A note (and special offer) from Aaron
Commemorating three years of Public Notice.
Dear readers,
Three years ago today, I launched Public Notice with a piece that took a big picture look at the state of things in those early months of the Biden administration. As I wrote then, “if 2020 highlighted the grave danger confronting American democracy, 2021 made clear that even after Trump was defeated, that fight is far from over.”
Suffice it to say that commentary has aged well, and I’m glad to report that Public Notice has too. The newsletter has grown beyond my wildest dreams — from scratch to over 132,000 subscribers all over the world today. I’m extremely proud of how our work has evolved over the years and am honored that Public Notice was recently named one of this summer’s top Substacks. In the infamous words of Kimberly Guilfoyle, the best is yet to come.
I’m grateful to collaborate with a fantastic and growing group of contributors who help me cover everything from legal affairs to media criticism to policy. I learn so much putting this newsletter together week in and week out and am gratified to regularly hear from readers who rely on our explanatory journalism to help them understand US politics. Leaving Vox to go independent felt like a big gamble back in the fall of 2021, but looking back it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
So whether you’ve been a founding subscriber from day one or are a free reader who just signed up last week, thank you. The next month will obviously be a momentous one in terms of the direction of the United States, but regardless of the outcome of the election we will continue working hard to make sure this newsletter is worth your time, attention, and money.
And on that note, I have a special third anniversary offer for the roughly 125,000 free subscribers to the newsletter. If you’ve been wanting to support our work with a paid subscription but have been waiting for a slightly lower price point, now’s the time. Just click the button below to sign up for an annual full subscription to Public Notice for the special discounted price of $40.
A paid subscription gets you access to everything we publish, the ability to participate in Q&As with me (we’ll have at least one before the election), commenting privileges, and more. Perhaps most importantly, Public Notice wouldn’t exist without readers who support this work financially. Paying subscribers make my work possible but also provide the resources required for me to keep working with our extremely talented group of contributors — Lisa, Noah, Stephen, David, Liz, and Thor. (Feel free to shoot me an email if you’d like a paid subscription but can’t afford one even at the lower price point — I’m happy to comp subscriptions to folks on tight budgets.)
Thanks again for being a reader. I sink a lot of blood, sweat, and tears into this newsletter, but it’s a labor of love. Covering US politics in the age of Trumpism is taxing, yet I feel so lucky to be able to do what I do for a living. I appreciate you coming along for the ride and making this newsletter part of your reading routine.
Here’s to many more years of Public Notice.
Cheers,
Aaron
Thank you for you. I read your introductory post. I will say that I loathe Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema to the very depths of my soul, because these two are the two major reasons why democracy didn’t get protected in 2021-2023.
It’s ridiculous that they couldn’t see that the 60 votes filibuster cudgel was just that, a cudgel. And republicans weren’t interested in fixing anything. Worse, when you look at the elections since 1988, you see that republicans hadn’t won a popular election since then. The electoral college and the Supreme Court are themselves now cudgels holding their thumbs on American democracy.
Since 1981, Republicans have only wanted to pass reconciliation bills (that are filibuster proof) and pass major tax cuts, tilted towards the rich. Nothing else has been passed by them. Democrats have been trying to fix as much as possible using that process, which is a major reason why the Affordable Care Act is such a wonky kludge. A simple Medicare-Medicaid for all is impossible with the filibuster cudgel.
So we are here now. I’m glad Kamala Harris understands that the filibuster has to go. I am hopeful for Democratic control of congress. Because she sees this dynamic clearly. Biden didn’t waste time with his American Rescue Plan, and I’m grateful. I imagine his filibuster hedging had a lot to do with having Manchin and Sinema. How could Manchin and Sinema not see this? It is insanity.
https://wapo.st/47TlkyS
So we are here now. Thanks for being here for this. It’s work that needs done. The major news media aren’t doing this. You are. It’s important.
Aaron, it’s wonderful to hear this has been a success for you and a great group of contributors. Here here for independent journalism. Thank you for endeavoring to report about the darkest parts of our political scene that disgust so many of us. It’s important to know what we are up against.
Best wishes…