We're sorry America,UK but for many of you, your deepest, darkest nightmare has finally come true: the questionably coherent reality television star of white nationalist dreams has officially become leader of the free world. Donald Trump is president.
It's been less than a month since Trump won the election, and Americans everywhere are looking for signs of hope and reassurance. Sure, there's no data to support a theory of hope (just spend a nanosecond on Trump's Twitter, before closing your eyes very tight). But there are writers and comedians on Twitter who can provide something close to it, and remind you that there are other caring, reasonable people out there -- sort of like you.
SEE ALSO: Everyday household objects more qualified for public office than Trump's cabinetBelow is a list of people to follow on various social platforms who can help you survive the next four years.
1. Van Jones
Van Jones might be best known as the astute CNN commentator who popularized the term whitelash, but in recent weeks the pundit has unofficially become the nation's de facto therapist. His most recent three-part video series interviewing Trump supporters made reaching across the aisle seem actually plausible, and he was one of the few liberal pundits to successfully predict Trump's rise.
2. Evan McMullin
McMullin, the former House GOP policy director who ran against Trump in the 2016 election, has been loudly denouncing the PEOTUS for embracing his party's extremist white nationalist fringe.
Remaining silent now is allowing the Party of Abraham Lincoln to drift towards the Party of David Duke. https://t.co/JGEllCQZ3Q
— Evan McMullin (@Evan_McMullin) November 23, 2016
3. Ana Navarro
Navarro, a conservative and CNN contributor, has been lashing out at her party for the past year, inspiring some of the best GIFS and tweets of this election, or any election, ever.
This @ananavarro speech could be the best single moment in the campaign pic.twitter.com/6zVBwbquXH
— Seth Abramovitch (@SethAbramovitch) October 8, 2016
4. David Frum
Frum, senior editor at The Atlantic, is a moderate neoconservative who is so eminently rational and clever it almost makes neoconservatism seem -- cool?
If flag-burning merits loss of citizenship, what should be the penalty for a Nazi salute by a Trump supporter?
— David Frum (@davidfrum) November 29, 2016
5. DeRay McKesson
DeRay, a leading activist in the Black Lives Matter movement, produces a Twitter feed that is simultaneously full of grief, critique, and meaningful calls to action. He's best known for tweeting "I love my blackness, and yours," but there's so much more like it.
Sleep well, y'all. Remember to dream.
— deray mckesson (@deray) December 1, 2016
6. Paul Krugman
The New York Times columnist, economist and on-the-nose curmudgeon carefully and methodically debunks each one of Trump's obscene assertions about the economy with -- get ready for it -- actual facts.
Another metric: Trump would have to do one Carrier-sized deal a week for 30 years to save as many jobs as Obama's auto bailout
— Paul Krugman (@paulkrugman) November 30, 2016
7. Rebecca Solnit
The author best known for Men Explain Things to Me (think: mansplaining) doesn't have a Twitter account but does have an active Facebook following, where she shares calls to action and deeply empathetic essays that remind you why you want to make those calls in the first place.
8. Representative Keith Ellison
The progressive Congressman is gunning to become the next head of the DNC. Anyone who's anyone (dorks) are watching Ellison to see what kind of vision he has planned for the party.
My plan for the DNC:https://t.co/stLKdNIOIA
— Rep. Keith Ellison (@keithellison) December 1, 2016
9. OhNoSheTwitnt
The comedian who delivered some of the best jokes in the pre-Trump era period has now dedicated herself full-time to witnessing the (potential impending) apocalypse around us so we don't have to.
Hopefully Trump won't accept the results of the election if he wins.
— (((OhNoSheTwitnt))) (@OhNoSheTwitnt) November 9, 2016
10. Maura Quint
Her feed isn't all Trump (thank God) but when she goes there, she doesn't let go.
I'd rather see someone burn the flag in an act of protest than wear it to the beach over their crotch thinking that was an act of respect
— maura quint (@behindyourback) November 30, 2016
11. Kumail Nanjiani
The actor and comedian fromSilicon Valleyand Portlandiacarefully balances despair with more despair.
This is the first time in our lives that fighting Nazis doesn't require a time machine.
— Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) November 22, 2016
12. Dave Itzkoff
Of course, the world is imploding around you -- but you're not the only one who sees it. Itzkoff, and this Kermit GIF, does too.
“Mr. Trump, acts of hate are being committed in your name around the country!”
— Dave Itzkoff (@ditzkoff) November 27, 2016
TRUMP: ...
“They might recount an election you won"
TRUMP: pic.twitter.com/3yqluEJFqU
13. Joy Reid
Say what you will about MSNBC, but commentator Joy Reid has committed her Twitter feed/full life to exposing each and every one of Trump's lies, hypocrisies, and wild allegations. Nothing seems to pass by her. (Truly nothing. She's on Twitter a lot).
Trump claims the world will "respect us again" despite the fact that under Obama respect for the U.S. is high while the world loathes Trump.
— Joy Reid (@JoyAnnReid) December 2, 2016
14. Jon Favreau
Favreau was Obama's chief speechwriter from 2005 to 2013 and is now host of the podcast "Keepin' it 1600." Don't believe that tiny bit of good news about Trump that the rest of the world has on blast? He doesn't either.
The most bizarre part about "nasty woman" is that it came during an answer about the Social Security Trust Fund.
— Jon Favreau (@jonfavs) October 20, 2016
15. Julia Ioffe
Columnist and Politicowriter Julia Ioffe will, thankfully, never force you to find the silver lining.
