Steven Hill

The dangerous rise of the centi-billionaires dominating US media and politics Oligarchs' erosion of America’s winner-take-all democracy continues in the Trump era on multiple fronts

"The dangerous rise of the centi-billionaires dominating US media and politics"

The oligarchs’ erosion of US democracy. A number of media outlets have been bought - and decapitated - by some of the wealthiest men in America — who are also Trump allies
democracysos.substack.com/p/the-danger...

The Many Victims of Trump’s Immigration Policy–Including the U.S. Economy As the economy starts to show signs of strain from deportations, it’s time to ask: what is the point of this policy?

"The Many Victims of Trump’s Immigration Policy–Including the US Economy"
Removing millions of immigrant workers is shrinking the workforce,driving up business costs & consumer prices,reducing the economy’s productivity.It’s time to ask:what is the point of this policy?
thefulcrum.us/economy/ice-...

The high stakes of the global AI infrastructure race Heavy investment in AI raises critical issues: bubble risks, few jobs, huge energy consumption, plus Trump & sons self-dealing. Do the positives outweigh the negatives?

"The high stakes of the global AI infrastructure race"
Heavy investment in AI raises critical issues: financial bubble risks, few jobs, huge energy consumption. Add to that Trump & sons self-dealing and pocket-lining, picking favorites.What could go wrong?
democracysos.substack.com/p/the-high-s...

Shaky political science: academics holding each other accountable A rare occurrence: two academics call out two others for their sloppy and misleading research

"Shaky political science: academics holding each other accountable"
A rare occurrence: two academics call out two others for their sloppy and misleading research
This is the third article in our “Shaky Political Science” series #DemocracySOS, check it out
democracysos.substack.com/p/shaky-poli...

Scandal-plagued Los Angeles badly needs a "local democracy" reset Charter Reform Commissioners need to decide -- will they do what's right for their fellow Angelenos? Or for the corruption-plagued city council?

"Scandal-plagued Los Angeles badly needs a 'local democracy' reset"

Charter commission has a chance for reset. For a multi-everything city of ~4 million people like LA, proportional RCV offers the best chance to provide fair, ethical & broad representation
democracysos.substack.com/p/scandal-pl...

Commonsense reform: a remedy for ballot confusion over party nominees Letting parties tag their nominees on the ballot would make elections clearer, fairer, and harder to hijack by disingenuous candidates.

"Commonsense reform: a remedy for ballot confusion over party nominees"
New article on #DemocracySOS from @sightline.org Alan Durning
AK, WA, CA don't allow parties to claim their nominees.Letting parties tag their nominees on the ballot = better elections
democracysos.substack.com/p/commonsens...

End of Year 1: Trump decides Native Americans are…immigrants ICE in Minnesota is now detaining descendants of “ancient immigrants,” disappearing them into their "gulags of shame"

"End of Year 1: Trump decides Native Americans are…immigrants"

It's been one year since Trump inauguration. Where are we?

ICE in Minnesota now detaining descendants of “ancient immigrants,” i.e. Native Americans, disappearing them into their gulags.
democracysos.substack.com/p/end-of-yea...

Shaky political “science” in Minnesota This anti-RCV “study” by a well-known political scientist is so rife with mistakes, misquotes and cherrypicked info that it is an embarrassment to the profession

Part II of our "Shaky political science" series.Here's an example of an anti-RCV “study” by wellknown political scientist that is so rife w mistakes/misquotes/cherrypicked info it is embarrassing to the profession.Don't political scientists check each other?
democracysos.substack.com/p/shaky-poli...

Now entering the Trump-verse: when an act of war is not an act of war Amidst rampant lawlessness, US democracy teeters ever-closer to the edge; who will arrest Trump?

"Now entering the Trump-verse: when is an act of war not an act of war?"
Amidst rampant lawlessness, US democracy teeters ever-closer to the edge. The despotic resemblances between Donald Trump and Putin are growing harder to ignore. Connecting the dots...
democracysos.substack.com/p/now-enteri...

Trump’s First-Year Economy: Growth, Tariffs, and Rising Public Anxiety As we kick off a new year, it’s a good time to assess President Donald Trump’s performance on the economy. He came into office a year ago with his “America First” philosophy. He promised to bring down...

"Trump’s First-Year Economy: Growth, Tariffs, & Rising Public Anxiety"
End of 2025 eval of Trump's econ performance.See my 10 specific economic indicators, split-screen of positives/negatives
Most ominously, Americans r increasingly gloomy over their own econ future
thefulcrum.us/economy/trum...

