leagues and teams. The United Kingdom (and other countries) banned women from playing soccer for a half-century despite (or because of) record-setting attendance at women’s matches. A commission led by First Lady Lou Hoover recommended banning girls from playing basketball. The NCAA has not sought a competitive rights fee for its Women’s Basketball Tournament rights. Gibbs goes into the extensive—and often disgusting—history of how authorities have undermined women’s sports. I agree there is hope that our society may have reached a turning point, though. I think a critical mass of the public and investors are recognizing the opportunities and now will provide these athletes with the investment and attention they deserve.
The Closer
Soviet submarine officer who averted nuclear war honoured with prize (Nicola Davis, The Guardian)
I’m a few days late to this anniversary, but I think it is important to honor the people who helped us survive the Cold War even if my publishing schedule doesn’t quite match the anniversary date.
We all owe a debt to Soviet naval officer Vasili Arkhipov, who single-handedly prevented a nuclear war from developing at the height of the Cuban Missile Crisis on October 27, 1962.
Some like to claim that John Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev had significant control over the situation as they worked to negotiate an end to that confrontation.
But that telling of history is far too neat. Real events were messier—and we are lucky they didn’t spin out of control. After all, what US intelligence didn’t know was that the Soviet submarines near Cuba had a 10-kiloton nuclear missile in their arsenals, and one submarine came very close to launch.
As The Guardian wrote about the incident when Arkhipov was posthumously awarded the Future of Life Award a few years ago:
“On 27 October 1962, Vasili Alexandrovich Arkhipov was on board the Soviet submarine B-59 near Cuba when the US forces began dropping non-lethal depth charges. While the action was designed to encourage the Soviet submarines to surface, the crew of B-59 had been incommunicado and so were unaware of the intention. They thought they were witnessing the beginning of a third world war.
Trapped in the sweltering submarine – the air-conditioning was no longer working – the crew feared death. But, unknown to the US forces, they had a special weapon in their arsenal: a ten kilotonne nuclear torpedo. What’s more, the officers had permission to launch it without waiting for approval from Moscow.
Two of the vessel’s senior officers – including the captain, Valentin Savitsky – wanted to launch the missile. According to a report from the US National Security Archive, Savitsky exclaimed: “We’re gonna blast them now! We will die, but we will sink them all – we will not become the shame of the fleet.”
But there was an important caveat: all three senior officers on board had to agree to deploy the weapon. As a result, the situation in the control room played out very differently. Arkhipov refused to sanction the launch of the weapon and calmed the captain down. The torpedo was never fired.”
So, thank you, Vasili Arkhipov, for being one of the heroes of the nuclear age who prevented an unintentional nuclear armageddon.
Post-Game Comments
Today’s Thought from my Readwise collection:
“History can be erased in ways other than by force of arms. It can be erased by accumulated myth. It can be erased by layer after layer of stony denial. And it can be erased by popular consensus, tacit or otherwise. But history erased is history weaponized, and it will have its day, one way or the other, until it is accorded the respect it is due.” (Charles P. Pierce, “The Rough Beast Began Stirring Again,” Esquire)
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