Mentioned in this edition: Matt Walsh, Ben Shapiro, Mike Cernovich, Dave Portnoy, Steve Bannon, Jack Posobiec, Kari Lake, Laura Loomer, Russell Brand, and more.

Good morning. Political scientist Ruy Teixeira has some hard truths for Democrats as the party barrels towards disaster. Also, the curious case of Shiloh Hendrix has created a stir among conservatives, with some calling her the right’s Luigi Mangioni. We’ll dive into the controversial debate.

WHAT WE'RE WATCHING

📹 Shiloh Hendricks breaks the right: Shiloh Hendricks, a Minnesota woman who went viral for calling a child the n-word, sparked a fierce debate on the right. After activists targeted her, she raised over $500,000 on GiveSendGo. The Christian fundraising platform defended the campaign on free speech grounds but disabled comments due to an “unacceptable volume of racist” remarks. The incident forced conservatives to confront a hard question: Can you fight cancel culture without defending vile behavior?

🗣️ The debate: Matt Walsh saw an opportunity to break the cycle of outrage mobs, arguing that the backlash should target the activists instead. Ben Shapiro disagreed, calling for conservatives to stop backing bad actors. Zaid Jilani, a liberal, urged people to avoid both canceling and lionizing. Mike Cernovich criticized the discourse entirely, pointing out that “Luigi Mangione [raised] almost one million dollars. So tired of the virtue signalling.”

⚔️ Dave Portnoy’s battle: Students brought a “F*ck Jews” sign to Dave Portnoy’s bar. Portnoy, founder of Barstool Sports, offered to fly them to Auschwitz — an offer they rejected. He then exposed their identities. One student, Mo Kahn, sued him for defamation and appeared on an antisemitic talk show to rant about Jews and Israel. The fringe right defended him. In response, Portnoy released more footage allegedly showing Kahn spitting on people, throwing water on the homeless, dealing drugs, and running sex cam operations.

🥇 The left-wing Pulitzer Prize: The Pulitzer Prizes came and went, largely unnoticed — a reflection of the institution’s declining credibility. The prize committee is stacked with senior staff from liberal outlets like The New York Times and The Atlantic, along with three members still affiliated with Columbia University. This year, the Pulitzers also honored a Palestinian “poet” who mocked Israeli hostages held by Hamas.

🇻🇦 New pope, new politics: Over a week ago, Steve Bannon predicted Robert Francis Prevost a “dark horse” candidate — closely aligned with Pope Francis. Now as Pope Leo XIV, his inauguration is already politicized in the US. Conservative figures like Laura Loomer and Jack Posobiec highlighted his past criticism of Vice President Vance and Trump’s deportation agenda.

WHO WE’RE WATCHING

Mentioned behind the paywall: Kanye West, Russell Brand, Piers Morgan, Lily Gaddis, Kari Lake, Laura Loomer, and Donald Trump.

Will Democrats become more Republican? Ruy Teixeira thinks they must.

The progressive movement that dominated the Democratic Party beginning in the Obama era is rapidly losing ground.

Ideas that once seemed politically unchallengeable on the left — from defunding police to abolishing fossil fuels — have hit a wall of public rejection by the voters.

These ideas were carried by the energy of Black Lives Matter protests, the Squad, and Bernie Sanders-style populism, but are now under attack from left-leaning thought leaders as Democrats struggle to find a leader and a singular message. Right now, they are defined by opposing Trump and the GOP.

Voters overwhelmingly prefer equal opportunity over enforced “equity.” The Democrats’ open-border ideology flooded America with illegal crossings. Now, even Hispanic voters, who have in recent decades been aligned with Democrats, support mass deportation plans.

Progressive prosecutors were elected in major cities, and then ousted as crime rose and voters demanded order. “Defund the police” is political dead weight. Most Americans support more police funding and tougher crime policies, especially nonwhite and working-class voters.

As for the climate agenda and proposals like the Green New Deal, voters are now prioritizing reliable, affordable energy, including oil and gas, not just wind and solar.

Poll after poll shows voters want secure borders, effective policing, fair treatment instead of identity politics, and energy affordability — not revolution.

Progressives misread the public. The public corrected course.

So, as the Democratic Party’s progressive momentum fades, some of its top thinkers are trying to regain stability by returning to the political center.

One of the most prominent voices in that effort is Ruy Teixeira, a seasoned political scientist and commentator whose ideas on elections carry real weight. Many of the party’s top leaders listen to him. He’s also the founder of the excellent, thought-provoking The Liberal Patriot. You can read it here.

What comes next is far from certain. The progressive takeover of the Democratic Party wasn’t slow or orderly — it was fast, sweeping, and spread like a virus, often through decentralized movements. So now the question is: Can a top-down reset actually cure the Democrats of their woke fever? And if so, what would that even look like?

One idea gaining traction is called “abundance.” The name is odd, but it’s being pushed by some thought leaders like Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson as a new governing philosophy: a strong central government that actually works — efficient, competent, and effective.

But that may be a tough sell. The Democrats have long embraced big government, and the result has been the opposite of abundance: bloated, wasteful, and broken systems. It’s hard to imagine the same people who created the mess being the ones to fix it.

I spoke to Ruy to get all these questions answered.

MEDIA BIAS SPOTTER

How left and right outlets frame Dave Portnoy and the antisemitic sign

Mentioned behind the paywall: MSNBC, The New York Times, Breitbart, and Fox News.

THE DAILY DEBATE

POLL RESULTS FROM YESTERDAY

Should the US get further involved in the India-Pakistan conflict?

⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 👍 Yes (97)
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 👎 No (871)
⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🤔 Unsure (87)
⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 💬 Other (16)

POP QUIZ

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