Ed Kilgore
@edkilgore.bsky.social
Political columnist, New York Magazine. Former Senate and gubernatorial aide and policy wonk. Observant Christian and progressive. Georgia Bulldog.
I guess all those millions of "No Kings" protesters are just donor-driven elitists who don't understand that "kitchen table issues" are all that matters. nymag.com/intelligence...
Democracy’s in Danger. Will Democrats Tell Voters About It?
Despite what many strategists say, it’s short-sighted and dangerous to assume kitchen-table issues matter more than Trump’s growing authoritarianism.
nymag.com
October 29, 2025 at 2:26 PM
I guess all those millions of "No Kings" protesters are just donor-driven elitists who don't understand that "kitchen table issues" are all that matters. nymag.com/intelligence...
Yes, I'm a broken record on this, but it really infuriates me that the Democratic party's strategists, left and center, keep telling Democrats that voters don't really care about democracy: nymag.com/intelligence...
Democracy’s in Danger. Will Democrats Tell Voters About It?
Despite what many strategists say, it’s short-sighted and dangerous to assume kitchen-table issues matter more than Trump’s growing authoritarianism.
nymag.com
October 29, 2025 at 2:24 PM
Yes, I'm a broken record on this, but it really infuriates me that the Democratic party's strategists, left and center, keep telling Democrats that voters don't really care about democracy: nymag.com/intelligence...
Trump keeps saying mail ballots and early in-person votes are crooked. That's 69 percent of all ballots cast in 2020 and 60 percent of all those cast in 2024. His position is carte blanche for preemptive election rigging: nymag.com/intelligence...
The New Sign Trump Is Planning a Midterm-Elections Power Grab
His latest attacks on the Prop 50 vote in California once again show he’ll do whatever it takes.
nymag.com
October 28, 2025 at 1:08 AM
Trump keeps saying mail ballots and early in-person votes are crooked. That's 69 percent of all ballots cast in 2020 and 60 percent of all those cast in 2024. His position is carte blanche for preemptive election rigging: nymag.com/intelligence...
People have nine days remaining to shrug off the government shutdown as a DC side-show: nymag.com/intelligence...
The Government Shutdown Will Get Very Real on November 1
SNAP benefits will run out, Obamacare premiums will spike, and Trump will no longer be able to pretend the shutdown just hurts Democrats.
nymag.com
October 23, 2025 at 8:58 PM
People have nine days remaining to shrug off the government shutdown as a DC side-show: nymag.com/intelligence...
I'm no expert on NJ politics, but the more I read vague takes on whatever it is Mikie Sherrill is supposed to lack, the more I think Trump just has Democrats spooked: nymag.com/intelligence...
Democrats’ Fears About New Jersey Governor’s Race May Be Overblown
Dems are spooked because the GOP beat expectations in 2021 and 2024. But jitters about gubernatorial nominee Mikie Sherrill don’t seem justified.
nymag.com
October 22, 2025 at 6:20 PM
I'm no expert on NJ politics, but the more I read vague takes on whatever it is Mikie Sherrill is supposed to lack, the more I think Trump just has Democrats spooked: nymag.com/intelligence...
The last person on earth who should be endowed with fact-finding authority on much of anything is Donald J. Trump. nymag.com/intelligence...
Supreme Court to Decide If Trump Is Entitled to His Own Facts
In a case before the Court, the White House claims Trump alone gets to decide when conditions in U.S. cities warrant Guard deployments.
nymag.com
October 21, 2025 at 8:16 PM
The last person on earth who should be endowed with fact-finding authority on much of anything is Donald J. Trump. nymag.com/intelligence...
One point from this post I'd like to underline. We've all been so busy refuting the nonsense about a Trump "landslide" and the idea voters were endorsing what he's now doing that we've kinda forgotten to remind people there's never a "mandate" to revoke the Constitution! nymag.com/intelligence...
Trump Is Trying to Brand Political Opposition As Rebellion
A panel of federal appeals court judges stopped a National Guard deployment in Chicago with a warning against the ultimate Trump power grab.
nymag.com
October 17, 2025 at 10:27 PM
One point from this post I'd like to underline. We've all been so busy refuting the nonsense about a Trump "landslide" and the idea voters were endorsing what he's now doing that we've kinda forgotten to remind people there's never a "mandate" to revoke the Constitution! nymag.com/intelligence...
Finally, three judges say what needs to be said about this administration's demonization of any resistance to its plans: nymag.com/intelligence...
Trump Is Trying to Brand Political Opposition As Rebellion
A panel of federal appeals court judges stopped a National Guard deployment in Chicago with a warning against the ultimate Trump power grab.
nymag.com
October 17, 2025 at 9:09 PM
Finally, three judges say what needs to be said about this administration's demonization of any resistance to its plans: nymag.com/intelligence...
