Start Making Sense

On this episode of See How They Run, D.D. Guttenplan is joined by Bill Gallegos and Jack Herrera to discuss Latino voters—what kind of power they have, the complex ways they are using that power, and what Democrats need to do to stop Donald Trump's aggressive attempts to win their support.Gallegos is a longtime Chicano activist, political organizer, and a member of the Nation editorial board. Herrera is a reporter who has covered Latino politics and immigration for just about every major outlet you can think of—including The Nation.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this episode of Tech Won't Save Us, Paris Marx is joined by Rob Larson to discuss the recent ruling that Google is a monopolist, what consequences it might face, and what lessons we can learn from the Microsoft antitrust case in the early 2000s. Rob Larson is the author of Mastering the Universe: The Obscene Wealth of the Ruling Class, What They Do with Their Money, and Why You Should Hate Them Even More and Professor of Economics at Tacoma Community College.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Trump has made it clear he won't accept the results of the 2024 election if he loses, and Republicans are doing everything they can make it harder for Democrats to vote. But it will be harder for Trump to challenge this year's election, because of changes in the law--that's what Rick Hasen says. He's professor of law at UCLA, and his writing has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, Slate and The New York Times.Also: Trump supporters in Appalachia: Arlie Hochschild has spent years talking with them about how they understand their lives, and how Donald Trump helps overcome their shame. Her new book is “Stolen Pride: Loss, Shame, and the Rise of the Right.”Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this episode of American Prestige, Ryan Grim, co-founder of Drop Site News, and investigative journalist José Olivares join the show to talk about their recent piece for Drop Site revealing how Ecuador’s US-linked attorney general is using her office to attack the country’s left. The group gives the background of Rafael Correa and his left-wing “Correísmo” movement, how Correa and his successors became targets of “anti-corruption” Attorney General Diana Salazar, leaked messages of Salazar’s obtained by Drop Site leading to explosive allegations, the United States' potential links with assassinated presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio, and why the US remains interested in domestic Ecuadorian politics.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this episode of The Time of Monsters, Jeet Heer is joined by David Sirota to discuss how the Powell Memo created a plan for corporate domination.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this episode of See How They Run, D.D. Guttenplan is joined by Jeet Heer to discuss the last presidential debate and where we go from here.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this week's American Prestige news roundup: a Gaza ceasefire talks update (1:15) while the IDF kills American citizen Aysenur Ezgi Eygi (5:18); Iraq is negotiating a deal for the US to withdraw its forces (11:43); the US gives Egypt a full military aid allotment (13:47); in Sudan, new Rapid Support Forces (RSF) activity in the country’s south (15:22); the Pentagon is trying to reconstitute a presence in West Africa (16:29); in Russia-Ukraine, the Russian counteroffensive in Kursk (19:24), claims of Iran supplying missiles to Russia (21:02), and Biden might be on the cusp of allowing Ukraine to strike inside Russia (23:00); Venezuelan presidential candidate Edmundo González flees the country (25:46); the Mexican Senate passes AMLO’s judicial reform (27:50); and a New Cold War update featuring US and Chinese theater commanders speaking for the first time since 2022 (30:02) and fears over a possible Chinese naval base (31:16).Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https:

