Krystal Kyle & Friends

On this week’s episode, Hasan Piker gives us a bombshell report of his recent detention by CBP during his return to the U.S. from France. Like us, he’s heard the stories about people getting stopped at the airport and being asked invasive questions about their support for Donald Trump. On his way out of customs, CBP stopped Hasan and took him to a detention area in the airport, where they proceeded to interrogate him about his views on Israel, his allegiance to Trump, and, of all things, his Twitch fans.It’s a harrowing story that, according to Hasan, likely doesn’t have to do with just one individual agent pursuing an agenda; Hasan felt like they knew who he was. We hope you enjoy this exclusive episode, and remember, you can listen to it as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Lisa Gilbert joins the podcast for Episode 225 to help us understand how Trump is pulling a scam right out in the open with his crypto coin. Right now, Public Citizen is calling for Trump’s crypto activities to be investigated, because it’s clear that as Trump hawks crypto, a small fraction of wealthy investors actually see returns on the coin, and (to top it all off) a bill goes through Congress to provide barely-there regulation of cryptocurrency, there’s a whole lot of shady, back-room dealings going on between the people who are supposed to crack down on shady, back-room dealings.Lisa points out that crypto accounts for a significant amount of recent election spending, even though it’s relatively new — and the lack of regulation of this scam means people like Trump can get away with using it to buy power and influence. Under the auspices of a meme coin, Trump is able to line his own pockets, as he tried to do via a crypto-friendly executive order that Public Citizen called out in January, during Trump’s first days in office. The whole thing is a disgusting racket of billionaire self-interest and self-promotion using our own government as a means to private wealth, and we’re grateful to advocates like Lisa who have spent the first days of Trump’s administration calling out his abuses of power.Thanks for tuning in. You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and other major streaming platforms. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

According to many political commentators, a liberal victory in the Canadian election wasn’t in the cards. So why did it happen? We tackle this question with this week’s guest, David Doel of The Rational National. The answer has to do with Trump. Trump’s trade wars and tariffs on Canada; his repeated jabs about Canada the 51st state; and his isolationist vision of the U.S.’s role on the global stage all made Trumpism deeply unappealing to Canadians. Pierre Poilievre, with his history as a union-buster and a friend to big business, fit into the Trumpian mold. Mark Carney, with his steady hand and focus on key voter issues like affordable housing, offered a viable alternative.We also talk with David about Canadian-American relations, strained by Trump’s aggressive and American-exceptionalist leadership, and the threats of annexation and border changes that Trump has suggested he’d like to impose on our neighbors to the north. The elections serve as a sampling of Canadian national opinion on what they’d like the future of their country to be like; ideally, it seems, Trump is nowhere in the picture.Thanks for watching. You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Economics professor emeritus and renowned political commentator Richard Wolff joins the show to turn a critical eye on Trump’s trade war with China. When we think about the U.S.’s unique position in the global economy in the age of Trump, we think about its power to cause harm — to threaten and cow other countries into submission by making them bend to economic pressure. As a nascent economic superpower, China isn’t bending. The 145% tariffs persist, as do China’s 125% tariffs on our goods, meaning a full-blown trade war is still unfolding. Trump is moving the goalposts as he says he claims he’s continuing to negotiate with the Chinese, wavering on the strength of the tariffs he’s projecting into the future.It’s because he knows that the tariffs are not popular and not working. Dr. Wolff walks us through the tariffs’ reception and effects, and it’s not a happy story, either for American consumers or for foreign governments. Increased inflation and job loss threaten working people in America as a result of the tariffs, and they’re sure not to help Trump curry favor with the working class. Globally, Dr. Wolff also shows how other countries cutting or reducing economic ties with the U.S. to lessen the impact of U.S. tariffs on the global economy will result in increased isolation for the U.S. as China continues to grow its power.Thanks for tuning in. This episode is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Ben Norton is a journalist and the founder of Geopolitical Economy Report focusing on international economics, which makes him the perfect guest for an episode centered on why Trump’s tariff tantrum isn’t going the way he hoped. When Trump threatened China with tariffs, many of us understood that of course, his main priority wasn’t the welfare of working people looking for more American jobs — it was just another opportunity for him to throw his weight around and shake a big stick at our enemies — but it’s still important to understand the appeal that he made, talking about re-centering American production and job creation by unseating Chinese imports from their current extremely important role in our markets. Ben shows in our conversation how these were just more of Trump’s lies, everywhere from the desire of Americans to return to factory jobs (polling shows they don’t want to) to way higher prices, consumer freakouts about loss of access to goods, longer delivery times, and an overall mess in the economy that could have way bigger shockwaves as it continues to grow. Reindustrialization isn’t going to happen like this, and Ben walks us through the how and the why, from the fact that this could result in a global recession to the devaluation of the American dollar that’s happening now.We hope you enjoy this wide-ranging conversation, which touches on everything from the trade war to Trump’s cruel and inhumane deportation policy, which we’re getting increasingly horrifying news about from El Salvador and from immigrant communities around the U.S. You can listen to this episode as a podcast when it’s released tomorrow night on Spotify, Substack, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

