In today’s newsletter, Emily Witt attends the last stop on Bernie Sanders’s “Fighting Oligarchy” tour, speaking with attendees about what they want from the Democrats. And then:
Democratic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Independent senator Bernie Sanders at a rally in Tempe, Arizona, on March 20, 2025, as part of their “Fighting Oligarchy” tour.Photograph by Rebecca Noble / Reuters
Bernie Sanders and A.O.C. Fight the Oligarchy
In Arizona, a crowd of thousands suggested that the left still has a pulse.
“Donald Trump and the Republican Party’s disdain for the working class doesn’t just come from not being raised right,” Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called out, as a guest speaker at the last stop of Bernie Sanders’s “Fighting Oligarchy” tour, in Tucson, Arizona. “It’s a shorthand for the right wing’s entire political agenda.” Following Ocasio-Cortez, Sanders added, “The truth is that right now in America, the people on top have never, ever in the history of our country, had it so good.” Emily Witt was in the crowd, where the gathering of thousands indicated that at least some Democrats are still energized. Iconography from the Party’s various memes and in-jokes was everywhere—from coconuts to 2016 and 2020 campaign merch. “Had it not been for the weather, there probably would have been a pussy hat,” Witt writes. “They’re important emotionally,” one attendee said, of the tour’s rallies. “It lifts you up to know that this many people actually care.”
The future of the Democratic Party remains unsettled, but Sanders and his fellow-speakers haven’t given up hope for the progressive movement—and neither have the people who attended these hugely populated, wildly enthusiastic rallies across America. As one attendee said of the Democrats, “They need to work on messaging, they need to work on getting the Old Guard out of office and actually letting the progressive wing of the Party that represents the people through.” Many of those with whom Witt spoke echoed this sentiment—and seemed in want of a leader. “It’s always been a fight,” another attendee told her, “but this is the biggest fight we’ve had right now in my whole life.”
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The Government’s Rock Librarian
On his first day back in office, Donald Trump issued an executive order on “Unleashing American Energy,” meant in part to support “critical mineral projects,” many of which are overseen by the U.S. Geological Survey. An employee at the agency believed that this move meant her work in rock science was fundamental enough to the President’s agenda to safeguard her from the Administration’s cuts to the federal workforce. Then she, along with thousands of employees at U.S.G.S. and other Department of the Interior agencies, were laid off. “For many scientists and nature lovers, these were rare, sought-after positions,” E. Tammy Kim notes in her latest column. Last week, however, the geologist was asked to come back. “The mass reinstatements were as shambolic as the mass firings had been,” Kim writes. Read the column »
Previously in Kim’s Deep State Diaries series: Inside the DOGE threat to Social Security and the attack on the military’s consumer watchdog.
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P.S. JuJu Watkins, the superstar guard for U.S.C., suffered a tournament-ending A.C.L. tear during last night’s game against Mississippi State. Only in her second season, she’s already established herself as one of the best players in the country. “She could block shots like a center and command the floor like a point guard,” Louisa Thomas wrote recently. “What stood out most of all, though, was her charisma. And that name. JuJu! ” 🏀
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