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Articles by James Fallows
Midterm Countdown: 16 Days to Go.
An image Donald Trump posted this morning, of his vision for the locally cherished East Potomac Park golf courses in DC. Last weekend, Trump operatives illegally cut down hundreds of mature trees on the courses. Today he announced plans to close the courses altogether next month, to convert them to a PGA venue.
Barbarians Sack the Capital.
It’s 21 days until the midterms: We are witnessing the meltdown of a man, of a political party, and of most assumed constraints on authoritarian power. Plus: The lawless rapine of Washington DC. Three days ago, on Saturday, without required notice to local officials or a judge, crews rushed to cut down hundreds of mature trees at the East Potomac Park public golf course in Washington DC. The idea is to convert a much-loved, affordable community asset into a Mar-a-Lago style garishly elite facility.
Midterm Countdown, 33 Days to Go: Language from Our Leader.
It’s not just your imagination. Donald Trump’s active vocabulary, his train of thought, his ability to filter are all in rapid decline. We’re watching a leaky balloon as it deflates. Photos from Donald Trump’s Playboy interview in 1990. His looks and carriage have naturally changed in 36 years, as he has gone from age 44 to 80. His command of language and all that entails has changed in more striking ways.
Midterm Time Capsule, 35 Days to Go.
What we know, when we don’t know how things will turn out. 1850s image of the ruined Temple of Ramesses the Great, subject of Percy Bysshe Shelley’s Ozymandias: “ ‘Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!’ Nothing beside remains.” We’re nearing this stage in US politics.
Running as a Democrat, in a Trump +30 State.
Omar Neal , a former mayor of Tuskegee, Alabama, after a town hall for Democratic governor candidate Doug Jones last week at the Washington Chapel AME Church in Tuskegee. Voting rights are central to the Democrats’ message in Alabama, and voter turnout will be central to the outcome. (All photos JF.) Over the years I’ve seen candidates and campaign staffs who knew they were going to win an election, and candidates and staffers who knew they were going to lose.
Twenty-five Years After 9/11: What Have We Learned, and Forgotten?
Shown above, with date highlighted in red, the cover of The Atlantic’s print issue of September 2006. On the fifth anniversary of the devastating 9/11/2001 attacks, this story argued that the worst threat of terrorism was not from what attackers might do to the US. Rather it was from what they might make us do to ourselves. Twenty years ago, I wrote the magazine story shown above, to mark five years after the original 9/11 assaults.
9/11 changed the U.S.; can we change back? Original
From journalist and former Carter White House speechwriter James Fallows, thoughts on the legacy of 9/11, twenty-five years after the terrorist attacks: We live through history's turning points, but with no idea which way history will turn. December 7, 1941, the attack on Pearl Harbor, a date which will live in infamy, marked the end of U.S. isolation, and the beginning of permanent engagement around the world. And September 11, 2001? At the time, it seemed to change everything.
9/11 changed the U.S.; can we change back?
From journalist and former Carter White House speechwriter James Fallows, thoughts on the legacy of 9/11, 25 years after the terrorist attacks: We live through history's turning points, but with no idea which way history will turn. December 7, 1941, the attack on Pearl Harbor, a date which will live in infamy, marked the end of U.S. isolation, and the beginning of permanent engagement around the world. And September 11, 2001? At the time, it seemed to change everything.
‘Breaking the News’ is Back.
Sunrise over Lake Ontario. (Photo davidphotographyca via Getty Images.) Greetings everyone! This is an announcement-style post about recent activities and upcoming plans. Three months ago, at the beginning of summer, I wrote that after five years I was taking a Substack break to work on another project, about which I will say more in due course. It’s been very interesting, and I hope the result will be too.
Summertime News.
‘Clear eyes. Full hearts. Can’t lose.’ Scene from the play Perderse in Bogota, Colombia, two years ago. It shows my own spirit animal. (Photo Juancho Torres/Anadolu via Getty.) Through my decades in journalism, I’ve written in a variety of cadences. -I spent most of my time in college at the student daily newspaper, often there until the presses rolled at 2am.
