Start Making Sense

Melissa Harris-Perry and Dorian Warren talk about the changing voter turnout among white men and people of color over the last three presidential elections—and other features of our political system. They are hosting a new podcast for The Nation, “System Check”—checking the systems that hold us back: premiering Friday at TheNation.com, Apple podcasts, and elsewhere. Also: talking politics, and history, with Sherrod Brown. Of course he’s the senior senator from Ohio, first elected in 2006. He was re-elected in 2018—he won by 7 points—in a state Hillary Clinton had lost—by 8 points—just 2 years earlier. He talks about how he did that, and how Biden has learned the lessons of that campaign. Plus: disputed elections past and present: Maybe the election next week will have a big enough vote for Biden so that it can’t be challenged in court; maybe the Republicans won’t dispute the outcome. But maybe they will. We’ve had other disputed elections in our history—of course we had the Supreme Court stopping the c

Mike Davis argues that climate change is bringing “extinction events” to native land cover around the world. Extreme fires are one of the main forces bringing this apocalypse—spurred in places like California by white flight among Trump supporters to high-fire-danger areas. Also: The new Aaron Sorkin film, Trial of the Chicago 7, opened on Netflix this past weekend. Of course it’s about the 1969 trial of leaders of the antiwar movement, including Tom Hayden, Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, and Rennie Davis—and we have Rennie Davis as a guest. He was the New Left’s most talented organizer, and he talks about the film and the real history of those protests—and also politics today. Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

A group of scientists are calling it “The Great Barrington declaration”—a strategy to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic by age-targeted reopening. The advocates call it “focused protection”; they say it would create herd immunity. Gregg Gonsalves argues that it will not—and that “we can do better.” Also: Cell-phone videos of police killing Black people have had an immense political impact over the last couple of years. Allissa Richardson comments on the videos and the new Black protest journalism, based largely on Twitter. Her new book is Bearing Witness While Black: African Americans, Smartphones, and the New Protest #Journalism. Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

When Trump left Walter Reed hospital, he tweeted “don’t be afraid of Covid-19.” Amy Wilentz disagrees, and argues that, while the president got the best medical care in the world—which we would want for any president—at the same time he’s trying to abolish Obamacare, which provides healthcare for tens of millions of Americans. Also: Ari Berman talks about voting rights and voter suppression, about the voter protection efforts of the Biden campaign and the Democratic Party, and about recent Supreme Court decisions on voting rights cases. Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Biden debated Trump on Tuesday night—John Nichols has our analysis, and suggests that it may be the Republicans who pull out of the remaining debates, given the damage their candidate did to his candidacy and the rest of the Republican candidates. Also: Remember the days of the hashtag “Free Melania”? Remember how we said she was a hostage in the White House? Now there’s a book that says we were all wrong about that—Katha Pollitt talks about Stephanie Winston Wolkoff’s “tell-not-quite-all," Melania and Me: The Rise and Fall of My Friendship With the First Lady. Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

We need at last two more justices on the Supreme Court—and more would be better—as many as ten more. Elie Mystal explains—he’s the magazine’s justice correspondent. Also: how climate change is forcing migration out of low lying coastal areas: Sonia Shah reports on what happened in the Bahamian island of Abaco after Hurricane Dorian last September—and what we need to do now about migration forced by climate change. Sonia is an award-winning reporter; her new book is The Next Great Migration: The Beauty and Terror of Life on the Move. Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Voting by mail in Wisconsin will not be thrown into chaos by the state supreme court—John Nichols reports on a state Trump needs to win, where Biden is ahead. Plus: Refugees—after World War II in Europe, and today. Historian David Nasaw explains—his new book is The Last Million: Europe’s Displaced Persons, from World War to Cold War. Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

