matthewcebul.bsky.social
Political scientist studying civil resistance, democratic erosion, and US foreign policy in the Middle East. Lead Research Fellow at HKS Nonviolent Action Lab; formerly US Institute of Peace.
Lives for Korra the cat, epic fantasy, and "draw a card."
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I'm genuinely in favor of coopting Trump's use of the simplest possible words in the English language to make your point, especially if you repeat it another thousand times or so
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Agreed - accountability vs. impartiality is in real tension.
I doubt democracy can survive repeated failures of accountability. Telling voters that Dems will make Patel and co pay for their crimes is appropriate -- how else are we to deter future violations? But it's also uncomfortably partisan.
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*Stares in Yosemite*
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They are all clearly anticipating the inevitable blanket Trump pardons, but that is not a good reason to just Give Up On Politics for the next four years while the country burns
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idk what any of this actually means but it sure seems like it warrants a Congressional Investigation into CORRUPT INSIDER TRADING AT THE WHITE HOUSE
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I also suspect that the Trump admin is *dramatically* underestimating foreign toughness in search of quick wins. Sure, collective action problems are real, but foreign countries are powerfully incentivized to help China punish Trump for this, and their publics are likely supportive (see: Canada).
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Yup! The media is just stubbornly refusing to cover popular resistance to Trump accurately — I think in part because *institutional* resistance to Trump has been more muted this time around.
That might change after this weekend, though.
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I guess all I’m really trying to say is:
Have some faith in your fellow Americans. We've always been in this for the long haul.
Also, hire me.
\end
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I see a historic deluge of mass protest.
I see fired DC bureaucrats throwing themselves into local public service.
I see communities rallying to protect the most vulnerable.
I see countless individual acts of principled, patriotic defiance.
And I know: we are devoted. We will endure.
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Instead, I choose to believe that American democracy will recover – battered, but at its core resilient.
Not because the ‘moral arc of the universe’ is destined to bend.
But because millions of Americans are already working to restore liberal democracy – our sacred birthright – together.
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So:
Keep the moral outrage.
But don't ever let go of the belief that we will one day live up to our promise.
I won't abandon patriotism just because some rich asshole took the government for a joyride.
Because walking away is loser shit, and you all deserve better than that from me.
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Lincoln glares out at the mall in solemn, implacable challenge:
“We endured. Will you?”
Profane his temple with cynical fatalism, and I guarantee that you will leave ashamed.
No, Lincoln demands resolve. Anything less dishonors the millions of Americans who lived and died for our ideals.
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But nihilism? No.
I’m sorry, but I just can’t accept that. Not ever.
Defeatism is undignified.
It is un-American.
It is beneath you, and beneath us.
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You’re upset? Good. You should be.
These are bleak times. Ignorant, hateful illiberalism is attacking our society and corroding our way of life.
That is a difficult truth to bear, and it is appropriate to grieve what we’ve already lost; to dread the generational struggle that looms before us.
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Their fortitude has inspired generations to pursue a truly worthy national project:
Liberty. For All.
That great purpose has abided through our failures, our lowest moments. It has inexorably bound us, even when we knew that we would not live to see the dream fulfilled.
*Especially* then.
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They lived through grave, desperate times, yet kept their faith.
They refused to give up on us, even when their fellow Americans deserted them.
They didn’t shirk or make excuses for their sorry circumstances.
They were ordinary people who embraced extraordinary devotion to our cause.
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We know that the American pantheon obscures as much of our history as it celebrates – our democracy is hardly as exceptional or unblemished as we want to believe.
Yet for all their failings, those we choose to honor on the mall collectively embody a profound virtue:
Endurance.
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During hard times here in DC, I find myself gravitating towards the national mall.
My typical running loop visits monuments to the Vietnam War, WWII, Washington, Jefferson, FDR, MLK Jr., and Lincoln.
Visiting the memorials has always been a deeply humbling experience for me.
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But setting USIP’s fate aside, the past few weeks have pushed me to reflect on what it means to love and serve a democracy in crisis, and what this moment asks of us.
I’ve found some personal clarity on that front (in stereotypically cringe DC fashion).
Walk with me for a minute…
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