Music of Place: Remembering the Genius of Phil Aaberg.
Going local, to address the universal. The renowned composer and pianist Philip Aaberg, in a kayak on the Marias River near his home in tiny Chester, Montana, when we visited him there. His music expressed the spirit of the place he loved. (Except as noted, all photos by Deborah Fallows.) Over this past weekend, Deb and I got the sad and unexpected news that our friend Philip Aaberg, a brilliant musician and influential civic and cultural leader, had died of complications from cancer, at age 77.
The Post-Trump Era Is Beginning.
Four ways of thinking about what comes next. A Storm in the Rocky Mountains, Mt. Rosalie by Albert Bierstadt. During the Civil War, Bierstadt traveled the West and began sketching out this view. He finished the painting soon after the war ended: Violent storms all around, but a promising shaft of light. (Sepia Times/Universal Images Group via Getty.) People may look back on this past week as a milestone in political awareness. It’s not only that public opinion keeps turning against Donald Trump.
Trump Lands in Beijing: What I'm Watching For.
Donald Trump arriving today in Beijing. (Alex Wong/Getty Images) Here are five quick points about Donald Trump’s quick visit to China, with meetings scheduled to start in a few hours as I type. By the end of this week, we may have a clearer sense of how much—or how little—came out of this toe-tap foreign excursion. My bet is on “how little”: Recall how little came out of the humiliating “Putin Summit” in Alaska last summer. But we’ll see.
What We Don't Know, Can Kill Us: Part 3.
Less than 11 years ago, representatives of major European powers, plus the US, Russia, and China, signed an agreement that gave outside inspectors 24/7 access to Iran’s nuclear sites, and capped its uranium stockpiles at 300 kgs, enriched to a paltry 3.67%. Three years later, thanks to Donald Trump, their work was ashes. Now Iran’s uranium stockpiles and enrichment levels have soared, and the world is at war.
What We Don't Know, Can Kill Us: Part 3.
Less than 11 years ago, representatives of major European powers, plus the US, Russia, and China, signed an agreement that gave outside inspectors 24/7 access to Iran’s nuclear sites, and capped its uranium stockpiles at 300 kgs, enriched to a paltry 3.67%. Three years later, thanks to Donald Trump, their work was ashes. Now Iran’s uranium stockpiles and enrichment levels have soared, and the world is at war.
‘Be Not Simply Good. Be Good for Something.’
At right, Alireza Taghdarreh of Tehran. At left, Don Henley, of Eagles and Hotel California. They met and both spoke at the Thoreau Institute at Walden Woods, on the Institute’s 25th anniversary in 2015. This happened to be the very day that the US and Iran announced the now-abandoned JCPOA nuclear deal. (Photo by Matt Burns of the Walden Woods Project.) This is another installment on the “public memory” gap between the US and Iran.
What We Don't Know, Can Kill Us: Part 2.
In the mid-1980s, this was one of the most recognizable faces in the world. In 1987, then-USMC Lt. Col. Oliver North was the star witness during 40 days of televised Congressional hearings about the “Iran-Contra” scandal, which led to indictments of 14 Reagan administration officials, and convictions for 11. In today’s US, the episode is barely mentioned or remembered. Not so in Iran.
What We Don’t Know, Can Kill Us.
What a difference two years can make: In first photo, from Washington in 1951, Dean Acheson (on left), as US Secretary of State, warmly greets Mohammad Mosaddegh, the recently elected prime minister of Iran. Then in 1953, the CIA engineered a coup to overthrow Mosaddegh and replace him with the Shah. Mohammad Mosaddegh spent the rest of his life in prison or house arrest, as shown in second photo. Most people in today’s Iran knows this story. Few people in today’s America do.
‘I Fly With the Eagles.’
