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The Day After: How to Wield Power in a Post-Trump World
Brian Tyler Cohen explores how Republicans have abused power, how Democrats have refused to exercise power when they held it, and how progressives should wield power if they are fortunate enough to win a free and fair election in a post-Trump world.
This book is a wake-up call about the decades-long project that led to Trump's America. It's the playbook for progressives who want to do far more than restore the status quo. This is how we build a stronger country, with hope and opportunity for all — before our democracy slides into a distant memory.
This book is a wake-up call about the decades-long project that led to Trump's America. It's the playbook for progressives who want to do far more than restore the status quo. This is how we build a stronger country, with hope and opportunity for all — before our democracy slides into a distant memory.
208 pages, Hardcover
First published July 14, 2026
About the author
Brian Tyler Cohen
2 books133 followersIn 2011, Cohen graduated from Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, with a BS degree in Business and Economics and a BA degree in English. He addressed the graduating class of 2011 as their class president.
Cohen acted in a handful of film and television roles from 2012 to 2016.
In October 2018, Cohen started posting political content on his YouTube channel which primarily covers national politics. Cohen later started his first podcast, No Lie, during the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic in June 2020. Cohen has since created multiple different shows on his channel. On February 25, 2022, Cohen became the first YouTube creator/podcaster to interview U.S. President Joe Biden.
Abridged from Wikipedia.
Cohen acted in a handful of film and television roles from 2012 to 2016.
In October 2018, Cohen started posting political content on his YouTube channel which primarily covers national politics. Cohen later started his first podcast, No Lie, during the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic in June 2020. Cohen has since created multiple different shows on his channel. On February 25, 2022, Cohen became the first YouTube creator/podcaster to interview U.S. President Joe Biden.
Abridged from Wikipedia.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 86 reviews
September 12, 2026
“The day after Trump is the first day of the America we always knew we could build.”
I have been reading this one alongside, “Betrayed – America Didn’t Vote for This” by Ira Shapiro. And, let’s just say, I am completely fired up!
Midterms here we come.
This book left me thinking about what comes next – and what it will take to actually create meaningful change.
I first became aware of the author when I started following his Facebook page. Eventually, I subscribed to his Substack newsletter, and began watching his YouTube podcast.
After reading his debut political nonfiction book, “Shameless: Republicans’ Deliberate Dysfunction and the Battle to Preserve Democracy” earlier this summer (July, 2026), I was particularly interested in what he would have to say about what happens AFTER the current political moment. If interested, my review link for “Shameless” is below.
This book was released on July 14, 2026, and recently became available through my local library. At less than 200 pages, it is a relatively quick read, that Cohen packs a lot into.
Personally, I would like to believe that there really will be a “day after.”
“Every day we are reminded of the terrible consequences of the 2024 election. …Any pretense that there are guardrails has been disproven. There are no adults in the room.” – Marc Elias, Voting Rights Lawyer, & Co-host, Democracy Watch podcast
The 11 chapters and an epilogue have attention grabbing titles such as: The Long Game, We the People, Not a King, and The Con in the Economy.
Cohen provides historical context for how he believes Republicans built and exercised political power over decades, while also examining where Democrats failed to use power effectively when they had it.
The second part feels important.
This isn’t simply a book about what went wrong. Cohen is looking ahead and asking readers to consider:
What happens when the opportunity to govern differently comes again?
Many of his recommendations may sound familiar, like – eliminating the filibuster, reforming the Supreme Court, scrapping the Electoral College, defending voting rights and being prepared to act quickly during the first 100 days of a future administration.
But perhaps that is exactly why these recommendations need to be reiterated.
Cohen’s message is essentially that winning an election is not the end of the work. If change is the goal, preparation matters. Understanding how power has been built and used matters. And, ultimately, participation matters.
His brief discussion of George Orwell’s classic “1984” brought that home for me. The idea behind “Ignorance is strength” is a reminder of what can happen when citizens stop questioning, stop paying attention, and stop participating.
And that brings me back to where I started.
I want to believe there really is a day after.
Perhaps the most important takeaway from this book is that whatever happens next will depend, in part, on what citizens are willing to learn, understand, and do between now and then.
For me, “The Day After” was sharp, motivating, and – most importantly – a necessary jolt of reality. Especially at the midterms, when we can exercise our rights and VOTE!
“Shameless” review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
“Betrayed…” by Ira Shapiro review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
“Nineteen Eighty-Four” by George Orwell: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Brian Tyler Cohen podcast: https://www.youtube.com/briantylercohen
I have been reading this one alongside, “Betrayed – America Didn’t Vote for This” by Ira Shapiro. And, let’s just say, I am completely fired up!
Midterms here we come.
This book left me thinking about what comes next – and what it will take to actually create meaningful change.
I first became aware of the author when I started following his Facebook page. Eventually, I subscribed to his Substack newsletter, and began watching his YouTube podcast.
After reading his debut political nonfiction book, “Shameless: Republicans’ Deliberate Dysfunction and the Battle to Preserve Democracy” earlier this summer (July, 2026), I was particularly interested in what he would have to say about what happens AFTER the current political moment. If interested, my review link for “Shameless” is below.
This book was released on July 14, 2026, and recently became available through my local library. At less than 200 pages, it is a relatively quick read, that Cohen packs a lot into.
Personally, I would like to believe that there really will be a “day after.”
“Every day we are reminded of the terrible consequences of the 2024 election. …Any pretense that there are guardrails has been disproven. There are no adults in the room.” – Marc Elias, Voting Rights Lawyer, & Co-host, Democracy Watch podcast
The 11 chapters and an epilogue have attention grabbing titles such as: The Long Game, We the People, Not a King, and The Con in the Economy.
Cohen provides historical context for how he believes Republicans built and exercised political power over decades, while also examining where Democrats failed to use power effectively when they had it.
The second part feels important.
This isn’t simply a book about what went wrong. Cohen is looking ahead and asking readers to consider:
What happens when the opportunity to govern differently comes again?
Many of his recommendations may sound familiar, like – eliminating the filibuster, reforming the Supreme Court, scrapping the Electoral College, defending voting rights and being prepared to act quickly during the first 100 days of a future administration.
But perhaps that is exactly why these recommendations need to be reiterated.
Cohen’s message is essentially that winning an election is not the end of the work. If change is the goal, preparation matters. Understanding how power has been built and used matters. And, ultimately, participation matters.
His brief discussion of George Orwell’s classic “1984” brought that home for me. The idea behind “Ignorance is strength” is a reminder of what can happen when citizens stop questioning, stop paying attention, and stop participating.
And that brings me back to where I started.
I want to believe there really is a day after.
Perhaps the most important takeaway from this book is that whatever happens next will depend, in part, on what citizens are willing to learn, understand, and do between now and then.
For me, “The Day After” was sharp, motivating, and – most importantly – a necessary jolt of reality. Especially at the midterms, when we can exercise our rights and VOTE!
“Shameless” review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
“Betrayed…” by Ira Shapiro review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
“Nineteen Eighty-Four” by George Orwell: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Brian Tyler Cohen podcast: https://www.youtube.com/briantylercohen
July 22, 2026
Brian Tyler Cohen is pissed off. Royally. He feels strongly about what’s happened/is happening to our country and what needs to be done, and is impatient for people to take the matter seriously. The system is broken, he observes, and the next Democratic administration and Congress have to recognize the extent of the destruction because there's no going back to as it was before. New laws need to be written, the Supreme Court must be reformed (enforceable ethical codes) and expanded (settling on 9 seats was because there were 9 federal circuits at the time; there are now 13), the independence of DOJ must be formally written into law, and so on. Most importantly, he argues that Democrats in Congress must be as single-minded and ruthless as Republicans have been. It's been manifestly clear for decades that the GOP is not interested in compromise. Democrats should acknowledge that fact and stop acting as if they're above it all.
It all makes good sense, in my opinion, but I have to reluctantly say that I'm less than sanguine about the prospect of these steps being taken for a couple of reasons. The first big question: will the midterms and 2028 general election be free and fair? The Administration and its supporters are already working earnestly to interfere with voting, that’s for sure, through voter suppression, gerrymandering, efforts to get rid of voting by mail (how does this not affect Republican voters in rural districts, one might reasonably ask), and disinformation. Second, if Democrats do retake the House and Senate in the mids and the White House in '28, will they have enough political will and courage to do what’s necessary? Will they honestly acknowledge and address the problems the Trump years have exposed, or will they just make a lot of outraged speeches and try to return things to the way they "used to be" (but haven't been for a very long time)? Cohen has a lot of very good ideas about what steps need to be taken. It’s going to be a difficult slog, he says many times. I hope the country is up to the challenge.
(PS: I'm listening to a late July episode of The New Yorker Politics Hour. The subject is why Congress no longer works or even tries to work. I recommend it highly.)
Thanks to Harper’s and Edelweiss+ for providing a digital ARC in return for an honest review.
It all makes good sense, in my opinion, but I have to reluctantly say that I'm less than sanguine about the prospect of these steps being taken for a couple of reasons. The first big question: will the midterms and 2028 general election be free and fair? The Administration and its supporters are already working earnestly to interfere with voting, that’s for sure, through voter suppression, gerrymandering, efforts to get rid of voting by mail (how does this not affect Republican voters in rural districts, one might reasonably ask), and disinformation. Second, if Democrats do retake the House and Senate in the mids and the White House in '28, will they have enough political will and courage to do what’s necessary? Will they honestly acknowledge and address the problems the Trump years have exposed, or will they just make a lot of outraged speeches and try to return things to the way they "used to be" (but haven't been for a very long time)? Cohen has a lot of very good ideas about what steps need to be taken. It’s going to be a difficult slog, he says many times. I hope the country is up to the challenge.
(PS: I'm listening to a late July episode of The New Yorker Politics Hour. The subject is why Congress no longer works or even tries to work. I recommend it highly.)
Thanks to Harper’s and Edelweiss+ for providing a digital ARC in return for an honest review.
July 14, 2026
★ 3.25 stars ★
uh ohhhhh.
here comes the leftisttttt...
why, yes. I am here to be a dick. don't get me wrong. i truly don't mind brian tyler cohen that much. he seems fine and at least slightly genuine in what he espouses. And this book was well written as far as diction/syntax goes.
that being said, this book just did not need to exist. within these pages are just restatements of what BTC often discusses in his YouTube videos. This book doesn't say anything new that he hasn't already said.
And yet...
He completely fails to address the elephant in the room: The democrats and their corruption.
Because they are just as wicked as the Republicans, just in a different way. I won't go into a whole rant about dark money, AIPAC, etc because frankly, I'm tired. it's depressing and angering.
The democrats and US government as a whole have made it clear they don't care about representing the needs and desires of the US population.
But I'm disappointed (although unsurprised) that BTC does not address the fact that the biggest thing holding our nation back is not Trump. It is not the Republicans. It's the collusion. It's the dark money and the greed. The late stage capitalism. The undying fealty to Israel. The SuperPACs. And that will long outlive Trump if we don't do anything about it.
And I doubt the author of this book wants to do anything about it.
So, in summary...
this book was kind of pointless. it does nothing.
I don't trust BTC.
