The Lean to the Left Podcast

The Dixie Dems are back…we began this series last month and because of the great response, we decided to keep it going. So my pals, Robert Thompson from Georgia and Arthur Hill from North Carolina, are with me to talk about politics in the land of Dixie. This episode includes updates on politics in South Carolina, Georgia, and North Carolina, and a lengthy discussion about whether Democratic voter...

For Congress to enact meaningful gun legislation in response to the mass shootings that are plaguing America, "some level of profile in courage" will be needed by lawmakers who traditionally have been beholden to the gun lobby. "Sometimes principle is more important than your political career, but I'm not sure how many people think of it like that who are current members of Congress, unfortunately...

On May 15, the Southern Baptist Convention finally acknowledged what our guest today has already experienced – that pastors and other church employees have sexually abused parishioners and that the church covered up those claims for years. Now our guest, Sandy Phillips Kirkham, was not a member of the Southern Baptists when she was sexually abused by her youth pastor. She was a member of another p...

June is Gay Pride Month and so I thought it would be great to bring back one of my favorite previous guests, Jeff Batton, author of Grinnin’ Like a Jackass Eatin’ Briars. Jeff first was our guest on Lean to the Left in January. His memoir details his lifelong struggle with homosexuality, a struggle that prompted him to become a missionary serving the poor and even to get married and have kids. But...

The inability of Congress to take meaningful action to control guns is a tragedy that continues to result in the deaths of innocent people, including little children. That's the view of Baltimore novelist Amy Bernstein as expressed on The Lean to the Left Podcast. "So many of us are so upset, so saddened. Our politicians have failed us completely," she says, blaming "the do-nothing party" (Republi...

Preserving a sustainable planet is in jeopardy and religious and political dogma stand in the way of progress for all of mankind, says long-time business executive and author Kit Webster. "We're heading headlong into a future in which reality is going to impose itself on us as opposed to our controlling our approach into a new reality," says Webster, author of "Capitalism is Past its Sell-by Date....

Think you have it tough living in a country with $4 gas and a baby formula shortage? How would you like living someplace where when the power goes out, the electric company asks you for money for gas so they can send their repair truck…and then to help pay for the parts to fix the transformer? I kid you not. That’s what happens in Kenya, where adventure novelist Steve Braker lives, and trust me, h...

The federal government's lack of action that has allowed Abbott Laboratories to gain a stranglehold on the baby formula business is a key reason behind the current shortages that are driving parents mad and jeopardizing the health of little kids. That's the contention of Paul Cienfuegos, who has spent most of his adult life working to take away the power he believes has been ceded by government to...

Think it's possible to always have a lawyer available to help with legal issues at a cost less than a cappuccino a week at Starbucks? Check out this interview as novelist/attorney Mark Bello and I speak with Tara Paustenbach, who with a background in sales/marketing, has partnered with Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc. since 1998. She recruits, trains and develops Associates across the U.S. and Canada...

Today, we’re talking about Republican politics with two blog narrations from LeantotheLeft.net. The first, which I wrote, is headlined: “GOP: Beware of Radical Socialists & Communists,” and the second, by columnist CJ Waldron, asks the question, “Will the GOP Obstruct Justice?” But first, here’s a reminder that you can follow us at podcast.leantotheleft.net, and, you can reach me at bob@leantothel...

Today I’m sharing with you an episode that focuses on prison and sentencing reform that I co-hosted for the Justice Counts podcast with thriller author/attorney Mark M. Bello. Nicole D. Porter manages The Sentencing Project’s state and local advocacy efforts on sentencing reform, voting rights, and confronting racial disparities in the criminal legal system. Named a “New Civil Rights Leader” by Es...

Today on the Lean to the Left podcast we’re talking politics, and with me are two long-time political analysts and activists from North Carolina and Georgia. As most of you know, I’m now based in South Carolina, moving here from Maryland a few years ago, and have since been involved in local Democratic politics – an uphill battle, if ever there was one. But joining me on in this episode are Arthur...