This week we talk to two grassroots Dem candidates interested in blazing a new trail for a worn-out, uninspiring party: Jackson Franklin and Kat Abughazaleh. In our interview with Jackson, we hear about the key policies he supports, including Medicare expansion, strengthening unions, banning corporate lobbying, and treating economic inequality as a serious issue. Meanwhile, Elon Musk has “personal beef” with Kat Abughazaleh, an Illinoisan, progressive, and extremism researcher (so you can see why they might have beef) — Kat’s now running for Congress to take on corruption in the Democratic Party as well as to defeat the Republicans’ agenda. She’s drawn attention to the failure of the Democratic Party to function as a true opposition party, capitulating to Republicans’ demands and showing only performative resistance (and lately, not even doing much of that, either). Affordable housing and healthcare are critical parts of her campaign, and she’s pledged to run a campaign with no corporate cash.These are two examples of the new grassroots campaigns coming up through a withered, toothless Democratic Party to take it on and revitalize it for working people. We hope you’ll enjoy Jackson and Kat’s reflections on what it’s like to imagine changing a party from the inside and how they plan to make it happen if elected. You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and other streaming platforms. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Insane escalations in the trade war Trump’s waging with China, grants being pulled from universities in the name of combating antisemitism, and more: it’s been another crazy week under the Trump regime. We got Michael Tracey on the show to talk to us about it.We could be staring down the barrel of a global recession as Trump slaps trade partners with major tariffs, particularly triggering a crisis in US relations with China — which is reciprocating the tariffs. Then there’s the crazy (big if true???) news that Musk is on his way out. How would this influence the far right’s rampage through our social support network? We chat about it with Michael, who’s heard the rumors and has insight into how the clown car would keep rolling without the attention-grabbing Musk at the temporary helm.Thanks for tuning in. You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Substack, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Investigative journalist Greg Palast is rejoining the show to discuss the dire straits into which a recent Trump executive order is putting our country. Each week has its fresh horror, and Krystal’s conversation with Greg delves into the latest. Greg has a seriously impressive background in shining a spotlight on the Republican agenda of making sure people can’t vote so the far-right oligarchs can entrench their minoritarian rule. You hate to see it, and you certainly hate to see the newest policy, which, as Krystal points out, would basically let Elon decide who gets to vote, both in the midterms and in the next presidential election, if you can even call them elections.All states’ voter files, as Greg explains, would be open to Elon under this order, since he’s the DOGE (ugh) administrator. The point is to stop “aliens” from voting in elections, removing them from voter rolls, and the extent of the voter suppression will clearly go well beyond this stated goal to push Trump and Elon’s bid for endless power. Greg gives us some necessary background on the history of voter suppression that has actually done very little to address the tiny number of so-called “illegal aliens” who do vote in American elections, facing massive consequences. He reminds us that Trump can’t name three people who voted illegally, not to mention three million. Yet these people are the scapegoats for the Republicans’ ugly project of making sure working people can’t vote for their own interests. What remains to be seen is how the political establishment absorbs this news and how the so-called opposition party chooses to fight back.You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

In a special episode featuring your two hosts, we discuss Trump’s long game for a regime: taking the so-called presidency again in ‘28 and continuing to wreak whatever havoc doesn’t fit into the next four years. (Not to be too doomer about it — don’t mourn, organize!) He’s got the usual cast of characters running amok, from Steve Bannon telling Chris Cuomo that Trump will take that third term (and then who knows what, right?) As Krystal brings up, destroying Medicare and Medicaid will be so politically disastrous that Trump will basically have to be in a situation where he doesn’t care what voters think anymore.Yes, it’s bleak, but people are fighting back — from government employees getting fired left and right to grassroots organizers watching their communities face instability and lose important resources. We’ll continue to cover the developing story of Trump’s post-’28 ambitions, and we’ve also got plenty of lighter material to cover. Plus, Bernie’s increasingly urgent call to progressives to run as independents could mean there’s some hope for a real opposition. We’ll talk about all this and more in this week’s episode of KK&F. You can listen to this episode tomorrow as a podcast on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

This week’s guest, Robert Weissman, walks us through the current climate of grassroots and organizational pushback against our government’s current self-destruct mode. To make a long story short, it’s not looking easy on the ground — but essential victories prove that there’s a limit to the number of times Trump and his cronies can buy out justice and rely on a conservative Supreme Court to do the heavy lifting.A particular important victory comes in the form of the Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision to rule Trump’s freeze on USAID funding unconstitutional. Weissman tells the amazing story of how Public Citizen and other groups are suing Trump for violating the Constitution, but that in general, Trump’s powerful and endlessly wealthy machine can simply wait out and run red tape around these completely legitimate cases. However, in the case of USAID, something different happened. Multiple courts found that Trump’s team had defied court orders and potentially the Constitution, and even though the government tried to ignore a temporary order from a judge demanding that the USAID funding be unfrozen, they were eventually held to account by (of all things!) the Supreme Court.This is a story of hope and, for both existing and nascent political organizations opposing Trump fascism, inspiration. We’re glad to have Robert on the show to shine a light on this important story in hopes that it’s one of many. You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

For Episode 216, we dive into the dumbest trade war ever with political writer Lule Savage. Trump has promised to go full steam ahead with tariffs that could devastate industries and cause massive job loss in Canada. Leveraging 25 percent tariffs on most exports would significantly affect the Canadian economy and destabilize the relationship between the countries. Trump has since pulled back some of the tariffs but the remainder are supposed to be put back in place on April 2nd. What is Trump actually trying to accomplish here? Will he follow through next time at a time when the US is also in danger of slipping into recession? Is he actually trying to annex Canada as he has frequently insisted? Luke helps us explore the question of what the hell Trump is actually thinking with this disastrous policy. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

As Krystal puts it in this week’s episode during a discussion of the latest in Elon Musk’s quest for world domination, Elon thinks he’s Ready Player One, and we’re all NPCs. Rep. Maxwell Frost joins us to assess the damage. As our conversation takes a deep dive into the insights Maxwell has to offer into the psyches of two billionaire egotists, we talk about one of the biggest shockers of the Trump presidency so far: that Trump has finally found someone he’s willing to play second fiddle to, it seems. Looming over Cabinet meetings and following the president around like a shadow, Musk seems to be setting the terms for what the Trump agenda has in store. Which leads us to a disturbing conclusion: Because Trump is so “nakedly transactional,” what are the chances an actual transaction took place? We don’t think it’s that hard to imagine Musk, the richest man in the world, buying out the highest position of power in the world in exchange for infinite campaign funds. We get into this and plenty of other shockers on this week’s episode of KK&F. You can listen to this as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and other streaming services. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

