This special episode of EnvironMental Podcast is a review of The Day After, How to Wield Power in a Post-Trump World by Brian Tyler Cohen. This isn’t my typical episode of the EnvironMental Podcast because it’s not directly about sustainability. It is, however, an important part of understanding sustainability because I believe that politics and policy are a major factor in the transition to a more sustainable future.
Click Here to Watch the Full Review on Youtube
Why I’m Reviewing The Day After by Brian Tyler Cohen
I wanted to do this book review because I think Brian Tyler Cohen (BTC) is an important voice in independent media today. I watch a lot of his content on Youtube and although he’s a staunch democrat, I don’t think he’s unfair in the way he communicates.
“it’s worth remembering that our elected officials are in office to serve people, not the institutions and processes of government.” (pg. 56 of The Day After, How to Wield Power in a Post-Trump World)
I also don’t think he’s a democrat for the sake of staying blue. He’s critical of policies, especially bipartisan policies, that aren’t good for people or the planet, and he’s not afraid to take shots at either side of the political playing field. It’s clear that his values lie with the idea that the only job of a working government is to protect and serve the people of its nation.
“The very notion of bipartisan politics is based on a political culture that died out in the 1990s…today bipartisanship means finding a tiny number of votes from the other side so you can pretend there’s a broad base of support for your policies.” (pg. 53&54 of The Day After, How to Wield Power in a Post-Trump World)
Additionally, I resonate with his reasons for being political. In an interview with Gavin Newsom, BTC was open that he got into politics because of climate change. I think a lot of people in the environmental space get political because it’s so clear how important policy and regulations are to creating a future that is safe for everyone.
Plus, it doesn’t hurt that he’s one of (currently) 2 ‘influencers’ on Trump’s Media Offender’s list. Which I think is an unconstitutional abuse of the office of the president of the United States.
Before I Read
Before I started this book I wrote down what I thought it would be, what I was worried about, and what I hoped to get from it.
What I thought the book would be
Like I said, I watch a lot of BTC’s content already. I expected this to be more of his intelligent political pundit work. I didn’t expect to learn a lot, and I expected to wade through a lot of opinions around how this administration is the worst ever.
What I worried about the most
I was worried that this would feel really alienating to people who consider themselves republican. I don’t think political discourse is helpful when it’s just shouting inside of an echo chamber and I don’t think us vs them thinking is good for governments. I didn’t want to read a ton of the slander and hyperbole that exists in most political commentary today and while I don’t think BTC does that in his content, I was genuinely concerned that in book form it would come off as dramatic and hateful.
What I hoped The Day After would be
My hope, and almost my expectation, is that I would learn about the real problem with the US government today – you know – past the fact that a lying conman and felon is in charge and completely off the rails with no consequences.
I was hopeful for clear, obtainable solutions that set down republican and democrat fighting (and infighting) and look at what’s best for people and the future of the United States. I wanted to walk away from this book feeling hopeful and like there’s some semblance of a plan of action in the world that could un-fuck this mess we’re in.
The Day After by Brian Tyler Cohen Review
K. Now for the review (finally).
I’ll preface this by saying that it’s impossible to love this book because it’s really dark. It’s the truth laid bare and it’s uglier than you can imagine. There are moments when it feels dystopian because it’s so damn intense.
That said, The Day After is expertly written. I think this book is excellent, and I definitely recommend it if you’re on the fence.
It holds the classic Brian Tyler Cohen voice, I didn’t listen to it on audiobook, but I didn’t need to. I could hear the BTC of it all the way through. Which means that yes, there were some serious digs and moments of open frustration.
“Can a country still call itself a democracy if its leader is ready to sacrifice democratic elections to protect himself?” (pg. 75 of The Day After, How to Wield Power in a Post-Trump World)
But when I tell you that BTC brought the receipts, you better believe it. Because this isn’t just a bitchfest about the current administration – not by a long shot. The Day After is a serious look at how we got here that goes through literal generations of policy and politics in the US.
It interwines administrations and policy throughlines that I’ve never seen pieced together before, calling out important players that made behind the scenes decisions you’ve never even heard about. And it covers something I’ve talked about a lot throughout the Extractive Tapestry and the EnvironMental Podcast at large: power, influence, and the people who want to be close to it.
“Fear is spread not just by the autocrat or his armed guards but by small-tie middle managers who take it upon themselves to act like a mob style militia.” (pg. 140 of The Day After, How to Wield Power in a Post-Trump World)
Did I get what I hoped for? Yes and no. Here’s why:
- I didn’t feel like I had to wade through a swamp of insults and spiteful rhetoric from BTC, I did feel like all the information was hard to read. That’s not really on Mr. Cohen because there’s a lot of heaviness to cover and it feels like things are pretty bad for US citizens and the rest of the world. There’s genuinely no levity to be had here.
- I learned A LOT. Like a lot. So much so that I made you a glossary of some of the things I looked up to learn MORE about (below). I kind of can’t believe it all fit in 185 pages.
- There are solutions, lots of solutions, but they feel buried. There’s no list anywhere (don’t worry, I made one below) and maybe that’s intentional, but I did sort of expect one from someone who’s media-savvy enough to build a 5m+ person following.
