Best of the Left - Leftist Perspectives on Progressive Politics, News, Culture, Economics and Democracy

Air Date: 7/10/2026 Today we look at what it means to live in an economy that has quietly split in two with a soaring stock market driven by AI on one side, a collapsing job market on the other, and the subtle shift in the right to own things, from your music and movies to your car's software, which all underlie the slide toward technofeudalism. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: America Is Entering a New Socialist Era — and It Might Stick - The Recount - Air Date 6-30-26 KP 2: America's Job Market Is Collapsing - Max Fisher - Air Date 4-10-26 KP 3: The Richest Country Is Pretty Mid Now Part 1 - Benn Jordan - Air Date 6-28-26 KP 4: We Uncovered The Master Plan That Peter Thiel Doesn't Want You To See - More Perfect Union - Air Date 6-29-26 KP 5: The End Of Capitalism Is Here. - Second Thought - Air Date 6-5-26 (01:06:28) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Humanity Is About to Be Optimized Out of Existence for the Sake of Profit My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (01:06:46) SECTION A: THE RISING LEFT A1: Trump's Speech At America 250 BACKFIRES, Sony Ends PHYSICAL MEDIA | Zaid Talks Part 1 - Zaid Tabani - Air Date 7-5-26 A2: Do Democrats F*ck Now? How Democratic Socialists Are Taking Over The Party - Some Some More News Clips and Some More News - Air Date 7-5-26 A3: How the Democratic Party Captures and Subverts Revolutionary Energy (with Kshama Sawant) - The Chris Hedges YouTube Channel - Air Date 6-29-26 A4: AI Is Losing and the Left Is Winning, with Brennan Lee Mulligan and Ed Zitron - Factually! with Adam Conover - Air Date 6-26-26 A5: Democrats Don't Know What "Affordability" Actually Means, with Dino Guastella - Factually! with Adam Conover - Air Date 6-24-26 (01:49:40) SECTION B: EVERYDAY EXTRACTION B1: The American Economy Is Broken—Here's Why - Established Context Part 1 - Air Date 4-13-26 B2: Why Owning Nothing Is So Expensive - Business Insider and Insider - Air Date 1-24-26 B3: NEW WARNING: Your Vehicle Can't Be FIXED After 2026 - Motor Feed - Air Date 6-28-26 B4: Trump's Speech At America 250 BACKFIRES, Sony Ends PHYSICAL MEDIA | Zaid Talks Part 2 - Zaid Tabani - Air Date 7-5-26 B5: Content Dot Mp4 - Thought Slime - Air Date 6-29-26 B6: Why American Airlines Stopped Making Money - Wendover Productions - Air Date 10-28-25 (02:51:16) SECTION C: THE RIGGED MACHINE C1: If the World Is F*cked... Why Are Stocks At Record Highs? - Lock Stock Finance - Air Date 6-18-26 C2: The Anti-Life or How Capitalism Will Die (with Math) - Literate Machine - Air Date 5-26-26 C3: The Richest Country Is Pretty Mid Now Part 2 - Benn Jordan - Air Date 6-28-26 C4: The American Economy Is Broken—Here's Why - Established Context Part 2 - Air Date 4-13-26 C5: Huge Polymarket Scandal - Voidzilla - Air Date 6-24-26 (03:36:27) SECTION D: THE RULING CLASS WORLDVIEW D1: The Real A.I. Problem No One Is Talking About (Who Buys Your Stuff, Robots_) - Josh Allan Dykstra - Air Date 1-13-26 D2: AI Is a Mass Psychotic Delusion - Science Fiction with Damien Walter - Air Date 6-20-26 D3: The Ruling Class Think Everything Is Disposable (Including the Planet) - Our Changing Climate - Air Date 7-3-26 D4: Stop Blaming Human Nature for Capitalism - Revolutionaryth0t - Air Date 1-28-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 7/7/2026 Today we use the 2026 World Cup to pull everything that runs under the game up into the light. Nearly a quarter of the players are representing a country other than the one they were born in, praised as national heroes when they score but scorned as foreigners when they lose. The history of colonialism built the machinery that turns immigrants into targets, and the results are playing out live around this year's tournament, in the towns that throw their arms open and the borders that slam shut, in who a country will claim and who it leaves outside. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: Always Root for the Underdog - Pop Culture Detective - Air Date 7-1-26 KP 2: Colonial Wars Played On The Pitch - AJ+ - Air Date 6-21-26 KP 3: How the U.S. and France Ruined Haiti - Bianca Graulau - Air Date 8-14-25 KP 4: Who Gets To Enjoy The World Cup? - AJ+ - Air Date 6-19-26 KP 5: US Soccer Star Shows MAGA's Racism With Zero Effort - Rick Strom - Air Date 6-23-26 KP 6: How Colonialism Created Mbappe and Zidane, Explained - Uncivilized - Air Date 7-12-24 KP 7: Iran's World Cup Team Divides the Diaspora in the US | DW Reporter - DW News - Air Date 6-26-26 KP 8: Keep My Culture Out Your Mouth! - PissedMagistus - Air Date 6-27-26 (00:59:27) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR The World Cup Exposes How Racism Is a Tool, Not a Belief My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (01:11:20) SECTION A: COLONIALISM'S LONG GAME A1: Colonialism Never Ended – It Just Became Debt - AJ+ - Air Date 9-6-25 A2: They BANNED Haiti World Cup Jersey to HIDE Black History - THE MERC - Air Date 6-21-26 A3: Belgium Hands Over Remains of Patrice Lumumba to DR Congo - DW News - Air Date 6-20-22 A4: DR Congo's Lumumba Super Fan Arrives at FIFA World Cup After Delays | Firstpost Africa | N18G - Firstpost - Air Date 6-23-26 A5: How a Football Team Fueled Algeria's Fight for Independence - Uncivilized - Air Date 8-1-24 (01:44:54) SECTION B: DIASPORA AND DUAL IDENTITY B1: Tim Weah on World Cup Dreams, the African Diaspora and USMNT's Fair-Weather Knicks Fandom | PTFO - PABLO TORRE FINDS OUT - Air Date 6-19-26 B2: The Media Has Made You Hate Jude Bellingham For No Reason. - Small Talk with Ore Olukoga - Air Date 6-17-26 B3: Why Soccer Wonderkids Are Rejecting France and Spain - What Now? with Trevor Noah - Air Date 6-18-26 (02:08:22) SECTION C: THE CUP ON THE GROUND C1: Alexi Lalas Is Ruining the World Cup in More Ways Than You Think - Rick Strom - Air Date 6-16-26 C2: World Cup Kicks Off in Mexico Amid Protests Against Austerity and Forced Disappearances - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-11-26 C3: Luke Thomas: World Cup Border CHAOS Humiliates America - Luke Thomas Gets Political (LTGP) - Air Date 6-15-26 C4: How a Small US City Fell in Love With Algeria Before FIFA World Cup | First Sports With Rupha Ramani - Firstpost- Air Date 6-12-26 C5: Okay, The 2026 Squad of Cape Verde Is Not Normal - Soccer Stories - Oh My Goal and PedTalksSports - Air Date 6-26-26 C6: Inside Algeria's Takeover of Kansas - RocaSports and RocaNews - Air Date 6-25-26 C7: 'It's a Disaster World Cup,' Iran's Football Captain Mehdi Taremi Says - Al Mayadeen English - Air Date 6-27-26 C8: Iran's World Cup Story Just Took A HUGE Turn - The Ring of Fire - Air Date 6-26-26 (03:00:05) SECTION D: RACE, MYTHOLOGY, AND IDEOLOGY D1: AskHistorians Podcast Episode 197 - White Mythic Spaces in Historical Representation with Stefan Aguirre Quiroga Part 1 - The AskHistorians Podcast - Air Date 4-6-22 D2: Football Brings Out Argentina's Unspoken Racism Issue - Football Smash - Air Date 2-18-26 D3: AskHistorians Podcast Episode 197 - White Mythic Spaces in Historical Representation with Stefan Aguirre Quiroga Part 2 - The AskHistorians Podcast - Air Date 4-6-22 D4: Pete Hegseth Is Trying to Resegregate the Military - Takes™ by Jamelle Bouie - Air Date 6-20-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 7/4/2026 Today we examine what America has celebrated for 250 years and what it keeps refusing to look at. The Declaration promised government by the consent of the governed, but the Constitution protected slavery, concentrated power in elites, and left the definition of "the people" deliberately vague. Every generation inherits that same unresolved contradiction and has to address it for themselves. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: The Constitution's Preamble, Plain and Powerful - Civics In A Year - Air Date 10-9-25 KP 2: Trump 250 Gala Grows More Humiliating as Fox Grapples with Low Turnout - THE DAILY BLAST with Greg Sargent - Air Date 6-26-26 KP 3: Thom Hartmann -The Myth of Corporate Personhood - Brave New Foundation - Air Date 3-3-10 KP 4: The Constitution (Melissa's Version) - Strict Scrutiny - Air Date 5-11-26 KP 5: The Declaration of Independence and Democracy Renovation Part 1 - Democracy Works - Air Date 4-6-26 KP 6: America's 250th Birthday Must Reckon with Racism, Historian Says - Here & Now Anytime - Air Date 6-19-26 (00:52:07) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR America's Birthday Lie: The Constitution Didn't Promise Democracy My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (01:10:03) SECTION A: FOUNDING IDEAS A1: Promote The General Welfare - Siena and Toast The Podcast - Air Date 11-18-2020 A2: The Ideas at the Heart of the Declaration and the Constitution Part 1 - We the People - Air Date 6-25-26 A3: Bill of Rights Institute's Tony Williams & David Bobb on America 250 Part 1 - The Takeout with Major Garrett - Air Date 6-16-26 A4: Ep.289 Divided Over the Declaration How an Enduring Debate Sustains the Vision of America with Author Tony Williams 480 - Constitutional Chats Presented By Constituting America - Air Date 2-13-26 A5: Bill of Rights Institute's Tony Williams & David Bobb on America 250 Part 2 - The Takeout with Major Garrett - Air Date 6-16-26 (01:47:48) SECTION B: RACE & RECKONING B1: The Fantasy of America at 250 Part 1 - On the Media - Air Date 6-26-26 B2: The Ideas at the Heart of the Declaration and the Constitution Part 2 - We the People - Air Date 6-25-26 B3: The Fantasy of America at 250 Part 2 - On the Media - Air Date 6-26-26 (02:21:00) SECTION C: PRESENT CRISIS C1: Trump V. The Constitution - What A Day - Air Date 5-5-26 C2: 250 Years On, Can Democracy Hold (with Joanne Freeman) Part 1 - Stay Tuned with Preet - Air Date 6-25-26 C3: Tom Nichols Trump's Speech Was Pure TRASH - Bulwark Podcast - Air Date 6-25-26 C4: 250 Years On, Can Democracy Hold (with Joanne Freeman) Part 2 - Stay Tuned with Preet - Air Date 6-25-26 (03:01:39) SECTION D: CAPTURE & RENOVATION D1: Buckley V. Valeo Part 1 - 5-4 - Air Date 7-7-20 D2: The Declaration of Independence and Conditions for Democratic Flourishing - Stanford Legal - Air Date 6-23-26 D3: Buckley V. Valeo Part 2 - 5-4 - Air Date 7-7-20 D4: The Declaration of Independence and Democracy Renovation Part 2 - Democracy Works - Air Date 4-6-26 D5: The Declaration of Independence and Conditions for Democratic Flourishing Part 2 - Stanford Legal - Air Date 6-23-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 7/1/2026 Today we examine how four months of American bombardment accomplished what decades of diplomacy never could, making Iran, still run by oppressive theocrats, a regional superpower. An Iranian woman told a reporter she endured the bombing hoping it would topple the regime. Instead, it entrenched it. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: J.D. Vance Iran Deal Fall Guy Part 1 - On the Media - Air Date 6-19-26 KP 2: The Cards Held by Iran in a Badly Written Memorandum - Explainer - Air Date 6-18-26 KP 3: Trumpworld Quietly Shivs JD Vance as Damning Leaks Discredit Iran Deal - THE DAILY BLAST with Greg Sargent - Air Date 6-17-26 KP 4: Trump Weakened U.S. Allies While Strengthening Iran Part 1 - UNFTR - Air Date 6-19-26 KP 5: What the End of War Could Mean for Iranians - The Current - Air Date 6-17-26 KP 6: The Iran Deal, Boy, I Don't Know - Takes by Jamelle Bouie - Air Date 6-18-26 (00:54:18) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Trump's Iran War Gave the Regime Everything It Wanted Steve Bannon Has Called His "Army" to Do Battle—No Matter Who Wins in November My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (01:07:37) SECTION A: THE DEAL ITSELF A1: Executive Disorder Iran Deal, UFC at the White House, Dialog Hack - It Could Happen Here - Air Date 6-19-26 A2: For His Own Birthday, Trump Gifts Iran $300 Billion - The Muckrake Political Podcast - Air Date 6-16-26 A3: Iran Conflict Brief The US-Iran Deal and a New Phase of Accommodation - Columbia Energy Exchange - Air Date 6-16-26 A4: The Cards Held by Iran in a Badly Written Memorandum Part 2 - Explainer - Air Date 6-18-26 (01:43:52) SECTION B: THE STRATEGIC LOSS B1: Iran Deal Winners, Losers, and Regional Impact Part 1 - Sources & Methods - Air Date 6-19-26 B2: Trump Weakened U.S. Allies While Strengthening Iran Part 2 - UNFTR - Air Date 6-19-26 (01:58:52) SECTION C: VOICES FROM THE REGION C1: How Does the Middle East See the U.S.-Iran Deal - Here & Now Anytime - Air Date 6-16-26 C2: J.D. Vance Iran Deal Fall Guy Part 2 - On the Media - Air Date 6-19-26 C3: Iran Deal Winners, Losers, and Regional Impact Part 2 - Sources & Methods - Air Date 6-19-26 C4: Can the U.S. Find the Strategic Patience Needed to End War with Iran - Consider This - Air Date 6-21-26 (02:28:09) SECTION D: WHEN THE STRONGMAN FAILS D1: Weekly Roundup Trump's Iran Disaster, JD Vance's Problem, and the Collapse of the Strongman Myth Part 1 - Straight White American Jesus - 6-19-25 D2: Can Trump Convince Republicans Hes Won the War on Iran - Americast - Air Date 6-24-26 D3: Angry Trump Snaps at Media Over Iran as Fox Hits Him with Brutal Poll Part 1 - THE DAILY BLAST - Air Date 6-24-26 D4: Weekly Roundup Trump's Iran Disaster, JD Vance's Problem, and the Collapse of the Strongman Myth Part 2 - Straight White American Jesus - 6-19-25 D5: Senator Bill Cassidy Folds to Trump- Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 6-25-26 D6: Angry Trump Snaps at Media Over Iran as Fox Hits Him with Brutal Poll Part 2 - THE DAILY BLAST - Air Date 6-24-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 6/27/2026 Today we trace how one man went from receiving a $278 million government grant to becoming the world's first trillionaire who spent .025% of his wealth to get Trump elected, then used his position to slash programs that help people while stoking race riots overseas. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: 'Billionaire CRISIS': How the Country's Wealthiest Are 'bankrolling' U.S. Politics - MS NOW - Air Date 5-27-26 KP 2: We Uncovered a Hidden Wealth Transfer in the SpaceX IPO. You're Holding the Bag. - More Perfect Union - Air Date 5-27-26 KP 3: Trump DOGE Cuts Caused 600,000 Deaths This Year, Fmr. USAID Official Says - The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell - Air Date 11-24-25 KP 4: Everything Is Falling Apart and Americans Aren't Happy About It - Takes™ by Jamelle Bouie - Air Date 6-16-26 KP 5: Elon Musk Celebrates Trillionaire Status by Stoking Racist Terrorism in Belfast! - I Doubt It Podcast - Air Date 6-14-26 KP 6: Why The Economist Hates Wealth Taxes - Garys Economics - Air Date 6-14-26 (00:57:37) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR The System That Made Musk a Trillionaire Is the Real Villain My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (01:15:26) SECTION A: THE TRILLIONAIRE AND WHAT HE REVEALS A1: 'Massive Loser': World Roasts First Trillionaire Elon Musk - The Rational National - Air Date 6-14-26 A2: A Trillion Dollars - Jonathan Pie - Air Date 6-14-26 A3: Trillionaire Welfare Queen - The John Fugelsang Podcast - Air Date 6-15-26 A4: "Land Grab": Trillionaire Elon Musk Sued in South Texas to Block SpaceX Takeover of Wildlife Refuge - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-16-26 (01:49:20) SECTION B: THE HUMAN COST OF CONCENTRATED POWER B1: 9.4M Lives at Risk: The Human Cost of Elon Musk's DOGE Cuts - Holy Post Media - Air Date 6-15-26 B2: Justin Wolfers on Musk, Inequality, and the Price of American Democracy - Platypus Economics with Justin Wolfers - Air Date 6-13-26 B3: 'If You Can Keep It': What The Wealth Gap Means For Democracy Part 1 - 1A - Air Date 4-27-26 (02:12:31) SECTION C: THE SPACEX IPO HEIST C1: SpaceX IPO: What They're Not Telling Retail Investors - UNFTR Media - Air Date 6-9-26 C2: The First Trillionaire! - PissedMagistus - Air Date 6-14-26 (02:28:50) SECTION D: BELFAST HOW MUSK FUELS RACIAL VIOLENCE ABROAD D1: Belfast Riots: Why UK Mobs See Racial Violence as 'national Defence' | Amina Shareef | MEE Opinion - Middle East Eye - Air Date 6-18-26 D2: The Truth About the Belfast Riots | Claire Hanna Interview - PoliticsJOE Podcast - Air Date 6-10-26 D3: Major Antiracist Rally Held in Belfast to Condemn Anti-Immigrant Riots - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-15-26 D4: Elon Musk Moves Against German Broadcaster ZDF After Riot Report - DW News - Air Date 6-16-26 (03:00:30) SECTION E: THE RECKONING BILLIONAIRE RHETORIC AND THE CASE FOR TAXING WEALTH E1: Why Jeff Bezos Wants to Cut Your Taxes - Garys Economics - Air Date 5-31-26 E2: Elon Musk & America's Tech Oligarchy - The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart - Air Date 6-10-26 E3: 'If You Can Keep It': What The Wealth Gap Means For Democracy Part 2 - 1A - Air Date 4-27-26 E4: We Need a Wealth Tax on Billionaires. Here's Why | Aaron Bastani Meets Gabriel Zucman - Novara Media - Air Date 5-24-26 E5: The Hidden Danger of America's Wealth Gap - Robert Reich and Inequality Media - Air Date 6-9-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 6/24/2026 The Monthly-ish Mix™ is here to get you caught up on recent news without being overwhelming! If you've been pulling back from the news for your own sanity, this one's built for you — a quick recap and reference guide to the past month or two, organized around a single idea: when power can't earn legitimacy, it manufactures it. The performance. Spectacle, religion, and health branding standing in for real consent: Trump collecting a FIFA "peace prize," Christian nationalism worn as a costume the actual church refuses to bless, and RFK Jr. dressing up a gutted vaccine agenda as "moderate," scapegoating immigrants as he goes, while the USAID cuts run up a body count. The machinery. The infrastructure that keeps the performance going while real consent drains away underneath: a legal system bent toward self-dealing and a $1.8 billion slush fund, billionaire money rewriting the rules since Citizens United, an AI gold rush sold as inevitable before anyone voted on it, and an economy booming on paper while the ground shifts under everyone's feet. The vacuum and the reclaiming. What rushes in when legitimacy collapses, from normalized political violence to a manifesto born of that collapse — and then the democratic answer: why the rupture hasn't come, why revolutions tend to devour themselves, and why the slower work wins. Nonviolent movements draw eleven times the participation, and the ballot box the Supreme Court is fighting hardest to narrow is the same one that just turned out 78% of Hungary to remove Orbán. Full Show Notes Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! SECTION 1: THE PERFORMANCE OF LEGITIMACY (00:01:31) #1798 - FIFA Sportswashing Fascism: The World Cup from Mussolini to Trump 1: Trump Is a 'master Marketer' Symone Reacts to President Getting FIFA Peace Prize - Chris Jansing Reports - Air Date 12-5-25 2: Jules Boykoff on World Cup and Sportswashing Part 1 - CounterSpin - Air Date 5-15-26 3: Trump LOSES IT as FIFA SUFFERS MAJOR CRISIS!! Part 1 - MeidasTouch - Air Date 5-6-26 (00:23:20) #1787 - The American President vs The American Pope: Leo XIV, Trump, and the MAGA-Catholic Rift 4: Someone Tell Pete Hegseth That "Pulp Fiction" Isn't in the Bible - Takes™ by Jamelle Bouie - Air Date 4-18-26 5: "Two Versions of Christianity": Pope Leo Calls for Peace as U.S. Uses Religion to Justify Iran War - Democracy Now! - Air Date 4-1-26 6: Why America and the Vatican Have Fallen Out - TLDR News Global - Air Date 4-11-26 (00:46:03) #1794 - From MAHA to Measles: RFK's Public Health Purge Will Make America Sick Again 7: Why RFK Jr. Is Projecting a More 'Moderate' MAHA Stance - The Brian Lehrer Show - Air Date 4-27-26 8: RFK Jr Goes Full Eugenics to Congress; IMMIGRANTS BRING DISEASE - Brittany Page - Air Date 4-22-26 9: As WHO Declares Ebola Outbreak a Global Health Emergency, Did USAID Cuts Worsen the Crisis - Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-18-26 SECTION 2: THE MACHINERY & THE LEAK (01:13:10) #1796 - 1.8 Billion for the Mob and a Kill List for Dissent: Trump's payout fund and counterterrorism strategy, decoded 10: We Will Find You and We Will Kill You Part 1 - The Intercept Briefing - Air Date 5-15-26 11: Congress Strikes Back as Trump Rushes $1.8 Billion Scam - Legal AF by MeidasTouch - Air Date 5-18-26 12: Dictatorship in Action David Cay Johnston on $1.8B Slush Fund Part 2 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-20-26 (01:34:00) #1792 - Capitalist Class Warfare: AI, Billionaire Capture, and the How to Fight Back 13: The Case Against Billionaires | Chuck Collins - Washington Monthly - Air Date 1-5-26 14: How Oligarchs Hijacked America in Just 16 Year - Benaminute - Air Date 4-30-26 15: It Will Be 17 Times Worse Than the .com Crash - Upper Echelon - Air Date 5-7-26 (02:04:29) #1797 - AI Spent $540 Billion to Make You Lonelier: Betting Against Jobs, Art, and Community 16: Will SpaceX and OpenAI Starve the Market? - UNFTR Media - Air Date 5-26-26 17: Astra Taylor on AI Data Center Resistance & Fighting "Billionaire Big Tech Agenda"- Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-13-26 18: The AI Backlash Just Got VERY Public - House of El - AI - Air Date 5-24-26 (02:33:22) #1789 - Boomcession: Why the Economy Looks Great on Paper and Hurts in Real Life 19: Monday Morning Economy Politics Inflation Soars Part 1 - The Brian Lehrer Show - Air Date 4-13-26 20: Economic Implications of the U.S. War on Iran Part 1 - Economic Update with Richard Wolff - Air Date 4-14-26 21: These Georgia Swing Voters Do Not Like the Iran War - The NPR Politics Podcast - Air Date 4-16-26 (02:58:12) #1793 - Anti-Immigrant Brutality Costs Countries More Than Their Morals: ICE, Mass Deportation, and the Global Far-Right 22: Trumps Brutal Immigration Crackdown Continu...

