What Could Go Right? The Best of Us

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The Best of Us

I was conflicted about whether to write about Charlie Kirk today. Even though I know that social media emphasizes the polarized extremes and that everyday Americans on both the right and the left overwhelmingly reject political violence, the online discourse this past week and the reaction from the Trump administration left me with a deep exhaustion that I thought might be best alleviated by ignoring the matter entirely.

But that felt too much like burying my head in the sand. Instead, I conducted a small experiment. I wanted to see what it would be like to experience a media system that is the opposite of what we have today—one in which the best of us floats to the top. I went looking for the kind of response, from our nation’s leaders, that would uplift, unite, and move America forward. Many have seen the laudable statement from Utah Governor Spencer Cox (R) that we need to find an off-ramp to hate and violence. Was there anyone else whose words deserved more attention?

There was. 

“There is no doubt, our nation is broken,” Vermont Gov. Phil Scott (R) posted on X. “But, we’ve experienced difficult situations before and have shown just how powerful our country is when we are united, listen to the perspectives of others, treat each other with respect, and rise above the rhetoric we’re seeing.”

Montana Senator Tim Sheehy (R), too, called for healing in the Bozeman Daily Chronicle and posted several times on X emphasizing “our shared humanity as Americans.” Others, like Virginia Sen. Mark Warner (D), grounded his response in a defense of free speech while linking Kirk’s killing to that of Minnesota representative Melissa Hortman. “This is not what America should be. America should be a country where we debate, we disagree, but we do have some level of respect. This has to come from all of us now,” he said in a video. 

There were a handful who worked in partnership. Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) put out a bipartisan statement condemning political violence; Pennsylvania Sens. John Fetterman (D) and Dave McCormick (R)—Pennsylvania is one of few states with a split Senate delegation—appeared together on Fox News asking for civility.

Many others, such as Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) and Utah Representative Celeste Maloy (R)—who represents the district where Kirk’s suspected shooter lived—urged people, especially young people, to interact offline and to see each other once more as neighbors, friends, and family. 

Former governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and conservative writer David French also both stressed that their experiences engaging in live events and classrooms with students, right and left, in the aftermath of the shooting were respectful. “Do not think for a moment that the dysfunction we see on this website—or on viral videos—is the whole story. There are so many good people in this country (and on campus). May their voices win the day,” wrote French.

And if you have eight minutes to spare, I highly recommend Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock’s (D) full speech on Kirk and the aftermath. He is a reverend and speaks like one.

There was a lot more where that came from; I just don’t have space to share it all. In scouring the public statements of sitting governors, senators, and state representatives, there was plenty to criticize, too. I was relieved—and honestly, somewhat surprised—that nearly every one had posted something that condemned the assassination, however. The better angels of our nature are still present in American politics, if not in its highest office.

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What Could Go Right? S7 E28: The Guardian of Public Lands with Josh Jackson

How do we protect America’s wild open spaces while meeting the demands of conservation, recreation, and development? Zachary welcomes Josh Jackson, author of The Enduring Wild: A Journey Into California’s Public Lands. Founder of the Forgotten Lands Project, Josh aims to connect people with these landscapes through immersive storytelling and experiences. He explores the Bureau of Land Management’s role in sustaining the health of 245 million acres across the western US and Alaska, uncovers the history of these vast landscapes including rebellions and land sales, and advocates for public engagement with BLM lands to foster conservation efforts. | Listen now

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By the Numbers

~19%: Decrease in leprosy cases worldwide in the past decade. Jordan became the first country to eliminate the disease in 2024.

57%: Drop in maternal mortality rates worldwide since 1985.

46: Number of countries that now ban animal testing for cosmetics—Brazil is the latest.

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Quick Hits

🧒 Globally, there are nearly 100 million fewer children living in extreme poverty than there were in 2014. Numbers are again falling after a pandemic-related reversal.

💰 New Mexico will be the first state to offer free, universal childcare. The program, which begins in November, is expected to save families $12,000 per year.

👂 Apple has created a real version of Star Trek’s universal translator. The AirPods Pro 3, the company says, can live-translate foreign languages into your ear.

🌍 Adaptation has cut fatalities by 75% and shrunk economic loss from flooding in Europe, one study found, even accounting for the impact of climate change.

☀️ Global solar installations surged 64% in the first half of 2025. Exactly who is leading the charge to adopt wind and solar depends on how the data is sliced—and may surprise.

📉 Mortality from noncommunicable diseases (e.g., cancer, diabetes) fell in around 150 countries from 2010 to 2019, per a new study. Progress has stalled in the US, possibly because the study included drug use disorders.

♻️ The world’s first commercial plant for polycotton recycling is being built in France. Polyester-cotton blends, the most commonly produced textile, are notoriously difficult to recycle; the plant will host the only technology to do that at scale.

👀 What we’re watching: The Federal Trade Commission launched an inquiry into AI chatbots’ effect on children; Europe is considering prohibiting social media for those under 16; and a Biden-era pledge to provide a game-changing HIV-prevention shot abroad will likely be fulfilled by the Trump administration.

💡 Editor’s pick: Signs of life on Mars is no longer a fringe theory. What now? 

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TPN Member Originals

(Who are our Members? Get to know them.)

• Americans still believe in their nation’s global mission | Flourishing Friday | Clay Routledge
• A mad scientist’s morning well-being protocol | The Atlantic ($) | Arthur C. Brooks
• The trouble with catastrophe politics | The Liberal Patriot | Ted Nordhaus
• The spirit we lost, part 1 | The Roots of Progress | Jason Crawford
• Australia’s social media age limit policy delays account creation, not access to content | After Babel | Jonathan Haidt
• Christopher Rufo’s cancel culture | The Atlantic ($) | Thomas Chatterton Williams
• Obama’s gerrymandering about-face promotes partisan divide | WaPo ($) | Theodore R. Johnson
• Beware the merchants of rage | Yascha Mounk | Yascha Mounk
• After the Kirk killing | NonZero | Robert Wright
• The assassination of Charlie Kirk | Tangle | Isaac Saul
• Losing 40,000 men a year to suicide is a national tragedy | Of Boys and Men | Richard V. Reeves
• Own goal | No Mercy/No Malice | Scott Galloway
• The virtues of discontent | The Edgy Optimist | Zachary Karabell
• Trump’s attacks on the Fed will backfire | GZERO | Ian Bremmer
• “National” conservatism is un-American | Slow Boring | Matthew Yglesias