In just five years, the story of the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the US capitol has already seen more bad faith reinterpretations than most events get over the course of generations. Fortunately, Mary Clare Jalonick has brought a diverse set of voices together in her new book, Storm at the Capitol: An Oral History of January 6th (PublicAffairs, 2026). In this episode, Mary joins us to talk about her experience as a journalist who was on the ground that day covering Congress for the Associated Press, what she learned from talking to others about their experiences, and the core facts about the insurrection that should underpin any serious discussion of that day.
This episode was edited by Gary Fletcher.
The Trump administration’s decision to depose Nicolas Maduro and take control of Venezuela’s natural resources may have been rash, but to those familiar with the history of US-Latin American relations, it looks familiar. In this episode, Naval War College Associate Professor of Strategy & Policy, Michelle Paranzino, joins us to break dow n the greater history of US foreign policy in Latin America and how that can inform good policy moving forward.
The views expressed by Dr. Paranzino are her own and do not reflect the views of her employer or any other part of the US Government.
This episode was edited by Gary Fletcher.
The Monroe Doctrine has provided Presidents and foreign policy leaders with the rhetorical justification for their actions going back as far as James K. Polk, but the symbolic power attributed to the doctrine is far more substantial than the impact it had when it was published in 1823. In this episode, historian Jay Sexton walks us through the evolution of the Monroe Doctrine in political rhetoric, its implications for modern US foreign policy and why he claims that, in its original form, it amounted to a “nothingburger.”
Dr. Jay Sexton is the Rich and Nancy Kinder Chair of Constitutional Democracy, Professor of History and Director of the Kinder Institute at the University of Missouri. He has published extensively on the Monroe Doctrine, including The Monroe Doctrine: Empire and Nation in Nineteenth-Century America (Hill and Wang, 2011) and “The Monroe Doctrine in an Age of Global History” (Diplomatic History, 2023).
This episode was edited by Ben Sawyer
Worried about money in American politics? We are too, and Jeff Clements is offering up a solution. Jeff is CEO of American Promise, a non-partisan organization dedicated to passing the For Our Freedom amendment to the Constitution, which would differentiate between people and corporations, and allow states to pass their own campaign finance laws. In this episode, he breaks down the history of campaign finance laws, key moments, such as the Citizens United Case, that have brought us to where we are now, and the steps his team have already taken to help add another amendment to the US Constitution.
If you want to sign the Citizen Pledge or just learn more about American Promise, make sure to check out AmericanPromise.net.
This episode was edited by Ben Sawyer.