Julia Payne
@jmpayne24.bsky.social
Managing Editor, The Contrarian
IN PLAY, (RUNS)
IN PLAY, (RUNS)
Reposted by Julia Payne
A reminder that seven years ago almost to the day, the CIA determined that Mohammed Bin Salman ordered the killing of @washingtonpost.com journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
I hired and worked with Jamal for a year.
www.washingtonpost.com/world/nation...
I hired and worked with Jamal for a year.
www.washingtonpost.com/world/nation...
CIA concludes Saudi crown prince ordered Jamal Khashoggi’s assassination
Audio recordings, intercepted phone calls and other intelligence link Mohammed bin Salman to killing that Saudis say was conducted by rogue elements.
www.washingtonpost.com
November 18, 2025 at 6:05 PM
A reminder that seven years ago almost to the day, the CIA determined that Mohammed Bin Salman ordered the killing of @washingtonpost.com journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
I hired and worked with Jamal for a year.
www.washingtonpost.com/world/nation...
I hired and worked with Jamal for a year.
www.washingtonpost.com/world/nation...
Reposted by Julia Payne
Spanberger crowd in Falls Church
November 2, 2025 at 9:57 PM
Spanberger crowd in Falls Church
Reposted by Julia Payne
With SNAP expiring this week, millions are about to lose food assistance — and Trump is refusing to use emergency funds to stop it. Rep. Chellie Pingree @pingree.house.gov explains.
https://contrarian.substack.com/p/no-snap-no-food-rep-pingree-on-the
https://contrarian.substack.com/p/no-snap-no-food-rep-pingree-on-the
No SNAP, No Food, Rep. Pingree Slams MAGA GOP for Cutting Off Food
"It's about as mean and cruel as anything you can imagine."
contrarian.substack.com
October 29, 2025 at 2:03 PM
With SNAP expiring this week, millions are about to lose food assistance — and Trump is refusing to use emergency funds to stop it. Rep. Chellie Pingree @pingree.house.gov explains.
https://contrarian.substack.com/p/no-snap-no-food-rep-pingree-on-the
https://contrarian.substack.com/p/no-snap-no-food-rep-pingree-on-the
Reposted by Julia Payne
The violent madness of ICE.
Words & Phrases We Could Do Without
'ICE'? More like 'goons'
contrarian.substack.com
October 28, 2025 at 12:30 PM
The violent madness of ICE.
Reposted by Julia Payne
UPDATE: More donors funding the demolition of the East Wing for Trump's $250M ballroom have been identified
October 22, 2025 at 8:10 PM
UPDATE: More donors funding the demolition of the East Wing for Trump's $250M ballroom have been identified
Reposted by Julia Payne
BOYCOTT THEM ALL. The Jets and Bucs are my new least favorite football teams
UPDATE: More donors funding the demolition of the East Wing for Trump's $250M ballroom have been identified
October 22, 2025 at 8:13 PM
BOYCOTT THEM ALL. The Jets and Bucs are my new least favorite football teams
Reposted by Julia Payne
The New York ****ing Jets are sponsoring the demolition of the White House. Ofc they are.
Garbage franchise doing garbage things.
Garbage franchise doing garbage things.
UPDATE: More donors funding the demolition of the East Wing for Trump's $250M ballroom have been identified
October 22, 2025 at 9:15 PM
The New York ****ing Jets are sponsoring the demolition of the White House. Ofc they are.
Garbage franchise doing garbage things.
Garbage franchise doing garbage things.
Reposted by Julia Payne
Joyce is a voice of reason, sanity and hope in our time. Now she has a book with lessons from American history about how we can overcome threats to our common democracy. Read it!
It’s book launch day for Giving Up Is Unforgivable: A Manual For Keeping A Democracy, my first book. I hope you’ll read it or listen to it. a.co/d/43dbybC
October 21, 2025 at 7:12 PM
Joyce is a voice of reason, sanity and hope in our time. Now she has a book with lessons from American history about how we can overcome threats to our common democracy. Read it!
