Event and Update
January 24, 2025
It’s been a bit since I’ve posted an update - trying to get back on a more regular pace now that we’re in a new year with a new President and Congress. In addition to events and headlines about the White House and Congress, I will look for items that might fall below the national radar - both good and bad.
Event
The Ethics of Progressive
Political Opposition
On Thurs, Jan 30 at 1p ET on zoom, I’ll talk to Jennifer Jenkins, founder of Educated We Stand and Anna Hochkhammer, head of the Florida Women’s Freedom Coalition about what effective and ethical opposition advocacy looks like. Details and registration here.
Good News
ScamPACs and SMS abuse
Tim Lim, a candidate for Finance Committee chair at the Democratic National Committee wants to go after “ScamPACs” and SMS abuse. This is very inside baseball, and I am not endorsing Tim, but it’s important to note that someone who wants be part of the DNC’s leadership thinks how they raise money and talk to voters matters. Tim raised this on LinkedIn, you can read the post here.
Civil Religion as an Ethical Foundation
Prophetic or humble American civil religion provides one grounding for ethical political communication. Presidential inaugural addresses are where visions of American civil religion are often expressed. Before President Trump took the oath of office for the second time, I offered this hopeful (if skeptical) take on what he could say. Arizona State University professor John Carlson wrote about the speech that Trump actually gave, rather than the one I hoped he would give. Carlson argues that my skepticism was warranted. In Carlson’s words, “In Trump, we have abandoned our civil religion.”