Melissa
@mkverson.bsky.social
Humanist, mom, earth lover.
created September 13, 2023
1,006 followers 2,264 following 1,958 posts
view profile on Bluesky Posts
Chris Geidner (@chrisgeidner.bsky.social) reposted
In the midst of the Labor Day weekend, the Trump administration continued trying to make Donald Trump’s fascism happen. What I saw in response, though, was heartening — on multiple fronts. Tonight, at Law Dork:
Katie Phang (@katiephang.bsky.social) reposted
Convicted Felon Donald Trump orders federal funds for disaster relief blocked for undocumented immigrants. My latest video on this disgusting lack of humanity & why we can’t let this be our legacy. youtu.be/KV6K42Ldy-I?...
Mark Copelovitch (@mcopelov.bsky.social) reposted
These are the people everyone should be citing, interviewing, & listening to. Stop platforming the charlatans and parroting their snake oil arguments about things that didn’t happen.
Jenny Cohn (@jennycohn.bsky.social) reposted reply parent
12/ bsky.app/profile/jenn...
Ashton Pittman (@ashtonpittman.bsky.social) reposted
"Blueskyism" helped the Mississippi Free Press overcome algorithmic suppression on other platforms (Facebook, Threads) and ride out plummeting engagement on Twitter following Musk's X takeover. Thank God we took our eggs out of the X basket when we did.
Kevin Gannon (now a Moo Deng fan account) (@thetattooedprof.bsky.social) reposted
🧵🧵. The "intellectual dark web" is just reheated Plotinus chain-of-being stuff, with a strong spritz of fascism
Kevin Gannon (now a Moo Deng fan account) (@thetattooedprof.bsky.social) reposted reply parent
As @jamellebouie.net recently pointed out, all these "independent thinkers" on the Right keep ending up in the George Fitzhugh/James Henry Hammond proslavery fever swamps. What a remarkable coincidence.
Sharon (@sharonk.bsky.social) reposted
"what if we did the iraq war but under Trump for NatCon reasons"
Jenny Cohn (@jennycohn.bsky.social) reposted
Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale co-founded the University of Austin Texas (UATX) in 2021. UATX’s recent “Convocation Address” was titled, “In Defense of Inequality.” “To the class of 2029: you have chosen to rebel. Not against hierarchy, but against its abandonment.” 1/ x.com/uaustinorg/s...
Robert Reich (@rbreich.bsky.social) reposted
Wages of unionized workers are 13% higher than their nonunion counterparts. But unions also set a higher pay standard that all workers enjoy. In high-union-density states, median household income is $12,000 higher than in low-union-density states. This is why unions are vital.
NY Times Pitchbot (@nytpitchbot.bsky.social) reposted
Someone please kill me right now.
Mark Copelovitch (@mcopelov.bsky.social) reposted reply parent
Signs you might be a far right authoritarian party (#3209):
Schooley (@schooley.bsky.social) reposted reply parent
Mmmhmm
Schooley (@schooley.bsky.social) reposted
I don't *think* this is what's going on, but we should at least be aware that close to death rumors can be useful if you need a strong man saved by God moment to buck up flagging poll numbers.
Seth Cotlar (@sethcotlar.bsky.social) reposted
What these Schatz posts say to me is that Dem elected officials like him seem incapable of perceiving the right as a *political movement.* The response to Covid mitigation and the Floyd protests was not a spontaneous reaction...it was a right wing backlash organized by a reactionary movement.
Mark Copelovitch (@mcopelov.bsky.social) reposted
👇🎯 Also thinking back a couple of years, to when Jake Sullivan & Katherine Tai told us that the economics of international trade & the global economy were completely different now because of 🇨🇳, & so tariffs were both necessary & good. bsky.app/profile/mcop...
Seth Cotlar (@sethcotlar.bsky.social) reposted reply parent
Historian Jefferson Cowie's book, Freedom's Dominion, is an extended meditation on the deeply rooted American anti-democratic tradition he's called "racialized anti-statism." White people have long decried "federal tyranny" while promoting racist systems of state power. bsky.app/profile/seth...
