Category: News

Posted on

Bad Faith - Episode 492 – Running to Beat Pelosi (w/ Saikat Chakrabarti)

Subscribe to Bad Faith on Patreon to instantly unlock our full premium episode library: http://patreon.com/badfaithpodcast

Tech millionaire, co-founder of Justice Democrats, and former chief of staff to AOC Saikat Chakrabarti joins Bad Faith to explain why he's running to oust Nancy Pelosi from the San Francisco congressional seat she has held for almost as long as he has been alive. Saikat offers his takeaways from Zohran Mamdani's success, and evaluates the replicability of Zohran's approach when it comes to social media, his "toxic positivity," and his army of volunteers. Saikat also addresses concerns from the left that he is not a DSA candidate and has, in fact, donated to opponents of DSA candidates in the past. Can Saikat do what former Bad Faith guest Shahid Buttar couldn't quite manage? Will Pelosi also ignore Saikat? Or can he capitalize on normie Democrat frustration with an establishment that's all talk and no action when it comes to fighting back against Trump?

Subscribe to Bad Faith on YouTube for video of this episode. Find Bad Faith on Twitter (@badfaithpod) and Instagram (@badfaithpod).

Posted on

Cato Podcast - Aimless Rivalry: U.S. and China in the Middle East

Justin Logan and Jon Hoffman delve into Hoffman's latest policy analysis, "Aimless Rivalry: The Futility of U.S. China Competition in the Middle East." They debunk justifications for U.S. Middle East policy based on competition with China and challenge prevailing narratives in international relations. Tune in for a thorough discussion that puts threats in context and examines U.S. policy through a skeptical lens.


Show Notes:

Jon Hoffman, "Aimless Rivalry: The Futility of US–China Competition in the Middle East" Policy Analysis No. 1000, July 10, 2025


Justin Logan, “Why the Middle East Still Doesn’t Matter,” Politico Magazine, October 9, 2014

 

Justin Logan, “The Case for Withdrawing from the Middle East,” Defense Priorities, September 30, 2020

 

Justin Logan, “Middle East Security,” Cato Handbook for Policymakers, 9th Edition, 2022


Jon Hoffman, "The U.S. Has Nothing to Fear from China in the Middle East" World Politics Review, December 6, 2023


Jon Hoffman, “U.S.-China competition and the value of Middle East Influence” Defense Priorities, June 10, 2025

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Posted on

Audio Mises Wire - Subsidies to Amtrak and Siemens: A Pathway To Cronyism For The Few

Despite assurances from Amtrak's administrators that profitability is just around the corner, Amtrak remains a huge money loser. However, even given the long distances of some of the routes, Amtrak could still be profitable if its leadership is willing to make changes.

Original article: https://mises.org/mises-wire/subsidies-amtrak-and-siemens-pathway-cronyism-few

Posted on

The Ezra Klein Show - Why Trump Can’t Shake Jeffrey Epstein

MAGA has been infighting over the Jeffrey Epstein files. And that’s because the conspiracy theories around Epstein hit at the very core of MAGA’s whole worldview.

Today’s episode looks closer at that worldview. Will Sommer has been tracking conspiracies for years now. He was a reporter at The Washington Post and is now at The Bulwark, and he’s the author of “Trust the Plan: The Rise of QAnon and the Conspiracy That Unhinged America.”

In this conversation, we discuss the rise of QAnon, Donald Trump’s slippery relationship to the more conspiracy-minded factions of his base and how the intrigue around the Epstein files has challenged his credibility as an outsider taking on the “corrupt elites.”

This episode contains strong language.

Mentioned:

“MAGA Is Tearing Itself Apart Over Jeffrey Epstein” by David French

P.R.R.I. Survey

Nixonland by Rick Perlstein

Book Recommendations:

Buckley by Sam Tanenhaus

American Tabloid by James Ellroy

Low Life by Lucy Sante

Thoughts? Guest suggestions? Email us at ezrakleinshow@nytimes.com.

You can find the transcript and more episodes of “The Ezra Klein Show” at nytimes.com/ezra-klein-podcast. Book recommendations from all our guests are listed at https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-klein-show-book-recs.html

This episode of “The Ezra Klein Show” was produced by Annie Galvin and Jack McCordick. Fact-checking by Michelle Harris, Mary Marge Locker, Jack McCordick and Kristin Lin. Our senior engineer is Jeff Geld, with additional mixing by Aman Sahota and Isaac Jones. Our executive producer is Claire Gordon. The show’s production team also includes Marie Cascione, Rollin Hu, Elias Isquith, Marina King and Jan Kobal. Original music by Pat McCusker. Audience strategy by Kristina Samulewski and Shannon Busta. The director of New York Times Opinion Audio is Annie-Rose Strasser. Special thanks to Mia Bloom and Sophia Moskalenko.

Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

Posted on

The Indicator from Planet Money - When is cosplay a crime?

Cosplay—or dressing up as your favorite character from pop culture—is fun! But it can fall into a legal gray area when it comes to companies' intellectual property.

Today on the show: a group of cosplayers, Lucasfilm(!), a lawyer, and finding economic symbiosis in order to express yourself.

Related episodes:
Before La La Land there was Fort Lee, New Jersey (Apple / Spotify)
Why aren't filmmakers shooting in LA? (Apple / Spotify)

For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

Fact-checking by Sierra Juarez. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy
Posted on

Audio Mises Wire - Democratic Socialism IS Totalitarianism

The word "democratic" is supposed to soften the blow of socialism, with Zohran Mamdani's campaign being the latest to fool the voters. In reality, there is no softening real socialism, as it depends upon coercion, violence, and ultimately becomes totalitarian.

Original article: https://mises.org/mises-wire/democratic-socialism-totalitarianism

Posted on

Risky Business with Nate Silver and Maria Konnikova - The Butterfly Effect in Poker. Plus: How To Think About Conspiracies.

Nate and Maria share some updates from the final days of the World Series of Poker, and reflect on the importance of making peace with randomness. Then: the Trump administration’s sudden about face on the Epstein Files is ruffling feathers in his usually unruffle-able base. Will he be able to convince the true believers that there is, in fact, nothing to see here? And, how should we think about conspiracy theories in a world where conspiracies are sometimes real?

For more from Nate and Maria, subscribe to their newsletters:

The Leap from Maria Konnikova

Silver Bulletin from Nate Silver

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

array(3) { [0]=> string(184) "https://www.omnycontent.com/d/clips/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/951120d9-cf6e-4224-93d7-b15c014dcea5/96ff786a-5683-4314-a5cd-b31c01746e9e/image.jpg?t=1752706062&size=Large" [1]=> string(10) "image/jpeg" [2]=> int(0) }
Posted on

Consider This from NPR - Tariffs are a tax. Are you already paying it?

It's been over three months since President Trump announced very big across-the-board tariffs on imports from nearly every territory on Earth–including uninhabited islands. It's a move he said would revitalize the U.S. economy.

Since that splashy White House announcement, the tariff rates have been a wildly moving target. Ratcheted up - then back down - on China, specifically.

Overlaid with global product-specific tariffs on categories like automobiles and copper. Partially paused after the stock market tanked.

Through it all, the tariff rate has remained at or well-above 10 percent on nearly every good imported to the U.S.

And if you've listened to NPR's reporting since April, you'll have heard many voices make one particular prediction over and over again – that American consumers will pay the price.

If American consumers are going to pay for the tariffs, the question is: when ?

For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy