Gaslit Nation

Americans must fight a war on two fronts: against MAGA fascism and Democratic Party complacency. Wajahat Ali of the Left Hook on Substack and author of Go Back to Where You Came From: And Other Helpful Recommendations on How to Become American joins Gaslit Nation to discuss how to actually build back better this time.  Donald Trump is America's karma of white supremacy, greed, and misogyny. But while the MAGA virus burns through our institutions, another danger is the "Big Club" in Washington, D.C. where Republicans and Democrats share the same donors, the same golf clubs, and the same refusal to tax the rich.  The DNC thinks they can waltz into power by not being Trump, but voters want a fighter and they want accountability. We are watching a righteous rage build across the globe, from the resistance in Ukraine and Hungary to vigilante violence here at home. When an Amazon worker drops dead and colleagues are told to work around the body, the status quo makes revolution by any means inevitable.  Ukrainians are fighting a war on two fronts: homegrown corruption and Kremlin fascism. We must see ourselves in the same fight. If the Democrats choose the James Carville "possum strategy" and refuse to face reality, they are simply clearing the deck for a more competent autocrat in 2032.  EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community New! There's now a California Signal Group for Gaslit Nation listeners to find each other and connect in that state, availableon Patreon.  The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult, availableon Patreon.  Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other, availableon Patreon.  Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other, availableon Patreon.  Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect, availableon Patreon.  Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join, availableon Patreon.  Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group, availableon Patreon.  As always, keep it kind in our chat groups, extend grace and assume good faith. A culture of care is how we build a better world.  Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit Show Notes: Amazon Accused of Hiding Worker's Death for a Week, Making Employees Keep Working as Corpse Lay on Floor https://futurism.com/future-society/amazon-accused-hiding-death-week Worker who allegedly set fire to California warehouse compares self to Luigi Mangione https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/10/california-warehouse-arson-luigi-mangione Newsom Vows to Stop Proposed Billionaire Tax in California https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/13/us/newsom-billionaire-tax-california.html Christiane Amanpour and Jill Lepore on CNN: Civil War Confederate President Wasn't Tried, Why It Matters In Trump Case https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZXVOIab3ek8  The Black Death by Thomas Asbridge review – a medieval horror story https://www.theguardian.com/books/2026/apr/08/the-black-death-a-global-history-thomas-asbridge-review-pandemic-history-covid Why Does "DoorDash Grandma" Keep Showing Up with MAGA Members? https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2026/04/14/has-doordash-grandma-appeared-with-other-gop-leaders-what-to-know/89602972007/ Aaron Rupar: "A woman named Lonna Drewes at a news conference just now accused Eric Swalwell of drugging her drink and sexually assaulting her. Here's part of her statement." https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3mjhtlsrn5i2z David Dayen: "Several important nuggets in here: • Swalwell was rebuilding Newsom's inner circle; he was the establishment hope • One lobbyist: "Were we willing to delude ourselves or not ask questions that should have been asked? 1000%" • His campaign started sending cease-and-desists last year" https://bsky.app/profile/ddayen.bsky.social/post/3mjfu4px42c25 Lesley Abravanel: "In a major shift, Cook Political Report has now moved 4 Senate seats toward the Democrats (NC,GA, OH, NE). That's on top of 5 House races that Cook Political moved leftward just last week, all partly due to Trump's  unpopular war in Iran that sent gas prices skyrocketing." https://bsky.app/profile/lesleyabravanel.bsky.social/post/3mjflo3zkdc2t

To those who could not join our launch party for Mrs. Orwell tonight, we've made you a play list from the event. It opens with a British Pathé newsreel of what to do in an air raid; Edward R. Murrow reporting from London on the Blitz; a popular war-time show "Gert & Daisy";  Flanagan and Allen's "Run Rabbit Run," and "Ay Carmela!" one of the most popular songs of the Spanish Civil War, which Eileen and Eric Blair would have heard throughout their time in Spain. We're going to play this audio at the start of tonight's event, to connect the global war of fascism vs. democracy back then to today, as Ukraine faces the same daily bombardment as Europe did under Hitler.     

Gaslit Nation presents an Instagram Live discussion recorded over the weekend with the acclaimed illustrator Brahm Revel, the artist of Mrs. Orwell. Brahm is based in Barcelona, where Eileen and Eric Blair (aka George Orwell), spent their honeymoon fighting fascists in the Spanish Civil War. Eileen was holed up in the Hotel Continental, which still exists, where Stalin's agents searched her hotel room, stealing Orwell's Spain diaries and other papers, which are believed to be somewhere in Moscow to this day. We're celebrating freedom fighters, past and present, tonight at Powerhouse Arena in DUMBO, Brooklyn at 7pm ET, for the launch of Mrs. Orwell. Patreon supporters get in free! Russian mafia expert Olga Lautman will be there, and so will the good folks of Razom for Ukraine and the Media and Democracy Project, co-sponsors of the event, because the Orwells would have been fans. So come and get a Mrs. Orwell tote bag, meet other Gaslit Nation listeners, and celebrate the defeat of Orban, MAGA, and the Kremlin in Hungary.  Enjoy this conversation with Brahm about the creative process that went into the making of Mrs. Orwell and why the story matters for us today, in an age that needs our own creativity and defiance. Today's Gaslit Nation Salon is still on for today at 4pm so join us via the link posted on Patreon.com/Gaslit!  Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit

FDR had to take some bold swings to transform America for the better. He had his pearl-clutching critics who thought he was going too far. But that's what was needed to usher in the New Deal and strengthen democracy and improve people's lives. The "good guys" must not be passive. We must fight back. Virginia, the world's eyes are on you to vote YES on redistricting -- vote now through April 21. You will help restore balance to Republican authoritarian gerrymandering. Your YES vote in Virginia is an emergency stop-gap meant to save our national ship from sinking and take back the gavel from Kremlin MAGA Mike Johnson in the House. Thank you to all who spread the word about this important, urgent vote, and get out the vote. If you still have questions, here's an overview from Arlington Democrats: https://www.arlingtondemocrats.org/redistricting If you're in NYC or nearby, join us April 13 at 7pm at Powerhouse Arts Arena in DUMBO, Brooklyn, one of the most beautiful neighborhoods in all of NYC. We're going to celebrate Mrs. Orwell, Andrea's new graphic novel with the genius illustrator Brahm Revel, about an unsung heroine of literature, Eileen O'Shaughnessy Blair, the wife, muse, and unsung creative partner of Eric Blair, aka George Orwell. There would have been no Homage to Catalonia, Animal Farm, 1984 without Eileen O'Shaughnessy Blair. Patreon supporters get in for free and get a Mrs. Orwell tote bag. Message us on Patreon.com/Gaslit to get on the guest list. See you Monday night for an unforgettable evening dedicated to a defiant heroine of the power of the pen.  Thank you to Razom for Ukraine and the Media and Democracy Project for being co-sponsors of this event.  Details here: https://events.ticketleap.com/tickets/powerhousebookstores/book-launch-mrs-orwell-by-andrea-chalupa

Vice President JD Vance, a creation of the Peter Thiel dark-money machine, traveled to Hungary to openly threaten voters on behalf of the Kremlin's favorite strongman, Viktor Orban. This is emotional blackmail on a global scale. Vance effectively told a post-Soviet nation that if they don't re-elect Orban this Sunday, they lose the protection of the U.S. military. It's a "nice country you've got there, shame if something happened to it" mafia tactic. Why is MAGA obsessed with Hungary? Because the EU is a regulatory miracle that Big Money hates. To the Peter Thiels of the world, Orban is the wedge designed to divide the EU, weaken Russian sanctions, and pave the way for a fascist Bannon nightmare across the continent. Under Orban, Hungary has become the most corrupt state in the EU, suffering from massive brain drain and crumbling infrastructure. Despite the threats, there is hope. On Sunday, April 12, Hungarians may unite behind a charismatic new leader, Péter Magyar. Will they choose freedom and fight against tyranny, like in the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, or will MAGA's blackmail work? We shall see. For a look at the MAGA virus in the UK, we continue our conversation with Dorian Lynskey, author of The Ministry of Truth: The Biography of George Orwell's 1984. Want to hear Gaslit Nation ad-free? Join our community of listeners for bonus shows, exclusive Q&A sessions, our group chats, invites to live events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit! Join our April 13 book launch and live-taping to celebrate Mrs. Orwell. Patreon supporters get in free!  https://powerhousearena.com/events/book-launch-mrs-orwell-by-andrea-chalupa-in-conversation-with-nomiki-konst/   Show Notes:   Where the US got $20B to bail out Argentina https://www.npr.org/2025/11/13/nx-s1-5607023/where-the-us-got-20b-to-bail-out-argentina   Hungary eyes US financial shield as EU funds remain frozen https://www.reuters.com/world/us-financial-shield-bolsters-hungary-amid-eu-funding-freeze-minister-says-2025-11-10/   Andrea's thread on Hungary's decline under Orban https://x.com/AndreaChalupa/status/1766082022781354193   MAGA's favorite strongman might be on the brink of defeat. We're about to find out whether an authoritarian can lose at the ballot box. https://www.vox.com/politics/485058/hungary-election-2026-orban-trump-vance-maga   Viktor Orbán told Putin 'I am at your service' in October phone call https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/apr/07/viktor-orban-told-putin-i-am-at-your-service-in-october-phonecall   Italy: Steve Bannon's populist academy in the Trisulti monastery https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjSL1ofqGb8   Epstein files shed more light on Steve Bannon's efforts to influence European politics https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/feb/05/jeffrey-epstein-files-steve-bannon-european-politics    How Jeffrey Epstein sought to help Steve Bannon build a global populist movement https://www.cnn.com/2026/02/09/politics/steve-bannon-jeffrey-epstein-global-populism   Péter Magyar, the former Orban ally vying for power in Hungary https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c78l7vyylgqo  

As Donald Trump holds the world hostage with his sloppy Iran War, and JD Vance campaigns for Orban, the Kremlin's weapon in Hungary, Gaslit Nation returns to a shared family history of resistance. Andrea is joined this week by the brilliant artist Maya Hayuk to break down the story behind Andrea's new graphic novel, Mrs. Orwell. Born from a decade of research into the Holodomor, Stalin's genocide famine in Ukraine, Mrs. Orwell is a monument to an unsung heroine of literature and the truth the Kremlin tried to bury. We also cover the horrifying reality of the current front lines of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, where the UNESCO heritage site of L'viv's ancient city center was bombed by Russia while the U.S. sleepwalks through yet another "war of choice." While we share the intense rage of seeing Ukrainians having to bailout Trump and Vance in Iran, we remain focused on the agency of the people. The oligarch mafia model, which relies on apathy, despair, and nihilism, is being challenged by a culture of defiance.  We end with a miraculous artifact: a 1947 Ukrainian translation of Animal Farm discovered in both Andrea and Maya's families. This book, distributed in post-WWII refugee camps, is a sign that the spirit of rebellion cannot be extinguished. We refuse to be "useful idiots" for the transnational crime network; we have each other, and we are going to build a better world from the ashes.  For our bonus episode out later this week, we take a closer look at JD and Usha Vance's trip to Hungary to serve the Kremlin, and the latest hellscape headlines. To listen, subscribe to our Patreon at the Truth-Teller level ($5/month) or higher. For more on the Ukrainian refugee camp Animal Farm, read Andrea's book Orwell and The Refugees: The Untold Story of Animal Farm, which Patreon supporters at the Truth-teller ($10/month) and up level get for free.  Your support gives us the freedom to tell the truth–thank you for making Gaslit Nation possible! Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit Show Notes: Maya Hayuk's artwork: https://www.instagram.com/mayahayuk/ Join our April 13 book launch and live-taping to celebrate Mrs. Orwell. Patreon supporters get in free!  https://powerhousearena.com/events/book-launch-mrs-orwell-by-andrea-chalupa-in-conversation-with-nomiki-konst/ Orwell and The Refugees: The Untold Story of Animal Farm https://www.amazon.com/Orwell-Refugees-Untold-Story-Animal-ebook/dp/B007JNKF5G EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: New! There's now a California Signal Group for Gaslit Nation listeners to find each other and connect in that state. Join on Patreon The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult. Join on Patreon Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other. Join on Patreon Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other. Join on Patreon Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect. Join on Patreon Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join. Join on Patreon Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group. Join on Patreon Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community  

Congratulations to Pam Bondi for doing everything the fascist serial predator, convicted felon, and Russian asset wanted, only to be ritually humiliated by Trump anyway. The Epstein cover-up continues. So make Bondi testify–and get asked to leave every restaurant and bar she ever tries to enter, for protecting pedophiles.  Come to the Gaslit Nation Salon today at 4pm ET to discuss this and more, including sharing what's happening in your neck of the woods. Find the Zoom link on Patreon.com/Gaslit or in the show notes below.  Thanks to Patreon for the Mrs. Orwell tote bags, which we will be giving away to supporters at the April 13 book launch at PowerHouse Arena in Dumbo, Brooklyn, and to our Fact Checker and higher supporters on Patreon, until the gifts run out.  Show Notes:  Join our April 13 book launch and live-taping to celebrate Mrs. Orwell. Patreon supporters get in free!  https://powerhousearena.com/events/book-launch-mrs-orwell-by-andrea-chalupa-in-conversation-with-nomiki-konst/ Today! Gaslit Nation Salon at 4pm EST. Sign up here to join us: https://www.patreon.com/posts/zoom-link-for-et-154921053?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link Today! Come to the Media and Democracy Project x Gaslit Nation Substack Live April 6 at 5:30pm ET to discuss Mrs. Orwell and its lessons for us today https://open.substack.com/live-stream/150582 Opening clip: Ro Khanna says Pam Bondi still needs to testify to Congress over Epstein files: Full interview https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJup1mIeb9Y  

