This clarifies much for me. I think you did take blame when it was due. Like with Horn and the reporter. I feel like the people with integrity are never the winners. No one trusts Haberman so no need to put too much effort into explanation. We see her bias every day. Little by little you are gaining your reputation back and holding people accountable including yourself. Refreshing to say the least! Thank you.
Watching you all speak at Cooper Union, I had such respect for what The Lincoln Project was organized to do. Never in a million years would I have imagined how badly things would turn out, or how egos would make TLP implode. Thank you for shedding light on the truth.
The Lincoln Project put our Democracy first and helped in defeating Trump. The lack of checks and balances in the organizational leadership impaired the productive use of highly creative and knowledgeable people. Competition within an organization is expected and structure with clear guidelines keeps it ethical and functioning. Thank You for the newsletter. It helped me understand why TLP started to feel disjointed.
Wow. The one-two of your McCain article/information followed by this piece … I have so many thoughts. But mainly I’m left with a pit-like feeling of sadness and disappointment. The through-line for me being severely tarnished nobility and honor. I’m a grown woman who has been involved in politics and political campaigns since I was a child. I’m what you might call a Peter, Paul & Mary-style liberal. And I have over the years, tended toward a steadfast belief in the ability of peaceful social justice to triumph over power-hungry greed and ugly discrimination in the long haul. End game? Love is stronger than hate.
Many times I cheered on my sense of Senator McCain as ‘one of the good ones’ … the cynical pick of Palin as his VP running mate was a difficult truth to confront. But watching his respect for Obama and the politically democratic process that resulted in a gracefully accepted loss (something that didn’t seem quite so shockingly remarkable back then as it does now, in this ‘post’ ? Trumpian hellscape)- and his remaining time in the Senate - helped to restore my own personal sense of order. Learning what I did from you recently has shaken things up.
Onto The Lincoln Project. While I wouldn’t go so far as to say it gave Biden the winning edge - it absolutely helped and the work you all did was brilliant. It also gave me great hope that the GOP could possibly relocate its own moral compass. And not the faux morality of the far right … but the notion that politicians, be they conservative, liberal or somewhere in the great between, are public servants. They are committed to representing their constituents. They want the best for this country and all the people who call it home. They believe, support and defend the democratic process and DEMOCRACY is our common North Star. That’s what TLP did for me during a time when my sense of order was positively crumbling. But again, so many things turned that message of light into a murkiness that has left me both confused and sad.
Steve, I appreciate all the work you have done with and for this group. I also have always enjoyed and LEARNED from your commentary on MSNBC - thank you for all your hard work. In truth, I tried HARD to carefully read both of these letter/notice segments to the NYT. But I couldn’t wade through them. I tried, repeatedly. I am a pretty quick reader and can process complex subjects and assimilate a sizable amount of information in one sitting. but this was too much. In every sense of that phrase. And I had to skim through large segments. I truly tried not to - but I ended up just doing my best. So I maybe cannot stand on solid ground to state opinion on this matter. Clearly there were errors made in the reporting and I agree that when errors are brought to the attention of journalists, ‘full-throated’ retractions are absolutely in order (see, I did try to read the whole thing!). I can’t really speak to motivation. I know that media - like everything else - can fall prey to bias and self serving motivation. But I also know that without smart and dedicated journalists the public may never have known about this predator and other questionable practices involved here. I fully support your transparency and desire to set the record straight and hold certain specific journalists to account for patterns of bias in their reporting. At the same time, I furiously resist the implanted notion (cast into society and nurtured by the former administration and so many surrounding it/him) that media and reporters and journalism are ‘the enemy of the people’. All one needs to do is to watch the documentary ‘Navalny’ to know that we had all better support a free and open press if we have any hope of saving our democracy. So, put all of that in with everything else about this situation and call it living in the grey.
Again, I am feeling very sad. I am watching this democracy seem to fall apart. And with it, the individual rights and freedoms that I never DREAMED would be in jeopardy for my own/all of our children just as they enter young adulthood. Perhaps the lesson to take here is that we cannot look to ‘heroes’ to save what is most precious to us. Flawed though we all clearly are; we must be our own heroes. We must stand up for what is right and fair and decent. We MUST VOTE.
And most importantly, we must embody the Love that will triumph in the end.
Thank you, Steve. I have stood with you all through this debacle, never wavering in my trust. So happy to see you speak out on so many fronts. Keep on.