VIVA LA REVOLUTION
p.s. i found it very funny that BTC seems so confident we'll have a dem president in 2028 lol.
the DNC will almost certainly find a way to f**k that up with the way they're going.
------
Many thanks to HarperAudio for a audio copy— NOT
HarperAudio did not deign to accept my request but don't worry... this radical left lunatic is here to critique anyway.
I like Brian Tyler Cohen. He seems decent. But he's also a major player in the democratic establishment and keeping the Overton Window where it is (aka very right leaning).
So, all this to say, I am very excited to here how Mr. Cohen thinks we should wield power in a 'post-trump' world and if he believes we should do so in a way that will actually reflect the voice of the people or keep things how they are.
uh ohhhhh.
here comes the leftisttttt...
why, yes. I am here to be a dick. don't get me wrong. i truly don't mind brian tyler cohen that much. he seems fine and at least slightly genuine in what he espouses. And this book was well written as far as diction/syntax goes.
that being said, this book just did not need to exist. within these pages are just restatements of what BTC often discusses in his YouTube videos. This book doesn't say anything new that he hasn't already said.
And yet...
He completely fails to address the elephant in the room: The democrats and their corruption.
Because they are just as wicked as the Republicans, just in a different way. I won't go into a whole rant about dark money, AIPAC, etc because frankly, I'm tired. it's depressing and angering.
The democrats and US government as a whole have made it clear they don't care about representing the needs and desires of the US population.
But I'm disappointed (although unsurprised) that BTC does not address the fact that the biggest thing holding our nation back is not Trump. It is not the Republicans. It's the collusion. It's the dark money and the greed. The late stage capitalism. The undying fealty to Israel. The SuperPACs. And that will long outlive Trump if we don't do anything about it.
And I doubt the author of this book wants to do anything about it.
So, in summary...
this book was kind of pointless. it does nothing.
I don't trust BTC.
VIVA LA REVOLUTION
p.s. i found it very funny that BTC seems so confident we'll have a dem president in 2028 lol.
the DNC will almost certainly find a way to f**k that up with the way they're going.
------
Many thanks to HarperAudio for a audio copy— NOT
HarperAudio did not deign to accept my request but don't worry... this radical left lunatic is here to critique anyway.
I like Brian Tyler Cohen. He seems decent. But he's also a major player in the democratic establishment and keeping the Overton Window where it is (aka very right leaning).
So, all this to say, I am very excited to here how Mr. Cohen thinks we should wield power in a 'post-trump' world and if he believes we should do so in a way that will actually reflect the voice of the people or keep things how they are.
August 4, 2026
I get a daily dose of Brian Tyler Cohen via his YouTube channel, and admire his tireless chronicling and analysis of the Trump administration's attacks on the nation. It must be exhausting, depressing, and Sisyphean work, but Cohen keeps pushing that boulder up the hill. On top of running an independent media network, he's found time to write a second book: The Day After: How to Wield Power in a Post-Trump World. It challenges us to consider the necessary steps to protect, recover, and strengthen what democracy remains after Trump leaves office. What we can't do is try to put things back to the way they were before, because before is what paved the way to the now. We also can't let the Trump Administration's flouting of the law go without punishment in a misguided attempt to appear impartial, as Merrick Garland did in his feckless turn as Attorney General under Biden.
One of Cohen's first tasks is to show that Trump did not create this mess all by himself; there was a decades-long process, from McCarthy to Nixon to Reagan to the Bushes to Project 2025, to protect the wealthy, identify scapegoats, redirect power to the executive, rig the highest court, and erode public trust in the government. He also lays blame at the feet of past Democratic administrations who have largely stuck to norms, tried quietly to right the ship, not properly explained the importance of their policies to the public, and neglected to attach real penalties to breaking the law. If Democrats are able to reclaim the presidency and one or both chambers of congress, they are going to need to act with speed and resolve.
One of the challenges of speaking out against Trump's lawlessness and grift is simply keeping up. It is part of the MAGA strategy to "flood the zone" with chaos and a constant churn of lies, distractions, and illegal acts. It's hard to factually recount them without sounding like a wild, obsessed conspiracy theorist. This book may not be comprehensive (it would need to be much larger than its 187 pages), but Cohen presents a well-organized overview of how Trump has sidestepped the law at each step, and delayed justice when it comes for him. One strategy has been to gut accountability by firing watchdogs and inspectors general and science advisors, leaving key roles unfilled, and weeding out anyone who is not a committed loyalist. Another has been to obliterate or neuter agencies such as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or the Department of Education, by appointing directors antithetical to those agencies' purposes. DOGE played a huge role in cratering key government functions. Another has been to go after institutions of higher learning. Another to attack law firms and secure concessions from them. And news organizations. And the media more broadly. Another cornerstone has been building a Supreme Court filled with unaccountable judges who do not follow their own ethical or recusal guidelines, nor even pretend to avoid political entanglement (I reserve special contempt for Thomas and Alito). Another full-frontal attack has been on voting rights. The selective use of the filibuster. Lying about the economy and jobs numbers. Gutting health care. Attacking clean energy. Flinging tariffs at our allies. Giving tax cuts to the wealthy. Add to all of that a pure streak of grift, siphoning money to Trump and his family through crypto schemes, access to the pardon power, foreign bribes... that list goes on as well.
Cohen expands many of these vectors of attack into full chapters, and is able to quote the likes of Obama, Biden, Warren, Sanders, and other major players in the Democratic Party with things they said directly to him on his channel. It's a good book for communicating the seriousness of the problem, and lighting a fire under all of us to fight for a better country. Keep posting, and protesting... maybe even consider running. And no matter what... vote. I'll leave you with a quote from the epilogue:
One of Cohen's first tasks is to show that Trump did not create this mess all by himself; there was a decades-long process, from McCarthy to Nixon to Reagan to the Bushes to Project 2025, to protect the wealthy, identify scapegoats, redirect power to the executive, rig the highest court, and erode public trust in the government. He also lays blame at the feet of past Democratic administrations who have largely stuck to norms, tried quietly to right the ship, not properly explained the importance of their policies to the public, and neglected to attach real penalties to breaking the law. If Democrats are able to reclaim the presidency and one or both chambers of congress, they are going to need to act with speed and resolve.
One of the challenges of speaking out against Trump's lawlessness and grift is simply keeping up. It is part of the MAGA strategy to "flood the zone" with chaos and a constant churn of lies, distractions, and illegal acts. It's hard to factually recount them without sounding like a wild, obsessed conspiracy theorist. This book may not be comprehensive (it would need to be much larger than its 187 pages), but Cohen presents a well-organized overview of how Trump has sidestepped the law at each step, and delayed justice when it comes for him. One strategy has been to gut accountability by firing watchdogs and inspectors general and science advisors, leaving key roles unfilled, and weeding out anyone who is not a committed loyalist. Another has been to obliterate or neuter agencies such as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or the Department of Education, by appointing directors antithetical to those agencies' purposes. DOGE played a huge role in cratering key government functions. Another has been to go after institutions of higher learning. Another to attack law firms and secure concessions from them. And news organizations. And the media more broadly. Another cornerstone has been building a Supreme Court filled with unaccountable judges who do not follow their own ethical or recusal guidelines, nor even pretend to avoid political entanglement (I reserve special contempt for Thomas and Alito). Another full-frontal attack has been on voting rights. The selective use of the filibuster. Lying about the economy and jobs numbers. Gutting health care. Attacking clean energy. Flinging tariffs at our allies. Giving tax cuts to the wealthy. Add to all of that a pure streak of grift, siphoning money to Trump and his family through crypto schemes, access to the pardon power, foreign bribes... that list goes on as well.
Cohen expands many of these vectors of attack into full chapters, and is able to quote the likes of Obama, Biden, Warren, Sanders, and other major players in the Democratic Party with things they said directly to him on his channel. It's a good book for communicating the seriousness of the problem, and lighting a fire under all of us to fight for a better country. Keep posting, and protesting... maybe even consider running. And no matter what... vote. I'll leave you with a quote from the epilogue:
"The first stage of recovery is to admit that our democracy is failing. The second stage is to make an inventory of our failures, being honest about the root causes. Those failures are not just the result of the enemies of democracy; they are also the result of the complacent friends of democracy, who have been too fearful to take action. The third stage is to seek accountability for those who have corrupted our system and abused power, because there can be no reform without a full reckoning. The fourth stage is to deliver results for the people who empower our leaders. Fixing the system matters only if the system improves the lives of our families, friends, and neighbors."
July 14, 2026
A much needed to do list of how to push democratically elected officials to actually do what we want them to do rather than just propping up the establishment that has failed us for decades.
July 14, 2026
There’s no going back
Our first step to fix the country, argues Brian Tyler Cohen, is to recognize that our democracy has been broken. The rest of his book lays out what has broken, by whom, and what could be done to fix it.
To Cohen, our descent into autocracy didn’t begin with Trump; it has been decades in the making. Meanwhile, Democrats have been playing a bipartisanship game that the other side has refused to play and flipped the game board over, as Cohen points out. The Biden administration’s cardinal sin was acting as if we could go back to normal after Trump; Cohen suggests the next president will have to understand we can’t and act like the country’s democracy, rule of law, and fate are at stake.
I think his previous book, “Shameless,” was a work I couldn’t recommend more highly, and it is a great proof of why Cohen ought to be considered one of the best leaders of a new media network like what he calls for in this book.
Our first step to fix the country, argues Brian Tyler Cohen, is to recognize that our democracy has been broken. The rest of his book lays out what has broken, by whom, and what could be done to fix it.
To Cohen, our descent into autocracy didn’t begin with Trump; it has been decades in the making. Meanwhile, Democrats have been playing a bipartisanship game that the other side has refused to play and flipped the game board over, as Cohen points out. The Biden administration’s cardinal sin was acting as if we could go back to normal after Trump; Cohen suggests the next president will have to understand we can’t and act like the country’s democracy, rule of law, and fate are at stake.
I think his previous book, “Shameless,” was a work I couldn’t recommend more highly, and it is a great proof of why Cohen ought to be considered one of the best leaders of a new media network like what he calls for in this book.
July 21, 2026
The Day After - how to wield power in a post trump world
- Brian Tyler Cohen
- The fecklessness of the Democratic Party. Their adherence to honoring institutions, compromise, and ethical governing
- The failures of the Clinton, Obama, and Biden administrations
- Republican presidents have only won the popular vote twice since ‘88. The won in ‘24 and ‘04
- When Democrats win reelection they are aggressive and unafraid. Clinton and Obama easily won in ‘96 and ‘12
- The Biden administration really did nothing to go after Trump or stop him coming back to power. What did Biden do in four years?
