Will Friedman

Democracy-Focused Researcher/Writer/Consultant
Sr. Fellow, Public Agenda

[David Schleifer @david_schleifer]

75% of Americans believe that if more people in their state had a college education, there would be positive impacts on people’s ability to earn a good living. But at the same time, half of Americans are skeptical of whether the benefits of college are worth the cost

[Will Friedman @wkfriedman]

@dannagal D

[Will Friedman @wkfriedman]

@AttorneyNora Don’t worry, @AttorneyNora, soon as Elon takes over it’s gonna get so so much better!

[Will Friedman @wkfriedman]

@etiCoPIT @naiaragoia @arantzazulab That’s lovely to hear. I have fond memories as well and am wishing you all well.

[Will Friedman @wkfriedman]

Insightful and well-written, with lessons for focusing on what matters with respect to mental health, yes, but also for all sorts of wicked problems. @_danielle_carr's "Mental Health Is Political" https://t.co/bRPdN496w2

[Will Friedman @wkfriedman]

@bethnoveck @vonderleyen Hmm. Well, one way to look at it is this. Whether it’s one or the other, it remains an opportunity to build on and push for more. If all it becomes is a missed opportunity, that’s kind of on us.

[Will Friedman @wkfriedman]

@WajahatAli All of these replies saying there is no bottom treat Trump voters as a monolith. That’s a mistake. I suspect there’s a bottom for well over half of them, but even if it were only 5 or 10 percent it could swing an election.

[Will Friedman @wkfriedman]

@IsaacRowlett @mcarcasson @KetteringFdn @PublicAgenda I’m not so much bipartisan as pro-democracy and anti-mindless-polarization, but generally leery of split the difference politics and especially given the state of things. Agree with you: Forward is likely dead in the water, not nearly dynamic enough to meet the moment.

[Will Friedman @wkfriedman]

@dannagal Only if we let it.

[Will Friedman @wkfriedman]

@RayLodato @AaliyahNevaeh7 Before the Knicks, Wingo dominated West 4th Street while I, a 7th grader, played on the small side court. He once sent me to buy him a soda.

[Will Friedman @wkfriedman]

@dannagal If you finish yours it will give me courage to finish mine, which probably really IS dumb/stupid (but only in a small way, I doubt it will be influential enough to rate as BIG dumbness). Still, on the off-chance it's actually helpful I'd like to get it done. Do it for me!

[Judd Legum @JuddLegum]

1. @GM CEO @mtbarra presents herself as deeply committed to addressing climate change

But now she's leading a campaign to defeat the largest climate investment in history.

What gives?

Follow this 🧵if interested

https://t.co/5eQOUHNwyh

[David Schleifer @david_schleifer]

Majorities across the political spectrum & racial/ethnic identities support state investments to improve #college access, affordability, & degree completion for Black & Latino students, finds @publicagenda @usatoday #hiddencommonground survey https://t.co/Oa4RHjgf4b

[Will Friedman @wkfriedman]

@IsaacRowlett "nothing" was clearly the right parenting move!

[David Schleifer @david_schleifer]

Strong cross-partisan, cross-racial majorities agree on a range of approaches to making public #highered more affordable, including tax incentives for employers to pay employees’ tuition, finds @publicagenda @usatoday #hiddencommonground survey https://t.co/Oa4RHiYEcD

[David Schleifer @david_schleifer]

Most Americans (72%) think the economy is rigged to advantage the rich & powerful. This view is shared by majorities across the political spectrum & across racial/ethnic identities, finds @publicagenda @usatoday #hiddencommonground survey https://t.co/Oa4RHjgf4b

[Matto Mildenberger @mmildenberger]

Been reading more and more takes that climate bill failed because of shifting public opinion: e.g. the NYT "reported" this week (without empirical evidence!) that the public has soured on climate as the economy weakened. Nonsense. A short 🧵 1/

https://t.co/LP1HiH9Zy8

[Will Friedman @wkfriedman]

Worth considering: Can a national nonprofit news “utility” — funded by taxing Big Tech — help save local news? https://t.co/rveD2Y6RGC via @NiemanLab

[Judd Legum @JuddLegum]

2. According to a new report by @4TaxFairness, in the cycle prior to Citizens United, billionaires spent $16 million on federal elections.

In the 2020 cycle, billionaires spent $1.2 BILLION!

(And that's excluding money financing their own campaigns)

https://t.co/8TetcyC2Vs