This week we get a bombshell report from reporter Greg Palast regarding voter suppression that changed the 2024 election results. In our exclusive interview with him, Greg alleges that the 2024 election results are not valid; without the gross Jim Crow-era abuses of voting rights that predominated during this election, Kamala would have gotten an extra 3.5 million more votes, clinching states like Georgia and Michigan. Part of this episode is Greg’s overview of his work reconstructing on a state-by-state basis how Trump and his people relied on Ku Klux Klan legislation allowing for individual voter status to be challenged, laws that haven’t been used since 1946 but came back in a major way during this election and led to Trump’s victory.We’re grateful to Greg for taking the time to bring attention to this critical story, which could have serious implications for the future of our political landscape and our understanding of the current scope of voter suppression happening in our country. Thanks for listening to Krystal Kyle & Friends. You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

With Judd Legum of Musk Watch, we review the highlights (lowlights?) of This Week in Musk and, given the trends in Musk’s escalating power, what a Next Week in Musk might look like. From the insane reveal that Grimes objects to her ex’s bringing their son to hang out with Trump to careful analyses of Musk’s attacks on the various branches of government, we’ve got a full show covering all the points you’re interested in hearing about — so we’re glad you’re joining us. In case you missed it, Tuesday featured a press conference with Musk and Trump as the latter announced an executive order to give the former even more power over government spending.. In reporting on the presser, our guest Judd notes DOGE’s goal as described by one source close to the organization, “to depress workforce morale and increase attrition” within government employment, basically forcing people out of jobs and making government jobs less tenable, more dysfunctional work environments. Judd breaks the situation down for us and helps us get a sense of where Elon might be headed.This episode is available as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and other major streaming platforms. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome to Episode 211 of KK&F, covering the Musk rampage against the federal government with journalist Gil Duran. Reporting on the first weeks of the Trump admin is basically reporting on the unfolding of a coup. Musk has gotten keys to the Treasury systems, and is rampaging through the government. In this episode with Gil, we cover the central ideology that has led to the rise of figures like Musk and now motivates his destruction of our federal government. Gil offers truly valuable insight into the psychology of Musk’s insane, unprecedented power play: his “shock and awe” tactics, eliciting praise from the far right that has assumed power, are protected by the certainty of a pardon from Trump if his antics go too far. That sense of security is why he felt comfortable doing a Hitler salute at the inauguration festivities, and why he’s empowered to destroy our government agencies for the sake of destruction. Elon’s true danger is that he wants to see how far he can go, and with Trump backing him, the limit to his power to make millions of lives miserable may not exist.This episode is available on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and other major streaming platforms. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Dotcom bubbles, housing bubbles — as this week’s guest, Ben Norton, explains to us, the bubble itself is not new. But as a keen observer of our financial systems and their manipulation by the wealthy and powerful, Ben Norton gives us important insights into what makes this current bubble — and its coming implosion — even more dangerous. For the past few weeks, for example, billionaires like Musk, Zuckerberg, and Warren Buffett have been dumping stocks, keeping an eye on any market instability or potential collapse. At this point, says Ben, the U.S. stock market has hit 200 percent of the GDP — higher than either the dotcom bubble or the Great Depression. At Davos, Jamie Dimon nodded to the bubble by observing that the stock market is very inflated.Pushing the issue to a potential crisis is the revelation that China can produce cheaper, better AI, and has been able to do so for a while. Air is starting to come out of the U.S. tech bubble already: in one day, over one trillion dollars of market capital in U.S. and E.U. tech companies collapsed. DeepSeek AI, the Chinese company completely revolutionizing the entire lucrative and hot-button field of AI, is open-source: anyone can access the code and understand how it works, for free. In our conversation with Ben, we chat about why this newest development is so important to the story of the U.S. stock market bubble, how and when a collapse could happen, and more. This episode will be available tomorrow on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and other major streaming platforms. Thanks for listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Our expectations were low, but the first terrifying few days of Trump, round two have been worse than anyone could have imagined. Already we’re seeing the rollback of key civil rights legislation, attacks on immigrant communities, cutting immigration opportunities for refugees, and much more. After Elon Musk’s shenanigans on the Trump 2024 campaign trail, we expected oligarchs — Trump’s fellow elites — to bend the knee. And they have: Musk, Zuckerberg, and Bezos, the three richest Americans, were all in plain sight at the inauguration. What seems even more galling (if not surprising) is that Democrats have bent the knee, too. On a scale of cooked to well done, says Mike Figueredo on this episode, we’re burnt. In his view, electoral change now seems possible: the line has been drawn, we’ve passed the threshold. Whether it’s a violent revolution or national collapse, Mike sees something other than government-led reform as the future of the country. For Kyle, it’s a question of understanding how bad the damage Trump does will be. Market downturns, austerity, economic collapse: these look like they’re lying in our path right now. Amidst all of this, you’d think the Democrats would learn to fight back — assuming they actually want to win.This episode is available as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome to episode 208 of KK&F, where your hosts get into Biden’s final days for a special episode. As the sun sets on the Biden admin, it seems like until the last minute, Biden is asking, “Won’t somebody do something?” It’s a vibe that has haunted his whole presidency as for the last four years he’s performatively gestured toward shoring up essential policies like abortion rights, antitrust, and more, ultimately failing to enshrine Roe and bring Big Tech to heel because of the party’s own financial interests and conservative establishment. Listening to Biden’s account of the last four years, Biden is insisting that he himself wanted more— but he wasn’t able to build public confidence in his political commitments because he didn’t fully commit to building that confidence. Now, the policies Biden offered mealy-mouthed support will languish under Trump’s shocking and audacious plan to undermine what little his predecessor accomplished in office.So long, Biden. In this episode, we look back over his presidency, mourn the lost opportunities, note the accomplishments, and get ready for what’s to come. You can listen to this episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