Talk about one picture being worth 6,000 words: Detail from an illustration by JC Suares, for my Atlantic article 45 years ago. (Image from home archives.) As mentioned in my post last night, for paid subscribers here is the full text of my Atlantic article about being taken for a ride in an F-15, 45 years ago. I still have the before-and-after photos from that day. Before, I’m jauntily going up the ladder to the cockpit in my fresh flight-suit.
Your Scorecard for US Military Aircraft Over Iran.
Official Pentagon photo of an F-15E “Strike Eagle,” like the one that was shot down over Iran yesterday. The F-15 was designed in the 1960s and went into service in the 1970s. (Air Force photo.) So much is going wrong, so catastrophically, on so many fronts, that it’s hard to find a point of traction. So for the moment, this post is a quick guide to the US warplanes most frequently mentioned in news involving Iran.
What Happened Last Night at LaGuardia.
Last night at LaGuardia. The two Air Canada pilots died; many other people were injured or will have their lives changed forever. (Photo Spencer Platt/Getty Images.) It takes a long time to know the why and how of aviation disasters. The purpose of this post is to point to several early sources that clarify the what of last night’s fatal collision at LaGuardia airport, LGA. For reference I offer the diagram below. It’s an official FAA chart of the runway and taxiway layout at LGA.
One Man a Hero. One Man a Monster.
Robert Mueller, 1944-2026, as a young Marine Corps officer preparing to be a platoon leader during the bloodiest year of combat in Vietnam, 1968. He was wounded in action, received a Purple Heart, and was awarded a Bronze Star with ‘V’ for valor among other decorations. It was the beginning of a long career in public service. (National Archives/Getty Images.) Robert Mueller died today, at age 81. Decent people around the world mourn his passing.
The Folly of War Grows Worse.
Government leaders at the ‘dignified transfer’ of remains of the first six US troops killed in the war on Iran. By custom and military regulation, everyone, including presidents, stands bare-headed at these solemn occasions, except for service members in uniform. This time a president wore a baseball cap, saying “45-47” on the side.
The Arrogance of Ignorance.
Cover of The Atlantic in December, 2004. It features a story by me on a Pentagon “war-game” exercise about the perils of attacking Iran. This week I realized that over the past 45 years I’d been preparing for the news of the past nine days. I’ll list the reporting steps I’ve taken, because they set up the questions and reactions I have now.
Nasty, Brutish, and Long.
Thomas Hobbes and Hieronymus Bosch, with insights on Tuesday night's spectacle. The scene in the Capitol two nights ago, as imagined by Hieronymus Bosch more than 500 years ahead of time. (From panel depicting Hell, in ‘Garden of Earthly Delights,’ at Prado Museum in Madrid. Photo Leemage/Corbis via Getty Images.) -I didn’t write about Donald Trump’s performance at the Capitol on Tuesday night, because I couldn’t stand to watch the whole thing. I turned it off when it still had 45 minutes to go.
It's SOTU Time!
Samuel Alito, at the upper left, is not liking what he is hearing from Barack Obama, when Alito and five other Supreme Court Justices attended Obama’s 2010 SOTU.
What Should the Dems Do to Win-And Then to Govern?
Closing scene in Robert Redford’s classic 1972 movie The Candidate. Redford’s long-shot candidate stages an unexpected victory. As the returns come in, he asks his advisors: What do we do now? Winning is one thing. Governing is different. Dems hope they’ll be in a position to ask—and answer—this question one year from now. (JF screenshot.) The past year’s political energy for many Americans has mainly, and necessarily, been anti.
What Happened in El Paso?
The area the FAA hastily declared as a ten-day “no fly” zone over El Paso this week, in response to what appears to have been a party balloon floating across the border from Mexico. The episode posed no immediate risk to people in El Paso or elsewhere but revealed profoundly dangerous attitudes. This post is a Q-and-A about the sudden closure of the El Paso airport two days ago.
Management Under a Mad King: The Courtiers Who Try to Clean Up.
White House staffers, “clarifying” Donald Trump’s latest midnight decree. (Or more precisely: A woman sweeping up horse manure after a Hyde Park event in London ten years ago.
What We've Learned About the Deadly Crash Over the Potomac.
