Richard Flanagan
@rflanagan.bsky.social
Professor of Political Science, The College of Staten Island, City University of New York
what's funny about the today's coverage of the NYC mayoral race is that they fail to mention that Mandami is the Democratic Party's nominee:
September 11, 2025 at 10:18 PM
what's funny about the today's coverage of the NYC mayoral race is that they fail to mention that Mandami is the Democratic Party's nominee:
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
KGB officer flatters narcissist mark
Trump: "Vladimir Putin said something- one of the most interesting things. He said 'your election was rigged because you have mail in voting. It's impossible to have mail in voting & have honest elections.' He said that to me because we talked about 2020. He said, 'you won that election by so much'"
August 16, 2025 at 1:59 AM
KGB officer flatters narcissist mark
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
1/2 You could write a book about one atrocious headline in print NYT today
(I sort of wrote this book 30 years ago, Breaking the News, but others can take a turn.)
What's wrong this headline? Mamdani "faces scrutiny" **ONLY AND EXCLUSIVELY** because NYT decided to make this a "thing."
Really bad.
(I sort of wrote this book 30 years ago, Breaking the News, but others can take a turn.)
What's wrong this headline? Mamdani "faces scrutiny" **ONLY AND EXCLUSIVELY** because NYT decided to make this a "thing."
Really bad.
July 6, 2025 at 10:16 PM
1/2 You could write a book about one atrocious headline in print NYT today
(I sort of wrote this book 30 years ago, Breaking the News, but others can take a turn.)
What's wrong this headline? Mamdani "faces scrutiny" **ONLY AND EXCLUSIVELY** because NYT decided to make this a "thing."
Really bad.
(I sort of wrote this book 30 years ago, Breaking the News, but others can take a turn.)
What's wrong this headline? Mamdani "faces scrutiny" **ONLY AND EXCLUSIVELY** because NYT decided to make this a "thing."
Really bad.
Mandami is de Blasio II for better or worse. That's it.
June 29, 2025 at 11:47 PM
Mandami is de Blasio II for better or worse. That's it.
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
Republicans may lie about what's in their budget bill but the numbers sure don't.
June 29, 2025 at 12:15 AM
Republicans may lie about what's in their budget bill but the numbers sure don't.
What NYC needs, and what will be offered in November, are miles apart at the moment. Management, mental health, property tax reform rather than adding new commitments should be front and center. NYC government is not working well. Still, there's time to learn.
June 25, 2025 at 1:23 PM
What NYC needs, and what will be offered in November, are miles apart at the moment. Management, mental health, property tax reform rather than adding new commitments should be front and center. NYC government is not working well. Still, there's time to learn.
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
For those in the know this is just as big as Cuomo’s concession
June 25, 2025 at 12:07 PM
For those in the know this is just as big as Cuomo’s concession
I long for the old, easy days of Trump I.
April 10, 2025 at 10:34 PM
I long for the old, easy days of Trump I.
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
This government is not legitimate.
"The two-page memo, which was obtained by The Associated Press, does not allege any criminal conduct by Khalil"
"Rather, Rubio wrote Khalil could be expelled for his beliefs."
Free this man immediately.
apnews.com/article/mahm...
"Rather, Rubio wrote Khalil could be expelled for his beliefs."
Free this man immediately.
apnews.com/article/mahm...
Pressed for evidence against Mahmoud Khalil, government cites its power to deport people for beliefs
The U.S. government has submitted a two-page memo from Secretary of State Marco Rubio as its main evidence in its deportation case against Columbia University activist Mahmoud Khalil.
apnews.com
April 10, 2025 at 7:18 PM
This government is not legitimate.
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
👇👇👇👇👇👇
Because he hates America for not giving him that second term, he says it was stolen, but he knows he lost it, he felt humiliated he will punish them just like he punished his wife for suggesting he have scalp replacement. He eventually buried her at his golf course in an untended grave.
April 3, 2025 at 3:43 AM
👇👇👇👇👇👇
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
Vance is lying (again).
Social Security has repeatedly debunked this. The actual claim is that 40 percent of direct deposit fraud occurred via calls to the agency. That is wholly different, and massively less, than 40 percent of calls being fraudulent.
www.nytimes.com/2025/04/01/u...
Social Security has repeatedly debunked this. The actual claim is that 40 percent of direct deposit fraud occurred via calls to the agency. That is wholly different, and massively less, than 40 percent of calls being fraudulent.
www.nytimes.com/2025/04/01/u...
JD Vance straight up lies on Fox & Friends, claims 40 percent of people calling the Social Security hotline are "actually committing fraud."