Wow after reading this perhaps the more compelling and True story that should be written is about the mismanagement of TLP - Steve I love your and Rick's work but you do have some blame to share in its mismanagement. Oversight and holding people accountable is critical..... As Patton is supposed to have say you get what you inspect not expect
Mr. Schmidt - I have been impressed with you since seeing seeing you on Chris Hayes outlining what Trump was doing by marginalizing vulnerable people, claiming to be the only that could fix it, etc. I still continue to be impressed with your declarative, no bullshit style. Thank you. I will continue to support the Lincoln Project as we know this is not even close to over. I watch Rick and Tara every week. I know you have stepped away from it but you are what brought me to it. I believe that Chris Hayes appearance was before the LP started.
Anytime you are on MSNBC or any other venue that has recorded you, I listen. Keep up the good work, sir.
In all things in life, trust but verify. This is by no means a criticism of you. When you hire someone to manage you hope they manage. It seems Galen was in way over his head and got bulldozed by grifters in your midst. As well he made very poor decisions. All this was weaponized by right wing Maggie and the NYT.
I did and still do believe in the mission of The Lincoln Project. I have a lot of respect for Mr. Schmidt and what he tried to accomplish in bringing the evil "Voldemort" machine down. Unfortunately, it seems that even in an organization trying to root out evil players there were still some who lived within that organization. It doesn't sound like there was enough oversight within TLP to identify and get rid of the evil or in some cases incompetent players within. But, there is still SO much to do to rise above other crooks and cronies. Thank you for these informative, albeit, a little confusing letters.
A horrible explanation of how things work in politics - note to self - never get involved in the political machines ! I have always felt that Steve Schmidt was a truthteller, and was concerned when he seemed to disappear from view, not realizing that there was a big plot afoot to disgrace him. As far as I was concerned he WAS the Lincoln Project, so I didn't understand what was going on. Now I know that wherever there is something new & great happening there will always be those plotting to destroy the inventors & steal any power they have accrued ! Nice !
I'm a Canadian who, like many in my country, watched from our perch above the 49th Parallel. When the U.S. sneezes, Canada gets a cold ... we are inseparable, but uniquely different. I subscribed to the NYT as my only way to show support for true, in-depth journalism. To help against the war of Trump and his supporters that spread lies like they're spreading butter.... THICK !!
I too read both of these in their entirety, skimming parts when I couldn't follow any longer. I read the McCain letter the other day and - WoW, that blew my mind as well. I thought he was the maverick who was there to show the GOP how compromise and integrity could be a good thing still. I wondered HOW it was that Lindsay Graham turned so quickly and became such an ugly person after the death of 'his old friend' .... now I see, Lindsay never changed, they both just seemed to tone down who they really were in the effort to come across as changemakers & cross the aisle guys .... Yeah, I wondered, as we all did - "WHY PALIN?"
I am on your side Steve - I SEE, I FEEL your passion as if it were my own. I KNOW in my gut that you did your best.... keep up the good work. You are one who puts yourself 'out there' and does what you believe needs to be done EVEN if you risk being burnt. I have such respect for you.
This Canadian is proud to have you on the side of democracy ... not right or left but freedom.
I have so much respect for you, Steve, and Rick Wilson. I have known from the start of the 2016 election process that I did not share your political policy views but I so appreciated the intelligence and civility of the conversations you offered. Then, when TLP was launched to spare the US from the criminality and danger of Donald Trump, I was a staunch supporter of TLP! I’m sorry for your unfortunate treatment by those who wished to sail (undeservedly) on your coat tails and for your treatment by the NYT and Maggie Habberman. I had become disgusted with the New York Times and their lack of “real” journalism, their constant false equivalencies between Republican criminality, lying and cheating and the Democrats sincere effort to save our country. I unsubscribed with a letter of disgust. I wish millions of others would do the same. Please know there are many of us who see who you are; a descent, honest, patriotic American white male who owns it and uses his power and platform for healing and change. Thank you
Thank you for sharing your truth, couldn’t have been easy with such vicious hateful personal attacks, stay strong keep telling us the truth, many of us trust you and believe in you.
What a tangled web of greed, deceit, and bad behavior by a bunch of people who have strapped our Nation with an outrageously corrupt and radical Republicans who are now holding our Nation hostage to Dominionism and religious fanatics. Schmidt is guilty of trusting Galen, but we as a Nation are stuck with the fall out of all the Republicans this bunch of people have helped to elect. I’m more than angry at all of it. Everyone should be calling for heads to roll. The GOP for so long called and for accountability but there has been none. The people who are not corporations are the ones who have been hurt through all of these many years of lies and deceit to get corrupt politicians elected and in positions of power.
