How Both Parties Failed East Palestine

Episode 113 Sneak Peek

Another train derailment this week, and Trump is on his way to East Palestine, OH, to make the case that he has the political vision to address the crisis there, gearing up for the ‘24 presidential election (which he’s already thrown his hat into). Never mind the fact that Trump played a central role in creating the conditions that set up Norfolk Southern trains to wreak havoc across the country: he slashed regulations for oil trains and prevented the implementation of an Obama-era rule that would require the updating of trains’ braking designs from actual nineteenth-century technology. And while a far-right leader is trying to cash in on the tragedy caused in part by his own deregulation, of course, centrist Democrats are hardly anywhere to be seen — Biden himself has not made a visit, and it may not surprise you that Pete Buttigieg hasn’t either. (He’ll do it when the “time is right” — maybe waiting for the air to clear, though East Palestine residents don’t have that luxury.)

This week we’re happy to have Alphabet Boys Podcast’s Trevor Aaronson on the show to discuss a story we mentioned recently. Trevor has reported on the invasion of Denver’s Racial Justice Movement by an infiltrator paid by the CIA, a shocking and urgent piece you can read here at the Intercept. Now we’re having Trevor join us on the show to talk about how the FBI put actual government resources into suppressing and threatening racial justice organizing during the demonstrations of 2020. We hope you’ll join us. Paying subscribers can catch the video of our convo when it’s released here Friday, and everyone else can tune in for the audio when it’s out Saturday on Pandora, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and more.