Air Date: 6–20-2026 Today we explore how political revenge became official government policy. The Department of Justice has dropped fraud cases while opening vindictive investigations into Trump's critics. Judges who rule against him face death threats at home with no federal protection and thousands of DOJ lawyers have walked out the door, leaving the agency hollowed out by loyalty tests and bent toward retribution. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: Trump Eyes Personal Lawyer to Run DOJ Part 1 - The Beat W Ari Melber - Air Date 6-4-26 KP 2: This Federal Judge Ruled Against Trump. Then the Death Threats Rolled in Part 1 - 60 Minutes - Air Date 3-1-26 KP 3: Judges Call Out Rising Acts of Violence Against the Judiciary, Slam Trump's 'irresponsible Rhetoric' - NBC News - Air Date 6-3-26 KP 4: How Low Can the DOJ Go - Strict Scrutiny - Air Date 4-27-26 KP 5: Fraud on the Court Even as DOJ Drops $1.8B Settlement Fund, Judge Reopens Case Over Collusion Part 1 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-3-26 KP 6: 'The Audacity' DOJ Turns to X to Recruit as Prosecutors Flee Trump's Politicization of Department - MS Now - Air Date 2-1-26 KP 7: DOJ in Crisis - Stay Tuned with Preet - Air Date 2-10-26 (00:53:44) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Trump Built a One-Way Ratchet to Tyranny. Here's How We Break It. My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (01:06:27) SECTION A: A DEPARTMENT OF REVENGE A1: 'The Department of Revenge' Explores Trump's Use of DOJ to Settle Political Scores - PBS Newshour - Air Date 6-11-26 A2: This Federal Judge Ruled Against Trump. Then the Death Threats Rolled in Part 2 - 60 Minutes - Air Date 3-1-26 A3: Trump Eyes Personal Lawyer to Run DOJ Part 2 - The Beat W Ari Melber - Air Date 6-4-26 (01:25:33) SECTION B: MALICIOUS PROSECUTIONS B1: Small DoJ Energy - Opening Arguments - Air Date 2-20-26 B2: The Vindictive DOJ Part 1 - Law and Chaos - Air Date 6-4-26 B3: The Malicious Incompetence of Trump's DOJ - Strict Scrutiny - Air Date 6-15-25 B4: The Vindictive DOJ Part 2 - Law and Chaos - Air Date 6-4-26 (02:00:59) SECTION C: WEAPONIZED DEPARTMENT C1: Zero Intelligence Part 1 - UnJustified - Air Date 6-7-26 C2: Fraud on the Court Even as DOJ Drops $1.8B Settlement Fund, Judge Reopens Case Over Collusion Part 2 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-3-26 C3: 35 Judges Say Trump's DOJ Committed Fraud on the Court - Opening Arguments - Air Date 6-5-26 C4: Trump Rewards Criminals with Latest Pardons - The Mary Trump Podcast - Air Date 11-11-25 C5: ICYMI Trump Pardons Top Jan. 6 Conspirators - 1A - Air Date 11-11-25 C6: Zero Intelligence Part 2 - UnJustified - Air Date 6-7-26 (02:44:07) SECTION D: HOLLOWED OUT D1: More Frustrated Prosecutors at the U.S Attorney's Office in Minnesota Call It Quits - All Things Considered - Air Date 2-5-26 D2: 2900 DOJ Lawyers SUDDENLY QUIT on Trump IN MASS EXODUS - MeidasTouch - Air Date 12-25-25   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 6/17/2026 Today we trace a pattern that repeated across half a dozen states this primary season: working-class candidates running on the cost of living beat the opponents party leadership hand-picked and funded. It looks like ordinary election news, but it's more pieces of a larger shift already underway; away from a politics of left against right and toward a new era of the elite vs working people. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: Hayes: Trump Is Chasing Good Press with Bombs - All In with Chris Hayes - Air Date 6-11-26 KP 2: Bernie Sanders Just Won Them All - The Rational National - Air Date 6-10-26 KP 3: We Sat AOC Down With Republican Voters. Can She Win Them Over? - More Perfect Union and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez - Air Date 6-9-26 KP 4: "Fetterman Vibes?" DSA Dem WON'T DEFEND Graham Platner - Breaking Points - Air Date 6-9-26 KP 5: Abdul El-Sayed Thinks the Michigan Senate Race Will Come Down to This One Factor - Slate and Abdul El-Sayed - Air Date 4-30-26 (00:49:39) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Counterfeit Populism Is Dying My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (01:05:26) SECTION A: READING THE PRIMARY MAP A1: Voters Reject the Establishment in This Week's Primaries - The NPR Politics Podcast - Air Date 6-4-26 A2: Josh Turek, Democratic Senate Nominee, on Why Iowa Will Flip Blue - Brian Tyler Cohen News - Air Date 6-3-26 A3: The Graham Platner Debate Part 1 - Majority 54 - Air Date 6-4-26 A4: Kentucky Senate Seat Is 'most Flippable' Race, Says Democrat Charles Booker - Meet The Press NOW _ NBC News NOW - Air Date 5-19-26 A5: The Democratic Establishment Can Be Defeated - Current Affairs - Air Date 5-15-26 (01:45:20) SECTION B: THE PLATNER RECKONING B1: How Maine Democrats View Platner's Scandals and Chances to Oust Sen. Collins - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 6-9-26 B2: Graham Platner's Billionaire-Bashing Message Resonates in Maine Senate Race, Despite Controversies - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-8-26 B3: Why I Left the (White) Left - Signified B Sides - Air Date 6-2-26 B4: We Need to Talk About The Graham Platner Left (ft@noahsamsen_) - The Kavernacle and Noah Samsen - Air Date 5-27-26 B5: The Graham Platner Debate Part 2 - Majority 54 - Air Date 6-4-26 (02:30:13) SECTION C: THE TEXAS SENATE FIGHT C1: Talarico Derangement Syndrome & Calling Stephen Miller Ugly Part 1 - Head in the Office - Air Date 5-29-26 C2: Can We Win Texas? - Majority 54 - Air Date 5-28-26 C3: Talarico Derangement Syndrome & Calling Stephen Miller Ugly Part 2 - Head in the Office - Air Date 5-29-26 (02:56:11) SECTION D: DEFENDING THE VOTE & THE LONG VIEW D1: MAGA's California Fraud Lie Falls Apart Instantly - All In with Chris Hayes - Air Date 6-9-26 D2: Their Votes Should Count. Yours Shouldn't. That's the Whole Argument. - Takes™ by Jamelle Bouie - Air Date 6-9-26 D3: The Election Interference Evidence No One Is Talking About - The Real News Podcast - Air Date 6-8-26 D4: The Washington Roundtable Live: The Backlash Midterms - The Political Scene | The New Yorker - Air Date 6-5-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 6/12/2026 Today we examine how America caused a loneliness epidemic by tearing down the places where people used to find each other, how big tech is offering AI as a lackluster substitute for connection, and how people are building the opposite of loneliness with block parties, labor unions, and community gardens. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: How Capitalism Causes Loneliness Part 1 - Second Thought - Air Date 6-2-23 KP 2: Anthropic Discovers the Axis of Evil, and AIs Loneliness Economy - The AI Fix - Air Date 2-3-26 KP 3: The Political Economy of Love Attention, Affection, & What Capitalism Can't Buy Part 1 - Rev Left Radio - Air Date 1-19-26 KP 4: What Do We Mean by Humane Tech Part 1 - Your Undivided Attention - Air Date 6-4-26 KP 5: Stone Soup A Recipe for Community Organizing Marina Barnett Part 1 - TEDxWidenerUniversity - Air Date 10-24-22 KP 6: The Simple Habit for a Happier Social Life Nicholas Epley Part 1 - TEDTalks - Air Date 5-19-26 (00:49:32) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Why the Left Needs to Have More Fun to Build Real Power My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (00:59:32) SECTION A: THE LONELINESS WE LIVE IN A1: Loneliness - Capitalism's Collateral Damage - Democracy At Work - Air Date 8-29-22 A2: How Capitalism Causes Loneliness Part 2 - Second Thought - Air Date 6-2-23 A3: Loneliness - Capitalism's Collateral Damage Part 2 - Democracy At Work - Air Date 8-29-22 A4: The Political Economy of Love Attention, Affection, & What Capitalism Can't Buy Part 2 - Rev Left Radio - Air Date 1-19-26 (01:29:54) SECTION B: AI COMPANION MACHINE B1: Can AI Companionship Cure Loneliness – or Deepen It Part 1 - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 2-27-26 B2: People Are Lonelier Than Ever. Enter AI. - Your Undivided Attention - Air Date 5-30-25 B3: The Dark Side of AI Companions, and the 1930s LLM - The AI Fix - Air Date 5-5-26 B4: What Do We Mean by Humane Tech Part 2 - Your Undivided Attention - Air Date 6-4-26 B5: Can AI Companionship Cure Loneliness – or Deepen It Part 2 - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 2-27-26 (02:18:26) SECTION C: REFRACTIONS AND REACH-OUTS C1: Gladiators, Real Housewives and the Pull of Reality TV Part 1 - Throughline - Air Date 4-30-26 C2: If Hope Is a Muscle, Then How Do I Build It Part 1 - How to Survive the End of the World - Air Date 4-10-26 C3: Gladiators, Real Housewives and the Pull of Reality TV Part 2 - Throughline - Air Date 4-30-26 C4: If Hope Is a Muscle, Then How Do I Build It Part 2 - How to Survive the End of the World - Air Date 4-10-26 C5: The Simple Habit for a Happier Social Life Nicholas Epley Part 2 - TEDTalks - Air Date 5-19-26 (02:58:25) SECTION D: BUILDING IT BACK D1: Stone Soup A Recipe for Community Organizing Marina Barnett Part 2 - TEDxWidenerUniversity - Air Date 10-24-22 D2: How People Are Combatting Loneliness with Community Connections - The Newsfeed - Air Date 5-22-26 D3: Solo How Do We Make the Left Fun Again - The Bardo Podcast - Air Date 3-10-26 D4: Being Human with Marshall Ganz Part 1 - Practical Wisdom for Leaders - Air Date 5-20-26 D5: Biko Koenig, Worker Centered Allyship & Action in the Contemporary Labor Movement (Oxford UP, 2024) Part 1 - In Conversation An OUP Podcast - Air Date 3-11-26 D6: Being Human with Marshall Ganz Part 2 - Practical Wisdom for Leaders - Air Date 5-20-26 D7: Biko Koenig, Worker Centered Allyship & Action in the Contemporary Labor Movement (Oxford UP, 2024) Part 2 - In Conversation An OUP Podcast - Air Date 3-11-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 6/10/2026 Today we explore how Taiwan's own people are stuck between the US and China. Fewer and fewer of them want to rejoin China but their faith in America is sinking just as fast as Trump treats them as a bargaining chip. Their own leaders are split on how to respond. And the place that makes most of the world's advanced chips has almost no seat at the table where its future is being decided. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: Xi, Putin & Trump - Who Really Runs the World? | To the Point - DW News - Air Date 5-21-26 KP 2: Can There Ever Really Be "one China?" - Vox - Air Date 5-28-26 KP 3: How the US Is Trying to Challenge China's Critical Mineral Dominance Part 1 - The China in Africa Podcast - Air Date 5-28-26 KP 4: Why Did Trump Take Elon Musk to China? - Paul Krugman - Air Date 5-14-26 KP 5: Why This Island Could Trigger World War 3 - Johnny Harris - Air Date 12-18-25 KP 6: China Will Never Beat Taiwan, Here's Why - Maxinomics - Air Date 3-37-26 (00:53:26) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR The Stories Nations Tell Will Destroy Us_ China, Taiwan, and Trump My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (01:04:39) SECTION A: THE MAKING OF TAIWAN A1: The Taiwan Conflict, Explained - Ryan Chapman - Air Date 10-13-22 A2: Inside China's Plan to Take Over Taiwan "peacefully" | If You're Listening - ABC NEWS In-depth - Air Date 11-28-25 (01:24:47) SECTION B: THE MULTIPOLAR WORLDVIEW B1: China Rising Part 1: How the Unipolar World Is Ending - Beyond the Ballot Box - Air Date 2-10-26 B2: US Unipolarity Vs China's Multipolarity: Whose Vision Will Shape the New Global Order? B3: China Rising Part 2: Taiwan, Xinjiang, Sovereignty and Human Rights - Beyond the Ballot Box (01:52:00) SECTION C: TAIWAN IN THE CROSSHAIRS C1: What's Behind the Record-breaking $11 Billion US-Taiwan Arms Deal? - DW News - Air Date 12-19-25 C2: Is Taiwan Moving Away From the US? - TLDR News Global - Air Date 4-20-26 (02:09:55) SECTION D: THE SUMMIT AND ITS FALLOUT D1: Xi Warns Trump of Potential "Conflict" Over Taiwan in Beijing Summit on Iran, Trade, Tech & More - Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-14-26 D2: Trump's FAILED Meeting With China's Xi Jinping Was Humiliating - Pod Save the World - Air Date 5-21-26 D3: Strait to the Abyss - The Muckrake Political Podcast - Air Date 6-2-26 D4: Xi Hosts Putin in Beijing, Cementing China-Russia Alliance After Trump's Visit - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 5-20-26 (02:39:44) SECTION E: THE RESOURCE WAR AND AFRICA E1: How the US Is Trying to Challenge China's Critical Mineral Dominance Part 2 - The China in Africa Podcast - Air Date 5-28-26 E2: Why 3 African States Said No to Taiwan - The China in Africa Podcast - Air Date 4-23-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 6–5-2026 Today we explore sportswashing past and present, from fascist dictators who first weaponized the World Cup to FIFA's modern extractivism model of corrupt capitalism, and why workers, unions, and fans are now organizing to reclaim the game from those profiting off it. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: Trump Is a 'master Marketer' Symone Reacts to President Getting FIFA Peace Prize - Chris Jansing Reports - Air Date 12-5-25 KP 2: Jules Boykoff on World Cup and Sportswashing Part 1 - CounterSpin - Air Date 5-15-26 KP 3: The Fascist World Cup Part 1 - Power Plays - Air Date 5-21-26 KP 4: Exploring the Sportwashing, Greed and Corruption of the 2026 World Cup - The Blazing Musket Podcast - Air Date 5-6-26 KP 5: Trump LOSES IT as FIFA SUFFERS MAJOR CRISIS!! Part 1 - MeidasTouch - Air Date 5-6-26 KP 6: Jules Boykoff on World Cup and Sportswashing Part 2 - CounterSpin - Air Date 5-15-26 (00:45:01) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR FIFA, Trump, and the Patriotism Scam They're Running on America My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (01:01:55) SECTION A: TRUMP'S PLAYBOOK A1: Is This the Most Political World Cup of All Time Part 1 - The Global Story - Air Date 5-25-26 A2: As the World Cup Arrives in Seattle, so Do the Contradictions Part 1 - Soundside - Air Date 5-18-26 (01:14:02) SECTION B: FASCIST ORIGINS B1: Sportswashing Explained Part 1 - Rights & Wrongs - Air Date 5-25-26 B2: Soccers Shadow And Sunlight the Fascist History of the World Cup and 20 Years of Soccer Without Borders Part 1 - Edge of Sports - Air Date 5-28-26 B3: The Fascist World Cup Part 2 - Power Plays - Air Date 5-21-26 B4: Soccers Shadow And Sunlight the Fascist History of the World Cup and 20 Years of Soccer Without Borders Part 2 - Edge of Sports - Air Date 5-28-26 (01:55:31) SECTION C: GREED MACHINE C1: Trump LOSES IT as FIFA SUFFERS MAJOR CRISIS!! Part 2 - MeidasTouch - Air Date 5-6-26 C2: As the World Cup Arrives in Seattle, so Do the Contradictions Part 2 - Soundside - Air Date 5-18-26 C3: Exploring the Sportwashing, Greed and Corruption of the 2026 World Cup Part 2 - The Blazing Musket Podcast - Air Date 5-6-26 (02:19:47) SECTION D: PUSHBACK D1: Cuba Latest, Louisiana Primary, World Cup Travel - Up First From NPR - Air Date 5-16-26 D2: Trump Gets HIS KARMA as FIFA WORLD CUP COLLAPSES!!!! - MeidasTouch - Air Date 4-16-26 D3: Sportswashing Explained Part 2 - Rights & Wrongs - Air Date 5-25-26 D4: Is This the Most Political World Cup of All Time Part 2 - The Global Story - Air Date   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 6–3-2026 Today we examine the AI industry's economic house of cards, the ideology Silicon Valley uses to sell a broken product, and the very real human costs being paid by workers, the lonely, and communities bulldozed for data centers nobody asked for. Direct Download Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: The AI Backlash Just Got VERY Public - House of El - AI - Air Date 5-24-26 KP 2: The AI Industry Is Losing - Better Offline - Air Date 5-26-26 KP 3: The Aesthetic Pipeline to Techno-Fascism - Alice Cappelle - Air Date 5-27-26 KP 4: Joe Rogan Accidentally Exposed AI in Four Words - Mo Bitar - Air Date 5-22-26 KP 5: How AI Companions Are Destroying Human Intimacy | Angela Ivy Leong | TEDxWest Vancouver - TEDx Talks - Air Date 1-14-26 KP 6: Astra Taylor on AI Data Center Resistance & Fighting "Billionaire Big Tech Agenda"- Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-13-26 (00:51:20) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR AI Is a Drug and We're All Self-Medicating My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (01:09:29) SECTION A: THE BUBBLE ECONOMICS A1: Will SpaceX and OpenAI Starve the Market? - UNFTR Media - Air Date 5-26-26 A2: Karen Hao: AI Creating a DESPERATE BASE OF WORKERS with No Full-time Employment - Channel 4 News - Air Date 5-22-26 A3: AI and Cancer: Why Superintelligence Won't Get Us to a Cure - Your Undivided Attention - Air Date 4-30-26 (01:37:24) SECTION B: IDEOLOGY OF THE TECH ELITE B1: The Left Doesn't Hate Technology with Gita Jackson - Tech Won't Save Us - Air Date 3-12-26 B2: Why We Should Care About the Pope's AI Crusade - The Tech Report - Air Date 5-26-26 B3: The UK Government's AI Obsession Is a Big Risk with Will Dunn - Tech Won't Save Us - Air Date 5-14-26 B4: Maybe It's a Bad Idea To Put Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and Sam Altman In Charge of AI - Some More News - Air Date 5-23-26 B5: Have We Trained AI to Lie to Itself — And to Us? - Your Undivided Attention - Air Date 4-16-26 (02:21:29) SECTION C: THE HUMAN COST C1: Why AI Friends Will Never Work - The Upgrade with Makai Allbert - Air Date 5-25-26 C2: Richard Dawkins Fell for a Chatbot - Steve Shives - Air Date 5-4-26 C3: She Spent 12 Years Fighting Amazon. Now She Wants to Cut the Power to AI. - For Humanity: An AI Risk Podcast - Air Date 5-2-26 C4: There Is No Such Thing as AI Art ♥️ - Matt Bernstein - Air Date 5-22-26 (02:50:10) SECTION D: RESISTANCE & HOW TO FIGHT BACK D1: How to Talk About AI Risk Without Scaring People Away (With Philip Trippenbach) | For Humanity 82 - For Humanity: An AI Risk Podcast - Air Date 3-28-26 D2: Why AI Doom Content Is Everywhere- Taylor Lorenz - Air Date 5-27-26 D3: How to Talk About AI Risk Without Scaring People Away (With Philip Trippenbach) | For Humanity 82 - For Humanity: An AI Risk Podcast - Air Date 3-28-26 D4: Those Graduation Speakers Getting Booed Right Now - Man Carrying Thing - Air Date 5-23-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 5–30-2026 Today we examine how Trump turned a sham lawsuit into a $1.8 billion reward fund for his political allies who attacked the Capitol on January 6th while implementing a counterterrorism strategy that erases right-wing extremism from the threat landscape, refocuses on left-wing violence that hardly exists and threatens to "find and kill" those they deem enemies. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche Defends New $1.8B Anti-Weaponization Fund - Trump's Terms - Air Date 5-20-26 KP 2: Congress Strikes Back as Trump Rushes $1.8 Billion Scam - Legal AF by MeidasTouch - Air Date 5-18-26 KP 3: Dictatorship in Action David Cay Johnston on $1.8B Slush Fund Part 1 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-20-26 KP 4: Some Republicans in Congress Are Standing up to Trump - The NPR Politics Podcast - Air Date 5-22-26 KP 5: Why Jan. 6 Officers Are Suing to Stop Trump's $1.8 Billion Allies Fund - Here & Now Anytime - Air Date 5-21-26 KP 6: We Will Find You and We Will Kill You Part 1 - The Intercept Briefing - Air Date 5-15-26 KP 7: Daily Take Republicans Found $1.8 Billion Overnight for Trumps Thugs — So Why Are Seniors Choosing Between Food and Medicine - The Hartmann Report - Air Date 5-22-26 KP 8: Dictatorship in Action David Cay Johnston on $1.8B Slush Fund Part 2 - Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-20-26 (00:53:15) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Trump's $1.8B Slush Fund & the Corruption We Saw Coming My commentaries on YouTube - Share them! DEEPER DIVES (01:11:48) SECTION A: ANATOMY OF THE HEIST A1: Andrew Weissman on Trumps $1.8 Billion Settlement with Himself Part 1 - Brian Lehrer: A Daily Podcast - Air Date 5-20-26 A2: Trump's $1.8 Billion DOJ-Facilitated Taxpayer Heist; Guest Robert Weissman of Public Citizen Part 1 - The BradCast - Air Date 5-18-26 A3: McConnell RIPS Trumps Jan. 6 Slush Fund