Voter News

ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to receive our biggest stories as soon as they’re published. In the last years before the fires that destroyed Pacific Palisades, California, the great civic debate in my hometown was over the meaning of a shopping mall. Some residents feared that the Palisades…

Happy Monday! Sam and Emma speak with Richard Seymour, writer & commentator based in London, to discuss his recent book Disaster Nationalism: The Downfall of Liberal Civilization. First, Sam and Emma run through updates on the still-burning LA Fires, the GOP’s tie of California aid to Trump’s debt ceiling raise, the second Trump Administration, the Laken Riley Act, the TikTok ban, Jack Smith’s resignation, and Biden’s immigration move, before touching on the Democratic Party’s continuing inability to act like an opposition party with just seven days to Trump’s inauguration, and watching GOP Senator John Barrasso put the right’s inhumanity on full display over the ongoing devastation in California. Richard Seymore then joins, diving right into his idea of “Disaster Nationalism” as a type of proto-fascism that seeks to take the ever-increasing frequency of real-world disasters with often abstract causes (climate change, inequality, etc) and tie them to singular, concrete perpetrators, frequently represented by ethnic and political minorities, tackling examples out of Oregon in the wake of the 2020 wildfires and Gujarat following the 2002 train burning – with the latter providing a particularly gruesome lens into Disaster Nationalism’s emphasis on extreme ethnic violence as a key selling point, as it provides an outlet for pent-up anxiety rather than a solution to its real causes. After expanding on Disaster Nationalism’s complex relationship to democracy (as a tool) and dedication to capitalism, Seymore walks Sam and Emma through the centrally motivating role of economic anxiety in this equation, tackling its distinction to general economic deprivation in its emphasis on loss and social status, looking at how the hyper-individualism of neoliberalism exacerbates socio-economic inequality while blaming those on the losing end for their situation, cultivating a sadistic culture of pseudo-meritocracy that craves social distinction, something threatened by any attempt to deconstruct the dominant hierarchies. After touching on the particular display of Disaster Nationalism developing in Israel’s ongoing genocide of Gaza, Richard, Sam, and Emma then look at the role of the left in combatting these pressures, tackling the history of trade unions in leading the fight against fascism, and the importance of organizing when it comes to finding agency, empowerment, and community in the face of systems that want you to have anything but. And in the Fun Half: Sam and Emma watch Hasan Piker’s pressing interviews with LA’s incarcerated firefighters, Newsmax’s Rob Finnerty pins the fires on the donkey (Dems… and DEI), and Leninade unpacks the unfounded argument that any city could’ve contained the climate devastation facing LA right now. Ronald Raygun explores how the criminal justice and immigration systems work together (and against each other) to make this world worse for immigrants (particularly with the incoming Laken Riley Act), Alex from New York discusses climate change and California, and Joe Rogan continues his work as butler to the billionaires as he brings on Zuckerberg to platform his agenda (and his aggrievement), plus, your calls and IMs! Follow Richard on Twitter here: https://x.com/leninology Check out Richard’s book here: https://www.versobooks.com/products/3147-disaster-nationalism?srsltid=AfmBOoqT_iaW9QBOiDijkrdU_wWXur6_0TumVPBwYYJKSMs9nu5ifsoD Become a member at JoinTheMajorityReport.com: https://fans.fm/majority/join Follow us on TikTok here!: https://www.tiktok.com/@majorityreportfm Check us out on Twitch here!: https://www.twitch.tv/themajorityreport Find our Rumble stream here!: https://rumble.com/user/majorityreport Check out our alt YouTube channel here!: https://www.youtube.com/majorityreportlive Gift a Majority Report subscription here: https://fans.fm/majority/gift Subscribe to the ESVN YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/esvnshow Subscribe to the AMQuickie newsletter here: https://am-quickie.ghost.io/ Join the Majority Report Discord! https://majoritydiscord.com/ Get all your MR merch at our store: https://shop.majorityreportradio.com/ Get the free Majority Report App!: https://majority.fm/app Go to https://JustCoffee.coop and use coupon code majority to get 10% off your purchase! Check out today’s sponsors: Givewell: Go to https://Givewell.org to find out more or make a donation. Select PODCAST and enter The Majority Report with Sam Seder at checkout to make sure they know you heard about them from us. Again, that’s https://Givewell.org to donate or find out more. Naked Wines: To get 6 bottles of wine for $39.99, head to https://nakedwines.com/majority and use code MAJORITY for both the code AND PASSWORD. Follow the Majority Report crew on Twitter: @SamSeder @EmmaVigeland @MattLech @BradKAlsop Check out Matt’s show, Left Reckoning, on Youtube, and subscribe on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/leftreckoning Check out Matt Binder’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/mattbinder Subscribe to Brandon’s show The Discourse on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/ExpandTheDiscourse Check out Ava Raiza’s music here! https://avaraiza.bandcamp.com/ The Majority Report with Sam Seder – https://majorityreportradio.com/

ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to receive our biggest stories as soon as they’re published. This story is exempt from our Creative Commons license until March 14. Reporting Highlights The Ohio Model: Rarely seen letters show how the voucher movement started in the 1990s as a concealed effort…

Happy Friday! Sam and Emma speak with Osita Nwanevu, contributing editor at the New Republic, columnist at The Guardian, and author of the upcoming book The Right of the People: Democracy and the Case for a New American Founding.  First, Sam and Emma run through updates on Trump’s felon status, California’s wildfire crisis, the growing global climate crisis, Meta’s new speech regulations, Gaza’s still-growing death toll and the likely extent of its undercount, the House’s bill to sanction the ICC, the Senate’s bill to deport unconvicted migrants, the death of Anita Bryant, the death of the Chevron Doctrine, and TikTok’s case at the Supreme Court, before diving a little deeper into the unparalleled dangers of climate change as seen in the wildfires rampaging around LA. Osita Nwanevu then joins, jumping right into the late developments of Trump’s myriad legal woes over this last year, and the overwhelming feeling that our next president will be completely unaccountable while feeling completely untouchable, also touching on the genuine recognition of Trump as a problematic felon by the public, and why that simply didn’t matter when it came to their open-faced rejection of the Democratic Party’s institutionalist centrism. Expanding on this latter element, Nwanevu, Sam, and Emma walk through the Democrats’ inability to act as a capable opposition party, never presenting any semblance of an alternative when it comes to rhetoric and policy around the GOP’s key issues (immigration) or their own (healthcare), and often preferring to jump on board with the right in the hopes that it will legitimize their role in politics. Dissecting even deeper, Osita explores the dearth of any party identity around vague institutionalist careerism, failing to manifest any changes to their image in the decade since Trump’s threat arose, and often refusing to fund any wings of the party that challenge its floundering status quo, before shifting to the importance of the world of labor in pushing for that alternative image of progressivism, with unions – the core of labor – providing political education, communication, and socialization for their workers, with the institutional power to push political parties around. Wrapping up, Nwanevu explores the importance of revitalizing spaces for building and exerting worker power, be they unions or other forms of democratized workplace, and how we can help make that happen. And in the Fun Half: Sam and Emma watch Fox’s “The Five” channel what funerals are really about (shaming Hillary Clinton), touch on the death of Anita Bryant, and talk with Steve from KC about his experience working with One America News. Molly from Brooklyn extends an invite to WikiCon, Kelcie from Austin unpacks conservatism’s hypocrisies, and Mel Gibson – noted bigot, freak, and conspiracy theorist – tells Joe Rogan about his cure for cancer. Smokey the Bear from Texas tackles the vulture capitalism around the California Wildfires, and Bill Maher accidentally admits that Trans rights are Civil Rights, plus, your calls and IMs! Find all of Osita’s work here: https://www.ositanwanevu.com/ Check out Osita’s upcoming book here: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/704686/the-right-of-the-people-by-osita-nwanevu/ Become a member at JoinTheMajorityReport.com: https://fans.fm/majority/join Follow us on TikTok here!: https://www.tiktok.com/@majorityreportfm Check us out on Twitch here!: https://www.twitch.tv/themajorityreport Find our Rumble stream here!: https://rumble.com/user/majorityreport Check out our alt YouTube channel here!: https://www.youtube.com/majorityreportlive Gift a Majority Report subscription here: https://fans.fm/majority/gift Subscribe to the ESVN YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/esvnshow Subscribe to the AMQuickie newsletter here: https://am-quickie.ghost.io/ Join the Majority Report Discord! https://majoritydiscord.com/ Get all your MR merch at our store: https://shop.majorityreportradio.com/ Get the free Majority Report App!: https://majority.fm/app Go to https://JustCoffee.coop and use coupon code majority to get 10% off your purchase! Check out today’s sponsors: Nutrafol: Start your hair growth journey with Nutrafol. For a limited time, Nutrafol is offering our listeners ten dollars off your first month’s subscription and free shipping when you go to https://Nutrafol.com and enter the promo code TMR. Find out why over 4,500 healthcare professionals and stylists recommend Nutrafol for healthier hair. That’s https://Nutrafol.com, promo code TMR. HelloFresh: Get up to 10 FREE meals and a free high protein item for life at https://HelloFresh.com/majority10fm.One item per box with active subscription.  Free meals applied as discount on first box, new subscribers only, varies by plan.  That’s up to 10 free HelloFresh meals – just go to https://HelloFresh.com/majority10fm. Magic Spoon: Get 5 dollars off your next order at https://magicspoon.com/majorityreport. Or look for Magic Spoon on Amazon or in your nearest grocery store. That’s https://magicspoon.com/majorityreport for five dollars off. Sunset Lake CBD: Sunset Lake CBD: Sunsetlakecbd is a majority employee owned farm in Vermont, producing 100% pesticide free CBD products. Use code Leftisbest and get 20% off at http://www.sunsetlakecbd.com. Follow the Majority Report crew on Twitter: @SamSeder @EmmaVigeland @MattLech @BradKAlsop Check out Matt’s show, Left Reckoning, on Youtube, and subscribe on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/leftreckoning Check out Matt Binder’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/mattbinder Subscribe to Brandon’s show The Discourse on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/ExpandTheDiscourse Check out Ava Raiza’s music here! https://avaraiza.bandcamp.com/ The Majority Report with Sam Seder – https://majorityreportradio.com/

