🦩 This episode originally aired on May 16, 2025. Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs

Chas Freeman is one of the most insightful voices in U.S. foreign policy, with a distinguished career as a diplomat and a deep expertise in U.S.-China relations. In this conversation with Nathan J. Robinson, Freeman offers a searing critique of America's current approach to diplomacy, the global balance of power, and its role in key international conflicts.

Freeman challenges the pervasive "China threat" narrative, arguing that the U.S. has misunderstood China's rise and wrongly positioned it as an existential threat. He compares the foreign policy approaches of Presidents Biden and Trump, highlighting the surprising continuities in their handling of China. Freeman also deconstructs the oversimplified and inflammatory discourse surrounding Taiwan, calling for a more nuanced understanding. Shifting to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Freeman explains how U.S. diplomatic failures helped fuel the war and why America’s actions have deepened the crisis. Finally, Freeman offers a sharp critique of U.S. policy towards Israel, urging the U.S. to stop enabling Israel’s expansionist policies and to push for a real peace agreement with the Palestinians.

0:00-6:03 The Decline of American Diplomacy

6:03-15:26: China

15:26-18:30: Biden v. Trump Approach to China

18:30-23:58: Taiwan

23:58-35:07: Russia/Ukraine

35:07-49:09: Israel/Palestine

🤝 Buy Chas Freeman's Books: https://chasfreeman.net/books-and-publications/

🦩 This episode originally aired on May 14, 2025. Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs

Ted Rall is one of the most influential political cartoonists on the left today. In his new book “What’s Left: Radical Solutions for Radical Problems," he presents a manifesto for left-wing politics in 2025, blending incisive analysis with his political cartoons.

Rall outlines what it means to be a leftist in an era where the Democratic Party has abandoned progressive ideals. He argues that the left must focus on real, substantive demands — from healthcare and the defense budget to a livable wage, offering both a critique of the past and a vision for what the future could hold if we organize around principles that actually improve people's lives.

0:00-7:04 A Manifesto for the Left

7:04-11:49 Defining Core Leftist Values

11:49-19:20 The Power of Simplifying Complex Ideas

19:20-27:48 Liberals vs. Leftists

27:48-41:17 Key Priorities for the Left

41:17-46:58 The Broad Appeal of Left-Wing Ideas

🎨 Buy Ted's Book: https://rall.com/2025/05/01/book-ted-rall-whats-left

🦩SUBSCRIBE TO CURRENT AFFAIRS MAGAZINE: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership

🦩 PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/c/CurrentAffairs

🦩THE MYTH OF AMERICAN IDEALISM: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/738224/the-myth-of-american-idealism-by-noam-chomsky-and-nathan-j-robinson/

🦩 This episode originally aired on April 18, 2025. Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs

America is in crisis, but it doesn’t have to be this way. Around the world, other countries have already solved many of the problems we’re told are unsolvable here: from unaffordable healthcare to lack of parental leave, crumbling infrastructure, climate disaster, and more. So why can’t the U.S. do what other nations have already done?

We’re joined by journalist and lecturer Natasha Hakimi Zapata, author of Another World Is Possible: Lessons for America from Around the Globe, a new book that explores how other countries have tackled problems the U.S. treats as unsolvable. From universal healthcare in the U.K. to paid family leave in Norway, public housing in Singapore, and green energy in Uruguay, Zapata shows what’s possible and how it was achieved. She traces the political fights, the movements, and the leadership that made these victories real, offering lessons for Americans ready to demand more. The solutions exist. The question is whether we’re willing to fight for them. 

0:00–15:17 The Fight to Create the NHS 

15:17–21:44 Parental Leave & Childcare That Actually Works 

21:44–27:00 Why These Aren’t “Handouts” 

27:00–29:32 How Singapore Made Public Housing Work 

29:32–33:52 Estonia’s Model of Digital Democracy 

33:52–36:47 Uruguay’s Green Energy Revolution 

36:47–45:23 How to Win These Fights in the U.S. 