as Utterly Stupid, Morally Wrong - All In W Chris Hayes - Air Date 5-21-26 (01:34:28) SECTION B: THE BIGGER PATTERN B1: Trump's $1.8 Billion DOJ-Facilitated Taxpayer Heist; Guest Robert Weissman of Public Citizen Part 2 - The BradCast - Air Date 5-18-26 B2: Andrew Weissman on Trumps $1.8 Billion Settlement with Himself Part 2 - Brian Lehrer A Daily Podcast - Air Date 5-20-26 B3: Craven Corruption - The Practivist Pod - Air Date 5-21-26 (01:57:06) SECTION C: ENEMIES OF THE STATE C1: Sources & Methods Trump's Counterterrorism Plan Part 1 - The NPR Politics Podcast - Air Date 5-25-26 C2: Trumps New Counterterrorism Strategy and the Spectre of Left-Wing Violence Part 1 - It Could Happen Here - Air Date 5-12-26 C3: Sources & Methods Trump's Counterterrorism Plan Part 2 - The NPR Politics Podcast - Air Date 5-25-26 C4: We Will Find You and We Will Kill You Part 2 - The Intercept Briefing - Air Date 5-15-26 C5: Trumps New Counterterrorism Strategy and the Spectre of Left-Wing Violence - It Could Happen Here - Air Date 5-12-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 5–26-2026 Today we examine what separates successful revolutions from failed ones, ask why so many revolutions of the 2010s fell short, understand how revolutionary energy gets neutralized, and explore the strategic case for nonviolent resistance. Full Show Notes Transcript Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: What Makes a Revolution Successful? - The Inquiry - Air Date 5-16-18 KP 2: Left Behind: the Failed Revolutions of the 2010s - The Politics Show - Air Date 2-5-24 KP 3: Is The US In Its French Revolution Era? - Leeja Miller - Air Date 5-13-26 KP 4: How Progress Erases Itself - Dan Harumi - Air Date 5-18-26 KP 5: Why Nonviolence Wins - Degenerate Art by Andrea Pitzer - Air Date 5-14-26 (00:54:11) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Why the Left Keeps Losing to the Right DEEPER DIVES (01:13:12) SECTION A: ANATOMY OF FAILURE A1: Lessons From a Decade of Failed Revolutions - Front Burner - Air Date 1-2-24 A2: Why Revolutions Fail - Hello Future Me - Air Date 9-9-23 A3: How and Why Revolutions Occur - LegalKimchi - Air Date 12-12-22 A4: Difference Between a Coup and a Revolution? - Sean Munger - Air Date 1-12-21 (01:54:11) SECTION B: REVISITING THE RECORD B1: What Was the Iranian Revolution Really About? With Scott Anderson - Intelligence Squared - Air Date 11-2-25 B2: "Counter-Revolution of 1776": Was U.S. Independence War a Conservative Revolt in Favor of Slavery? - Democracy Now! - Air Date 6-27-14 B3: In Defense of Che Guevara (How the Media Lies to You) - Overzealots - Air Date 1-26-25 B4: The Warriors of a Failed Revolution - Narratively Out Loud - Air Date 9-30-20 (02:32:02) SECTION C: THE CURRENT MOMENT C1: Why Fascism Fails - Then & Now - Air Date 5-18-26 C2: What Is the Relevance of the Russian Revolution Today? A Debate with Kshama Sawant & Eric Blanc - Haymarket Books Live - Air Date 9-26-22 C3: To Save The World, Stop Working - Extra Andrewism - Air Date 5-19-26 C4: Why the Epstein Files Didn't Start a Revolution - Uncivilized - Air Date 4-21-26 C5: "Forget What The Ruling Class Deems Unacceptable. Revolution Is Illegal" - Ed Mead On A Life In Struggle - Millennials Are Killing Capitalism - Air Date 5-26-22 (03:25:38) SECTION D: STRATEGY AND PRACTICE D1: How To Start A Revolution Part 1 - Andrewism - Air Date 12-7-22 D2: Revolution: A How-To Guide - Hakim - Air Date 5-29-21 D3: How To Start A Revolution Part 2 - Andrewism - Air Date 12-7-22   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 5–23-2026 Today we examine the real-world cost of dismantling America's public health infrastructure, the dangerous pseudoscience driving RFK Jr.'s health agenda, and the contradictions fracturing the MAHA movement from within.And now on to the show Full Show Notes Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: Trump Looks Foolish for Choice of Kennedy and Deep Cuts at CDC as Real-world Perils Play Out - The Rachel Maddow Show - Air Date 5-12-26 KP 2: 'The Wheels Are Coming Off': Trump Already Less Popular Than After Jan. 6 - All In with Chris Hayes - Air Date 4-22-26 KP 3: How RFK, Jr.'s Beliefs Echo a Troubling Ideology | Science Quickly Podcast - Scientific American - Air Date 3-13-26 KP 4: MAHA Moms Are Mad - Today, Explained - Air Date 3-3-26 KP 5: As WHO Declares Ebola Outbreak a Global Health Emergency, Did USAID Cuts Worsen the Crisis - Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-18-26 KP 6: How People with Disabilities Could Bear the Burden of Medicaid Funding Cuts - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 2-3-26 KP 7: RFK Jr Goes Full Eugenics to Congress; IMMIGRANTS BRING DISEASE - Brittany Page - Air Date 4-22-26 (00:54:35) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR RFK's Public Health Descruction is Easier than the Rebuilding We'll have to do Later DEEPER DIVES (01:05:28) SECTION A: THE DAMAGE DONE A1: From COVID to Hepatitis to Measles, RFK Jr. Is Gutting Vaccine Science' Ex-CDC Expert Speaks Out - Democracy Now! - Air Date 12-12-25 A2: FDA Chief Pushed Out in Latest Sign of Public Health Chaos Under RFK Jr. - Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-13-26 A3: WaPo Bombshell: RFK's CDC Burying Report on Covid Vaccine Success - All In with Chris Hayes - Air Date 4-9-26 A4: WATCH: Warnock Criticizes RFK Jr. for CDC Cuts to Rabies Emergency Line - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 4-22-26 A5: World Health Organization Issues Hantavirus Alert - Thom Hartmann Program - Air Date 5-16-26 A6: Can We Trust RFK Jr. On Hantavirus? - The Bitchuation Room (with Francesca Fiorentini) - Air Date 5-13-26 (01:47:09) SECTION B: IDEOLOGY AND THE MISINFORMATION MACHINE B1: Elizabeth Jacobs on RFK Jr. and Public Health - CounterSpin - Air Date 9-5-25 B2: RFK's Antivax Push. Measles Resurges Across America - Roland S. Martin - Air Date 2-24-26 (02:06:42) SECTION C: INSIDE THE MAHA COALITION C1: MAHA's Glyphosate Meltdown [feat Mallory DeMille] Part 1 - Conspirituality - Air Date 3-5-26 C2: Why RFK Jr. Is Projecting a More 'Moderate' MAHA Stance - The Brian Lehrer Show - Air Date 4-27-26 C3: MAHA's Glyphosate Meltdown [feat Mallory DeMille] Part 2 - Conspirituality - Air Date 3-5-26 (02:36:04) SECTION D: HOW A COUNTRY BECOMES "UNDERBABIED" D1: Underbabied? Part 1 - The Professional Left Podcast with Driftglass and Blue Gal - Air Date 5-12-26 D2: RFK Jr. Dissatisfied with Teen Sperm & Sean Duffy Gets Back to Reality - The Daily Show - Air Date 5-12-26 D3: Underbabied? Part 2 - The Professional Left Podcast with Driftglass and Blue Gal - Air Date 5-12-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X

Air Date: 5/20/2026 Today we examine how the Trump administration is quietly reshaping its unpopular immigration crackdown by moving enforcement out of public view. Plus, we explain how anti-immigration politics is spreading through the post-colonial world, highlighting how it's reshaping political parties and public debate in the UK, Canada, and Australia. Full Show Notes Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: Trumps Brutal Immigration Crackdown Continues Part 1 - Velshi - Air Date 3-21-26 KP 2: 'Buyer's Remorse' This Trump Stronghold TURNS on Massive ICE Facility Part 1 - MS Now - Air Date 4-20-26 KP 3: Does Legal Immigration Still Exist Part 1 - What Next - Air Date 2-23-26 KP 4: What TPS Recipients Might Experience if They're Sent Back to Haiti - Brian Lehrer A Daily Podcast - Air Date 4-30-26 KP 5: How The British Made The Far Right Acceptable Daniel Trilling Part 1 - This Is Hell! - Air Date 5-11-26 KP 6: How To Beat The Anti-Immigration Playbook Zoe Gardner Part 1 - Bold Politics with Zack Polanski - Air Date 9-10-26 (00:53:33) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR How ICE Hands Billions to Trump's Donors DEEPER DIVES (01:05:43) SECTION A: THE RESET IS THEATER A1: Trumps Brutal Immigration Crackdown Continues Part 2 - Velshi - Air Date 3-21-26 A2: Trumps ICE Detention Scam with Katie Blankenship Part 1 - The Majority Report - Air Date 4-28-26 A3: Kornacki Large Number of Independents Strongly Disapprove of Trumps Immigration Agenda - NBC News - Air Date 2-11-26 A4: Trump Voters REBEL Against Proposed ICE Detention Centers In Their Backyard - The Logical Leftist - Air Date 1-12-26 A5: Border Czar Promises Mass Deportations On the Way - The DSR Network - Air Date 5-7-26 A6: US President Backs ICE Rebrand Amid Scrutiny as Poll Shows Trump's Immigration Approval Falling - WION - Air Date 4-28-26 (01:42:03) SECTION B: DUE PROCESS DISMANTLED B1: Does Legal Immigration Still Exist Part 2 - What Next - Air Date 2-23-26 B2: Trump Vs. Dreamers Justice Dept. Moves to Make It Easier to Deport 500K+ DACA Recipients - Democracy Now! - Air Date 4-28-26 B3: Supreme Court Appears to Lean Toward Ending TPS for Some Migrants - Trump's Terms - Air Date 4-30-26 B4: Study Finds Trump Administration Cut Legal Immigration Far More Than Illegal Crossings - PBS Newshour - Air Date 4-14-26 (02:08:29) SECTION C: THE GLOBAL FAR-RIGHT PLAYBOOK C1: Starmer Out Pressure Grows on U.K. PM to Resign as Far-Right Reform Party Surges in Local Elections - Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-11-26 C2: "Reform" Of A Lifelong Forever Racist Party In The UK; Tennessee, Virginia, Louisiana Today....The Whole USA Tomorrow - The Politicrat - Air Date 5-8-26 C3: White Supremacy Is a Massive Issue in Canada What's Fuelling the Far Right Part 1 - The Truth - Air Date 2-23-26 C4: Angus Taylors Trumpian Immigration Plan Part 1 - Full Story - Air Date 4-15-26 C5: How The British Made The Far Right Acceptable Daniel Trilling Part 2 - This Is Hell! - Air Date 5-11-26 C6: White Supremacy Is a Massive Issue in Canada What's Fuelling the Far Right Part 2 - The Truth - Air Date 2-23-26 C7: Angus Taylors Trumpian Immigration Plan Part 2 - Full Story - Air Date 4-15-26 (03:06:00) SECTION D: STAKES AND RESISTANCE D1: Can Illinois Hold the Feds Accountable for Immigration Crackdown - Consider This From NPR - Air Date 4-28-26 D2: Trumps ICE Detention Scam with Katie Blankenship Part 2 - The Majority Report - Air Date 4-28-26 D3: 'Buyer's Remorse' This Trump Stronghold TURNS on Massive ICE Facility Part 2 - MS Now - Air Date 4-20-26 D4: How To Beat The Anti-Immigration Playbook Zoe Gardner Part 2 - Bold Politics with Zack Polanski - Air Date 9-10-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 5/15/2026 Today we examine what it would actually take to claw back democracy from billionaire capture — and why some people think it's more possible than it looks. We'll hear about California's proposed billionaire wealth tax, AOC's vision for change that doesn't depend on positional power, and why Peter Thiel's new "AI Tribunal of Truth" may have accidentally revealed exactly what the ruling class fears most. Full Show Notes Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) on Possible 2028 White House Run - C-SPAN - Air Date 5-8-26 KP 2: One State Found a Way to Make Billionaires Pay. Your State Could Be Next. - More Perfect Union, Inequality Media Civic Action, & Robert Reich - Air Date 4-1-26 KP 3: Tech Billionaires Want Us Dead - Taylor Lorenz - Air Date 1-19-26 KP 4: Jeff & Lauren Bezos Make 'Gratitude Lists' as AMAZON WORKERS DIE AT WORK - Brittany Page - Air Date 4-14-26 KP 5: Why Philanthropy [STILL] Isn't the Answer with (with Anand Giridharadas) - Pitchfork Economics with Nick Hanauer - Air Date 5-5-26 KP 6: The Case Against Billionaires | Chuck Collins - Washington Monthly - Air Date 1-5-26 (00:47:44) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Who Owns the Upside? DEEPER DIVES (00:59:03) SECTION A: TECH POWER, SURVEILLANCE, AND THE END OF TRUTH A1: Do Tech Billionaires Want Us Dead? (with Taylor Lorenz) - Team Human with Douglas Rushkoff - Air Date 2-18-26 A2: The End of Work: Why Your Kids Won't Have Careers in 15 Years - Trevor Noah - Air Date 4-19-26 A3: This Is Actually Terrifying - Struthless - Air Date 4-16-26 (01:23:24) SECTION B: BEZOS, AMAZON, AND THE HUMAN COST B1: "Tax the Rich" Is Hate Speech!? - PissedMagistus - Air Date 5-11-26 B2: Why I Support The California Billionaire Tax - Robert Reich and Inequality Media Civic Action - Air Date 4-7-26 (01:32:00) SECTION C: HOW THE TAX CODE BUILT THE ARISTOCRACY C1: How the Tax Code Made an American Aristocracy / Ray Madoff Part 1 - This Is Hell! - Air Date 11-13-25 C2: The Second Estate: Where Billionaires Don't Pay. You Do. (with Ray D. Madoff) - Pitchfork Economics with Nick Hanauer - Air Date 4-14-26 C3: How the Tax Code Made an American Aristocracy / Ray Madoff Part 2 - This Is Hell! - Air Date 11-13-25 C4: The $79 Trillion Price of Inequality (with Carter Price) - Pitchfork Economics with Nick Hanauer - Air Date 3-24-26 (02:08:11) SECTION D: IDEOLOGY OF CAPITAL D1: Why Liberals Always Side with Fascists - Michael Burns - Air Date 4-15-26 D2: How Capitalist Propaganda Sneaks Into TV Shows - Marcus Werner - Air Date 4-17-26 D3: The Capitalist Mindset - The Market Exit - Air Date 9-9-25 (02:34:00) SECTION E: MARKETS IN THE MIND E1: Clavicular Is What Marx Warned Us About - Harper O'Connor - Air Date 5-10-26 E2: How Oligarchs Hijacked America in Just 16 Year - Benaminute - Air Date 4-30-26 (02:55:22) SECTION F: BUBBLE, BACKLASH, AND THE WAY FORWARD F1: It Will Be 17 Times Worse Than the .com Crash - Upper Echelon - Air Date 5-7-26 F2: How to Live a Life That (actually) Matters - The Market Exit and Rutger Bregman - Air Date 9-19-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 5/12/2026 Today we examine the redistricting scramble unleashed by the Supreme Court's gutting of the Voting Rights Act. We'll hear how Southern states moved within days to crack majority-Black districts, how Tennessee banned public input to rush through new maps, and why every governor's race, state legislative seat, and secretary of state contest in 2026 is now a redistricting fight. Full Show Notes Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: Tamara Keith and Amy Walter on Redrawing Congressional Maps and Testing Trump's Power - PBS Newshour - Air Date 5-4-26 KP 2: Louisiana Is Ground Zero for Voting Rights, Abortion Pill Access Part 1 - Boom! Lawyered - Air Date 5-7-26 KP 3: Elie Mystal Supreme Court Gutting Voting Rights Act Is About Again Making US an Apartheid State Part 1 - The Dean Obeidallah Show - Air Date 5-1-26 KP 4: Did Trump's Supreme Court Rig the Midterms Part 1 - Pod Save America - Air Date 5-1-26 KP 5: What Stacey Abrams Thinks About a Recent SCOTUS Decision and the Voting Rights Amendment Part 1 - Soundside - Air Date 5-5-26 KP 6: 'Foolish' Lone Tennessee Dem Rep. Speaks Out Against GOP's Redistricting Push - Ana Cabrera Reports - Air Date 5-6-26 KP 7: Backtalker Kimberlé Crenshaw on New Memoir, Voting Rights, Critical Race Theory & Clarence Thomas - Democracy Now - Air Date 5-6-26 KP 8: What Stacey Abrams Thinks About a Recent SCOTUS Decision and the Voting Rights Amendment Part 2 - Soundside - Air Date 5-526 (00:53:57) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR How One Senate Rule Is Destroying Voting Rights DEEPER DIVES (01:05:18) SECTION A: THE RULING & THE LAW A1: SCOTUS 86s Voting Rights Part 1 - #SistersInLaw - Air Date 5-2-26 A2: The Death Of The Voting Rights Act EXPLAINED Part 1 - Why, America? with Leeja Miller - Air Date 4-30-26 A3: SCOTUS 86s Voting Rights Part 2 - #SistersInLaw - Air Date 5-2-26 (01:24:35) SECTION B: HOW WE GOT HERE B1: John Lewis and the Struggle for Voting Rights - Equal Justice Initiative - Air Date 3-9-26 B2: Tennessee GOP Just Embraced Jim Crow 2.0 to Silence Black Voters Just as Trump Demanded - The Dean Obeidallah Show - Air Date 5-7-26 B3: Louisiana Is Ground Zero for Voting Rights, Abortion Pill Access Part 2 - Boom! Lawyered - Air Date 5-7-26 B4: What Is the Supreme Court Actually Trying to Do - Takes™ by Jamelle Bouie - Air Date 5-2-26 (02:02:53) SECTION C: THE STATES SCRAMBLE C1: 'If You Can Keep It' The Supreme Court And The Voting Rights Act Part 1 - 1A - Air Date 5-4-26 C2: Did Trump's Supreme Court Rig the Midterms Part 2 - Pod Save America - Air Date 5-1-26 C3: 'But Do You Trust Them' Hayes Questions Timing of FBI Raid in Virginia - All In W/ Chris Hayes - Air Date 5-6-26 C4: Trump Pushes to Take Over Elections, Punish His Enemies Pulitzer Prize-Winning Reporter Ned Parker - Democracy Now! - Air Date 5-8-26 C5: BREAKING Virginia Supreme Court Strikes Down Voter-approved House Map - Ana Cabrera Reports - Air Date 5-8-26 C6: 'If You Can Keep It' The Supreme Court And The Voting Rights Act Part 2 - 1A - Air Date 5-4-26 (02:43:06) SECTION D: WHAT COMES NEXT D1: Fighting for Our Voting Rights! - Practivist Pod - Air Date 4-30-26 D2: The Death Of The Voting Rights Act EXPLAINED Part 2 - Why, America? with Leeja Miller - Air Date 4-30-26 D3: Louisiana Is Ground Zero for Voting Rights, Abortion Pill Access Part 3 - Boom! Lawyered - Air Date 5-7-26 D4: Elie Mystal Supreme Court Gutting Voting Rights Act Is About Again Making US an Apartheid State Part 2 - The Dean Obeidallah Show - Air Date 5-1-26   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 5–9-2026 Today we examine how political violence has always been woven into the fabric of American life and who gets to decide what counts as violence in the first place. We'll hear about presidential assassinations, the assassination of Fred Hampton, the MOVE bombing in Philadelphia, and the long history of state-sanctioned violence. And I'll discuss the only real way to bend the curve back away from endemic violence in the US.  Full show notes Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Use our links to shop Bookshop.org and Libro.fm for a non-evil book and audiobook purchasing experience! Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: The Real 'Political Violence' in America - Taylor Lorenz - Air Date 9-12-25 KP 2: The Largely Forgotten History of Philadelphias Police Bombing of Black Organization MOVE - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 5-17-25 KP 3: America's History of Assassinations and Political Violence - Front Burner - Air Date 7-16-24 KP 4: America's Addiction to Gun Violence, Racism, and White Rage Will Be Its Downfall Part 1 - The Chauncey DeVega Show -Air Date 9-19-25 KP 5: "Slow Civil War" Author Jeff Sharlet on the Growing NormalAation of Violence at Home & Abroad - Democracy Now! - Air Date 4-27-26 KP 6: The World Is Broken and on Fire. Use Your Anger to Remake It for the Better - The Chauncey DeVega Show - Air Date 3-25-26 (00:50:50) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Why Billionaires Now Fear Civil War DEEPER DIVES (01:04:57) SECTION A: THE FRAMING WARS A1: The White House Correspondents Dinner Shooting: What the "Political Violence" Framing Is Hiding - Resistance History with Tad Stoermer - Air Date 4-26-26 A2: Who's to Blame for Political Violence? - WSJ Opinion: Free Expression - Air Date 9-17-25- Air Date 9-17-25 A3: We're MASSIVELY Overstating Our Political Violence Problem — and That's Dangerous! | Sean Westwood - People Who Read People: A Behavior and Psychology Podcast - Air Date 9-16-24 A4: Assassination Nation – Start Your Week with Ros Taylor - The Bunker – News Without the Nonsense - Air Date 4-27-26 (01:32:09) SECTION B: THE LONG AMERICAN TRADITION B1: The Pen or the Sword? How Lincoln and John Brown Disagreed on Achieving Emancipation Part 1 - History Unplugged Podcast - Air Date 2-23-21 B2: A History of US Political Violence - Americast - Air Date 11-2-22 B3: The Pen or the Sword? How Lincoln and John Brown Disagreed on Achieving Emancipation Part 2 - History Unplugged Podcast - Air Date 2-23-21 (01:52:52) SECTION C: STATE VIOLENCE AND ANTI-BLACKNESS C1: WATCH: "The Assassination of Fred Hampton: How the FBI and Chicago Police Murdered a Black Panther" - Democracy Now! - Air Date 12-4-14 C2: America's Addiction to Gun Violence, Racism, and White Rage Will Be Its Downfall Part 2 - The Chauncey DeVega Show -Air Date 9-19-25 (02:12:44) SECTION D: THE RIGHT-WING ENGINE D1: Political Violence In The U.S. Part 1 - The NPR Politics Podcast - Air Date 6-16-25 D2: Timothy McVeigh and the Rise of Right-Wing Extremism - The Lawfare Podcast - Air Date 5-25-23 D3: Political Violence In The U.S. Part 2 - The NPR Politics Podcast - Air Date 6-16-25Political Violence In The U.S. The NPR Politics Podcast Jun 16, 2025 (02:36:23) SECTION E: THE SYSTEM AND WHAT COMES NEXT E1: Assassin Nation with Patrick Blanchfield - The Dig - Air Date 12-18-24 E2: Holding Out for a Hero Feat. Hasan Piker - Chapo Trap House - Air Date 4-27-26 E3: The Cole Hard Truth - The Muckrake Political Podcast - Air Date 4-28-26 Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 05-06-2026  Today we examine how the U.S. war on Iran is producing an economic crisis with echoes of the 1970s stagflation era which explains why Trump is now less popular on inflation than Jimmy Carter. We'll also be exploring various element of the structure of our economy, including how GDP became a deeply misleading measure of welfare, why consumer spending increasingly goes toward things people don't want to buy, and how gambling and junk fees are literally counted as economic growth. Full Show Notes Check out our new show, SOLVED! on YouTube! Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: Simply Wrong GOP Lawmakers Caught LYING About Gas Prices Part 1 - All In with Chris Hayes - Air Date 4-30-26 KP 2: Economic Implications of the U.S. War on Iran Part 1 - Economic Update with Richard Wolff - Air Date 4-14-26 KP 3: These Georgia Swing Voters Do Not Like the Iran War - The NPR Politics Podcast - Air Date 4-16-26 KP 4: Monday Morning Economy Politics Inflation Soars Part 1 - The Brian Lehrer Show - Air Date 4-13-26 KP 5: Fiasco for Trump as Leaked GOP Memo Warns of Epic Midterm Bloodbath - The Daily Blast with Greg Sargent - Air Date 5-1-26 KP 6: From Safety Net to Power Base Reclaiming Economic Power for Working People (with Jamie Keene) Part 1 - Pitchfork Economics with Nick Hanauer - Air Date 4-21-26 KP 7: Simply Wrong GOP Lawmakers Caught LYING About Gas Prices Part 2 - All In with Chris Hayes - Air Date 4-30-26 (00:56:48) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Trump's Iran War Is Crashing the Economy And It's Time To Get Ready DEEPER DIVES (01:05:14) SECTION A: THE PUMP AND THE WAR (01:28:41) SECTION B: LIES, SPIN, AND THE ROARING ECONOMY (02:00:33) SECTION C: THE BOOMCESSION (02:39:10) SECTION D: WHAT THIS COSTS REAL PEOPLE Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 05/01/2026 The Monthly-ish Mix™ is here to get you caught up on recent news without being overwhelming! This month we open with Jesse Jackson's death as a reckoning with the multiracial coalition America chose not to build, trace the American playbook from the 1953 Iran coup to Cuba to the current war on Iran, examine how the same logic of control operates at home through AI monopolies, sports money, and captured courts, and close with the religious and labor traditions that have always driven change — plus Orbán's defeat in Hungary as proof that authoritarian projects don't last forever. Full Show Notes Check out our new show, SOLVED! on YouTube! Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! PART 1: AMERICA, CONTESTED (00:01:19) #1775 - Jesse Jackson's Rainbow Coalition and the Remaking of American Politics (00:23:12) #1776 - Trump's Pharaoh Complex, Our Flawed Constitution, and the 250th Anniversary PART 2: THE AMERICAN WAY (00:45:27) #1777 - How Christian Nationalism, Oil, and Zionism Built The War Against Iran (01:06:48) #1782 - Cuba's Crisis: Trump's Deadly Embargo, Blackouts, and Dream of Regime Change (01:29:45) #1785 - Iran and the Chain Reaction: The War Nobody Thought Through (Or, Bomb First, Think Never) PART 3: CONTROLLING THE GAME (01:51:40) #1778 - AI, the Pentagon, Labor and Capitalism: The Fight Over Who Controls the Future (02:15:29) #1781 - Your Team Is a Hedge Fund Now: How Gambling and Billionaires Captured American Sports 02:29:38) #1783 - The Ideology of a Cancer Cell: AI, Surveillance, and Silicon Valley's Psychopath Problem (02:51:36) #1784 - Who Gets to Be American, Who Gets to Vote, and Who Decides PART 4: HISTORY'S ENGINE (03:17:49) #1779 - Community After God: Why the Left Needs What Church Provided (03:43:07) #1780 - Cynicism Is a Scab: Hope, Solidarity, and the Labor Fight That Never Stopped (04:09:26) #1786 - Defeating Viktor Orbán in Hungary and the Authoritarian Playbook Worldwide   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads

Air Date: 4–29-2026 Today we explore the extraordinary clash between Pope Leo XIV and the Trump White House — a feud involving military threats, medieval papal history, and an American-born pope who refuses to back down. We'll hear why analysts say MAGA's religiosity is pure aesthetic, and what that hollowness means for the millions of Americans still taking their faith seriously. Full Show Notes Transcript Check out our new show, SOLVED! on YouTube Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, message us on Signal at the handle bestoftheleft.01, or email Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community TOP TAKES KP 1: "Two Versions of Christianity": Pope Leo Calls for Peace as U.S. Uses Religion to Justify Iran War - Democracy Now! - Air Date 4-1-26 KP 2: What's Driving the Surge of Catholic Converts? Plus Gabriel Salguero - The Holy Post - Air Date 4-1-26 KP 3: What's Behind a Growing Rift Between Conservative U.S. Catholics and the Vatican - PBS NewsHour - Air Date 12-16-23 KP 4: Why Are US Catholics Like That !? - The Kavernacle - Air Date 4-16-26 KP 5: Pope Bob Vs. Trump World Part 1 - Conspirituality - Air Date 5-22-25 KP 6: Did Trump Officials Threaten the Vatican' The Avignon Papacy Warning Explained - SWAJ with Brad Onishi and Dan Miller - Air Date 4-11-26 KP 7: Republicans .0002 Seconds After the Pope Says Anything - Man Carrying Thing - Air Date 4-18-26 (00:47:36) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Pope Leo vs. Trump: The Catholic Opening Democrats Are Blowing DEEPER DIVES (00:56:09) SECTION A: TRUMP AND COMPANY'S LOVE/HATE PAPAL RELATIONSHIP (01:39:29) SECTION B: ANTI CATHOLIC SENTIMENT IN AMERICA (02:05:17) SECTION C: THE POPE VS THE TRUMP (02:49:26) SECTION D: SOME MISC HISTORICAL CONTEXT SHOW IMAGE CREDITS Description: Composite image of Pope Leo XIV and Trump against the background of Trump's AI image of himself as Jesus. Credit: Internal design. Components: 1. "Pope Leo XIV 3 (3x4 crop)" by Edgar Beltran, The Pillar via Wikimedia Commons | CC BY-SA 3.0 | Changes: Transparent background | 2. "Donald Trump" by Gage Skidmore, Flickr | CC BY-SA 2.0 | Changes: Transparent background | 3. Trump as Jesus, AI image, Truth Social, Public Domain

Air Date: 4/24/2026 Today we explore how Viktor Orban spent 16 years transforming Hungary into a blueprint for 21st-century autocracy, how that blueprint traveled directly to the United States and what Hungary's stunning defeat of Orban can teach Americans about fighting back against authoritarianism. Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, 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! BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: If Hungary Can Do It Part 1 - Radio Atlantic - Air Date 4-16-26 KP 2: What Orban's Loss Means for Anti-Fascists; Iran's Endgame with Jason Stanley, Mohammad Ali Shabani Part 1 - The Majority Report - Air Date 4-14-26 KP 3: Viktor Orbán Part 1 - Last Week Tonight with John Oliver - Air Date 3-30-26 KP 4: How Do Peter Magyar's Politics Differ From Orban's Right-wing Populism Part 1 - DW News - Air Date 4-13-26 KP 5: On Tyranny, Orbán, and Trump (with Timothy Snyder) Part 1 - Stay Tuned with Preet - Air Date 4-16-26 KP 6: They Actually Voted Him Out Part 1 - Takes™ by Jamelle Bouie - Air Date 4-16-26 KP 7: Viktor Orban's Loss in Hungary Gives Us the Roadmap to Destroy MAGA! - The Dean Obeidallah Show - Air Date 4-12-26 (00:48:33) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Trumpism Won't End With Trump, Here's What Comes Next DEEPER DIVES (00:56:57) SECTION A: ORIGINS (01:37:50) SECTION B: TACTICS (02:03:08) SECTION C: INTERNATIONAL SHOW IMAGE CREDITS Description: Photo of Hungary's out-going president Victor Orban standing with Trump in the White House while both display a thumbs-up. A "REJECTED" stamp is on Orban and a voting checkbox with an "X" in it is above him. A voting checkbox with a question mark in it is over Trump. Credit: Internal design. Component images: Pixabay Photo Credit: "President Victor Orban and President Trump", White House Instagram, Nov. 7, 2025 | Public Domain   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X

Re-Air Date: 4-21-2026 Original Air Date: 1–18-2020 Today we take a look at The Afghanistan Papers which reveal in stark detail much of what the anti-war movement has known or strongly suspected since the beginning. Going beyond the scope of The Pentagon Papers of the Vietnam War era, The Afghanistan Papers feature interviews and documentation from top-ranking officials admitting from the start that they had no idea what they were doing in Afghanistan. Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, 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! BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! SHOW NOTES Ch. 1: Headlines: The Afghanistan Papers - Democracy Now - Air Date 12-10-19 Ch. 2: The "Pentagon Papers" Of Our Time with Craig Whitlock - On the Media - Air Date 12-20-19 Ch. 3: They Lied To Us All Along with Danny Sjursen - The Real News with Marc Steiner - Air Date 12-15-19 Ch. 4: The Truth About The War In Afghanistan with Craig Whitlock - The Brian Lehrer Show - Air Date 12-16-19 Ch. 5: The Afghan Pentagon Papers - The Michael Brooks Show - Air Date 12-14-19 Ch. 6: The Afghanistan Papers - Eyes Left with Spenser Rapone and Mike Prysner - Air Date 12-16-19 Ch. 7: The Afghanistan Papers with Steven Miles - News Beat with Rashed Mian and Christopher Twarowski - Air Date 12-23-19 SHOW IMAGE: "Afghanistan War Anniversary", Jayel Aheram on Flickr / License / Changes: Zoomed in and cropped   Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere!

