halftheanswer
Caitlin and Trent talk with independent journalist Amanda Moore about the groypers and their peers, the self-serving micro-celebrities who profit from them, and the media’s mad scramble to make the latest assassination fit into the left-right paradigm without consulting experts. Half the Answer can be heard on Spotify, on
They are aiming to build the future they want by rewriting history.
This month we discuss whether the Epstein story has blown over, the Charlie Kirk killing, the future AOC administration, and more.
The UK has gone from a bathroom ban being unthinkable to a Labour government implementing an extraordinarily authoritarian one—without a vote.
The problem with AI isn’t hype. The problem is who and what it’s useful for.
neonliberalism
There's a lot of gender happening these days—and feminism, the political movement that ought to be at the forefront of responding to the MAGA backlash, is in its wilderness years. Join Samantha and guest Jude Doyle, author of the forthcoming book DILF, for a wide-ranging conversation about
Rebranding the Department of Defense as the "Department of War" is one more proof of Trump II's bellicose intentions.
Liberal Currents publishes writers of diverse perspectives who share an unflinching commitment to freedom, pluralism, and democracy, in opposition to authoritarianism at home and around the world.
Life online is corroding the virtues that make liberal democratic life tenable.
Charlie Kirk believed in advancing right-wing political goals and attacking left-wing opponents by any and all means necessary—including political violence.
Trent and Caitlin speak with political science professor Lindsey Cormack about her analysis of the DCInbox database of political communications, focusing especially on the memo from Third Way advising Democrats to avoid certain words that make them sound out of touch, elitist, or insincere. Where did these words come from?
We must rediscover the virtue of ambition: the ambition to get out there and make some real changes—and the courage to face the music after.
Join Samantha and guest Alan Elrod, president and CEO of the Pulaski Institution, as they talk about how the spectacle of deliberate cruelty—troops on the streets, deportations of firefighters, the public performance of vileness—is not an accident or a distraction, but is a core part of the Trumpian
A summary of August and early September 2025 in the second Trump term.
Caitlin and Trent speak with Jacob T. Levy, Tomlinson Professor of Political Theory at McGill University, about the state of democracy in the U.S. How did we get here? What are the tools and motivations of the people working to dismantle the institutions that make us a democratic nation?
The Trump administration is returning NASA to the model that led directly to the Columbia disaster.
Join Samantha and guest Maia Mindel as they talk about Trump's latest attack on the Federal Reserve, give some historical context for central bank independence, and struggle with the difficult question of how to balance technocratic expertise with democratic accountability. Plus some cats. Neon Liberalism can be heard
MAGA is not merely rule by the worst but an active assault on virtue wherever it exists.
Trent and Caitlin talk with author, journalist and historian Adam Hochschild about the historical periods that most inform his view of today's disturbing American politics. What tactics and goals does Trump 2.0 have in common with Woodrow Wilson's post-WWI administration? What is different? What inspiration
The big question for liberalism today is not what policies we need, but how to get them to stick in the places they’re needed most.