The core ideals of America are in peril, and the problem goes beyond just this election cycle. Despite all the doom and gloom, there is a path forward to get the country back on track. PoliticsGirl Leigh McGowan joins David Rothkopf to discuss her new book, A Return to Common Sense, and outline the ways to fix America before we really blow it. 

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Ronald Reagan is a near mythological figure in American politics — so how do we separate fact from fiction and reckon with his controversial legacy? Max Boot joins David Rothkopf to discuss his new book, Reagan: His Life and Legend, and how the 40th president’s journey from New Deal Democrat to conservative avatar paved the way for Donald Trump. 

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Why does our democracy work the way it does? While each founding father was critical to the story of American democracy, John Adams was fundamental to establishing many of the precedents we think of as law today. Presidential historian Lindsay Chervinsky joins David Rothkopf to discuss her new book, “Making the Presidency,” and how we’ve overcome challenges to democracy before.

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Modern day dictators a far cry from the autocracies of old. Modern day strongmen are backed by an elaborate network of financial structures, surveillance, propaganda, and crucially, other autocrats. Anne Applebaum joins David Rothkopf to discuss her newest book Autocracy, Inc., and share how democracies must reconfigure their foreign policy to combat this new threat.

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After more than two years, the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine grinds on. Yet the Ukrainian spirit remains as unshakeable as ever. Illia Ponomarenko joins David Rothkopf to discuss his book, “I Will Show You How It Was,” and share how Ukrainians and the world can draw inspiration from the earliest days of the conflict.

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The US can’t seem to figure out the Middle East. Decades of involvement in the region has had mixed results to say the least. So where did we go wrong? Steven Cook, author of the new book “The End of Ambition” joins David Rothkopf to explain America’s past, present, and future in the Middle East.

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The competitive relationship between the US and China manages to be both novel, and strikingly familiar. With shades of the Cold War, the potential for escalation is a constant threat. Dmitri Alperovitch joins David Rothkopf to discuss his book “World on the Brink” and how the US can win a Cold War with China.

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It’s safe to call Trump’s ongoing legal woes the trial of the century. At least for far. But what remains in store for the trial, and how likely is the prosecution to secure a conviction? Norm Eisen joins David Rothkopf to discuss his new guidebook to the trial, “Trying Trump,” and to breakdown both the trial so far and what comes next.

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Is the US in a new Cold War with Russia and China? The answer is more complicated than you may think, but David Sanger’s book “New Cold Wars” looks to provide an answer. Sanger joins David Rothkopf to explain how we got to this point in US relations with China and Russia and what makes these conflicts so new.

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Reading a politician’s memoir can tell you a lot about them, but reading between the lines can teach you even more. Carlos Lozada joins David to discuss his recently released “The Washington Book,” and share how to analyze memoirs and speeches to gain a deeper understanding of our politics and history.

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