The Cult of America: Charlie Kirk, Liberal Nationalism & What's Next

This week, Becky and Taina cut through the noise—what “compromise” really means in a deeply divided America. Triggered by Jerry Greenfield’s exit from Ben & Jerry’s, Tad Stoermer’s critique of liberal nationalism, and the recent killing of Charlie Kirk, we unpack how stories are told, how power is preserved, and who gets to be the “martyr.”

We talk about:

• How Christian nationalism (via figures like Charlie Kirk) has evolved — from campus provocateur to media force to mythic martyr.
• Why “compromise” is pitched as a virtue — but often functions to protect white supremacy, heteropatriarchy, and nationalism.
• How grief and the narrative around someone’s death (Kirk’s, especially) are weaponized in service of myth-making and mobilization.
• The difference between compromise and surrender—and why that distinction matters in politics and in life
• Jerry Greenfield’s choice to leave Ben & Jerry’s rather than mute his values for corporate comfort
• Tad Stoermer’s warning about liberal nationalism, American mythology, and the weaponization of compromise
• The powder keg moment America is in, and what it means for those with privilege vs. those without
• Culture as propaganda: from Star Trek to 9/11 broadcasts to the cult of celebrity
• How white liberals cling to the dream of compromise and why it only leads to deeper harm
• What legacy really means—not just what you build, but what you walk away from

This is a heavy one. We name the fear, the grief, and the hope in imagining a future beyond duct-tape solutions. And, as always, we find a little levity at the end (Cardi B, Beyoncé, and witchy weekends).

Resources Mentioned:

• Tad Stoermer video: “Why U.S. Historians Keep Reinforcing American Nationalism (Even When They Think They Aren’t)”
• “A Resistance History of the United States” by Tad Stoermer (coming 2026)

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