Everybody knows our president is a liar. This time I talk about two particularly toxic lies he continues to tell - lies that bear on our current crisis and what we can expect in the weeks and months to come.

With an accusation of sexual violence lodged against presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden, this seems like a good time to consider his relative merits as a candidate and where this crazy campaign is taking us. I try to apply some recent historical perspective to the phenomenon of Biden as well as our successes and failures as a mass progressive movement. 

More about this issue:

If the federal government is inclined towards helping state and local governments survive the current crisis, there's something they could easily do that would make a big difference. I talk about that, as well as my recent trip to the hospital. 

In this episode I talk about where progressives might go from here, and recommend that any path we choose leads through a voting booth. Note: this is not a boomer lecture, just some thoughts on where we've been and where we're headed.  

In this episode of Strange Sound I talk about the s-word. No, not THAT s-word ... the other one. Socialism! You know, the thing that keeps saving capitalism every ten years or so. That one. 

Learn more: Hear some truly smart people talk about this topic at https://www.democracyatwork.info/

Why did Chris Matthews, Whoopi Goldberg and others freak out over comments Bernie Sanders made about Cuba? I take a close look at this sore spot and offer my humble opinion on what's behind it all.   

What puts the "forever" in our forever wars? In this episode of Strange Sound, I offer my perspective on two key factors that keep these conflicts going and going and .... going.  

How much of a difference can a good ground game make in an election? This episode of Strange Sound offers my personal perspective on this question, starting with the McGovern campaign and the strangest introductory speech ever made. 

Learn more:

Here's the David Dayen interview on Majority Report that I referenced in the show: Majority Report Feb 10, 2020. 

As presidential candidates, both Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have put forward wealth tax proposals. In this episode of Strange Sound I share some thoughts on this issue and discuss the current wealth tax that almost everyone pays but no one talks about.  

Learn More:

Check out the fun, fun wealth tax tool posted by economists Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman at https://taxjusticenow.org

In this first episode of Strange Sound, I take a brief stab at examining some of the claims made by presidential candidates about the virtues of employer-based health insurance.