Affordability Crisis and AI: Kelso’s Universal Capitalism As costs rise and AI reshapes work, Louis Kelso’s universal capitalism offers a path to shared prosperity and a stronger American Dream.

"Affordability Crisis and AI: Kelso’s Universal Capitalism"
As costs rise and AI reshapes the world, Louis Kelso’s "universal capitalism" offers a path to shared prosperity and a stronger American Dream.
@thefulcrum-us.bsky.social
thefulcrum.us/media-techno...

AI Bubble Warning: Big Tech’s $3 Trillion Gamble Could Mirror 2008 Crash Debt-fueled AI spending by Google, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Meta raises fears of a crash.

"AI Bubble Warning: Big Tech’s $3 Trillion Gamble Could Mirror 2008 Crash"
Debt-fueled AI spending by Google, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Meta raises fears of a crash -- another housing crash in the making? I weigh the pros and cons for @thefulcrum-us.bsky.social
thefulcrum.us/media-techno...

Imagine if Congress was elected by Proportional Representation Illinois’ 110-yr history with a form of PR resulted in more voter choice, more bipartisanship, less bitter polarization and better representation—a lesson for our times

"Imagine if Congress was elected by Proportional Representation"
Illinois’ 110-yr history with a form of PR resulted in more voter choice, more bipartisanship, less bitter polarization and better representation—a lesson for our troubled times.
#DemocracySOS
democracysos.substack.com/p/imagine-if...

Shaky political “science” misses mark on ranked choice voting What does political science and social science research say about ranked choice voting? A number of misleading studies fall well short of real science

“Shaky political ‘science’ misses mark on Ranked Choice Voting”

In this study, we assess the quality/credibility of 41 different studies on RCV. A number of misleading studies, including by well-known political scientists, fall well short of real "science"
democracysos.substack.com/p/shaky-poli...

AI Bubble Warning: Big Tech’s $3 Trillion Gamble Could Mirror 2008 Crash Debt-fueled AI spending by Google, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Meta raises fears of a crash.

"Big Tech’s $3 Trillion Gamble Could Mirror 2008 Housing Crash"
Will AI positively transform the US economy? Or will debt-fueled bubble by #Google #Microsoft #Nvidia #Meta #Amazon cause collapse? I weigh the evidence
@thefulcrum-us.bsky.social
thefulcrum.us/media-techno...

Commonsense reform: only serious candidates, please By raising signature requirements and/or filing fees for candidates, voters will enjoy electoral choice without having to sift through non-serious pretender candidates

"Only Serious Candidates, Please"
Alan Durning from @sightline.org proposes commonsense reform. By raising signature requirements and/or filing fees for candidates,voters will enjoy electoral choice w/o having to sift through non-serious pretender candidates
democracysos.substack.com/p/commonsens...

Federal judges have ordered TX to use its previous map. But CA’s plan, blessed by voters, still goes forward. If the ruling stands, GOP will end up on the losing end of this mid-decade redistricting battle -- that they started! These are the bitter games of a winner-take-all democracy in freefall

Trump hoisted by his own petard in Texas redistricting Federal court recently bars Texas from using Trump’s map in midterms due to it being an illegal racial gerrymander

"Trump hoisted by his own petard in Texas redistricting"
WH/MAGA attack every form of race-based policy but now federal court has barred TX from using Trump’s map in midterms due to it being an illegal racial gerrymander. And judge was appointed by Trump!
democracysos.substack.com/p/trump-hois...

Ranked-choice voting gave MN voters real power on Election Day Jeanne Massey: Two cities, Minneapolis and St. Paul. Two very different outcomes. One shared truth: RCV has come into its own.

"Ranked choice voting gave MN voters real power on Election Day"
5 cities, incl Minneapolis & St. Paul used RCV on Election Day. RCV has come into its own. Voters understand it, candidates have learned to organize & build coalitions
@fairvotemn.bsky.social
democracysos.substack.com/p/ranked-cho...

Election 2025: Ranked Choice Voting points the way to a better national politics RCV was used in 14 cities and counties and resulted in more voter choice and candidate coalition-building instead of “attack dog” politics

"Election 2025: Ranked Choice Voting points the way to a better national politics"
RCV was used in 14 cities & counties and resulted in more voter choice & candidate coalition-building instead of “attack dog” partisanship.
The future of American politics
democracysos.substack.com/p/election-2...