IDEA: What if you could strip someone of their citizenship for their tweets?
— Julia Ioffe (@juliaioffe) November 30, 2016
16. Neil deGrasse Tyson
The celebrity astrophysicist (who ever thought there would be such a thing?) has more than 6 million followers and is the voice of reason in a world of climate change deniers.
#IDreamOfAWorld where Politicians are scientifically literate, empowering them to make informed decisions that affect us all.
— Neil deGrasse Tyson (@neiltyson) November 27, 2016
17. Merriam-Webster
Sure, it's a dictionary. But language is inherently political, and the mysterious talented ghost who runs Merriam Webster's Twitter right now has done some of the best subtweeting of the election season.
'Fascism' is still our #1 lookup.
— Merriam-Webster (@MerriamWebster) November 29, 2016
# of lookups = how we choose our Word of the Year.
There's still time to look something else up.
18. Laurence Tribe
The liberal scholar and constitutional law professor at Harvard who has argued before the Supreme Court dozens of time should be far more popular than Alan Dershowitz, but sadly isn't.
Sad lesson: Trump knows how to use optics to create counterproductive illusions; Obama assumed reality counts more than image https://t.co/rR1hHsNIYC
— Laurence Tribe (@tribelaw) December 1, 2016
19. Judd Legum
Legum, an editor at Think Progress and master tweeter, has crafted some fine tweetstorms (and real pieces of journalism, blablabla) that can fulfill all your primitive, rage-tweeting desires.
3. But Trump has skills. His biggest skill is PROJECTING AN IMAGE OF SUCCESS, whatever the reality
— Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) December 1, 2016
20. Lindy West
West, the hilarious Guardiancolumnist best known for her relationships with trolls, will remind you that, no, feminism isn't dead, it's just really sad right now and needs some space, okay?
anyone else having this problem where you can't watch children's media about girls being bold & fearless & having hope w/o sobbing like baby
— Lindy West (@thelindywest) November 29, 2016
21. Brittney Cooper
Brittney Cooper, founder of the Crunk Feminist Collective, might not be the most active tweeter, but every story she writes and collective post she shares is worth your full attention.
I know most of you don't have words. I don't either. But I found a few for this hard day. https://t.co/2nX9Y9lSoj
— Brittney Cooper (@ProfessorCrunk) November 9, 2016
22. Roxane Gay
If you don't know about Roxane Gay, now you do. Gay, author of Bad Feministand a sometimes columnist for The New York Times, dissects human emotions like no one else.
Anyway here is the segment. https://t.co/LXkvJK8LQY
— roxane gay (@rgay) November 23, 2016
23. Goats of Anarchy
This goat is just like you -- a sad, frightened creature who only feels happy in a duck costume. Get a goat costume, or better yet, get this Instagram account.
Today, Polly and her duck suit captured the attention of media outlets all over the world. You may have seen her story... it's been everywhere! In light of that, I thought I would bring back her duck videos that we took while visiting @tractorsupply. Is there no duck emoji?
Early Cyber Monday: Roomba Combo j9+ vac on sale for $400 at AmazonRedux: Helpless Failed Brake by The Paris ReviewThree Letters from Switzerland by Zelda FitzgeraldDark Thread: An Interview with Kimberly King Parsons by Lauren KaneNYT's The Mini crossword answers for December 14Portrait of Our White Mother Sitting at a Chinese Men’s Table by Jennifer TsengGuarding your PC: Important cybersecurity precautions for the holiday shopping period'The Crown' Season 6, Part 2 review: A slow, sullen march to the endBest Buy 20 days of deals: Dyson Corrale hair straightener for $150 offGoogle Maps to get sneaky new feature that hides your travel activityNew Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon hints at new 2024 trend: AI laptopsSix Young Women and Their Book Collections by The Paris ReviewWhat Thom Gunn Thought of Oliver Sacks by Lawrence WeschlerBest Kindle deal: Get the Kindle Scribe Essentials bundle for $125 offThree Letters from Switzerland by Zelda FitzgeraldRumple. Stilt. And Skin. by Sabrina Orah MarkWhat Thom Gunn Thought of Oliver Sacks by Lawrence WeschlerGarp, Forty Years Later by Ilana MasadRumple. Stilt. And Skin. by Sabrina Orah MarkThe best early Cyber Monday Instant Pot deals 2023 MoviePass users are angry after finding cancelled accounts reactivated Pope: Gay people and others marginalized deserve an apology Android's open OS makes phones vulnerable to attack, report says What happens when internet subcultures get discovered by the masses Baker creates a murder DEF CON hacker convention in Las Vegas is full of actual tin YouTubers are unboxing terrifying mystery boxes from the dark web Idris Elba pokes fun at James Bond rumors on Twitter This 'Game of Thrones' theory about Tyrion just got some compelling new evidence China's Taobao sells 'breakup insurance' for Taylor Swift's love life Swim diaper's extremely specific cleaning instructions are designed to give parents a chuckle Boy at a baseball game will stare into your soul A bride wades through a flooded church on her wedding day Here's what 24 hours at Glastonbury festival looks like Planned Parenthood celebrates Supreme Court decision with perfect GIF of Ruth Bader Ginsburg Who really wrote The Beatles song 'In My Life'? Math has the answer. Girl running away from a peacock is so glorious, she needed a Photoshop battle Watch these FDNY EMTs get engaged at NYC Pride Here's what more than 400 electric guitars trying to break a world record sounds like Twitter suspends Proud Boys and Gavin McInnes before Unite the Right