Katherine Stewart

Why This Essay Could Cause the University of Virginia to Shut Down How Linda McMahon’s latest “compact” would do deep and permanent harm to American higher education

I can’t believe my life is being affected by the former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment

newrepublic.com/article/2013...

Republicans post fake image of Oregon protest – using photos of South America A federal judge had blocked Trump’s request to deploy California national guard to Portland

The Oregon Republican Party tried to help Donald Trump make the case for military intervention in Portland with an image of a fiery protest — but since Portland is calm, they had to fabricate one by merging old photos of police in Ecuador and protesters in Brazil www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

A Texas megachurch pastor and GOP leader has been arrested for crimes against children. Not Robert Morris, a different one. Not Josiah Anthony, a different one. Not Luke Cunningham, a different one. Not Tony Evans, a different one. Not Scott Crenshaw, a different one. Not Steve Lawson, a different o

This is jawdropping. The idea that a state about to be invaded by out-of-state soldiers that Trump is moving around the nation like chess pieces has no standing to object to the invasion!

What the Red Scare can teach us today Many of the things that happened during the Red Scare mirror what's happening today.

"Oftentimes, censorship and repression that originates with the government doesn't actually have to be executed by the government," says @risenc.bsky.social

Arrest of conservative influencer Nick Sortor outside Portland ICE building now under federal investigation | CNN A conservative influencer who this week posted videos of clashes outside the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Portland, Oregon, has been released without bond after he was arrested late...

Pam Bondi threatens the City of Portland police when they arrest a MAGA influencer who was attempting to provoke violence outside of the ICE building. MAGA auxiliaries are deemed a part of the assault force, they say. www.cnn.com/2025/10/03/u...

On August 27, 2025, Petitioner was arrested at the Carson Car Wash in Carson, California by uniformed Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) officers and unidentified plainclothes federal agents. See Pet. ¶¶ 16, 48; Santiago Decl. ¶ 3. During the arrest, Petitioner sustained severe leg injuries. See Pet. ¶ 48; Santiago Decl. ¶ 5. He was handcuffed and transported by CBP to the emergency room at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Carson, California. Id. At the hospital, Petitioner was admitted under a “blackout” procedure for patients in law-enforcement custody and was registered under the pseudonym “Har Maine UNK Thirteen.” Santiago Decl. ¶ 7. Federal agents remained at Petitioner’s bedside during admission, transfer to non-public treatment areas, and throughout his stay, keeping him handcuffed to his hospital bed. Id. ¶ 6. On or about August 27, 2025, CBP transferred custody of Petitioner to ICE. See Pet. ¶ 48. He remains detained at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center under the supervision of ICE, which has contracted with Spectrum Detention Services (“Spectrum”) to provide guards. See Santiago Decl. ¶ 8; Pet. ¶ 48. Since that date, two to four uniformed guards—either Spectrum employees or ICE agents—have been continuously stationed in Petitioner’s hospital room, monitoring him at all times, including while he sleeps, eats, uses the restroom, or receives medical care. See Santiago Decl. ¶¶ 9–10.

ICE has been paying private security for 24/7 guards to watch a guy with no record whose leg they fucked up so badly he has been in a hospital for over a month, and we wonder why people were handing Tom Homan bags of cash.

Via @kyledcheney.bsky.social

storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

They’ve turned everyone in Chicago into extras in Stephen Miller’s villainous, unconstitutional, authoritarian fantasy

Trump Is Steadily Pushing the Republic Toward the Edge of Oblivion The administration has entered its most anti-Constitutional phase yet. We must call a regime that’s a danger to our way of life what it is.

This Congress isn’t just wearing blindfolds; it has poked its own eyes out so that it won’t have to witness the epic levels of corruption and self-dealing at the highest office. My latest at @newrepublic.com newrepublic.com/article/2010...

Pushing the Republic Toward the Edge The administration has entered its most anti-Constitutional phase yet. But now is not the time to curl up in despair.

While we have arrived at a dire moment, make no mistake: Now is not the time to curl up in despair. My latest on substack.com/home/post/p-...

Legal Organizations Across the Ideological Spectrum Urge Court to Reinstate Lawsuit Against Trump Administration’s Unconstitutional Attack on Academic Freedom | American Civil Liberties Union Federal interference in academic affairs at Columbia University violates the First Amendment, the brief argues

“If the gov't can punish professors and universities for viewpoints it dislikes, then no field of research, no classroom discussion, & no scholar’s speech is safe. That is precisely what the First Amendment forbids.” Cato joins ACLU, other groups in amicus supporting AAUP's Columbia suit. @cato.org

💯 remember Vance to Zelensky: “Have you even said thank you once?”

