Trump and the Very American Personnel Question
In his attempts to reshape the federal workforce, Donald Trump is drawing on the American tradition of treating workers’ employment as completely subject to their bosses’ whims.
19265 Articles by: T Rivers
T Rivers is a pseudonymous journalist who covers East and Central Africa.
From Zionist Myths to Humanist Ethics
In his latest book, Peter Beinart calls on American Jews to see the horrors of Gaza and abandon blind Zionism in favor of a justice-driven Jewish identity. Blending biblical critique with political observations, it rethinks the meaning of Jewishness today.
Colombia’s Receding Coastline
In Colombia, coastal erosion caused by a combination of climate change and environmentally destructive industrial agriculture is displacing the country’s poorest citizens. But the scale of the disaster means that it has no easy solutions.
AI Is Here to Stay. Who’s Steering the Ship?
From the smokestacks of the Industrial Revolution to today’s neural nets, technology has always been a double-edged sword that carries the promise of liberation for workers. But cashing in on that promise requires control over how technology is deployed.
Wolfgang Streeck: “Global Governance” Is a Pipe Dream
Wolfgang Streeck’s new book Taking Back Control? argues that the neoliberal era of free trade and trickle-down rhetoric lies in the past. He spoke to Jacobin about the political shocks this might bring.
If This Isn’t Corruption, Nothing Is
Donald Trump once told voters he was fighting a corrupt political system. With Elon Musk operating with impunity throughout the federal government, Trump has taken political corruption to new and unprecedented lengths.
Elon Musk Is a Mouthpiece for South Africa’s White Far Right
Elon Musk’s claim that South Africa’s land expropriation laws are part of a broader attack on the country’s white minority is divorced from reality. But it represents South African elites’ inability to understand the class tensions that define their nation.
A Key Opportunity to Check Trump: Stopping Medicaid Cuts
Defeating the GOP’s proposed Medicaid cuts, which will then fund huge tax cuts for the rich, is an urgent priority. It’s a chance to reestablish the popularity of the welfare state in American politics and hand Donald Trump and Elon Musk a much-needed defeat.
Federal Workers Can Defeat Elon Musk’s Coup. Here’s How.
Elon Musk would like you to think he is invincible right now. But the world’s richest man is actually extremely vulnerable to public pressure at the moment — public pressure that federal workers and their unions can take advantage of.
Saudi Arabia Is Still One of the Most Repressive Countries
Pundits like Thomas Friedman claimed that Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman was a reformer committed to liberalization. In reality, the Saudi kingdom remains unflinchingly authoritarian, combining traditional and ultramodern repressive techniques.
The Improbable Resurgence of Die Linke
A burst of enthusiasm among the membership has given Germany’s socialist party Die Linke what might be its last chance at renewal. But becoming a party of the working class will take a lot more than a last-minute turnaround at the polls.
The Left Needs Its “Schools of Enlightenment and Revolution”
Throughout the entire history of left-wing and working-class organizing in the United States, the participation in and building of institutions of political education has been key.
The Case for Social Drinking
Americans are trading bar culture for wellness apps and mocktails. But despite alcohol’s many shortcomings, our national sobering up is not a simple cause for celebration. We’re also losing social spaces and traditions in an increasingly alienated society.
Trump’s Purges May Mean Less Oversight for Musk’s Businesses
Donald Trump has fired more than a dozen inspectors general, officials who provide independent oversight of federal agencies. At least five of them worked at agencies with previous or ongoing investigations of Elon Musk’s business practices.
The Five Star Movement Turns to the Left, Belatedly
Italy’s Five Star Movement was long a classic “populist” movement, rejecting ideological labels. Its recent decision to join the left-wing group in the EU parliament is the latest step in a turn toward a more distinctly pro-labor, pacifist stance.
Developers Lobby to Keep Building, Water Shortages Be Damned
Amid dangerous droughts, Arizona officials have attempted to address groundwater shortages by limiting development in the Phoenix metro area. Real estate interests have launched a dark money legal campaign to overturn the precedent-setting regulations.
Chemical Companies Want Trump’s EPA to Keep Their Secrets
Every year, dozens of accidents occur at high-risk chemical facilities. The chemical industry is pushing Donald Trump’s EPA to delete a public database that at least lets residents know whether a potential disaster could take place in their backyard.
Finally, a Trump Opposition?
Up against a far worse assault on government and the basic components of democracy than in 2017, an opposition force to Donald Trump and Elon Musk may be cohering.
Center Left Props Up Emmanuel Macron’s Austerity Coalition
France’s Parti Socialiste abstained in a confidence vote this week, allowing Emmanuel Macron’s allies to push through an austerity budget. Even as the president’s popularity flounders, the establishment center left chose to prop up his rule.
Dollar Devaluation Would Be Good. But It Won’t Happen.
Donald Trump has at times pitched himself as a supporter of a weaker dollar. But he is too wedded to economic interests like Wall Street and tech that benefit from a system of dollar dominance that does little good for the average American.