Seth Cotlar (@sethcotlar.bsky.social) reposted reply parent
The George Floyd protests radicalized a lot of white people AGAINST structural racism. In response, the right tapped into frustration over Covid restrictions (imposed by Red AND Blue states almost equally) and white resentments to organize an old fashioned, racialized backlash against the gubmint.
Seth Cotlar (@sethcotlar.bsky.social) reposted reply parent
Anyway...Dems need to break out of the impulse to see 200 white people protesting against Covid restrictions as "the voice of the people which we must heed" while seeing 10X as many people protesting racist police violence as "a niche special interest group that's out of step with real Americans."
Bruce Wilson (@brucewilson.bsky.social) reposted
RFK Jr.'s daughter, in a 2012 interview with AP, recalls the 5 hour drive home after her father decapitated a dead whale's head with a chainsaw and strapped it to the roof of their minivan:
Michael Hobbes (@michaelhobbes.bsky.social) reposted
This ‘blue states closed schools too long’ narrative is becoming increasingly entrenched in the Polite Center but it’s arguable at best. Republican states had far more deaths during COVID and their students have roughly comparable learning loss.
Max Kennerly (@maxkennerly.bsky.social) reposted
I've never seen such a disconnect between Dem elected/staff/consultants and actual Dem voters. The latter understand what's going on. The former are awash in right-wing brainrot, hence @schatz.bsky.social blaming COVID mitigation and BLM marches for the GOP's wanton destruction of public health.
Jenny Cohn (@jennycohn.bsky.social) reposted reply parent
7/ “Palantir teams up with Fannie Mae in AI push to sniff out mortgage fraud” 5/28/25 www.cnbc.com/2025/05/28/p...
Jenny Cohn (@jennycohn.bsky.social) reposted
“Peter Thiel’s AI Palantir Is Supercharging Trump’s Lawfare” In May, Trump’s FHFA Director Bill Pulte announced a “partnership” w/ Palantir to “establish an ‘AI-powered Crime Detection Unit (CDU).’” The CDU promptly began “work at the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae)” 8/29/25…1/
A.R. Moxon (@juliusgoat.bsky.social) reposted
People obsessed with this country's "heritage" are violently opposed to ever actually addressing its real heritage, so all they're left with are consumerism and symbols chosen for their plausible deniability. Imagine claiming the Cracker Barrel logo as your birthright.
Oliver Willis (@owillis.bsky.social) reposted
Those of us paying attention are in the real bubble
Max Kennerly (@maxkennerly.bsky.social) reposted
This whole thread is just appalling. The hearing arises from the Trump admin conspiring with a foreign country to violate a federal court order in the middle of the night so it can deny due process to children who escaped dangerous circumstances.
Mark Copelovitch (@mcopelov.bsky.social) reposted
Folks look at you like you're crazy when you say we're in the midst of the worst Article I constitutional crisis in American history, & well, here we are, hundreds of miles on the interstate past the Goldwater-Rhodes exit that we already should have taken. bsky.app/profile/mcop...
NY Times Pitchbot (@nytpitchbot.bsky.social) reposted
The United States killed American Indians and drove them from their homes in order to steal their land. Could it work in Gaza?
Gil Durán (@gilduran.com) reposted
A Silicon Valley billionaire just declared Burning Man “demonic.” This is a heavy concept to drop on people who are currently tripping balls at the annual festival in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert. Get ready for “Satanic Panic,” Silicon Valley style. www.thenerdreich.com/demonic-sili...
Robert Reich (@rbreich.bsky.social) reposted
Look at this graph. The share of national income going to the richest 10 percent was lowest (and share to lower 90 percent highest) when union membership was at its highest. As unions have weakened, inequality has widened. This is why we must build back union power.
