Systemic Error Podcast

What happened AlterNet reports that New Republic writer Ross Rosenfield used Italian historian Carlo Cipolla’s 1976 theory of human stupidity to interpret Donald Trump’s administration. Rosenfield argues that Cipolla’s warning becomes especially relevant when people who harm others without benefiting themselves acquire control over armies, monetary policy, media influence, and regulatory instituti...

What happened AlterNet, citing the Financial Times, reports that President Donald Trump and administration officials entered “emergency talks” over sharply rising diesel prices while the U.S. war with Iran continued. The administration considered restricting diesel exports, including a possible ban, but the White House said Trump was still evaluating options and had made no decision. According to...

What happened AlterNet reports that Atlantic writer Adam Serwer identifies Trump’s fear as the possibility that public criticism can influence Supreme Court justices. Serwer argues that Trump projects this fear when he attributes rulings against him to pressure from the “Radical Left,” then attacks the Court himself in hopes of shaping its next decision. During his 2024 campaign, Trump suggested t...

What happened RawStory reports that Sen. Eric Schmitt used a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to accuse former special counsel Jack Smith of meeting Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis at an Atlanta basketball game in early 2024. Smith said he attended a game in Maryland, not Georgia, undermining the premise of Schmitt’s accusation. After the hearing, reporters repeatedly asked whether S...

What happened AlterNet reports that an NBC News road trip along Interstate 80 in August found widespread voter anger that could damage President Donald Trump’s Republican Party in the midterm elections. Voters cited higher prices, rising interest rates, foreign wars, job anxiety tied to artificial intelligence, and collapsing confidence in federal officials. The reporting identified vulnerable Rep...

What happened AlterNet reports that Natalie Harp, President Donald Trump’s personal aide and so-called “human printer,” helps manage the information placed before him: flattering coverage, social-media material and other content aligned with his preferences. According to CNN’s reporting as quoted by AlterNet, Harp showed Trump media clips before he barred CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White Ho...

President Donald Trump speaking during a press conference with AI leaders. (Screengrab via CNN) What happened President Donald Trump said Tuesday that artificial intelligence should be subject to “tremendous self-regulation,” while also claiming that the Justice Department and FBI already provide some form of regulation. RawStory reported that he made the remarks after a White House summit with te...

U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) gives remarks to the media following a vote in the House of Representatives at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., U.S., September 1, 2026. REUTERS/Aaron Schwartz What happened House Speaker Mike Johnson said Tuesday on CNBC that Republicans would spend the next two years doing “exactly what we have been doing already” if they retained their House majority....

A supporter of Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump holds a MAGA hat during a rally at Gaylord Rockies Resort and Convention Center in Aurora, Colorado, U.S., October 11, 2024. REUTERS/Isaiah J. Downing What happened RawStory reports that a Michigan focus group of 2024 Trump voters who now disapprove of his performance found several participants considering Democr...

President Donald Trump gestures at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, April 29, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein What happened Donald Trump is the “biggest culprit,” according to an anonymous Republican source quoted by Politico and relayed by AlterNet. The source blamed the political damage on Trump’s trade war and Iran war, saying both had hurt farmers and rural communities. Another GOP source said blu...

Conservative commentator Scott Jennings on CNN’s “The Arena.” (CNN screenshot) What happened RawStory reports that President Donald Trump played a leading role in creating two overtly political videos produced by the White House communications office and labeled “paid for by the U.S. Government.” The ads promoted Republicans ahead of the midterms; legal experts cited by the outlet said they clearl...

US President Donald Trump looks on as he attends the Presidents Cup golf tournament at Medinah Country Club, in Medinah Illinois, US, September 27, 2026. REUTERS/Nathan Howard What happened President Donald Trump’s reported midterm strategy is to promote corporate investment announcements as evidence that his administration created jobs. RawStory, citing The New York Times, reported that Trump ann...

