Rory Truex
@rorytruex.bsky.social
Associate Professor of Politics and International Affairs at Princeton, host of The Civic Forum podcast (https://www.youtube.com/user/rorytruex). Subscribe on Substack: https://rorytruex.substack.com/
Pinned
The Civic Forum 🚨NEW EPISODE🚨
This week I spoke with Stephen Cash of the @thesteadystate.org on the authoritarian threats posed by Trump, the rise of ICE, how the intelligence community has changed under Trump 2.0, and the consequences for national security and democracy.
Link in the replies 👇
This week I spoke with Stephen Cash of the @thesteadystate.org on the authoritarian threats posed by Trump, the rise of ICE, how the intelligence community has changed under Trump 2.0, and the consequences for national security and democracy.
Link in the replies 👇
The Civic Forum 🚨NEW EPISODE🚨
This week I spoke with Stephen Cash of the @thesteadystate.org on the authoritarian threats posed by Trump, the rise of ICE, how the intelligence community has changed under Trump 2.0, and the consequences for national security and democracy.
Link in the replies 👇
This week I spoke with Stephen Cash of the @thesteadystate.org on the authoritarian threats posed by Trump, the rise of ICE, how the intelligence community has changed under Trump 2.0, and the consequences for national security and democracy.
Link in the replies 👇
February 9, 2026 at 4:20 PM
The Civic Forum 🚨NEW EPISODE🚨
This week I spoke with Stephen Cash of the @thesteadystate.org on the authoritarian threats posed by Trump, the rise of ICE, how the intelligence community has changed under Trump 2.0, and the consequences for national security and democracy.
Link in the replies 👇
This week I spoke with Stephen Cash of the @thesteadystate.org on the authoritarian threats posed by Trump, the rise of ICE, how the intelligence community has changed under Trump 2.0, and the consequences for national security and democracy.
Link in the replies 👇
Reposted by Rory Truex
Why does the United States need to better understand China?
Rory Truex (@princeton.edu) joined us to discuss the high barriers to studying China and the consequences a lack of China expertise could have for the future of U.S. foreign policy.
▶️ Watch: https://www.ncuscr.org/video/china-expertise/
Rory Truex (@princeton.edu) joined us to discuss the high barriers to studying China and the consequences a lack of China expertise could have for the future of U.S. foreign policy.
▶️ Watch: https://www.ncuscr.org/video/china-expertise/
Why the United States Needs China Expertise
Rory Truex shares barriers to studying China and the consequences a lack of China expertise could have for the future of U.S. foreign policy.
www.ncuscr.org
February 6, 2026 at 9:20 PM
Why does the United States need to better understand China?
Rory Truex (@princeton.edu) joined us to discuss the high barriers to studying China and the consequences a lack of China expertise could have for the future of U.S. foreign policy.
▶️ Watch: https://www.ncuscr.org/video/china-expertise/
Rory Truex (@princeton.edu) joined us to discuss the high barriers to studying China and the consequences a lack of China expertise could have for the future of U.S. foreign policy.
▶️ Watch: https://www.ncuscr.org/video/china-expertise/
Reposted by Rory Truex
You should read this. It is the type of detail that experts in authoritarian regimes see as telling.
In this case, state agents are offered impunity from higher ups, and the legal system is rendered inoperative as a mode of accountability.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/07/u...
In this case, state agents are offered impunity from higher ups, and the legal system is rendered inoperative as a mode of accountability.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/07/u...
Prosecutors Began Investigating Renee Good’s Killing. Washington Told Them to Stop.
www.nytimes.com
February 7, 2026 at 4:47 PM
You should read this. It is the type of detail that experts in authoritarian regimes see as telling.
In this case, state agents are offered impunity from higher ups, and the legal system is rendered inoperative as a mode of accountability.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/07/u...
In this case, state agents are offered impunity from higher ups, and the legal system is rendered inoperative as a mode of accountability.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/07/u...
Reposted by Rory Truex
The top fraud experts in the office left. So did...a veteran in prosecuting sex crimes & child pornography cases. Calhoun-Lopez, who oversaw the major violent crimes unit, also departed. “It will take years to build the contacts in state and local law enforcement that has been lost,” Mr. Luger said.
Prosecutors Began Investigating Renee Good’s Killing. Washington Told Them to Stop.
www.nytimes.com
February 7, 2026 at 2:14 PM
The top fraud experts in the office left. So did...a veteran in prosecuting sex crimes & child pornography cases. Calhoun-Lopez, who oversaw the major violent crimes unit, also departed. “It will take years to build the contacts in state and local law enforcement that has been lost,” Mr. Luger said.
