materialmatters.bsky.social

No doubt this has occurred to other bystanders as well, but it would seem that a handful of billionaires dropping $150 million into a single state's election in an attempt to defeat a wealth-tax initiative just about makes the entire case for a wealth-tax initiative.

Tonight we congratulate our friend Stephen Colbert and his writers, staff and crew for eleven years of excellence. Watch Colbert’s finale tonight, and then never watch CBS again.

I grew up in a region where they told us that if you wanted to make something of yourself, you had to get out. After I did, I began to understand what it means to be from somewhere.

This morning at 10 ET, the Senate Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Committee is holding a hearing on … the Second Amendment: www.hsgac.senate.gov/hearings/the... I’m the minority witness. My written testimony offers some thoughts about what the Committee ought to be talking about instead:

A Distric Court judge has ruled that Kari Lake was not legally in charge of the US Agency for Global Media, and that actions she took while claiming to be in that role are also not legal, including her attempts to fire people

The racism section of this speech is stomach-churning. #SOTU

So. A globally disruptive, economically unsound, and whim-driven tariff policy turns out to be unconstitutional. Huh.

“While Rubio’s tone was politer than the diatribe delivered by US vice-president JD Vance on the same stage the previous year….the substance of the US message was little changed.” So glad to see clear reporting from my colleagues. www.ft.com/content/9463...

This teenager saved his neighbor's dog from drowning in a freezing pond. This is Bernard. His family contacted emergency services right away, but high school senior Hugh Pinneo got to Bernard first. Hugh said he's "just glad I acted that day and saved the dog's life." We are too. 12/10 for all

I’m on my apartment balcony to illustrate how Donald Trump’s corruption and contempt for the rule both threatens our democracy *and* affects our everyday lives. Behind me is the Gateway project, a $16 billion effort to build a new rail tunnel across the Hudson. ...

The Winter Olympics start today, and we will feel pride and honor for our country. But when we see our criminal, delusional President, we feel none of those things. I’ve faced off with him before, and now I’m ready to take him on in Congress.

The arrest of Don Lemon is textbook fascism—a brazen attempt to silence reporting on a criminal regime. Stand up for Don, because our rights stand and fall with those of courageous journalists throughout this country.

I get tired of saying it, but I’ll say it again: the nature of oppression in America is that they workshop it first on Black, Latino, Asian & Native people. But it is always, in the end, coming for everyone.

The arrests of journalists Don Lemon and Georgia Fort are a test for every MSM member with a platform. If you are not voicing your outrage at this blatant violation of the First Amendment, you are utterly discredited as a journalist.

I’ve never been prouder to be a Minnesotan.

"If you look at job growth between January and September ... for the past 15 years, it's only been worse once, and that was during the pandemic ... It is the worst first nine months for the labor market in 15 years."

No one will stop me from defending our freedoms.

They are literally firing all the judges they think might grant relief. They just fired a friend of mine a couple hours ago. They have no shame. The bastards want an assembly line for deportations and nothing more; rubber-stamping bootlickers who’ll yes’sir at every new diktat to deny.

Congratulations to all the Democratic candidates who won tonight. It’s a reminder that when we come together around strong, forward-looking leaders who care about the issues that matter, we can win. We’ve still got plenty of work to do, but the future looks a little bit brighter.

We have people in power making broad claims around certain drugs and autism that have been continuously disproven.

After enacting the largest SNAP cuts in history, Trump is now scrapping the federal government's annual report on hunger in America. The utter cruelty of this regime knows no bounds.

It’s almost as if appointing an anti-vax lunatic with zero qualifications to oversee America’s health was a numbskull idea and everybody with a functioning brain knew it.

It’s outrageous that Sec. Kennedy is trying to fire the CDC Director — after only a few weeks on the job — for her commitment to public health & vaccines. The Sen. HELP Committee must hold a hearing with Kennedy & the CDC Director as soon as possible. Vaccines save lives. Period.

The offline impact of the twisted online mind of RFK Jr.

Ghislaine Maxwell has AMPLE opportunity to answer questions about what happened. But she never did, because she is a monster.

Stephen Colbert is a profoundly good and deeply talented man with a great staff and an excellent show. They all deserve better.

I was invited again as an expert on @cnn.com with @kasie.bsky.social. I discussed the increasing frequency of rain 'bombs' due to the warming atmosphere, what cuts to NOAA / NWS meant (or didn't) for the Texas floods, and what they'll likely mean for the 📈 number & severity of future weather threats

Here’s the bottom line for what’s going on with Grok - if the owner of the website is putting his thumb on the scale hard enough for the chatbot to turn into Goebbels, you should be deeply concerned about what he’s doing to the algorithm that you can’t so easily see, and what it’s doing to you

Former NOAA Administrator Richard Spinrad: "I am convinced that the staff cuts that we saw were a contributing factor to the inability of the emergency managers to respond."

irony: mississippi probably still is the worst thing

"The Nazi regime benefits from the fact that its atrocities overstep the limits of credibility.” –British author Elizabeth Bibesco, 1934

it’s even more demoralizing when the history you’re repeating is history you were around for the first time

These are the times that try men’s souls.

The founding fathers did not live and die to see this moment. It’s time for all of us to stand up peacefully.

Sorry to hear Brian Wilson has died. The Beach Boys were the soundtrack of my summers, from "Surfin' Safari" on.

On Memorial Day, we remember the sacrifices that our men and women in uniform and their families have made to preserve our freedom. May we always strive to honor the strength and resolve they’ve shown our country.

Right now, Republicans in Congress are trying to push through a bill that would put millions of Americans at risk of losing their health care. They want to cut federal funding for Medicaid, take away tax credits that help more people afford coverage, and raise costs for working class families.

The GOP’s “Big Beautiful Bill” is Robin Hood in reverse: it takes from the poor to give to the rich.SNAP (used to be Food Stamps…which Tabby and I used back in 1972) is gone. Medicare is going.

If a foreign adversary snuck into our Federal budget and cut science research and education the way we’re cutting it ourselves — strategically undermining America’s long-term health, wealth, and security — we would likely consider it an act of war.

unfortunately, have yet to identify a single one of these yahoos that is semi-serious