Reposted by Julia Payne
It's so good! Friends please do yourself a favor and please check out the great @joycewhitevance.bsky.social's new book *A Manual for Keeping a Democracy*
Available at your favorite online or neighborhood bookstore or here 👉 www.amazon.com/Giving-Up-Un...
Available at your favorite online or neighborhood bookstore or here 👉 www.amazon.com/Giving-Up-Un...
October 21, 2025 at 1:30 PM
It's so good! Friends please do yourself a favor and please check out the great @joycewhitevance.bsky.social's new book *A Manual for Keeping a Democracy*
Available at your favorite online or neighborhood bookstore or here 👉 www.amazon.com/Giving-Up-Un...
Available at your favorite online or neighborhood bookstore or here 👉 www.amazon.com/Giving-Up-Un...
Reposted by Julia Payne
It’s book launch day for Giving Up Is Unforgivable: A Manual For Keeping A Democracy, my first book. I hope you’ll read it or listen to it. a.co/d/43dbybC
October 21, 2025 at 1:23 PM
It’s book launch day for Giving Up Is Unforgivable: A Manual For Keeping A Democracy, my first book. I hope you’ll read it or listen to it. a.co/d/43dbybC
Reposted by Julia Payne
NEW: The government does not track how often immigration agents grab citizens. So ProPublica did.
We found more than 170 such incidents since the start of the second Trump administration. Our tally — almost certainly incomplete — includes nearly 20 children, two of whom have cancer.
We found more than 170 such incidents since the start of the second Trump administration. Our tally — almost certainly incomplete — includes nearly 20 children, two of whom have cancer.
More Than 170 U.S. Citizens Have Been Held by Immigration Agents. They’ve Been Kicked, Dragged and Detained for Days.
The government does not track how often immigration agents grab citizens. So ProPublica did. Our tally — almost certainly incomplete — includes people who were held for days without a lawyer. And near...
www.propublica.org
October 16, 2025 at 4:01 PM
NEW: The government does not track how often immigration agents grab citizens. So ProPublica did.
We found more than 170 such incidents since the start of the second Trump administration. Our tally — almost certainly incomplete — includes nearly 20 children, two of whom have cancer.
We found more than 170 such incidents since the start of the second Trump administration. Our tally — almost certainly incomplete — includes nearly 20 children, two of whom have cancer.
Reposted by Julia Payne
His name was Peter. Shalise Manza Young shares his story.
What you see if you look long enough
A photo of a formerly enslaved man is dangerous to a regime that wants regression, not progress.
contrarian.substack.com
September 24, 2025 at 9:33 PM
His name was Peter. Shalise Manza Young shares his story.
Reposted by Julia Payne
Governor J.B. Pritzker gives us hope. In this exclusive piece for The Contrarian, he calls on us to work together to reaffirm the values that actually make our country great.
A must-read:
A must-read:
Be Loud — For America
By Governor JB Pritzker
contrarian.substack.com
September 19, 2025 at 6:14 PM
Governor J.B. Pritzker gives us hope. In this exclusive piece for The Contrarian, he calls on us to work together to reaffirm the values that actually make our country great.
A must-read:
A must-read:
Reposted by Julia Payne
Trump Administration Live Updates: President Says Broadcasters Should Lose Licenses for Criticizing Him .. that is fascism folks www.nytimes.com/live/2025/09...
Trump Administration Live Updates: President Says Broadcasters Should Lose Licenses for Criticizing Him
www.nytimes.com
September 18, 2025 at 7:46 PM
Trump Administration Live Updates: President Says Broadcasters Should Lose Licenses for Criticizing Him .. that is fascism folks www.nytimes.com/live/2025/09...
Reposted by Julia Payne
Yesterday Trump announced he will designate Antifa as a terrorist organization. Only there is no such organization, as outlined repeatedly the last time he tried this in 2020.
