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Alex Shephard

Alex Shephard is a staff writer at The New Republic, where he has covered politics and culture since 2015. His work has also appeared in New York, GQ, The Atlantic, The Nation, and other publications.  

All Articles
November 22, 2022
The Soapbox
FIFA’s Cynicism Knows No Bounds
Soccer’s governing body is destroying the World Cup—but for once, the comically corrupt organization is getting called out for its sins.
November 18, 2022
Critical Mass
Welcome to the Disheartening 2022 World Cup
The next few weeks will be a constant reminder that the biggest tournament in the sports world should never have been awarded to Qatar.
November 17, 2022
The Soapbox
Mitch McConnell’s Ongoing Trump Bedevilment Is Self-Inflicted
The longtime Senate GOP leader had the chance to put an end to the former president’s poisonous hold on his party, but he chickened out.
November 16, 2022
The Soapbox
Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX Downfall Is a Cryptocurrency Warning for Democrats
Ditch the crypto bros and push forward with regulation.
November 14, 2022
The Soapbox
A New Republican Civil War Is About to Begin
The GOP’s old guard is pinning their hopes on a Ron DeSantis renaissance. But Donald Trump’s counterestablishment has beaten them once before.
November 11, 2022
The Soapbox
The Attempt to Anoint Ron DeSantis as Trump’s Heir Will Fail
Republican elites are making the same mistakes they made in 2016.
November 9, 2022
The Soapbox
Donald Trump Was the Midterms’ Biggest Loser
His handpicked candidates did badly. But don’t expect the GOP to kick him to the curb.
November 9, 2022
Critical Mass
Democrats John Fetterman’s and Josh Shapiro’s Path to Victory, in Photos
The passions of Pennsylvania were on full display in the last week of the campaign in the battleground state. Photographer Mark Peterson was there to capture the action.
November 9, 2022
The Soapbox
This Was the First Post–January 6 Election
Republican candidates took Trump’s “Big Lie” and ran for office on delusional claims of voter fraud. They won’t be thwarted from doing it again.
November 8, 2022
The Soapbox
The Cards Were Always Stacked Against Democrats
Whatever happens on Tuesday, be suspicious of tidy narratives about the midterm elections.
November 3, 2022
Critical Mass
The Penguin Random House–Simon & Schuster Merger Has Been Blocked. What Now?
While the anti-monopoly movement has a huge victory to celebrate, the publishing industry is left with a sense of impending doom.
October 31, 2022
The Soapbox
The Right-Wing Media Is a Conspiracy Engine That Enables Political Violence
Conservatives’ despicable reactions to the attack on Paul Pelosi tell a horrific story about how dark the far-right’s media ecosystem has become.
October 31, 2022
The Soapbox
What’s the Matter With New York’s Democrats?
The party’s unforeseen struggles in the bluest of blue strongholds portend tumult to come.
October 26, 2022
The Soapbox
Fetterman’s Debate Struggles Provoke Wild Speculation About Hypothetical Voters
While the pundits don’t seem to know much about the candidate’s stroke-related impairment, they’re convinced that imaginary Pennsylvanians have some very specific opinions about it.
October 25, 2022
The Soapbox
House Progressives’ Ukraine Letter Was a Self-Inflicted Disaster
A tedious and tepid missive did more to damage its writers’ reputations than advance the cause of peace.
October 25, 2022
The Soapbox
The Midterms Are Shaping Up as a Dry Run for Trump’s Next Coup
Having learned a thing or two from his failed effort to overturn the 2020 election, the former president will test new, bolder strategies next month.
October 23, 2022
The Soapbox
Congressional Republicans Look to Sow Chaos in Ukraine if They Retake Congress
If Kevin McCarthy is to be taken seriously, the Biden administration should plan ahead for the GOP to try to break Europe.
October 20, 2022
The Soapbox
The Spectacular Failure of Right-Wing Social Media Platforms
From Kanye West (maybe?) buying Parler (but why?) to Donald Trump’s flailing (and scammy) Truth Social, the “free-speech” revolution is floundering.
October 19, 2022
The Soapbox
Democrats May Have Made the Wrong Bet on Inflation
The party rode a little bit of midterm luck to get back in the running, but it might have waited too long to make its case on the economy.
October 14, 2022
The Soapbox
Will World Cup Reporters Let Qatar Get Away With Its Human Rights Abuses?
As Saudi Arabia’s takeover of English soccer club Newcastle proves, the media is highly susceptible to sportswashing by corrupt regimes.

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