On this episode of Tech Won't Save Us, Paris Marx is joined by Matt Pearce to discuss how Google sidestepped two California bills aimed at funding journalism and how major tech companies are transforming the web to make hyperlinks less relevant.Matt Pearce is the President of Media Guild of the West and a former reporter at the Los Angeles Times.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Tuesday night’s debate showed what Kamala can do – and what Trump can’t. John Nichols has our analysis.Also: homeless vets have been trying for years to get the VA to build housing for them in LA on land dedicated to that purpose. Now, a federal judge has finally ruled: the vets win, and the VA loses. Mark Rosenbaum, lead attorney in the vets’ class action suit, explain.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this episode of American Prestige, Danny and Derek called an emergency pod crossover with Chapo Trap House to break down the new Reagan film, where Dennis Quaid—supported by the likes of addled Hollywood heavy-hitter Jon Voight and Creed crooner Scott Stapp—takes his stab at portraying the man who brought us Morning in America.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this episode of The Time of Monsters, Jeet Heer is joined by Joshua A. Cohen a.k.a. Ettingermentum to discuss the state of the presidential race.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this episode of See How They Run, DD Guttenplan is joined by Sasha Abramsky and Amy Littlefield to discuss the chaotic, complicated, high-drama prize of the Southwest.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this episode of Tech Won't Save Us, Paris Marx is joined by Taylor Welling and Kathryn Friesen to discuss how they formed wall-to-wall unions in the video game industry and their thoughts on broader challenges like layoffs and corporate consolidation.Taylor Welling is a producer and union member at OneBGS and Kathryn Friesen is quest designer and member of the World of Warcraft GameMakers Guild.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Donald Trump announced Friday that he would be voting against a abortion rights ballot measure in his home state of Florida. Amy Littlefield reports on the crucial battle in the state that had been the South’s last refuge for abortion access.Plus: Rachel Kushner talks about the informant and provacateur who infiltrates an anarchist eco-commune in rural France – the central character in her new novel, “Creation Lake.”Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this episode of American Prestige, Danny and Derek welcome back AP mega-guest Spencer Ackerman, author of the Forever Wars newsletter and soon-to-be-published issues of Marvel Comics’ Iron Man. The group explores Spencer’s inspiration to pursue more work in the world of comic books, writing for a character who is a defense contractor, bringing left-wing messaging into the medium, the sand box of Marvel Comics vs. the behemoth of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, plus Spencer’s impressions on some major current events.NOTE: This interview was recorded on 8/30/24, prior to reports that the Israeli military had recovered the bodies of six hostages inside Gaza.Click hear to learn how to pre-order Iron Man & get free merch!More of Spencer’s work:The graphic novel Waller vs. WildstormForever Wars newsletterHis book Reign of Terror Further Reading:Annie Nocenti, journalist, writer, editor and filmmakerSix Stops on the National Security Tour by Miriam Pemberton Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsP

So on today's See How They're Run, we're talking all things Pennsylvania. Where does the race stand there? What are the currents that could shift voters in one direction or another?To discuss all of this, host D.D. Guttenplan is joined by two of the sharpest Pennsylvanians around: Will Bunch, longtime opinion columnist at the Philadelphia Inquirer, and Carrie Santoro, executive director of progressive advocacy group Pennsylvania Stands UpAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this week's American Prestige news roundup: Israel and Hezbollah exchange fire (0:29), an IDF operation in the West Bank (8:31), in Gaza, the IDF attacks Deir al-Balah and shrinks more protected zones (11:06) while Palestinians in Gaza also struggle to obtain a polio vaccine amid an outbreak (14:07); Yemen’s Houthi/Ansar Allah forces allow the recovery of a damaged oil tanker (17:15); Jake Sullivan is in Beijing and meets with Xi (19:14); Sudan ceasefire talks end without an agreement (21:23); Libya’s Government of National Unity (or “Eastern Government”) shuts down oil facilities (23:41); in Russia-Ukraine, concerns over the Kursk nuclear plant while Russia bombards Ukraine again (26:11); in France, Emmanuel Macron blocks the leftist prime minister from taking power (30:12); in Mexico, President AMLO “freezes” contact with the American and Canadian embassies (33:30); Honduras pulls out of its extradition treaty with the US (35:50); and the police intervention in Haiti is off to a shaky start (37:32).A

On this episode of Tech Won’t Save Us, we’re joined by Mohammad Khatami and Gabi Schubiner to discuss the complicity of Google, Amazon, and Microsoft in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza and how tech workers are organizing to stop it.Mohammad Khatami and Gabi Schubiner are former Google software engineers and organizers with No Tech for Apartheid.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

We’ve had a series of surprises in the last several weeks, but none have been more surprising than Kamala emerging as a great candidate. Harold Meyerson explains: it’s not so much that she has changed, it’s that the Democratic Party has changed.Also: Democracy in America is being undermined by the Electoral College, the Senate filibuster, the gerrymandering of the House, and the corruption of the Supreme Court. It’s time to write, and ratify, a new constitution: that’s what Erwin Chemerinsky says. His new book is “No Democracy Lasts Forever: How the Constitution Threatens the United States.”Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

On this week's episode of American Prestige, Derek and Danny speak with Séamus Malekafzali, a Beirut-based journalist focusing on the Middle East, about his recent piece for The Nation, “The Rotten Partnership Between the US Media and the Israeli Military.” They check in about the current atmosphere in Beirut amid exchanges between Israel and Hezbollah, the Biden administration and US media’s current narrative around Hamas and Iran, the violence Israel has inflicted on Palestinian journalists, the double standards of their portrayal in the US media, and whether there might be any meaningful difference in a Trump or Harris presidency with regards to America’s support for Israel.Recorded Tuesday, August 20, 2024Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy