It's the democracy, stupid

Joe and I talk about Republican censorship of Americans and of social media. The same Republicans that bayed at Joe Biden for sharing health information with Facebook now cheer as Trump forces Facebook to remove groups where citizens track ICE in their neighborhoods.

We talk about ICE holding Americans in captivity. We cover the ICE provocations in Chicago, the judicial response, and the way the people here are fighting back- peacefully, but with courage.

Joe said Trump and his former party are trying to create a police state.

That led to a discussion of American freedom and our founders.

We had fun. Let us know what you think.

And… enjoy the No Kings rally!

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Maybe you are tired of hearing from Chicagoans who love this city, but we aren’t going to stop even on a day when Donald Trump boasted that he got rid of the first amendment. In my first appearance on Mike Nellis’ terrific show, we talked about the attack on our city. We talked about what everyone can do to help.

We agreed that the Texas National Guard shouldn’t be here, but also that every state’s guard units are better trained and more professional than the ICE and CPB thugs who are ransacking apartment buildings, shooting at priests, and grabbing immigrants and citizens alike. Don’t take my word for it: Today a federal judge in Chicago found ICE that ICE continues to violate the constitution and the consent decree meant to keep them within the bounds of the law.

Mike and I talked about rising fascism and the ways to combat it, now and when we finally take back the government from these terrible people. Plus… we had some fun.

Let me know what you think.

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Joe and I talk about Chicago. We talk about the unprecedented, militarized attack on an American city. When I asked folks who were watching live to punch those hearts for our great city response was amazing.

As always, Joe knows the soul of his old party, and he doesn’t think one of them will break with Trump over this. But both of us think Americans, even in red districts, are growing more and more concerned as the images from this city get out.

As usual, we covered other topics- from the shutdown to the amazing win yesterday by the Chicago Cubs.

Give it a listen and let me know what you think!

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“I think it’s a very it’s a dangerous time for the country. I think it’s a dangerous time for almost all of our constitutional guarantees and a free press and free speech are among the most important constitutional guarantees. So, yes, I think it’s a dangerous time…”

That’s how Richard Tofel answered a question about this moment we are in. It was just one among many unflinching observations he made during our conversation about American journalism and how Americans learn about the news (and these are two different things).

On the disconnect between news consumers and news producers as well as the role of news makers, he said,

“The government is run by people on both sides, on all sides, who think that the world consists of everyone tuning into Fox News and CNN and MSNBC when in actual America, almost no one, statistically, is doing any of that.”

The implications for politics and the democracy are profound.

We dive into the important differences between opinion journalism and news reporting, and the danger of blurring the line between them, for example by the new leadership at CBS. We talked about the recent changes to press access at the Pentagon, and our shared hope that journalists will at all costs avoid signing any agreement with the government about what they will and will not report.

Some of the best stuff is at the end.

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Rep. Sean Casten is among the most thoughtful members of Congress. He is a scientist, trained in molecular biology and biochemical engineering. He was CEO of a company whose business was to recycle heat into energy to lower energy costs and fight climate change. In Congress he actually gets stuff done on a bipartisan basis while at the same time fighting the MAGA monstrosity that is threatening our democracy. That’s no easy accomplishment.

The Democrat who represents a purple district in the Chicago suburbs, talks about getting a bi-partisan bill passed that will make our air travel safer. Then he talks about the decidedly not bi-partisan fights that define our era: An immigration raid near his district that killed a Mexican man, the partisan abandonment of science, and more.

Listen to the way he makes his points. He does not stray from the data, yet he leans into our values. I’ve long said Democrats can and should win the values battle. Sean Casten shows us how.

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Joe and I both condemn political violence. We talk about the crazy way so many on the right are calling for war, the chances that they will back off (Joe thinks that’s zero), and what we can do about it.

We also talk about the important stories this week that went unheard because of the ubiquitous coverage of the shooting in Utah.

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Simon Rosenberg is the longtime Democratic strategist who turned his attention to building a community of support for candidates, capacity building, and expanding the base. That effort is, of course, Hopium Chronicles By Simon Rosenberg, which has grown into a powerful force, exchanging ideas between candidates and the growing base, and bringing a new source of funding to races that need it.

From time to time, we talk on my radio show The Big Picture on WCPT820. Media technology is rapidly evolving, so this week we pre-taped by going live here on substack. I also now record these and other videos for you to see on Lincoln Square.

It’s a long, but great interview. Because of the Charlie Kirk murder and all the retributive threats that followed, we begin by talking about political violence. Simon breaks down the ideology that encourages it.

We spend time on political strategy and talk about moving from defense to offense- taking the contest to their turf, both rhetorically and geographically. Looking forward, demographic changes will give even more electoral college weight to states like Texas, and that means we have to register more people to change the voting population in that state. Of course, it’s not just Texas, and we talk about good work being done in places like North Carolina and Arizona as well.

We spend time on Democratic leadership. Simon would like to see the leadership in Washington better meet the moment we are in. I see a lot to admire in governors and state level electeds, who do seem to understand the fight we are in.

We are a great coalition. As Simon points out, that’s not a base and a swing vote. It is a large diverse group where everyone matters, and no-one can be taken for granted.

Listen all the way through, because at the end, Simon lays out his four pillars for success in the upcoming election cycle.

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On today’s edition of Unvarnished Politics with Joe Walsh and Edwin Eisendrath we talk about how the morally bankrupt Republicans are also extremely vulnerable. Trump’s 38%-40% approval rating does not make him and his party invincible. Will Democrats be able to go on the offensive to capitalize on that weakness or will party leadership keep listening to wrong headed consultants?

Also today:

* How JD Vance has become the most craven politician in the country

* Even North Korea’s leader would be embarrased by Trump’s recent cabinet meeting

* RFK Jr’s latest assault on our healthcare

* Trump has the National Guard on garbage duty in DC

* Say no to campaign consultants

* The disgraceful decision about insurrectionist Ashli Babbit

* Democrats win yet another special election

* Trump’s 2026 midterms scheme

Thanks for watching and we’ll see you next week!

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We covered a lot of ground in this week’s conversation including:

* Trump’s musings about being a dictator

* Illinois Governor JB Pritzker’s tough stand against Trump’s threats on Chicago

* Fallout from the Texas extreme gerrymander

* The country is having buyers remorse

* Trump is still failing on the Ukraine War

* Where are America’s bankers on Trump’s attack on Fed board member Lisa Cook?

That and much more in this video. I hope you’ll give it a listen. I also hope you join me Thursday for the debut of my new show on Lincoln Square. We will talk democracy, democracy, democracy! My first guest is the former chair on the Michigan Democratic party, Lavora Barnes. You can stream our LIVE conversation here on substack Thursday at 11am CT 12pm ET.

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On this episode of Unvarnished Politics:

* Is Texas the new Fort Sumter?

* The real socialist in America? Donald Trump

* Our rapid descent in a police state

* Things are going to get worse before they get better

* Trump’s revenge attack on his former national security adviser, John Bolton

* Will ICE troops patrol polling places to intimidate voters?

* What if troops patrol Chicago streets?

That and much more in this week’s edition of Unvarnished Politics.

Follow Joe Walsh

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