As we fight the daily battles of the "Great Disillusionment," corruption and unchecked greed are poisoning our bodies. Sian Sutherland, co-founder of A Plastic Planet, a group dedicated to helping the world transition away from plastics, joins Gaslit Nation to discuss the systemic corruption wreaking havoc on our environment, our water, and our food. We are now breathing, eating, and drinking a credit card's worth of plastic every single week. Big Oil, facing a transition away from fossil fuels for energy, financially depends in our dependence on plastic. They have turned our bodies into a landfill to keep their profits soaring. We also discuss the threat of deep sea mining, the minerals war between the US and China, why everyone should read Donut Economics by the "planet's economist" Kate Raworth on how to build a sustainable economy, and why ending the "forever wars" requires a transition to renewable energies.  Join us to celebrate the power of art and defiance at the book launch of Mrs. Orwell, Andrea's inspiring new graphic novel, illustrated by the genius Brahm Revel. When: April 13 Where: PowerHouse Books Arena, DUMBO, Brooklyn Details here: https://powerhousearena.com/events/book-launch-mrs-orwell-by-andrea-chalupa-in-conversation-with-nomiki-konst/ Patreon Supporters: You and your guests get in free and receive a complimentary book! Just message us through Patreon to claim yours. Not a member yet? Join our community at Patreon.com/Gaslit. We couldn't make this show without you–see you there! Show Notes: A Plastic Planet: https://aplasticplanet.com/ Follow-up study of genotoxic effects in individuals exposed to oil from the tanker Prestige, seven years after the accident https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24370900/ Sian Sutherland: "Innovating the Business of Plastics" https://mahb.stanford.edu/library-item/herman-daly-toward-an-ecological-economics-5-2/ Dr. Jeremy Williams: The Truth About Rare Earth Mineral Mining https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8OMk9JapDM EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: New! There's now a California Signal Group for Gaslit Nation listeners to find each other and connect in that state. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other. Join us on Patreon.  Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community

"We're not going to get the liberation we all crave on a soul level without risk." Andrea reflects on why, now more than ever, we must follow our hearts and refuse to let fear, or Steve Bannon, that Jabba the Hutt of American politics, live rent-free in our heads. Being brave, taking risks: that's how we win. In this special excerpt from last Monday's Gaslit Nation Salon, Andrea honors her beloved uncle, Phil Bourne. "Uncle Phil" was the founding dean of the University of Virginia School of Data Science, earned more than 100,000 citations on Google Scholar, championed the collaboration between the liberal arts and STEM as essential to the future of education, and served as the founding Editor-in-Chief of PLOS Computational Biology, where he created the "Ten Simple Rules" series. Honor Uncle Phil's memory by reaching out to your loved ones and saying what's truly in your heart. We do not have as much time here as we think. Don't let the fascists steal that time from you. Bethany McKee, founder of the Outreach Committee, a group that meets to discuss how to deal with the MAGA cultists in our lives as they awaken to their own self-destruction, will host today's Gaslit Nation Salon at 4 p.m. ET. You can find the Zoom link at Patreon.com/Gaslit. Thank you to everyone who supports the show. We could not make Gaslit Nation without you. Join us for an evening honoring the power of art and defiance at the book launch of Mrs. Orwell, Andrea's inspiring new graphic novel, illustrated by Brahm Revel. When: April 13 Where: PowerHouse Books Arena, DUMBO, Brooklyn Details here: https://powerhousearena.com/events/book-launch-mrs-orwell-by-andrea-chalupa-in-conversation-with-nomiki-konst/ Patreon Supporters: You and your guests get in free and receive a complimentary book! Just message us through Patreon to claim yours. Not a member yet? Join our community at Patreon.com/Gaslit. We couldn't make this show without you–see you there!  

Beyond showing up for No Kings, build power where you live. Join the Good Neighbors Coalition, a vetted decentralized hub linking neighborhoods, groups, and organizers to share support, resources, and strategy, submitted by a longtime Gaslit Nation listener. Check out The Relay, a no-signup start page packed with tools, trainings, and news.  And try the simple 2-10 method, submitted by another Gaslit Nation listener: contact two to ten politicians about an issue you care about, then ask two to ten friends to do the same. That ripple effect can turn one voice into hundreds. Movements grow through small, steady acts of courage right now. Show Notes: Harriet Tubman was the first woman in U.S. history to lead a major military operation: https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/combahee-ferry-raid Good Neighbors Coalition: For more info or to join, visit the GNC Entry Portal via Signal:  https://signal.group/#CjQKIC6h0DY9EQaix6yR_hZP4ojCd34cj8pDDhlZKKMUI4PAEhBBwSXJD2JtSg8SZbVnCDxV The Relay: A startpage of tools, resources, links to trainings, and news. No signup required. https://start.me/p/NQ4OyY/the-relay The 2-10 Idea: We ask people to contact 2-10 politicians about something they care about. Then ask 2-10 friends to do the same. Those friends ask their friends. And it keeps going. Two people becomes twenty. Twenty becomes two hundred. Fast. That's the 2-10 idea. It turns one person into a movement - without needing a big platform or a lot of money. Mrs. Orwell: Join Andrea Chalupa for the launch of her new graphic novel April 13 at PowerHouse Books Arena in DUMBO, Brooklyn 7pm ET. Patreon members get in for free and get a book. Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit to suppor the show. Event details here: https://powerhousearena.com/events/book-launch-mrs-orwell-by-andrea-chalupa-in-conversation-with-nomiki-konst/  

Christopher Steele, who ran the Russia desk at MI6, believes Jeffrey Epstein was a Russian asset. He used girls and young women from Russia and other former Soviet states to lure powerful men into kompromat traps.  Michael Wolff made the allegation, which has since been pulled by The Daily Beast, that Epstein introduced Melania and Trump, and that they even had sex for the first time on the Lolita Express. So was Melania a honeypot, trained to keep Trump in their pocket, and prevent an unpredictable influence from marrying Russia's asset?  Russian mafia expert Olga Lautman, of the Trump Tyranny Tracker, and a researcher on explosive books, including investigative journalist Craig Unger's House of Trump, House of Putin, fact checks the Melania honeypot memes, and provides deeper insight into the Eastern European women in Trump's life, like his first wife Ivana.  Olga Lautman will be at the Gaslit Nation Night Out! Join us to celebrate the power of art and defiance at the book launch of Mrs. Orwell, Andrea's inspiring new graphic novel, illustrated by the genius Brahm Revel. When: April 13 Where: PowerHouse Books Arena, DUMBO, Brooklyn Details here: https://powerhousearena.com/events/book-launch-mrs-orwell-by-andrea-chalupa-in-conversation-with-nomiki-konst/ Patreon Supporters: You and your guests get in free and receive a complimentary book! Just message us through Patreon to claim yours. Not a member yet? Join our community at Patreon.com/Gaslit. We couldn't make this show without you–see you there! Show Notes: Trump Tyranny Tracker: https://trumptyrannytracker.substack.com/ Daily Beast pulls story alleging Melania-Epstein connection after lawyers dispute framing https://www.foxnews.com/media/daily-beast-pulls-story-alleging-melania-epstein-connection-after-lawyers-dispute-framing Ex-MI6 Spy insists Epstein was a Russian spy and blackmailing Trump https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYRVezF5-hk Opening clip:  https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3mhnsvsjc7y23 Um, What Is Going on With Melania Trump in This Video? https://www.vogue.com/article/melania-trump-vladimir-putin-helsinki-video Andrea's thread on the Melania propaganda film which you should not watch https://bsky.app/profile/andreachalupa.bsky.social/post/3mgqndjhz4k2b This article is more than 1 month old Disappeared bodies, mass burials and '30,000 dead': what is the truth of Iran's death toll? https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2026/jan/27/iran-protests-death-toll-disappeared-bodies-mass-burials-30000-dead Russia is aiding Iran's war effort by providing intel on US military targets, sources say https://www.cnn.com/2026/03/06/politics/russia-aiding-iran-targeting How Russian military intelligence used the Taliban to bleed U.S. forces at the end of America's longest war https://theins.ru/en/politics/277723 Putin Is No Ally in the War on Terror in 2024 https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/putin-no-ally-war-terror-2024 Watch Zerina Zabrisky's powerful film for free and spread the word about Russia's human safaris in Ukraine https://khersonhumansafari.com/ Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit  

As we navigate a world of "alternative facts" and corporate-state surveillance, George Orwell's life, times, and pain, transformed into enduring art, like 1984, show us how to be defiant today. Resistance begins in the mind.  This week, we're joined by British critic Dorian Lynskey, author of The Ministry of Truth: The Biography of George Orwell's 1984, to trace the biography of a nightmare. The Orwellian slogan "2+2=5" was taken from Soviet propaganda. Orwell reviewed Assignment in Utopia by Eugene Lyons, an American reporter who confesses in the chapter "The Press Corps Conceals a Famine," to joining with other influential foreign correspondents in Moscow to label Gareth Jones a liar in their articles in exchange for access to the Soviet regime. Lyons and Orwell are both characters in Andrea's film Mr. Jones.  The trauma of 1984 started during the Spanish Civil War, alongside his wife, Eileen Blair, the unsung hero who saved his life and helped him find his voice as an artist, to break through the lies. In Catalonia, Eileen and Eric Blair watched Stalin-backed communists turn a socialist revolution into a paranoid police state. It was here, nearly killed by the "Soviet myth," that they realized nowhere is immune: lies and conformity keep people complacent as the sadists consolidate power.  Orwell's message is clear for us today: in an era of state-sponsored lies, holding onto your humanity is the ultimate act of defiance. Join us to celebrate the power of art and defiance at the book launch of Mrs. Orwell, Andrea's inspiring new graphic novel, illustrated by the genius Brahm Revel. When: April 13 Where: PowerHouse Books Arena, DUMBO, Brooklyn Details here: https://powerhousearena.com/events/book-launch-mrs-orwell-by-andrea-chalupa-in-conversation-with-nomiki-konst/ Patreon Supporters: You and your guests get in free and receive a complimentary book! Just message us through Patreon to claim yours. Not a member yet? Join our community at Patreon.com/Gaslit. We couldn't make this show without you–see you there! Show Notes: Our opening song was "Ride at Dawn" by Deena Marie. Check out her GoFundMe here to help her produce her next album: https://gofund.me/623a9c9b1 IG: @deenamariedmt Spotify: Listen hereApple Music: Listen hereTikTok: @deenamariedmt YouTube: Watch here The Ministry of Truth: The Biography of George Orwell's 1984  https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/580453/the-ministry-of-truth-by-dorian-lynskey/   33 Revolutions per Minute: A History of Protest Songs, from Billie Holiday to Green Day https://www.harpercollins.com/products/33-revolutions-per-minute-dorian-lynskey?variant=32210443141154  EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: New! There's now a California Signal Group for Gaslit Nation listeners to find each other and connect in that state. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other. Join us on Patreon.  Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit   Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community

Thank you, Afroman, for standing up for freedom of speech and expression. Our human rights matter, and artists have always been on the front lines defending them with courage and power. "This is precisely the time when artists go to work. There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal." --Toni Morrison   See you at today's Gaslit Nation Salon at 4pm ET. The Zoom link to join to vent, share what's happening in your neck of the woods and more, has been posted on Patreon.com/Gaslit.    If you're in New York, join us for a Gaslit Nation Night Out for the launch of Andrea's book Mrs. Orwell on April 13 at PowerHouse Books Arena in DUMBO, Brooklyn. Details here: https://events.ticketleap.com/tickets/powerhousebookstores/book-launch-mrs-orwell-by-andrea-chalupa   Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit

Across America, people are waking up to the fact that Donald Trump has always been exactly who he said he was: a serial con man propped up by white grievance, impunity, and a media that normalized his crimes.  Trump fears accountability. The question is whether we are prepared for what he and his allies may do to avoid it in the 2026 midterms. Trump's push for the SAVE Act and the broader assault on voting rights should be understood for what it is: a strategy to stay in power by any means necessary. Voter suppression, disinformation, dark money, and foreign interference are ongoing. If Romania could challenge a compromised election and protect its democracy, America can stop pretending "moving on" is any sort of plan.  We need election protection infrastructure now. Call your secretary of state. Ask what they are doing to protect the integrity of the 2026 vote. Stay defiant. Build power. And join us at Gaslit Nation as we keep asking the questions too many in power still refuse to face. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit Show Notes: American Carnage by Sasha Abramsky https://orbooks.com/catalog/american-carnage/ Opening clip: https://bsky.app/profile/andreachalupa.bsky.social/post/3mhc7boslv22w The Target boycott is still on! Georgia Forts explains the confusion:  https://www.instagram.com/reel/DVw6K39DtEd/?igsh=MTV6dXE0N3gydTZnYw== Sexual misconduct allegations against Donald Trump – a timeline This article is more than 1 year old A list of the accusations made against Donald Trump between the 1980s and 2013, all of which he has denied https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/oct/25/trump-sexual-misconduct-allegations-timeline E. Jean Carroll asks Supreme Court to reject Trump's request to review her $5M defamation case https://abcnews.com/US/jean-carrollasks-supreme-court-reject-trumps-request-review/story?id=129216869