- I didn’t walk away feeling hopeful. Informed, aghast, overwhelmed, dedicated, and excited – yes. But hopeful is a strong word for the pile of things we legitimately need to do to turn the USA around.
- I also didn’t walk away with a personal to do list besides like, vote. I love these solutions, don’t get me wrong, but I can’t do any of these things myself. What I can do is vote: with my ballot, with my actions, and with my dollar. All things I’m already doing.
That doesn’t mean I don’t recommend it though. I’m a long-form fantasy reader by nature and if the unlikely hero can come back from the brink of death and defeat the evil-doers in an impossible turn of events, we can too. But I gotta tell you – this does feel like the climax of a dystopian fantasy novel.
“Democracies don’t just fall off a cliff; they get pushed. First and autocrat wins an election and seizes full power. The legislature becomes a puppet. The courts lose their independence. Businesses prostrate themselves to make money. The only surviving check and balance is the media. So the media’s independence is hacked back through extorting its corporate owners with threats, nuisance lawsuits, and government ‘oversight.’ The free press dies not with a bang but with a bunch of wimps.” (pg. 148 of The Day After, How to Wield Power in a Post-Trump World)
woof.
Who should read this book?
I’m not going to tell you everyone should read The Day After by Brian Tyler Cohen.
If you’re reading this and following me, you should probably read it because you’re used to intertwining tapestries of complicated nuance. The sustainability advocate, the politically active, the naturally curious – this book is going to grip you and leave you pondering for days.
Do I think you should give it to your dad? Maybe not. (I’m going to give it to mine though). This isn’t a great book for changing someone’s mind because it’s too complex. They’ll gloss right through it and only see the frustration in the pages. You’re going to be fighting over the dinner table. (IDK your life though. Maybe that’s what you want.)
The Day After is written for people that make room for critical thinking, and who would be okay admitting they’re wrong. It should have a sign on it that says, “miss me with the sycophants,” and that goes for people on both sides of the aisle.
The last point I’ll make here is that it isn’t accessible to everyone. The National Literacy Institute says that more than half of the adults in the US read below a 6th grade reading level. If that’s true, I think this book would be challenging to comprehend for a good portion of people. I wouldn’t typically call this out but it’s worth mentioning that this requires a higher than average reading level.
IF you are in college. If you are on a debate team. If you are interested in or thinking about going into politics. The Day After, How to Wield Power in a Post-Trump World should be the NEXT book on your reading list because like Mr. Cohen says, “Our last chance to save democracy is upon us. It’s not someone else’s job.” (pg. 185)
The TLDR; List I Wanted
Somehow I expected The Day After, How to Wield Power in a Post-Trump World to end in a list of solutions. Is it because I’m chronically online? Maybe. Is it because I love a listicle? Probably. But mostly, I think that Brian Tyler Cohen knows what he’s doing. So I’ve got to wonder if he intentionally doesn’t make this list.
But I still made it while I was writing this because you and I both know it’s helpful. Did you read this book? Did I catch them all?
- End the senate filibuster.
- Reform the Supreme Court to reflect the size of the country. That would be 13.
- Limit the term of the Supreme Court Justices to 8 years.
- Establish a code of conduct for the Supreme Court and a mandated panel to keep them in check.
- Retire any Supreme Court Justice over the age of 70. Maybe even ALL public officials over 70.
- Remove the Electoral College & use the Popular Vote.
- Pass the Freedom to Vote Act.
- Make it easier to pass amendments. (This wasn’t actually proposed, but talked through)
- Pass the No King’s Act.
- Fix the economy by actually helping people, eg. tax the rich & raise the minimum wage.
- Medicare for All! Migrate to a single payer healthcare system – decoupling health insurance from work.
- Limit the FCC power. Specifically make platforms liable for content posted by users (remove Section 230 of the communications decency act of 1996), restore funding to PBS and NPR, and subsidize/fund independent media like local newspapers.
- Invest in solving the Climate Crisis by treating it as a core national security threat both home and overseas.
- Root out corruption from within the administration.
- Reform the Office of Government Ethics and allow them to create consequences.
- Add a law to protect the justice department from political interference.
A Helpful Glossary for The Day After by Brian Tyler Cohen
Terms You Should Just Know
Autocracy – A government system where absolute power over a state is concentrated in the hands of a single ruler, unrestricted by legal checks or democratic institutions.
Oligarchy – A political or economic system where power is held by a small, elite group of people who are wealthy, have family ties, corporate control, or military influence.
Tradwife – A subculture and social media movement advocating for traditional gender roles, domestic submission, and hyper-feminine homemaking within marriage.
Filibuster – Any act within the Senate used to delay or block a vote on legislation by extending debate. Here’s a good article from bipartisanpolicy.org about how this works.
Terrorism – The unlawful use of violence, force, or intimidation against civilians to instill fear and achieve political, religious, or ideological goals. Like on January 6 2021 when a bunch of people used violence, forve, and intimidation to storm the capital of the United States to try to change the winner of an election. That was terrorism.