- Republicans are ruthless, they are terrorists. They have no ethics, no morals, and will not compromise
- Republicans rule with power over principle and it has made everything worse. Democrats choose principle over power and it has made everything worse
- This is one of the main thesis of the book
Congress:
- Congress has essentially ceded the power of the purse to the executive branch. Their most powerful tool and purpose they have turned over. They are no longer a co equal branch of government, they are a part of the executive branch
- Trump blatantly does illegal actions with his conflicts of interest and profiting off of the presidency. He illegally manipulates the budget and withholds funding
- I don’t understand the filibuster
- BTC is not beholden to the old institutions and norms. Republicans have violated, broken, and ignored all norms and institutions. The ones that they hold to, they only use to their advantage
SCOTUS
- Wow, he’s right the constitution makes no mention of the number of justices on the court. In the early years of the republic there were six justices. The court has gone as high as ten
- BTC suggests 13 justices, one for each district court in the US. The court should represent the size of the country
- He also wants a mandatory retirement age of 70, eight year terms, a clear ethics code, and more
- I have always been hesitant to expand the court but he has changed my mind
- As long as the court stays a conservative majority, they will block everything that democrats do
- Trump has made extensive use of the previously rarely used shadow docket. It was intended for emergency and time sensitive matters. I don’t understand the shadow docket
- Jesus Christ, Alito flew a flag upside down and pro January 6th flag in the days after
- Clarence Thomas is in a different category, wow. It’s incredible the amount of gifts he has received
- His wife was at the January 6th rally. She cofounded a conservative organization with Steve Bannon. She has direct ties to the Trump administration and the Bush administration. I had no idea she was so intertwined with these people, it’s awful
- The court is working for Trump. They are serve to endorse his behavior. They really did grant the president/him a significant amount of immunity
- Lower courts have ruled against Trump 90% of the time. SCOTUS has ruled with him 90%
- We need to change the court
Voting:
- Hello, we are NC, we get brought up in every conversation about voting
- Republicans rule with power over principle and it has made everything worse. Democrats choose principle over power and it has made everything worse
- Trump and his pardons - as all things in this book it’s worse than you think
- BTC hits on the economy, healthcare, climate change, media, all the important topics. In each one it is worse than I realized
- The media section is critically important
- It did give me hope for a green new deal
- Take action on day one. We will have a brief moment in time, we must seize it. Not to go back to how things were, but to make things better
- He does not have a specific 10 point plan but he does have a vision. I believe in that vision and I will help make that happen
- I discovered BTC this year and he has become my primary news source, he’s awesome
- I would have more notes but I was doing soil for the last three hours
- Brian Tyler Cohen
- The fecklessness of the Democratic Party. Their adherence to honoring institutions, compromise, and ethical governing
- The failures of the Clinton, Obama, and Biden administrations
- Republican presidents have only won the popular vote twice since ‘88. The won in ‘24 and ‘04
- When Democrats win reelection they are aggressive and unafraid. Clinton and Obama easily won in ‘96 and ‘12
- The Biden administration really did nothing to go after Trump or stop him coming back to power. What did Biden do in four years?
- Republicans are ruthless, they are terrorists. They have no ethics, no morals, and will not compromise
- Republicans rule with power over principle and it has made everything worse. Democrats choose principle over power and it has made everything worse
- This is one of the main thesis of the book
Congress:
- Congress has essentially ceded the power of the purse to the executive branch. Their most powerful tool and purpose they have turned over. They are no longer a co equal branch of government, they are a part of the executive branch
- Trump blatantly does illegal actions with his conflicts of interest and profiting off of the presidency. He illegally manipulates the budget and withholds funding
- I don’t understand the filibuster
- BTC is not beholden to the old institutions and norms. Republicans have violated, broken, and ignored all norms and institutions. The ones that they hold to, they only use to their advantage
SCOTUS
- Wow, he’s right the constitution makes no mention of the number of justices on the court. In the early years of the republic there were six justices. The court has gone as high as ten
- BTC suggests 13 justices, one for each district court in the US. The court should represent the size of the country
- He also wants a mandatory retirement age of 70, eight year terms, a clear ethics code, and more
- I have always been hesitant to expand the court but he has changed my mind
- As long as the court stays a conservative majority, they will block everything that democrats do
- Trump has made extensive use of the previously rarely used shadow docket. It was intended for emergency and time sensitive matters. I don’t understand the shadow docket
- Jesus Christ, Alito flew a flag upside down and pro January 6th flag in the days after
- Clarence Thomas is in a different category, wow. It’s incredible the amount of gifts he has received
- His wife was at the January 6th rally. She cofounded a conservative organization with Steve Bannon. She has direct ties to the Trump administration and the Bush administration. I had no idea she was so intertwined with these people, it’s awful
- The court is working for Trump. They are serve to endorse his behavior. They really did grant the president/him a significant amount of immunity
- Lower courts have ruled against Trump 90% of the time. SCOTUS has ruled with him 90%
- We need to change the court
Voting:
- Hello, we are NC, we get brought up in every conversation about voting
- Republicans rule with power over principle and it has made everything worse. Democrats choose principle over power and it has made everything worse
- Trump and his pardons - as all things in this book it’s worse than you think
- BTC hits on the economy, healthcare, climate change, media, all the important topics. In each one it is worse than I realized
- The media section is critically important
- It did give me hope for a green new deal
- Take action on day one. We will have a brief moment in time, we must seize it. Not to go back to how things were, but to make things better
- He does not have a specific 10 point plan but he does have a vision. I believe in that vision and I will help make that happen
- I discovered BTC this year and he has become my primary news source, he’s awesome
- I would have more notes but I was doing soil for the last three hours
August 8, 2026
I deserve an award for finishing this.
I wanted to read to understand the other side. Though I am not politically aligned with Cohen in any way, I have great family, whom I love, who are and I was hopeful this could help me step into their worldview.
It’s a sob story where the author spends the first half of the book crying about Republicans seizing government control and only claiming the dems are too scared and weak to fight back.
Cohen wants us to believe this is a careful, sober look at how power works in America, it's not. Its long-form content creation and pep rally for his YouTube followers, where everyone who reads it is starting with the same premise as Cohen, “Trump Bad, we must save democracy through instituting fascism.”
Every single thing Republicans do gets treated like a five-alarm fire threatening the republic, but the moment it's his own side's turn, suddenly the exact same playbook becomes strategy. Pack the courts, kill the filibuster, stop being so polite.
It lacks seriousness, primarily in his consistent defense of the dems as being sooo committed to bipartisanship, but the reps just won’t play nice. Give me a break.
This whole book is built around being terrified of the current administration and a Republican Congress, while his own party is quietly getting reshaped by a DSA wing that's been pretty open about wanting to take a paper shredder to the constitutional order they claim to be protecting.
Also, this book aged poorly very quickly (thanks Fauci).
I wanted to read to understand the other side. Though I am not politically aligned with Cohen in any way, I have great family, whom I love, who are and I was hopeful this could help me step into their worldview.
It’s a sob story where the author spends the first half of the book crying about Republicans seizing government control and only claiming the dems are too scared and weak to fight back.
Cohen wants us to believe this is a careful, sober look at how power works in America, it's not. Its long-form content creation and pep rally for his YouTube followers, where everyone who reads it is starting with the same premise as Cohen, “Trump Bad, we must save democracy through instituting fascism.”
Every single thing Republicans do gets treated like a five-alarm fire threatening the republic, but the moment it's his own side's turn, suddenly the exact same playbook becomes strategy. Pack the courts, kill the filibuster, stop being so polite.
It lacks seriousness, primarily in his consistent defense of the dems as being sooo committed to bipartisanship, but the reps just won’t play nice. Give me a break.
This whole book is built around being terrified of the current administration and a Republican Congress, while his own party is quietly getting reshaped by a DSA wing that's been pretty open about wanting to take a paper shredder to the constitutional order they claim to be protecting.
Also, this book aged poorly very quickly (thanks Fauci).
July 20, 2026
If you're expecting Project 2029 you'll be disappointed. Cohen, a top political commentator, gives a lot of history both of Trump 47 and what led up to it. His reforms are the obvious ones: the Supreme Court, elimination of the filibuster and the electoral college, restoring the integrity of the Justice Department, and resuming our transition to renewable energy. Perhaps his most important message is that President 48 -- assuming it's a Democrat -- has got to hit the ground running.
August 4, 2026
Great book. You can really tell that the author did his reseach. I think I am ready for an after Trump presidency
August 15, 2026
A vital, instructive book that meets this moment.
I’m a big fan of Brian’s independent journalism and his informative, often harrowing shows with Mark Elias and Glenn Kirschner, and this book is very much in the same vein as his daily reporting.
For long-time viewers, much of the book’s argument will already be familiar. But that doesn’t make it redundant. There’s real value in having these messages distilled and organised into a concise, coherent whole, particularly for readers who haven’t been following Brian’s work. I also learned a surprising amount from his examination of earlier examples of Republican disingenuousness and ratfuckery, which helped place the current moment in a much longer historical context.
In this book, Brian touches on everything from Republican gerrymandering and a captured Supreme Court that effectively functions as a MAGA veto on progressive policy, to the Democrats’ tendency to value process, decorum, and moral high ground over achieving results. He examines the Democrats’ tendency to let consultants and political conventional wisdom dictate strategy rather than responding to what voters actually want. He also details the decades-long conservative strategy of slowly dismantling regulations and institutional guardrails until corruption becomes the norm, as well as the sprawling, algorithmically tuned, grievance-driven right-wing media ecosystem that has spent decades constructing an alternate political reality for millions of voters.
Underlying all of this is a compelling historical argument: that the Civil War never truly ended so much as went cold after reconciliation, leaving an unresolved conflict that figures and institutions within the modern conservative movement, including the Heritage Foundation, have spent decades working to reignite.
The advice, analysis and predictions all feel informed and pragmatic, coming from someone with his finger firmly on the political pulse. Given the rise of fascism and how perilously close America appears to be to a point of no return, the book’s message feels urgent.
It’s a sobering read, but also a useful one. It’s less a revelation for those who have been following Brian’s work closely than a concise, organised distillation of what he has been warning about for years.
I’m a big fan of Brian’s independent journalism and his informative, often harrowing shows with Mark Elias and Glenn Kirschner, and this book is very much in the same vein as his daily reporting.
For long-time viewers, much of the book’s argument will already be familiar. But that doesn’t make it redundant. There’s real value in having these messages distilled and organised into a concise, coherent whole, particularly for readers who haven’t been following Brian’s work. I also learned a surprising amount from his examination of earlier examples of Republican disingenuousness and ratfuckery, which helped place the current moment in a much longer historical context.
In this book, Brian touches on everything from Republican gerrymandering and a captured Supreme Court that effectively functions as a MAGA veto on progressive policy, to the Democrats’ tendency to value process, decorum, and moral high ground over achieving results. He examines the Democrats’ tendency to let consultants and political conventional wisdom dictate strategy rather than responding to what voters actually want. He also details the decades-long conservative strategy of slowly dismantling regulations and institutional guardrails until corruption becomes the norm, as well as the sprawling, algorithmically tuned, grievance-driven right-wing media ecosystem that has spent decades constructing an alternate political reality for millions of voters.
Underlying all of this is a compelling historical argument: that the Civil War never truly ended so much as went cold after reconciliation, leaving an unresolved conflict that figures and institutions within the modern conservative movement, including the Heritage Foundation, have spent decades working to reignite.
The advice, analysis and predictions all feel informed and pragmatic, coming from someone with his finger firmly on the political pulse. Given the rise of fascism and how perilously close America appears to be to a point of no return, the book’s message feels urgent.
It’s a sobering read, but also a useful one. It’s less a revelation for those who have been following Brian’s work closely than a concise, organised distillation of what he has been warning about for years.
