The Nation Podcasts

What are we going to do about the 74 million people who voted for Trump? Katha Pollitt has been thinking about that—and about proposals that we should try to find common ground with the 75 percent who have told pollsters they think Trump “definitely” or “probably” won the election. Also: Historian Eric Foner talks about Will Smith’s 6-part series on Netflix on the 14th Amendment, ratified after th...

The Republicans after the second impeachment: As Mitch McConnell takes the lead in trying to purge Trump from the party, how divided are they? And how much weaker as a result? Rick Perlstein comments—he’s the author of the new book Reaganland: America's Right Turn, 1976-1980 —widely regarded as the best political book of last year. Also: Biden and the Democrats still have to succeed at changin...

John Nichols  considers the arguments made by Trump’s lawyers, and by Republican Senators, that Trump is not guilty of inciting the insurrection of January 6, that he did not incite his followers to storm the capitol and attempt to stop Congress from certifying Joe Biden as the winner of the electoral college. Also: the implications of finding Trump not guilty. Plus: we take a step back from this...

Eight hundred people stormed the Capitol building on January 6, but fewer than 200 have been charged with crimes. Why so few? Elie Mystal , The Nation ’s Justice correspondent, says every one of the 800 committed crimes that day and should be prosecuted . Also: For Black History Month, Gary Younge talks about Barack Obama and his memoir A Promised Land— and the refusal of many liberals to critique...

The national death toll from covid-19 will reach half a million next month, and new strains of the virus are threatening.  Joe Biden has called for what he calls “full-scale wartime effort,” including $350 million in direct funding, and now he’s aiming for 150 million vaccine doses in is first 100 days.  Gregg Gonsalves comments on what Biden and Congress need to do now. Also: Faced by the pandemi...

Biden’s inauguration marked a triumph of hope over fear, says Joan Walsh . First we celebrate, and then we go to work debating what is possible and what is necessary—all the things that real people really need. The next four years will bring progressives some political frustration and some disappointments, but that will be so much better than what we’ve had for the last four yers. Plus: In Joe Bid...

As the House moves to impeach Trump—a second time—for “incitement of insurrection,” Republican support for Trump is wavering. John Nichols comments on the historic moment that is at hand. Also: Biden’s first 100 days begin January 20, and his first acts should include an executive order cancelling student debt—that’s what Astra Taylor says, she’s co-founder of the Debt Collective and has published...

Wednesday was one of the worst days in the history of American democracy—Joan Walsh comments on the Trump mob that stormed the capitol, the capitol police who didn't arrest them, the Republicans who continue to stand by Trump—and the Republicans who don't. Also: Eric Foner provides historical context for Wednesday's events in Washington, and also the victories in the Georgia Senate rac...

Vaccine priorities: political and ethical questions about who comes first, after health care workers. Gregg Gonsalves considers the arguments—the choice is between reducing the death toll—which means giving priority to the oldest people—and keeping society functioning—which means giving priority to essential workers. And the Global South must be included in all vaccine distribution plans—because “...

A year, and a decade, of political challenges: Joan Walsh reviews the fall and rise of Kamala Harris, the return of Joe Biden, and the deepening problem posed over the last decade by white voters who now support Trump. And Amy Wilentz reviews what happened in 2020 to Ivanka, Jared, Don Junior and Eric Trump—boy did those kids get into trouble this year! Jared was put in charge of pandemic response...

Obama’s memoir of his political rise and his first two years in office, A Promised Land , reminds us of a time when Donald Trump barely existed on our political landscape and in our consciousness. Eric Foner comments on what’s in the book—and what Obama leaves out. Also: John le Carré died on Saturday—he was 89, and one of the greats, author of two dozen books people called “spy novels,” although...

This week, as the UK began vaccinating people against Covid 19, we consider proposals here in the US to establish a coronavirus commission, empowered to investigate the many failures in the fight against the virus: Mike Davis says that is something progressives should fight for—and insist on subpoena powers. Also: Will Donald Trump pardon Ivanka and Jared—and Don Junior and Eric? What exactly are...

Georgia is the center of the political universe right now. On January 5, Georgia votes for two senators, a runoff election that will determine which party controls the Senate and thus the fate of any Democratic initiatives after Biden becomes president on January 20. Joan Walsh comments on the campaigns of Jon Ossoff and the Rev. Raphael Warnock as they challenge incumbent Republicans Kelley Loeff...

All eyes are on Georgia now, as the campaigns for both senate seats are underway to determine which party will control the US Senate. For Democrats, the starting point for winning in Georgia is the historic work of Stacey Abrams. When she ran for governor of Georgia in 2018 as the first African American and the first woman candidate, she got more votes than any Democrat in Georgia history, includi...

Monday we had good news on a Covid vaccine from Moderna, created with a billion dollars of taxpayer funding. Gregg Gonsalves takes up the question, Why does Moderna get to keep all the profits? Also: Why Mitch McConnell is a bigger threat to Americans than the virus. Plus: The legendary film critic for the late, lamented Village Voice , J. Hoberman, talks about Aaron Sorkin’s new film, playing now...

Mike Davis on the Trump voters: Latinos in south Texas and white workers in the rust belt—and Biden’s big mistake: allowing Trump to claim "the economy" as his issue, instead of connecting jobs to controlling the pandemic. Also: Black Lives Matter had massive victories in the elections in America’s biggest county—LA, with 10 million people. They elected a progressive D.A. and passed an ini...

John Nichols says Joe Biden seems to be headed for a historic win. On Wednesday afternoon he already had more than 70 million votes—the largest number of votes for a president in American history. He’s also above 50 per cent, something no Democrat has done in our lifetimes, except for Barack Obama. So this is likely to be a big victory, except for one thing: The Electoral College. That’s where it’...

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, an...

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 196...

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 l...

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...

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...

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 force...

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: thenati...

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 Na...