We Still Have to Take Donald Trump Seriously
The Right’s plan to take the presidency in 2024 requires a candidate with a higher-than-average disregard for the truth. That’s why Donald Trump is still their man — a fact that should worry us all.
83 Articles by: Ben Beckett
Ben Beckett is an American writer in Vienna.
By Embracing Viktor Orbán, the Right Is Signaling Support for “Illiberal Democracy” at Home
The American right increasingly looks to Hungary as a model for the United States. They already have the antidemocratic tactics down. Now they’re looking to Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán for a comprehensive political philosophy to match.
Next On the Supreme Court’s Kill List: Democratic Presidential Elections
As if the Electoral College weren’t antidemocratic enough already, the Supreme Court now looks poised to rule in favor of state legislatures deciding the outcome of the presidential election. That’s good news for Republicans and bad news for democracy.
5 Things Democrats Can Do About the Supreme Court’s Unchecked Power
In reversing Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court has shown its intent to act against the popular will — and it won’t stop at abortion rights. From packing the court to defunding it, here are five ways Democrats can act to prevent further damage.
After Buffalo, Great Replacement Theory Isn’t Going Anywhere
After the mass shooting in Buffalo, don’t expect conservative leaders to stop promoting the “great replacement theory” that inspired the gunman. It’s too useful for the Right’s antidemocratic agenda.
Overturning Roe v. Wade Shows the Right Has Nothing but Contempt for Democracy
The Right in the US has long been a brazenly antidemocratic force. The latest example is the apparent decision to overturn Roe v. Wade — contrary to the wishes of the vast majority of the population and the individual rights of millions of people.
By Restarting Student Loan Payments, Joe Biden Is Shooting the Democrats in the Foot
Canceling student debt is both the right thing to do and what’s politically smart. By restarting student loan payments and refusing to cancel student debt, Joe Biden and the Democratic Party have shown they’re uninterested in either.
Trump Supporters on the Right Are Preparing for a Post-Democratic Future
The Right has always used a mix of legislation, violence, and the courts to keep the wrong people from voting. Now it seems prepared to go a step further: legislating and organizing on the assumption that elections the GOP loses are inherently illegitimate.
Bernie and Progressive Dems Can’t Succeed Without Mobilizing Their Supporters
The negotiations around the Build Back Better Act have consisted of one concession to moderates after another. The pattern won’t change without a strategy that plays to the progressive movement’s strengths.
Washington Carpenter: “It’s Up to the Membership to Win This Strike”
Two thousand carpenters went on strike in Washington on Thursday after rejecting a fourth tentative contract agreement. Jacobin spoke with one of the workers about the strike, and why it’s pitting rank-and-file carpenters against their union leaders.
Sweden’s Left Has to Show Working People That the State Will Protect Them
Sweden is a famous for its welfare system, but recent decades’ neoliberal reforms have made life for working people ever more precarious. The Left Party’s new chair, Nooshi Dadgostar, told Jacobin why rebuilding a strong safety net is decisive for shielding Swedes from the pandemic — and reassuring workers worried by the green transition.
Bernie Is Right: We Shouldn’t Let the Senate Parliamentarian Block a $15 Minimum Wage
Bernie Sanders is absolutely right to insist we should ignore the Senate parliamentarian’s ruling against a minimum wage increase. Reducing poverty is far more important than adhering to fusty, old Senate rules.
There’s Absolutely No Reason to Means Test the Stimulus Checks
Means testing is bad politics and bad policy. Democrats should stop worrying and just pass a bill with $2,000 stimulus checks for everyone, no questions asked.
Throw the Book at Rick Snyder for Poisoning Flint’s Water
Former Michigan governor Rick Snyder suspended democracy for the majority of the state’s black residents, then oversaw Flint residents’ poisoning in the city’s ongoing water crisis. As of today, he’s facing well-deserved criminal neglect charges.
Socialist Architect Josef Frank’s Modernism Was All About Freedom
The Austrian socialist architect Josef Frank resisted modernists who wanted to make homes look like workplaces — an idea with new resonance in an age when so many of us are working from home and feel like we can’t escape from our work.
Canceling Student Debt Is Very Good. Biden Won’t Do It Unless We Make Him.
Joe Biden is backing a minuscule student debt relief plan that would leave millions in debt while giving private lenders a bailout. We need to abolish all student debt, plain and simple.
“We’re Not Just Grateful for Red Vienna — We Need to Fight for It”
Austria’s capital city is famous for its model public housing and social services, the legacy of municipal socialism in the 1920s. But it’s been decades since the Social Democrats have done anything to build on this record. Now a new leftist party is working to turn Vienna red again.
The New York Post Is Terrified That Socialists’ Demands Are Popular and Their Methods Are Democratic
The New York Post is screaming that if the city isn’t careful, socialists will “really take over.” The paper is terrified that average New Yorkers actually like the socialist platform — and that socialists are very good at organizing to win it.
If Joe Biden Wants to Win Big, He Should Pledge to Cancel Student Debt
It’s not just the right thing to do — canceling student debt would be insanely popular and not very difficult. If Joe Biden’s supporters are serious about him winning, they should pressure him hard to do it.
The Milwaukee Bucks Just Went on Strike. You Can, Too.
To protest the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin, the Milwaukee Bucks sat out Game 5 of the NBA playoffs — and forced the entire league to shut down. The Bucks players are workers who shut down their workplace with a strike. You can go on strike, too.