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Notes -
Presidential administrations are not "institutions", since they're replaced with every new president. Progressivism does seem to have control of the national intelligence agencies, the news media, and the upper ranks of law enforcement and the military. The way Supreme Court justices tend to move left has often been noted; Thomas is the main exception.
True, I should have said "the presidency", not "presidential administrations". In any case, I think that my point stands. If progressives really had an iron grip on US institutions, the country would be very different. There would be much more redistribution in the economy, with much stronger welfare programs. The justice system would look different, with more emphasis on rehabilitation. There would be much more state-funded healthcare. There might be even more public funding of education than now. And so on. In general, the US would be a lot more like Europe.
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