Trump and Kushner chose a war they don't understand, thinking they can use 20th-century "shock and awe" to topple a deeply entrenched terrorist state. The Iranian people are caught between two maniacal regimes and deserve our solidarity: an estimated 30,000 Iranians were just killed by their own government, and now they're being bombed by a Fox News host.  Russian mafia expert Olga Lautman joins Gaslit Nation to discuss the surreal hallucinating AI simulation we've found ourselves in. Meanwhile, Trump and Vance need to thank Zelensky and Ukraine for their innovative drone-fighting technology–some of the best in the world. Has Vance even said thank you yet?  We also prepare Americans for the reality that the "moats" of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans no longer protect us. As drone technology becomes cheaper and more accessible, the same over-the-counter drones terrorizing Kherson, Ukraine are coming for American streets–thanks to Trump galvanizing terrorists, and opportunistic mafia states like Russia that empower groups like ISIS.  Like Russia, Trump thinks he can conquer a nation in three days.  Join us on April 13th at Powerhouse Books in Dumbo, Brooklyn for the launch of Andrea's graphic novel, Mrs. Orwell. Olga Lautman will be there as we discuss how to survive the "Great Disillusionment" and protect our democracy from the opportunists selling us out for profit. Details here: https://powerhousearena.com/events/book-launch-mrs-orwell-by-andrea-chalupa-in-conversation-with-nomiki-konst/. Patreon supporters get in for free!  Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: New! There's now a California Signal Group for Gaslit Nation listeners to find each other and connect in that state. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other. Join us on Patreon.  Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit   Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community Show Notes:   Opening clip: Trump: "Iran is just a military operation to me. Iran is something that was essentially largely over in two or three days." The war in Iran has already lasted 18 days. https://bsky.app/profile/thebulwark.com/post/3mhbhx7qfpn2l   Um, What Is Going on With Melania Trump in This Video? https://www.vogue.com/article/melania-trump-vladimir-putin-helsinki-video   Andrea's thread on the Melania propaganda film which you should not watch https://bsky.app/profile/andreachalupa.bsky.social/post/3mgqndjhz4k2b   This article is more than 1 month old Disappeared bodies, mass burials and '30,000 dead': what is the truth of Iran's death toll? https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2026/jan/27/iran-protests-death-toll-disappeared-bodies-mass-burials-30000-dead   Warren Buffett's parting gift to Berkshire Hathaway: a $2 billion Iran oil windfall https://www.marketwatch.com/story/warren-buffetts-parting-gift-to-berkshire-hathaway-a-2-billion-iran-oil-windfall-4daf28ba   Russia is aiding Iran's war effort by providing intel on US military targets, sources say https://www.cnn.com/2026/03/06/politics/russia-aiding-iran-targeting   How Russian military intelligence used the Taliban to bleed U.S. forces at the end of America's longest war https://theins.ru/en/politics/277723   Putin Is No Ally in the War on Terror in 2024 https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/putin-no-ally-war-terror-2024   Watch Zerina Zabrisky's powerful film for free and spread the word about Russia's human safaris in Ukraine https://khersonhumansafari.com/   Interview with Zerina Zabrisky: https://www.gaslitnationpod.com/episodes-transcripts-20/2025/11/4/is-donald-trump-dying-jd-vance-seems-to-think-so   Why are so many from this Russian republic fighting for ISIS? https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/many-russian-republic-fighting-isis   Putin is No Ally Against ISIS https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/putin-no-ally-against-isis-by-george-soros-2016-02   New York explosive incident highlights challenge for agencies in wake of Iran war https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/new-york-explosive-incident-highlights-challenge-for-agencies-in-wake-of-iran-war   Dubai financial district rattled by Iranian drones https://www.ft.com/content/2dddfaa2-a163-4e59-a6ef-7d9d6e334023?syn-25a6b1a6=1  

Despite holding one of the most powerful microphones in the world, the silence from major winners at the Oscars regarding human rights and the rise of fascism was the real star.  When artists like Paul Thomas Anderson, whose film One Battle After Another swept the awards, refuse to use their power to address the very real injustices their films capitalize on, they "obey in advance." This silence is the symptom of massive corporate media consolidation. Director David Borenstein, winner of best documentary for Mr. Nobody Against Putin, used his power morally to remind us that this is how Putin cemented a dictatorship.  With the looming merger between Warner Bros. Discovery and the MAGA Ellison family's Paramount Skydance, we face a future where 40% of our media is controlled by a single far-right family. If you want to know what that might look like, see what Barri Weiss is doing to CBS.  See you at the Gaslit Nation Salon today at 4 PM ET. The Zoom link is live on Patreon.com/Gaslit, where you can also catch the recording of last week's session. Whether you need to vent, share best practices, or just find community, our weekly resilience gatherings are here for you. Join the movement and support the show at Patreon.com/Gaslit–we couldn't do this without you. Use the scripts below to contact Governor Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta of California to demand they enforce existing laws to investigate, slow-down, and block the Warner Bros. deal–or there won't be anymore films like Sinners and One Battle After Another, supporting California's economy.  To Governor Gavin Newsom: Phone: (916) 445-2841 | Email: https://www.gov.ca.gov/contact/ Socials: @GavinNewsom Script: My name is [Name] from [City]. I am calling to urge Governor Newsom to publicly oppose the Ellison takeover of Warner Bros. This merger threatens jobs and creates a dangerous media monopoly. Governor, please use your influence to protect our creative economy and information space from MAGA-aligned consolidation. To Attorney General Rob Bonta: Phone: (916) 210-6276 | Email: https://oag.ca.gov/contact/general-contact-form Socials: @AGRobBonta Script: Attorney General Bonta, Use your power to open an immediate antitrust investigation into the Warner Bros. and Paramount Skydance merger. We need you to enforce state anti-monopoly laws to prevent a single entity from controlling nearly half of our news and entertainment. Protect our markets and our speech. Join us at the Mrs. Orwell book launch on April 13 at PowerHouse Books Arena in DUMBO. Patreon supporters at the Truth-teller level or higher get in free: https://powerhousearena.com/events/book-launch-mrs-orwell-by-andrea-chalupa-in-conversation-with-nomiki-konst/ Show Notes: Elon Musk got $1 billion from Larry Ellison for his Twitter takeover https://www.theverge.com/2022/5/5/23058295/elon-musk-twitter-funding-qatar-larry-ellison Merger Madness and How to Stop It https://www.freepress.net/blog/how-to-stop-warner-bros-discovery-merger

"I've been Doged." Over 300,000 federal workers were purged by drug-fueled sociopath Elon Musk and his "Department of Government Efficiency." In this week's Gaslit Nation, we're  joined by Sasha Abramsky, contributor to The Nation and author of the explosive new book American Carnage: How Trump, Musk, and DOGE Butchered the U.S. Government. Abramsky details how Musk and his "Hitler Youth" tech bros, led by Edward "Big Balls" Coristine, infiltrated government agencies like a wrecking ball. They were set on sadistic public humiliation, bullying the survivors into submission to carry out a lawless coup to hijack our democracy. DOGE carried out the greatest data heist in global history. The personal information for nearly 300 million Americans, including Social Security numbers and Medicare data, has been exposed to tech oligarchs. This data is already being weaponized to purge voter rolls and hunt immigrants and dissidents. Trump and Musk depend on your demoralization. They want you to think they're invincible Bond villains, but as the resistance in Minneapolis showed, we can and must stand up to them–for the sake of our very lives and the security of the world. Have you or your community felt the impact of the DOGE purges? Share your story with us at GaslitNation@gmail.com. We may report on it, anonymously if you choose, on the show. Stay strong. Gaslit Nation is here for you. Join Andrea in New York City for the launch of her new graphic novel Mrs. Orwell. This special live-taping will share the incredible story of Eileen Blair, the unsung heroine of literature and wife of George Orwell, who saved her husband's life twice and shaped his greatest works. Details here: https://powerhousearena.com/events/book-launch-mrs-orwell-by-andrea-chalupa-in-conversation-with-nomiki-konst/ Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: New! There's now a California Signal Group for Gaslit Nation listeners to find each other and connect in that state. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other. Join us on Patreon.  Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit  Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group. Join us on Patreon.com/Gaslit   Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community Show Notes: DOGE staffer had 'God-level' Social Security access and expected Trump's pardon, whistleblower says https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/doge-social-security-data-whistleblower-b2935908.html Elon Musk's DOGE Staffer 'Big Balls' Related to KGB Defector: Report https://www.newsweek.com/elon-musk-doge-edward-coristine-big-balls-kgb-agent-2036520 Doge cuts to USAid blamed for 300,000 deaths — most of them children https://www.thetimes.com/us/american-politics/article/usaid-doge-deaths-children-cuts-7nb83dfkp?gaa_at=eafs&gaa_n=AWEtsqcVzjZ_td4qU0vyr-xG_CgGOlTqkglEvufyMil2saeIo4sfDLbK8HIVQeZ-IHc%3D&gaa_ts=69b0d995&gaa_sig=ZVvlsPXRuxrYyW6L9eA4lEbo1EG_Vjg1-CiS5mFa7qlVjY9zdtc18EbEHPxglD0f-pxJDLWqvvxK-U_IjWKBjg%3D%3D 14 Million People Could Die in Next 5 Years Due to USAID Cuts, Study Finds https://gizmodo.com/14-million-people-could-die-in-next-5-years-due-to-usaid-cuts-study-finds-2000622755 American Carnage How Trump, Musk, and DOGE Butchered the US Government https://lettersandsciencemag.ucdavis.edu/bookshelf/american-carnage

The progress we enjoy today, now under threat, was built by people who chose to turn despair into action, to do something instead of nothing. In these final days of winter, it's up to each of us to build an American spring. Call the Congressional switchboard 202-224-3121 and demand that your reps fight for the full release of the Epstein files, justice for every survivor and those killed, and accountability for every predator and enabler. And tell them to stop another forever war in the Middle East before it unleashes yet another Pandora's box, like George W. Bush's Iraq invasion gave rise to ISIS.  For this week's bonus show, we're publishing the recording of this past Monday's salon early. It was an in-depth conversation during an extra-tense time, and we hope you'll find a moment to listen to it, and to take extra care with yourselves. None of this is easy, but we're keeping our eyes on the prize, planting seeds of change for a better world.  We begin by reminding ourselves: yes, it's possible. And we are the ones being called to do it. Thank you for being here, and for staying in the fight with us. We could not make Gaslit Nation without you. We'll see you at Monday's salon at 4pm. For our Patreon supporters, the link, along with the recording, has already been published for you.  Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit

Donald Trump is the hammer of the Christian nationalists that built America, and rely on forever wars to assert their dominance. In this special live Gaslit Nation taping, Andrea discusses the real story behind Trump/Kushner and Israel's war. The Trump/Kushner families get to grift, illegally enriching themselves, endangering our national security and very lives, while the Pentagon looks the other way.  At least the Washington, DC elite, along with Israel, finally get their war with Iran.  As Andrea has long warned: World War III has already started. This week, Gaslit Nation provides the stories behind the stories, mapping out where this is all headed, and most importantly, what we can do to resist and build a better world. This week's bonus episode will be the Q&A portion of our live-taping, featuring questions from our audience. To listen to the full recording, be sure to subscribe at the Truth-teller ($5/month) or higher level on Pateron.com/Gaslit. Thank you to everyone who keeps our independent journalism going during these turbulent times. We could not make this show without you!  Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit New! There's now a California Signal Group for Gaslit Nation listeners to find each other and connect in that state. Find the link on Patreon.com/Gaslit.  Show Notes:   Russia Should Get Ready for the Fall of Vladimir Putin https://www.19fortyfive.com/2026/03/russia-should-get-ready-for-the-fall-of-vladimir-putin/   For Kushner, Israel Policy May Be Shaped by the Personal https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/11/us/politics/jared-kushner-israel.html?unlocked_article_code=1.QVA.k_Mc.ukQ2I2AgWRiQ&smid=url-share   As Tensions With Iran Escalated, Trump Opted for Most Extreme Measure: While senior officials argue the drone strike was warranted to prevent future attacks, some in the administration remain skeptical about the rationale for the attack. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/04/us/politics/trump-suleimani.html?unlocked_article_code=1.QVA.TdSS.Vi_-mzc5Zb-W&smid=url-share   Russian Oligarch Oleg Vladimirovich Deripaska and Associates Indicted for Sanctions Evasion and Obstruction of Justice https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/russian-oligarch-oleg-vladimirovich-deripaska-and-associates-indicted-sanctions-evasion-and   Did the FBI's Charles McGonigal Help Throw the 2016 Election to Trump?: The shocking indictments against the former head of counterintelligence for the FBI in New York raise many dark questions.  https://newrepublic.com/article/170328/charles-mcgonigal-throw-2016-election   New York Times article Andrea references mentioning Reid Hoffman: Big Donors Turn on Biden. Quietly: Some of the president's past supporters want a new candidate, but they are leery of going public. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/03/us/politics/biden-donors-debate.html?unlocked_article_code=1.QVA.QVGf.oDxmofN4ILKB&smid=url-share   1972 Electoral College Results https://www.270towin.com/1972-election/   Russia's most important Middle East base is not where you think https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/menasource/russias-most-important-middle-east-base-is-not-where-you-think/   The Church Committee Report: https://www.senate.gov/about/powers-procedures/investigations/church-committee.htm   Trump ordered to pay $382,000 after losing UK lawsuit over Steele dossier https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/mar/07/trump-loses-lawsuit-steele-dossier Israel, US will ensure Iran does not have nuclear capabilities, Israeli U.N. envoy says https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-us-will-ensure-iran-does-not-have-nuclear-capabilities-israeli-un-envoy-2026-03-02/   Trump seeks to justify Iran war, but stated objectives shift https://www.reuters.com/world/trump-says-he-ordered-iran-strikes-thwart-tehrans-missile-program-2026-03-02/   Trump's First Administration Shut Down Investigation Into Epstein: The state of New Mexico was investigating Jeffrey Epstein's ranch, but then the Department of Justice intervened. https://newrepublic.com/post/207226/donald-trump-first-administration-investigation-epstein-ranch   Jonathan Karl: Pres Trump told me tonight the US had identified possible candidates to take over Iran, but they were killed in the initial attack. "The attack was so successful it knocked out most of the candidates," Trump told me. "It's not going to be anybody that we were thinking of because they are all dead. Second or third place is dead." https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3mg2bruf4wk2q   The Playbook for Defeating MAGA: The Church Committee Report https://gaslitnation.libsyn.com/the-playbook-for-defeating-maga-the-church-committee-report   EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: New! There's now a California Signal Group for Gaslit Nation listeners to find each other and connect in that state. Find the link on Patreon.com/Gaslit.  The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: join on Patreon. Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: join on Patreon. Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: join on Patreon. Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect, join on Patreon. Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join, only on Patreon.  Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group, available on Patreon.  Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community  