April 3, 2025 at 1:51 PM
Vance is lying (again).
Social Security has repeatedly debunked this. The actual claim is that 40 percent of direct deposit fraud occurred via calls to the agency. That is wholly different, and massively less, than 40 percent of calls being fraudulent.
www.nytimes.com/2025/04/01/u...
Social Security has repeatedly debunked this. The actual claim is that 40 percent of direct deposit fraud occurred via calls to the agency. That is wholly different, and massively less, than 40 percent of calls being fraudulent.
www.nytimes.com/2025/04/01/u...
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
Single best overview of DOGE I've seen
Today we're publishing a monster feature that dives deep into the initial six weeks over Elon Musk's government takeover. Our entire newsroom came together to help make this story happen. Read this culmination of our blood, sweat, and tears:
Inside Elon Musk’s ‘Digital Coup’
Musk’s loyalists at DOGE have infiltrated dozens of federal agencies, pushed out tens of thousands of workers, and siphoned millions of people’s most sensitive data. The next step: Unleash the AI.
www.wired.com
March 13, 2025 at 7:49 PM
Single best overview of DOGE I've seen
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
Every time you see what sounds like a wild claim about woke research, you can assume a) it will fall apart under the most basic of inspection, b) the person making the claim will never be held accountable for lying, and c) it is a cover to gut useful research that we benefit from.
Trump claimed the Biden administration spent $8 million "making mice transgender." The White House tried to back up this number with records of funding for research into cancer, asthma, and HIV, some of which used *transgenic* (genetically modified) mice.
Trump Decried Millions Spent 'Making Mice Transgender.' It Was Cancer and Asthma Research
President Trump falsely claimed that Biden spent $8 million on 'making mice transgender,' but the real research was for human health.
www.rollingstone.com
March 5, 2025 at 11:57 PM
Every time you see what sounds like a wild claim about woke research, you can assume a) it will fall apart under the most basic of inspection, b) the person making the claim will never be held accountable for lying, and c) it is a cover to gut useful research that we benefit from.
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
This should be the message of every federal Democratic elected official, one should safely ignore the advice of failed mayors like Emanuel with his suggestion to cut losses like abandoning USAID.
March 4, 2025 at 12:04 AM
This should be the message of every federal Democratic elected official, one should safely ignore the advice of failed mayors like Emanuel with his suggestion to cut losses like abandoning USAID.
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
What a disingenuous line this was from Vance today: "you guys are going around...forcing conscripts to the frontlines because you have manpower problems" meduza.io/en/feature/2...
1. Yes, that's how total wars work
2. This admin—like last one—ASKED Ukraine to expand conscription
1. Yes, that's how total wars work
2. This admin—like last one—ASKED Ukraine to expand conscription
February 28, 2025 at 8:59 PM
What a disingenuous line this was from Vance today: "you guys are going around...forcing conscripts to the frontlines because you have manpower problems" meduza.io/en/feature/2...
1. Yes, that's how total wars work
2. This admin—like last one—ASKED Ukraine to expand conscription
1. Yes, that's how total wars work
2. This admin—like last one—ASKED Ukraine to expand conscription
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
Trump Signs Executive Order Making Official Language Of U.S. Remedial English
Trump Signs Executive Order Making Official Language Of U.S. Remedial English
WASHINGTON—In a move designed to promote unity and establish efficiency at the federal level, President Donald Trump signed an executive order Friday making the nation’s official language remedial Eng...
theonion.com
February 28, 2025 at 8:59 PM
Trump Signs Executive Order Making Official Language Of U.S. Remedial English
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
Trumpism and Muskism are similar in that both rely on a shitposting ethos: just spout stuff and keep spouting stuff, don’t think about whether it’s true, the point is to keep spouting stuff. It’s a nihilistic worldview that treats truth with contempt.
Elon Musk falsely accused prominent lawyer and CNN legal analyst Norm Eisen of leading a “crime family” after he discovered a woman with the same last name who worked for an organization that accepted funds from USAID.
The only problem? The woman, Tamar Eisen, is of no relation to Norm Eisen.
The only problem? The woman, Tamar Eisen, is of no relation to Norm Eisen.
Musk Makes Big Mistake While Trying to Smear CNN Legal Analyst
The billionaire DOGE chief found a woman with the same last name as a lawyer he hates. Cue the conspiracy.
www.thedailybeast.com
February 28, 2025 at 3:41 PM
Trumpism and Muskism are similar in that both rely on a shitposting ethos: just spout stuff and keep spouting stuff, don’t think about whether it’s true, the point is to keep spouting stuff. It’s a nihilistic worldview that treats truth with contempt.