A ‘hostile takeover’: ousted CDC official raises alarm over RFK Jr approach to infectious disease Debra Houry speaks after testifying on eight months under Kennedy, who critics say shuns science and spreads falsehoods

Worth reading interview with Debra Houry, who served under six CDC directors spanning four administrations www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

Russell Vought's sick little power trip will also hurt GOPers. One project he's cutting is the Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub, which spans Oregon, Washington, and...Montana. The state's GOP governor has hailed it for creating "good-paying Montana jobs." Oops.

newrepublic.com/article/2012...

In historic appointment, Sarah Mullally will be the first female archbishop of Canterbury LONDON (RNS) — Mullally's gender and her views on same-sex marriage are likely to widen some divisions in some Church of England circles and in the Anglican Communion more broadly.

The Rt. Rev. Sarah Mullally has been named the 106th archbishop of Canterbury, a decision by the Church of England that places a woman as leader of the church.
religionnews.com/2025/10/03/4...

RFK Jr fires top NIH scientist weeks after she files whistleblower complaint Jeanne Marrazzo’s complaint reportedly involved the Trump administration’s hostility toward vaccines

The US health sec Robert F Kennedy Jr has fired a top scientist at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) just three weeks after she had filed a whistleblower complaint www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

My latest for @newrepublic.com

Trump Canceled 94 Million Pounds of Food Aid. Here’s What Never Arrived. ProPublica obtained records from the Department of Agriculture that detail the millions of pounds of food, down to the number of eggs, that never reached food banks because of the administration’s cut...

projects.propublica.org/trump-food-c...

My latest for @newrepublic.com

Trump Is Steadily Pushing the Republic Toward the Edge of Oblivion The administration has entered its most anti-Constitutional phase yet. We must call a regime that’s a danger to our way of life what it is.

It doesn’t matter that the case against Comey is unlikely to result in conviction. Federal law enforcement is being turned into a political instrument of the leader and the ruling party. That is how corrupt autocracies work. newrepublic.com/article/2010...

Elon Musk Appears to Be Completely Addicted to Anime Gooner AI Slop Elon Musk continues to pitch his chatbot Grok with animations of female characters in revealing outfits, and even his fans are getting annoyed.

Well at least in this case we know why Musk is fixated on thinking cartoons for children are sexual www.rollingstone.com/culture/cult...

"They put her in hand shackles and in leg shackles, and around the waist as well, like she's some hardened criminal. She had tears streaming down her face, and she told me one of the ICE agents pulled out his cell phone, laughing, and took a selfie."

JFC. “The request for a gift for King Charles came from a State Department liaison who used the email address ‘giftgirl2025’ and initially told the museum that they were looking for ‘like a sword or something,’ according to a person familiar with the discussions.”

Robert Morris, Texas megachurch pastor, pleads guilty to sexually abusing a child Under a plea agreement, Morris was given a 10-year sentence, but he will serve only six months in an Oklahoma jail.

Robert Morris "served as a faith adviser to President Donald Trump."

Energy Department Announces Termination of 223 Projects, Saving Over $7.5 Billion The U.S. Department of Energy today announced the termination of 321 financial awards supporting 223 projects, resulting in a savings of approximately $7.56 billion dollars for American taxpayers.

Feds cancelling a whole raft of manufacturing & innovation projects in Washington state, because WA is blue & the federal government has declared open war on half the country.

My latest for @newrepublic.com

Thank you for your email. There is a temporary shutdown of the U.S. government due to a lapse in appropriations. I will respond to your message as soon as possible after the temporary shutdown ends. Please visit ED.gov for the latest information on the Department's operational status. Thank you.

Thank you for contacting me. On September 19, 2025, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 5371, a clean continuing resolution. Unfortunately, Democrat Senators are blocking passage of H.R. 5371 in the Senate which has led to a lapse in appropriations. Due to the lapse in appropriations I am currently in furlough status. I will respond to emails once government functions resume.

NEW—US Department of Education sent out standard Out of Office language to employees on Wednesday in light of shutdown. Later yesterday, workers tell me they found someone had updated their auto-responses without consent to a new one blaming Democrats.

Version of original on left, updated on right:

This is so indefensibly insane: Speaker Johnson is refusing to seat Congresswoman-elect Adelita Grijalva because she'll be the 218th vote to release the Epstein files. Johnson swore in Rep Walkinshaw (VA) w/in 24 hours.

Johnson is abandoning his job to instead protect a convicted child sex predator