This article was produced for ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network in partnership with Capitol News Illinois. _A portion of the reporting in Alexander County is supported by funding from the Pulitzer Center. Sign up for Dispatches to get stories like this one as soon as they are published. Reporting Highlights Child Care Gap: About 70% of…

ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up for Dispatches, a newsletter that spotlights wrongdoing around the country, to receive our stories in your inbox every week. The door is closing on Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s chance to fulfill many of her campaign promises after Democrats couldn’t coalesce around a legislative…

It’s an EmMajority Report Thursday! She speaks with Sandeep Vaheesan, legal director at the Open Markets Institute, to discuss his recent book Democracy In Power: A History of Electrification in the United States. Then, she speaks with Hayden Clarkin, also known as the Transit Guy on Twitter, to discuss the recent implementation of congestion pricing in New York City. First, Emma runs through updates on California’s devastating wildfires, the laying to rest of Jimmy Carter, the progression of the Lincoln Riley Act through the Senate, Trump’s plan to round up undocumented immigrants in DC post-inauguration, Alito’s behind-the-scenes dealings with Trump, Trump’s record-setting corporate fundraising, the GOP’s Hunter Biden informant, Biden’s diminishing mental health, major labor action among dock, Amazon, and Ski Patrol workers, and Obamacare’s record-setting enrollment, before unpacking some coverage of the Palisades Fire in California, and the parasitic role insurance agencies have taken on. Sandeep Vaheesan then joins, briefly unpacking his initial reactions to the environmental catastrophes unfolding in California right now and the incremental technocratic improvements to the US’ climate agenda under Biden, before diving into the surprising buoying of  US energy infrastructure on – get this – publicly owned or cooperative utilities. Expanding on that latter point, Vaheesan parses through the history of the public sector’s role in US energy infrastructure, starting with the New Deal’s attempt to address the dearth of electrification in rural and farming communities, with FDR moving to recognize electricity as a necessity, rather than a luxury, and establishing the Rural Electrification Agency, which helped to expand access farmer access to electricity from 1 in 10 to 9 in 10, before diving deep into the extensive and overwhelming response from private industry, from the expansive propaganda effort – reviewing, rewriting, and replacing textbooks, purchasing newspaper space, and more – through their powerful push against regulatory institutions. Moving forward through the beginning of the neoliberal turn, Sandeep brings Emma through the process of the privatization of energy grids under this deregulation process, making room for the atrocious grid management we see from Texas nowadays, before wrapping up with the recent reemergence of initiatives for expanding publicly-owned utilities. Hayden Clarkin then joins, running through a brief history of the four-year “will they, won’t they” between NYC and congestion pricing despite the obvious benefits it would provide the city. Next, Clarkin walks through the major progress congestion pricing has already provided, with incredible improvements to traffic and emergency vehicle response time, with all of the funding benefits still unrealized. They also unpack the genuine divide between the productive possibilities of public works and the growing disillusionment and discontent with the US’ political institutions, wrapping up with the ongoing battle between Jersey and NYC over this move. And in the Fun Half: Emma is joined by Brandon Sutton and Matt Binder as they dive deep into Trump’s increasing territorial threats to Panama and Greenland and work on balancing the genuine danger he poses with the absurdity of his claims (with help from Dave from Jamaica). Brittany from Colorado calls in about aid for Californians, and the MR Team unpacks Schumer’s atrocious leadership during the era of the corporatist Democratic Party. Brook from Sacramento unpacks the alarming trend of bad faith anti-academic internal rhetoric among the male-dominated Econ majors, plus, your calls and IMs! Follow Sandeep on Twitter here: https://x.com/sandeepvaheesan Check out Sandeep’s book here: https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/D/bo238463843.html Follow Hayden on Twitter here: https://x.com/the_transit_guy Become a member at JoinTheMajorityReport.com: https://fans.fm/majority/join Follow us on TikTok here!: https://www.tiktok.com/@majorityreportfm Check us out on Twitch here!: https://www.twitch.tv/themajorityreport Find our Rumble stream here!: https://rumble.com/user/majorityreport Check out our alt YouTube channel here!: https://www.youtube.com/majorityreportlive Gift a Majority Report subscription here: https://fans.fm/majority/gift Subscribe to the ESVN YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/esvnshow Subscribe to the AMQuickie newsletter here: https://am-quickie.ghost.io/ Join the Majority Report Discord! https://majoritydiscord.com/ Get all your MR merch at our store: https://shop.majorityreportradio.com/ Get the free Majority Report App!: https://majority.fm/app Go to https://JustCoffee.coop and use coupon code majority to get 10% off your purchase! Check out today’s sponsors: Liquid IV: Embrace your ritual with extraordinary hydration from Liquid I.V. Get 20% off your first order of Liquid I.V. when you go to https://LiquidIV.com and use code MAJORITYREP at checkout. That’s 20% off your first order when you shop better hydration today using promo code MAJORITYREP at https://LiquidIV.com. Delete Me: Take control of your data and keep your private life private by signing up for DeleteMe. Now at a special discount for our listeners.  Today get 20% off your DeleteMe plan by texting MAJORITY to 64000. That’s MAJORITY to 64000.  Message and data rates may apply. See terms for details. Follow the Majority Report crew on Twitter: @SamSeder @EmmaVigeland @MattLech @BradKAlsop Check out Matt’s show, Left Reckoning, on Youtube, and subscribe on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/leftreckoning Check out Matt Binder’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/mattbinder Subscribe to Brandon’s show The Discourse on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/ExpandTheDiscourse Check out Ava Raiza’s music here! https://avaraiza.bandcamp.com/ The Majority Report with Sam Seder – https://majorityreportradio.com/

ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to receive our biggest stories as soon as they’re published. The Department of Justice on Tuesday sued six of the nation’s largest landlords, accusing them of using a pricing algorithm to improperly work together to raise rents across the country. The lawsuit expands…