Mark Copelovitch (@mcopelov.bsky.social) reposted
Performative public lying is a hallmark of far right authoritarian parties
The Editorial Board (@editorialboard.bsky.social) reposted
Why is our government deporting children? They are *children*. Are we going to say these are hardened criminals who threaten national security, ffs?
Alexander Howard (@digiphile.bsky.social) reposted
CBS News correspondent Mark Knoller remained a national treasure after he left the briefing room. I hope he shared his data, & that someone else will keep the count. He was kind & generous to me & many others, & accurate about the record. RIP to a great newsman. www.cbsnews.com/news/mark-kn...
Garrett M. Graff (@vermontgmg.bsky.social) reposted
Anyone who has covered the White House, worked in or around it, or covered Washington in the last generation knows that Mark Knoller was the very very best of DC. I honestly can’t imagine a presidency without him.
Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen.bsky.social) reposted
"Nobody wants to be a cop [in DC]. They were abused. They were spit on." "When you when you say they were abused and spit on, I'm assuming you're talking about January 6th, correct?" "All you guys want to do was bring up J6 about the answer to everything."
Frovo (@frovo.bsky.social) reposted
WHITE HOUSE AIDE: we need a distraction from the president being dead OTHER WHITE HOUSE AIDE: let’s kill Rudy
Melissa (@mkverson.bsky.social) reply parent
Omg this nearly made me spit my coffee 🙏 for the morning laugh!
LOLGOP (@thefarce.org) reposted
I'm still guessing the Maxwell pardon comes before the survivors reach Capitol Hill.
Catherine Rampell (@crampell.bsky.social) reposted
Remember the Goolsbee Rule, also called the “pathological irony of crisis”: If you lose credibility, your statements begin to mean the opposite of what you say.
Mueller, She Wrote (@muellershewrote.com) reposted
There's only one way to stop the rumors about Donald Trump's health: a press conference. Why won't he talk to the press, and why isn't the media doggedly demanding it?
Parker Molloy (@parkermolloy.com) reposted
Something about the two stories about ChatGPT's involvement in suicides/murder that came out this week that really stuck out to me: OpenAI basically has a boilerplate response when their product gets people killed. "Deeply saddened" www.wsj.com/tech/ai/chat... www.nytimes.com/2025/08/26/t...
Kath Barbadoro (@kathbarbadoro.bsky.social) reposted
Remember how if a kid choked on a little plastic toy they used to stop selling the toy
Melissa (@mkverson.bsky.social) reply parent
Cc @stateofnewjersey.bsky.social @njgov.bsky.social
Jim Pickard (@pickardje.bsky.social) reposted
Ursula von der Leyen’s plane hit by suspected Russian GPS interference - FT scoop www.ft.com/content/3c33...
Ken Bardsley (@kenbar.bsky.social) reposted
Melissa (@melondc.bsky.social) reposted
Anyway, it hurts disabled people and others who mask that these assholes are using masks now. THEY wanted masking banned for everyone but themselves, calling those of us who mask criminals Please don't forget that. Disabled people are still here.
Dr. Lucky Tran (@luckytran.com) reposted
New Mexico has issued a public health order that removes federal restrictions to COVID-19 vaccine access so that pharmacies in New Mexico can vaccinate people of all ages and risk profiles. Every state need to do this!
LOLGOP (@thefarce.org) reposted
The media just refuses to deal with a famous person embracing obvious evil. That's why the birther thing continued until 2015 before NBC finally canceled The Apprentice.
Tahar 🇺🇦 🇵🇸 🇺🇳 🇪🇺 (@rochaa.bsky.social) reposted
Tulsi Gabbard has effectively dissolved FMIC, the Foreign Malign Influence Center. I’m shocked by her flagrant chutzpah to cater favors directly to Russia and China (& other actors), and at the same time, I am not surprised because this is exactly who I thought she is.
Mark Copelovitch (@mcopelov.bsky.social) reposted
Whether or not these people are actual foreign agents is almost irrelevant. Their actions are observationally equivalent to & indistinguishable from the actions actual foreign agents would be taking. The consequences of our total Article I constitutional crisis, right here:
A.R. Moxon (@juliusgoat.bsky.social) reposted
I wrote about the humility of expertise and the arrogance of ignorance, the profound laziness that attends believing that you can find knowledge by ignoring the accumulation of inherited human knowledge, and the ways lazy arrogance fuels narratives of fascism. www.the-reframe.com/your-ignoran...
Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) reposted
Pritzker: "No one in the administration -- the president or anybody under him -- has called anyone in my administration or me. It's clear that in secret they're are planning this invasion with US troops."
Mark Jacob (@markjacob.bsky.social) reposted
JB Pritzker uses the word "invasion" to describe what Trump has planned for my city, Chicago. And that's exactly what it would be – an autocratic government trying to crush our dissent because we oppose his corruption, cruelty and incompetence. It's what dictators do.
George Conway 👊🇺🇸🔥 (@gtconway.bsky.social) reposted
jamelle (@jamellebouie.net) reposted
not just that he has no constitutional authority, there isn't even any particular legal or institutional mechanism by which the president can make anyone treat this as anything other than a weird advisory opinion.
Mueller, She Wrote (@muellershewrote.com) reposted
I'm still waiting for the relentless onslaught of media demands for a press conference and calls to resign.
Dr. Michael MacKay (@michaelmackay.bsky.social) reposted
Ukraine has substantially degraded air defences of the russian fascist invaders in occupied Crimea. Able to strike targets almost at will, Ukrainian defenders hit two enemy helicopters and a patrol boat. The morning report from the Armed Forces of Ukraine indicates one helicopter destroyed.
Elad Nehorai (@eladn.bsky.social) reposted
We had a very explicit disavowal of BLM by the Democratic Party the moment they started harping on “crime” and called for funding the police *more* after COVID hit. Ignoring this, and not correcting for it, is one of the main reasons we are where we are. Same with “tough on borders.”
Kait Richardson 🥔 (@thryse.com) reposted reply parent
All the “conservatives” have ever really wanted in my lifetime is violent bigoted totalitarian sadism. Figuring that out is what caused me to abandon conservatism right after Obama was elected.
Dr. Michael MacKay (@michaelmackay.bsky.social) reposted
On this day 86 years ago Nazi Germany invaded Poland. 17 days afterwards its ally, the Soviet Union, invaded Poland. Because only one of the aggressors was defeated the underlying causes of World War II were never addressed. That is why World War III, Russia’s War, rages today.
Gillian Brockell (@gbrockell.bsky.social) reposted
Okay, here's what I know and don't know* about the planes that were supposed to take children to Guatemala today. *None of this flight tracking would be necessary if ICE Air didn't keep its operation secret and if Drew Ensign didn't talk to the court in riddles. 1/
Tom Cartwright (@tomcartwright.bsky.social) reposted
Lots of amazing teamwork today to halt the Administration’s assault on children. Thank you all!!
Chris Geidner (@chrisgeidner.bsky.social) reposted
Meanwhile, did you see? A federal judge on Friday allowed the Trump admin and the Oklahoma AG to use his court to subvert democracy through a sham lawsuit manufactured to get rid of a pro-immigrant state law they don’t like without needing to go through the trouble of actually repealing the law.
Roger Parloff (@rparloff.bsky.social) reposted
On Thurs (while I was on vacation), @aclu.org sought full DC Circuit review of the splintered panel decision that would vacate Judge Boasberg’s order finding probable cause to believe DOJ attys committed criminal contempt in the JGG case. ... storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us... 1/5
T. Greg Doucette (@gregdoucette.bsky.social) reposted
Los Angeles is just outlandishly large
The Intellectualist (@theintellectualist.bsky.social) reposted
🚨 The Smithsonian quietly erased Trump’s impeachments from history—then claimed it was just a design issue. No warning, no vote, no accountability. Only after public outrage did they promise to fix it. Who decides what counts as history—and what gets deleted? open.substack.com/pub/theintel...
Melissa (@mkverson.bsky.social) reply parent
That’s from July
Mueller, She Wrote (@muellershewrote.com) reposted
Can the media STOP referring to Jeffrey Epstein as a “financier”? The money he made came from SEX TRAFFICKING MINORS, RAPING CHILDREN, and BLACKMAIL. He was NOT a financier. I’ve seen at least five stories from three outlets refer to him this way in the past week. This is the latest from the Times:
Mark Copelovitch (@mcopelov.bsky.social) reposted
Leah McElrath (@leahmcelrath.bsky.social) reposted
⚠️ US suspends visas for ALL Palestinian passport holders “The new measures affect visas for medical treatment, university studies, visits to friends or relatives and business travel, at least temporarily.” www.nytimes.com/2025/08/31/w...
Ken Burnside (@kenburnside.bsky.social) reposted
There are vast swathes of Project 2025 and Yarvin's badly written shit that say "Ignore the courts. LOL!"
Will Bunch (@willbunch.bsky.social) reposted
It’s slowly dawned on me that Trump abruptly stopped going to his other properties in the weekend, not even Labor Day. He used to go to NJ in the summer. Now he seems tethered to the White House, where he recreated Mar-a-Lago Why?
Aaron Reichlin-Melnick (@reichlinmelnick.bsky.social) reposted
Ethnic cleansing.
Anna Bower (@annabower.bsky.social) reposted
Pour one out for Judge Sparkle Sooknanan’s clerks this Labor Day weekend
Anna Bower (@annabower.bsky.social) reposted
JUST IN: Judge Sooknanan ordered the government to file a status report by 4 pm to address whether the children have been deplaned. DOJ blew the deadline. Now she orders them to show cause why they didn’t file the report in time — and sets new 6:30 pm deadline.
Chris Geidner (@chrisgeidner.bsky.social) reposted
Anna has had excellent coverage of this developing case in which the Trump administration tried to use the holiday weekend to secretly and illegally deport children.
Kevin M. Kruse (@kevinmkruse.bsky.social) reposted reply parent
This one feels like it's taunting me personally. Yes, "under God" is in the Pledge. Please tell me more about how that came about, please.
Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney.bsky.social) reposted reply parent
UPDATE: A federal judge has barred the Trump administration from deporting 600 unaccompanied Guatemalan children overnight, halting the effort while many of them sat on the tarmac in El Paso — and maybe have, in one case, been in the air. t.co/4QRs4oLf0G
Mark Hamill (@markhamillofficial.bsky.social) reposted
M-orons A-re G-overning A-merica shorturl.at/Y5yPL
Kevin M. Kruse (@kevinmkruse.bsky.social) reposted
Out of the first five questions, four are about gender identity. There isn't even a pretense that they're looking for qualified educators. They're interviewing candidates for the bathroom police.
Nicholas Grossman (@nicholasgrossman.bsky.social) reposted
The lies' laughable implausibility is a feature, not a bug. They're not trying to convince discerning, skeptical, fact-based people. They're trying to give supporters a fantasy that validates their feelings and creates a sort of loyalty test, while flaunting the absurdity in everyone else's faces.
NY Times Pitchbot (@nytpitchbot.bsky.social) reposted
There is no explicit prohibition against the President cancelling elections, so it's hard to see why liberals think they are entitled to elections in 2026 and 2028. by Jonathan Turley
Ali Velshi (@velshi.com) reposted
Trump's goals for the Fed are 'very dangerous,' warns Fmr. Fed Chair & Treasury Sec. Janet Yellen. The financial system is “like the plumbing in your house,” says Yellen. “You don’t think about it most of the time. It’s important that it works,” but you're very “aware of it when it’s broken” #Velshi
Anna Bower (@annabower.bsky.social) reposted reply parent
And we're done. Thanks to all who followed along on this Labor Day weekend. If you appreciate @lawfaremedia.org's live coverage of court proceedings, I hope you'll consider supporting our non-profit newsroom. See you next time! givebutter.com/journalism/a...