Reposted by Rory Truex
Name them
shame them
shame them
February 5, 2026 at 2:30 PM
Name them
shame them
shame them
Reposted by Rory Truex
The majority of organizing happening in Minnesota isn’t just peaceful, it’s INVISIBLE. Moms showing up who won’t be interviewed on TV, people whose ICE patrols don’t turn into viral video. The grocery runs, the donations, the people filming bc they happen to be there. Please remember this.
January 25, 2026 at 5:00 PM
The majority of organizing happening in Minnesota isn’t just peaceful, it’s INVISIBLE. Moms showing up who won’t be interviewed on TV, people whose ICE patrols don’t turn into viral video. The grocery runs, the donations, the people filming bc they happen to be there. Please remember this.
Reposted by Rory Truex
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara: "People have had enough. This is the third shooting in less than 3 weeks. The MPD went the entire year last year recovering about 900 guns from the street, arresting hundreds of violent offenders, and we didn't shoot anyone ... this is not sustainable."
January 25, 2026 at 3:47 PM
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara: "People have had enough. This is the third shooting in less than 3 weeks. The MPD went the entire year last year recovering about 900 guns from the street, arresting hundreds of violent offenders, and we didn't shoot anyone ... this is not sustainable."
Reposted by Rory Truex
Just staggered by the complete moral void of not even *pretending* to wait for more information before pivoting to “the opponent of the state deserved it.” It is so insanely depraved. Soulless.
January 24, 2026 at 7:34 PM
Just staggered by the complete moral void of not even *pretending* to wait for more information before pivoting to “the opponent of the state deserved it.” It is so insanely depraved. Soulless.
From Civic Forum interview with Paul Poast:
"Go back to 1895, New York. Find a businessman, bring him to the present, make him president of the United States, and then ask yourself what would make sense to him and what would make no sense to him."
open.spotify.com/episode/6836...
"Go back to 1895, New York. Find a businessman, bring him to the present, make him president of the United States, and then ask yourself what would make sense to him and what would make no sense to him."
open.spotify.com/episode/6836...
Trump and the New International (Dis)order | E21: Paul Poast, University of Chicago
Spotify video
open.spotify.com
January 20, 2026 at 6:05 PM
From Civic Forum interview with Paul Poast:
"Go back to 1895, New York. Find a businessman, bring him to the present, make him president of the United States, and then ask yourself what would make sense to him and what would make no sense to him."
open.spotify.com/episode/6836...
"Go back to 1895, New York. Find a businessman, bring him to the present, make him president of the United States, and then ask yourself what would make sense to him and what would make no sense to him."
open.spotify.com/episode/6836...
Reposted by Rory Truex
This has been the plan all along.
- Foment violence and chaos in the streets of MN
- Implement the Insurrection Act
- Declare Martial Law
- Suspend elections
- Foment violence and chaos in the streets of MN
- Implement the Insurrection Act
- Declare Martial Law
- Suspend elections
January 15, 2026 at 1:57 PM
This has been the plan all along.
- Foment violence and chaos in the streets of MN
- Implement the Insurrection Act
- Declare Martial Law
- Suspend elections
- Foment violence and chaos in the streets of MN
- Implement the Insurrection Act
- Declare Martial Law
- Suspend elections
Reposted by Rory Truex
@chrislhayes.bsky.social: “A 37-year-old American citizen, the mother of a young child is dead tonight. She was shot in the face by an agent of the federal government, and that government has spent the day telling despicable lies about her.”
January 8, 2026 at 1:05 AM
@chrislhayes.bsky.social: “A 37-year-old American citizen, the mother of a young child is dead tonight. She was shot in the face by an agent of the federal government, and that government has spent the day telling despicable lies about her.”
Reposted by Rory Truex
I am impeaching Secretary Kristi Noem, who is an incompetent leader and a disgrace to our democracy.
She wreaked havoc in the Chicagoland area and has brought her reign of terror to Minneapolis. One of her rogue ICE agents shot and killed an innocent woman today. It must come to an end.
She wreaked havoc in the Chicagoland area and has brought her reign of terror to Minneapolis. One of her rogue ICE agents shot and killed an innocent woman today. It must come to an end.
January 8, 2026 at 12:00 AM
I am impeaching Secretary Kristi Noem, who is an incompetent leader and a disgrace to our democracy.