🌎 Get the book: https://www.amazon.com/Another-World-Possible-Lessons-America/dp/162097844X 

🦩SUBSCRIBE TO CURRENT AFFAIRS MAGAZINE: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership 

🦩 PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/c/CurrentAffairs 

🦩THE MYTH OF AMERICAN IDEALISM: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/738224/the-myth-of-american-idealism-by-noam-chomsky-and-nathan-j-robinson/

In “On Democracies and Death Cults,” Murray offers a straightforward “good versus evil” account of the Israel-Palestine conflict. He does this by excluding every piece of information that undercuts his thesis and even spreading outright falsehoods.

🦚 Read the article: https://www.currentaffairs.org/news/douglas-murrays-expertise-is-a-sham 

🦩SUBSCRIBE TO CURRENT AFFAIRS MAGAZINE: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership 

🦩 PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/c/CurrentAffairs 

🦩THE MYTH OF AMERICAN IDEALISM: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/738224/the-myth-of-american-idealism-by-noam-chomsky-and-nathan-j-robinson/ 
 

🦩 This episode originally aired on May 6, 2025. Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs

Lorne Michaels might be the most powerful figure in American comedy — and yet, most people barely know who he is. In this episode, New Yorker editor Susan Morrison joins us to discuss her new book Lorne: The Man Who Invented Saturday Night Live, a deeply reported, wildly entertaining biography of the man behind SNL. We explore how Michaels built a cultural institution from scratch, reinvented the variety show format, and launched the careers of generations of comedy legends — all while staying deliberately out of the spotlight. Morrison explains how Michaels has shaped American humor and politics, maintained control over a live show for nearly 50 years, and earned a reputation as one of the most inscrutable and effective bosses in showbiz.

0:00–1:55 Spy Magazine vs. Trump

1:55–14:54 Why Lorne Michaels?

14:54–28:50 Reinventing the Variety Show

28:50–31:28 How SNL Shaped Comedy

31:28–34:21 SNL and Politics

34:21–38:01 Lorne’s Management Style

38:01–43:20 Favorite Sketches

🎭 Lorne: The Man Who Invented Saturday Night Live https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/532520/lorne-by-susan-morrison/

🦩SUBSCRIBE TO CURRENT AFFAIRS MAGAZINE: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership

🦩 PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/c/CurrentAffairs

🦩THE MYTH OF AMERICAN IDEALISM: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/738224/the-myth-of-american-idealism-by-noam-chomsky-and-nathan-j-robinson/

🦩 This episode originally aired on April 29, 2025. Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs!

Liberalism and socialism are often treated as opposites — but what if they’re actually part of the same fight for freedom, equality, and democracy? We’re joined by political theorist Matt McManus, author of The Political Theory of Liberal Socialism, a new book that challenges conventional narratives about liberalism, socialism, and the history of political philosophy.

McManus explains how thinkers from John Stuart Mill to John Rawls argued that true freedom requires not just political rights, but freedom from domination in the workplace and economy. He also addresses the deep confusion around the word "liberal" today — why many leftists recoil at liberalism after decades of association with hollow technocrats like Matt Yglesias — and why the older liberal tradition, rooted in egalitarian principles, is worth retrieving.

0:00–6:45 Why Political Philosophy Matters

6:45–23:34 Recovering the Radical Roots of Liberalism

23:34–27:20 John Rawls Was More Radical Than You Think

27:20–32:30 Can Liberalism Be Saved From Its Hypocrisy?

32:30–38:42 What Separates Liberal Socialists From Other Socialists

38:42–46:06 Why Understanding Liberalism and Socialism Still Matters Today

🌹 The Political Theory of Liberal Socialism: https://www.routledge.com/The-Political-Theory-of-Liberal-Socialism/McManus/p/book/9781032647234

🦩SUBSCRIBE TO CURRENT AFFAIRS MAGAZINE: https://www.currentaffairs.org/membership

🦩 PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/c/CurrentAffairs

🦩THE MYTH OF AMERICAN IDEALISM: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/738224/the-myth-of-american-idealism-by-noam-chomsky-and-nathan-j-robinson/

🦩 This episode originally aired on April 22, 2025. Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs

Most people never think twice about shrimp. But as it turns out, these creatures make up the majority of animals alive on farms at any given time—hundreds of billions every year. And the conditions they endure are often horrifying: overcrowding, eye mutilation, and inhumane slaughter methods are all standard practice. So why don’t we care?