July 27, 2026
End the filibuster, reform the Supreme Court, seek accountability for corruption, see through a wave of change after Trump for actual change: these are the basic principles of this book that got muddied along the way but i was reminded in the epilogue that this was his thesis. Most everything else was a retelling of everything we’ve been through in 2025 and a splash into 2026 before he had to take this book to publication. I was hoping for more “this is how we take down Trump” but got “these are the reminders of why Trump is awful in a short form in case you missed or forgot something, even though it’s now tracking as outdated as the days tick on” and instead is a “this is what we need to do January 6, 2028.” This is now basic entry-level expectation for the next slate of candidates’ policy platforms. Assuming we get there without intervention attacking or removing Trump first. More like 4.5 stars but the GR overlord needs data saying it’s a 5 rather than a rounded down 4.
August 31, 2026
At one point in chapter 7 I think. The author ended a list of terrible things the corrupt wing of SCOTUS has been doing with a casual "you see where this is going" or something.
Yes. I see very clearly all of the right wing abuses and cheating and lying that brought about our present dystopia.
I didn't need reminding though. I can't see how anyone who willingly reads a book by Brian Tyler Cohen would. What I needed was some kind of blueprint for a better future that maybe would help us chart a path through and out of this mess. And there is really not much on that. Yeah, there's stories about Obama and Biden presidencies that made them seem naive, with the implication that Democrats need to be less naive. Ok. And some ideas about polling and how to run better campaigns. But the answer to "what we need to actually do" was vague and not especially revelatory.
The people who need to read this won't read it (ie people who could but don't vote for Democrats and maybe some institutionalist Democrats who are asleep at the wheel -- a wheel thats not connected to anything ATM). Meanwhile, the people like me and probably most readers, who wanted the book to provide something approaching what its title promises will be disappointed.
For what it is, it is well written, researched, and organized. Enlightening in its way. Not a waste of time. Just frustrating and disappointing.
A more accurate title would have been "How the Far Right Successfully Destroyed the Foundations Upon Which We Have Thus Far Expected to Make Progress as a Nation". Or maybe "the case against trying to get back to normal (but not a lot about what should replace it)".
Yes. I see very clearly all of the right wing abuses and cheating and lying that brought about our present dystopia.
I didn't need reminding though. I can't see how anyone who willingly reads a book by Brian Tyler Cohen would. What I needed was some kind of blueprint for a better future that maybe would help us chart a path through and out of this mess. And there is really not much on that. Yeah, there's stories about Obama and Biden presidencies that made them seem naive, with the implication that Democrats need to be less naive. Ok. And some ideas about polling and how to run better campaigns. But the answer to "what we need to actually do" was vague and not especially revelatory.
The people who need to read this won't read it (ie people who could but don't vote for Democrats and maybe some institutionalist Democrats who are asleep at the wheel -- a wheel thats not connected to anything ATM). Meanwhile, the people like me and probably most readers, who wanted the book to provide something approaching what its title promises will be disappointed.
For what it is, it is well written, researched, and organized. Enlightening in its way. Not a waste of time. Just frustrating and disappointing.
A more accurate title would have been "How the Far Right Successfully Destroyed the Foundations Upon Which We Have Thus Far Expected to Make Progress as a Nation". Or maybe "the case against trying to get back to normal (but not a lot about what should replace it)".
August 17, 2026
Disappointed
The title suggested a look into the post-Trump world and how to "wield power". This attracted me because this administration has taken the power away from the people.
A full 85% of the book is a re- statement of the administration's and Trump's excesses and crimes against the American people and the world.
If you want a concise recitation of Trump 2.0, this book is for you.
The remaining 15% essentially states what we already know. The 48th president and their administration will need to reverse what Trump did and it's going to be tough.
I'm disappointed that there was no information or suggestions on how to regain the power of the people most affected.
I like BTC and I support his views as well as his courage. I was hoping for more based on the title
The title suggested a look into the post-Trump world and how to "wield power". This attracted me because this administration has taken the power away from the people.
A full 85% of the book is a re- statement of the administration's and Trump's excesses and crimes against the American people and the world.
If you want a concise recitation of Trump 2.0, this book is for you.
The remaining 15% essentially states what we already know. The 48th president and their administration will need to reverse what Trump did and it's going to be tough.
I'm disappointed that there was no information or suggestions on how to regain the power of the people most affected.
I like BTC and I support his views as well as his courage. I was hoping for more based on the title
September 9, 2026
A necessary book to inform well-meaning people who have little time to keep up with the daily onslaught of damage being done. This should/could be a starting point for Democrats if they are ever again in a position of power. Indeed, we cannot make Biden’s mistake of returning to the pre-Trump status quo. Will the current Democratic Party be up to the challenge? Hardly. But citizens must push them in every possible way, including demonstrations and protests. They will need to be FORCED. I don’t want to accept that there is no hope, but when Jeffries meets secretly with Kushner, it becomes very difficult to maintain even vestiges of hope.
July 16, 2026
4.5 stars
August 23, 2026
My Response to Brian Tyler Cohen's book "The Day After: How To Wield Power in a Post-Trump World":
This essay was inspired by Brian Tyler Cohen’s “The Day After: How to Wield Power in a Post-Trump World,” a sharp and urgent analysis of American political power. While Cohen’s work is a tactical guide for progressives facing a deeply fractured landscape, what follows is a broader meditation: not on how to win the next fight, but on how we might reclaim and elevate the deeper promise of American life—dignity, humanity, and the possibility of living together as citizens of Earth.
Toward A New American Dignity in the Shadow of Power
By Leanne Edwards
Prologue: The Real “Day After”
At dawn, the headlines flicker across every screen: another court ruling, another climate disaster, another round in the endless brawl of American politics. It is 2026, and Brian Tyler Cohen’s The Day After lands with a thud of urgency on the national desk—a battle cry for progressives, a tactical handbook for a wounded republic still reeling from years of division.
But beneath the noise, there is a quieter reckoning that Cohen’s book, for all its urgency, only hints at—a question that predates Trump, or Biden, or any president: What does it mean to be a human being on this planet, here, now, in the fragile shelter of our shared home? Before we are partisans, Americans, or even citizens, we are members of a species—bruised, ambitious, terrified, hopeful, and, above all, bound together by the tenuous thread of dignity.
What if “the day after” is not just about winning the next round, but about rediscovering what’s worth winning for?
I. The Founders’ Gamble: A Human Experiment
Two and a half centuries ago, a group of flawed visionaries gathered in a hot Philadelphia room and dared to sketch out a radical new experiment. The United States, they wrote, would be “conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.” It was not a promise kept, nor a plan fully formed, but an aspiration—a wager that ordinary people could govern themselves not by the lash, but by the better angels of their nature.
The American project, at its most honest, was always more than a contest for power. It was—and remains—a test of whether human beings, with all our failings, can build a society worthy of our shared dignity. The Constitution was never scripture; it was a scaffolding, designed to be mended, expanded, and, if necessary, reimagined.
Today, as Cohen reminds us, the machinery of that experiment has become creaky, abused, and fiercely contested. But to treat our inheritance as merely a playbook for partisan struggle is to miss the point. The founders gambled on our capacity for self-government not out of naïveté, but out of a deep, if battered, faith in the possibility of virtue.
II. Power and Its Discontents: Lessons from The Day After
Cohen’s book is a bracing read—unapologetically partisan, meticulously tactical, and unflinchingly honest about the asymmetric warfare of modern American politics. He catalogues, with forensic precision, the ways in which the machinery of power—courts, statehouses, procedural rules—has been tilted, captured, and, at times, weaponized.
His prescription is clear: if progressives hope to preserve democracy, they must learn not only to win elections, but to wield power with the same “ruthlessness and precision” as their adversaries. The era of restraint, he argues, is over. It’s time to play hardball.
But here, the book’s urgency collides with its limits. Power, by its nature, is always a double-edged sword. To focus solely on the mechanics of the game is to risk losing sight of the stakes. What if the real lesson of the past 250 years is not that we need better players, but a better game? Not simply a new strategy, but a new purpose?
III. The Peace Index and the Beatitudes: A Different Yardstick
If you step back from the fevered American struggle, a different set of questions emerges—ones as old as philosophy and as urgent as tomorrow’s headlines. How do we measure the success of a society? What does it mean to live with dignity? Who gets to flourish, and why?
The Global Peace Index, published annually, does not ask which party won or lost, but tracks the conditions of peace: safety, justice, well-being, and the absence of violence. The Human Development Index ranks countries not by GDP, but by life expectancy, education, and opportunity. These are not perfect instruments, but they are reminders that what matters, in the end, is not power for its own sake, but the quality of the lives we lead together.
Two thousand years ago, another radical—Jesus of Nazareth—offered a manifesto of his own: “Blessed are the peacemakers.” The Beatitudes, stripped of their religious trappings, are a blueprint for a society built on compassion, humility, and love. The Greek word agape—selfless, universal love—remains the gold standard for any politics worth the name.
If our politics cannot be measured by these yardsticks, what exactly are we fighting for?
IV. The 250-Year Reckoning: What We’ve Learned (and What We Haven’t)
America is old enough to have learned a few things, and young enough to keep learning. The last two and a half centuries have been marked by moments of astonishing progress—the abolition of slavery, universal suffrage, civil rights—and by periods of deep regression and violence. We have built and broken, aspired and failed, again and again.
What links these moments is not the triumph of one faction over another, but the slow, painful expansion of dignity—the grudging recognition that the deal of America is not just for the powerful, but for all. We have learned that institutions are only as good as the people who inhabit them, and that laws without love are brittle things.
Cohen is right to demand that we take power seriously. But he is wrong, or at least incomplete, if he thinks that the answer is simply to “fight harder.” The real reckoning is whether we can build institutions—and a culture—that honor the basic truth of our shared humanity.
V. Reimagining the Republic: Not for Victory, But for Dignity
What would it mean to truly reimagine American governance—not as a zero-sum contest, but as an engine for human flourishing?
It would mean, first, acknowledging that the Constitution is not a sacred relic, but a living framework. The filibuster, the Electoral College, lifetime judicial appointments—these are not commandments, but tools. If they no longer serve the cause of dignity and freedom, they must be changed.
It would mean using analytics—not just polling or political horse-race numbers, but real measures of well-being—to hold ourselves accountable. Are we reducing violence? Expanding opportunity? Making it easier, not harder, for people to live with dignity?
It would mean, finally, recognizing that the purpose of politics is not to vanquish our enemies, but to build a home where all are welcome. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted in the shadow of catastrophe, remains our best secular scripture: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.”
VI. A Universal Manifesto: Practical, Not Utopian
So let us propose, not in place of Cohen’s playbook but alongside it, a new and ancient manifesto:
Home: Earth. We are stewards of a fragile planet, and our obligations do not end at the water’s edge.
Species: Human. Our differences are real, but they are dwarfed by what we share.
Politics: Freedom. Not the freedom of the strong to dominate the weak, but the freedom of all to live, speak, and dream without fear.
Religion: Love. Not dogma, not division, but agape—the radical insistence that each life has worth.
Let our institutions be measured by how well they serve these ends. Let our analytics be honest, our reforms bold, our compass steady. The day after is every day: the work of building a society worthy of being human never ends.