This week on Episode 207 of KK&F, British journalist Owen Jones joins us to help make sense of what Elon is up to in Britain, whether his boost of the far right Reform Party will prove successful, and what to make of his falling out with Nigel Farage.We’re so grateful to have Owen back on the pod to share his thoughts on everything from Elon’s British Invasion to the current state of the far-right frenzy that skyrocketed Trump back into the White House. He describes what it’s been like, from the perspective of a leftist British journalist, to watch Trump’s second ascendancy to power and to interview Americans espousing views that, in the U.K. and elsewhere abroad, would be considered even farther-right than they are here in the U.S. We’ve normalized that as part of our daily post-2016 political discourse, but it’s a sobering reminder that what we’re living through isn’t in fact normal — it’s a significant right shift that the left will be fighting for decades. What can we do to reverse those trends and rebuild class consciousness?We hope you enjoy the conversation! This episode is available on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and other streaming platforms. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome to the show, Pisco of Lib & Learn! We’re thrilled to have him on the pod with us to discuss the current civil war hitting MAGA’s ranks and the future of the bromance between Trump and Elon (is it built to last?). Like the Democrats, Republicans have their own big tent that brings a vast array of political tendencies into a single party. From the paleoconservatives to Wall Street libertarians, across major divides over economic policy, Republicans don’t adhere to a single form of conservatism; rather, interpretations of conservatism abound, without the party’s top brass demanding more coherence and structural integrity to the party. Take the ambiguity in the Republicans’ use of “populist” as a descriptor of their political project. If that word can be used to describe anybody from Steve Bannon to Vivek Ramaswamy, Elon Musk, and of course Donald Trump himself — all while ignoring the fact that these political figures actively reject popular policies for public welfare — it shows that the Republicans can serve up a broad span of austerity-focused policies while still applying a grassroots label.We discuss these party schisms, the future of robber-baron Elon Musk in Trump’s admin, and much more. You can tune in to this podcast on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and more. Thanks for listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

With this week’s guest, Matt Bruenig, we debunk the biggest misconceptions and lies about single-payer healthcare. After the 2020 election, so many of us can mindlessly rattle off the most pernicious lines used among both conservatives and liberals to keep our healthcare system private. From zingers about wait times for care in Canada to (more than anything, it always comes down to this) the argument that we can’t afford to keep everybody insured, the case for private healthcare sure isn’t creative, but (among our representatives, if not among the American people) it’s held on for dear life.Matt helps us flip that case on its head, pointing out the waste of money and talents that is our private healthcare system and the ways that single-payer can revolutionize this (beyond the most important thing of all, which is that nobody in this country is forced to suffer or die because payment forms a barrier to care). Matt indicates that there’s another way forward without the waste, privation, and cruelty of our current healthcare system, and in this episode, we like to think we make a strong case.Thanks for listening! You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

In our interview with Ken for KK&F Episode 204, we cover everything we know about Luigi Mangione so far and the media’s fascinating, highly telling reaction to every new revelation about the case. Ken published a separate article about how the Times, for example, has made a point of avoiding pictures of Mangione’s face — anyone on Twitter the last few days will understand why. Apparently he’s too hot for the Times.All of this points to the importance of the media’s role in managing public perception of significant events like the UnitedHealthcare CEO’s shooting, and we’re glad to have Ken with us to explain that importance and help us understand how the mainstream media is wielding it. You can listen to this episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and other platforms. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

We have Michael Tracey on this week to give us the lowdown on Trump’s Cabinet picks, from Pete Hegseth to Tulsi Gabbard. Michael addresses the perception of Pete Hegseth among some of Trump’s base as an anti-war figure, Trump’s leverage in getting his picks through the confirmation process, and much more. Who is the cast of characters currently taking shape as Trump’s next admin, and who do we need to watch out for? You’ll hear about all of this and more on this week’s episode of KK&F. You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and other streaming platforms. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

We’re back with KK&F Episode 201, featuring MSNBC regular turned critic Steve Schmidt. The “Morning Joe” duo has gone from comparing Trump to Hitler to begging for a meeting in two weeks time to their audience’s utter disgust, a move Steve describes as cynical capitulation in a blistering rant. Add the network’s rating collapse to the news that Comcast is spinning MSNBC off into a new entity, and the whole enterprise may be on the verge of collapse.We can expect to see many similar heel turns from mainstream media outlets, corporations, and the like as Trump returns to power and sets the nation’s political agenda for years to come. Staunch opponents of Trump will show themselves to be opportunistic, savvy readers of the financial and political landscape, as our conversation with Steve reveals. We get into this greater phenomenon of media’s allegiances to political figures — especially in the case of those switching sides from the Biden era to the Trump era — and what it tells us about our relationship to politics, the truth, and our leadership.Thanks for tuning in. You can listen to this conversation as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Episode 200 features Juan David Rojas talking to us about how AMLO, Mexico’s Bernie, won. From strategic alliances with billionaires to successful public works programs, AMLO followed what our guest calls a “politics of pragmatism.” By keeping the media at bay and ensuring the rich paid their fair share, he was able to pursue a left-wing political agenda without becoming, as Democratic candidates in the U.S. often are, embattled by media opponents and a dearth of wealthy supporters.Our guest also makes the interesting observation that there’s a similarity to Trumpism here in the way AMLO was presented in the media — appearances in the news often featured one member of his government surrounded by opponents, answering for AMLO’s agenda (of course, very different from Trump’s). Now, we turn our focus to how this relationship between government and media will evolve with the new President Sheinbaum, and how her version of left-wing governance will be informed by AMLO’s legacy. We get into it plenty more in the rest of the episode! You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Substack, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome to Episode 199 of KK&F, with special guest Ettingermentum for election results analysis. Watching many voters shift away from Harris, whether toward Trump or rejecting voting entirely, reminded us that many groups — for example, the disaffected young bros that seem to have broke for Trump in surprisingly massive number — were moved by the message of Bernie Sanders but, now that the only choice is between neoliberalism and Trump-style conservatism, have simply shifted to the right: those people are Republicans now. And the Democrats were never interested in them. The Democrats, rather, trotted out Liz Cheney time after time to tout the feasibility of consolidating party establishments — the last thing populist-inclined voters wanted to see or hear.As Bernie Sanders pointed out in a recent post-election statement, do we think the top Democratic operatives will learn anything from this? Probably not. Their jobs are cushy, and they’re used to hopping from Biden to Kamala to, who knows, Newsom or Buttigieg next time — or to a Republican if that’s where all the money goes. But because the rest of us are stuck with four years of Trump, we need to know what happened Tuesday night — and Episode 199 of KK&F has some good answers to start with. We hope you enjoy listening.This episode is available as a podcast on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Listen to our contentious debate with Will Chamberlain on this week’s episode of KK&F. A major point of contention comes up between us and our guest around analysis of the conflict in Israel-Palestine, which Will makes clear he’s unwilling to perceive as a genocide. As we see it, events and tactics like the current starvation strategy Israel’s using in north Gaza make it clear that this event should be perceived as an ethnic cleansing. Will argues that not only does this framing not apply, but his own preferred candidate, Trump, wouldn’t allow for an event like this given that other allies in the region also wouldn’t allow for it. In terms of austerity, Will doesn’t believe that Trump will be an austerity president, but he does personally believe that the excesses of our government, its inefficiency in using the money it commands, point to the argument that spending cuts are in order and that we need to tighten our belts. Krystal argues that Trump’s plan to fund the government with tariffs and get rid of income tax will result in austerity, regardless of his policy proposals otherwise, and Will’s perspective is that this latest proposal from Trump is just eleventh-hour food for thought, not a genuine plan. We can certainly agree with our guest that Trump’s rhetorical and political style tends toward the wild and unpredictable — but, as in the case with his latest wacky proposal to seriously undermine a major source of revenue for our government, it’s hard to tell reality from fiction, and to know when we should be concerned.You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