She wreaked havoc in the Chicagoland area and has brought her reign of terror to Minneapolis. One of her rogue ICE agents shot and killed an innocent woman today. It must come to an end.
She wreaked havoc in the Chicagoland area and has brought her reign of terror to Minneapolis. One of her rogue ICE agents shot and killed an innocent woman today. It must come to an end.
Reposted by Rory Truex
You and your wife drop your 6-year-old off at school. You just moved here. You see ICE terrorizing your new neighbors. You film them, as is your legal right. Your wife complies with orders. She is then shot in the head. You still have to pick up your child later today.
This could be you.
This could be you.
January 8, 2026 at 12:15 AM
You and your wife drop your 6-year-old off at school. You just moved here. You see ICE terrorizing your new neighbors. You film them, as is your legal right. Your wife complies with orders. She is then shot in the head. You still have to pick up your child later today.
This could be you.
This could be you.
I wrote up a Year in Review for 2025, “Our Authoritarian Year.” So much has happened, I tried to synthesize the story into chapters— The Authoritarian Onslaught, Overreach, Popular Backlash, and Defection. I am optimistic about the chapters to come in 2026.
open.substack.com/pub/rorytrue...
open.substack.com/pub/rorytrue...
Our Authoritarian Year: 2025 in Review
I will forever remember 2025 as the year when Americans got a taste of what it is like to live under an authoritarian government.
open.substack.com
January 5, 2026 at 10:54 PM
I wrote up a Year in Review for 2025, “Our Authoritarian Year.” So much has happened, I tried to synthesize the story into chapters— The Authoritarian Onslaught, Overreach, Popular Backlash, and Defection. I am optimistic about the chapters to come in 2026.
open.substack.com/pub/rorytrue...
open.substack.com/pub/rorytrue...
Reposted by Rory Truex
The White House claims the vote to rename the Kennedy Center was “unanimous.” That is false. I was muted on the call and denied the opportunity to speak or register my opposition. That is not consensus. That is censorship.
December 18, 2025 at 7:42 PM
The White House claims the vote to rename the Kennedy Center was “unanimous.” That is false. I was muted on the call and denied the opportunity to speak or register my opposition. That is not consensus. That is censorship.
Reposted by Rory Truex
My conversation with Princeton Professor Rory Truex on the American confrontation with Venezuela: where it's coming from and where it could be headed
Will Maduro hold onto power? Why is Trump so interested in Venezeula? What are the best paths forward for the Venezuelan people? @mikealbertus.bsky.social came on The Civic Forum this week to break down all things Venezuela. Available wherever you get your pods: youtu.be/iHTnb2wO2SA
Trump, Maduro, and the Crisis in Venezuela | Michael Albertus, UChicago
YouTube video by The Civic Forum
youtu.be
December 18, 2025 at 2:30 PM
My conversation with Princeton Professor Rory Truex on the American confrontation with Venezuela: where it's coming from and where it could be headed
Will Maduro hold onto power? Why is Trump so interested in Venezeula? What are the best paths forward for the Venezuelan people? @mikealbertus.bsky.social came on The Civic Forum this week to break down all things Venezuela. Available wherever you get your pods: youtu.be/iHTnb2wO2SA
Trump, Maduro, and the Crisis in Venezuela | Michael Albertus, UChicago
YouTube video by The Civic Forum
youtu.be
December 16, 2025 at 8:52 PM
Will Maduro hold onto power? Why is Trump so interested in Venezeula? What are the best paths forward for the Venezuelan people? @mikealbertus.bsky.social came on The Civic Forum this week to break down all things Venezuela. Available wherever you get your pods: youtu.be/iHTnb2wO2SA
Reposted by Rory Truex
Just when I thought I couldn't admire the man more...
🎯 🎯 🎯 💯 💯 💯 👍 👍 👍
🎯 🎯 🎯 💯 💯 💯 👍 👍 👍
December 13, 2025 at 6:58 PM
Just when I thought I couldn't admire the man more...
🎯 🎯 🎯 💯 💯 💯 👍 👍 👍
🎯 🎯 🎯 💯 💯 💯 👍 👍 👍
Reposted by Rory Truex
MAGAZINER: How many veterans have you deported?
NOEM: We haven't deported veterans
MAGAZINER: We are now joined on Zoom by a combat veteran you deported to Korea
NOEM: We haven't deported veterans
MAGAZINER: We are now joined on Zoom by a combat veteran you deported to Korea
December 11, 2025 at 4:22 PM
MAGAZINER: How many veterans have you deported?