As long a look at J.D. Vance as I could take without blinking and then closing my eyes. nymag.com/intelligence...
Trump’s His Own Attack Dog, So Vance Has to Bite Even Harder
As shown in his defense of nasty text messages from Young Republicans, the vice-president can’t let anyone outflank him on the right.
nymag.com
October 17, 2025 at 5:17 PM
As long a look at J.D. Vance as I could take without blinking and then closing my eyes. nymag.com/intelligence...
I offer a cold shower on the obsession with 2024 autopsies among Democrats. Yes, it's worth knowing why Democrats lost. But it's not terribly relevant to a very different 2026 midterm election: nymag.com/intelligence...
Dwelling on the 2024 Defeat Is a Waste of Time for Democrats
Forget about the election “autopsies” for now. 2026 will be an entirely different kind of election in multiple ways.
nymag.com
October 15, 2025 at 2:13 AM
I offer a cold shower on the obsession with 2024 autopsies among Democrats. Yes, it's worth knowing why Democrats lost. But it's not terribly relevant to a very different 2026 midterm election: nymag.com/intelligence...
Pope Leo XIV is making it pretty clear he's not J.D. Vance's kind of Catholic, much like his predecessor: nymag.com/intelligence...
New Pope Offers Same Headaches for Trump
The MAGA movement wasn’t fond of Pope Francis. His American successor, Pope Leo, has been just as resolute on immigrants, poverty, and climate change.
nymag.com
October 10, 2025 at 8:45 PM
Pope Leo XIV is making it pretty clear he's not J.D. Vance's kind of Catholic, much like his predecessor: nymag.com/intelligence...
A quick tour through the redistricting battlegrounds, with a sense that this is now moving too slowly for GOP comfort: nymag.com/intelligence...
Trump’s Redistricting Power Grab Is Losing Momentum
The longer it takes Republicans to reshape congressional districts, the more public opposition to Trump’s gambit may grow.
nymag.com
October 9, 2025 at 8:38 PM
A quick tour through the redistricting battlegrounds, with a sense that this is now moving too slowly for GOP comfort: nymag.com/intelligence...
Of all people, Katie Porter should understand why Republicans matter in a multi-Democratic statewide field, since Adam Schiff's successful herding of GOP voters to Steve Garvey knocked her out of the 2024 general election. nymag.com/intelligence...
Katie Porter Should Have Something to Say to Trump Voters
An interview with the candidate for California governor went sideways when she was asked if she needed Trump voters to win. It wasn’t a hard question.
nymag.com
October 8, 2025 at 9:13 PM
Of all people, Katie Porter should understand why Republicans matter in a multi-Democratic statewide field, since Adam Schiff's successful herding of GOP voters to Steve Garvey knocked her out of the 2024 general election. nymag.com/intelligence...
I started off just trying to explain the Top Two context of the dispute to non-Californians, but after about the 25th time I watched the Katie Porter interview, I got a mite exasperated with her. And I was a 2024 Katie Porter for Senate voter: nymag.com/intelligence...
Katie Porter Should Have Something to Say to Trump Voters
An interview with the candidate for California governor went sideways when she was asked if she needed Trump voters to win. It wasn’t a hard question.
nymag.com
October 8, 2025 at 9:12 PM
I started off just trying to explain the Top Two context of the dispute to non-Californians, but after about the 25th time I watched the Katie Porter interview, I got a mite exasperated with her. And I was a 2024 Katie Porter for Senate voter: nymag.com/intelligence...
MAGA folk claim that because Trump threatened to do crazy stuff on the campaign trail and subsequently won then he doesn't have to comply with the laws or the Constitution in fulfilling his "mandate." Apparently 49% of the electorate can abolish the rights of the 51%. nymag.com/intelligence...
Trump and Stephen Miller See Insurrection Everywhere
The White House believes any resistance to Trump is insurrectionary and warrants troop deployments. It’s a by-product of demonizing all opposition.
nymag.com
October 7, 2025 at 8:54 PM
MAGA folk claim that because Trump threatened to do crazy stuff on the campaign trail and subsequently won then he doesn't have to comply with the laws or the Constitution in fulfilling his "mandate." Apparently 49% of the electorate can abolish the rights of the 51%. nymag.com/intelligence...
You can get so used to Trump lying all the time that you forget to call him out on it now and then: nymag.com/intelligence...
Someone Should Inform Trump That He’s Actually Unpopular
Trump claimed polls show he’s the most popular Republican president ever. He’s actually the least popular in the post–World War II era.
nymag.com
October 7, 2025 at 4:47 PM
You can get so used to Trump lying all the time that you forget to call him out on it now and then: nymag.com/intelligence...
"Today, we don’t have a Republican president willing to take down a demagogue who threatened free speech. We have a Republican president who is himself the demagogue who threatens free speech." nymag.com/intelligence...