Slide from the NTSB’s public hearings this week, charting the paths that led an Army Black Hawk helicopter (path in yellow) to fly into a commercial airliner (in blue) in the skies over Washington DC. (NTSB graphic.) This post is about aviation safety, based on the deadliest US airline crash since 2001.
Good riddance to Greg Bovino. This photo is from three months ago, when he was ordered to appear in court for ignoring a federal judge’s orders strictly limiting the use of tear gas and other crowd-suppression weapons by ICE and CBP troops. Now Bovino is being deported from Minneapolis back to his home base in El Centro, California.
A Speech for the History Books.
Mark Carney, prime minister of Canada, acknowledging a rare-for-Davos sustained standing ovation, at the end of his brief (17 minutes) but exquisitely composed address to the 1,800-person crowd of world financial and political leaders yesterday. He explained American values, and lamented the effects of their permanent loss, far more eloquently than the person who ranted, complained, bragged, and lied on that same stage this morning.
A Speech for the History Books.
Mark Carney, prime minister of Canada, acknowledging a rare-for-Davos sustained standing ovation, at the end of his brief (17 minutes) but exquisitely composed address to the 1,800-person crowd of world financial and political leaders yesterday. He explained American values, and lamented the effects of their permanent loss, far more eloquently than the person who ranted, complained, bragged, and lied on that same stage this morning.
Your Primer on Greenland.
This morning on Fox, two well-matched intellects: Maria Bartiromo and Ted Cruz. Next to them is a Fox-produced map making Greenland look bigger than China, which in reality is more than four times its size. And on a par with the whole of Africa, which in fact is nearly 15 times as large. Fox is famous as the main source of real-time intel for the person who has assumed one-man control of US military, economic, and diplomatic relations with the world. What could go wrong?
The Rhetoric of Leaders: Meeting the Moment.
One year ago: The day after being sworn in a second time, Donald Trump refuses to make eye contact with Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde, as she leaves the pulpit of the National Cathedral. Moments before, Budde had looked directly at Trump and said: “I ask you to have mercy, Mr. President, on those in our communities whose children fear that their parents will be taken away. And that you help those fleeing war zones and persecution, to find compassion and welcome here.” Trump’s fury was palpable.
In the Time of the Mad King.
From the front page of the New York Times two days ago. King Canute would be proud. (JF screenshot from the NYT site.) It’s hard to believe, but it’s only been one week. Just last weekend, Donald Trump announced that the US was now “running” Venezuela, with a notable lack of details on how long, by whom, and toward what end.
‘Blind Into Caracas’
From today’s press conference, after the US raid in Venezuela. At center, Marco Rubio, pretending that this was just a normal law-enforcement action. At left, the omnipresent Stephen Miller. At right, the person who has assumed one-man authority to disrupt the world economy with tariffs, launch lethal assaults on other nations, and declare a “boots on the ground” military occupation. Today, as shown, he struggled to maintain attention when anyone was speaking except himself.
A Positive Sign for Flying in the Future...
From the website of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, AOPA, a visualization of the descent and landing path of an airplane last weekend near Denver. What makes this image of a safe and smooth landing unique is that no pilot touched the controls through the final minutes of the flight.
‘This Is the Proverbial Rainy Day.’
AI generated image of our moment in history, from Gemini. None of us yet dare “look back” on the Trump era, despite the increasing signs that the wheels are coming off. -Not during a week when we’ve seen unquestionably the worst and most deranged speech any president has ever given. -Not when this president pursues undeclared prelude-to-war in our hemisphere, without presenting a case to either Congress or the public, let alone gaining authorization.
The Challenges Facing Our Air Travel System
During the recent government shutdown, much of the coverage focused on flight delays and the fact that our nation’s air traffic controllers were working without pay. It made me want to look more closely at the challenges facing our air travel system today. As millions of Americans prepare to travel for the holidays, I wanted to share a recent conversation I had with a really remarkable person.
Here Today, Gone Tomorrow.