Gaslit Nation has long warned that World War III has already started. We will discuss all that and more at today's Gaslit Nation Salon at 4pm ET. Join us on Patreon and get your questions answered and connect with other listeners.  If you can't make it live, the full recording will be available soon exclusively at Patreon.com/Gaslit. Salon Zoom Link: https://www.patreon.com/posts/zoom-link-for-at-152054116?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link Thank you to everyone who supports our independent journalism during these turbulent times. 

Apologies! Due to the blizzard, school closure, jury duty all in one week, the wrong file was published. Here is the correct one. Enjoy and see you at the salon on Monday. The ruling elite–from billionaires like Les Wexner to politicians who shared the "Lolita Express"–all knew. They claim to have been manipulated by serial pedophiles Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. They were complicit in a transnational crime syndicate that used human trafficking as a currency of power. What we can do now: Demand State Action: Call your Attorney General. Alex Acosta's slap-on-the-wrist federal deal is a sham–it was a cover-up. Demand that state-level cases be brought in New Mexico, Florida, New York, and Ohio–everywhere crimes were committed against over a thousand victims.  Subpoena the Money: We need a total forensic audit of Epstein's wire transfers worth over a billion dollars. End the "Great Disillusionment": Our institutions failed because they were captured. We must be the light that shines into their darkness. History will remember those who stood up. It is our turn to be relentless, like those who came before us, until every co-conspirator is behind bars. This is an excerpt of this week's bonus show. To listen to the full episode, subscribe at Patreon.com/Gaslit. Thank you to everyone who supports our investigative journalism.  Want to hear Gaslit Nation ad-free? Join our community of listeners for bonus shows, exclusive Q&A sessions, our group chats, invites to live events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit! Show Notes: Book Launch: Mrs. Orwell by Andrea Chalupa in conversation with Nomiki Konst https://powerhousearena.com/events/book-launch-mrs-orwell-by-andrea-chalupa-in-conversation-with-nomiki-konst/ The State of the Union is Sadistic Elites on a Crime Spree https://www.gaslitnationpod.com/episodes-transcripts-20/2026/2/24/the-state-of-the-union-is-sadistic-elites-on-a-crime-spree @repilhan.bsky.social shouts at Trump during SOTU: "You have killed Americans." https://bsky.app/profile/jordanuhl.com/post/3mfnpqndvlk23 Susanna Ledesma Woody is a proud central Texan, a devoted mother of three, a respected public servant, and a passionate advocate for equity and opportunity. https://www.votesusanna.net/meet-susanna Dominique Azzollini is a lifelong Pike County resident, real estate professional, and community advocate running for State Representative to make Pike and Wayne Counties affordable, healthy, and full of opportunity again. https://www.azzolliniforpa.org/

The ruling elite–from billionaires like Les Wexner to politicians who shared the "Lolita Express"–all knew. They claim to have been manipulated by serial pedophiles Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. They were complicit in a transnational crime syndicate that used human trafficking as a currency of power. What we can do now: Demand State Action: Call your Attorney General. Alex Acosta's slap-on-the-wrist federal deal is a sham–it was a cover-up. Demand that state-level cases be brought in New Mexico, Florida, New York, and Ohio–everywhere crimes were committed against over a thousand victims.  Subpoena the Money: We need a total forensic audit of Epstein's wire transfers worth over a billion dollars. End the "Great Disillusionment": Our institutions failed because they were captured. We must be the light that shines into their darkness. History will remember those who stood up. It is our turn to be relentless, like those who came before us, until every co-conspirator is behind bars. Want to hear Gaslit Nation ad-free? Join our community of listeners for bonus shows, exclusive Q&A sessions, our group chats, invites to live events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit! Show Notes: The State of the Union is Sadistic Elites on a Crime Spree https://www.gaslitnationpod.com/episodes-transcripts-20/2026/2/24/the-state-of-the-union-is-sadistic-elites-on-a-crime-spree @repilhan.bsky.social shouts at Trump during SOTU: "You have killed Americans." https://bsky.app/profile/jordanuhl.com/post/3mfnpqndvlk23 Susanna Ledesma Woody is a proud central Texan, a devoted mother of three, a respected public servant, and a passionate advocate for equity and opportunity. https://www.votesusanna.net/meet-susanna Dominique Azzollini is a lifelong Pike County resident, real estate professional, and community advocate running for State Representative to make Pike and Wayne Counties affordable, healthy, and full of opportunity again. https://www.azzolliniforpa.org/

We are up against a transnational mafia, as Gaslit Nation has long warned, and the Epstein files expose it, despite the ongoing cover-up. This week, investigative journalist Dave Troy joins the show to connect the dots between Epstein, the Kremlin, and far-right operatives who have spent decades dismantling our democracy, including the Florida 2000 recount that ensured George W. Bush came to power. (Bush's administration gave Epstein an illegal "sweetheart deal," allowing him and Maxwell to continue their crime network, trafficking children to the ruling elite). "The U.S. government has been infiltrated by these networks for decades," Troy says. Epstein was not a lone wolf. He was deeply embedded in a transnational crime syndicate with ties extending to Russian intelligence and powerful oligarchs who are still trying to create a lawless "network state" where they can operate above the law.  We also discuss the dangerous complacency of assuming our institutions will protect us, especially when the very people tasked with upholding the law, from the DOJ to high-profile attorneys, protect the shadow network. Their goal is to demoralize us with complexity. By tracing their connections, we can understand their playbook and fight back. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: join on Patreon.  Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: join on Patreon.  Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: join on Patreon.  Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect: join on Patreon.  Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join: join on Patreon.  Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group: join on Patreon.  Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community  

In 1945, U.S. Army psychiatrist Dr. Douglas Kelley arrived at Nuremberg with an hypothesis: the 22 top Nazi defendants, including Hermann Göring, the second most powerful man of the Third Reich, must share a unique psychosis. He was looking for a "Nazi mind virus" that could explain the Holocaust. As Jack El-Hai, author of The Nazi and the Psychiatrist, of which the new film, Nuremberg, starring Russell Crowe as Göring, is based, reveals in this week's Gaslit Nation, Dr. Kelley found something far more terrifying. There was no insanity. These men were clinically "normal." They were ambitious, hardworking, Type-A opportunists: the kind you might find in any corporate boardroom today. What made them willing to destroy half the population to rule the other half? Even Hitler, Dr. Kelley concluded, wasn't a "madman" but a paranoid hypochondriac whose fear of early death rushed him into strategic failures like the invasion of the Soviet Union. This finding is a warning for us now. If Nazism isn't a disease but a human choice, it can take root anywhere. El-Hai points to the "sophisticated propaganda" and the evolution of ICE tactics in Minneapolis, where he and his family live, as modern terror of the early Gestapo. How do we bring Donald Trump, Stephen Miller, Kristi Noem, and their lawless killers to justice in our own Nuremberg trials? We stop waiting for a savior. We document the abuses, we protect the vote, and as El-Hai urges, we "get in where we fit in" during this time of self-defense resistance. This essential history is a reminder that the face of evil is often disturbingly ordinary.  Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: join on Patreon.  Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: join on Patreon.  Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: join on Patreon. Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect: join on Patreon.  Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join: join on Patreon.  Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group: join on Patreon.   

Here's what you missed at last week's Gaslit Nation Salon. The full recording is available on Patreon.com/Gaslit.  Gaslit Nation warned you in 2019 that Tulsi Gabbard was a Russian disinformation weapon, and now she is the Director of National Intelligence. The gatekeeper of American secrets is currently abusing her power to illegally intervene in our domestic elections, as seen in the recent federal raid on a Georgia election office. Trump's raid in Georgia, overseen by Gabbard and Kash Patel's FBI, goes beyond his Big Lie litigating the 2020 election. They're laying the groundwork to justify "security measures" to make it easier for GOP ratf*cking and voter suppression to steal our elections.  Meanwhile, a whistleblower complaint reveals that Gabbard buried NSA intelligence regarding two foreign operatives discussing a compromised person in Trump's inner circle. Given the corruption spree in Trump's own inner circle, there's a long list of who this could be! As the reporting has confirmed, Gabbard is leading a cover-up.  As predicted in last week's salon, it was Kushner who is at the center of an NSA intelligence report on two foreign operatives discussing someone close to Trump -- a report that Tulsi Gabbard, Director of National Intelligence, hid to protect the Trump family's corruption crime spree. A New York Times gift article is available here. Tulsi Gabbard is a national security threat. We must demand that our Secretaries of State protect our ballots from this administration's interference. Agonize then organize and socialize. The news cycle is designed to exhaust you, but you don't have to face the autocracy alone. We built a resilience community for truth-tellers, and we want you in it.  Join us today at 4pm ET for our Gaslit Nation Salon, a space to strategize, vent, and connect with a community of listeners just as horrified as you. Find the link to join us by Zoom, wherever you are, at Patreon.com/Gaslit. Thank you to everyone who supports the show -- we could not make Gaslit Nation without you!  Show Notes: Warnings from Syria on How to Stop Putin in Ukraine https://www.gaslitnationpod.com/episodes-transcripts-20/2022/3/9/warnings-from-syria?rq=mOUAZ

Happy Valentine's Day to the Gaslit Nation family. While the world distracts itself with candy-coated romance, we know the most consequential stories are often the most complicated. If you're in the mood for a love story, specifically, a toxic one that changed the course of history, I invite you to meet Eileen O'Shaughnessy in my graphic novel, Mrs. Orwell. Eileen was the brilliant, overlooked force who helped fuel the creation of her husband's most enduring works. Her life with Eric Blair (aka George Orwell) was a whirlwind of intellect, sacrifice, and revolutionary dysfunction. Pre-order Mrs. Orwell here: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250877857/mrsorwell/ See you at the Gaslit Nation Salon on Monday at 4pm ET -- only on Patreon.com/Gaslit. Thank you to everyone who supports our work here during these dangerous times. 

