I’m Isaac Saul, and this is Tangle: an independent, nonpartisan, subscriber-supported politics newsletter that summarizes the best arguments from across the political spectrum on the news of the day — then “my take.”

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Ashton Kutcher is in the news, and for all the wrong reasons.

The actor, venture capitalist, and activist is trending on social media and catching headlines across the press for character letters that he (and his wife Mila Kunis) wrote on behalf of Danny Masterson, their former co-star on the hit sitcom That ‘70s Show. Masterson was just sentenced to 30 years to life in prison for drugging and raping two women.

Before I go any further, I need to share a significant disclosure on everything I’m about to write: I know Ashton Kutcher. 

He hired me in 2015 to help start A Plus, a (since sunsetted) media company that was focused on "solutions journalism" — effectively, a feel-good news website that did actual reporting. I worked there for six years as a reporter, columnist, and editor, running the politics vertical and several other projects before I eventually left to do Tangle full-time. Kutcher's involvement ended before I left and it appears that the company briefly transitioned to video news before shutting down.

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