Longest U.S. Government Shutdown Sparks Nationwide Crisis From empty grocery shelves to grounded flights, the shutdown’s ripple effects are hitting every corner of America.

"Longest U.S. Government Shutdown Sparks Nationwide Crisis"
From cuts in military pay, food & heating assistance, nuclear safety to grounded flights, the shutdown’s ripple effects are hitting everyday Americans. Who's to blame? Trump or Democrats?
thefulcrum.us/governance-l...

The U.S. Economy: Rebounding or Breaking Down? With official data stalled by a government shutdown, independent polls reveal growing financial strain, fading optimism, and a widening gender gap in economic confidence.

"The U.S. Economy: Rebounding or Breaking Down?"
With official data stalled by a government shutdown, independent polls reveal growing financial strain, fading optimism and a widening gender gap in economic confidence
thefulcrum.us/economy/amer...

An exercise showing why US politics is tilting toward authoritarianism Understanding the Mechanics of Democracy via a demonstration (with illustrations!) of the dysfunctional nature of America's winner-take-all system

"The Mechanics of Democracy: an exercise showing why US politics is tilting toward authoritarianism"
The dysfunctional nature ofAmerica's winner-take-all electoral system has led to this crisis.In this demonstration (with illustrations!) I show how and why
democracysos.substack.com/p/an-exercis...

Refusing authoritarianism: why California’s Proposition 50 is necessary but not sufficient Democrats have no choice but to fight back against mid-decade redistricting which could render US House elections meaningless. But let's be clear: our winner-take-all system is hopelessly broken

"Refusing authoritarianism: why California’s Proposition 50 is necessary but not sufficient"
Democrats must fight back against mid-decade redistricting which could render House elections meaningless.But clearly our winner-take-all system is hopelessly broken
democracysos.substack.com/p/refusing-a...

Divided We Fall, Part II – what’s causing the epidemic of political violence? It’s crucial to examine the deadly role of our antiquated winner-take-all political system, combined with the polarizing effects of toxic “unsocial” media

Divided We Fall, Part II – what’s causing the epidemic of political violence?
Winner-take-all elections = "if you win, I lose" is at heart of it, led to "power over" instead of "power together."Combined w toxic misinformation machines of "unsocial media"
democracysos.substack.com/p/divided-we...

Divided We Fall What happens when you combine polarized winner-take-all politics with a polarizing mass information system based on AI and "unsocial" media?

"Divided We Fall"-- what happens when you combine polarized WinnerTakeAll politics w/ a polarizing mass information system based on AI and "unsocial" media? 18th-cent representative democracy combined w/ 21st-cent communication technologies = post-democracy
democracysos.substack.com/p/divided-we...

Charlie Kirk, Donald Trump, and the backlash against women’s rise How Charlie Kirk conducted his politics and strategy was impressive; but his political and social views about women were straight out of the Old Testament

"Charlie Kirk, Donald Trump & the backlash against women’s rise"
Charlie Kirk's views re women were Old Testament. Contributed to increasingly hostile environment for women legislators, including harassment, intimidation, threats, violence. American Taliban
democracysos.substack.com/p/charlie-ki...

Investor-in-Chief: Trump’s Business Deals, Loyalty Scorecards, and the Rise of Neo-Socialist Capitalism The White House is using government control over the economy in ways that overturn traditional Republican values

"Trump’s new brand of Neo-Socialist Capitalism"
The White House is using govt control over the economy in ways that overturn traditional Republican "free market" values. Intel, NVIDIA, US Steel. Should Dems be learning from Trump's "visible hand"?
thefulcrum.us/business-dem...

With Charlie Kirk's murder, the US descends further into winner-take-all mayhem Will the sensible words of Utah’s Republican governor to find an “off ramp” be heeded? Or is it "1933" all over again?

"With Charlie Kirk's murder, the US descends further into winner-take-all mayhem"

Will the sensible words of Utah’s Republican governor to find an “off ramp” be heeded? Or will Trump seize on this and go full authoritarian? Is it "1933" all over again?
democracysos.substack.com/p/with-charl...

Making lemonade from the lemons of mid-decade redistricting With federal redistricting reform collapsed, and the Supreme Court gutting the Voting Rights Act, now is the time for a new and innovative strategy

"Making lemonade from the lemons of mid-decade redistricting"
With federal redistricting reform collapsed & Supreme Court gutting the Voting Rights Act, now is time for a new & innovative strategy: multi-seat districts w/ proportional ranked choice voting
democracysos.substack.com/p/making-lem...