This clarifies much for me. I think you did take blame when it was due. Like with Horn and the reporter. I feel like the people with integrity are never the winners. No one trusts Haberman so no need to put too much effort into explanation. We see her bias every day. Little by little you are gaining your reputation back and holding people accountable including yourself. Refreshing to say the least! Thank you.
As someone once said “No good deed goes unpunished”. TLP was such a great idea and did so well with the 2020 elections. I just hate what happened.
Since it is SES Truth Week will there be more truths coming?
Seriously, thank you. I truly love watching you tell it like it is and hope you will keep on doing it.
Watching you all speak at Cooper Union, I had such respect for what The Lincoln Project was organized to do. Never in a million years would I have imagined how badly things would turn out, or how egos would make TLP implode. Thank you for shedding light on the truth.
The Lincoln Project put our Democracy first and helped in defeating Trump. The lack of checks and balances in the organizational leadership impaired the productive use of highly creative and knowledgeable people. Competition within an organization is expected and structure with clear guidelines keeps it ethical and functioning. Thank You for the newsletter. It helped me understand why TLP started to feel disjointed.
Wow. The one-two of your McCain article/information followed by this piece … I have so many thoughts. But mainly I’m left with a pit-like feeling of sadness and disappointment. The through-line for me being severely tarnished nobility and honor. I’m a grown woman who has been involved in politics and political campaigns since I was a child. I’m what you might call a Peter, Paul & Mary-style liberal. And I have over the years, tended toward a steadfast belief in the ability of peaceful social justice to triumph over power-hungry greed and ugly discrimination in the long haul. End game? Love is stronger than hate.
Many times I cheered on my sense of Senator McCain as ‘one of the good ones’ … the cynical pick of Palin as his VP running mate was a difficult truth to confront. But watching his respect for Obama and the politically democratic process that resulted in a gracefully accepted loss (something that didn’t seem quite so shockingly remarkable back then as it does now, in this ‘post’ ? Trumpian hellscape)- and his remaining time in the Senate - helped to restore my own personal sense of order. Learning what I did from you recently has shaken things up.
Onto The Lincoln Project. While I wouldn’t go so far as to say it gave Biden the winning edge - it absolutely helped and the work you all did was brilliant. It also gave me great hope that the GOP could possibly relocate its own moral compass. And not the faux morality of the far right … but the notion that politicians, be they conservative, liberal or somewhere in the great between, are public servants. They are committed to representing their constituents. They want the best for this country and all the people who call it home. They believe, support and defend the democratic process and DEMOCRACY is our common North Star. That’s what TLP did for me during a time when my sense of order was positively crumbling. But again, so many things turned that message of light into a murkiness that has left me both confused and sad.
Steve, I appreciate all the work you have done with and for this group. I also have always enjoyed and LEARNED from your commentary on MSNBC - thank you for all your hard work. In truth, I tried HARD to carefully read both of these letter/notice segments to the NYT. But I couldn’t wade through them. I tried, repeatedly. I am a pretty quick reader and can process complex subjects and assimilate a sizable amount of information in one sitting. but this was too much. In every sense of that phrase. And I had to skim through large segments. I truly tried not to - but I ended up just doing my best. So I maybe cannot stand on solid ground to state opinion on this matter. Clearly there were errors made in the reporting and I agree that when errors are brought to the attention of journalists, ‘full-throated’ retractions are absolutely in order (see, I did try to read the whole thing!). I can’t really speak to motivation. I know that media - like everything else - can fall prey to bias and self serving motivation. But I also know that without smart and dedicated journalists the public may never have known about this predator and other questionable practices involved here. I fully support your transparency and desire to set the record straight and hold certain specific journalists to account for patterns of bias in their reporting. At the same time, I furiously resist the implanted notion (cast into society and nurtured by the former administration and so many surrounding it/him) that media and reporters and journalism are ‘the enemy of the people’. All one needs to do is to watch the documentary ‘Navalny’ to know that we had all better support a free and open press if we have any hope of saving our democracy. So, put all of that in with everything else about this situation and call it living in the grey.
Again, I am feeling very sad. I am watching this democracy seem to fall apart. And with it, the individual rights and freedoms that I never DREAMED would be in jeopardy for my own/all of our children just as they enter young adulthood. Perhaps the lesson to take here is that we cannot look to ‘heroes’ to save what is most precious to us. Flawed though we all clearly are; we must be our own heroes. We must stand up for what is right and fair and decent. We MUST VOTE.
And most importantly, we must embody the Love that will triumph in the end.
Thank you, Steve. I have stood with you all through this debacle, never wavering in my trust. So happy to see you speak out on so many fronts. Keep on.
