The Power to Shape the Civilization That We Want

The White House is Not a Business Opportunity

July 1, 2026Trump takes the first flight on the new Air Force One, gifted by Qatar, White House officials awarded a no-bid contract for the construction of Trump’s ballroom, Trump had claimed the work would be paid for by private donations but more than half the work done so far is coming from taxpayers, The Trumps and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick are self-dealing, Trump has taken in a reported $1.4 billion from cryptocurrency ventures and that number may be understated, Investors have suffered vast losses, When Trump paused his tariffs, his investment accounts took advantage of the stock swings, Conflicts of interest are rampant, though the White House denies them,  Senator Chris Murphy calls the corruption of the Trump White House a national crisis. Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ- [https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-] Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe] You can also find me: Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en [https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/ [https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson [https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson] Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Birthright Citizenship

June 30, 2026 Trump signed an executive order, on his first day in office, declaring that there was no birthright citizenship, The ACLU and others sued the administration, The Fourteenth Amendment established birthright citizenship, After the Civil War former Confederates denied Black Southerners basic rights, The Republican Congress passed a civil rights bill in 1866 but President Andrew Johnson vetoed it, When Congress wrote the 14th Amendment, it acknowledged that the Constitution had already established citizenship for all persons born or naturalized in the US, The 14th Amendment was challenged in the late 19th century, but the Supreme Court upheld it in 1898, After that, It seemed the law was settled, After Trump issued his executive order, judges all sided against him, and today the current court upheld birthright citizenship, But many have said that the Supreme Court should never have even taken the case, And four of the nine current Supreme Court justices appear to be willing to rewrite the Constitution, MAGA is pressing the administration to step up immigration enforcement in response.  Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ- [https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-] Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe] You can also find me: Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en [https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/ [https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson [https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson] Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

The Unitary Executive

June 29, 2026 In the case of Slaughter v Trump, Trump claimed he has the right to fire Rebecca Slaughter, a member of the Federal Trade Commission even though the Court has long said the president does not have the power to fire members of independent agencies except in extreme cases, The argument is an attempt to establish the idea of the unitary executive which asserts the power of the president and diminishes the power of Congress, The theory proposes that the president cannot be reined in by the other two branches of government, In a 6-3 vote the Supreme court decided in Trump’s favor, Dissenting justices wrote that the Court is undoing centuries of practice, elevating the president above his once coequal branches, The decision gives Trump power he clearly has no inclination to give up. Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ- [https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-] Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe] You can also find me: Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en [https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/ [https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson [https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson] Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

A New Political Language

June 28, 2026 A wide range of Democratic voices are shaping a new political language, One is James Talarico who delivered his acceptance speech for the Democratic nomination for US Senator from Texas on June 26, Talarico invoked Barbara Jordan, Talarico’s vision resonates beyond Texas, He celebrated the accomplishments of the state of Texaas, He expressed concern about the takeover of the state by billionaires, He said that there is a chance to take the state back, and not in a partisan sense, He called for a new economy, new schools, and stronger and healthier families. Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ- [https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-] Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe] You can also find me: Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en [https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/ [https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson [https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson] Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Lies, Threats, and Looting

June 27, 2026 The reflecting pool fiasco represents the Trump administration perfectly,  The remodeling of the West Colonnade, which Trump said he had paid for, was in fact paid for by the taxpayers, Trump is redirecting taxpayer money from the National Park Service, The looting of our tax dollars is turning the resources of the country to the administration’s own ends, People are paying with their lives, as research funds are being allocated for political reasons, and faith in science and experts is being destroyed, Hegseth is decimating the US Military, firing more than two dozen military leaders, The US and Iran are trading strikes again and Trump is making apocalyptic threats against the country, Mike Johnson promised “to take care of” a group of Trump supporters against a possible Republican loss in the midterms. Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ- [https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-] Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe] You can also find me: Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social [https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.social] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en [https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=en] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/ [https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson [https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson] Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe [https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]