Archives
Weekly Lists
Experts in authoritarianism advise to keep a list of things
subtly changing around you, so you’ll remember.
March 04, 2026
Week 69 — The Return
I want to note the stories that were occupying the public’s attention before Trump launched a war of choice on Iran. There was a heavy focus on the Epstein files, after both Clintons testified, more coverage of missing files related to Trump, and more regime members becoming ensnared; reports on efforts to declare a “national emergency,” granting Trump power of midterms; stories of abject cruelty by federal immigration agents, judges’ outrage over their orders being ignored, and an abduction of a Columbia University student on false pretenses; the Supreme Court ruling on tariffs being implemented, despite Trump questioning whether he could appeal their ruling; utter ineptitude, cover ups, and corruption at federal agencies; the regime’s desire to bully Anthropic and use its artificial intelligence tools for mass surveillance on U.S. citizens; the regime also inserting itself into an acquisition battle in which Trump’s perceived foe CNN was part of the sale.
February 25, 2026
Week 68 — The Return
This week Trump went into his State of the Union down in the polls, with 7 in 10 Americans saying he was not focused on the right things, and after a stunning Supreme Court defeat to his tariffs, which were the centerpiece not only of his economic agenda, but also his foreign policy. The speech was an opportunity to right the ship, offer solutions and a new path forward. Instead, in the longest SOTU on record, Trump held what amounted to a campaign rally filled with partisan attacks, and an endless stream of false and misleading statements, but almost no policy or solutions. As the WSJ Editorial Board put it, “The main political news is that the GOP Congress won’t do much this year.”
February 18, 2026
Week 67 — The Return
I wanted to start this week by noting the cruelty we have normalized. During Trump’s first regime, after widespread protests and condemnation over his “zero-tolerance” policy of separating families, he rolled it back. During the second regime, the repugnant acts of cruelty and lawlessness far outdo those of Trump’s first regime, yet the public outcry is sporadic and hushed. Almost as if the country is too exhausted to keep up the fight on so many fronts, and is instead choosing to wait out the clock until Trump’s departure. In fact, it seems that on immigration, the only thing holding Trump back from his worst impulses is his sinking polling on what was once his strongest issue. This week, the regime claimed they were leaving their wildly unpopular and lawless occupation of Minneapolis.
February 11, 2026
Week 66 — The Return
In a week of chaos, so much happened it was easy to lose sight of the fact that Trump posted an image of former president Barack Obama and Michelle Obama as apes on Truth Social. He then deflected that it was posted by a staffer, took down the post, and refused to apologize. In any sort of normal time, that act, in and of itself, would be career ending. In the era of Trump, it’s Thursday.
February 04, 2026
Week 65 — The Return
This week the Justice Department released three million more of the Epstein files, with three million still withheld. The timing of the highly redacted release, which included limited damning material on Trump, seemed like a shiny coin to distract from the rest. Yes, it was that bad!
Trump continued to discredit past elections, this week escalating by using the FBI to seize Fulton County ballots. The seizure presaged Trump calling for nationalizing U.S. elections, a shocking and extraordinary statement that his White House then tried to walk back, before Trump doubled down on his demand, despite its going against the Constitution.
January 28, 2026
Week 64 — The Return
What happened to Greenland? What happened to the Epstein files? That’s the story within the story this week: how effective Trump has become in driving the media, and hence the narrative, until he is not.
What it took this week was another tragedy: federal immigration agents in Minneapolis murdered another U.S. citizen as part of their so-called immigration sweep or fraud sweep — the rationale for the occupation seems ever-changing.
January 21, 2026
Week 63 — The Return
This week marked renewed escalation by Trump and his regime, both internationally and at home. Nothing feels safe or stable. One pollster found that 71% of Americans said the country feels out of control. As we hit the one year mark of Trump’s return, he finds himself increasingly unpopular and underwater on every issue, even on fighting crime.
January 14, 2026
Week 62 — The Return
This is the longest list of broken norms during the second regime, so far. I would encourage you to read through the list in its entirety, because amid the chaos of the week, many stories that would normally garner broad attention received little or no coverage. Some mark escalations, like the regime serving a grand jury subpoena to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, while others, like the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery altering history, remind us that details matter.
January 07, 2026
Week 61 — The Return
The main takeaway of this week’s list is what we are NOT discussing: the Epstein files, the five-year anniversary of Jan. 6, the affordability crisis and Trump’s tariffs exacerbating rising prices, rising healthcare premiums, the MAGAverse implosion, and of course, Trump’s health decline. Those story lines were the top themes amid his falling approval on every issue and overall, until he decided to orchestrate a coup — a classic ‘wag the dog’ operation.
December 31, 2025
Week 60 — The Return
As we close out 2025 this week there is a marked shift in sentiment, not only among the American people, but also by Trump himself. A year ago as I restarted this project, the conversation was, will he ever leave? We’re not having that conversation anymore.