Epilogue: After the Day After
Cohen’s book is a blueprint for those who hope to win the next round of American politics. But the real work is deeper, slower, and more enduring. It is the work of building, not just a stronger party, but a stronger sense of what it means to be human together.
In the end, the measure of our politics will be the measure of our dignity—not in the eyes of history, but in the lives we touch now, in the home we share, on the planet we call ours.
Home: Earth. Species: Human. Politics: Freedom. Religion: Love.
End Notes
Brian Tyler Cohen, The Day After: How to Wield Power in a Post-Trump World (Harper, 2026). HarperCollins
“Global Peace Index,” Institute for Economics & Peace, 2026. visionofhumanity.org
“Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” United Nations General Assembly, 1948. un.org
The Beatitudes, Matthew 5:1-12, New Testament (c. 80-90 CE).
Kirkus Reviews, “The Day After by Brian Tyler Cohen,” kirkusreviews.com
Jessica Tarlov, Political Commentator, quoted by The Moving Words Review
“Human Development Index,” United Nations Development Programme, 2025. hdr.undp.org
“Constitution of the United States,” National Archives. archives.gov
“Home: Earth. Species: Human. Politics: Freedom. Religion: Love.” (This Manifesto, 2026)
This essay was inspired by Brian Tyler Cohen’s “The Day After: How to Wield Power in a Post-Trump World,” a sharp and urgent analysis of American political power. While Cohen’s work is a tactical guide for progressives facing a deeply fractured landscape, what follows is a broader meditation: not on how to win the next fight, but on how we might reclaim and elevate the deeper promise of American life—dignity, humanity, and the possibility of living together as citizens of Earth.
Toward A New American Dignity in the Shadow of Power
By Leanne Edwards
Prologue: The Real “Day After”
At dawn, the headlines flicker across every screen: another court ruling, another climate disaster, another round in the endless brawl of American politics. It is 2026, and Brian Tyler Cohen’s The Day After lands with a thud of urgency on the national desk—a battle cry for progressives, a tactical handbook for a wounded republic still reeling from years of division.
But beneath the noise, there is a quieter reckoning that Cohen’s book, for all its urgency, only hints at—a question that predates Trump, or Biden, or any president: What does it mean to be a human being on this planet, here, now, in the fragile shelter of our shared home? Before we are partisans, Americans, or even citizens, we are members of a species—bruised, ambitious, terrified, hopeful, and, above all, bound together by the tenuous thread of dignity.
What if “the day after” is not just about winning the next round, but about rediscovering what’s worth winning for?
I. The Founders’ Gamble: A Human Experiment
Two and a half centuries ago, a group of flawed visionaries gathered in a hot Philadelphia room and dared to sketch out a radical new experiment. The United States, they wrote, would be “conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.” It was not a promise kept, nor a plan fully formed, but an aspiration—a wager that ordinary people could govern themselves not by the lash, but by the better angels of their nature.
The American project, at its most honest, was always more than a contest for power. It was—and remains—a test of whether human beings, with all our failings, can build a society worthy of our shared dignity. The Constitution was never scripture; it was a scaffolding, designed to be mended, expanded, and, if necessary, reimagined.
Today, as Cohen reminds us, the machinery of that experiment has become creaky, abused, and fiercely contested. But to treat our inheritance as merely a playbook for partisan struggle is to miss the point. The founders gambled on our capacity for self-government not out of naïveté, but out of a deep, if battered, faith in the possibility of virtue.
II. Power and Its Discontents: Lessons from The Day After
Cohen’s book is a bracing read—unapologetically partisan, meticulously tactical, and unflinchingly honest about the asymmetric warfare of modern American politics. He catalogues, with forensic precision, the ways in which the machinery of power—courts, statehouses, procedural rules—has been tilted, captured, and, at times, weaponized.
His prescription is clear: if progressives hope to preserve democracy, they must learn not only to win elections, but to wield power with the same “ruthlessness and precision” as their adversaries. The era of restraint, he argues, is over. It’s time to play hardball.
But here, the book’s urgency collides with its limits. Power, by its nature, is always a double-edged sword. To focus solely on the mechanics of the game is to risk losing sight of the stakes. What if the real lesson of the past 250 years is not that we need better players, but a better game? Not simply a new strategy, but a new purpose?
III. The Peace Index and the Beatitudes: A Different Yardstick
If you step back from the fevered American struggle, a different set of questions emerges—ones as old as philosophy and as urgent as tomorrow’s headlines. How do we measure the success of a society? What does it mean to live with dignity? Who gets to flourish, and why?
The Global Peace Index, published annually, does not ask which party won or lost, but tracks the conditions of peace: safety, justice, well-being, and the absence of violence. The Human Development Index ranks countries not by GDP, but by life expectancy, education, and opportunity. These are not perfect instruments, but they are reminders that what matters, in the end, is not power for its own sake, but the quality of the lives we lead together.
Two thousand years ago, another radical—Jesus of Nazareth—offered a manifesto of his own: “Blessed are the peacemakers.” The Beatitudes, stripped of their religious trappings, are a blueprint for a society built on compassion, humility, and love. The Greek word agape—selfless, universal love—remains the gold standard for any politics worth the name.
If our politics cannot be measured by these yardsticks, what exactly are we fighting for?
IV. The 250-Year Reckoning: What We’ve Learned (and What We Haven’t)
America is old enough to have learned a few things, and young enough to keep learning. The last two and a half centuries have been marked by moments of astonishing progress—the abolition of slavery, universal suffrage, civil rights—and by periods of deep regression and violence. We have built and broken, aspired and failed, again and again.
What links these moments is not the triumph of one faction over another, but the slow, painful expansion of dignity—the grudging recognition that the deal of America is not just for the powerful, but for all. We have learned that institutions are only as good as the people who inhabit them, and that laws without love are brittle things.
Cohen is right to demand that we take power seriously. But he is wrong, or at least incomplete, if he thinks that the answer is simply to “fight harder.” The real reckoning is whether we can build institutions—and a culture—that honor the basic truth of our shared humanity.
V. Reimagining the Republic: Not for Victory, But for Dignity
What would it mean to truly reimagine American governance—not as a zero-sum contest, but as an engine for human flourishing?
It would mean, first, acknowledging that the Constitution is not a sacred relic, but a living framework. The filibuster, the Electoral College, lifetime judicial appointments—these are not commandments, but tools. If they no longer serve the cause of dignity and freedom, they must be changed.
It would mean using analytics—not just polling or political horse-race numbers, but real measures of well-being—to hold ourselves accountable. Are we reducing violence? Expanding opportunity? Making it easier, not harder, for people to live with dignity?
It would mean, finally, recognizing that the purpose of politics is not to vanquish our enemies, but to build a home where all are welcome. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted in the shadow of catastrophe, remains our best secular scripture: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.”
VI. A Universal Manifesto: Practical, Not Utopian
So let us propose, not in place of Cohen’s playbook but alongside it, a new and ancient manifesto:
Home: Earth. We are stewards of a fragile planet, and our obligations do not end at the water’s edge.
Species: Human. Our differences are real, but they are dwarfed by what we share.
Politics: Freedom. Not the freedom of the strong to dominate the weak, but the freedom of all to live, speak, and dream without fear.
Religion: Love. Not dogma, not division, but agape—the radical insistence that each life has worth.
Let our institutions be measured by how well they serve these ends. Let our analytics be honest, our reforms bold, our compass steady. The day after is every day: the work of building a society worthy of being human never ends.
Epilogue: After the Day After
Cohen’s book is a blueprint for those who hope to win the next round of American politics. But the real work is deeper, slower, and more enduring. It is the work of building, not just a stronger party, but a stronger sense of what it means to be human together.
In the end, the measure of our politics will be the measure of our dignity—not in the eyes of history, but in the lives we touch now, in the home we share, on the planet we call ours.
Home: Earth. Species: Human. Politics: Freedom. Religion: Love.
End Notes
Brian Tyler Cohen, The Day After: How to Wield Power in a Post-Trump World (Harper, 2026). HarperCollins
“Global Peace Index,” Institute for Economics & Peace, 2026. visionofhumanity.org
“Universal Declaration of Human Rights,” United Nations General Assembly, 1948. un.org
The Beatitudes, Matthew 5:1-12, New Testament (c. 80-90 CE).
Kirkus Reviews, “The Day After by Brian Tyler Cohen,” kirkusreviews.com
Jessica Tarlov, Political Commentator, quoted by The Moving Words Review
“Human Development Index,” United Nations Development Programme, 2025. hdr.undp.org
“Constitution of the United States,” National Archives. archives.gov
“Home: Earth. Species: Human. Politics: Freedom. Religion: Love.” (This Manifesto, 2026)
August 2, 2026
For a book about wielding power in a post-Trump world, it doesn’t actually offer much about wielding power in a post-Trump world. Most of the book is a recount of the events leading up to and of 2025, with only a few pages at the end of each chapter devoted to suggestions on what should be done after the 48th president is inaugurated.
The stories of what led us to this point are well written. They’re crucial to understand in order to reform our country post-Trump. I’m just disappointed that they overshadow the actual agenda and policy suggestions that the author includes.
The stories of what led us to this point are well written. They’re crucial to understand in order to reform our country post-Trump. I’m just disappointed that they overshadow the actual agenda and policy suggestions that the author includes.
July 18, 2026
Finally the whole truth!
An eye opening history of how the nightmare we're living came about and a sobering look at what awaits us when we boot the monsters out of office. Because it's coming, and soon. I'm ready for change. Are you?
An eye opening history of how the nightmare we're living came about and a sobering look at what awaits us when we boot the monsters out of office. Because it's coming, and soon. I'm ready for change. Are you?
August 5, 2026
The Trump opposition needs an agenda that goes well beyond resistance and restoration. It needs a blueprint for serious reform, similar to the Project 2025 playbook that animates the Trump administration.
"The Day After" is that Democratic playbook. Its author is Brian Tyler Cohen, a progressive media creator followed by millions of people. His book consists of two parts: recounting GOP abuses of power during the Trump era, and proposing institutional reforms to address those abuses and prevent them from happening again.
Reaching out to work with Republicans failed to gain any support during the Clinton and Obama administrations. The next Democratic president should learn from this experience and refuse to make compromises that won't gain any GOP support.
Promoting bipartisanship is a chief reason given to maintain the filibuster. Obviously, it has led to far more gridlock than bipartisan cooperation. The exceptions to the filibuster allow Republicans to cut taxes and to approve judges and cabinet members — the top GOP priorities.
When Democrats have a Senate majority, the filibuster prevents Democratic priorities from passing. That's why Cohen calls for abolishing the filibuster at their first opportunity.
Once that is done, the next priority should be to expand the Supreme Court to 13 justices. That number would equal the number of federal court circuits in the nation, which is what the number on the court was originally based upon. Unless that is done, other reforms would be struck down by the rightwing majority.
The next order of business should to establish eight-year term limits for justices and a mandatory retirement age of 70. The justices could continue to serve as federal judges for a lifetime, but on lower courts.
Finally, there should be be a code of ethics that the justices are required to follow, unlike today when they are on the honor system.
