September 2 - American Fascism and the Politics of Us and Them; Trump Unconstrained Would Be a Full Blown Fascist; The Resistance and It's Roots in the American Revolution

Full Program

Part 1

We begin with the emergence of fascist politics in the United States under President Trump and get an analysis of why in countries around the world such as Hungary, Poland, Russia, India, Italy and Turkey, fascist leaders are exploiting myths, grudges, propaganda, anti-intellectualism and prejudice against minorities to divide us from them while trampling on democratic ideals and institutions. Jason Stanley, Professor of Philosophy at Yale University and author of “How Propaganda Works” joins us to discuss his new book, just out “How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and Them”. We examine how and why 75 years after the Allies triumphed over fascism it is on the rise again and get an understanding of the 10 pillars of fascist politics and how fascist roots have been present in the United State for more than a century only to be revived and normalized by our current leader. With the United States at the crossroads between democracy and authoritarianism, Jason Stanley reveals how the liberties of people wither and democracies die when voters embrace politicians who promote the divisive politics of us versus them.

Part 2

Then we continue the conversation and speak with Adele Stan, a journalist based in Washington D.C. who specializes in covering the intersection of religion and politics. She is the editor of Right Wing Watch and a weekly columnist for The American Prospect where she has an article “Trump and the Rise of 21^st Century Fascism” and we will discuss how Trump is a neo-fascist only because he is constrained by a constitution. But with a derelict Republican legislative branch, a new Supreme Court and a new Attorney General to do his bidding, an unfettered Trump could become a full blown fascist.

Part 3

Then finally we speak with Jeff Biggers, an award-winning historian, journalist and playwright whose latest book is “Resistance: Reclaiming an American Tradition” which reframes today’s political battles as a continuum of a vibrant American tradition. He joins us to lay out a case for Resistance in the age of Trump using Thomas Paine’s “Common Sense”, which was the spark that lit the American Revolution to overthrow the rule of the mad British king, as a narrative for the current Resistance to overthrow our dangerous and delusional president.