The hottest State Politics Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
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Top U.S. Politics Topics

Texas declares war

INDIGNITY • 294 implied HN points • 26 Jan 24
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics State Politics
  1. Texas Governor declared state's authority over federal government regarding border policy
  2. Numerous Republican state governors supported Texas Governor's stance
  3. Mainstream media did not extensively cover the rejection of federal authority by half of the United States

Hawaii - "Keep Vaccinations Optional" Tour

Who is Robert Malone • 20 implied HN points • 07 Jan 26
🏥 Health Politics State Politics
  1. A multi-stop speaking tour across Oʻahu and Kauai drew large, engaged crowds and involved long travel days and late events.
  2. The trip included lots of local nature and scenery moments, with frequent sightings of birds like Java sparrows, zebra doves, and native nēnē geese around the hotels and cottages.
  3. There is strong concern about the governor retaining COVID emergency powers and joining the Western Alliance, with claims this could lead to a strict vaccine schedule for children and limited exemptions.

Friday Funnies: Gavin for President?

Who is Robert Malone • 37 implied HN points • 05 Dec 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics State Politics
  1. Allegations of massive fraud in Minnesota’s Feeding Our Future program claim weak oversight led to roughly $250 million in losses and have drawn a federal investigation, with suggestions that Somali-linked nonprofits and some political staff may be implicated.
  2. A confrontational, mocking tone runs through the piece, using derogatory language and taunting critics while even joking about inventing insulting labels for people who rely on AI.
  3. Serious political accusations are mixed with humor, memes, holiday shopping plugs, and livestream links, so the content alternates between partisan attack and lighthearted commentary.

December 12, 2025

Letters from an American • 27 implied HN points • 13 Dec 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics State Politics
  1. Doug Jones has launched a run for Alabama governor, leaning on his 2017 upset and his record prosecuting KKK members while stressing dignity, the rule of law, and traditional Alabama values.
  2. Tommy Tuberville and the MAGA-aligned faction promote a protectionist, white Christian "Western" identity and use harsh anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim rhetoric that traces back to long-standing racist theories.
  3. Jones ties his campaign to concrete economic and democratic concerns—farmers losing markets, rising energy costs, shrinking healthcare access, and a lack of good-paying jobs—and calls for unity beyond partisan divides to protect opportunity and democracy.

Texas Sucks

JoeWrote • 111 implied HN points • 16 Jul 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics State Politics
  1. Texas has a reputation for low taxes and individualism, attracting many businesses and people, but this often masks serious issues in governance.
  2. The state's conservative policies have led to significant public health crises, including low vaccination rates and recent disease outbreaks.
  3. Texas faces repeated failures in managing essential services, such as energy and disaster response, leading to tragic consequences for its residents.
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Hawaii and the West Coast Health Alliance

Who is Robert Malone • 12 implied HN points • 08 Jan 26
🏥 Health Politics State Politics
  1. The West Coast Health Alliance is a regional bloc of California, Oregon, Washington, and Hawaii that coordinates unified public health policies, promotes routine childhood COVID vaccination, and relies on shared data systems and philanthropic funding.
  2. Hawaii’s governor has used emergency proclamations to expand vaccine access—such as allowing pharmacists to give COVID mRNA shots to young children—and backed efforts to limit non-medical exemptions, moves critics call executive overreach that erodes parental and religious autonomy.
  3. The Alliance has resisted federal vaccine re-evaluation, declined to share pediatric adverse-event data, and outsourced monitoring to private contractors, prompting concerns it protects institutional and donor interests over transparency and informed consent.

Newsom’s Rule: Rights Deferred, Authority Expanded

Who is Robert Malone • 16 implied HN points • 24 Dec 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics State Politics
  1. Newsom has expanded executive and public-health power since COVID, normalizing emergency authority and helping create a West Coast Health Alliance that centralizes vaccine policy and reduces local and legislative oversight.
  2. California is facing economic strain from rising housing costs, higher taxes and fees, growing homelessness, and a proposed one-time 5% billionaire wealth tax that critics say is accelerating capital and business flight.
  3. The state’s policies are described as driven by 'suicidal empathy'—a belief that excessive compassion and guilt have led to decisions that trade personal rights and long-term stability for short-term social aims.

