Shahrzad Shams

Hamilton HotelWashington, DC Wednesday, Jun 3 from 10 am to 6 pm Overview WelcomeFest - the largest public gathering of centrists. WelcomeFest showcases the array of leaders and organizations cultivating a partisan centrist vision on the left. At WelcomeFest, a community of like-minded elected officials, media figures, journalists, and thought leaders gather to mediate a new path forward for our party – providing a platform for connection, conversation, and action. WelcomeFest is an opportunity for us all to take lessons from candidates who overperform to craft a strong, robust, and vibrant centrist faction.

Imagine your whole ideology being we have no ideology. We stand for nothing - or at least nothing we will admit.

Now imagine that under fascism.

"social issues" are not distinct from economic issues, part ten million bsky.app/profile/the-...

🚨 Another journalist arrested.

Estefany Rodríguez is a reporter in Nashville who has covered immigration enforcement and its impact on the immigrant community.

Now, she's the one detained.

🧵>

i’d like for some people to grapple with the fact that “the most important election of our lifetime,” if you actually mean it, implies that the governance period following it is also the most important governance period of our lifetime, and adjust their demands/expectations/behaviors accordingly

Immigrant says ICE invoked MAGA YouTuber Nick Shirley during arrest Mamdou Ndoye, who was ordered released by a judge in February, says he was rearrested by ICE later that month by agents who asked him why he was “aggressive to Nick Shirley.”

Ndoye reports from detention that Nick Shirley, himself, pointed at him during the Canal Street raid to tell them to arrest him

"ICE didn’t even try to talk to me, but then he pointed me out to ICE and they ran to me and arrested me."

A regime of influencers

www.courthousenews.com/immigrant-sa...

Don’t expect cheaper concert tickets Regulators trying to solve a “problem” have created new ones. March 10, 2026

Another editorial from the Jeff Bezos Washington Post.

It takes a certain kind of…narcissistic nihilism to look across the country at people self-organizing against something that is generally a fairly good material symbol of the intangible class warfare that has alienated them and say, “what a silly distraction from what *really* matters.” And yet…

This is how our government has been corrupted:

1) Donors give huge sums to elect politicians
2) Elected officials rewrite rules in donors' favor
3) Donors make huge profit
4) Repeat

We must get big money out of politics. It’s the root of all evil in Washington.

It’s really not that complicated ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I am an Iranian American.

I want freedom for my people. I want it for Palestinians. I want it for myself. I dream of taking my parents to a free Iran.

I oppose the war on Iran.

My conception of freedom—any conception of freedom that means anything—will never be realized via imperial intervention.

A news graphic displays an article titled "Betting Against Increased Taxes, DraftKings Is Spending Big on Illinois State Races" from In These Times. It highlights DraftKings' financial involvement in political races. The background features stylized circular patterns. The tone is investigative, focusing on political and economic themes.

The sports gambling industry is spending millions to influence elections and avoid higher taxes.

We followed the money. Help us keep exposing the corporate interests undermining democracy:

bit.ly/4bb6fdW

Footage published by Iranian media today shows damage to Chehel Sotoon, a 17th century, Safavid-era landmark palace and garden located in the historic centre of Isfahan, after air strikes in its vicinity.

The Persian garden that surrounds the palace is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Trump calls choice of Iran’s new supreme leader ‘a big mistake’ Iran's military and political leaders pledge allegiance to Mojtaba Khamenei as US-Israeli attacks continue.

US and Israel continue to kill Iranian children

aje.news/a49wlz?updat...

Wide-angle view of the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., framed by two large television lights in the foreground against a blue sky.

Trump’s attacks on the Supreme Court may be personal, but its broader role still demands scrutiny.

Shahrzad Shams and Todd N. Tucker report that, as the Court has repeatedly blocked progressive policies, reform should be a progressive priority.

inthesetimes.com/article/trum...

Thanks to @inthesetimes.com for running the piece @toddntucker.com and I wrote for @rooseveltinstitute.org
on why progressives must prioritize Court reform!

inthesetimes.com/article/trum...

Trump’s Attacks on SCOTUS Are Personal—But Real Court Reform Should Be a Progressive Priority An analysis of Trump’s unprecedented attacks on the Supreme Court, the Roberts Court’s pro–Big Business record, and why real progressive court reform must become a political priority.

Over at the @rooseveltinstitute.org, @shahrzadshams.bsky.social and @toddntucker.com explain why court reform should be a progressive priority.

Ve have meat, here, in ze building!

[TW: graphic fracture, sound of breaking bone]

Sen Tim Sheehy (R-Montana) badly breaking the arm of a Marine veteran protesting the war Iran.

Trump’s Attacks on SCOTUS Are Personal—But Real Court Reform Should Be a Progressive Priority An analysis of Trump’s unprecedented attacks on the Supreme Court, the Roberts Court’s pro–Big Business record, and why real progressive court reform must become a political priority.

NEW from @shahrzadshams.bsky.social & me @rooseveltinstitute.org:

Donald Trump just called the Supreme Court "fools & lap dogs" and we've already forgotten about it.

What the ancient history of last Tuesday means for progressives rethinking SCOTUS power.
rooseveltinstitute.org/blog/trumps-...

CIA working to arm Kurdish forces to trigger Iran uprising YouTube video by CNN

youtu.be/hQJGVr_18Ks?...

a thing historians will marvel about when they study this era is the extent to which the "war is a thing that happens to poorer, browner people" class went about systematically dismantling every aspect of the global political order that confined the costs of war to poorer and browner people

RIP to hundreds of Iranians and one American vacation

How come “How are you going to pay for it?” is never asked about endless war?

“I am the son of the guy whose secret police force used to terrorize you, please install me or my friends, for democracy” is an amazing pitch from the shah’s son

Throwback to the co-founder of Palantir saying this is all about making money in June 2025:

" I'm really excited to invest in Iran if we can get this country to be some sort of republic and not run by crazy people, and that's a lot easier than doing that in Afghanistan..."

someone transported here from 1995 with a layman's understanding of the Republican Party - "they like low taxes for the rich and aggressive use of the military" - would be more correct in their assessment of the party than many ostensibly savvy pundits working right now

world-altering decisions are being made by a cabal of gambling addicts hell bent on self enrichment no matter the cost to humanity, we should look into that.

The new Ellison-controlled media combine will check the boxes for all three types of capture: capitalistic, oligarchic, and authoritarian.
lpeproject.org/blog/the-ame...

In competitive authoritarianism (US right now) there's often a "loyal opposition" that's essential to the regime. They are so wedded to "decorum," they go along with rites & rituals that help regime prop up veneer of normalcy, undermining clear view of regimes actions & aims.

The year is 2137. Earth's three remaining creatures fight over a scrap of ragweed in what was, before The Event, a Best Buy parking lot. Realizing the he will lose, Creature 3 turns to his diary. "The Atlantic: President Trump, softer tone?" he writes. These are the last word's written on Earth 1.