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
This is one of the many reasons we need universal healthcare (and universal social safety net programs more generally). When access to support is means-tested, that support becomes stigmatized. And that stigma reinforces the idea that only some people are deserving of dignity.
We’ve got a friend in Wisconsin who said she wasn’t worried about potential cuts to Medicaid because she and her 3 kids don’t need it - they’re on BadgerCare. She was stunned when I told her they were all on Medicaid.
Protecting people from shame by renaming MA has definite downsides.
Protecting people from shame by renaming MA has definite downsides.
Why haven't we seen more backlash against the GOP's proposed cuts to Medicaid? One reason is that people may not know they're on Medicaid, because Medicaid has different names in different states (see 🧵). Another is that some people may not realize that they (or their kids) could qualify.
February 28, 2025 at 12:54 AM
This is one of the many reasons we need universal healthcare (and universal social safety net programs more generally). When access to support is means-tested, that support becomes stigmatized. And that stigma reinforces the idea that only some people are deserving of dignity.
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
New, from me: Tulsi Gabbard purged trans intelligence officers after a Chris Rufo smear campaign.
They were targeted because they were trans, their words were mischaracterized, and they were offered no due process.
donmoynihan.substack.com/p/the-era-of...
They were targeted because they were trans, their words were mischaracterized, and they were offered no due process.
donmoynihan.substack.com/p/the-era-of...
The Era of Purges
The firing of trans officials is part of a broader pattern of exclusion
donmoynihan.substack.com
February 27, 2025 at 3:24 PM
New, from me: Tulsi Gabbard purged trans intelligence officers after a Chris Rufo smear campaign.
They were targeted because they were trans, their words were mischaracterized, and they were offered no due process.
donmoynihan.substack.com/p/the-era-of...
They were targeted because they were trans, their words were mischaracterized, and they were offered no due process.
donmoynihan.substack.com/p/the-era-of...
Thanks Donnie:
"Yosemite National Park is in trouble. Hamstrung by President Donald Trump’s hiring freeze, hundreds of rescinded job offers and the threat of coming layoffs, the park is poised to enter its busiest months of the year severely short-staffed."
--SF Gate
"Yosemite National Park is in trouble. Hamstrung by President Donald Trump’s hiring freeze, hundreds of rescinded job offers and the threat of coming layoffs, the park is poised to enter its busiest months of the year severely short-staffed."
--SF Gate
February 14, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Thanks Donnie:
"Yosemite National Park is in trouble. Hamstrung by President Donald Trump’s hiring freeze, hundreds of rescinded job offers and the threat of coming layoffs, the park is poised to enter its busiest months of the year severely short-staffed."
--SF Gate
"Yosemite National Park is in trouble. Hamstrung by President Donald Trump’s hiring freeze, hundreds of rescinded job offers and the threat of coming layoffs, the park is poised to enter its busiest months of the year severely short-staffed."
--SF Gate
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
the level of corruption unfolding right now will stagger future generations. it will stagger people a month from now.
A little-known office in the FAA safeguards the public during commercial rocket launches. Elon Musk says it works too slow. Now he’s in a position to change that. New:
www.propublica.org/article/elon...
www.propublica.org/article/elon...
One Agency Tried to Regulate SpaceX. Now Its Fate Could Be in Elon Musk’s Hands.
The Trump ally and DOGE chief is expected to turn his budget-slashing sights on the FAA’s little-known commercial spaceflight office, which has proposed fines and grounded SpaceX after explosions and ...
www.propublica.org
February 12, 2025 at 2:48 AM
the level of corruption unfolding right now will stagger future generations. it will stagger people a month from now.
that the boy's gaze is elevated is a relief in this reenactment of the Hans Christian Anderson tale
February 11, 2025 at 11:21 PM
that the boy's gaze is elevated is a relief in this reenactment of the Hans Christian Anderson tale
Reposted by Richard Flanagan
The US spends a small amount of its GDP on foreign aid compared to other major economies. Dismantling USAID won’t help Americans — it’s just cruel & reckless political theatrics.
My @morningjoe-msnbc.bsky.social Chart
My @morningjoe-msnbc.bsky.social Chart
February 4, 2025 at 2:30 PM
The US spends a small amount of its GDP on foreign aid compared to other major economies. Dismantling USAID won’t help Americans — it’s just cruel & reckless political theatrics.
My @morningjoe-msnbc.bsky.social Chart
My @morningjoe-msnbc.bsky.social Chart