NOEM: We haven't deported veterans
MAGAZINER: We are now joined on Zoom by a combat veteran you deported to Korea
NOEM: We haven't deported veterans
MAGAZINER: We are now joined on Zoom by a combat veteran you deported to Korea
Last week I had @jakemgrumbach.bsky.social on The Civic Forum to talk about the state of American democracy, and the role that state politics is playing in our authoritarian turn. Particularly relevant for the unfolding situation in Texas. youtu.be/tbxCMSwJ-o4
Is American Democracy Failing at the State Level? | Jake Grumbach, UC Berkeley
YouTube video by The Civic Forum
youtu.be
December 10, 2025 at 4:46 PM
Last week I had @jakemgrumbach.bsky.social on The Civic Forum to talk about the state of American democracy, and the role that state politics is playing in our authoritarian turn. Particularly relevant for the unfolding situation in Texas. youtu.be/tbxCMSwJ-o4
Reposted by Rory Truex
🚨 Excited that "Making Bribery Profitable Again? The Market Effects of Suspending Accountability for Overseas Bribery" by Eddy Malesky, Lucio Picci, and me has been published in FirstView at @iojournal.bsky.social!
Open Access: doi.org/10.1017/S002... 1/n
Open Access: doi.org/10.1017/S002... 1/n
Making Bribery Profitable Again? The Market Effects of Suspending Accountability for Overseas Bribery | International Organization | Cambridge Core
Making Bribery Profitable Again? The Market Effects of Suspending Accountability for Overseas Bribery
doi.org
December 10, 2025 at 11:10 AM
🚨 Excited that "Making Bribery Profitable Again? The Market Effects of Suspending Accountability for Overseas Bribery" by Eddy Malesky, Lucio Picci, and me has been published in FirstView at @iojournal.bsky.social!
Open Access: doi.org/10.1017/S002... 1/n
Open Access: doi.org/10.1017/S002... 1/n
Reposted by Rory Truex
Was on Civic Forum with @rorytruex.bsky.social talking about US democracy. We talked about political inequality & minority rule in the US, with a focus on my research on the states. But then talk about what's new in the more acute democracy crisis of 2025
www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbxC...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbxC...
Is American Democracy Failing at the State Level? | Jake Grumbach, UC Berkeley
YouTube video by The Civic Forum
www.youtube.com
December 5, 2025 at 1:13 AM
Was on Civic Forum with @rorytruex.bsky.social talking about US democracy. We talked about political inequality & minority rule in the US, with a focus on my research on the states. But then talk about what's new in the more acute democracy crisis of 2025
www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbxC...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbxC...
Here's a new session of The Civic Forum with the great @debpearlstein.bsky.social on how the U.S. is "losing the law." We talk about how the courts and legal norms have changed, the implications for our democracy, and possible paths to reform. open.spotify.com/episode/4pyY...
Spotify – Web Player
open.spotify.com
November 6, 2025 at 7:12 PM
Here's a new session of The Civic Forum with the great @debpearlstein.bsky.social on how the U.S. is "losing the law." We talk about how the courts and legal norms have changed, the implications for our democracy, and possible paths to reform. open.spotify.com/episode/4pyY...
Reposted by Rory Truex
A coalition that ranges from democratic socialists to neoconservatives, including a lot of energized liberals in between, is large and formidable.
A big pro-democracy tent. A united front. Any internal disagreements can be hashed out once the authoritarian emergency is over.
This really can work.
A big pro-democracy tent. A united front. Any internal disagreements can be hashed out once the authoritarian emergency is over.
This really can work.
November 5, 2025 at 2:15 PM
A coalition that ranges from democratic socialists to neoconservatives, including a lot of energized liberals in between, is large and formidable.
A big pro-democracy tent. A united front. Any internal disagreements can be hashed out once the authoritarian emergency is over.
This really can work.
A big pro-democracy tent. A united front. Any internal disagreements can be hashed out once the authoritarian emergency is over.
This really can work.
Had a great conversation with @leedrutman.bsky.social on the need for political reform in the US. Lee has been a long time proponent of proportional representation, along with other reforms like fusion voting and expanding Congress that can improve representation. open.spotify.com/episode/3DLo...
Breaking the Two Party Doom Loop with Lee Drutman | The Civic Forum E12
Spotify video
open.spotify.com
October 31, 2025 at 5:26 PM
Had a great conversation with @leedrutman.bsky.social on the need for political reform in the US. Lee has been a long time proponent of proportional representation, along with other reforms like fusion voting and expanding Congress that can improve representation. open.spotify.com/episode/3DLo...