From LeverNews.com — Lever Time is the flagship podcast from the investigative news outlet The Lever. Hosted by award-winning journalist, Oscar-nominated writer...
Fifteen years ago this week, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down a ruling that fundamentally changed American politics — In a 5-4 judgment in Citizens United v FEC, the court struck down restrictions on corporate spending in elections and paved the way for the mountains of dark money in our politics today. But there’s more.In The Lever’s recent series Master Plan, David Sirota and a team of journalists dove deep into the litigious roots of the Citizens United case, starting with the nearly-forgotten story of a small-town Indiana lawyer, as well as the vast political consequences of the high court’s landmark decision. Today on Lever Time, we’re sharing that episode with listeners to mark the anniversary of the ruling.
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Oligarchy Now
Donald Trump is back — and this time, he’s bringing corporate America. Trump’s decisive victory in November sent a shockwave through corporate C-suites. Now, Trump is preparing to outsource much of his governing to a small cabal of the nation’s wealthiest people. In anticipation, many of the nation’s most powerful CEOs have pledged loyalty to Trump. That includes Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who are funding his inauguration festivities and reportedly sitting with Trump’s cabinet during his inauguration. To make sense of it all, David Sirota and senior podcast producer Arjun Singh sit down with David Dayen, executive editor of The American Prospect, and Ryan Grim, co-founder of Drop Site News, discuss the power players in Trump’s orbit and the state of the nation he’s about to inherit on a special Inauguration Day episode of Lever Time.
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How America Created Cities Built To Burn (Part 2)
Los Angeles is infamous for its sprawling urban landscape that has prioritized low-density housing, often at the behest of the state’s powerful real estate industry. Despite the known risks of building in fire zones, developers continued to do so with the approval and encouragement of government regulators. But in the wake of the devastating fires in L.A., some are questioning the wisdom of urban sprawl, particularly in California. Today on Lever Time, senior podcast producer Arjun Singh unpacks how California’s housing policies contributed to the devastation of L.A.’s recent wildfires, and how the city can rebuild in an era when climate disaster is becoming ever more common.
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The L.A. Fires And The Uninsurable Earth (Part 1)
The Los Angeles fires pose huge questions about the future of life in America: Where is it safe to live? How can you protect yourself from such disasters? Is home insurance even obtainable anymore? And will our society finally respond in a serious way to the climate emergency?In the first of a two-part Lever Time series, David Sirota speaks with New York Times writer David Wallace-Wells, New Yorker staff writer Elizabeth Kolbert, and former California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones about what makes this blaze different from past fires — and how we prepare for the next one.
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MAGA’s Civil War Over Immigration
Over the holidays, when President-elect Donald Trump said he would appoint an Indian-American immigrant to serve in the White House, key members of Trump’s base were apoplectic. On X, formerly Twitter, prominent Trump supporters like Steve Bannon and Laura Loomer argued the move was antithetical to Trump’s pledge to scale back immigration. That put them at odds with billionaire advisor Elon Musk and other tech executives who are leaning on Trump to embrace the use of H-1B visas, which allow highly skilled foreign workers to work in the U.S. and have proven to be a boon for the tech industry. Today on Lever Time, senior podcast producer Arjun Singh unpacks the history of high-skilled immigration to the United States and why the matter has become a flash point within Trump’s coalition.
From LeverNews.com — Lever Time is the flagship podcast from the investigative news outlet The Lever. Hosted by award-winning journalist, Oscar-nominated writer, and Bernie Sanders' 2020 speechwriter David Sirota, Lever Time features exclusive reporting from The Lever’s newsroom, high-profile guest interviews, and expert analysis from the sharpest minds in media and politics.
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