Wow after reading this perhaps the more compelling and True story that should be written is about the mismanagement of TLP - Steve I love your and Rick's work but you do have some blame to share in its mismanagement. Oversight and holding people accountable is critical..... As Patton is supposed to have say you get what you inspect not expect
Thank you Steve.
Mr. Schmidt - I have been impressed with you since seeing seeing you on Chris Hayes outlining what Trump was doing by marginalizing vulnerable people, claiming to be the only that could fix it, etc. I still continue to be impressed with your declarative, no bullshit style. Thank you. I will continue to support the Lincoln Project as we know this is not even close to over. I watch Rick and Tara every week. I know you have stepped away from it but you are what brought me to it. I believe that Chris Hayes appearance was before the LP started.
Anytime you are on MSNBC or any other venue that has recorded you, I listen. Keep up the good work, sir.
In all things in life, trust but verify. This is by no means a criticism of you. When you hire someone to manage you hope they manage. It seems Galen was in way over his head and got bulldozed by grifters in your midst. As well he made very poor decisions. All this was weaponized by right wing Maggie and the NYT.
I did and still do believe in the mission of The Lincoln Project. I have a lot of respect for Mr. Schmidt and what he tried to accomplish in bringing the evil "Voldemort" machine down. Unfortunately, it seems that even in an organization trying to root out evil players there were still some who lived within that organization. It doesn't sound like there was enough oversight within TLP to identify and get rid of the evil or in some cases incompetent players within. But, there is still SO much to do to rise above other crooks and cronies. Thank you for these informative, albeit, a little confusing letters.
A horrible explanation of how things work in politics - note to self - never get involved in the political machines ! I have always felt that Steve Schmidt was a truthteller, and was concerned when he seemed to disappear from view, not realizing that there was a big plot afoot to disgrace him. As far as I was concerned he WAS the Lincoln Project, so I didn't understand what was going on. Now I know that wherever there is something new & great happening there will always be those plotting to destroy the inventors & steal any power they have accrued ! Nice !
I'm a Canadian who, like many in my country, watched from our perch above the 49th Parallel. When the U.S. sneezes, Canada gets a cold ... we are inseparable, but uniquely different. I subscribed to the NYT as my only way to show support for true, in-depth journalism. To help against the war of Trump and his supporters that spread lies like they're spreading butter.... THICK !!
I too read both of these in their entirety, skimming parts when I couldn't follow any longer. I read the McCain letter the other day and - WoW, that blew my mind as well. I thought he was the maverick who was there to show the GOP how compromise and integrity could be a good thing still. I wondered HOW it was that Lindsay Graham turned so quickly and became such an ugly person after the death of 'his old friend' .... now I see, Lindsay never changed, they both just seemed to tone down who they really were in the effort to come across as changemakers & cross the aisle guys .... Yeah, I wondered, as we all did - "WHY PALIN?"
I am on your side Steve - I SEE, I FEEL your passion as if it were my own. I KNOW in my gut that you did your best.... keep up the good work. You are one who puts yourself 'out there' and does what you believe needs to be done EVEN if you risk being burnt. I have such respect for you.
This Canadian is proud to have you on the side of democracy ... not right or left but freedom.
I have so much respect for you, Steve, and Rick Wilson. I have known from the start of the 2016 election process that I did not share your political policy views but I so appreciated the intelligence and civility of the conversations you offered. Then, when TLP was launched to spare the US from the criminality and danger of Donald Trump, I was a staunch supporter of TLP! I’m sorry for your unfortunate treatment by those who wished to sail (undeservedly) on your coat tails and for your treatment by the NYT and Maggie Habberman. I had become disgusted with the New York Times and their lack of “real” journalism, their constant false equivalencies between Republican criminality, lying and cheating and the Democrats sincere effort to save our country. I unsubscribed with a letter of disgust. I wish millions of others would do the same. Please know there are many of us who see who you are; a descent, honest, patriotic American white male who owns it and uses his power and platform for healing and change. Thank you
Thank you for sharing your truth, couldn’t have been easy with such vicious hateful personal attacks, stay strong keep telling us the truth, many of us trust you and believe in you.
What a tangled web of greed, deceit, and bad behavior by a bunch of people who have strapped our Nation with an outrageously corrupt and radical Republicans who are now holding our Nation hostage to Dominionism and religious fanatics. Schmidt is guilty of trusting Galen, but we as a Nation are stuck with the fall out of all the Republicans this bunch of people have helped to elect. I’m more than angry at all of it. Everyone should be calling for heads to roll. The GOP for so long called and for accountability but there has been none. The people who are not corporations are the ones who have been hurt through all of these many years of lies and deceit to get corrupt politicians elected and in positions of power.