In this week's bonus show, we break down the absolutely chilling congressional hearing where North Korean newscaster Pam Bondi shilled for an elite pedophile network. Under oath in Congress, Bondi dangled Wall Street profits as a bribe to look the other way on child trafficking. This rot goes deeper than Trump or Epstein. We are now living through the "Great Disillusionment," the moment we realize the "polite" elites are complicit and no one is coming to save us but ourselves. The only justice that has been achieved for Epstein's victims was because they, their advocates, a free press, and the people united to demand it. We the People forced the Epstein files to be released. This is just the beginning–the criminals can no longer hide in the dark. To hear our breakdown of the Epstein files with Russian mafia expert Olga Lautman on how to fight back, support independent journalism and subscribe. We are the light that will drive out their darkness, and we are going to get through this together. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit Show Notes: Bondi confronted by protester while arriving at Capitol: "Bondi you are a disgrace to the American people! You protect pedophiles who systematically rape children!" https://bsky.app/profile/meidastouch.com/post/3melrpnsycc27 Massie And Bondi Have Shocking Fight As He Accuses Her Of Epstein Files 'Cover-Up' https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vgiW06lZrvc Cohen to Bondi: "You tried to investigate Ms. Good's widow and you tried to investigate Mr. Pretti. They were executed like Kristi Noem executed her dog." https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3melv5enofu2k Massie: "Here is an email that was sent by the victims' lawyers to the DOJ. It was a list of names not to release. What did the DOJ do with this email? They released it! Literally the worst thing you could do the survivors you did." https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3melykectvi2g Karl Bode: "Likely-historic photo by NBC News of all the Epstein victims asked to raise their hands if they've not yet been asked to meet with the DOJ as Bondi testifies in foreground" https://bsky.app/profile/karlbode.com/post/3mely4yvhis23 RASKIN: Will you create a joint task force of the DOJ and state officials and district attorneys to investigate the crimes that have taken place against these victims are more than 1,000 like them? BONDI: *arms folded* … https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3melz5te6pb2y Bondi is now just straight up ignoring questions from Democratic members https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3memakzpxvm2d Bondi crashes out over Epstein: "The Dow is over 50,000 dollars! I don't know why you're laughing. You're a great stock trader as I hear, Raskin. The Dow is over 50,000 right now. The S&P at almost 7,000, and the Nasdaq smashing records. That's what we should be talking about." https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3melualitx22u wow -- Bondi throws a fit in response to Nadler's question about how many of Epstein's co-conspirators, if any, she's investigating, aggressively pointing at him and yelling. The hearing then devolves into chaos and Raskin and Bondi start yelling at each other. https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3meltxcc4652h Kash Patel covers up for Trump and Epstein: https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3lz27h24wc626  

As Gaslit Nation has long warned: our institutions are complicit. Nazis infiltrate police departments, protecting an elite pedophile ring–protected by the FBI and DOJ. What can the American people do in a time of elite criminal impunity? Enter antifa. As investigative reporter Christopher Mathias reveals in his new book To Catch a Fascist, the solution is self-reliance and tenacious research skills.  As Mathias explains, antifa does exist, haunting Donald Trump's nightmares, and has been a force of resistance throughout American history. Antifa is part of a long tradition in America, composed of LGBTQ people, neurodivergent people, the working class, and other everyday Americans–operating in a hyper-localized decentralized network.  Mathias details how activists have unmasked neo-Nazis through Open Source Intelligence (OSINT), infiltrating online and offline groups, hacking, posting "meet your local Nazi" fliers in communities, and citizen investigative journalism. One researcher read 60,000 tweets just to find a single biographical detail to out a Nazi hiding in the dark.  As we'll cover in future episodes, antifa's strategies can also apply to outing Jeffrey Epstein's co-conspirators who think they can continue hiding from justice. Just as the NAACP's Walter White investigated lynchings in the 1920s when the police protected their friends in the Klan, citizen researchers can map the flight logs and financial ties of Trump and Epstein's friends. If the FBI and DOJ continue to protect billionaire lawlessness, we must create a social cost for corruption and predatory elites. If the Department of Justice won't unmask the villains, then it's up to us to do it. "We protect us" is the rallying cry of liberation movements, of neighbors helping neighbors against corruption and institutional failure that protects predators in power. As Gaslit Nation has long warned: it's up to us to save us.  Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: join on Patreon.  Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: join on Patreon.  Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: join on Patreon.  Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect, join on Patreon.  Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join, join on Patreon.  Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group, join on Patreon.  Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community  

Our democracy has been hijacked by an elite pedophile ring–one that has always been operating in plain sight. This week, Andrea and Russian mafia expert Olga Lautman dig into the horror show of the recently released Epstein files. As students of Soviet history, we know the truth: what we know is horrific, but what has yet to be revealed is much worse. Did Epstein, Trump, and their friends kill for pleasure–how many of their victims were murdered or died by suicide? Who wrote Epstein an email about a torture video? Is that person in power, wielding influence over our lives? We also examine Epstein's freelance intelligence work, showing how he collected kompromat to consolidate power through elite capture, pollinating corruption through the transnational crime syndicate, especially the autocratic regimes of Russia and Israel.  We lift up the voices of the survivors and their advocates who demand the full release of the Epstein Files. Despite a bipartisan Congressional act, only an estimated half of the six million files have been released. Convicted felon Donald Trump's former personal defense attorney, Todd Blanche, is the Deputy Attorney General, helping lead the cover-up. The only silver lining in this extreme darkness is that the truth is finally coming to light, and American society, especially the media who glamorized Epstein, are no longer able to ignore it.  For our bonus episode this week, we answer your questions about the Epstein files, rising autocracy, and more. To listen to the bonus, subscribe to our Patreon at the Truth-Teller level ($5/month) or higher. We are extremely grateful to our listeners who are keeping us afloat during this difficult time. Every bit of support helps give us the freedom to tell the truth, so thank you again for making Gaslit Nation possible. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit Show Notes:   House of Trump, House of Putin The Untold Story of Donald Trump and the Russian Mafia https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/576474/house-of-trump-house-of-putin-by-craig-unger/   "Why I don't believe Jeffrey Epstein Killed Himself (Part 2). NEW: Epstein claimed he was being extorted in prison. A look at the incident and the mysterious note that Epstein slipped into a book inside his cell." https://bsky.app/profile/jkbjournalist.bsky.social/post/3mdln2ndegs2r   DOJ Deletes Epstein Files Again — And They Directly Implicate Trump https://open.substack.com/pub/krassenstein/p/urgent-doj-deletes-epstein-files?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=web   6 Women, Including Olivia Munn, Accuse Brett Ratner of Harassment or Misconduct https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/6-women-including-olivia-munn-accuse-brett-ratner-harassment-misconduct-1053679/   Documents declassified by the US Department of Justice name pedophile Epstein as the manager of Putin's fortune. https://ru.themoscowtimes.com/2026/02/01/vrassekrechennih-minyustom-ssha-dokumentah-pedofil-epshtein-nazivaetsya-upravlyayuschim-sostoyaniem-putina-a185967   We Tracked Every Visitor to Epstein Island | WIRED https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjPHq-Ez0nc   Epstein frequently connected NY Giants co-owner Steve Tisch with women, emails show https://abcnews.go.com/US/epstein-frequently-connected-ny-giants-owner-steve-tisch/story?id=129735927   What 3 million new documents tell us about Trump's ties to Jeffrey Epstein https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/31/politics/new-documents-trump-epstein   New Epstein files fail to quell outrage as advocates claim documents are being withheld https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/feb/03/new-epstein-files-advocates-claim-documents-withheld   US Commerce Secretary Lutnick planned Epstein island visit, emails show https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/feb/03/new-epstein-files-advocates-claim-documents-withheld   University Trustee Thomas Pritzker Named in New Epstein Documents: The notorious financier and sex offender wrote in a text message that UChicago Trustee Thomas Pritzker (M.B.A. '76, J.D. '76) was "like family," according to documents released by the House Oversight Committee on November 12. https://chicagomaroon.com/49435/news/university-trustee-thomas-pritzker-named-in-new-epstein-documents/   Here's How Many Times Trump Is Mentioned in New Epstein Files https://newrepublic.com/post/206023/how-often-donald-trump-mentioned-epstein-files   The Government Published Dozens of Nude Photos in the Epstein Files https://www.nytimes.com/2026/02/01/us/nude-photos-epstein-files.html   Trump-Epstein Super Special [TEASER] https://gaslitnation.libsyn.com/trump-epstein-super-specialteaser  

We're going to talk about the Epstein Files, and what may be the new sex trafficking elite club of rapists... So stay tuned for Monday's Gaslit Nation Salon at 4pm ET. Oh, and Andrea ran into another fascist in New York City. That's two in one week! In this clip from last week's salon, she shares the story of living Dorothy Thompson's 1941 essay, "Who Goes Nazi?" The full recording is available on Patreon.com/Gaslit along with the link to join us this Monday. Agonize then organize and socialize. The news cycle is designed to exhaust you, but you don't have to face the autocracy alone. We built a resilience community for truth-tellers, and we want you in it.  Join us today at 4pm ET for our Gaslit Nation Salon, a space to strategize, vent, and connect with a community of listeners just as horrified as you. Find the link to join us by Zoom, wherever you are, at Patreon.com/Gaslit. Thank you to everyone who supports the show -- we could not make Gaslit Nation without you!  Photo image from The Economist. It features fascist art used by the Trump administration to promote recruitment for their tax-payer funded ethnic cleansing through the Department of Homeland Security: https://www.economist.com/insider/the-insider/the-ice-test-how-the-killing-of-two-citizens-in-minneapolis-will-shape-american-democracy

In the 1970s, Senator Frank Church, a Democrat from Idaho, stuck his neck out–unlike members of Congress today–to take on the real deep state–the FBI and CIA carrying out LSD mind-control experiments on Americans, terrorizing activists, and committing assassinations with the mafia, including against witnesses. The Church Committee Report, based on real Congressional investigations, not just performative show trials, shows us how to confront and dismantle the lawless, mass-murdering MAGA regime.  Historians Matthew Guariglia, a senior policy analyst at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and Brian Hochman, the Hubert J. Cloke Endowed Director of the American Studies Program at Georgetown University, are out with the definitive account, The Church Committee Report: Revelations from the Bombshell 1970s Investigation into the National Security State. They walk us through the decades of U.S. presidents of both major parties allowing a surveillance state to expand, running dangerous operations against the American people. The most chilling legacy is not the cartoonish villainy of poison darts and imperial assassinations, but the insidious cruelty of undermining activists. So pay attention. Don't let anyone–even a well-meaning ally–weaponize purity tests to gatekeep the Fourth American Revolution. Stopping the MAGA threat requires all of us building together in coalition. Based on the Church Committee's own findings, we know exactly what tools the FBI and CIA use to dismantle movements. They have very specific, terrifyingly effective strategies to divide and conquer We the People.  Here is what they do when they want to destroy a movement from the inside out: Snitch Jacketing: This is psychological warfare. They plant false information–maybe they leave a map or a weapon in an activist's car–specifically to make you think your friend is a police informant. They leverage paranoia to make us eat our own. Fabricated Dissent: They create fake zines, fake newsletters, and fake correspondence to manufacture feuds between groups. They want the anti-war movement fighting the labor movement so neither fights the state. The "Friendly" Infiltrator: Watch out for the guy who shows up out of nowhere with coffee and too many questions. They send plainclothes agents into our resilience communities to map our networks and identify leaders and how they operate. Entrapment: They find an "easy mark" in a group, push them toward violence, then arrest everyone for a plot the FBI invented. They manufacture terrorism. The "Suicide" Strategy: J. Edgar Hoover's FBI sent a letter to Martin Luther King Jr., threatening to expose his private life and pressuring him to kill himself. They try to break you psychologically so that you back down and disappear. According to historians Guariglia and Hochman, activists under siege were aware of the threats long before the Church Committee exposed them, and developed resilience strategies we can learn from today:  Reject the "All-Powerful" Myth: Don't give a lawless regime a bigger shadow than it actually has–that is what they want: to live inside your head. When you start believing the government is an all-knowing, all-powerful shadow monster, you are doing their work for them. Paranoia is a tool of the oppressor.  Build a Culture of Care: The only way snitch-jacketing works is if we don't know each other. Build deep, resilient relationships. When we take care of each other, their wedges don't work. Sousveillance (Watch from Below): Do not rely on police body cams; those tapes have a magical habit of being turned off when they're needed. Film everything. Control the narrative with your own evidence, eyes, and ears. Divest from Big Tech: Google, Amazon, and Apple are regime collaborators. We need to build our own infrastructure from high-tech mesh networks to low-tech zines. If you rely on the master's tools, they will shut you down, as we're seeing now with TikTok's mass-censorship under the new owners–MAGA donors, the Ellisons. Get Educated: Practice tech hygiene. Go to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) and use their Surveillance Self-Defense guide. Learn how to encrypt, what to carry, and how to stay safe. We're fighting a generational struggle, but we outnumber them. As Andrea's film Mr. Jones reminds us: The truth cannot be killed. Stay safe, vigilant, and united–that is how we win. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: join on Patreon. Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: join on Patreon. Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: join on Patreon. Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect: join on Patreon. Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join: join on Patreon. Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group: join on Patreon. Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community

