Politics | Voter.org

Growing Up Murdoch

February 15, 2025 growing, Murdoch0 comment

Updated at 11:35 a.m. ET on February 15, 2025. James Murdoch was seated at a conference table in a Manhattan law office in March 2024 when he realized he was witnessing the final dissolution of his family. Three months earlier, his father, Rupert, had told James and his sisters that he was rewriting the family trust to grant his elder son, Lachlan, full control of the Murdoch empire after his death, rather than splitting it equally among his four oldest children. The amendment was part of a secret plan that…

Trump Says the Corrupt Part Out Loud

February 11, 2025 says, corrupt, part, Trump, Loud0 comment

Amid the flurry of changes to the face of American government—the president may or may not have the right to unilaterally eliminate agencies; engaging in insurrection has been decriminalized while prosecuting it has become grounds for termination; wars of conquest are now on the table—you could be forgiven for missing the news that bribery is basically legal now, as long as you support, or are, Donald Trump. Consider the Trump administration’s actions yesterday alone: The president officially pardoned Rod Blagojevich, the former Illinois governor who served eight years in prison…

What the Democrats’ Musk Whisperer Thinks Now

February 7, 2025 Whisperer, Democrats, Thinks, Musk0 comment

Representative Ro Khanna has known Elon Musk for more than a decade, so he thought he should raise some concerns about the billionaire’s assault on the federal government where he would be sure to see them. Posting on the platform Musk owns, the California Democrat said yesterday that Musk should be hauled before Congress to explain himself. “Musk’s attacks on our institutions are unconstitutional,” Khanna wrote. It took Musk just 16 minutes to reply: “Don’t be a dick.” The two continued their conversation over text message, Khanna told me. In…

Purging the Government Could Backfire Spectacularly

February 3, 2025 could, government, Backfire, Purging, Spectacularly0 comment

The U.S. federal government manages a larger portfolio of risks than any other institution in the history of the world. In just the past few weeks, wildfires raged across Southern California, a commercial flight crashed over the Potomac, a powerful Chinese-developed AI model launched to great fanfare, the nuclear-weapons Doomsday Clock reached its closest point ever to midnight, a new strain of avian flu continued its spread across the globe, and interest rates on long-term government bonds surged—a sign that investors are worried about America’s fiscal future. The responsibility of…

The Day Trump Became Un-President

January 30, 2025 Trump, became, UnPresident0 comment

“We’re so back,” one reporter whispered to another. All of the chairs in the White House briefing room were filled, and reporters and photographers were crammed into every available nook and cranny. I was standing in the back, squeezed in between a window and a none-too-pleased Secret Service agent. The sight was reminiscent of the COVID briefings of 2020: President Donald Trump gripping the sides of the lectern in the White House briefing room, pursing his lips as he looked out at the journalists yelling and jockeying for his attention.…

Greenland’s Prime Minister Wants the Nightmare to End

January 26, 2025 prime, minister, Wants, nightmare, Greenland’s0 comment

Greenland’s prime minister, Múte Egede, looked like he was being chased by an angry musk ox. “Mr. Prime Minister, have you spoken to President Trump yet?” I asked as he fled a lunchtime news conference on Tuesday in the capital city, Nuuk (population 20,000). Egede, who is 37, wore a green zip-up sweater, stared straight ahead, and was walking toward me. He said nothing. “Prime Minister Múte Egede,” I tried again, using his full name this time, for some reason. He remained … mute. I made one more attempt—“Have you…