In this week’s conversation with Sam Butler about how Elon Musk amassed the wealth and influence to make a play for political power, Sam gives us necessary context about why this plan seems feasible. In places like Texas, where Elon has moved both his personal residence and the headquarters of some of the companies he owns, corporations have far more political sway, far fewer financial constraints. This analysis reveals Elon’s strategic thinking as he moves his operations from the blue state of California to conservative Texas, enabling the companies he controls to exert more power on the lives of both workers and local communities.It’s more than a little scary to think about where Elon’s power play is headed, and what degree of influence over society will be enough. Sam does a great job of taking us through how the political conditions Trump created have been favorable for Musk’s business ambitions and how their unholy alliance holds benefits for each. Now, as the election approaches (less than two weeks away!), our conversation turns toward the role Musk has played in the 2024 presidential race and, depending on the result, what his political involvement will look like going forward.You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and other major streaming platforms. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

As the election looms, we’re debating a pair of fellow YouTubers, Hutch and Pondering Politics, on what the Harris-Walz campaign has shaped up to be. We’ve got an exciting debate for you on whether Kamala’s decision to pander to Republican voters instead of making meaningful concessions to the left is a necessary, sound piece of political strategy or a total miss.We’re nothing if not fair, of course, so our discussion delves into what has worked about the campaign — and what stands out is the excitement we felt as progressives about the decision to make Walz the VP nominee. At the same time, we remain strongly opposed to the campaign’s sustained refusal to condemn and pledge an end to the Israelis’ genocide in Gaza that the Biden admin keeps funding. There’s also the campaign’s unabashed pride in the endorsement it received from Dick Cheney and the relative weakness of its policy platform. Why are we watching the Democratic Party make itself even more palatable to Republicans when many Republicans themselves acknowledge Trump as a threat — and when Democrats could simply choose a message of economic support to entice disaffected voters inclined toward Trump but disgusted by his racist vitriol?You can listen to this episode as a podcast now on major streaming platforms. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome back to Krystal Kyle & Friends! This week’s conversation is on the escalating conflict in Lebanon and the ties we and our guest, Omar Baddar, see between this crisis and the ongoing genocide in Gaza. Omar provides insights into the “opportunities” for military escalation and struggle for dominance over Hezbollah that Israel sees in its current campaign in Lebanon. Because the U.S. plays such a major role greenlighting and funding Israel’s military activity, and because Biden refuses to set a true “red line” or rock the boat before the upcoming election, what we see now is Israel’s attempt to escalate as much as possible given a window of opportunity for unchecked violence.Some have compared the violence in Lebanon to the genocide taking place in Palestine. Omar points out the massive similarities — decimating infrastructure, targeting medics, killing civilians — while also indicating the potential of the strikes in Lebanon to expand into an even bigger regional conflict. Netanyahu’s recent remarks addressing Lebanese civilians, a pretty clear threat to reject Hezbollah or suffer the same violence as Gaza, opens up the possibility of sectarian civil war, just as it suggests that Netanyahu is totally ready and willing to repeat the genocide in Gaza that is still ongoing.Thanks for tuning in. You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and other streaming platforms. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome to Episode 194 of KK&F, where we’re sitting down with the Vanguard to discuss whether the Harris campaign is poised to win it all — or whether they’re wasting this crucial moment. We talk about Democrats snubbing their base by leaning right on immigration, Republicans leaning left on abortion, and why the name of the game right now is trying to expand the party coalitions, courting independents, and getting those extra votes however it’s possible. But will it be enough for Kamala Harris, especially as some polls seem to suggest a gender gap in willingness to support her even among young people? Zac in particular is optimistic, and even though Trump was able to briefly revitalize the lackluster Republican party, his star seems to have set.There’s even more to hear in this week’s episode, like our conversation about the evolving situation with Israeli attacks on Iran, and Jack’s most recent filing in the Trump election interference case. We hope you enjoy it. Thanks for tuning in — this conversation will be available as a podcast via Pandora, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and more starting tomorrow night. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