Putting a New York Times page together, back in the days of hot lead and Linotype. Everything about the media has changed, but how news organizations present their stories still matters. (Corbis / Getty Images.) This post is about an evergreen but newly urgent topic: How mainstream media in general, and the New York Times in particular, ‘frame’ the political news.
Thankful for One Another.
Children approaching the Smithsonian castle on the National Mall, in a photo from the 1970s. If the little boys of that era are still around now, they might be among the ‘Citizen Historians’ of our era working to defend treasures of American history like those at the Smithsonian, so that future generations can learn from them. (Smithsonian Archives photo.) What’s something Americans, as a nation, might feel thankful for, in this troubling season?
Why I Changed My Mind About the Shutdown ‘Surrender.’
famed ‘snake cartoon’ Pennsylvania Gazette in 1754. He was preparing colonial Americans for the original ‘No Kings’ struggle. The advice applies to our ‘No Kings’ effort today. (Library of Congress, via Getty Images.) This week I changed my mind on the politics of our era. This post is about the reasons why, and what I’ve learned about immediate reactions versus a longer view.
Air Travel at the Breaking Point.
FlightAware’s MiseryMap ,’ with real-time graphics of flights that are cancelled or subject to major delays. This is the reading just now, as I type, at 8pm Eastern time on Sunday, November 9. Today is Day Three of the FAA’s shutdown-era timetable for reducing flights at busy hubs airports. By today, airlines were supposed to have cancelled 4% of their flights to these sites. Next week the cuts are supposed to reach 10%.
An Autumn Afternoon in Washington D.C.
The Washington Monument, through the low sunlight of mid-autumn, from the National Mall in Washington D.C.. The forlorn mood of our capital, in one image. (Photos by Deborah Fallows.) Two months ago, I posted a photo-log of a five-mile foot journey Deb and I had made, from Union Station in Washington to the Lincoln Memorial and beyond. That was just after Donald Trump had ordered National Guard troops into the nation’s capital.
Putting the ‘Public’ Back in Public Editor.
The US Politics online home page of TheNew York Times one week ago, the morning after millions of people turned out at some 2,700 ‘No Kings’ demonstrations across the US. Why this low-key coverage of the biggest American public gathering in more than 55 years? I asked the paper’s representatives and will share their reply. (JF screenshot, 11:20am on October 19, 2025.) This post is on a familiar topic—press ‘framing’ of our current emergencies—but with an unfamiliar twist.
Stand Up, Stand Together.
Some of the 2,600+ planned sites for tomorrow’s ‘No Kings’ demonstrations, across 50 states plus DC, Puerto Rico, Guam, and beyond. As the MAGA regime becomes ever more lawless and destructive, the principles of standing up, and standing together, matter all the more.
Air Travel During the Shutdown. Do I Need to Worry?
Via FlightAware this morning, the queue of planes being sequenced for landing (blue) or departure (green) at Los Angeles International airport, LAX. All the other planes (white) are headed somewhere else. This represents a relatively slow time for traffic at LAX, mid-morning on a Sunday. (Screen shot on October 5, 2025, from FlightAware.) Around 13,000 FAA-employed Air Traffic Controllers (ATCs) were required to report for work as usual today.
Preserving Our Sanity, During Insane Times.
The American public of 2025, as observed by the outside world. (Actually, Edvard Munch’s The Scream, on display at Sotheby’s before it was auctioned off for $120 million in 2012. Photo Oli Scarff/Getty Images) This post is about some articles, essays, and other items I’ve seen recently that all bear on the same issue. That is how to maintain sanity, effectiveness, and the simple ability to function.
Commentary: James Fallows on the lessons to take from political violence Original
As we end another violent week in America, thoughts this morning from veteran journalist James Fallows, author of 12 books and the man behind Breaking the News on Substack: The ordinary days or weeks roll by. Then, in an instant, we know that things have changed, and we're on an unknown path. These moments—of sudden awareness that "history" is happening around us, but confusion about its shape and theme—are unforgettable, and painful.
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