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This week, Ben Shapiro gave a blistering speech at the Turning Point USA “AmericaFest” in which he called out conspiracy theorists and antisemites, like Candace Owens, on the MAGA right. He was applauded for it in some quarters, but it just pissed me off. What he’s saying now has been obvious for at least the last seven or eight years. The right, including Shapiro himself, didn’t suddenly stumble into conspiracism or dishonesty; it embraced it, monetized it, and defended it every time someone tried to call it out. So Shapiro’s consternation is too little and too late, as far as I’m concerned. He had a microphone this whole time and knew exactly what was happening.
This isn’t about “deplatforming,” as the contemptible Tucker Carlson is accusing Shapiro of. It’s about values. It’s about who you let in the door and what you’ll allow to represent you. And here’s the part that really gets me: not only is Shapiro’s consternation too little, too late, it is utterly incomplete. While it’s absolutely right to call out charlatans and conspiracists like Owens and Carlson, let’s be honest about where that rot leads. The President and Vice President of the United States fit that description perfectly—they too are charlatans and conspiracists. Yet Shapiro continues to support them.
You can’t condemn the culture while excusing the people at the very top who normalize it. You don’t get to draw a moral line that conveniently stops right before it costs you influence, access, or followers. If Shapiro is serious about saving conservatism—or just basic truth—then everyone, especially the lead conspiracists, must be held to the same standard, no matter how powerful or politically useful they are. Calling out grifters is meaningless if you keep propping up the biggest ones because they wear your team’s jersey.
This Past Week
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A Special Christmas Offer from Santa Joe!
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Click the button below, and choose the GIFT tab when you reach the subscription options page. They’ll not only get a year of the BEST resistance newsletter on Substack (in my humble opinion), but you and your loved one will get a personal phone conversation with me! Merry Christmas!
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PAXIS Is for Immigrants—and Their Allies
PAXIS isn’t just for the person in direct danger. It’s for the friend at the door, the neighbor with a phone, the coworker who witnesses an encounter, the family member who gets the call that someone’s been detained. Allies often want to help but don’t know what to say or do, and can easily make things worse by guessing.
PAXIS is being built so allies can pull up the same trusted guidance: when to stay silent, when to film, what questions to ask, what not to sign, how to connect someone to help. It turns fear into a coordinated, lawful, nonviolent response. With our Stage 2 funding goal, we can reach hundreds of thousands of allies, turning PAXIS from an app into a networked shield around immigrants.
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Amid all the bad, awful, dumb, stupid, absurd, insane, sickening, despicable, cruel, sad, childish, pathetic, embarrassing, irresponsible, dishonest, demoralizing, deplorable, shady, infuriating, outrageous, terrible, horrible, Constitution-defying, fascist news of the past week, we have to acknowledge the TOP FIVE HEROES among us. The list is growing, as more and more of us are standing up to the tyrant. Courage is infectious. Be brave!
AHMED AL AHMED. A Muslim man who intervened in the antisemitic terror attack on Bondi Beach, Australia, Ahmed al Ahmed risked his own life while disarming one of the suspects and saving many others last Sunday. The 43-year-old fruit shop owner was himself shot twice in the attack. A hero in the truest sense of the word.
JUDGE JOHN D. HYLAND. This Wisconsin judge ruled on Monday that there is sufficient evidence for two men to face trial on charges that they illegally tried to keep Donald Trump in power after his 2020 election loss with a scheme to deploy fake electors. It’s one of the few remaining such cases. Thank you, Judge Hyland.
MICK FOLEY. The pro-wrestling legend publicly parted ways with WWE over its Trump ties, citing Trump’s despicable comments in the wake of Rob Reiner’s murder as the “final straw.” In a lengthy post on social media, he wrote, “I no longer wish to represent a company that coddles a man so seemingly void of compassion.” Good for you, Mick.
JACK WHITE. The White Stripes singer/guitarist was also deeply offended by Trump’s comments about Reiner. “Trump, you disgusting, vile, egomaniac loser, child,” White posted on social media. “To use someone’s tragic death to promote your own vanity and fascist authoritarian agenda is a corrupt and narcissistic sin. Shame on you, Trump, and anyone who defends this.” Amen.
REPS. RO KHANNA AND THOMAS MASSIE. The two congressmen say they are committed to holding Justice Department officials accountable for their failure to release all eligible Jeffrey Epstein files by Friday’s deadline. They are speaking with other Members of Congress about holding Attorney General Pam Bondi in contempt. Do it.
Did we miss anyone? Send your heroes our way!
Good Reads for This Week
Trump, The Bus Driver —Rant! with Alex Finley
We Can’t Change The Hateful People, America. We Have to Outnumber Them —The Beautiful Mess
The Sunday Reed: There Is Work to Be Done —The Home Front
America Has Tragically Changed, but Journalism Is Still Stuck in Old Ways —American Crisis
Death Twitches —The Dispatch
Dictatorship: Beware Excuses —The Next Move
Have You Called Trump a ‘Fascist’? If So, He Might Officially Designate You a ‘Terrorist’ —Defiance.News
The Longest Suicide Note in American History —Open Letters, from Anne Applebaum
Fat Elvis —The Dispatch
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