Stephen Miller, Donald Trump, Kristi Noem, J.D. Vance, and the entire MAGA Klan murdered Alex Pretti. They sent Bovino into early retirement, but he must be arrested, along with his agents who shot 10 bullets into Pretti, an ICU nurse for the VA who spent his life helping others. Demand the impeachment of President Stephen Miller: force Trump to throw him under the bus, too. It's a start to the demands for justice.  To honor Pretti and our work ahead, find time to grieve. We cannot power through this collective rage and anxiety without releasing it. Even the strong need to cry in the shower. If we don't sit with our grief, it will force you to. Grieving is an act of resistance. It changes you, and it plants the seeds of justice that we will use to build a better world together. To the people of Minnesota, you have created an American Maidan, standing strong against tyranny. Even Ukrainians, freezing in the cold from Russia bombing their electrical grids, see you, and are calling your movement a Maidan. To grow a real resistance, we share a message recorded by Annie, a Gaslit Nation listener in Minneapolis.  Our victory is guaranteed because our enemies are cowards who hide behind masks. America has defeated the Klan before. We must fight with urgency in a generational struggle. Join the General Strike this Friday January 31st. Divest from the corporations funding the MAGA regime–look to Cut Off the Spigot to learn how. And most importantly, stand by each other. As the people of Minnesota showed us, singing "Stand by Me" in the face of fascism: we win through our culture of care. Tonight's episode will run as usual. It's an examination on how the Church Committee Report, which exposed the mass-murdering FBI and CIA, shows us how to overcome our mass-murdering state today.  Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit Show Notes National General Strike (Jan 31–this Friday!): https://nationalshutdown.us/ Support Susanna Ledesma-Woody for Travis County Commissioner: https://www.votesusanna.net/ Minnesota Community Resources: https://minnesotanonprofits.org/community-resources-ice-operations Cut Off The Spigot (Divestment Resource): https://cutoffthespigot.com/ Shop The Hood (Small Business Alternatives): https://shopthehood.store/ Who Advertises On X (Boycott Resource): https://whoadvertiseson.org/ Yes, It's Fascism (Jonathan Rauch/Brookings): https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/yes-it-s-fascism/ar-AA1UWfO5?ocid=BingNewsSerp Misogyny Killed Alex Pretti: https://sharidunn.substack.com/p/misogyny-killed-alex-pretti?triedRedirect=true Letter to My Daughter: https://www.thenation.com/article/activism/letter-to-my-daughter/# Tad Stoermer Video Read by Gaslit Nation Listener Annie: https://www.threads.com/@tad.stoermer/post/DTKc0iDjjdn/media Intro Clip: https://bsky.app/profile/thetnholler.bsky.social/post/3md7q7guacc22 Outro Clip: https://bsky.app/profile/taylordahlin.com/post/3mdeijmip522z  

Here's what you missed at last week's Gaslit Nation Salon: the full recording is available on Patreon.com/Gaslit. America's first revolution was against the British empire. The second American revolution was the Civil War to abolish slavery. The third revolution was for Civil Rights to dismantle the authoritarianism of the Jim Crow South. We're not getting out of this without a Fourth American Revolution. Agonize then organize and socialize. The news cycle is designed to exhaust you, but you don't have to face the autocracy alone. We built a resilience community for truth-tellers, and we want you in it.  Join us today at 4pm ET for our Gaslit Nation Salon, a space to strategize, vent, and connect with a community of listeners just as horrified as you. Find the link to join us by Zoom, wherever you are, at Patreon.com/Gaslit. Thank you to everyone who supports the show -- we could not make Gaslit Nation without you! 

The world's leading philosophers and psychologists were based in Germany and Austria during the rise of Hitler. They studied the darkest chapter of human history while trying to make sense of it and survive it themselves. Their teachings are an urgent alarm for us today: fascists seek endless conflict through domination, and it will never be enough. Drawing on George Orwell's analysis of Hitler, we see that while democracy offers the radical concept of "having a good time," fascism preys on a neurotic, broken need for "struggle, danger, and death." It is an addiction to conflict, often first learned in the childhood home, according to Erich Fromm, that views empathy not as a virtue, but as a target.  Walter Benjamin, before losing his own life to suicide to avoid the concentration camps, pointed out that fascists seek pleasure in their own demise. It is the fleeting, hollow glee of a bully kicking over a sandcastle because he doesn't know how to build one. Joy is how we win. The hate-fueled fascist high is a non-renewable resource. It requires a constant supply of new enemies to sustain a house of cards built on lawlessness and corruption. True joy, born of community, love, and creation, is sustainable energy, even in the unlikeliest of places, as our heroes who came before us also showed us. Stay safe. Stay defiant. And find some joy today: it's the best revenge. For our bonus episode this week, we sit down for a special Self Care Q&A with Vatican reporter Colleen Dulle, author of Struck Down, Not Destroyed: Keeping the Faith as a Vatican Reporter! To listen to the bonus, subscribe to our Patreon at the Truth-Teller level or higher. We are extremely grateful to our listeners who are keeping us afloat during very difficult economic circumstances. Every bit of support helps give us the freedom to tell the truth, so thank you again for making Gaslit Nation possible! Show Notes: Help Bring 5-Year-Old Liam Home https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-bring-5yearold-liam-home?attribution_id=sl:0f9224c0-2c25-4831-a70f-1357729d5d8c&lang=en_US&ts=1769049480&utm_campaign=fp_sharesheet&utm_content=amp17_control&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link Part I of Our Conversation with Colleen Dulle: MAGA's Vatican Cold War: https://gaslitnation.libsyn.com/magas-vatican-cold-war A Recent Gaslit Nation Salon Excerpt Giving the Bigger Picture of U.S. China-Panic Chaos under Trump from the Pentagon's Perspective: https://gaslitnation.libsyn.com/stay-sane-with-us-join-the-gaslit-nation-salon "An observer arrested in South Minneapolis. Photo by Richard Tsong-Taatarii/The Minnesota Star Tribune" https://bsky.app/profile/amreports.bsky.social/post/3mcxlw4ijx42p "Interesting scoop from Anna Giaritelli, who has good sources inside DHS. It suggests Noem and Lewandowski (seemingly still serving as a Special Government Employee despite having timed out months ago) are trying to push out the CBP Commissioner (former Border Patrol) because he's not harsh *enough.*" https://bsky.app/profile/reichlinmelnick.bsky.social/post/3mcyd34k2v225 Immigration officers assert sweeping power to enter homes without a judge's warrant, memo says https://apnews.com/article/ice-arrests-warrants-minneapolis-trump-00d0ab0338e82341fd91b160758aeb2d The Stolen Wealth of Slavery: A Case for Reparations https://www.gaslitnationpod.com/episodes-transcripts-20/2024/02/28/reparations-now 'That's Our Territory': Trump Uses Davos Speech to Push for Greenland https://time.com/7354005/trump-davos-speech-greenland/ You've Got to Read George Orwell's Review of 'Mein Kampf' https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a45897365/george-orwell-reviews-hitler-mein-kampf/ Police charge Trump campaign manager with assault https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/police-charge-trump-campaign-manager-with-assault#:~:text=Police%20in%20Jupiter%2C%20Florida%2C%20released,provided%20by%20Jupiter%2C%20Florida%20police. Ex-Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski accused of sexual assault https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/dec/27/ex-trump-campaign-manager-corey-lewandowski-accused-of-sexual-assault  

Like the rest of us, Pope Leo, the first American Pope, is under siege by MAGA. We discuss MAGA's war on the "globalist," "culturally Marxist" Catholic Church with Colleen Dulle, Vatican reporter for America Magazine and author of Struck Down, Not Destroyed. Christian Nationalists have captured the White House, Congress, and Supreme Court. Now they are targeting the Holy See. We track the strategy from Steve Bannon's "gladiator school" for disinformation agents to recently converted Catholic JD Vance using his faith to justify mass deportations and ICE terror squads. MAGA has launched a financial boycott of the Catholic Church, provided safe haven and amplification for its biggest crackpots, while deploying dark-money disinformation and a Fox News-style Catholic press to target reformers. We also confront the Vatican's long history of abuse and gaslighting. We discuss the erasure of trans people and women leaders like Mary Magdalene, arguably the true first pope. We also look to what the first American pontiff, Pope Leo, will bring in this time of crisis, and whether he will continue Pope Francis's war on Opus Dei–the far-right human trafficking crime cult that gained prominence during Franco's dictatorship in Spain. Opus Dei has set up shop in Washington, DC, counting among its allies Vance and the Heritage Foundation's Kevin Roberts, architect of Project 2025.  Note: This conversation was recorded on June 17, 2025. Look out for our bonus episode later this week on the latest hellscape headlines!  Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit  EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: available on Patreon.com/Gaslit Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: available on Patreon.com/Gaslit Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other: available on Patreon.com/Gaslit Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect, available on Patreon.com/Gaslit Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join, available on Patreon.com/Gaslit Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group, available on Patreon.com/Gaslit Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community Show Notes: Struck Down, Not Destroyed: Colleen Dulle's new book on keeping the faith while covering the Vatican's crises https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/struck-down-not-destroyed-colleen-dulle/1146546457 Steve Bannon's "Gladiator School" Evicted: How the far-right strategist lost his fight to turn an 800-year-old monastery into a training ground for culture warriors https://news.artnet.com/art-world-archives/steve-bannons-school-far-right-nationalists-officially-evicted-800-year-old-italian-monastery-leased-2007256 The Problem with JD Vance's "Ordo Amoris": A theological breakdown of how Vance manipulates the teachings of St. Augustine to justify ICE terror  https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2025/02/13/ordo-amoris-stephen-pope-vance-249926/ Project 2025 Architect Linked to Opus Dei: The Guardian reveals the deep ties between Kevin Roberts, the Heritage Foundation, and Opus Dei https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/jul/26/kevin-roberts-project-2025-opus-dei MAGA Tries to Starve the Church: An investigation into "Peter's Pence" and how conservative groups are financially undermining the Church https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2019/12/12/vatican-misleading-donors-peters-pence-explained/ Gaslit Nation's Episode on Opus Dei: https://www.gaslitnationpod.com/episodes-transcripts-20/2024/12/31/opus-dei

Here's what you missed at last week's Gaslit Nation Salon for our listeners on Patreon.  Agonize then organize and socialize. The news cycle is designed to exhaust you, but you don't have to face the autocracy alone. We built a resilience community for truth-tellers, and we want you in it.  Join us today at 4pm ET for our Gaslit Nation Salon, a space to strategize, vent, and connect with a community of listeners just as horrified as you. Find the link to join us by Zoom, wherever you are, at Patreon.com/Gaslit. Thank you to everyone who supports the show -- we could not make Gaslit Nation without you!   

They shot a woman three times in the face. Now they want to send in the Insurrection Act. Why are they targeting Minnesota? The "Minnesota Miracle" showed how great our country could be: codified abortion rights, a trans refuge, free universal school meals. The Project 2025 agenda requires covering-up that progress works. We are watching history repeat. The crushing of "Red Vienna" by autocrat Chancellor Dollfuss in 1934 made Austria easier to invade by Hitler and the Nazis. The overthrow of a democratically elected labour government in the Spanish Civil War ushered in a dictatorship by a narcissist. Whenever progressive movements secure rights through legal means, fascists resort to illegal terror to crush those victories, desperate to hide that a better world is possible. As we honor Martin Luther King Jr. today, on his birthday, we must heed his warning: do not sleep through a revolution. While members of Congress "huddle" and wait for the courts, we demand they use every lever of power to protect the upcoming midterms. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: join on Patreon. Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other:join on Patreon. Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other:join on Patreon. Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect, join on Patreon. Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join,join on Patreon. Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group, join on Patreon. Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community Show Notes: Gaslit Nation discussion of MLK Jr.'s memoir Stride Toward Freedom: https://gaslitnation.libsyn.com/build-baby-build-the-world-needs-your-light-teaser

They want you to be passive and quiet. But history tells a different story. We're joined by award-winning comic creator Ben Passmore, author of Black Arms to Hold You Up: A History of Black Resistance, to dig into the stories that history books, and Hollywood, whitewash: De-sanitizing Resistance: We discuss how films and media often strip away the political intellect of figures like the Black Liberation Army, reducing revolutionary struggle to nihilism. Community as Armor: Ben puts the focus on true resistance as mutual aid. From the Jane Collective organizing healthcare, to prisoners organizing even from solitary confinement, the most radical act is building a culture of care. The Trap of Online Activism: In an age of surveillance capitalism, Ben warns that we must move beyond the "power fantasy" of social media. Real solidarity happens offline, face-to-face, building trust that algorithms can't suppress. As MAGA's Supreme Leader expands the surveillance state through Peter Thiel's Big Brother Palantir and unleashes a KKK gestapo through ICE, we must learn from unfiltered history and understand what it actually takes to survive. January 15th is the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr. The Civil Rights movement ushered in the Third American Revolution, defeating the authoritarianism of Jim Crow, which John Roberts' Supreme Court is bringing back. Listen to our episode on Stride Toward Freedom, the memoir by a young MLK Jr. after he captured the world's attention leading the successful Montgomery Bus Boycott. For more on resistance strategies, listen to our episode on Gene Sharp, author of From Dictatorship to Democracy, and our interview with his protege Jamila Raqib, the executive director of the Albert Einstein Institution: Fire in Our Peace: The Power of Nonviolent Resistance.   Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit Show Notes:  Watch: A sobbing mother calls 911 as federal agents force their way into her home to chase down a DoorDash driver who was just trying to deliver food. https://www.reddit.com/r/minnesota/comments/1q8vvwa/st_paul_mn_a_sobbing_resident_calls_911_as/?sort=old Trump Taps Palantir to Build a "Big Brother": How the administration is partnering with Peter Thiel's tech giant to monitor Americans. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/30/technology/trump-palantir-data-americans.html ACLU Investigates Police Use of Flock License Plate Surveillance: https://www.aclu.org/news/privacy-technology/flock-roundup Project 2025 Tracker: Monitoring the conservative policy blueprint and authoritarian roadmap. https://www.project2025.observer/en Want to Stop ICE? Go After Its Corporate Collaborators: A guide on how to target the businesses fueling the deportation machine. https://www.thenation.com/article/activism/ice-businesses-boycott-campaign/?fbclid=IwY2xjawPR1kdleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEezKLIFd9EZUL6g5uRoGAhj6cAItrut7MjpF8RislyssfXbo-V_-dZNqW2Fw4_aem_f4IvbocKBVROoBGqO-V_Kg Prairieland Defendants: Legal support and mutual aid for protesters. https://prairielanddefendants.com/ Police Accountability and Reform: An activist checklist for demanding transparency. https://activistchecklist.org/police/ The Singing Revolution: How music helped liberate the Baltic States from Soviet occupation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Singing_Revolution Thomas Paine's Common Sense (1776): The full text of the pamphlet that sparked a revolution. https://loveman.sdsu.edu/docs/1776ThomasPaine.pdf "The Voice of Dust and Ash": A documentary film on resistance and silence. https://vimeo.com/753111135?fl=pl&fe=cm Man Up: The New Misogyny and the Rise of Violent Extremism. https://share.google/t85l3THA4XfvEEbNo Whistleblower drops 'largest ever' ICE leak to unmask agents: 'The last straw' https://www.rawstory.com/ice-agents-data-leak/ Review: 'One Battle After Another,' What Black Women Call Life https://blacknerdproblems.com/review-one-battle-after-another/ EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: The Gaslit Nation Outreach Committee discusses how to talk to the MAGA cult: join on Patreon.  Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other:join on Patreon.  Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other:join on Patreon.  Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect, join on Patreon.  Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join,join on Patreon.  Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group, join on Patreon.  Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community

