What. A. Week.
One Free Press editor—a newsroom veteran who remembers JFK’s assassination—says that the events of the past few days are unlike any she has seen in her lifetime.
“Trump’s been shot.” Those were the words Nellie and I heard hours after she went into labor on Saturday. By that evening, we published a harrowing piece by Salena Zito, who was four feet away from the former president when the bullets ripped through the air.
In a normal time, that would have been enough news for a cycle. But we don’t live in normal times. And so it just kept coming: J.D. Vance! Hulk Hogan! Pelosi shivs Biden! Schumer joins in! Now he’s got Covid! Will it be Kamala? An open convention?
We were there to witness it all. Seven Free Pressers flew to the RNC in Milwaukee to cover history as it unfolded in real time.
Some highlights:
We went live on X for the first time ever—and were blown away by the response. Hundreds of thousands of you tuned in on Monday night and Thursday night as we reported live from the convention. Our two livestreams, hosted by our tireless Michael Moynihan, convened two all-star panels, featuring everyone from Frank Luntz to Marianne Williamson to Tim Dillon. We spoke to Rep. Peter Meijer, Oren Cass, Batya Ungar-Sargon, and Abigail Shrier about the changing face of the GOP. And we interviewed Trump supporters on the ground, where the electric mood was undeniable. This was a breakthrough format for us—with a lineup you simply will not see on cable news—and we’re so excited to experiment with it going forward.
Gen Z goes red: Olivia Reingold profiled the Gen Z voters who are going MAGA—“It’s not notable to be anti-MAGA. It’s no longer cool to hate him, because it’s become safe to do that.”
A Democrat’s dilemma: Mark Pincus, a Biden mega-donor called for an open convention to select a new Democratic candidate.
California parents cast aside: Abigail Shrier reported on the bill signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom that prohibits schools from proactively informing parents about their children’s gender transitions.
The RNC’s dark underbelly: Peter Savodnik reported on the undercurrent of Alex Jones–like conspiratorial thinking at the convention.
And we helped make sense of things. Eli Lake explained how Trump did the opposite of everything GOP grandees recommended—and won. River Page—who, like J.D. Vance, comes from “white trash”—said, “I’m now supposed to believe that he’s the voice of the working class just because he claims to be? Well, I don’t. I just think he’s uppity.” Martin Gurri argued that Joe Biden’s collapse represents something bigger: the collapse of the current Democratic establishment. Niall Ferguson put Trump’s near assassination in historical context. Batya Ungar-Sargon told off the disloyal Democrats. And through it all, Olly Wiseman was there, helming The Front Page, which has become the essential morning newsletter.
It was also a banner week for Honestly. Salena Zito came on the show to talk about what she saw at the shooting. Yuval Levin made sense of the political brokenness that brought us to this moment. And finally, Michael Moynihan spoke to black voters in Milwaukee who explained why they are ditching the Dems.
Oh, and somehow Nellie Bowles delivered not just a new baby but also a new TGIF.
Needless to say, we’re tired. Tired but also so proud of what we delivered this week and resting up (or trying to) this weekend ahead of whatever insanity Monday brings. We’re also preparing for August in Chicago: we expect this to be a DNC like none other.
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I see two things in infancy! Your baby and the ability for an independent subscriber based news organization to function in the big leagues!
Congratulations on the baby! Wonderful!