I didn’t see it in there, but I am curious if your book cited or dived into… well outright proof of this statement
the left has created a “Progressive Political Vise” that applies pressure to achieve their desired results by targeting ordinary citizens, rather than those in power
I'm glad the excerpt in The Federalist found it's way to you. If I'm understanding your question correctly, I think you've made a great observation.
My book doesn’t specifically cite the specific Beautiful Trouble website or borrow their verbiage (e.g., "power mapping") but it does cover the broader phenomenon you are pointing out in citing those examples. For example, the book dedicates considerable space to laying out the strategy you're identifying, showing how the left pretty openly boasts about their sophisticated infrastructure designed to target, pressure, and control ordinary folks, beyond just politicians.
Here are a few ways it covers this ground:
-In Chapter One, the book highlights a February 2021 Time Magazine article by Molly Ball, which detailed the "informal alliance between left-wing activists and business titans." As the book notes, rather than deny the allegations of an orchestrated campaign, left-wing organizers almost behave as though they're unable to contain their glee about it.
-What I believe you are describing with "power mapping" is addressed in Chapter Fourteen, where the book dives into the "progressive ecosystem of influence." It goes into how the left uses data technology platforms like Civis Analytics and Data for Progress to map, analyze, curate, and target voters with incredible sophistication.
-The book points out fairly early on that the left has long relied on explicit manuals to target their opposition, tracing this modern pressure game back to Saul Alinsky’s 1971 playbook, Rules for Radicals.
-The book includes many examples of how this Progressive Vise squeezes ordinary people who step out of line. Chapters Ten and Eleven chronicle pressure campaigns of that came about amid the Cancel Culture and #MeToo phenomena, retelling specific examples of private citizens being targeted and destroyed: the Boeing executive fired for a decades-old article, a teacher fired over pronoun usage, parents targeted at Loudoun County school board meetings, individuals like Daniel Penny who stepped up to protect their fellow citizens, and so on.
The Beautiful Trouble pictograph you mentioned illustrates the core thesis of the book that I often hammer on: In a traditional, constitutional Vise, the People, Media, and Influencers are supposed to apply pressure to Politicians. But today, the left has inverted the structure, aligning Politicians, Media, and Influencers to apply a crushing pressure directly onto The People.
So in this sense it is indeed a good, tangible piece of evidence for exactly what the book warns about. Thank you for sharing it with me!
Sir, I am reading your snippet posted to theFederalist.
https://thefederalist.com/2026/03/06/how-the-left-threatens-citizens-instead-of-pressuring-politicians-to-achieve-its-goals/
I didn’t see it in there, but I am curious if your book cited or dived into… well outright proof of this statement
the left has created a “Progressive Political Vise” that applies pressure to achieve their desired results by targeting ordinary citizens, rather than those in power
Which they were so helpful to post to their website http://beautifultrouble.org and call it Power Mapping:
https://beautifultrouble.org/toolbox/tool/power-mapping
Which has been updated from an older version of the page:
https://web.archive.org/web/20221025045801/https://beautifultrouble.org/toolbox/tool/power-mapping/
Which used to have this fascinating little pictograph on it…
Hi Nate,
I'm glad the excerpt in The Federalist found it's way to you. If I'm understanding your question correctly, I think you've made a great observation.
My book doesn’t specifically cite the specific Beautiful Trouble website or borrow their verbiage (e.g., "power mapping") but it does cover the broader phenomenon you are pointing out in citing those examples. For example, the book dedicates considerable space to laying out the strategy you're identifying, showing how the left pretty openly boasts about their sophisticated infrastructure designed to target, pressure, and control ordinary folks, beyond just politicians.
Here are a few ways it covers this ground:
-In Chapter One, the book highlights a February 2021 Time Magazine article by Molly Ball, which detailed the "informal alliance between left-wing activists and business titans." As the book notes, rather than deny the allegations of an orchestrated campaign, left-wing organizers almost behave as though they're unable to contain their glee about it.
-What I believe you are describing with "power mapping" is addressed in Chapter Fourteen, where the book dives into the "progressive ecosystem of influence." It goes into how the left uses data technology platforms like Civis Analytics and Data for Progress to map, analyze, curate, and target voters with incredible sophistication.
-The book points out fairly early on that the left has long relied on explicit manuals to target their opposition, tracing this modern pressure game back to Saul Alinsky’s 1971 playbook, Rules for Radicals.
-The book includes many examples of how this Progressive Vise squeezes ordinary people who step out of line. Chapters Ten and Eleven chronicle pressure campaigns of that came about amid the Cancel Culture and #MeToo phenomena, retelling specific examples of private citizens being targeted and destroyed: the Boeing executive fired for a decades-old article, a teacher fired over pronoun usage, parents targeted at Loudoun County school board meetings, individuals like Daniel Penny who stepped up to protect their fellow citizens, and so on.
The Beautiful Trouble pictograph you mentioned illustrates the core thesis of the book that I often hammer on: In a traditional, constitutional Vise, the People, Media, and Influencers are supposed to apply pressure to Politicians. But today, the left has inverted the structure, aligning Politicians, Media, and Influencers to apply a crushing pressure directly onto The People.
So in this sense it is indeed a good, tangible piece of evidence for exactly what the book warns about. Thank you for sharing it with me!