David Dayen: Consider the Vampire Squid
Nothing that so exposes Donald Trump as a snake oil salesman as the fact that he ran a campaign pitched at white working-class anger toward so-called globalism and then stacked …
Peter Andreas: Trump’s Wall Is Already Built
Donald Trump won the presidency in significant part by pledging to do something that his predecessors had already mostly accomplished: building a big, beautiful wall on the border with Mexico. …
Rick Lines: The drug war is winding down and heating up
The drug war is winding down and heating up all at the same time. States are legalizing recreational weed while prosecutors around the country are charging dealers, including small-time ones, …
Sarah Jones: What’s the Matter with Appalachia? Capitalism
What’s the matter with Appalachia? Many liberal elites think they know the answer. Since Trump’s campaign first took off, the region has become a symbol of all that is wrong …
Liza Featherstone on the Fight Against Lean-In Feminism
The Women’s March on Washington sent a clear message that women would be at the lead in battling the right in the years to come. But it left unresolved significant …
Dean Baker on Trump’s Tax Plan for the Rich
Why do Republicans only seem to care about deficits and debt when they’re trying to cut social welfare programs? Dan’s guest for this special episode is Dean Baker, co-director of …
Adam Johnson: All the fake news that’s fit to print
The media has become a part of the story like perhaps never before. Journalist probing has irritated our touchy president. But media outlets have also played a role in Trump’s …
Neoliberal vs. Neofascist in France
The Dig normally serves up ice cold, well-digested takes. Sometimes, however, something important happens and Dan finds someone who can help us understand it quickly. Last weekend’s election in France, …
Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor on Black Liberation and Socialism
Putting “black faces in high places,” scholar Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor argues, has not only failed to benefit the working class and poor black majority; it has actually harmed them by legitimating …
Mass incarceration is everywhere
Prisons don’t just keep inmates in; they keep the public out. Even at a moment when mass incarceration is under unprecedented criticism it is quite hard for people on the …