It’s Hump Day! Sam and Emma speak with Lee Hepner, senior legal counsel for the American Economic Liberties Project, to discuss the recent overturning of net neutrality. Then they speak with Joshua Kaplan, reporter at ProPublica, to discuss his recent piece entitled “The Militia and the Mole.” First, Sam and Emma run through updates on the DoJ’s release of details related to Trump’s Jan 6th- and Stolen Documents-related cases, mass evacuations amid wildfires in LA, Dem’s retaining of the Virginia legislature, the North Carolina Supreme Court’s anti-democratic move, the House’s massive anti-immigration bill, DoJ action over the RealPage rent-fixing scheme and the prior weaponization of the department under Trump, Israel’s ongoing slaughter of Gazans in supposed safe zones, and ACA expansion, before unpacking a recent report on the unsurprising misinformation around gender-affirming care for adolescents. Lee Hepner then joins, jumping right into an extensive history of Net Neutrality, stemming from the establishment of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) under FDR’s New Deal to preserve open networks and fair communication, with the 1996 Communications Act expanding its coverage to the internet and contributing to the arguments to expand to full Net Neutrality building under Bush before coming to fruition under Obama, only to be killed and restored by Trump and Biden respectively, all leading to the recent 6th Circuit decision to, once again, kill it. After tackling what Net Neutrality exactly is (the mandate for providers to serve websites equally) and expanding on the particular role the overturning of the Chevron Deference Doctrine played in this decision, Hepner wraps up with tactics to push back against this decision, and whether federalism will help keep these corporations in line. Joshua Kaplan then walks Sam and Emma through his extensive reporting on the far-right militia American Patriots 3% (AP3), tackling their role within the wider extremist militia ecosystem and how they used that to distance the organization from the January 6th insurrection attempt before having a wider discussion on the initial backlash (even internally) to these organizations in the wake of 1/6 before a steady rhetorical pivot from Trump and the GOP reversed the tides completely, and why that should concern us heading into a second Trump Administration with threats of mass pardoning for violent participators and organizers of 1/6. After expanding on AP3’s odd “big tent” identity amid right-wing militias, Kaplan touches on his extensive conversations with a mole from AP3 and the role Facebook played in the militia’s outreach, before wrapping up with the genuine threat posed by the extensive military training of these groups, both offered by the groups themselves and aided by their extensive connections to police, military, and veteran organizations. And in the Fun Half: Sam and Emma unpack the response from Mexico’s President Scheinbaum to Trump’s absurd statements on the US’ territorial rights, the passage of the GOP’s Lincoln Riley Bill with support from myriad Congressional Dems – including John “Manchin 2.0” Fetterman – to hand over immigration enforcement to the states (alongside the right to deport without criminal conviction). Chris Hayes reflects on the short history of Facebook’s moderation team, John from Montreal on Trump’s antagonization of US allies, and Kowalski from Nebraska parses through the future of