Air Date: 4-8-26 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon, and Erin discuss:   Ch. 1 - The history of the war on poverty in the U.S. Ch. 2 - How the wealthiest 9.9% are keeping the rest of us down with their heads in the sand Ch. 3 - The history and revival of the workers' education movement SOLVED! BACKSTAGE: Beyond the Algorithm (Members Only!): How your class impacts your tastes.   Leave us a message on our new system!   FOLLOW US ON: YouTube (This episode premieres on YouTube on Friday - please subscribe and share!)   REFERENCES How Inequality Was Redefined as "Poverty"—Letting Capitalism Off the Hook - The Nation Talking of poverty: From the analytical to the political - Sage Journals The 9.9 Percent is the New American Aristocracy - The Atlantic To Build Working-Class Power, We Need a Workers' Education Movement - The Nation BACKSTAGE Taste and Distinction: How Class Shapes What We Like - Thinking Sociologically EXTRAS: Best of the Left #1780 - Cynicism Is a Scab: Hope, Solidarity, and the Labor Fight That Never Stopped BOOK: "We Do This Til We Free Us" by Mariame Kaba (Buying through this link supports indie book stores and this show!) SOLVED! #36 - Bribery Jazz: Corruption is the Water We Swim In SOLVED! #37 - Solidarity Forever: Boycotts, Strikes, & the Labor Movement We Need   TAKE ACTION: MayDayStrong.org - May 1st - No Work. No School. No Shopping. Stop Trump's Wars REI Co-Op Members: Vote to Boycott Greeley Meatpacking Workers (UFCW Local 7R) Strike Fund No Kings - What's Next? One Million Rising Trainings In a blue state? Help stop ICE overreach How to Support Minneapolis Communities Free DC Project: FOR ALLIES ACROSS THE COUNTRY 5calls.org

Air Date: 4/17/2026 Today we examine how the U.S. war with Iran has exposed the deep structural rot at the heart of American power, the global economic catastrophe quietly building beneath the surface, and the cuts felt at home in order to pay for it all. Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, 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! BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: Excerpt, "Cross of Iron" Speech, 1956 - Dwight D. Eisenhower KP 2: White House Accidentally Releases Video of Trump Saying the Truth About War's Priority - The Briefing with Jen Psaki - Air Date 4-2-26 KP 3: Lets Talk About Fertilizer - Paul Krugman - Air Date 3-21-26 KP 4: Why Israels Bombing of Lebanon Means All Our Futures Are at Stake - The Independent - Air Date 4-9-26 KP 5: Will There Even Be a "Ceasefire"? - Drop Site News - Air Date 4-9-26 KP 6: The TV War That Backfired - Brendan Miller - Air Date 3-20-26 KP 7: Why the US Couldnt Force a Deal with Iran - LBC - Air Date 4-12-26 KP 8: Hormuz Crisis _Only Going to Get More Horrific Before It Gets Any Better__ Prof. Laleh Khalili - Democracy Now! - Air Date 4-16-26 KP 9: Dwight D Eisenhower - Farewell Speech - Address to the Nation - Military Industrial Complex Warning - War and Military Documentaries - Air Date 1-17-61 (00:52:25) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Eisenhower Warned Us: Trump's $1.5T Military Budget Is Gutting America DEEPER DIVES (01:03:57) SECTION A: LEBANON UNDER ATTACK (01:29:29) SECTION B: THE WORLD DEDOLLARISES (01:49:40) SECTION C: WORLD ECONOMY IN PERIL (02:21:45) SECTION D: THE MORAL ROT OF WAR PROFITEERING (02:46:42) SECTION E: THE DAMAGE OUR MILITARY DOES (03:06:15) SECTION F: MAKING CHINA GREAT AGAIN SHOW IMAGE CREDITS Description: A composite image showing a satellite image of the Straight of Hormuz  behind a screenshot of Trump's post that says "A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again…." Credit: Internal composite design. Image: "Satellite image of the Strait of Hormuz." by Jacques Descloitres, NASA | Public Domain

Air Date: 4/14/2026 Today we examine the legal battles shaking the foundations of American citizenship and voting rights as Trump's legal team uses the courts as a weapon against democratic participation — and how advocates are fighting back. We'll hear about the three-D playbook of deceive, disrupt, and deny used by authoritarians and being deployed by Trump ahead of the midterms, and what ordinary people can do right now to protect their votes before November. Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, 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! BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! TOP TAKES KP 1: SCOTUS Hears Birthright Citizenship Arguments - The NPR Politics Podcast - Air Date 4-1-26 KP 2: Will SCOTUS Join the GOP War on Mail-in Ballots Part 1 - Strict Scrutiny - Air Date 3-30-26 KP 3: Arizona Secretary of State Trump Is Trying to Pick His Own Voters by Restricting Mail-in Ballots - Democracy Now! - Air Date 4-3-26 KP 4: Desperate Election STUNT in California BLOCKED by Supreme Court - Legal AF - Air Date 4-9-26 KP 5: Mark Joseph Stern of Slate on SCOTUS Arguments to Block Late Arriving Mail Ballots Part 1 - The Bradcast - Air Date 3-24-26 KP 6: Voting Rights & Wrongs, According to SCOTUS with Steve Vladeck - Stay Tuned with Preet - Air Date 3-25-26 (00:52:29) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Conservatives' Judicial Originalism Isn't Principle — It's a 40-Year Political Project DEEPER DIVES (01:07:20) SECTION A: BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP (01:39:42) SECTION B: ELECTION INTERFERENCE (02:03:37) SECTION C: MAIL-IN VOTING SHOW IMAGE CREDITS     Produced by Jay! Tomlinson Visit us at BestOfTheLeft.com Listen Anywhere! BestOfTheLeft.com/Listen Listen Anywhere! Follow BotL: Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | X Like at Facebook.com/BestOfTheLeft Contact me directly at Jay@BestOfTheLeft.com

Air Date: 4/10/2026 Today we examine the ideology quietly driving Silicon Valley — a worldview that treats growth, extraction, and the erasure of human messiness as virtues. We'll hear how tech leaders from Sam Altman to Larry Ellison embody a kind of corporate psychopathy, why Zuckerberg never understood what Facebook actually is, and how the cult of "go for its own sake" may be the most dangerous religion of our time. Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, 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! BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads) Join our Discord community TOP TAKES KP 1: This Will Be the Death of Us All! - PissedMagistus - Air Date 3-18-26 KP 2: Palantir Weirdo Gets Cornered By Journalist - The Majority Report w/Sam Seder - Air Date 1-24-26 KP 3: Sam Altman Isn't Building a Company, He's Building an Empire (with Karen Hao) Part 1 - There Are No Girls on the Internet - Air Date 3-31-26 KP 4: Sam Altman Is Dangerous To Silicon Valley - Better Offline - Air Date 6-13-24 KP 5: Ash Sarkar Calls Silicon Valley Tech Bros Emotionally Maladapted Psychopaths - BBC Question Time - Air Date 10-27-25 KP 6: Why Fun Tech Jobs Went Extinct - Good Work - Air Date 3-27-26 KP 7: Zuck Never Understood the Metaverse - The Morbid Zoo - Air Date 4-4-26 (00:47:59) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR AI Isn't Taking Your Job—But Your Boss Wants You to Think It Is DEEPER DIVES (01:02:18) SECTION A: ARE THEY ALL PSCHOPATHS? (01:50:08) SECTION B: THE CULT(URE) OF SILICON VALLEY (02:34:34) SECTION C: AN END TO THE ENDLESS SCROLL SHOW IMAGE CREDITS Credit: Internal design. Component images: "Sam Altman" by TechCrunch, Flickr | License: CC BY 2.0 | "Larry Ellison" by Greg Rubenstein, Flickr | License: CC BY 2.0 | "Mark Zuckerberg" by Ian Kennedy, Flickr | License: CC BY SA 2.0 | Changes for all 3: Cropped and effects applied. Other image from Pixabay

Air Date: 4-1-26 Today, Jay!, Amanda, Deon, and Erin discuss:   Ch. 1 - How to boycott better Ch. 2 - Why REI workers have voted to boycott the upcoming May sale and how you can help Ch. 3 - Why meatpacking workers are striking in Colorado Ch. 4 - Comparing the US labor movement with the Canadian labor movement Ch. 5 - Strengthening, and expanding the vision for, today's labor movement SOLVED! BACKSTAGE: Beyond the Algorithm (Members Only!): How politics killed the once transformational National Labor Relations Board (NLRB)   Leave us a message on our new system!   REFERENCES Your Individual Boycotts Aren't Helping - Jacobin REI Workers Threaten Boycott Ahead Of Retailer's Most Crucial Sale Of The Year - Huffington Post Thousands of Colorado Meatpacking Workers Are on Strike - Jacobin From Class to Special Interest - Jacobin (from 2016) Today's Labor Movement Needs a Bigger Vision - Labor Notes   BACKSTAGE Requiem for the Wagner Act - The American Prospect EXTRAS: Best of the Left #1780 - Cynicism Is a Scab: Hope, Solidarity, and the Labor Fight That Never Stopped MayDayStrong.org - May 1st - No Work. No School. No Shopping. SOLVED! #36 - Bribery Jazz: Corruption is the Water We Swim In 'No Flock, No ICE': Student protest demands removal of Flock surveillance at UW Anti-ICE protests Friday at Berkeley schools and a Hilton hotel in the Southside neighborhood   SUPPORT REI WORKERS: @REIUnion (Instagram) REI Co-Op Members: Vote to Boycott   SUPPORT MEATPACKING WORKERS: Greeley Meatpacking Workers (UFCW Local 7R) Strike Fund UFCW Local 7R (Greeley Meatpacking Workers) Union Facebook page with updates   TAKE ACTION: MayDayStrong.org - May 1st - No Work. No School. No Shopping. Stop Trump's Wars No Kings - What's Next?

Re-Air Date: 04-07-26 Original Air Date: 1-15-2025 Elon Musk is leading the way for his class of tech broligarchs anxious to take over the MAGA movement and shape it to their own ends of deregulation, tax cuts, and lucrative government contracts. The disappointment that is inevitable for the MAGA populists is coming even faster than expected. Be part of the show! Leave a voice message, 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! BestOfTheLeft.com/Support (Members Get Bonus Shows + No Ads!) Join our Discord community! KEY POINTS KP 1: The long con of America's ultra-wealthy elites - The ReidOut - Air Date 1-2-25 KP 2: Crack-Up Capitalism- How Billionaire Elon Musk's Extremism Is Shaping Trump Admin & Global Politics - Democracy Now! - Air Date 1-6-24 KP 3: GOP Already At Each Other's Throats While Musk Gloats - The Muckrake Political Podcast - Air Date 12-24-24 KP 4: MAGA civil war explodes between Elon & Trump faithful - No Lie with Brian Tyler Cohen - Air Date 12-29-24 KP 5: Elon & Vivek's H1-B Crash Out - Bad Faith - Air Date 1-2-25 KP 6: Our Moment is Approaching - The Muckrake Political Podcast - Air Date 12-31-24 KP 7: Weekly Roundup Jimmy Carter vs Elon Musk - Straight White American Jesus - Air Date 1-3-25 KP 8: The Oligarch Class - Left Anchor - Air Date 1-3-25 (55:36) NOTE FROM THE EDITOR On the rehashing of the anti-democratic argument for extreme wealth for the benefit of humanity DEEPER DIVES (1:07:48) SECTION A: OLIGARCHS (1:35:31) SECTION B: THE MAGA FRACTURE (1:51:12) SECTION C: GLOBAL INFLUENCE (2:21:52) SECTION D: ORGANIZING SHOW IMAGE Description: Composite image of a close-up of a MAGA hat with a tag attached that says "Made in China". The hat has cracks and the head of Elon Musk pokes out through a tear in the fabric. Trump's eyes are visible below the hat brim. Credit: Composite design by A. Hoffman | Images from Pixabay | License: Pixabay