Habeas Corpus – A constitutional writ that guarantees a detained person the right to appear before a judge to determine whether their imprisonment is legally justified.
FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) – The federal agency within the Department of Homeland Security responsible for coordinating disaster relief, emergency response, and recovery efforts.
Helpful Definitions for The Day After by Brian Tyler Cohen
Fellow Travelers (9) – A term historically used to describe political sympathizers who align with and support a movement’s ideology. In this case it relates to communists.
The McCarthy Playbook (11) – A political strategy involving unsubstantiated allegations, fearmongering, personal attacks, and character assassination under the guise of defending national security or moral order.
American Enterprise Institute (15) – A right-leaning Washington, D.C., think tank focused on researching free enterprise, limited government, deregulation, and conservative policy.
Citizen’s United Court Case from 2010 (17) – A landmark Supreme Court decision holding that independent political expenditures by corporations and labor unions are protected under the First Amendment. This is why Super PACs exist.
Heritage Foundation (18) – One of the first conservative think tanks based in Washington, D.C., known for developing policy roadmaps and executive strategies for Republican administrations. Including Project 2025.
Project 2025 (19) – A policy initiative designed to reshape the executive branch, consolidate presidential authority, and staff federal agencies with vetted conservatives upon taking office. Here’s the overview and a shorter explanation.
Tea Party (26) – A conservative, fiscally focused populist movement that emerged within the Republican Party in 2009, demanding tax cuts, government spending reductions, and anti-establishment policies. Remember when the Tea Party was an extremist organization?
Senate Parliamentarian (42) – Basically a referee for the senate. Their job is to be a nonpartisan legal advisor to the U.S. Senate responsible for interpreting chamber rules, parliamentary procedures, and constitutional precedents.
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (49) – An independent federal agency created to protect consumers from predatory, deceptive, or unfair practices by banks and financial institutions. Trump unlawfully fired the head of this agency in 2025, but the Supreme Court ruled that this removal was constitutional in 2026, changing the precedent and expanding the President’s power further.
Kavanaugh Stops (60) – A colloquial term used to describe immigration enforcement stops in the US based on Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s concurrence in the emergency docket case Noem v. Vasquez Perdomo (2025) where he stated that federal immigration officers “‘may briefly detain’ an individual ‘for questioning’ if they have ‘a reasonable suspicion.’
Emergency/Shadow Docket (62) – The Supreme Court’s practice of issuing unsigned, binding orders or emergency rulings without full briefings, public oral arguments, or detailed written opinions.
30-Front war (66) – A hush-hush strategy created by Groundswell, a coalition of right wing activists, to fight progressivism in the United States and fundamentally transform the nation. It’s very secretive and the only information out there are from leaked documents. Ginnie Thomas is a prominent member.
Freedom to Vote Act (83) – Federal legislation proposed by congressional Democrats aimed at expanding voter access, standardizing voting laws, curbing gerrymandering, and restricting dark money in elections.
National Popular Vote Interstate Compact (85) – An agreement among a group of U.S. states to award all of their electoral votes to whichever presidential candidate wins the national popular vote, taking effect once participating states reach a 270-electoral-vote majority.
Trump v United States Court Case from 2024 (99) – A landmark Supreme Court ruling establishing that presidents possess absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for core constitutional duties, presumptive immunity for official acts, and no immunity for unofficial acts.
No Kings Act (101) – A congressional bill introduced by Democrats in response to Trump v. United States aiming to clarify that current and former presidents do not possess immunity from federal criminal laws.
Medicare for All (130) – A proposed single-payer healthcare system that would replace private health insurance with a single, publicly funded federal program covering all residents. Businesses wouldn’t need to pay health care insurance and people could get insurance without being a full time employee.
Fairness Doctrine (141) – A former FCC policy (repealed in 1987) requiring broadcast license holders to cover controversial issues of public importance in an equitable, balanced manner that included contrasting viewpoints.
Section 230 of the communications decency act of 1996 (150) – A good faith law that protects online platforms from liability regarding content posted by third-party users.
Green Scam (158) – A term used by fossil-fuel advocates and conservative commentators to claim that federal climate funding and clean-energy subsidies are financial grifts designed to enrich green tech allies rather than protect the environment.
American Climate Corps (160) – A federal job-training initiative launched by the Biden administration to prepare young adults for careers in clean energy, land conservation, and climate resilience. This was discontinued in 2025 by the Trump administration.
US Climate Vulnerability Index (161) – A data-mapping tool that identifies communities facing compound risks from environmental hazards, social inequality, and economic vulnerability.
Green New Deal-2019 (164) – congressional resolution that proposed a massive economic mobilization to eliminate U.S. greenhouse gas emissions while creating high-paying green jobs. It was stalled by COVID in 2020 and stopped in 2021 by the Trump administration.
Office of Special Counsel (179) – An independent administrative and prosecutorial agency that protects federal whistleblowers.
Office of Government Ethics (181) – An executive branch agency that prevents conflicts of interest, oversees federal financial disclosures, and enforces ethical standards across executive branch employees. It currently has no teeth to enforce their ethical boundaries.