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio looks on ahead of expected trilateral signing event with US President Donald Trump, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and Greenland Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen, regarding a deal on Greenland’s security, during the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), in New York City, US, September 22, 2026. REUTERS/Kylie Cooper What happened RawStory, citin...

Jack Smith, former special counsel at the Justice Department, attends a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing at Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., US, September 29, 2026. REUTERS/Nathan Howard What happened RawStory reports that former Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith refused three times to discuss his wife’s political views during a September 29, 2026, Senate Judiciary Committee hearing...

REUTERS/Aaron Schwartz What happened AlterNet’s answer is that President Donald Trump is reducing Americans’ chances of becoming richer by weakening the institutions that support long-term growth. Economist Justin Wolfers pointed to erratic tariffs, favoritism, attacks on democratic accountability, tax cuts favoring wealthy people, and spending cuts affecting poorer people. He argued that the dama...

President Donald Trump looks on as he exits Air Force One on his arrival at Palm Beach International Airport in West Palm Beach, Florida, January 31, 2026. REUTERS/Nathan Howard What happened AlterNet reports that former Trump administration official Miles Taylor predicts President Donald Trump will respond to expected Republican losses in the November midterms by pursuing revenge and creating pol...

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media aboard Air Force One, en route to Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, U.S., following a two-day visit to Ireland, September 13, 2026. REUTERS/Kylie Cooper What happened AlterNet reports that several prominent Trump loyalists have broken with President Donald Trump over his war with Iran, economic turmoil, and his administration’s handling of fil...

REUTERS/Nathan Howard What happened AlterNet reports that President Donald Trump used Truth Social to deny an Axios report that his administration was open to easing sanctions and unlocking frozen Iranian assets if Tehran took concrete steps concerning its nuclear program. Axios attributed that account to anonymous U.S. officials; Trump called it fabricated, demanded a retraction, and said he had...

Jack Smith, former special counsel at the Justice Department, arrives to testify before a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing at Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., US, September 29, 2026. REUTERS/Nathan Howard What happened RawStory reports that Sen. Dick Durbin cut off Sen. John Kennedy during a Tuesday hearing after Kennedy repeatedly interrupted former special prosecutor Jack Smith and told him,...

Former White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks at the Republican National Midterm Convention in Dallas, Texas, U.S., September 10, 2026. REUTERS/Callaghan O’Hare What happened RawStory reports that former White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News host Sean Hannity on Monday night that Democratic candidates “do 360s” on policy after campaigning as moderates. Her intende...

US President Donald Trump speaks to reporters after exiting Air Force One as he returns from Medinah, Illinois, at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, US, September 27, 2026. REUTERS/Nathan Howard What happened RawStory, citing Politico, reports that President Donald Trump was scheduled to campaign in heavily Republican states because GOP candidates there were struggling. The reported itinerary included...

U.S. President Donald Trump’s executive assistant Natalie Harp listens as Trump speaks during a meeting with travel executives in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., September 2, 2026. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein What happened RawStory reports that Natalie Harp, now a close White House aide to President Donald Trump, began attending megachurch pastor David Jeremiah’s sermons...

Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, US Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Dr Mehmet Oz stand behind US President Donald J. Trump as he makes an announcement on healthcare in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C., US, September 18, 2026. REUTERS/Evan Vucci What happened Arkans...

A “MAGA Mom” hat lies on the ground as Kristi Noem testifies before a House committee. REUTERS/Kylie Cooper What happened RawStory’s column argues that the supposed “mystery” is why some women embrace MAGA politics and “trad wife” ideology despite the restrictions those movements may impose on women. But the piece never establishes an answer. Its author points to conservative religious upbringing,...

Television presenter Sean Hannity speaks during the funeral service for late U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) at Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 28, 2026. REUTERS/Evan Vucci What happened RawStory reports that Fox News host Sean Hannity deleted an X post praising Sen. Eric Schmitt for putting former special counsel Jack Smith “on the spot” during a Tuesday hearing....