NEW LIMITED SERIES!
Donald Trump is very quickly pushing law enforcement beyond the moral bounds that have limited their coercive and violent power in the past. Granted, police brush against the communities they are meant to serve and have for as long as formal law enforcement has existed. That’s the nature of the job.
Some cops do bad things. Most don’t. But it’s clear that Trump and the administration understand that state-sponsored violence — whether it is delivered by local law enforcement, ICE, or the national guard — can be an effective tool for maintaining power, silencing dissent, and shocking the body politic into a constant state of paralyzing fear.
But who are these masked men patrolling our streets under Trump? What is the source of their power, and how the hell did we get here?
& have joined up to explore the wild roots of policing, break down the standards and practices and policies that have led us to the current crisis, and find a way forward before it’s too late.Each week, they’ll bring you up to speed on what’s happening right now and speak with some of the nation’s most preeminent experts on policing, law enforcement officers, and folks who found themselves on the wrong side of the thin blue line to sift through the noise.
In episode one, they spoke to Rosa Brooks, the Scott K. Ginsburg Professor of Law and Policy at Georgetown Law. Rosa has worked in senior positions at the Defense Department and the State Department, and she served as a reserve police officer with Washington DC’s Metropolitan Police Department from 2016 to 2020.
Honestly? Right now, it feels pretty dark. Women are being thrown to the ground by unidentified officers for simply crying too loudly. We are on the brink.
And that’s why we need to talk about this.
Next week Michael & Maya will talk to Glenn Kirschner and Frank Figliuzzi. Don’t miss it!
Things Are '100 Times Worse' than Jan. 6 | The Strategy Session with Special Guest Michael Fanone
Michael Fanone has long warned that the damage of January 6 goes far beyond the riot itself. “I think things are 100 times worse,” he says, pointing to how Trump redirected federal agents away from critical investigations and into showy crackdowns. Rick agrees, noting that these weren’t real policing roles but theatrical deployments that corroded public trust.
