Persuasion | Yascha Mounk | Substack

My Day of Jury Duty

What a deeply ordinary day in a deeply ordinary court taught me about American democracy.

2 hrs ago • Yascha Mounk

Perú Invented a New Form of Government, and Nobody Noticed

How a corrupt congress reinvented Westminster parliamentarism from the ground up.

Feb 26 • Quico Toro

Yes, Human Beings Are Exceptional

It’s trendy to talk down our species. But right now, our exceptionalism is the planet’s greatest ally.

Feb 25 • Bharath Krishnamoorthy

American power rested on culture. No longer.

Feb 24 • Seva Gunitsky

The Supreme Court Defanged Trump's Tariff Weapon

And quietly revealed how fragile his agenda really is.

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Francis Fukuyama

The Supreme Court Defanged Trump's Tariff Weapon

And quietly revealed how fragile his agenda really is.

Feb 23 • Francis Fukuyama

Why American Governments Can’t Get Things Done

We used to build things. Today, the state is hampered by red tape and veto points.

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Houston, We Have a Problem

It's not rocket science that kept America from returning to the moon. It's state capacity.

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Newsletters

Essays and conversations about big ideas from our editor-in-chief.

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Francis Fukuyama shares some of the many things on his mind.

American Purpose

American Purpose at Persuasion is a continuation of the magazine, media project, and intellectual community chaired by Francis Fukuyama. Includes Larry Diamond's "Diamond on Democracy" column and the "Bookstack" podcast with Richard Aldous.

Yascha Mounk

My Day of Jury Duty

What a deeply ordinary day in a deeply ordinary court taught me about American democracy.

2 hrs ago • Yascha Mounk

The Humanities Are About to Be Automated

AI can now write convincing academic papers. There’s no more room for denial.

Feb 16 • Yascha Mounk

Wake Up, Europe

The continent must take charge of its own fate.

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Danielle Allen on Why Technocratic Liberalism Failed

Yascha Mounk and Danielle Allen discuss democratic backsliding.

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Janice Stein on When Being Rational Is Irrational

Yascha Mounk and Janice Stein delve into the paradoxes of decision-making in politics and international relations.

Feb 24 • Yascha Mounk

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The Good Fight Club: Why Japan’s “Weirdo” Victory Matters, the Rise of Chinese Soft Power, and the End of Asian Stability

Yascha Mounk, Bethany Allen, Pratap Bhanu Mehta, and Chang Che examine how Asia is preparing for a more dangerous world.

Feb 21 • Yascha Mounk

Podcasts

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What Trump and Xi Have in Common

Both the United States and China are replacing top military commanders with ideologues.

Feb 26 • Shahn Louis

Why Universities Are Still A Powerful Force In Iran

Students are once again at the center of the country’s demands for change.

Feb 24 • Saeid Golkar

An Efficient Government Is A Limited Government

If we want an institution to be good at what it does, we must first define its role.

Feb 23 • Emily Chamlee-Wright

How To Build An Abundance Movement in Europe

Stagnation has held the continent back for too long.

Feb 16 • Jesper Steenstrup Vogelius

Achieving Abundance Is Harder Than It Sounds

Much of the left remains committed to scarcity. Here’s how to change the debate.

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Episode 181: Hélène Landemore on Politics Without Politicians

Bookstack at Persuasion is delivered to you every other Sunday at 6am EST.

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Episode 180: Nicolas Stavros Niarchos on the Elements of Power

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Episode 179: Georgios Varouxakis on the West

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Jan 18 • Richard Aldous

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Episode 178: Geoffrey Ward on the American Revolution

Bookstack at Persuasion is delivered to you every other Sunday at 6am EST.

Jan 4 • Richard Aldous

Recent posts

The Supreme Court Sides With the Constitution

By striking down Trump’s justification for tariffs, the justices showed that the president can’t run roughshod over Congress.

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Not even close.

Feb 20 • Ruy Teixeira

Orbán is Trump’s Immigration Idol

But unlike Hungary, America was built on an idea—one that won’t sustain ethnic nationalism.

Feb 19 • Charles Lane

Why American Governments Can’t Get Things Done

We used to build things. Today, the state is hampered by red tape and veto points.

Feb 18 • Francis Fukuyama

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My Day of Jury Duty

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Trump Once Again Failed the Decency Test

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Liberalism As Mob Boss

How to respond to conservative critiques of actually existing liberal societies.

Oct 30, 2025 • Alexandre Lefebvre

An Open Society Requires Constant Vigilance

Liberalism is built on paradoxes—but we have a duty to defend it.

Sep 10, 2025 • Roger Partridge

Bringing Human Nature Back In

Francis Fukuyama in the latest of our series “Why Liberalism.”

Aug 13, 2025 • Francis Fukuyama

The Woke Right Stands At the Door

Whence comes this uncanniest of all guests?

Aug 6, 2025 • Jonathan Rauch

Gradual Change is F***ing Awesome—And Liberalism Knows It

On Darwin, abuse, and Costanza politics.

Jul 30, 2025 • Wayne Karol

The "Deep State" and Its Discontents: A Series By American Purpose

An Efficient Government Is A Limited Government

If we want an institution to be good at what it does, we must first define its role.

Feb 23 • Emily Chamlee-Wright

Why American Governments Can’t Get Things Done

We used to build things. Today, the state is hampered by red tape and veto points.

Feb 18 • Francis Fukuyama

Houston, We Have a Problem

It's not rocket science that kept America from returning to the moon. It's state capacity.

Feb 8 • Francis Fukuyama

Deregulation for Me, Regulation for Thee

Trump hasn’t actually reduced the burden of the administrative state—he’s just shifted it onto all of us.

Oct 20, 2025 • Matthew Wollin

Universities, Liberalism and Democracy: A Series By Persuasion

A Pedagogy of the Empowered

The left-wing cancellations of yesteryear teach us how to respond to the right-wing censorship of today.

May 26, 2025 • Eboo Patel

How I Learned To Stop Criticizing Everything

There are two directions higher education can take. Here’s why I chose pluralism.

Oct 25, 2024 • Eboo Patel

The current system is broken. Here’s what truly inclusive institutions would look like.

Sep 26, 2024 • Rachel Kleinfeld

Reflections on the New Encampment Culture

There were many puzzling features of the recent protests. This coming year, universities must course correct—while protecting the right to dissent.

Sep 20, 2024 • David Bromwich

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