We are in “one of the most perilous and fraught moments for American democracy since the mid-nineteenth century,” says Chris Hayes; what’s hopeful is that “the movement we’ve seen in the streets is the largest protest movement in American history.” Chris of course hosts “All In” weeknights on MSNBC; he’s also editor-at-large of The Nation, and he spoke recently with Katrina vanden Heuvel at a Nation magazine online event. Plus: Politics on TV–in 1968, when Harry Belafonte hosted the Tonight Show, for an entire week—and his guests included Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King. Also: Aretha Franklin. Joan Walsh, National Affairs Correspondent for The Nation, talks about the new documentary, The Sit-In: Harry Belafonte Hosts the Tonight Show—she’s one of the producers, and it’s streaming now on Peacock. Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Trump’s visit to Kenosha on Tuesday was part of a backlash strategy, with right wing militias and their allies encouraged to provoke violence with Black Lives Matter demonstrators, followed by Trump claiming he alone can bring an end to “chaos and looting.”  John Nichols was in Kenosha for Trump’s visit – he reports on what happened there, and on the larger issues at stake. Also: There’s a huge movement in Europe supporting Black Lives Matter.  Gary Younge describes some key examples and comments on the effort to address racism in Britain, France, and elsewhere in Europe – and on the English falling back on the argument that racism there is “better” than in the US. Gary lives in London, teaches at the University of Manchester, and is a member of the editorial board of The Nation. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Rick Perlstein talks about the rise of Reagan, from what seemed like a career-ending defeat in the 1976 GOP primary, to his narrow victory in the popular vote in 1980--and how the darkness of the culture war has shaped the Republican Party that Trump came to dominate.  Rick's long-awaited book, 1100 pages long, is "Reaganland: America's Right Turn, 1976-1980." Also, Pramila Jayapal, co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus--she represents Seattle in the House--talks about how she went from being an investment banker as a young immigrant to a lifelong organizer.  Her new book is "Use the Power You Have: A Brown Woman’s Guide to Politics and Political Change.”   Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

A Black Lives Matter leader in LA confronts the LAPD—outside her house. Melina Abdullah is a co-founder of Black Lives Matter-Los Angeles; she’s also professor of Pan-African studies at Cal State Los Angeles—and last week she was on the front page of the paper in LA. We asked her what happened. Plus: Katie Porter, the new member of Congress who flipped a longtime Republican district in California’s Orange County, talks about defending the postal service and about ending student loan debt. (Watch her full conversation with Katrina vanden Heuvel.) Also: Changing our broken criminal justice system—radically. Jody Armour, who teaches law at USC and is a prominent defender of Black Lives Matter has a new book out, with the provocative title N*gga Theory: Race, Language, Unequal Justice, and the Law. Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

When Attorney General Bill Barr told the House Judiciary Committee recently that voting by mail on a large scale presented a “high risk” for “massive voter fraud,” Pramila Jayapal challenged him—with evidence. She’s co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, she represents Seattle, and she talks about the fight against Trump for voting by mail. Her new book is Use the Power You Have: A Brown Woman’s Guide to Politics and Political Change. Also: Tom Frank, author of the classic What’s the Matter with Kansas, talks about Trump’s phony populist appeal—and whether Joe Biden, the guy from working-class Scranton, can win back the working-class white men who turned to Trump last time around. Tom’s new book is The People, NO: A Brief History of Anti-Populism. Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Trump is rushing to develop a vaccine, and declare victory over Covid-19 just before the November election – whether or not the current research, “Operation Warp Speed,” has succeeded.  Gregg Gonsalves explains the challenges to the researchers, and the dangers posed by Trump: an ineffective vaccine that will create more resistance and skepticism about future vaccines.  Gregg is codirector of the Global Health Justice Partnership and an assistant professor of epidemiology at Yale School of Public Health.  He’s also the winner of a MacArthur genius fellowship. Also: David Cole, national legal director of the ACLU, says we need less punishment and more justice from the police and the courts.  One key way to achieve that is to reduce enforcement of misdemeanors, which currently leads to millions of avoidable arrests, especially of people of color – and many cases of police violence against them.  Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe. Advertising Inquiries: ht

Senate Republicans introduced their new trillion-dollar economic stimulus bill, which they call “The HEALS Act.” It’s woefully inadequate, says David Dayen—and part of life in the age of corporate power—the subject of David’s new book, Monopolized. Plus: Trump’s unfortunate childhood: Amy Wilentz talks about Donald, Fred Junior, Marianne, Elizabeth, and little Robert—as described in the new blockbuster bestseller by Mary Trump, daughter of Donald’s brother Fred Jr., Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man. Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

