One Party Wants to Make Voting Easier. The Other Wants to Throw Elections Into Doubt
Plus: Trump’s Tech Bro Fanboys Wanted Him Jailed After January 6th
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KIM WEHLE: One Party Wants to Make Voting Easier. The Other Wants to Throw Elections Into Doubt.
EVERY FOUR YEARS BRINGS ANOTHER ROUND of hand-wringing and debate over the legitimacy and fairness of the Electoral College, chiefly because of two of the anomalies it produces. First, it results in a disproportionate amount of attention, power, and influence wielded by a small handful of swing states. And second, it can result in situations where the candidate who received the most votes does not win the election, as happened in 2000 and 2016. The tighter the race, the greater the chance of such a mismatch between the popular vote and the Electoral College result.
🎥 PODCASTS AND VIDEOS 🎧
Bulwark Podcast with Tim Miller: Bill Kristol: The Musk of it All [YouTube]
🚨BONUS EPISODE with Doug Emhoff: We Have a Mission [YouTube]
The Focus Group: Grandpa vs. the Slimy Lawyer (with John Heilemann) [YouTube]
Bulwark Goes to Hollywood: Why Is It So Hard to Find Something to Watch on Streaming?
How to Fix it (with John Avlon): A Poisoning in the Land
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Learn more at Bulwark+ Podcast FAQ.
📣Bulwark+ members can now listen to ad-free podcasts on Spotify! Learn more here.
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JEREMIAH JOHNSON: Economic Growth Is Good, Actually
RECENTLY, A THREAD THAT CALLED FOR a return to communal kitchens and handwashing laundry went viral on X, prompting a high-pitched conversation about the concept of “degrowth.” Mainstream liberals and conservatives both got in some entertaining dunks on the idea, but the episode also gave rise to some worthwhile discussions on the nature of economic growth. The ideology of degrowth as it’s most often articulated is stupid, and I won’t rehash the many good arguments against it here. What’s harder to explain is exactly why we value growth as opposed to other possible core values.
TIM MILLER: Trump’s Tech Bro Fanboys Wanted Him Jailed After January 6th
ONE OF THE MOST NOTABLE TRENDS in the 2024 cycle has been the emergence of a cadre of prominent Silicon Valley donors who have gone full MAGA.
The most prominent of them is Elon Musk, who cemented his position as a Donald Trump fanboy with a viral leap at the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania this weekend. But the most influential of the MAGA Tech Set has been two hosts of the All-In podcast: long-time Republican David Sacks and Trumpy convert Chamath Palihapitiya. They are joined on the podcast by Jason Calacanis (who has become Trump-curious) and token Democrat David Friedberg. In addition to their roles as podcast and social media advocates for Trump, Palihapitiya and Sacks co-hosted a mega-fundraiser for the candidate back in June.
🚨OVERTIME🚨
Happy Monday! Birthday season in my household is over, my twins and I celebrated another year with parties, family, and winding Ohio River road trips. I hope fall is treating your family as well. My Cleveland Guardians delivered an early birthday present, a 1-0 series lead over the Tigers. Tonight, Steven Kwan seemingly saved the game with this amazing catch. Alas, it wasn’t in the cards as the Guardians lost 3-0 in a bullpen duel. On to game three!
Slack Tide at 3… Happy Anniversary to Matt Labash and his Slack Tide.
Come see us in Pennsylvania and Detroit! (October 17, 18, and 19)
The 17th, we’ll be in Philly: get your tickets here. Joining us: Sarah Longwell, Tim Miller, Jonathan V. Last, Bill Kristol, Andrew Egger and special guests George Conway, Charlie Dent, Sarah Matthews, and others. Plus me!
Pittsburgh and Detroit tickets will be available very soon.
Marco Rubio tries to have it both ways… You can’t sow distrust in federal agencies one day and ask your constituents to trust them the next, Senator.
RIP to a Good One… Rep David Hobson (R-OH) was from a mold that the GOP no longer uses. (Cincinnati Enquirer)
A judge in Georgia just issued the abortion ruling… that should have come from the Supreme Court (Kim Wehle)
They’re getting excited for Tito… Here in the Queen City. And who couldn’t love this quote machine?
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Editorial photos provided by Getty Images. For full credits, please consult the article.