The Atlantic Current

Now clearly the favorite son, Donald Trump returns to New York City aiming to make a name for himself. But a rocky start and an infamous scandal follow. Yet through connections, corruption, and some will of his own, Donald Trump is able to both close his first major deal and begin to catch the eye of a New York media all too willing to enable him.

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Tull sparks another social media controversy for an Irish politician — this time, when TD Niall Collins replies to legitimate concern about the Aughinish Alumina plant with a “yawn” emoji.

After covering the story in Ep. 53 - which one listener called the “best podcast I have listened to” on Aughinish and its Russian shipments - Tull and Vince take the chance to update listeners on new developments. Private and public investigations are closing in, yet the apparent strategy from Fianna Fáil and the government is to simply take the middle road — pleasing no one, and accomplishing little.

See show notes here: https://atlanticcurrent.substack.com/

Tull and Vince complete the incredible story of Graham Platner, and explore its aftereffects. Platner’s collapse highlights both the ineptitude of national Democrats, and the battle for the party’s soul and direction. The two discuss why Platner’s story has faded — despite the most serious allegation against a major political candidate in over a century — and the lesson provided by the late senator Lindsey Graham.

A clip from Tull showing Sinn Féin MEP Lynn Boylan lamenting the inability to speak Irish in an EU meeting — only to prove her own inability to do so — has gone mega-viral, and sparks the first Atlantic Current emergency podcast.

Tull and Vince have some fun with the mix of indignation and ignorance, along with the possibility of literally dying from embarrassment, but also probe the repeated and bizarre missteps Sinn Féin keeps making around Gaeilge.

The stunning rise and collapse of Graham Platner is one of the most fascinating political stories of the decade. In less than a year, Platner went from anonymity to being a front-runner for a United States seat and potential presidential contender to ignominy. And while his personal failings make for great drama (and some dark humor), his story also reflects key themes in politics nationally and worldwide — while also potentially having a ripple effect around the globe.

At thirteen years old, Donald Trump is sent to military school. At home, his older brother Fred Jr. — handsome, charming, and skilled — is set to join and eventually take over the family business. But battles between father and son, new loves, and the beginnings of an all-too-common disease will change the course of Fred Jr.’s life. It will also open a path for Donald to become the new golden boy of the family — and wind up with the immense wealth and connections of Fred Trump Sr. at his back.

For the first time, Tull and Vince record in person from an undisclosed location in Ireland. The witty, wide-ranging conversation covers America’s 250th birthday (and why Vince is fine missing it), a potential scandal in Galway, and the collapse in cryptocurrency prices.

As a politician, Donald Trump has been analyzed, covered, and discussed more than anyone in modern history. But that discussion has obscured a fascinating pre-political career in which Trump had a huge impact on American culture — and reflected so many of the major trends across the country in the postwar period.

In Part I of this multi-episode event, Vince and Tull look at Donald Trump’s childhood, why Manhattan was always the goal, and how the dynamics of the Trump family shaped Donald Trump as an entertainer and, eventually, as a president.

Tull and Vince tour a number of stories that highlight broader problems across the United States and Europe. Manna’s decision to pause operations in Ireland leads to claims that the country has become a “vetocracy” and highlights a rising backlash against tech.

In the North, Jeffrey Donaldson faces punishment for his crimes. In the US, Republicans continue to argue — with hysterically poor evidence — that others should as well. But the episode closes on a lighter note, with a look at the success of the World Cup and some timely craic on what it tells us about Europeans and Americans.

Tull details the stunning — and infuriating — history of Aughinish Alumina in County Limerick. While the plant has made international news amid revelations that its output appears to be supporting the Russian war machine, the larger scandal may well center on the health of area citizens and the effect on their environment. It’s a scandal underpinned by four decades of indifference from and neglect by Irish politicians — up to and including the current Taoiseach himself.