This week on KK&F, we’re talking to conservative journalist Sohrab Ahmari in order to figure out what’s missing from the Trump campaign’s political calculations for 2024. To cut to the quick of what made Trump 2016 so compelling for millions of Americans it seems necessary to assess Trump’s relationship with the media — which isn’t as antagonistic as Trump has successfully made it out to be. While mainstream liberal outlets of course downplayed Trump’s prospects and disregarded him as a serious candidate for a long time, it’s also true that those same outlets, as a result of their very outrage at Trump’s approach to the presidential race, gave him lots of free coverage, boosting his platform in ways that (for example) progressive candidates to the left of the Democrats never really benefited from.If you look at Trump’s most recent debate performance (and we’ve discussed it at length in recent weeks), you’ll see baseless claims that appeal to emotion and paranoia, without any grounding in basic fact or reality. That’s always been a hallmark of Trump’s rhetorical style, but as the far right has only gone farther in the last few years, and new figures like RFK Jr. have risen to amplify Trump’s fearmongering claims or to add new ones to the litany, could it be that Trump is actually getting out of touch? What else is contributing to what feels like a less potent campaign and a less effective message to America’s disaffected political outsiders?You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Adam Johnson of Citations Needed and Column blog is here for Episode 192, where we’re discussing his great new piece on Republican media strategy in the face of this latest Republican slander campaign. It gives us valuable insight into what Vance adds to the far-right playbook. As he points out, Trump doubles down when he’s called out for crazy stories like this! However, “slick former Yale law student and liberal media darling” Vance has a different strategy: appealing to standpoint theory, which Adam explains in the piece. His “smol beans” rural-Ohio whisperer schtick, dressed up in the Yale law degree, has always been a real and dangerous weapon the Trump campaign now gets to wield. After getting his flowers for seeming to expose a world that, yes, is wrongly reviled by liberal elites, Vance is just running with the strategy he’s developed, now using that authority to speak for an entire part of the nation he claims liberals just don’t understand. Will it be enough to win Trump and Vance an election? What long-term damage will it do to actually marginalized people in this country?It’s a serious topic, and we’re glad to have the singularly insightful Adam Johnson on to talk about it. You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

This week’s episode features our analysis of the debate and our conversation with David about his exciting new podcast, “The Master Plan,” detailing how big money launched a successful coup to steal our democracy. Social media (especially X; we shudder to think about what’s making the rounds on Facebook) has been blowing up, since Tuesday’s debate, with both memes and rightful outrage about former president Donald Trump’s extremely racist fearmongering about immigrants in his back-and-forth with Kamala Harris. Commenting on unsubstantiated neo-nazi lies that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, OH are eating residents’ cats (???), Trump has since made this graphic, racist image a rallying cry, evoking it multiple times on Tuesday night to the visible disgust and derision of the Democratic nominee. This comment points to the dangerous cruelty, prejudice, and xenophobic rhetoric fueling Trump’s campaign: Tuesday’s debate performance offered zero substance, seeking instead to resonate with the least humane and most hateful impulses of the public. For him to succeed, again, in this way would be unthinkable.This week, we had David Sirota back on the show to talk about his new pod Master Plan — give it a listen! He’s been working on it for years at The Lever, and currently available episodes cover decades of top-secret government corruption, giving Sirota the chance to flex his formidable investigative-reporting skills. Here’s an opportunity to learn more about the profit motives guiding our government to sell out public interest, overturn our most cherished rights, and entrench its own corrupt power — David and his team has made it possible in this wonderful new podcast, which we discuss in our exclusive interview with him! You can listen to this episode as a podcast when it’s released tomorrow on Apple Podcasts, Pandora, Spotify, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome back to another week of KK&F! This week’s guest, Jordan Chariton, is an independent reporter known for his coverage of left movements and protests like those at Standing Rock, the grassroots organizing around the Sanders campaign, and much more. Over repeated trips to Flint, Jordan has been on the ground, understanding how local government actively covered up its failure to protect the public, poisoning the Flint community as a result of its active negligence. Now, we’re having him on the show to talk about his new book on the corruption he exposed.We hope you’ll enjoy this urgent and serious conversation revealing the true story of what happened in Flint, Michigan before and after the government announced the water crisis, how the local community continues to be affected by the tragedy, and who’s still paying attention to the suffering of working-class people when national public interest has long since turned away. We’re so grateful to Jordan for sharing his necessary reporting and insight with us. This episode will be available as a podcast tomorrow on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

What is classical liberalism? We get into the weeds with Joshua Reed Eakle of Project Liberal. Hearing “Project Liberal,” you might anticipate something cooked up by the American Democratic Party. But this is different: Joshua is making the case for a political and economic system governed by principles of free trade and competition. As per his own admission, it’s not a system premised on equality. It’s an assumption of the classical liberal worldview that under conditions of economic competition, not everyone will prosper. Rather, those whose skills the market favors will thrive, and those who can’t compete will live in relative want. When Joshua talks about classical liberalism embracing change, he’s pointing to its dynamic responsiveness to the development of technology, wants of the consumer, skills of the workforce, and more. That’s a responsiveness, though, ungoverned by human needs (as opposed to the wants of those with money to spend).Is there a better way? We make the case for social democracy in our debate with our guest, and we think you’ll be interested. You can listen to this episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Our guest this week, Jesse Ventura, former star wrestler, Governor of Minnesota, and Green Party presidential candidate, talks about the collusion between Dems and Republicans, his electoral history, the corruption of money in politics, and the shortcomings of third-party runs in the current presidential election cycle. He’s been on the show before to discuss these issues, and we’re excited to have him back years on to discuss how the rigamarole of American party politics has evolved (or devolved) since then. We’ve also heard an increasing number of attacks on Tim Walz from the far right, which takes issue with his history securing free meals for schoolchildren, supporting gay students at the high school where he was a teacher, and more. From one former Governor of Minnesota to the current one, Jesse fires back at the right in Walz’s defense and shows how “weird” his conservative detractors really are.Thanks for tuning in! You can listen to this podcast tomorrow on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