We’re joined by Andrés Jiménez Zorrilla, chairman of the Shrimp Welfare Project. He walks us through the shocking scale of global shrimp farming, the mounting scientific evidence for shrimp sentience, and the practical reforms that can drastically reduce animal suffering.

0:00–5:20 Why We Care About Pandas But Not Shrimp

5:20–10:54 The Most Abused Animals on Earth

10:54–17:18 Can Shrimp Feel Pain?

17:18–22:36 Inside the Brutal World of Shrimp Farming

22:36–31:32 How We Can Make Shrimp Suffer Less

🦐 Yes, Shrimp Matter: https://asteriskmag.com/issues/09/yes-shrimp-matter

🦐 Shrimp Welfare Project: https://www.shrimpwelfareproject.org/

A bit of a change of pace for the CA podcast today: We're going to be doing SCIENCE instead of politics. We're joined by one of the world's leading popular science writers, physics professor Sean Carroll, whose bestselling books include The Big Picture: On the Origins of Life, Meaning, and the Universe Itself and Something Deeply Hidden: Quantum Worlds and the Emergence of Spacetime. His latest book is The Biggest Ideas in the Universe: Quanta and Fields.

Sean is here today to discuss how our understanding of the world around us has developed over time, how much stranger the world is than our "common sense" perceptions of it would indicate, and how laypeople with no background in the physical sciences can begin to grasp and appreciate the deepest hidden truths about the Universe. Sean is an eloquent spokesperson for the view that a godless universe can still be a poetic and beautiful one, and there may be more connections between the political and the physical than it first appears...

🦩 This episode originally aired on April 4, 2025. Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs!

Sophia Rosenfeld is a distinguished historian and the author of Common Sense: A Political History. She joins Nathan to discuss how the idea of “common sense” has been used as a political weapon—from Thomas Paine to Donald Trump. Rosenfeld explains how appeals to common sense can both empower ordinary people and shut down dissent, why the term has become central to right-wing populism, and how it helps mask deeply ideological claims as obvious truths. She also reflects on her new book, The Age of Choice, and the hidden politics behind the freedoms we take for granted.

0:00-6:04 How Trump uses "common sense" as a political weapon

6:04-16:15 How "common sense" is used to make radical ideas normalized

16:15-21:03 How "common sense" undermines expertise

21:03-27:57 What are the origins of "common sense?"

27:57-32:33 How "common sense" can be manipulated for good

32:33-39:25 The politics of “choice” and why freedom of choice isn’t always liberating

39:25-44:34 Is “common sense” real, or just a rhetorical tool?

🧠 Common Sense: A Political History https://www.amazon.com/Common-Sense-Political-Sophia-Rosenfeld/dp/0674057813

🧠 The Age of Choice: A History of Freedom in Modern Life https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691164717/the-age-of-choice?srsltid=AfmBOoqca43cL20XoW5ImlNs1_bkxT9eIkiK_I08g7sKYOv9yWo0yvE0

🦩 This episode originally aired on April 8, 2025. Get new episodes early at patreon.com/CurrentAffairs!

Zohran Mamdani represents the 36th District in the New York State Assembly. A member of the Democratic Socialists of America, he is currently running for mayor of New York City, hoping to unseat the controversial Eric Adams, who recently escaped federal corruption charges after signaling a willingness to help the Trump administration crackdown on immigrants. Mamdani is running on a platform of lowering the cost of living for New Yorkers. He joined Current Affairs editor-in-chief Nathan J. Robinson to discuss his city and his campaign.

0:00-6:12 What's the Deal With Eric Adams?

6:12-11:55 The Real Challenges Facing New Yorkers

11:55-14:43 The Rent is Too Damn High

14:43-19:48 How Zohran Plans to Win

19:48-21:59 Confronting Genocide from Local Office

21:59-26:51 Responding to Right-Wing Talking Points

26:51-29:56 Zohran's Vision for New York City

🗽 Zohran Mamdani's Website: https://www.zohranfornyc.com/