Run, Arnold, Run!

Despite Disqualifying Constitutional Limits on His Candidacy, Trump Is Running for President. Only You-Know-Who Can Help Our FUBAR Country

Dear Arnold,

I’m enjoying your new Netflix action series, FUBAR. You’re funny and convincing as a retiring CIA agent who is pulled back into a very messed-up intelligence conflict because he didn’t realize his daughter is also a secret agent.

You also may not realize that, in real life, the door just opened for you to be pulled back into the FUBAR (“F’ed Up Beyond All Recognition”) of our national politics. I’m writing to ask you to walk through that door immediately, and run for president for the good of our country …

The Case for Taking Trump Off the Ballot

Call it the ‘Democratic Self-Defense Exception’—Blocking Candidates Who Undermine the Constitution Is Our Responsibility

I was in favor of keeping Donald Trump’s name on the presidential ballot in California.

Until I went to Berlin this fall.

At a Saturday conference on German election law—if you haven’t …

What’s New About Neo-Nationalism, Anyway? | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

What’s New About Neo-Nationalism, Anyway?

Autocrats Are Ancient. But Globalization, Migration, and Technology Are Giving Them Fresh Power

Led by a new breed of demagogues and autocrats, neo-nationalism describes the emergence, and in some cases revival, of extreme right-wing nationalist movements and governments. And throughout the world, the …

The Cycle of Public Panic Over Childhood That Got Us to QAnon  | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

The Cycle of Public Panic Over Childhood That Got Us to QAnon 

For 150 Years, Americans Have Misplaced Concerns for Their Kids—Helping Conspiracy Theories to Flourish

The story of QAnon’s violent extremism is often told as one of partisan polarization. We tend to focus on the most outlandish parts of the far-right conspiracy theory—which falsely claims …

The Theatrical Concept Powerful Enough to Break a Trumpian Spell  | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

The Theatrical Concept Powerful Enough to Break a Trumpian Spell 

The Great German Playwright Bertholt Brecht Knew How to Jolt an Audience Out of Narrative Complacency

“All the gang of those who rule us
Hope our quarrels never stop
Helping them to split and fool us
So they can remain on top.”
— Bertholt Brecht, Solidarity …

Conspiracy and Complicity Got Our Democracy Here | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

Conspiracy and Complicity Got Our Democracy Here

What Role Have We All Played in the Spread of Disinformation and the Rise of Authoritarianism?

Two phenomena have characterized the outgoing Trump administration and spilled over to other countries around the world. The first is the astonishing power of conspiracy theories. The second is the …