In Episode 187 of KK&F, we sit down with your favorite Twitter account Ettingermentum to talk about Kamala and the Democrats’ political fortunes for 2024. Back when Biden had just landed a real dud of a debate performance in late June, you’ll remember that his fellow Dems were quick to criticize, and a few started calling for his exit from the 2024 Democratic ticket. Kamala Harris, his successor to the presidency and his current VP, seemed like the natural choice for his replacement. But part of the Twittersphere also sounded concerns about Kamala. Could she appease centrists wanting nothing to fundamentally change *and* an increasingly vocal left critical of Biden’s refusal to adopt broadly popular social programs?With our friend Ettingermentum, we look at the polling and see why the predictions of Kamala’s detractors didn’t end up bearing out. There were no tradeoffs to be made between Biden and Kamala: his base has moved to support her, where voters more leery of the aging, anti-progress Biden have proved more likely to back the Kamala-Walz ticket. Why is this? And will it be enough to carry her over the finish line in November? You can get answers to all these big questions in our wide-ranging deep dive of a conversation, Episode 186 of KK&F. This episode will be available tomorrow on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

When we last convened for an episode of KK&F, Kamala was still looking to fill the VP slot on the Democratic ticket. Since then, VP pick Tim Walz has received an outpouring of enthusiasm from the left-of-center and relief from progressives, but at the same time, the right has looked for weak points to hit him on (and it must be said, Walz doesn’t make it as easy as Vance does). Now, after some comments from J.D. Vance calling Walz’s service and dedication into question, the right is attackingWalz, who served for over twenty years in the National Guard before deciding not to complete the preparation to retire as a command sergeant major. By his own admission, Walz was partially motivated by the desire to make political statements about events like the Iraq War. So it’s not that Walz has the kind of tawdry history in his service career that the right is implying — but it’s sure to be only one scandal the right tries to manufacture before November.Omar and Kyle also speak at length about the awful revelations regarding the Israeli detention camps, where Palestinian prisoners are brutalized and sexually assaulted (as recently released footage documents), and about the Biden admin’s position on and response to this information. As they point out, Democrats and Republicans are in a perpetual race to see who can support Netanyahu’s genocidal regime more, and the right’s tactic is to paint Democrats as antisemitic, a claim that Democrats often scramble to reject in the wrong ways. They also discuss developing political crises in the region: at this point, is war with Iran inevitable?Thanks for tuning in. You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

In her comments on the current state of the ‘24 race and on the current Biden presidency, this week’s guest, Green Party candidate Jill Stein, talks us through what would come after a ceasefire for her administration. To her, it’s vital that the U.S. joins negotiations with a strict adherence to international law, not clear and bloodthirsty favoritism for Israel, as is the current policy. It must recognize the ‘67 borders drawn for the region and demand an end to the occupation in Gaza and throughout all of Palestine, as well as a removal of all troops. Jill points out that threatening to support a boycott could be a necessary and effective tactic to ensure Israel’s compliance if it does not follow guidelines for a lasting peace. The flow of weapons from America to Israel must, above all, be stopped.Jill Stein, as always, has insightful takes on the latest developments in national and international politics, and we delve into them in this wide-ranging interview, including Jill’s vision for her campaign following Biden’s exit and Kamala’s entrance, Trump’s racist remarks in a recent interview, and more. You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

The old Kamala is back. That’s our guest Cenk Uygur’s pronouncement as he glosses Kamala’s shifting fortunes over the course of her political career. Initially favored as a rising star in the Democratic Party, Kamala looked like an early favorite for the nomination in the 2020 cycle, sweeping the first debate, before things seemed to go wrong suddenly and without clear cause. As Krystal points out, she’s a cautious kind of politician, and the moves she made for the presidency toward the end of her unsuccessful campaign seemed out of touch and lackluster. Now, she seems to be hitting many of the right notes again for a liberal audience exasperated by the uncharismatic and ineffectual Biden. But will it be enough for voters determined not to continue voting in supporters of Zionism and genocide? Will Kamala successfully differentiate herself from Biden’s tremendously unpopular and cruel unconditional backing of Israel?We talk about all of this and more in Episode 184 of KKF! Join us on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and more for the podcast release of this episode. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Compared to the tired, infuriating binary of Biden-Trump, our guest this week, Libertarian Party candidate Chase Oliver, has his pitch ready: “I'm under the age of 80, I speak in complete sentences, I'm not a convicted felon.” Indeed, Oliver’s age, opposition to two-party politics, anti-war political commitments, and more make him, for many voters, a viable alternative to Biden-Trump. Browse his website and you’ll see that he’s eager to work with states to decriminalize abortion, but also supports the Hyde Amendment, banning public funding from being used for abortions. In other words, his platform encompasses a number of positions traditionally associated with left and right, informed by his support for personal freedoms and wariness toward a controlling government.In this episode of KKF, we chat with Chase about his analysis of the 2024 election, who he expects to be running against, what his path to the White House will be, and more. Thanks for tuning in — you can listen to this episode as a playlist when it’s released on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Well, folks… In the words of a Democratic House member, “I picked the wrong day to stop sniffing glue.” Thursday wasn’t the time to be a sentient, rational person with coherent thoughts about our country’s strategy and future — that held true for the presidential debate audience and for its two participants. Exchanging blows over golf handicaps and engaging in some he-said-he-said over Trump’s alleged “suckers and losers” comment about veterans, Biden and Trump did an admirable job of avoiding serious discussion of childcare policy, climate change, and more. Biden revealed more of the same in his unconditional support for Israel, while Trump clung to violently xenophobic rhetoric in his comments on immigration (which he made as frequently as possible). When we think of the figureheads of the Democratic Party, we can’t help but think of people like Debbie Wasserman Schultz, whose commandeering of the DNC cemented much of the party elitism and anti-democracy that has brought us the fatally flawed Biden 2024 candidacy. That’s why we’re so excited to speak this week with Jen Perelman, who’s challenging Debbie to take over as representative for Florida’s 25th district. In our wide-ranging conversation, we chat with Jen about her vision for the district and her substantive political differences with her opponent, and much more.Listen to this week’s episode on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and other streaming platforms. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