The Russian Orthodox Church, a longtime arm of the Kremlin, is running an intelligence operation targeting MAGA's Christian nationalism, to help turn America into a dictatorship.  This week's bonus show continues our conversation with Russian mafia expert Olga Lautman. She exposes a sweeping op by the Kremlin's church. You can read her investigation in the show notes. Russians, being white and Christian, get a pass that other terrorist regimes, like Iran, don't. We fact check their mind-hacking op, and also answer questions from Gaslit Nation listeners–like if Putin and Trump got in a fight, who would win?  Whether it's MAGA, the Kremlin, or the regime in Iran that looks on the verge of collapse, it's the same mind-hack everywhere: confuse, divide, and exhaust. The antidote is clarity, which can only be maintained through self-care. This weekend, be sure to find some time in nature, and be gentle on yourselves and others. We're all in this together, and we will overcome.  Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit Show Notes: Be sure to read Amanda Gorman's poem for Renee Good. It's here for those who don't have Instagram, where she originally posted it: https://bsky.app/profile/elizabethjacobs.bsky.social/post/3mbximyqaos23 Gil Duran on Thiel and Greenland: https://bsky.app/profile/gilduran.com/post/3mbx2lvjrec2h Russia's Orthodox Church and the Weaponization of Religion https://olgalautman.substack.com/p/insights-from-chapter-2-russias-orthodox?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email&triedRedirect=true  

A statement from Gaslit Nation listener Annie in Minneapolis, Minnesota:  Real Resistance I live in Minneapolis, 6 minutes from where Renee Good was shot and killed today by an ICE agent. I am 39, a white woman, with a 6 year old like Renee. I am on my neighborhood rapid response thread and on another morning it could easily have been me who was shot and killed. I feel grief, I feel rage, but I am also hopeful that her death will crack open something that needs to see the light of day. On Tuesday, dozens of people were brutally kidnapped and taken from their families, but there were no press conferences and no headlines. Today, all eyes are on ICE. Schools are canceled for the rest of the week. My manager wrote to say she understands if we need to take time off. It finally feels like the whole city is grieving in the way I have been for the past five weeks since ICE first began occupying Minneapolis, and the past five months since ICE first descended on Chicago. It feels like I can finally grieve openly. Politicians are taking the occupation more seriously. Governor Walz is talking about the national guard, Mayor Frey is talking about Minneapolis police officers protecting first amendment rights. There is so much the state and the city could be doing to assist and protect people at risk right now, but their opposition has been limited to press conferences, social media posts, and an ordinance that limits the use of city property by ICE. This is really different than playing an active role in protecting and supporting people. Actual resistance could look like tracking ICE apprehensions and accounting for all victims, running a support hotline for impacted families, providing legal aid to immigrants, tracking ICE locations and sharing this information with immigrants at risk, maintaining a list of ICE license plates, serving as constitutional observers during ICE stops, or even just lifting up the work of rapid response networks and encouraging residents to participate. None of this has been happening, and that probably won't change, but I now have a tiny bit of hope that it might. There's a recent video put out by Tad Stoermer, a historian of resistance movements, about the "loyal opposition" that puts words to how I have been feeling. He says, "When the opposition party treats an authoritarian regime as a normal political opponent, […] it doesn't just fail to resist, it just becomes a loyal opposition, [loyal to the system it is operating in.] […] It actively teaches people the wrong lessons about what resistance looks like. It […] tells everyone watching 'this is the only appropriate response. This is how serious people handle this situation.' And when 'this' is press releases, and podium speeches, and fundraising emails, and strongly worded social media posts endlessly about, I don't know, cost of living issues, while the regime is invading sovereign nations, announcing it will run them, threatening NATO and world stability in addition to our domestic stability, what people learn is that the situation might not in fact be that serious." He goes on to contrast this with real resistance, which includes developing organizing infrastructure, building parallel institutions, and building resistance networks. He uses the Underground Railroad as an example of real resistance, and talks about how the "loyal opposition" absorbs energy that could otherwise be used for building the resistance infrastructure that we need. Today, Jacob Frey told ICE to "get the f*ck out of Minneapolis," but he didn't say what he will do if they don't. We need to be thinking about resistance dynamics. When ICE does not get out of Minneapolis, what action will the City take? What actions are we taking to back up our demands? The phrase that keeps repeating in my head today is "Make repression backfire." Collectively, let's channel our grief and rage into making state repression backfire and building a real resistance movement that will allow us to protect people, take back power, and build the world we need. Show Notes: Video: Tad Stoermer on the "loyal opposition" https://www.threads.com/@tad.stoermer/post/DTKc0iDjjdn/media Opening clip: AOC https://bsky.app/profile/acyn.bsky.social/post/3mbuool3blc2k Opening clip: Protesters https://bsky.app/profile/chaddavis.photography/post/3mbumcqka2c2v Opening clip: Philip Bump on MS Now https://bsky.app/profile/atrupar.com/post/3mbwiolzxln25 American Gestapo: Gregory Bovino's Border Patrol https://gaslitnation.libsyn.com/american-gestapo-gregory-bovinos-border-patrol Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit

Andrea joins Russian mafia expert Olga Lautman to expose the transnational looting spree and warn Stephen Miller will turn Venezuela into a new Alcatraz. First, we look at who stands to get rich off Trump's illegal invasion. Devin Nunes and a squad of Trump Media cronies just took over a company that tried to bid $10 billion for Citgo, Venezuela's oil crown jewel, right as their boss plotted a secret invasion. So who  won Citgo? Why, MAGA billionaire Paul Singer, a vulture capitalist who serves as Trump's ATM and hand-picked Marco Rubio for Secretary of State. Who else is a big winner? The Republican Party's longtime backers, Exxon. Just as Trump hoped invading Venezuela would boost his plummeting approval ratings, Maduro threatened to invade oil-rich Guyana to distract from his own corruption. Now that Maduro is no longer harassing Exxon in Guyana, Exxon's stocks are soaring along with the rest of Big Oil. But the darkest "follow the money" story goes beyond oil. The private prison industry rakes in a fortune thanks to Trump's cruelty. El Salvador's CECOT mega-prison holds 40,000, but Trump and Stephen Miller want space for 80,000 people kidnapped from the U.S. Construction takes years; so Venezuela offers the obvious solution: the "New Alcatraz." Outsourcing prisoners to a lawless, torture-filled transnational Gulag, a story censored by Bari Weiss's CBS News, is the most troubling crisis of MAGA's illegal invasion of Venezuela and co-rule with a violent oil mafia. There's always hope, but it requires a blueprint and courage. The Venezuelan people proved their 2024 election victory through heroic citizen vote-counting: a model of resistance that we in the U.S. must study to reclaim our own democracy. We must align with these transnational forces for good to dismantle the global crime syndicate. We warned you this would happen. Now, we must organize, stand up, and remain defiant.  Show Notes: Devin Nunes and others linked to Trump Media became officers of a company soon after it made an unsuccessful $10 billion bid for Venezuelan-state-owned Citgo Petroleum's U.S. assets by Wendy Siegelman https://newstracs.com/devin-nunes-and-others-linked-to-trump-media-are-officers-of-a-company-that-bid-for-citgo/2026/01/01/ Learn from Venezuela's opposition: The Official Unofficial Record How do you count almost 12 million votes if you're not the government? This week, we bring you the extraordinary story of hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans who created the only verifiable public record of votes in their presidential election — and other stories of people trying to correct the official record with their own versions. https://www.thisamericanlife.org/848/the-official-unofficial-record Olga Lautman's Trump Tyranny Tracker: https://trumptyrannytracker.substack.com/  Venezuela raid enriches MAGA billionaire: The ouster of Maduro is a financial windfall for a prominent Trump-supporting billionaire, investor Paul Singer. https://open.substack.com/pub/popularinformation/p/venezuela-raid-enriches-maga-billionaire?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email Opening clip: https://bsky.app/profile/thetnholler.bsky.social/post/3mbmostp3xk2j CNN Data Guru Reveals Trump's Devastating Drop in Approval Rating https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/cnn-data-guru-reveals-trump-105250680.html Trump admin sends tough private message to oil companies on Venezuela: The White House has told companies they must rebuild Venezuela's crude-pumping infrastructure if they want compensation for assets seized by Caracas. https://www.politico.com/news/2026/01/03/trump-venezuela-oil-us-companies-return-00709782 The U.S.-Venezuela-Guyana Oil Triangle https://drilled.media/news/guyana-venezuela Gabbard abruptly ousted CIA Russia expert days after Trump-Putin meeting https://www.cnn.com/2025/08/28/politics/gabbard-abruptly-ousted-cia-russia-expert-days-after-trump-putin-meeting Tulsi Gabbard's history with Russia is even more concerning than you think https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/tulsi-gabbard-russian-connection-dni-trump-syria-b2692244.html Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Discounted annual memberships are available. Become a Democracy Defender at Patreon.com/Gaslit!  

With Trump's unpunished coup, we officially entered a New World Order. And it's a lot like the car-bomb 1990s in Russia–a lawless era where the biggest oligarch wins. But the crisis is bigger than Trump. It also comes down to the American elite hitting the panic button on China. While China secures global influence through infrastructure and green tech, the U.S. has reverted to the Monroe Doctrine. We are seeing this with the illegal invasion of Venezuela and the impending invasions of Greenland and Mexico. The objective is resource acquisition: oil from the south and rare earth minerals from the north. Their premature celebrations and promise of big oil money are Bush/Cheney hubris. Successfully extracting Venezuela's famously challenging oil would require major oil giants to commit roughly $10 billion annually in a viper's den of Russian intelligence agents and fierce anti-American resistance, thanks to generations of traumatic American foreign policy in the region. The Venezuela crisis is larger than Trump, as Andrea explains in this recording from Monday's salon with Gaslit Nation listeners. The American empire is throwing a violent tantrum against Chinese global dominance. This leaves Europe abandoned to fight Russian terrorism and genocidal imperialism on its own. And once again, the arrogant Washington, D.C. elite think tank world underestimates Russia–the same stupidity that helped bring Trump to power in the first place, with the Kremlin's illegal help. Trump and the Pentagon are banking on "shock and awe" to normalize their grab for resources. They want us to accept this lawlessness as the status quo. We must refuse. We must own our agency and demand a future defined by democracy and the global community, not the violent whims of the highest bidder. January 6 is a day of national mourning and rage. Commemorate this dark day by shining your light into the world. Find ideas to fight back at the Gaslit Nation Action Guide. And see you at Monday's Salon at 4pm ET on Patreon. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, Q&A sessions, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, and more! Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit!  

Happy New Year, everyone! Welcome to the very first Gaslit Nation episode of 2026, one of the most consequential years for humanity, because the world is about to find out whether American democracy survives Donald Trump and his MAGA crime cult. Will they try to steal the midterms? Will Trump attempt another January 6-style power grab as 2028 approaches? Stick with Gaslit Nation as we fight back and build a new American revolution, one act of hope and defiance at a time. This special bonus show, made for our Patreon community, highlights a thoughtful question from Ken B., a listener and Democracy Defender supporter on Patreon. Ken asks us to focus on a dangerously undercovered issue: the GOP's coordinated effort to loot America's public lands. From rolling back the Roadless Rule to gutting park budgets and opening millions of acres to extraction, Trump and his donors are positioning massive areas of national parks and forests for a sell-off.  Ken, thank you for your insights, and thank you to all of our listeners who keep our show going. Your questions shape our show. If you want to submit your questions, comments, and hear them on the show, subscribe at the Democracy Defender tier or higher on Patreon.com/Gaslit.  If you want to hear this full episode, including our three major predictions for 2026 and what they mean for democracy, join us on Patreon. Get ready for another big year of the people fighting back. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, Q&A sessions, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, and more! Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit!    