Today, we’re talking about the leaked Supreme Court ruling that apparently will wipe out Roe v. Wade, the long-standing decision protecting a woman’s right to an abortion. I’ll be narrating three blogs on the subject from our Lean to the Left.net blog site, the first outlining why Trump, through his Supreme Court justices, is giving Democrats a winning issue going into the November election; the s...

Sheri Few, firebrand leader against teaching the implications of racial history and comprehensive sex education in school, says teaching Critical Race Theory (CRT) "is from the pit of Hell and is meant to destroy lives." Founder and president of US Parents Involved in Education, Few ran unsuccessfully for office three times in South Carolina, and now is doing a media blitz claiming that discussion...

What's the image that comes to mind when you think of a woman in her 70s? And if you're approaching that age, or living in that life decade, what's your mindset? For Ruth Yunker, a twice-divorced Californian, it's all about "aging vivaciously." On this episode of The Lean to the Left Podcast, Yunker, a yoga-fit mother of two talks about her struggle with alcoholism, subsequent sobriety, and her li...

I had a bad dream last night. It's 2025 and an obsessed right-wing Republican from Florida by the name of Rick Scott is now president of the United States. All hell has broken loose. Take a listen... Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-lean-to-the-left-podcast--4719048/support .

Our guest today is Christopher Pearson and the topic is passing the National Popular Vote bill that would guarantee the presidency to the candidate with the most popular votes. Pearson is a Vermont State Senator and worked on his 1998 campaign, then his Congressional office. He’s been with National Popular Vote where is secretary on the Board of Directors. We’ve all seen the problems with the curr...

Too many outside influencers are trying to tell colleges and universities what they should and should not teach. At least 16 states are considering or have already signed into law bills that punish teachers for discussing critical race theory or similar topics. Bob Atkins, a higher education strategy consultant, is with us today to discuss how limiting students’ academic options are detrimental to...

Donald Trump's followers are being carted off to jail for participating in the January 6, 2021 violent attack intended to block the electoral college vote finalizing Joe Biden's election and relegating the orange blowhard to the trash heap of history. But what about those who sent those loyal followers on this fools' errand -- Trump and his son, Don Jr.? Should they not suffer the same fate? Shoul...

Last month former President Donald Trump urged his supporters to “lay down their lives” to fight against critical race theory, as he worked to whip up support for what probably will be an attempt to regain the White House. Using CRT, the study of institutional racism in the legal system, as a whipping boy is a favorite ploy of right-wing Republicans trying to control what can be taught in public s...

Today we’re with James A. Ross, author of the book, "Hunting Teddy Roosevelt", a historical novel that veers into TR’s African adventures and an assassination attempt. There is this line from the book: “Roosevelt is not only hunting in Africa, he’s being hunted.” And then… On the podcast, Ross talks about Roosevelt, a true progressive who was responsible for the 40-hour work week, backed the estab...

With the war in Ukraine continuing to rage and President Biden just challenging the energy companies to stop sitting on profits and produce oil to ease pricing pressure to consumers, you have to wonder what the impact will be on the battle to curtail greenhouse gases in the fight against climate change. Frank Dalene, author of Decarbonize the World, A Market-Based Solution to the Climate Crisis, i...

Many of the Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee were disgusting in their disrespectful treatment of President Biden’s Supreme Court nominee, Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson. At the same time, Justice Clarence Thomas is now under the January 6th Committee microscope because of his wife, Ginny’s, overt effort supporting Donald Trump’s try to overturn the 2020 election. In this episode, I narra...

Today we’re with University of Houston history professor Bob Buzzanco to discuss some of the historical context with respect to the vicious attack by Russia on Ukraine, and what he thinks is required to reach an agreement to stop the bloodshed. Professor Buzzanco, who also co-hosts the Green and Red Podcast, describes himself, among other things, as a historian, writer, agitator, professor, and Si...

Alester Linton-Pryor is an African-American woman from New York City who is now spending every waking moment of what is supposed to be retirement trying to overtake the rightwing Republicans who dominate her region in South Carolina. As chair of the Horry County (SC) Democratic Party (HCDP), Linton-Pryor leads a determined band of volunteers who share her concerns about the major social issues of...