Ali Velshi (@velshi.com) reposted
“What independence means is that the technocrats at the Central Bank use economic reasoning, data” to achieve economic goals, says Fmr. Fed Chair & Treasury Sec. Janet Yellen. ‘Americans need to worry’ about political interference. It’s “a recipe for runaway inflation.” #Velshi
capitolhunters (@capitolhunters.bsky.social) reposted reply parent
The photo of Trump with Gruden may be from last week.
Marisa Kabas (@marisakabas.bsky.social) reposted
Must be Gruden’s favorite golf outfit since he wore it last week at Trump’s club in Virginia.
Joy-Ann Reid (@joyannreid.bsky.social) reposted
Sorry, but the scariest places in America aren’t Black neighborhoods, it’s towns like Vidor, where historically, Blacks (and Asians, Jews & Italians) could be lynched w/o consequences. There’s literally no equivalent the other way. Thank God these young men weren’t harmed. youtu.be/Px_P0bRkbfU?...
Vince Guerrieri (@vinceguerrieri.com) reposted
I am now very, VERY interested to know what kind of deal Trump made with Manfred.
G Elliott Morris (@gelliottmorris.com) reposted
seems likely now that trump is going to send ice/national guard/etc to blue cities before the election this year, making up some risk of mass protest or public disturbance etc — or “ballots from illegals” — that constitutes some BS emergency that will empower him before a judge can intervene
Lindsay Beyerstein (@beyerstein.bsky.social) reposted
The more outrageous the lie, the more it becomes a badge of group loyalty to assert it. Because there’s zero chance anyone who wasn’t in the cult would repeat it just because it makes sense.
Mark Zaid, Esq (@markzaidesq.bsky.social) reposted
This is the type of person Trump pardoned. He proudly asserts that they should have injured a US Capitol Police Officer worse than they did on January 6th (@sergeantaqgo.bsky.social) had to medically retire). But MAGA supports law enforcement? Seriously? Then show me by condemning this guy.
Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) reposted
Pritzker: "We don't want troops on the streets of American cities. That's un-American and frankly the president ought to know better. This one doesn't seem to. He hasn't read any books. He doesn't seem to understand the Constitution or the laws."
Lesley Abravanel🥂🪩 (@lesleyabravanel.bsky.social) reposted
MAGA Rep Caught in Epstein Firestorm at Chaotic Town Hall www.thedailybeast.com/maga-rep-dan...
Evan Sutton (@evansutton.bsky.social) reposted
IRS Criminal Investigators go after people who commit serious criminal financial fraud. Money laundering, bank fraud, political corruption, identity theft, ripping off Medicaid/Medicare, employment fraud. You know, real crimes that hurt real people. Instead, here they are, doing... This.
Anna Bower (@annabower.bsky.social) reposted
DEVELOPING: Advocates are seeking a court order to block the Trump administration’s effort to deport hundreds of unaccompanied minor children to Guatemala. Judge abruptly moved 3 pm hearing up to 12:30 after she was notified that some children “are in the process of being removed" today.
Laminariales (@kelpkelpkelp.bsky.social) reposted
"Hurt other people's children" is emerging as the keystone MAGA policy goal.
Anonymous (@youranoncentral.bsky.social) reposted
While you are looking at Trump, the oligarchs are seeding themselves deeper into the fabric of society, your government, and your resources. Your media is captured, your institutions are captured, your politicians are captured, and your algorithms are captured. A full system reboot is needed. #3E
Decoding Fox News (@decodingfoxnews.bsky.social) reposted
I don’t get a dime from any large organization. My pinned tweet explains this at length. My largest contribution from any individual is $25 a month from Patreon.