So who is he really targeting? Anyone who dissents.
So who is he really targeting? Anyone who dissents.
September 18, 2025 at 7:02 PM
Yesterday Trump announced he will designate Antifa as a terrorist organization. Only there is no such organization, as outlined repeatedly the last time he tried this in 2020.
So who is he really targeting? Anyone who dissents.
So who is he really targeting? Anyone who dissents.
Reposted by Julia Payne
Trump lawyer Cleta Mitchell says Trump may try to declare a “national sovereignty” crisis in 2026 to claim “emergency powers” over elections and override the states
September 5, 2025 at 6:23 PM
Trump lawyer Cleta Mitchell says Trump may try to declare a “national sovereignty” crisis in 2026 to claim “emergency powers” over elections and override the states
Reposted by Julia Payne
"You Are a Hazard to the Health of the American People"
RFK Jr. Goes to Washington DC
RFK Jr. Goes to Washington DC
September 5, 2025 at 11:22 PM
"You Are a Hazard to the Health of the American People"
RFK Jr. Goes to Washington DC
RFK Jr. Goes to Washington DC
Reposted by Julia Payne
Via "One First," my quick stab at the legal authority President Trump will likely claim allows him to deploy un-federalized Texas National Guard troops to Illinois; why such a deployment without Illinois's consent *ought* to be unlawful; and the options Illinois will have for litigating that issue:
176. Illinois v. Texas
A quick look at President Trump's (apparent) plan to send uninvited and un-federalized Texas National Guard troops into Illinois—and how it could (and maybe should) quickly end up in the Supreme Court
www.stevevladeck.com
September 3, 2025 at 12:02 AM
Via "One First," my quick stab at the legal authority President Trump will likely claim allows him to deploy un-federalized Texas National Guard troops to Illinois; why such a deployment without Illinois's consent *ought* to be unlawful; and the options Illinois will have for litigating that issue:
A must watch @mitchlandrieu.bsky.social is phenomenal open.substack.com/pub/contrari...
A 20 year retrospective: Mitch Landrieu on the legacy of Hurricane Katrina
"They're absolutely awful at coming up with a solution to the problem...and they just happen to be really bad at governing well."
open.substack.com
August 29, 2025 at 4:02 PM
A must watch @mitchlandrieu.bsky.social is phenomenal open.substack.com/pub/contrari...
Reposted by Julia Payne
If Swifties get it, why can’t Trump and corporate America?
August 27, 2025 at 8:03 PM
If Swifties get it, why can’t Trump and corporate America?
"They were losers, Pete." open.substack.com/pub/contrari...
Pete Hegseth made clear whose history he celebrates
When he says “we recognize our history,” the “we” is white people recognizing their history in this country.
open.substack.com
August 19, 2025 at 3:46 PM
"They were losers, Pete." open.substack.com/pub/contrari...
Reposted by Julia Payne
Trump has a pattern when it comes to powerful Black women. Carron J. Phillips explains how Muriel Bowser, Letitia James, and others have found themselves in his crosshairs.
Muriel Bowser, Letitia James, and the hazards of being a Black woman in power
D.C.’s mayor and New York’s AG are under scrutiny, and we all know why.
contrarian.substack.com
August 15, 2025 at 2:05 PM
Trump has a pattern when it comes to powerful Black women. Carron J. Phillips explains how Muriel Bowser, Letitia James, and others have found themselves in his crosshairs.
Reposted by Julia Payne
"He [Guthrie] set out to tell stories he thought were important, to resist oppression and greed, to use songs as a way to sort out his feelings and ideas, and to build connection."
Woody Guthrie used songs to sort out his feelings and ideas, and to build connection
A new collection of Guthrie's music and lyrics opens a window into the artist's storytelling.
contrarian.substack.com
August 15, 2025 at 3:00 PM
"He [Guthrie] set out to tell stories he thought were important, to resist oppression and greed, to use songs as a way to sort out his feelings and ideas, and to build connection."