We close out this year from hell with a grounded kind of hope, not wishful thinking. Ushering us into a better new year is a montage of organizers, journalists, and activists reminding us that history isn't finished, and that power has always been built from the ground up. We end with a simple reminder: convert hope into power through solidarity, defiance, and showing up, again and again. Be relentless, like water eroding rock. That is how we win.  As we face the year ahead together, what's giving you hope right now? Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, Q&A sessions, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, and more! Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit! Show Notes: Erica Smiley — "Building Real Democracy Starts on the Shop Floor" (8/26/2025) Katherine Stewart — "Money, Lies and God" (3/5/2025) Gil Duran — "Nerd Reich" (3/11/2025) Carter Sherman — "Brett Kavanaugh is Ruining People's Sex Lives" (7/1/2025) Sandi Bachom — "Nazi Hunting" (3/25/2025) Mona Eltahawy — "Smash the Patriarchy with Rage and Risk" (8/12/2025) Irin Carmon — "Unbearable: The War on Women" (10/28/2025) Kate Manne — "Naming the Rot: Kate Man Exposes the Lies Holding up the Patriarchy" (8/5/2025) Leah Litman — "Lawless" (5/20/2025) Shawn Werner (Sister District) — "The Midterms Start Now: Virginia is a Belweather" (9/23/2025) Ahmed Gatnash — "Power, Profits and Protest: Trump, Russia and the Middle East" (9/16/2025) Andrea Chalupa — "Nature Always Wins" (5/6/2025)

In this quick update, Andrea shares a dream she had about Ukrainian dissident poet Vasyl Stus, killed in a Russian labor camp in the 1980s, and whose poetry and human rights campaigns helped lay the groundwork for a free Ukraine. In a time of rampant gaslighting, it's never been more important to believe our eyes and ears, and honor our intuition. Pay attention to your dreams; it will help you endure and overcome.   If you're finding moments to rest and binge this holiday season, here are two documentary recommendations: First, Amy Berg's It's Never Over, Jeff Buckley, a haunting intimate tribute to the late musician whose voice and powerful songwriting are otherworldly. For something totally different, check out Murder in Monaco, a chilling true-crime documentary about the murder of mega-banker Edmund Safra. It exposes the Russian-mafia viper den of Monaco. See you at today's Gaslit Nation Salon at 4pm ET. Look for the Zoom link on Patreon.com/Gaslit.

This holiday season, we wish you peace, joy, and a new Supreme Court. In Part 1 of our discussion, we pulled the mask off originalism and called it what it is: the Southern Strategy of our courts, a legal laundering scheme for white terrorism. In Part 2, we discuss how to take our courts back from GOP extremism to protect our Constitution–before it rips apart our country. To hear this week's full bonus show, subscribe at Patreon.com/Gaslit and support our independent journalism.  According to legal scholar Madiba Dennie, author of The Originalism Trap: How Extremists Stole the Constitution and How We the People Can Take It Back, the answer is finally taking the Constitution at its word. The Constitution was built on principles from Enlightenment ideas that fueled the American Revolution: human equality, self-government, and the radical notion that legitimacy flows from the people, not from tradition or bloodlines. We fought a Civil War to finally live up to those ideals. In the Reconstruction era, through the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments , the Constitution was fundamentally transformed into a document meant to support a multiracial democracy, one that promised equal protection, due process, and citizenship not tied to race. Taking back the Supreme Court means delegitimizing originalism and replacing it with a constitutional vision aligned with democracy itself. A Constitution that works for everyone. A Court that understands its job is not to drag us backward, but to help the country finally live up to its founding promises. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, Q&A sessions, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, and more! Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit!  

All we want for Christmas is a new Supreme Court. Here to tell us how we get there is legal scholar Madiba Dennie, author of The Originalism Trap: How Extremists Stole the Constitution and How We the People Can Take It Back. What's "originalism"? It's white supremacy's answer to the Civil Rights Movement, every bit as sneaky and immoral as Republican operative Lee Atwater's "Southern Strategy," which mobilized racist voters through racist dog whistles instead of open slurs. Originalism sounds fancy by design, but it's pure fascist gaslighting, now wielded by the trash MAGA majority on the Supreme Court. Gaslit Nation's holiday gift to our listeners this year is to remind you of an inconvenient fact the media ignores: Donald Trump came to power in 2016 with the Kremlin's very illegal help, as documented in both the Mueller Report and the bipartisan U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence report on Russian Active Measures Campaigns and Interference in the 2016 U.S. Election. That makes him an illegitimate president, which means his extreme Supreme Court picks should be impeached. More on that in part two of our discussion, coming Thursday. Thank you to everyone who joined our holiday party on Monday. As requested, the link to the Outreach Committee for listeners interested in discussing ways to reach current or former MAGA cult members and help guide them back toward the light is available in the show notes on Patreon. Join our community of listeners and get bonus shows, Q&A sessions, invites to exclusive events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, ad free listening, group chats with other listeners, ways to shape the show, and more! Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit!

We're seeing the same far-right media consolidation in America as during Putin's rise to power. Bari Weiss is the new Roger Ailes, hired to destroy CBS News. The far-right Ellisons are aggressively going after Warner Bros. to build a media monopoly to dumb down more Americans so that we're easier to control.  That's why Andrea spoke at Courier News' Courage & Cowardice event in Washington, DC on December 11. Courier, the team that built the searchable Epstein files database released by Congress, brought together independent journalists and creators who still believe journalism is a public good. The main focus of the conversation, which you can listen to here on Gaslit Nation, was how to build and sustain independent media. Andrea was joined by progressive YouTuber Jack Cocchiarella, Brian Beutler, formerly of Crooked Media and The New Republic who now runs  Off Message; TikTok comedian Meredith Lynch; and in a discussion moderated by veteran editor Mark Jacob, formerly of the Chicago Tribune, to talk about media capitulation and how to fight back. Here's some info on the event.  Luckily, the Media and Democracy Project (MAD) exists and provided us with the following actions you can take:  Make videos highlighting moments of real accountability like celebrating the ABC reporter Mary Bruce who pressed MBS and Trump with tough, substantive questions. Credit your sources clearly and encourage your audience to click through and read the original reporting. Introduce your audience to journalism and media-education initiatives such as States Newsroom, the News Literacy Project, and Rebuild Local News. Synthesize and share this essential explainer from Democracy Forward on the link between local news and democracy: https://democracyfund.org/idea/new-research-explores-connection-between-democracy-and-local-news/ If you're a journalist, whether independent or in a newsroom, regularly lift up the work of your colleagues.  Everyone should keep the conversation of journalism being the bedrock of a democracy front and center. Use your time online wisely: repost, share stories, and boost public-interest journalism whenever you can.  Most importantly, stay connected with MAD. 

Gaslit Nation reads through the ego and lies of Enabler-in-Chief Susie Wiles' interview with Vanity Fair, where she pulls the Nuremberg defense: I was just following orders! As Trump's primetime rant to the American people reminds us, Wiles is wrong: Trump plans to stay in power.  In this week's bonus show–available in full for our Patreon subscribers at the Truth-teller ($5/month) tier and higher, Gaslit Nation cuts through the nonsense to expose Wiles and the rest of Trump's creepy cabinet defending her. They're thick as thieves, sticking together to brace for congressional investigations should Democrats return to power. Wiles and Trump's other enablers, riding his corrupt coattails into power, see the blue waves coming for Republicans in special elections across the country, including in historically red districts. Her interview also reveals some intriguing insights into the MAGA succession battle–and why we should keep our eye on a possible Ivanka/Jared comeback post-midterms. To our Patreon community that keeps Gaslit Nation going: see you at Monday's salon at 4pm ET for our holiday party. Get ready for fun surprises as we celebrate and bring in the new year with hope and defiance. To join the fun, grab your membership at Patreon.com/Gaslit–discounts are available, and you can give the gift of membership this holiday season. Thank you to everyone who supports the show–we could not make Gaslit Nation without you.

In this high-stakes episode, Andrea is joined by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Oleksandra Matviichuk as Putin openly claims alignment with the U.S., and Europe is being forced to, whether it likes it or not, hold the line.  Matviichuk, leader of the human rights organization Center for Civil Liberties, which was awarded the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize, lays out why the war in Ukraine is not a regional dispute or a diplomatic inconvenience, but a direct clash between civilization vs. a fascist crime spree, one that will determine the future balance of power for Europe and the world. She dismantles the dangerous fiction that Ukraine is a charity case or a drain on European stability. As she makes clear: "Ukraine is not a beneficiary of European security. Ukraine is a provider of European security." Our conversation exposes Russia's war crime playbook, including the mass kidnapping and forced assimilation of Ukrainian children, brainwashing them into soldiers for Putin's meatgrinder. As Matviichuk puts it: "Every person who wants to shake Putin's hand must acknowledge that they are shaking hands with the biggest child kidnapper in the world." This episode is a five-alarm fire. Europe has the money, the industry, the frozen Russian assets, and the historical memory to stop another Iron Curtain, but only if it abandons wishful thinking and acts. Occupation is not peace, and delay is not diplomacy. Pretending like this will somehow blow over is how democracies fail. Next week legal scholar Madiba Dennie, author of The Originalism Trap, joins Gaslit Nation to break down how the MAGA Supreme Court emerged from a fringe movement of Lee Atwater's Southern Strategy, and how we can have an all new Supreme Court, with the help of the power of impeachment.  Mark your calendar! The Gaslit Nation Holiday Party, complete with hope and holiday sweaters, will be this Monday December 22nd at 4pm ET with fun surprises for our community of listeners. To join the joy, sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit – discounted annual memberships are available, and you can give the gift of membership. Thank you to everyone who supports the show – we could not make Gaslit Nation without you!

Donald Trump's kleptocracy didn't happen overnight–it was part of the Kremlin's long game. With reports of Russia trying to explode planes headed to the US, we're running out of time to wake up before it's too late. In this week's bonus show for Gaslit Nation's Patreon supporters, who keep our independent journalism going in these dark times of institutional rot, media capitulation, and complacency, Andrea warns that we're nearing the point of no return. Putin can now say the U.S. and Russia are aligned, because they are. Trump's regime is declaring a return to the Monroe Doctrine, claiming the Western Hemisphere belongs to the U.S. That's exactly what Putin does in Eastern Europe. The Pentagon is handing Trump's gestapo-like immigration agenda $2 billion on top of $75 billion for ICE in Trump's Big Ugly Bill. Like Putin, Trump is building a gulag and gearing up for conflict with our neighbors, including Mexico, Venezuela, and whoever else he wants to casually kill. As we've long warned, Trump wants to become the Putin of North America, because that's his plan for staying in power indefinitely: enrich his family, build a dynastic oligarchy, and protect it with sadistic security services. To help us fight back and stay grounded in the gaslighting, this special bonus show includes a discussion of Gaslit Nation's Book Club: Total Resistance by Hans von Dach–a civilian guerrilla resistance guide produced by a Swiss military theorist in preparation for Soviet occupation during the Cold War–and Deaf Republic, a play-like book of poems by Ukrainian-born poet Ilya Kaminsky.  "At the trial of God, we will ask: why did you allow all this?," Kaminsky writes, "And the answer will be an echo: why did you allow all this?" We have to stop the worst from happening and wake people up before it's too late. For ways to fight back, check out, and share, the Gaslit Nation Action Guide on GaslitNationPod.com. The full discussion of this month's book club will be published on Patreon Monday morning, along with the Zoom link for the Gaslit Nation Salon at 4pm ET later that day. To get access to that, join our community on Patreon at Patreon.com/Gaslit and get invites to exclusive events, bonus shows, all episodes ad free, and more. Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit – discounted annual memberships are available and you can give the gift of member. Thank you to everyone who supports the show – we could not make Gaslit Nation without you.  Show Notes: Today in Washington, DC! Celebrate voices of resistance with COURIER. Reflect on 2025's lessons and explore how courage drives the fights ahead. Andrea will be speaking tonight, joined by other independent journalists and activists. More info here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/courage-cowardice-tickets-1968694585501?aff=promotoolkit   Total Resistance by H Von Dach https://bookshop.org/p/books/total-resistance-h-von-dach/df1aa810a26bacea?ean=9781607963042&next=t   Deaf Republic by Ilya Kaminsky https://bookshop.org/p/books/deaf-republic-poems-ilya-kaminsky/33e16033f9269bdf?ean=9781555978310&next=t   Read and Resist: The Gaslit Nation Book Club https://www.patreon.com/posts/read-and-resist-132804210?utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link&utm_id=4d59916b-2d54-46a3-b9e7-76fa99f42f1e&utm_medium=email   Trump strategy document revives Monroe Doctrine, slams Europe https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/trump-strategy-document-revives-monroe-doctrine-slams-europe-2025-12-05/   $2 Billion in Pentagon Funds Said to Go to Anti-Immigrant Operations: Democratic lawmakers said in a report that shifting Defense Department funding to support the Trump administration's immigration agenda has hurt military readiness. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/10/us/politics/defense-department-funds-immigration.html?smid=url-share   Russia Suspected of Plotting to Send Incendiary Devices on U.S.-Bound Planes: Two devices that ignited in Europe, officials say, were part of a covert operation to put them on cargo or passenger aircraft https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/10/us/politics/defense-department-funds-immigration.html?smid=url-share   Kremlin hails Trump's national security strategy as aligned with Russia's vision: Moscow welcomes White House document critical of the EU as talks to end the Ukraine war enter a key phase https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/dec/07/kremlin-hails-trump-national-security-strategy-as-aligned-with-russia-vision