Air Date 9/7/2025

Trump has been setting a new tone both at home and abroad which is shaking up everything from the war in Ukraine to threats of force against Mexico, Venezuela, and our own American cities with the militarization of domestic policing. And we made all of this before Trump posted an Apocalypse Now meme about using the Department of War against Chicago.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Full Show Notes

KEY POINTS

KP 1: NATO Lost in Ukraine and the West Is In Denial, W Vijay Prashad Part 1 - BreakThrough News - Air Date 8-20-25

KP 2: What Ukraine Is Fighting For Denys Pilash - The Majority Report W Sam Seder - Air Date 8-24-25

KP 3: Putins Puppet Show Trump Tangled in the Strings Part 1 - The Muckrake Political Podcast - Air Date 8-19-25

KP 4: Why Are US Warships Going to Venezuela Part 1 - The Take - Air Date 8-28-25

KP 5: The Dramatic Overhaul Of The Justice Dept. Part 1 - Fresh Air - Air Date 8-20-25

KP 6: Wall Streets Big Admission on Ukraine, Trump's DC Takeover, and How a General Strike Could Happen Part 1 - The Socialist Program W Brian Becker - Air Date 8-28-25

KP 7: Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson Tells Trump to Stay Out; Decries Authoritarianism, War on Poor People Part 1 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 8-15-25

KP 8: Trumps National Guard Strategy—Plus, the Secret Behind Huck Finn - Start Making Sense - Air Date 8-27-25

(00:56:33) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

On encroaching fascism and the Boston Massacre

DEEPER DIVES

(01:07:01) SECTION A: UKRAINE

(01:47:03) SECTION B: MEXICO & VENEZUELA

(02:11:53) SECTION C: THE JUSTICE DEPARTMENT

(02:37:10) SECTION D: DC AND US CITIES

Air Date: 9–3-25

Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon, and Erin discuss:

• Ch. 1 - The surprising origins of Gerrymandering

• Ch. 2 - The options we have to improve congressional representation for everyone in the country

• Ch. 3 - Democratic states response to Republican gerrymandering threats

• Ch. 4 - The argument for DC statehood and the people to blame for why it hasn’t happened yet

• Ch. 5 - How to end homelessness and what you can do to help those being targeted in DC

• SOLVED! BACKSTAGE: Beyond the Algorithm: The only correct opinion about the Cracker Barrel rebrand

YouTube (This episode drops on YouTube on Friday - please share!)

Nostr public key: npub1tjxxp0x5mcgl2svwhm39qf002st2zdrkz6yxmaxr6r2fh0pv49qq2pem0e

REFERENCES:

Elbridge Gerry and the Original Gerrymander - The Gilder Lehrman Institute

Drawing the Line (“Ratf**cked”: The Innfluence of Redistricting) - The New Yorker (2016)

History of Single Member Districts for Congress: Seeking Fair Representation Before PR - FairVote

Gavin Newsom’s Retaliatory Redistricting Plan Is Good, Actually - The New Republic

How Democrats Should Actually Respond to Republicans’ Attempts to Rig Voting Maps - Slate

How Moderate Senate Democrats Enabled Trump’s D.C. Takeover - The American Prospect

Trump’s Homelessness Crackdown Has Been Tried Before. It Didn’t Work. - Mother Jones

MEMBERS

The New Cracker Barrel Logo Sucks And So Does The Mess Around It - Kotaku

EXTRAS

Congress literally doesn’t care what you think (aka: Corruption is Legal in America) (Represent.US, 2016)

Is illegal immigration really a democratic plot to sway congressional apportionment?

Americans worry democracy in danger amid gerrymandering fights, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds

Air Date: 6–20-2023

Today, we take a look at the story of how neoliberalism was born, how corporations were organized to help push it into the mainstream, and how the courts were reshaped to permanently tilt the rules in favor of corporate power.

Be part of the show! Leave us a message or text at 202-999-3991, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Full Show Notes

Check out our new show, SOLVED! on YouTube!

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SHOW NOTES

Ch. 1: Chile, Neoliberalism and the CIA - AJ+ - Air Date 11-29-19

Ch. 2: The Powell Memo. Corporate America's Call to Arms. - Unf*cking The Republic - Air Date 2-9-23

Ch. 3: How the Corporate Takeover of American Politics Began - Robert Reich - Air Date 12-13-22

Ch. 4: Greed Is Rotting America From The Inside Out - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 7-29-22

Ch. 5: Economic False Prophets Part 1 - Ralph Nader Radio Hour - Air Date 6-10-23

Ch. 6: What has Greed Cost America - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 10-28-14

Ch. 7: Economic False Prophets Part 2 - Ralph Nader Radio Hour - Air Date 6-10-23

Ch. 8: Wall Street's ESG Scam EXPLAINED - Breaking Points with Krystal and Saagar - Air Date 6-16-22

Ch. 9: Anti-Capitalist Investing Is... Absurd — Jen Pan - Jacobin - Air Date 6-11-22

Produced by Jay! Tomlinson

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