Cohen does not address the concern that the benefit from court packing would probably be short-lived. That's because the next time Republicans get Congressional majorities along with a Republican president, they would further expand the court, creating a cycle of partisan seat creation.
Cohen also advocates adoption of the Democratic Freedom to vote Act, which would make it easier to vote and ban gerrymandering. Trump and the GOP have been making it harder to vote and put gerrymandering on steroids.
The Electoral College would be reformed if and when a sufficient number of states joins the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, which Cohen favors. (This reviewer was a state rep who voted for the Compact when Illinois joined it.)
While other presidents have abused the pardon power, Trump has taken it to new lows. Republicans who complained about Biden's pre-emptive pardons of people who had not been charged were silent when Trump pardoned state officials who had no federal charges for submitting false slates of presidential electors in 2020.
Consequently, a Democraric Congress should re-establish legal checks on executive authority based upon the hallowed tradition that no one is above the law. Passage of the No Kings bill would be a good start. Among other things, it would remove presidential immunity for criminal acts that the SCOTUS created.
When it comes to the economy, Cohen supports mainsteam Democratic policies: Raising the federal minimum wage substantially from its current $7.25 per hour, and raising taxes on big corporations and wealthy individiuals.
Americans pay 85% more per person for health care than Canadians, but the latter enjoy a lomger life expectancy. Medicare for all is the solution Cohen wants.
Until the Trump era, the Justice Department had been insulated from politics going back to the post-Nixon period. During the Clinton administration, for example, the DoJ appointed an independent counsel to investigate the President. During the Biden administration, the DoJ prosecuted Hunter Biden for two crimes that rarely result in criminal cases.
Those days are long gone. No one could imagine the Trump DoJ investigating him or prosecuting his sons.
Cohen's policy prescriptions are useful only if the court-packing plan is successful. For example, he recommends legal protection from firing for the Office of Government Ethics. What Cohen misses is that the Ethics Office is in the executive branch. Under the newly discovered unitary executive principle supported by the GOP justices, the president has the authority to fire anyone in the excutive branch without cause.
Cohen is right that Americans are deeply unhappy with the status quo. However, he ignores a fundamental reason for that unhappiness, namely, the two-party system. The best explanation of the problem and its solution are presented by Lee Drutman in "Breaking the Two-Party Doom Loop: The Case for Multiparty Democracy in America."
"The Day After" reminds me of another book I've reviewed:
"IT’S TIME TO FIGHT DIRTY: How Democrats Can Build a Lasting Majority in American Politics" by David Faris (2018, Melville).
Faris had much the same agenda. To the extent Democrats wanted to follow it, they were thwarted by Senators Manchin and Sinema who defended the filibuster. Unlike Cohen, Faris addressed the imbalanced Senate by urging that Puerto Rico and D.C. be made states.
Most of "The Day After" recounts Republican outrages, while a smaller section addresses proposed reforms. Anyone looking for an in-depth analysis of the pros and cons of abolishing the filibuster or establishing term limits for SCOTUS justices won't find it here. -30-
"The Day After" is that Democratic playbook. Its author is Brian Tyler Cohen, a progressive media creator followed by millions of people. His book consists of two parts: recounting GOP abuses of power during the Trump era, and proposing institutional reforms to address those abuses and prevent them from happening again.
Reaching out to work with Republicans failed to gain any support during the Clinton and Obama administrations. The next Democratic president should learn from this experience and refuse to make compromises that won't gain any GOP support.
Promoting bipartisanship is a chief reason given to maintain the filibuster. Obviously, it has led to far more gridlock than bipartisan cooperation. The exceptions to the filibuster allow Republicans to cut taxes and to approve judges and cabinet members — the top GOP priorities.
When Democrats have a Senate majority, the filibuster prevents Democratic priorities from passing. That's why Cohen calls for abolishing the filibuster at their first opportunity.
Once that is done, the next priority should be to expand the Supreme Court to 13 justices. That number would equal the number of federal court circuits in the nation, which is what the number on the court was originally based upon. Unless that is done, other reforms would be struck down by the rightwing majority.
The next order of business should to establish eight-year term limits for justices and a mandatory retirement age of 70. The justices could continue to serve as federal judges for a lifetime, but on lower courts.
Finally, there should be be a code of ethics that the justices are required to follow, unlike today when they are on the honor system.
Cohen does not address the concern that the benefit from court packing would probably be short-lived. That's because the next time Republicans get Congressional majorities along with a Republican president, they would further expand the court, creating a cycle of partisan seat creation.
Cohen also advocates adoption of the Democratic Freedom to vote Act, which would make it easier to vote and ban gerrymandering. Trump and the GOP have been making it harder to vote and put gerrymandering on steroids.
The Electoral College would be reformed if and when a sufficient number of states joins the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, which Cohen favors. (This reviewer was a state rep who voted for the Compact when Illinois joined it.)
While other presidents have abused the pardon power, Trump has taken it to new lows. Republicans who complained about Biden's pre-emptive pardons of people who had not been charged were silent when Trump pardoned state officials who had no federal charges for submitting false slates of presidential electors in 2020.
Consequently, a Democraric Congress should re-establish legal checks on executive authority based upon the hallowed tradition that no one is above the law. Passage of the No Kings bill would be a good start. Among other things, it would remove presidential immunity for criminal acts that the SCOTUS created.
When it comes to the economy, Cohen supports mainsteam Democratic policies: Raising the federal minimum wage substantially from its current $7.25 per hour, and raising taxes on big corporations and wealthy individiuals.
Americans pay 85% more per person for health care than Canadians, but the latter enjoy a lomger life expectancy. Medicare for all is the solution Cohen wants.
Until the Trump era, the Justice Department had been insulated from politics going back to the post-Nixon period. During the Clinton administration, for example, the DoJ appointed an independent counsel to investigate the President. During the Biden administration, the DoJ prosecuted Hunter Biden for two crimes that rarely result in criminal cases.
Those days are long gone. No one could imagine the Trump DoJ investigating him or prosecuting his sons.
Cohen's policy prescriptions are useful only if the court-packing plan is successful. For example, he recommends legal protection from firing for the Office of Government Ethics. What Cohen misses is that the Ethics Office is in the executive branch. Under the newly discovered unitary executive principle supported by the GOP justices, the president has the authority to fire anyone in the excutive branch without cause.
Cohen is right that Americans are deeply unhappy with the status quo. However, he ignores a fundamental reason for that unhappiness, namely, the two-party system. The best explanation of the problem and its solution are presented by Lee Drutman in "Breaking the Two-Party Doom Loop: The Case for Multiparty Democracy in America."
"The Day After" reminds me of another book I've reviewed:
"IT’S TIME TO FIGHT DIRTY: How Democrats Can Build a Lasting Majority in American Politics" by David Faris (2018, Melville).
Faris had much the same agenda. To the extent Democrats wanted to follow it, they were thwarted by Senators Manchin and Sinema who defended the filibuster. Unlike Cohen, Faris addressed the imbalanced Senate by urging that Puerto Rico and D.C. be made states.
Most of "The Day After" recounts Republican outrages, while a smaller section addresses proposed reforms. Anyone looking for an in-depth analysis of the pros and cons of abolishing the filibuster or establishing term limits for SCOTUS justices won't find it here. -30-
August 3, 2026
The Day After: How to Wield Power in a Post-Trump World, progressive political commentator and bestselling author Brian Tyler Cohen delivers an urgent, pragmatic blueprint for the future of American democracy. Following the massive success of his previous work, Cohen pivots from analyzing the immediate crises of the present to addressing the critical question of what comes next. The book operates on the fundamental premise that simply defeating Donald Trump and the MAGA movement at the ballot box is not the finish line, but rather the very beginning of a much larger and more difficult struggle. Cohen argues that the progressive movement must move far beyond the comfort of mere resistance or a nostalgic desire to restore a romanticized pre-Trump status quo. Instead, he frames the post-Trump era as a narrow window of opportunity to build a fundamentally stronger and more equitable nation before the current democratic backsliding becomes permanent and irreversible.
At the core of Cohen’s thesis is a sharp, unflinching critique of how the Democratic Party has historically handled political power. He contends that while Democrats are often successful at winning popular majorities, they have repeatedly paralyzed themselves with a timid, "good-governance" mindset when it actually comes time to govern. This paralyzing reverence for political norms, institutional decorum, and bipartisan compromise has frequently led Democrats to pull their punches. Cohen argues that the party has fundamentally failed to wield power aggressively, often retreating into an institutional timidity that ultimately frustrates voters and leaves campaign promises unfulfilled. By clinging to an idealized version of politics that no longer exists, the left has inadvertently allowed its opposition to continually dictate the terms of engagement and secure long-term victories.
In stark contrast to Democratic hesitation, Cohen meticulously outlines the Republican Party’s decades-long project to reshape American institutions. The book serves as a wake-up call, detailing how conservative forces have systematically abused power to rewrite the rules of the game. Cohen reminds his readers that the conditions which gave rise to Trump were not an overnight accident, but the result of a precise, ruthless, and long-term strategy executed by the right. He emphasizes a sobering reality: conservative power does not simply evaporate when it loses an election; it adapts, regroups, and waits for its next opportunity. By focusing relentlessly on structural advantages—such as aggressively packing the courts, gerrymandering legislative maps, and exploiting procedural loopholes—Republicans have learned to exercise power with a precision that progressives must now study and adopt.
To combat this entrenched conservative infrastructure, The Day After provides a comprehensive progressive playbook for a post-Trump world. Cohen insists that if progressives are fortunate enough to secure a governing majority in a free and fair election, they must be willing to blow up the systemic obstacles that stand in the way of true progress. He outlines specific, aggressive strategies that the Democratic Party must embrace, primarily focusing on structural reforms that are often deemed too controversial by party moderates. Chief among these recommendations is the absolute necessity of abolishing the Senate filibuster, which Cohen views as an archaic tool used to enforce minority rule. Furthermore, he advocates for bold, offensive actions such as reforming and rebalancing the judiciary to reflect the will of the majority, rather than allowing courts to act as a permanent conservative veto over progressive legislation.
The book ultimately serves as a fierce battle cry designed to shake complacent friends of democracy out of their stupor. Cohen attempts to cut through the gaslighting, empty political slogans, and dangerous rhetoric that have characterized the last decade of American politics. He challenges the reader to understand that democracy is not a fixed, permanent fixture of American life, but a fragile system that requires active, muscular defense. By using history as a guide, Cohen argues that progressives can no longer afford to simply talk about the nation's problems; they must solve them with the exact same ruthlessness that their political opponents have wielded for years.
In conclusion, The Day After is both a confrontation with the present and a roadmap for the future. Cohen leaves his audience with a lingering, inescapable challenge regarding their role in the ongoing fight for the country. The book asserts that holding power is meaningless if a party lacks the courage to actually use it. For America to truly be free and fair once the dust settles, Cohen argues that the progressive movement must finally stop apologizing for its values and start wielding power like it actually means it.
At the core of Cohen’s thesis is a sharp, unflinching critique of how the Democratic Party has historically handled political power. He contends that while Democrats are often successful at winning popular majorities, they have repeatedly paralyzed themselves with a timid, "good-governance" mindset when it actually comes time to govern. This paralyzing reverence for political norms, institutional decorum, and bipartisan compromise has frequently led Democrats to pull their punches. Cohen argues that the party has fundamentally failed to wield power aggressively, often retreating into an institutional timidity that ultimately frustrates voters and leaves campaign promises unfulfilled. By clinging to an idealized version of politics that no longer exists, the left has inadvertently allowed its opposition to continually dictate the terms of engagement and secure long-term victories.
In stark contrast to Democratic hesitation, Cohen meticulously outlines the Republican Party’s decades-long project to reshape American institutions. The book serves as a wake-up call, detailing how conservative forces have systematically abused power to rewrite the rules of the game. Cohen reminds his readers that the conditions which gave rise to Trump were not an overnight accident, but the result of a precise, ruthless, and long-term strategy executed by the right. He emphasizes a sobering reality: conservative power does not simply evaporate when it loses an election; it adapts, regroups, and waits for its next opportunity. By focusing relentlessly on structural advantages—such as aggressively packing the courts, gerrymandering legislative maps, and exploiting procedural loopholes—Republicans have learned to exercise power with a precision that progressives must now study and adopt.
To combat this entrenched conservative infrastructure, The Day After provides a comprehensive progressive playbook for a post-Trump world. Cohen insists that if progressives are fortunate enough to secure a governing majority in a free and fair election, they must be willing to blow up the systemic obstacles that stand in the way of true progress. He outlines specific, aggressive strategies that the Democratic Party must embrace, primarily focusing on structural reforms that are often deemed too controversial by party moderates. Chief among these recommendations is the absolute necessity of abolishing the Senate filibuster, which Cohen views as an archaic tool used to enforce minority rule. Furthermore, he advocates for bold, offensive actions such as reforming and rebalancing the judiciary to reflect the will of the majority, rather than allowing courts to act as a permanent conservative veto over progressive legislation.
The book ultimately serves as a fierce battle cry designed to shake complacent friends of democracy out of their stupor. Cohen attempts to cut through the gaslighting, empty political slogans, and dangerous rhetoric that have characterized the last decade of American politics. He challenges the reader to understand that democracy is not a fixed, permanent fixture of American life, but a fragile system that requires active, muscular defense. By using history as a guide, Cohen argues that progressives can no longer afford to simply talk about the nation's problems; they must solve them with the exact same ruthlessness that their political opponents have wielded for years.
In conclusion, The Day After is both a confrontation with the present and a roadmap for the future. Cohen leaves his audience with a lingering, inescapable challenge regarding their role in the ongoing fight for the country. The book asserts that holding power is meaningless if a party lacks the courage to actually use it. For America to truly be free and fair once the dust settles, Cohen argues that the progressive movement must finally stop apologizing for its values and start wielding power like it actually means it.
August 20, 2026
This book was a HUGE disappointment that does not fulfill the promise of the title. I almost gave it one star but didn't because it might be dismissed as being politically based instead of being rooted in the book's failure to do what it promised.
I got this book after listening to the author discuss it with Heather Cox Richardson. On that video, Cohen gave a few concrete steps that should be taken by the next Democratic president. Comments were made that the book contained more advice on what to do in a concrete tangible way.
That's not what the book delivers.
Instead, it's yet another inventory of everything Republicans in general, trump and his cronies in particular, did to damage the company and how Democratic candidates have been too timid to wield power as aggressively as Republicans do. Cohen correctly points out that Democratics prioritize process. establishments, and compromise (which never happens, much like Lucy with the football) over creating results or righting wrongs.
At first I figured this was to set the scene. It's not. It's the bulk of the book.
He thanks people like Senator Elizabeth Warren for "sharing ideas," but where are the actual, concrete ideas? Not in this book. I've read enough from Senator Warren to know she has policy proposals. NONE are in this book. It's just the usual recitation of what went/is going wrong.
I wanted marching orders to campaign for and to measure candidates against.
I got the same old list of problems without solutions.
The closest thing Cohen gives to action steps is a 4 phase list in the epilogue. I'll save you hours of reading. This is the list:
1) admit failures to democracy
2) inventory the failures (this book is entirely focused on steps 1 and 2)
3) seek accountability for those who abuse power and aid that
4) deliver results "for those who empower our leaders" (ie, voters but Cohen never says it that clearly.
Note that NOWHERE in those 4 steps is ANYTHING about HOW to deliver results or even MAKE A PLAN TO CHANGE THINGS.
"Inventory" is the exact word Cohen uses. Taking inventory is not the same as taking action. A person might inventory what's in their pantry before making dinner but taking inventory does not produce a meal. "Deliver results" is the byproduct of actual planning and action. Cohen's 4-phase "plan" is akin to the gnomes' get rich quick scheme in South Park (Step 1: Steal underpants. Step 2: ?? Step 3: Profit) in that it leaves out the crucial middle step.
For example, is SCOTUS reform the necessary first step so it doesn't block everything else? Or does something have to come first? That's the sort of insight I was looking for. Instead I spent money for the same list of things I can hear for free on MSNOW.
Those are not marching orders or instructions for "How to Wield Power in a Post-trump World" as the subtitle suggests. At best it's a plan to make a plan.
This book was an utter waste of time and money for anyone who has been paying attention, let alone an activist trying to get better candidates elected. I half expected a tag at the very end telling us to listen to his podcast for action steps to follow up the book because that would have been in keeping with the political pundit grift machine that talks about what is wrong without actually facilitating steps toward change but I'll give credit that it didn't add that insult to injury.
If you're interested in SOLUTIONS, I suggest reading BAD LAWS by Elie Mystal, which is about laws on the books that, if repealed, will have a tangible net improvement. Barbara McQuade's recent book The Fix might be promising but I haven't read it yet so I can't say if it just repeats the failures of this book or if it gives tangible suggestions. Hopefully it'll do the latter.
As for Brian Tyler Cohen, he'll never get another penny out of me after this written shell game that absolutely wasted my time and money telling me things I already knew without delivering at all on the title of the book. Save yourself time and money by seeking elsewhere for those ideas.
I got this book after listening to the author discuss it with Heather Cox Richardson. On that video, Cohen gave a few concrete steps that should be taken by the next Democratic president. Comments were made that the book contained more advice on what to do in a concrete tangible way.
That's not what the book delivers.
Instead, it's yet another inventory of everything Republicans in general, trump and his cronies in particular, did to damage the company and how Democratic candidates have been too timid to wield power as aggressively as Republicans do. Cohen correctly points out that Democratics prioritize process. establishments, and compromise (which never happens, much like Lucy with the football) over creating results or righting wrongs.
At first I figured this was to set the scene. It's not. It's the bulk of the book.
He thanks people like Senator Elizabeth Warren for "sharing ideas," but where are the actual, concrete ideas? Not in this book. I've read enough from Senator Warren to know she has policy proposals. NONE are in this book. It's just the usual recitation of what went/is going wrong.
I wanted marching orders to campaign for and to measure candidates against.
I got the same old list of problems without solutions.
The closest thing Cohen gives to action steps is a 4 phase list in the epilogue. I'll save you hours of reading. This is the list:
1) admit failures to democracy
2) inventory the failures (this book is entirely focused on steps 1 and 2)
3) seek accountability for those who abuse power and aid that
4) deliver results "for those who empower our leaders" (ie, voters but Cohen never says it that clearly.
Note that NOWHERE in those 4 steps is ANYTHING about HOW to deliver results or even MAKE A PLAN TO CHANGE THINGS.
"Inventory" is the exact word Cohen uses. Taking inventory is not the same as taking action. A person might inventory what's in their pantry before making dinner but taking inventory does not produce a meal. "Deliver results" is the byproduct of actual planning and action. Cohen's 4-phase "plan" is akin to the gnomes' get rich quick scheme in South Park (Step 1: Steal underpants. Step 2: ?? Step 3: Profit) in that it leaves out the crucial middle step.
For example, is SCOTUS reform the necessary first step so it doesn't block everything else? Or does something have to come first? That's the sort of insight I was looking for. Instead I spent money for the same list of things I can hear for free on MSNOW.
Those are not marching orders or instructions for "How to Wield Power in a Post-trump World" as the subtitle suggests. At best it's a plan to make a plan.
This book was an utter waste of time and money for anyone who has been paying attention, let alone an activist trying to get better candidates elected. I half expected a tag at the very end telling us to listen to his podcast for action steps to follow up the book because that would have been in keeping with the political pundit grift machine that talks about what is wrong without actually facilitating steps toward change but I'll give credit that it didn't add that insult to injury.
If you're interested in SOLUTIONS, I suggest reading BAD LAWS by Elie Mystal, which is about laws on the books that, if repealed, will have a tangible net improvement. Barbara McQuade's recent book The Fix might be promising but I haven't read it yet so I can't say if it just repeats the failures of this book or if it gives tangible suggestions. Hopefully it'll do the latter.
As for Brian Tyler Cohen, he'll never get another penny out of me after this written shell game that absolutely wasted my time and money telling me things I already knew without delivering at all on the title of the book. Save yourself time and money by seeking elsewhere for those ideas.
August 15, 2026
This review was originally posted on Books of My Heart
I don't read very much nonfiction or history. I also used to never read or be involved in any politics. But things have really gone off the deep end the last 10 years and I can't ignore it anymore. So I am reading books now by people with more political experience than me. It all started with Heather Cox Richardson who I still read every day.
Now I have expanded to those like Marc Elias who wrote the forward to The Day After and next up might be a book by Ben Wikler. Brian Tyler Cohen is someone I have followed on Bluesky and Threads, and have seen on MSNBC (now MSNOW). I don't watch tv very much though. I even followed his Discord very briefly.
Briefly, The Day After covers history of Presidents who have been successful for the country and it defines what it considers successful, for example, the health and lifespan of the people, jobs growth, reduction in crimes and deaths. It reviews the policies that have been effective and how they were implemented, as well as the less successful.
From the foundation of the historical successes as well as approaches which have been effective worldwide like healthcare, Cohen proposes what needs to happen to change our democracy so it can regain itself. Going "back to normal" won't work because normal has been shattered. Republicans have been lying, fomenting culture wars, ignoring laws to maintain political power for themselves and the wealthy and corporate donors. The Democrats tried to establish good governance, fairness and bipartisan policies that everyone can appreciate. That hasn't worked because Republican have no interest in policy or helping the average working people or the poor.
There are steps laid out about things with the Supreme Court, the filibuster, voting rights laws that are the priorities with the the urgency of the first 100 days. FDR's New Deal was rolled out in the first hundred days. The need for these various actions are based on the historical foundation of what will work.
I liked most of the suggested plans of action for policies which is not surprising since they are all things favorable to 60-70% of Americans of all political parties. They also work to reduce fraud and corruption, as well as reinvigorate the checks and balances the founders intended. It is certainly food for thought.
Narration:
The narration was provided by the author, Brian Tyler Cohen. I have heard him speak and he has a good speaking voice. He is a fairly quick paced reader, so I was able to listen at 1.50x speed but considered slowing it down to allow more time to process the topics.
I don't read very much nonfiction or history. I also used to never read or be involved in any politics. But things have really gone off the deep end the last 10 years and I can't ignore it anymore. So I am reading books now by people with more political experience than me. It all started with Heather Cox Richardson who I still read every day.
