Democrawonk Satirical Character

Margaret Mayakovsky

Congress & Legislative Promises

Margaret Mayakovsky writes Democrawonk’s congressional satire, following the gap between what lawmakers promise and what they actually pass. Hearings, floor speeches, and procedural excuses all get a turn under the microscope. She reads the fine print so Congress can pretend it did.

Articles By Margaret Mayakovsky

15 published articles

A smiling Democratic donkey holds a proposed-majority card with a medical-cross-shaped hole. The missing piece, marked Medicare For All, sits on a table.

Your Democratic Majority May Not Be In Your Medicare For All Network

Washington’s CircusOctober 16, 2026 at 12:19 PM EDTBy Margaret Mayakovsky

A party can win on healthcare without agreeing on the treatment. Please check the participating politicians directory.

A red-capped campaign operative sits facing a switchboard, holding a pink telephone and connecting its cord to a tank symbol; a ballot box sits nearby and a tank waits outside the Capitol.

MAGA’s Election Security Hotline Has Added Martial Law

Campaign SeasonOctober 16, 2026 at 7:20 AM EDTBy Margaret Mayakovsky

Activists say extraordinary presidential power could protect an election they distrust, a plan whose first security feature is apparently putting the election under presidential control.

A courthouse gavel interrupts personal viewing-data cards being drawn from a videotape toward an advertising vacuum.

Your Click History Is Not A Free Sample

Courts & RightsOctober 15, 2026 at 10:49 AM EDTBy Margaret Mayakovsky

The Supreme Court is deciding whether a Blockbuster-era privacy law still protects people in a world where every website wants to be a tiny surveillance mall.

Legislative staff rush judicial robes, gavels and chairs into an overloaded calendar before closing time.

The Old Senate Is Booking Lifetime Appointments On The Closing Shift

Washington’s CircusOctober 15, 2026 at 5:19 PM EDTBy Margaret Mayakovsky

Republicans are planning back-to-back judicial-nomination hearings after the election. Voters may choose a new Senate in November, but the old one would still like to choose judges for life in December.

A federal investigator carrying an assignment folder approaches a retroactive performance-review turnstile.

The FBI Loyalty Test Apparently Includes Doing Your Assigned Job

Washington’s CircusOctober 15, 2026 at 5:19 PM EDTBy Margaret Mayakovsky

Nine former FBI employees say they were fired for work they were assigned to perform on the Mar-a-Lago documents investigation. The new personnel standard seems to be following orders, but only the orders that age well politically.