With this week’s guest, Briahna Joy Gray, we discuss the upcoming debate and the two main presidential candidates’ respective prospects. But we also dive into Briahna’s recent firing at The Hill, with her insight into why this is part of a larger, worrying trend.Briahna takes us through her experience at The Hill, why questioning a guest about her Zionist beliefs led to the loss of professional opportunities, the political landscape of Palestine advocacy in media right now, and much more in this exclusive interview. We’re thrilled to have her on the show, and we hope you’ll enjoy the conversation! You can listen in on Spotify, Substack, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Annelle Sheline, our guest this week, previously worked in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor in Near Eastern Affairs. She had only been there a year when she decided to publicly resign. Annelle tells us that while she was unsure of the impact her resignation would have, since she was a relatively junior employee, others encouraged her to reconsider and to go public even though they could not do the same.According to Annelle, although the number of people who have taken the action she took is relatively small, a larger number of American government workers have more quietly resigned — or even retired early — out of refusal to condone the Biden admin’s aid of Israel’s genocide in Gaza. The thought of burning all professional bridges in a “one-company town,” she notes, dissuades many people from doing so. It requires throwing out all one’s professional connections and work experience. Annelle believes she’s relatively lucky to be able to return to her academic background in think tanks. Still, some of those who don’t resign, publicly or quietly, have been writing anonymous letters and joining protests. There may not be sufficient rejection of Biden’s genocidal Israel policy among governmental workers. But the number of dissenters is growing.You can listen to this conversation as a podcast on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Ben Norton is our guest this week, talking to us about the context and implications of the recent presidential election in Mexico. Claudia Sheinbaum will be taking office after running on a platform involving the alleviation of poverty and the expansion of social support systems. It’s thrilling to think about what she and her administration are prepared to do for the working people of Mexico, and this election provides an important example for progressives in the United States looking to follow suit. One major question that comes up in our conversation with Ben is how much political change Sheinbaum will be able to effect in the presidency — given the more conservative tendencies of the United States under Biden. As the U.S. is a global hegemonic force capable of preventing the solution of social and economic problems it’s produced for neighbor nations, we discuss with Ben if Sheinbaum will be able, as president, to tackle the issues that matter most to Mexicans.This episode is also available on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and more! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Welcome back to KK&F, where we’re joined by Norman Finkelstein to go behind the scenes on the prosecution of Israel in the international courts. South Africa, according to Norm, has repeatedly showed up to the courts demanding new provisional measures, and while none were given in February, the courts judged in March that the situation had sufficiently deteriorated to require new measures. Then, as human rights advocates and organizations across the world began in May to raise the alarm about Israel’s planned offensive in Rafah (which has since caused unthinkable suffering and devastation), South Africa continued to press the case against Israel.Israel has been furious about the allegations brought against them, insisting that their slaughter of thousands of Palestinians only amounts to a few problems that don’t add up to a humanitarian crisis. The challenge for South Africa and other entities sympathetic to Gaza’s plight, Norm points out, is that the court has been unsure who to believe in these exchanges. Now, as Israel continues to deny the existence of a humanitarian crisis and images of unbelievable horror and pain pour out of Rafah, the court has said in no uncertain terms that it doesn’t believe Israel any more.What does this mean for further proceedings, and for potential prosecution of Bibi and the other war criminals? We talk through all of this and more with Norman Finkelstein this week. You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Thanks for tuning in to Episode 175 of KK&F with Ken Roth. A growing number of countries support arresting Netanyahu for Israel’s grievous crimes against humanity in the ongoing genocide in Gaza. Biden stands alone in the way he has used his position of power to shut down critique, and now judicial proceedings, against Netanyahu. He’s made it clear the U.S. won’t play the role it’s promised to play as a world power in upholding international law. This reveals the total hypocrisy in the U.S.’s interpretation of what global leadership requires. But sadly, because of the vested financial interest our country has made in the genocide, it doesn’t come as a surprise, either.We sat down with Ken Roth to unpack the case the ICC is making against Netanyahu and how successful it’s likely to be, what kind of international consensus is building around it, and whether Biden’s refusal to cooperate will be a major hindrance. Ken’s an expert on this topic, so we think you’ll appreciate his essential insight! You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Podcasts, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

In the multi-track beef that’s unfolded in the past few months between rappers Kendrick Lamar and Drake, reputations have been tarnished, #1 hits have been released, and parents have been pulled into the fray. Beginning in late March with “Like That,” the beef now encompasses nine songs (and counting?), giving each rapper a platform to call his opponent’s character into question, slight his rapping skills, and diminish his place of importance in modern pop culture. How did this all start, and where will it end?We tackle these questions with music critic Anthony Fantano, who leads us through the backstory and gives us a breakdown of this explosive back-and-forth. We hope you’ll enjoy this fresh new pop-culture focus on KK&F, and we can’t wait to hear what you think. You can listen to this episode as a podcast when it’s released tomorrow on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe

Hundreds of people around the country, largely on college campuses, have been arrested and assaulted by police for peacefully engaging in pro-Palestine encampments. The persecution of these people, and the infringement of their First Amendment rights, reveals how solidly our political establishment backs Israel at any cost, and how willing it is to compromise the so-called foundational values of this country in order to avoid challenging Netanyahu’s genocidal campaign in Palestine. There have been far too few courageous voices in American politics taking on this status quo. Jill Stein is one of those voices, and in our exclusive interview, we check in with her about the shocking details of her arrest, her ongoing advocacy for Palestine, and how it fits into her view for the presidency.On this episode of KK&F, we have the opportunity to talk to Jill about what a third-party, pro-Palestine presidency would mean for the nation, how she plans to fight this uphill battle, and why fighting back against two-party hegemony is more important than ever. You can listen to this episode as a podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, and more. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit krystalkyleandfriends.substack.com/subscribe