Now I have expanded to those like Marc Elias who wrote the forward to The Day After and next up might be a book by Ben Wikler. Brian Tyler Cohen is someone I have followed on Bluesky and Threads, and have seen on MSNBC (now MSNOW). I don't watch tv very much though. I even followed his Discord very briefly.
Briefly, The Day After covers history of Presidents who have been successful for the country and it defines what it considers successful, for example, the health and lifespan of the people, jobs growth, reduction in crimes and deaths. It reviews the policies that have been effective and how they were implemented, as well as the less successful.
From the foundation of the historical successes as well as approaches which have been effective worldwide like healthcare, Cohen proposes what needs to happen to change our democracy so it can regain itself. Going "back to normal" won't work because normal has been shattered. Republicans have been lying, fomenting culture wars, ignoring laws to maintain political power for themselves and the wealthy and corporate donors. The Democrats tried to establish good governance, fairness and bipartisan policies that everyone can appreciate. That hasn't worked because Republican have no interest in policy or helping the average working people or the poor.
There are steps laid out about things with the Supreme Court, the filibuster, voting rights laws that are the priorities with the the urgency of the first 100 days. FDR's New Deal was rolled out in the first hundred days. The need for these various actions are based on the historical foundation of what will work.
I liked most of the suggested plans of action for policies which is not surprising since they are all things favorable to 60-70% of Americans of all political parties. They also work to reduce fraud and corruption, as well as reinvigorate the checks and balances the founders intended. It is certainly food for thought.
Narration:
The narration was provided by the author, Brian Tyler Cohen. I have heard him speak and he has a good speaking voice. He is a fairly quick paced reader, so I was able to listen at 1.50x speed but considered slowing it down to allow more time to process the topics.
August 13, 2026
Required reading
My original review began, "All Democratic members of Congress should read this book." I was excited about all the suggestions for what they should do, and I still am. But now, after taking some time to mull it over, I'm beginning to realize some things are missing.
Yes, a Democratic Congress should act immediately to safeguard democracy. Yes, they should wield power more decisively than they have in the past. All of that. But the average voter has absolutely no clue how government works ("Civics Education" might be a good chapter to add, now that I think of it). I know because I've done hundreds of hours of volunteer work talking to voters who didn't know who their representatives in Congress were, let alone their state reps. What they do know is that gas and groceries are too expensive.
A Democratic Congress needs to do something to lower prices on Day One, and it needs to be something that takes effect quickly, so that even the most apathetic people can see it: "Democrats control Congress, and now gas costs less!" The book has a chapter on the economy, but it's focused on debunking the myth that Republicans are better for the economy than Democrats. That's important, but it's not a plan.
As I type this, Democrats are campaigning on "lowering costs for hardworking families." There are many ways of doing that, but some are more long-term and gradual than others and we can't afford subtlety. Tax credits are great, for example, but people need to see some kind of change at the supermarket and/or at the pump as soon as possible.
I'm not saying Democrats shouldn't bring the bad guys to justice and reform the Court and fight corruption. I'm saying they somehow need to do ALL of it. Lowering prices needs to be the biggest, loudest, fastest thing they do.
My original review began, "All Democratic members of Congress should read this book." I was excited about all the suggestions for what they should do, and I still am. But now, after taking some time to mull it over, I'm beginning to realize some things are missing.
Yes, a Democratic Congress should act immediately to safeguard democracy. Yes, they should wield power more decisively than they have in the past. All of that. But the average voter has absolutely no clue how government works ("Civics Education" might be a good chapter to add, now that I think of it). I know because I've done hundreds of hours of volunteer work talking to voters who didn't know who their representatives in Congress were, let alone their state reps. What they do know is that gas and groceries are too expensive.
A Democratic Congress needs to do something to lower prices on Day One, and it needs to be something that takes effect quickly, so that even the most apathetic people can see it: "Democrats control Congress, and now gas costs less!" The book has a chapter on the economy, but it's focused on debunking the myth that Republicans are better for the economy than Democrats. That's important, but it's not a plan.
As I type this, Democrats are campaigning on "lowering costs for hardworking families." There are many ways of doing that, but some are more long-term and gradual than others and we can't afford subtlety. Tax credits are great, for example, but people need to see some kind of change at the supermarket and/or at the pump as soon as possible.
I'm not saying Democrats shouldn't bring the bad guys to justice and reform the Court and fight corruption. I'm saying they somehow need to do ALL of it. Lowering prices needs to be the biggest, loudest, fastest thing they do.
September 1, 2026
I like Brian Tyler Cohen. He's a smart, new media guy, actively reminding all of us what an embarrassing and depressing federal administration we are all suffering under right now.
I was anxious to read his book and hear his suggestions on where we go from here. Because "here" has to come to an end, somehow.
The book did provide me with some history I was unaware of, and that was fascinating stuff. But it also spent a considerable number of pages discussing the myriad ways Donald Trump has made a fool of himself and seriously damaged the reputation, economy, safety, and freedoms of the United States. All good stuff...if you've been living in a cave.
Now, I get Brian has to play to a large audience, and I appreciate him reminding people (or telling them for the first time? Where have those people been?) of the endless list of dick moves our current president has taken for his own benefit alone.
But then I really wanted the comprehensive discussion of where we go next. How do we govern differently when we're out of all this? And that's where the book fell a little short for me.
The typical chapter was 90% "here's what we got" and 10% (if that) "here's what we need to do now." I really wanted that ratio to be reversed.
So, yeah, there's some good history and good notes for those not really paying attention, but alas, the roadmap for the post-Trump world? Pretty brief and murky.
I was anxious to read his book and hear his suggestions on where we go from here. Because "here" has to come to an end, somehow.
The book did provide me with some history I was unaware of, and that was fascinating stuff. But it also spent a considerable number of pages discussing the myriad ways Donald Trump has made a fool of himself and seriously damaged the reputation, economy, safety, and freedoms of the United States. All good stuff...if you've been living in a cave.
Now, I get Brian has to play to a large audience, and I appreciate him reminding people (or telling them for the first time? Where have those people been?) of the endless list of dick moves our current president has taken for his own benefit alone.
But then I really wanted the comprehensive discussion of where we go next. How do we govern differently when we're out of all this? And that's where the book fell a little short for me.
The typical chapter was 90% "here's what we got" and 10% (if that) "here's what we need to do now." I really wanted that ratio to be reversed.
So, yeah, there's some good history and good notes for those not really paying attention, but alas, the roadmap for the post-Trump world? Pretty brief and murky.
August 16, 2026
Mr. Cohen again delivers a well-written, comprehensive assessment of what happens, is currently happening and then goes beyond to offer substantive solutions to the problems created not just by the 47th president, but the party he says he represents. As I said regarding his book Shameless, you can "hear" Mr. Cohen as he speaks in his podcast which makes for an easy read.
Instead of bemoaning what has and is happening, yes, he tells it, but offers concrete solutions to making sure once we have our country back, it may not happen again. He makes no bones about this will be a hard lift, but his solutions are well planned and laid out. Between this book and Barbara McQuade's the Fix there is hope for our future here in America. In McQuade's book she lays out what can easily (and should be) the case for criminal prosecution for the 47th and his cabinet and enablers. She too offers solutions going forward, but not as definitive as Cohen's. They two of them would make excellent expert witnesses in any future trial(s) and mending the disaster the current administration has wrought.
Instead of bemoaning what has and is happening, yes, he tells it, but offers concrete solutions to making sure once we have our country back, it may not happen again. He makes no bones about this will be a hard lift, but his solutions are well planned and laid out. Between this book and Barbara McQuade's the Fix there is hope for our future here in America. In McQuade's book she lays out what can easily (and should be) the case for criminal prosecution for the 47th and his cabinet and enablers. She too offers solutions going forward, but not as definitive as Cohen's. They two of them would make excellent expert witnesses in any future trial(s) and mending the disaster the current administration has wrought.
August 3, 2026
With all this hell going on around us and the powers that be treating it that it is normal and okay, let me tell you how nice it is to seclude myself in audiobook echo chamber where someone sounds like they are talking sense. When Trump’s reign of hatred and absurdity is finally over, this is the guidebook to how we put things back together. We can’t return to the status quo. We can’t brush it off saying it is over and done with. We have to take everything that has happened in the Orange turd’s presidencies seriously and know that those things happened because it wasn’t just one man who wanted it to happen: it was because a bunch of loud racist, homophobic, transphobic, xenophobic twats encouraged it. We need to lift our voices in a way that makes them scuttle back into the shadows. We need to make things better and work to earn the respect of the world again. It’s going to take time and hard work — he fucked it up that badly. But it isn’t impossible. We just can’t do things the way we’ve done before.
August 30, 2026
I loved this book and disagree with the review that said the book didn’t need to be written because it was just everything that BTC talks about every day in his socials. As a Brit I wasn’t familiar with a lot of the early republican shenanigans from Nixon, Reagan etc… so it served as a historical reference. I have followed American politics since Trump came to power and have watched in disbelief at the blatant corruption of Trump his family and the people who he surrounds himself with. I also cannot believe the complete ignorance of MAGA supporters who appear to believe everything that Trump says without question, although we have people like that here who love Reform because they bang on about immigrants causing every single thing that is wrong with their lives. I found the book a little depressing because of how bad it is for normal Americans at the moment and the enormity of what needs to be done to ‘fix’ it. I pray that Americans and Democrats are up to the job for their sakes and the rest of the world.
July 22, 2026
I have been a fan of Brian Tyler Cohen for years, and The Day After feels like the playbook the Democratic Party needs in a post-Trump world.
This is not about pretending we can simply go back to normal. Cohen makes the case that restoration is not enough when the systems themselves helped create the crisis. Democrats need to stop treating power like something to apologize for and start using it to protect democracy, reform broken institutions, and deliver for the people who put them in office.
The sections on institutional reform, accountability, the courts, and the limits of endless appeals to bipartisanship all hit hard. This is urgent without feeling hopeless, practical without being dry, and direct in a way I wish more Democratic leaders would be.
Smart, clear, and necessary. I hope the right people read it, absorb it, and act on it.
This is not about pretending we can simply go back to normal. Cohen makes the case that restoration is not enough when the systems themselves helped create the crisis. Democrats need to stop treating power like something to apologize for and start using it to protect democracy, reform broken institutions, and deliver for the people who put them in office.
The sections on institutional reform, accountability, the courts, and the limits of endless appeals to bipartisanship all hit hard. This is urgent without feeling hopeless, practical without being dry, and direct in a way I wish more Democratic leaders would be.
Smart, clear, and necessary. I hope the right people read it, absorb it, and act on it.
August 20, 2026
The history lesson alone is the worth the price of admission. It does stir up emotions but also at a good time as I am getting to be one of the numb ones due to "his" nonsense and those of his minions. What it seems the war is against is the fear that is waged to the masses to keep the elite in power. Sanity fighting the almighty buck and that lack of empathy from those who have and spreads the fear to fight those of us that just wants everyone to have a fair shake. Does Brian have "the answer ", obviously no but what he does is that we who care can't want to go back either. We have to fight for changes that make it more fair for everyone knowing that lies and cheating are going to be the uphill battle and unfortunately it is going to be fought against the haves and the uneducated/sheeple and us...
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