farming amid threats to land ownership and more. Comrade Oz from the International Party of Antarctica provides some insight into Trump and Musk, plus, your calls and IMs! Follow Lee on Twitter here: https://x.com/leehepner Check out the American Economic Liberties Project here: https://www.economicliberties.us/ Follow Josh on Twitter here: https://x.com/js_kaplan Check out Josh’s piece here: https://www.propublica.org/article/ap3-oath-keepers-militia-mole Check out Josh’s previous piece “Armed And Underground” here: https://www.propublica.org/article/inside-secret-ap3-militia-american-patriots-three-percent Become a member at JoinTheMajorityReport.com: https://fans.fm/majority/join Follow us on TikTok here!: https://www.tiktok.com/@majorityreportfm Check us out on Twitch here!: https://www.twitch.tv/themajorityreport Find our Rumble stream here!: https://rumble.com/user/majorityreport Check out our alt YouTube channel here!: https://www.youtube.com/majorityreportlive Gift a Majority Report subscription here: https://fans.fm/majority/gift Subscribe to the ESVN YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/esvnshow Subscribe to the AMQuickie newsletter here: https://am-quickie.ghost.io/ Join the Majority Report Discord! https://majoritydiscord.com/ Get all your MR merch at our store: https://shop.majorityreportradio.com/ Get the free Majority Report App!: https://majority.fm/app Go to https://JustCoffee.coop and use coupon code majority to get 10% off your purchase! Check out today’s sponsors: Nutrafol: Start your hair growth journey with Nutrafol. For a limited time, Nutrafol is offering our listeners ten dollars off your first month’s subscription and free shipping when you go to https://Nutrafol.com and enter the promo code TMR. Find out why over 4,500 healthcare professionals and stylists recommend Nutrafol for healthier hair. That’s https://Nutrafol.com, promo code TMR. Trust & Will: Check one of your goals off early this year with Trust and Will. Protect what matters most in minutes at https://trustandwill.com/MAJORITY and get 10% off plus free shipping. That’s 10% off and free shipping at https://trustandwill.com/MAJORITY. Remi Mouthguards: Remi is for anyone dealing with nighttime grinding, clenching, or jaw pain who wants an affordable solution to protect their smile and say good night to jaw pain and headaches. Head to https://shopremi.com/majority and use code MAJORITY to save up to 50%. That’s 50% off at https://shopremi.com/majority with code MAJORITY. Give your teeth a break without breaking the bank with Remi. Follow the Majority Report crew on Twitter: @SamSeder @EmmaVigeland @MattLech @BradKAlsop Check out Matt’s show, Left Reckoning, on Youtube, and subscribe on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/leftreckoning Check out Matt Binder’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/mattbinder Subscribe to Brandon’s show The Discourse on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/ExpandTheDiscourse Check out Ava Raiza’s music here! https://avaraiza.bandcamp.com/ The Majority Report with Sam Seder – https://majorityreportradio.com/

ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up for Dispatches, a newsletter that spotlights wrongdoing around the country, to receive our stories in your inbox every week. The Republican-controlled Supreme Court of North Carolina threw the election of one of its members into disarray on Tuesday as it temporarily blocked the…