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President Trump on a large TV screen behind a woman wearing a statue of liberty inspired crown.

How Anti-Bribery Laws Apply to Trump’s Promise of $5,000 Payments if Republicans Keep Control of Congress

​U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally.

The President Invited Iran to Bomb My Home

New York Is Making Childcare Affordable. Don’t Forget the People Providing It.

New York Is Making Childcare Affordable. Don’t Forget the People Providing It.

​A sign directs pedestrians towards the United States in Tijuana, Mexico. A person walks in the foreground.

Immigration, Borders, and Belonging: Toward a More Honest Conversation

US Supreme Court building in Washington, DC.

Supreme Court Restores Flawed Federal Voter‑Check System

Cinderella bracket continues in Democracy Madness

Cinderella bracket continues in Democracy Madness
The Fulcrum
By The FulcrumApr 27, 2020
The Fulcrum
The Fulcrum staff.
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The Final Four in the Elections quarter of our Democracy Madness draw is upon us — and it turns out only one top seed has made it to the regional semifinals.

Turning redistricting over to independent commissions, our No. 2 seed, advanced by cruising past the call for congressional term limits.

The biggest upset in the weekend voting: The idea of electing several members to represent each U.S. House district, our No. 9 seed, snuck out a win over the top-seeded proposal of presidential elections simply by popular vote.

Multimember districts now face Supreme Court term limits (No. 13), while anti-gerrymandering commissions confront the No. 11 proposal, states promising to award their electoral votes to the national popular winner.

Press the Vote Now button to make your two choices. (You can click the matchups, then each label, for more on the proposals.)

We're hoping to learn what readers think is the best of 64 ideas for reforming our governing systems and putting voters back at the center of things. The money in politics "region" starts next.




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The Window to Safely Managing the Education Freedom Tax Credit is Closing Fast
Education

The Window to Safely Managing the Education Freedom Tax Credit is Closing Fast

A person wearing a t-shirt that says, "Black Voters Still Matter."
Democracy

Black Voters Don’t Need Another Election-Year Lecture. They Need Government That Works All Year

​Construction on the proposed White House ballroom.
Democracy

Democracy Must Prevail: Reset Community Meetings Process

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person reading a computer screen
man using computer inside room
Photo by Oğuzhan Akdoğan on Unsplash

Student-Led AI Initiative Aims to Tackle Misinformation

PRINCETON JUNCTION, NJ — As generative artificial intelligence reshapes the digital landscape, a New Jersey student researcher is using the technology to combat media bias. Shaurya Jindal, an AI researcher and student at West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South, has launched Cogito News, an educational platform designed to build modern media literacy skills.

Cogito News was founded in response to growing concerns about partisan framing and selective sourcing in contemporary journalism. Recognizing that cognitive biases often influence how news is packaged and consumed, Jindal sought to build a tool that helps users critically evaluate the information they encounter daily. The platform's real-world impact and timely relevance were highlighted when Jindal was my guest on The Fulcrum Democracy Forum, an interview series dedicated to civic renewal and examining innovative approaches to strengthening democratic systems.

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​Michael Bridgford

Michael Bridgford campaigning

Michael Bridgford Facebook

Independent Underdog Tours Iowa as Voters Seek Common‑Sense Change

Eight cities in eight different counties, all in one week. When we talk about cities in Iowa’s First Congressional District, keep in mind most are county seats with populations that often don’t reach 7,000. In the closing months of a political campaign in southeastern Iowa, chatter in those towns and cities centers on the cost of living, farmers' struggles, and the hot-button issue of data centers.

Michael Bridgford is tireless, but the challenge is daunting. I met him over lunch last spring when he was first considering a run. A long-time friend met him at a conference and told Michael he would connect him to a guy who won a long-shot campaign. I’m that guy. Running as a Republican, I upset a 32-year incumbent in deep-blue Madison, Wisconsin.

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US money being cut by a scissor
A pair of scissors cutting a continuous strip of one hundred dollar bills
Photo by Igor Omilaev on Unsplash

Self-Interested Elite Supremacy, 1776 to 2026, and a Path Forward

For 250 years, U.S. elites have maintained supremacy by embedding self-interest into the nation’s foundational structures, translating economic power into political dominance. From the plantation economy and the Gilded Age to modern corporate lobbying, wealth consolidation has consistently undermined democratic equality to favor the ruling class.

This trajectory of elite control and self-interest unfolds across the following core eras:

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