Richard Neal Has Spent Decades Carrying Water for Corporate America
Richard Neal's career is the story of a low-profile lawmaker keeping his head down, doing the work, and serving the interests of the corporate donors who give him money.
845 Article(s) by: Branko Marcetic
Branko Marcetic is a Jacobin staff writer and the author of Yesterday’s Man: The Case Against Joe Biden.
Cops Have Long Encouraged Armed Right-Wing Counterprotesters Like the Teenage Shooter in Kenosha
Since the latest uprising for racial justice began, police throughout the country have been very friendly with cop-worshipping, armed right-wingers who have shown up on the streets across America to oppose protesters. The teenage shooter in Kenosha who killed two protesters this week wasn’t the first and probably won’t be the last.
Last Night’s GOP Insanity Proves How Much the Two Parties Need Each Other
The lunacy on display at last night's Republican National Convention is what keeps frightened liberal voters satisfied with the meager crumbs of progress offered by the Democrats — and the meagerness of those crumbs is what keeps working-class whites inside an increasingly lunatic GOP.
Joe Biden and the Democrats Could Still Screw This Up
Joe Biden delivered the speech of the convention and maintains a large lead in what should be an unlosable election. So why does it feel like it could all suddenly fall apart?
The Democratic Convention Put the Party’s Contradictions Front and Center
Even as John Kasich reassured conservatives Joe Biden wasn't moving left, Michelle Obama lectured progressives to muster Obama 2008–style enthusiasm for him regardless. It's an incoherent message that could cost the party come November.
The Democrats’ DNC Plans Show They Aren’t Even Pretending Anymore
The DNC is the four-yearly apotheosis of the Democratic Party's love of progressive symbolism and empty rhetoric in place of real political vision. This year, it's not even committing to that.
Joe Biden Has Found His Neoliberal Match in Kamala Harris
It should be no surprise Kamala Harris has been chosen as Joe Biden’s running mate. From her career-long pursuit of right-wing goals to her flexibility with the truth, the two are remarkably similar politicians.
The George W. Bush Administration Lives on in Donald Trump
The media is full of anti-Trump pundits pining for the leadership of George W. Bush. Yet virtually every aspect of Donald Trump’s presidency was built on the hard-right, authoritarian legacy of his Republican predecessor.
Silicon Valley’s Vast Data Collection Should Worry You More Than TikTok
Practically everything TikTok critics and China hawks say about the country’s data collection applies to the United States and its tech firms, too. We should be finding ways to protect privacy and free speech from governments and corporations everywhere — including our own.
The Nightmare in Portland
Twenty years of a “war on terror” and centuries of elite fear of popular revolt led to the nightmare that played out on Portland’s streets. And your town could be next.
Stacey Abrams’s Record Is Not as Progressive as She Wants You to Think
Stacey Abrams shows every sign of becoming a fixture of national Democratic politics, thanks in part to unwaveringly positive press attention. Yet little of that media coverage has focused on her centrist legislative record or her coziness with the business world.
Trump the “Putin Puppet” Just Dramatically Escalated the Undeclared War Against Russia
The national security state has claimed a dangerous new victory: receiving authorization from Trump to conduct cyberattacks against enemies around the world with greater leeway — especially Russia. It’s the latest success for a years-long pressure campaign by the national security bureaucracy centered on Orwellian claims that Trump’s foreign policy is somehow pro-Russian.
It’s Official — Steven Pinker Is Full of Shit
When Steven Pinker insists that the world is getting better and better, much of his case is based on claims about declining global poverty. But a new report from the UN’s top poverty expert dismantles that argument, showing that global poverty has gone nearly unchanged over the last forty years.
The Corporate Media Convinced Millions That Bernie Was “Unelectable”
There is overwhelming evidence a surge of mostly older, Trump-fearing voters decided the Democratic primary — and that Bernie Sanders failed to counter an establishment messaging campaign that Trump would beat him in a general election.
Biden Says He’ll Pass a Public Option. His For-Profit Health Industry Donors Don’t Want Him To.
Joe Biden says he plans to deal with the US health care crisis by passing a public health insurance option. But his campaign is being funded by the same health companies that killed it when he was vice president. Something has to give — and it probably won't be the corporate donors.
They’ll Come for Us Next
Google’s censure of right-wing outlets over repulsive racist content was pushed by the UK’s Center for Countering Digital Hate, an outfit with strong ties to the Labour right. As awful as outlets like the Federalist are, do we really want Blairites who claim Jeremy Corbyn is an antisemite to decide what is and is not acceptable to publish?
Neil Gorsuch Is Still Not Your Friend
Neil Gorsuch’s leading role in expanding employment discrimination protections to LGBTQ people has prompted some praise for the hard-right Supreme Court justice. But before the hagiographies start, we should recall his full record — one that includes backing Donald Trump’s Muslim ban, opposition to unions, homophobia, and more.
Jeffrey Epstein Was the Monster Capitalism Made
A new book with fresh details about Jeffrey Epstein — his life, death, and relationship with Bill Clinton — reminds us that Epstein’s crimes couldn’t have happened without a system that allowed him to hoard unlimited wealth.
“Defenders of Democracy” Aren’t Bothered by Its End in Bolivia
A new study is the latest to undermine widespread claims of electoral fraud by Bolivia’s Evo Morales. It isn’t the first such debunking — yet democracy remains betrayed in Bolivia, and “pro-democracy” voices don’t seem too bothered.
A Joe Biden Presidency Will Require Mass Protests, Too
Donald Trump’s dangerous and unhinged response to the George Floyd protests shows why he must be defeated in November. But Joe Biden’s policy proposals and disturbing record on criminal justice suggests the era of resistance will have to continue with Biden in the White House.