It’s Hard to Fight McCarthyism When McCarthy Is President
Relaunching free-speech groups that fought the Red Scare is helpful. But last time, they had the White House as an ally, not an enemy.
nymag.com
October 2, 2025 at 5:56 PM
"Today, we don’t have a Republican president willing to take down a demagogue who threatened free speech. We have a Republican president who is himself the demagogue who threatens free speech." nymag.com/intelligence...
Pleased to see an old anti-McCarthyism free speech group reactivate. But there's a problem in replicating the defeat of Tail Gunner Joe: nymag.com/intelligence...
October 2, 2025 at 5:52 PM
Pleased to see an old anti-McCarthyism free speech group reactivate. But there's a problem in replicating the defeat of Tail Gunner Joe: nymag.com/intelligence...
At the risk of getting completely over my skis (which is easy since I don't ski), here's an early projection of how the shutdown will evolve and end: nymag.com/intelligence...
How the Government Shutdown Will End
Republicans could erode Democratic unity, or Trump may cut a deal on Obamacare subsidies. Either way, an extremely long shutdown is likely.
nymag.com
October 1, 2025 at 5:37 PM
At the risk of getting completely over my skis (which is easy since I don't ski), here's an early projection of how the shutdown will evolve and end: nymag.com/intelligence...
Don't let the incoherent Weave keep you from noticing the clear signal from Trump to the military that his political enemies are fair game for "warfighting." Not just in an emergency, but every day. nymag.com/intelligence...
Trump’s New Core Mission for the Military: ‘Enemy Within’
In an alarming if incoherent speech to an assemblage of brass, the president puts the military on notice that America is a domestic battleground.
nymag.com
September 30, 2025 at 7:14 PM
Don't let the incoherent Weave keep you from noticing the clear signal from Trump to the military that his political enemies are fair game for "warfighting." Not just in an emergency, but every day. nymag.com/intelligence...
Sorry, populists, but I just don't buy it: nymag.com/intelligence...
Democrats Must Address the Real Reason They Want a Shutdown
Health care policy is important, but the real reason Democrats are risking a government shutdown is to curb Trump’s power, and they should say so.
nymag.com
September 30, 2025 at 5:02 PM
Sorry, populists, but I just don't buy it: nymag.com/intelligence...
I think it's interesting that suddenly Carr and Trump are retreating to old-school fulminations about liberal media bias. Seems like a tactical win for Jimmy Kimmel. nymag.com/intelligence...
Trump and Carr Retreat After Jimmy Kimmel’s Return
The president and his FCC chief are back to old-school attacks on liberal media bias.
nymag.com
September 24, 2025 at 7:36 PM
I think it's interesting that suddenly Carr and Trump are retreating to old-school fulminations about liberal media bias. Seems like a tactical win for Jimmy Kimmel. nymag.com/intelligence...
This piece is getting very little traffic. Don't know if I'm too far ahead of the curve or too far behind. Don't pretend to be an expert on this topic; mostly looking at the necessary evolution after the war in Gaza reaches its nightmarish end. nymag.com/intelligence...
The Case for Democrats Recognizing Palestinian Statehood
Democratic efforts to undercut the Israeli war on Gaza are fine, but soon the war will end and the idea of a negotiated two-state solution will die.
nymag.com
September 24, 2025 at 7:34 PM
This piece is getting very little traffic. Don't know if I'm too far ahead of the curve or too far behind. Don't pretend to be an expert on this topic; mostly looking at the necessary evolution after the war in Gaza reaches its nightmarish end. nymag.com/intelligence...
Trump's EO on Antifa is an example of the old southern expression: "You're goosing a ghost." That could either make the EO a meaningless bit of MAGA porn, or really dangerous: nymag.com/intelligence...
Trump’s Antifa Executive Order Is Dangerously Vague
An unauthorized order targeting a nonexistent organization and authorizing a fishing expedition for allies and donors is an invitation to overreach.
nymag.com
September 23, 2025 at 9:47 PM
Trump's EO on Antifa is an example of the old southern expression: "You're goosing a ghost." That could either make the EO a meaningless bit of MAGA porn, or really dangerous: nymag.com/intelligence...
The crowning insult to the American-bred legacy of the UN was Trump's altar call for every nation to pursue its own blood-and-soil nationalist dreams. Wonder if he doesn't know the UN was born to defeat and then deter nationalist extremism? nymag.com/intelligence...
Trump to United Nations: The World Needs Me More Than Ever
Trump’s long speech to the U.N. was half MAGA rally, half a call to other countries to foster their own blood-and-soil nationalism.
nymag.com
September 23, 2025 at 9:43 PM
The crowning insult to the American-bred legacy of the UN was Trump's altar call for every nation to pursue its own blood-and-soil nationalist dreams. Wonder if he doesn't know the UN was born to defeat and then deter nationalist extremism? nymag.com/intelligence...