Take Infinity: Mini Exasperations #1

Exasperated Infrastructures • 12 implied HN points • 05 Jan 26
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics State Politics
  1. A plan to publish 52 weekly pieces focused on urban politics and infrastructure, each following a three-part format: a short observation, a few curated articles with context, and a recommended writer.
  2. Infrastructure decisions are political and require clear alternatives analysis and honest cost comparisons; big projects like tunnels or high‑speed rail come with trade‑offs around funding, oversight, and procurement (including Build America/Buy America implications).
  3. There’s an emphasis on building reader community and engagement through a short survey, subscriptions, and by spotlighting other writers to broaden conversation and connections.

Announcing The 1991 Fellowship

Get Down and Shruti • 5 implied HN points • 25 Jan 26
🌍 World Politics State Politics
  1. A three-year fellowship will fund and train early-career people to work full-time on state-level policy reform, with stipends that increase each year and structured programming.
  2. The program prioritizes practical, state-specific deregulation projects—like land use, labor laws, building codes, licensing, and energy—and favors proposals that show a clear path to real implementation rather than just analysis.
  3. Fellows receive mentorship, introductions to officials and media, and can attach to local institutions in later years; applications are open Jan 15–Feb 28 with selections by early summer and the fellowship starting in July 2026.

June 10, 2025

Letters from an American • 24 implied HN points • 11 Jun 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics State Politics
  1. President Trump is using the issue of immigration to silence critics and control protests. He has threatened severe actions against those who oppose his policies.
  2. Local officials believe that Los Angeles can manage the situation without federal intervention, but Trump continues to push a narrative of crisis and violence.
  3. Governor Newsom has condemned Trump's actions, warning that they represent a broader threat to democracy and urging people to stand up against authoritarianism.

Weekly Retrospective #6

Novum Newsletter • 84 implied HN points • 12 Mar 23
đź“° News State Politics
  1. The author is putting their weekly review series on hold to focus on other writing projects.
  2. The newsletter is being reorganized to make it easier to navigate, with sections like Global, State & Politics, and Social.
  3. The author expresses gratitude for the subscribers and provides an overview of the newsletter's categories.

A Number One!! NY Passes Digital Fair Repair Act

Fight to Repair • 0 implied HN points • 03 Jun 22
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics State Politics
  1. New York passed the Digital Fair Repair Act, becoming the first state to do so, enabling consumers to repair their electronics and reducing waste.
  2. Years of work by right to repair advocates led to this milestone, overcoming heavy lobbying from tech firms and previous failures in other states.
  3. The passing of the act is a win for consumers, small businesses, and the environment, allowing easier access to spare parts, repair software, and service diagrams for a wide range of devices.

Senior Moment

Matt’s Five Points • 0 implied HN points • 28 Nov 11
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics State Politics
  1. When a senior representative from a state retires, it can impact that state's influence in Congress. New members usually have to start from scratch without the same seniority or connections.
  2. States with experienced representatives have a better chance of getting powerful positions in the House. This is because seniority helps members get put into important roles more easily.
  3. Having a lot of experienced representatives in a state can be more beneficial than just having a few highly experienced ones. A state with more representatives can gain more powerful roles as they have a larger pool of seniority.

California Dreamin'

Matt’s Five Points • 0 implied HN points • 14 Mar 12
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics State Politics
  1. California Republicans can be very conservative, sometimes even more than those in traditionally conservative states like Alabama. It's a common myth that Republicans in liberal states are less conservative.
  2. Voting patterns can be misleading when judging state political leanings. Just because a state leans liberal overall doesn't mean that all its Republican voters think the same way.
  3. Party dynamics, like support from influential media and party leaders, can play a big role in shaping primary elections. This means voters might have less influence than expected on who gets nominated.