The Majority Report with Sam Seder (general)

On this Casual Friday episode, Cliff Schecter (@cliffschecter) joins us to discuss the Democrats' chances of re-taking the Senate, Jeff Sessions' racist war on pot, the electoral impact of Puerto Ricans moving to Florida, and why the Democrats refuse to run on extremely popular issues like marijuana legalization. Next, Andy Kindler (@AndyKindler) comes on to discuss Michael Wolff's book and Trump's cognitive capacity for trying to bang his friends' wives. Is he an idiot savant? Then Sam breaks out his talking Dennis Miller doll and everyone marvels at the comedic tragedy of it all.

On the fun half: Sam's avatar does Dance Dance Revolution to the Euro disco version of La Poupee, Michael Wolff discusses his book on TV, Alex Jones calls Bannon a traitor, the Mooch angles for a return to the White House, "Carl in NH" complains about reverse racism, the Mooch praises Michael Wolff's giant DSL, and a caller explains the origins of the word "libtard."

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Direct download: 1-5-18-Cliff_Schecter-Andy_Kindler-Pub.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:53pm EDT

On this episode of The Majority Report, Cas Mudde (@CasMudde), an assistant Professor of International Relations at University of Georgia and author of The Far Right in America (Extremism and Democracy), joins us to discuss far right movements in Europe and the United States. How are these movements different in the US vs Europe? How reliant are they on shady rich people's money? Whatever happened to the Tea Party? And the five stages of liberal denial!

On the fun half: Gavin McInnes thinks Michael Wolf wrote a mean book about Trump because he's a closeted gay, Newt Gingrich disses Bannon, Tucker Carlson is upset about The Root being mean to white people, Jeff Sessions rescinds Obama's policy on legal pot, Ben Carson fails at rolling back a voucher program, a caller outlines the need for a unified left, more callers discuss ethnocentricity, and will the bitcoin bubble burst? (Yes.)

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Direct download: 1-4-18-Cas_Mudde-Pub.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 1:39pm EDT

Trita Parsi calls out William Kristol for his calls to bomb and kill Iranians.

Healthcare journalist Suzanne Gordon (@suzannecgordon) : "The Battle for Veterans’ Healthcare: Dispatches from the Frontlines of Policy Making and Patient Car", explains the importance of VHA's public scientific health innovation. Why Veterans health is a nationalized public health system.Why public healthcare works better. The distinctions between treating veterans and civilians. Why socialized medicine works best in treating people based on evidence? The Bush Administration and the undermining of VA healthcare. The astroturf group targeting the VA. The failures of media coverage of the VA. How privatizing the VA hurts service. The Bernie Sanders bill that would have saved the VA and Republican bill that ended up creating a funding gap in the VA. The Charter school strategy of starving public services so they can be privatized and why the Kochs and other market fanatics want to destroy the VA because of its success as government run healthcare.

On The Fun Half: The Moore's Jewish lawyer is apparently not really their friend after all. North Dakota state rep likes calling people libtards on Twitter. South Carolina Republican state lawmakers try to create a monument to honor black confederate war veterans and discover there were none. Andrew Cuomo is awful. Former Nazi explains how the Trump Adminstration uses massaged Nazi language and Megyn Kelly plays dumb on her role in normalizing this language on Fox News. Michelle Malkin and Sean Hannity talk aggressive and stupid on Fox. Should we be more serious about Bitcoin. Steve Bannon talks treason, money laundering and the Trump Administration. Debunking confederate/libertarian myths about the Civil War and the Civil Rights and your calls and IMs.

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Direct download: 1-3-18-Suzanne_Gordon-Pub.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:48pm EDT

Fox & Friends freaks out about California decriminalizing weed and making itself a sanctuary state. The Trump Administration makes it easier for Oil companies to create another Deep Water Horizon spill. Also nursing homes will be less safe thanks to Republicans. The Australian roots of the Russia investigation. Milo's editor notes.  All the many, many, many ways that Trump and the Republicans are destroying America.

On The Fun Half: a delusional caller debates Sam and Michael about the campus free speech debate. Remembering Erica Garner. What's driving protests in Iran? Peace between Mike Cernovich and Sam? The worst people in America threatening Iran. The MR community made Cernovich late to an Alex Jones appearance.

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Direct download: 1-2-18-Sam_Seder-Pub.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:10pm EDT

Best of from November 2016:

Zack Exley (@zackexley) and Becky Bond (@bbond) on their new book on lessons from their time on the Bernie Sanders campaign: Rules for Revolutionaries: How Big Organizing Can Change Everything (Paperback – November 18, 2016). “Distributed Organizing” and using technology to actually make contact with voters. How important an earlier start to the Bernie campaign could have been. Giving volunteers more responsibility, along with structure and accountability. Hillary’s flawed data-driven get-out-the-vote efforts. How to counter Trump by going on the offensive on the left.

Then, a selection of conversations about Bill O'Reilly, featuring Andy Kindler.

Direct download: 1-1-18-Becky_Bond-Zach_Exley-BestOf-Pub.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

From August 2017:

Best selling author Naomi Klein, author of, No Is Not Enough: Resisting Trump’s Shock Politics and Winning the World We Need, explains the history of modern branding. The formation of the Trump brand. The liberals who helped create the CEO myth of leadership. Why Trump can’t be worked with. Why labor unions should fight Trump on all fronts. Why the climate crisis needs to remain central to our politics. What to learn from Jeremy Corbyn. Why the Left needs to synchronize race, class and gender and what comes next in Left politics.

 

Also, a few conversations on Seb Gorka and Sam has a Gianforte-style meltdown.

Direct download: 12-29-17-Naomi_Klein-BestOf-Comp.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:00am EDT

Best of from April 2017,

Chris Hayes, host of the Chris Hayes Show and author of, A Colony in a Nation, explains Richard Nixon’s role in the creation of the modern law and order state. Colonialism and American revolution. Why smugglers were popular in early American history. Colonial era smuggling and the modern drug war. The murder of Eric Garner and Jefferson’s attack on the crown. Policing and revenue and Ferguson. Police as occupying forces. White fear and American history. Police violence, African Americans and recurring themes in American history. What changed in 1968. Jeff Sessions unshackles police departments and the return of private prisons. What fuels change? Is there a way to change white fear and pathology? Understanding Trump’s mind and American bigotry and The what people are missing about the Nunes story.

 

Also, Ivanka loves board games so much they've never been unboxed and Alex Jones gets frustrated with Mike Cernovich.

Direct download: 12-28-17-Chris_Hayes-BestOf-Comp.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 7:30am EDT

An interview from May 2014:

Professor Stephanie Kelton explains the Bretton Woods System and the end of the Gold Standard in the 1970s, why comparisons to the Weimar Republic and Zimbabwe made by austerity promoters are wrong, high inflation does not happen in well functioning democracies, why we think about the deficit in the wrong way, the smart way to think about the Simpson Bowles austerity plan, the purpose of taxes, Hillary Clinton running on bringing down the debt and addressing the inequality crisis, Social Security and inequality, what Thomas Piketty misses, why labor needs to make a comeback and why fighting inequality must go beyond raising taxes at the top.

Also, a best of compilation of some of our Alex Jones coverage from the year.

Direct download: 12-27-17-Stephanie_Kelton-BestOf-Comp.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:30am EDT

From February 8th:

Eric Foner, DeWitt Clinton Professor of History at Columbia University, explains what is radicalism. Why radicalism is different from liberalism and incrementalism. Has America always had radicals. The 1990s and the “end of history”. Tom Paine, America’s original radical. Radicalism in times of crisis. The opportunities the Left has today. Why are people marching against Trump? How radicalism moves from saying no to articulating what it wants. The old order is dying, what about the next one? Organic movements and the importance of Black Lives Matter. Why we are behind the curve on inequality and basic social benefits. Long term strategy for radical change. Where Europe is further ahead and further behind and what we need to learn from reconstruction.

Then, Michael takes down Ben Shapiro and David Rubin, and Sam argues with a libertarian about the Bell Curve.

Direct download: 12-26-17-Eric_Foner-BestOf-Comp.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:30am EDT

For the best-of today, an interview from April 14th:

Ganesh Sitaraman (@GaneshSitaraman) is an Assistant Professor of Law at Vanderbilt Law School. He joins us to discuss his new book, “The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution: Why Economic Inequality Threatens Our Republic.”

Direct download: 12-25-17-Ganesh_Sitaraman-BestOf-Pub.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:00am EDT