The pandemic has slowed the speed of life under capitalism, Naomi Klein suggests in her recent conversation with Katrina vanden Heuvel—and that has created greater empathy and solidarity, expressed in the unprecedented support for the Movement for Black Lives. But the “Screen New Deal”—the virtual classroom and workplace—are bringing greater isolation and increasing corporate power. Plus: Zoë Carpenter reports from Portland on the ominous developments there involving federal agents in camouflage in the streets attacking protesters—over the objections of local and state officials—which Trump says he will take to other Democratic cities. Also, how Roy Cohn gave us Donald Trump: Ivy Meeropol talks about her new documentary on Roy Cohn, “Bully. Coward. Victim.” It’s playing now on HBO on demand. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

The increasing number of cases of Covid-19, and of deaths, should be scary to everybody, Gregg Gonsalves says. A direct action campaign of disruption is necessary to bring the changes we need—something like the Act Up movement of the eighties. Gregg is an assistant professor of epidemiology at Yale School of Public Health and the recipient of a MacArthur "genius" grant, and he writes regularly for The Nation about the pandemic. Also: We’re heading for an eviction crisis. On July 31 the direct cash payments of the CARES act expire and right now Republicans in Congress are not renewing it or anything like it. That means millions of people won’t be able to pay their rent on August 1. Meagan Day comments—she’s coauthor of Bigger than Bernie: How We Go from the Sanders Campaign to Democratic Socialism. Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Mike Davis argues that, while Dr. Anthony Fauci has been handed a golden opportunity to speak truth to power, America’s most respected doctor remains a team player in an administration bent on disaster. Also: another episode of The Children’s Hour—Amy Wilentz with stories about Ivanka, Jared, Don Jr., and little Eric. This week, Ivanka is in trouble for wearing a mask—and Don Jr.’s girlfriend tests positive. Plus: Black Lives Matter: Sandra Bland’s was one of them. This week is the fifth anniversary of the death of Bland in a Texas jail—July 13, 2015. What happened to Sandra Bland? To understand that, you have to begin way before she died. Debbie Nathan reports on the life, as well as the death, of Sandra Bland. (This segment originally broadcast in April, 2016). Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Defunding the police and re-imagining public safety—in Los Angeles—starts with the LAPD, but includes the sheriffs, the school police, and the UCLA police force. Kelly Lytle Hernandez comments—she’s a professor of history at UCLA, she wrote City of Inmates, a history of the LA jails, and she’s the recipient of a MacArthur “genius” grant. Also: it’s time to disarm the police. They didn’t always carry guns, and there are other big cities in the world where most cops are NOT armed—like London. D.D. Guttenplan, editor of The Nation, explains. Also: Black Lives Matter protests are everywhere, even the most unlikely places: for example, Laramie, Wyoming; Florence, Alabama; and even Vidor, Texas—it’s a former Ku Klux Klan haven that Texas Monthly described as the state’s “most hate-filled town.” Nation contributing writer Zoë Carpenter reports. Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out:

Michele Goodwin talks about her experiences of racism in daily life in Minneapolis—before she became Chancellor’s Professor of Law at the University of California Irvine. Also: removing statues from the Capitol Building honoring traitors and defenders of slavery—there’s one that’s been overlooked: Chief Justice Roger B. Taney. Plus: In the current mobilization around Black lives, everyone can do something, even if it’s not marching in the streets—Mia Birdsong explains. She's the host of  The Nation’s podcast More Than Enough, about universal basic income, and her TED talk has been viewed almost two million times. Now she has a new book out—it’s called How We Show Up: Reclaiming Family, Friendship, and Community. Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Juneteenth, a day of celebration and reflection for African Americans, is particularly significant in this season of protest and demands for change by Black Lives Matter. Historian Robin Kelley comments. Also: The great thing about the protests of the past month is not just that they have been so massive, so sustained, so diverse, so inspiring—the best thing is that they are NOT about Trump. That’s what Dahlia Lithwick says—she hosts Slate’s podcast “Amicus.” Subscribe to The Nation to support all of our podcasts: thenation.com/podcastsubscribe. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy